, 1884-03-06
Fickings-

heavy SHOWS in the Rocky mountains
have prevented through traffic on the
Northern Pacific for five days. and 4
like delay VIII probably be caused by
washCuts from melted snow between
Ainsworth and Sprague-
Salt Lake polygamists make 10
secret of their violation Of the law in
the number Of their wives. The most
prominent men Ill Utah refrain from
registering as voters, and bOastingly
acknowledge that they are ineligible
as electors because of an excess of
the legal number Of wives. And yet,
though every man in Salt Lake
knows Just who the polygamists are.
and how many wives each has, legal
evidence canaot be found to convict
anybody of polygamy- Isn't this
little bit strange IS. +. Alta.
The CoEonist, government organ,
expresses intense Indignation at the
invasion of British territory, and the
hanging of the Indian murderer of
Bell. 1t says: Whatever may be the
uncertainties of justice in American
territory there are none here. That
if the Indian had been found guilty
he would have been hanged. 1t fur
ther says that the evidence at best
was only circumstantial and that the
man hanged may have been innocent.
1t styles the men who crossed the
border as marauders and murderers
and calls upon the authorities to de-
mand their extradition. It causes
much feeling here and will be the
subject of international correspond
ence.
The passage of the G. p R. loan
resolutions is a matter for congratu
lation. Not only has the road been
saved from falling into the hands of
the Grand Trunk, but it also has
been preserved from the rapacious
grasp of the American stockholders.
The government have stood by the
company, and the house has been
loyal to the government. Amajority
of II in a house of 2O6 shows how
firmly the Macdonald government
are seated and to what extent they
enjoy the confidence of house and
country. To have handed the railway
over to the Grand Trunk would have
created huge railway monopoly in
| the Dominion, and to have allowed
the road to fail into the hands of the
New Workers would have been to sac
rifice it for stock -iobbing purposes.
The government have acted wisely
and the house of commons has done
well in sustaining the government
policy.-Victoria COIoRiSt
The New York Erening Post
makes Il striking comparison between
the bench of New York and that OF
England, counting only the appeal
| judges, the supreme court of the
State,the superior, the common pleas
and city court of New York, it finds
seventy six judges of general juris-
diction to do the heavy work at law
of the five million inhabitants of the
State. And there is hardly a Judge
among them all but will admit that
he works very hard, while the ap-
peals bench is hopelessly behind in
its calendar. The English bench, on
the other hand, doing the legal work
incident to the largest city in the
world, and the people leading all
others in trade and commerce., con
sists of thirty three judges in all.
The population of England and
Wales was, in 1881 25,96S, ,2S6. Less
than half the number of judges nee
essary to the 100000 of people OF
of the State of New York, is sufficient
for nearly five times the number of
people in England.
1t is not yet possible to tell wheth-
er there is any considerable quantity
of gold in the Ceur d'Alene noun
tains or not People have been run
ming after what will very probably
prove phantom. A small quantity
of gold was taken out at one spot last
fall, and before any examination OF
the country, worth the name, could
be made, snow began to fall and ever
since, the elevated and rugged coun-
try in which the mines are supposed
to lie, has been buried SO deep that
no prospecting" has been possible
Yet men have been rushing in by
dozens and hundreds all winter.
When the snow disappears it may be
found that the district is a grand fail
ure. This indeed is a highly proba-
BILE result Such things have often
happened. During the winter of
1861 stories became prevalent here of
a wonderful find" of gold somewhere
IN the region of the upper Columbia.
People began to talk of the ''Colville
mines," and the excitement became
general. In the early spring of 1862
there was a general rush up the
Columbia, but as the crowds who had
taken the road for the mines an
preached the locality where the mines
were supposed to be the stories grew
thinner and thinner, till they vanished
at last into the air on the great pla-
teau of the Spokane. The gold hunt
ers couldn't find any mines, aud re
turned with lesson that did them
good. Nothing is more senseless than
one of these stampedes, and the pres
ent may not prove an exception
Oregonidn.
In his late annual report, the Com
missioner of Railroads, speaking of
the Northern Pacific, says:
NC uofelopIAenG OI IHe extensive
region tributary to this road has pro-
gressed rapidly during the year end
ing June 30, 1883. In Dakota the
number of homestead entries in
creased from 14,156, covering 2.2O8.-
26o acres, to 22,491, covering 3.267,-
~ acres, The number of timber
culture entries ran up from 9.36S,
covering 1,466,532 acres, to Il,566,
covering 1,765, ,259 acres, and the cash
sales by the Government increased
from 613,36S acres for S977, ,242. to
1.5l9,091 acres, for 3'1O9,3S7, making
total increase of public lands taken
up III the Territory of Dakota alone