FENIANS IN AMERICA.

Evening Star, Volume IX, Issue 2549, 19 April 1871, Page 2

FENIANS IN AMERICA.

The reception of the Fenians at New York was very amusing. The principal scene occurred on the arrival of the Cuba in the Hudson, and what took place is thus narrated: At New York, as *t all civilised ports, ships on arrival have to undergo examination by the health and custom house officials. The former are officials of the State of New York, appointed by a democratic governor; the lat'er are officials of the United States. Murphy and his Tammany rivals, therefore, each had representatives armed with full power to “first” board the vessel. It was in the dispute that sprang up between these two kinds of authority that all the fun transpired, Murphy, as collector of customs, claimed a right, in defence of the revenue of the United States, to “ first and exclusively ” board the Cuba; Carnochan, as health officer, claimed the same right, in defence of the public safety, and in the “holy name of humanity.” Those were the avowed bases of the struggle. The contest was. of course, really as to the “ who should take a hack (an image borrowed by a Bowery boy from the butcher business) at Hie Exiles first?” At last the Cuba was signalled, and the two parties set out in the fashion told as follows by a Now York paper “The Knights of St Patrick and Mr Mullaly embarked immediately, and the Fletcher flow off in the darkness with the grace of the Seagull. Pockets were thrown up from the s‘■earner. The Fletcher approached her. The Knights au l Mr Mullaly greeted their noble countrymen with Laid cheers. The hand struck up the Irish national airs, and the whole ocean seemed to roll with euthusiams. The Cuba steamed up to quarantine with the Fletcher under her quarter, the bauds playing, and the Knights and Mr Mullaly cheering. The Cuba fired a gun, and the Fletcher responded with three guns. The Cuba swung round with the stream and anchored. In an instant the Fletcher was at her side. “ ‘Cuba, there,’ yelled the* captain of the Fletcher, amid a blaze of _ “ ‘ What is it?’ ” auswero I a British officer, with two gold stripes on his sleeve. “ ‘ Heave us a lino,’ shouted the captain, amid another blaze of rockets. “ ‘Well, wc cawn’t take aline, you know,’ said the British officer. Have you a health officer on bo.-inr.* slum cd Dr Dwyer, who was on board the Fletcher. “ ‘ No,’ was the reply. “ • Well, I’m an assistant health officer. Heave a line quick. If you’ve a clean bill of health you can run up to the city to-night.' “ The line was thrown. “ While this conversation had been going on a revenue cutter bad crawled out of the gloom of the l ong Island shore, and sneaked up under the port quarter of the Cuba. It was the Bronx. She had on board General Grant’s collector, and many other 1 cderal officials. “ ‘ Steamer there! What steamer is that?” shouted the captain of the Bronx. “ ‘ Cuba,’ was the response. “ Stand by to take a line from us,* roared the captain.

“‘Well, we cawn’t take a line, you know,’ answered one of the Cuba’s officers. “Here something appeared above the rail of the Bronx, which resembled a Dutch cheese or a full moon. *My hiss, v. hat’s that- ? said the Cuba s officer, - otto race. , “‘l’m the collector of the port of Aew York,’ said the full moon above tho rail, ‘and I want to get aboard tbc Cuba.” This was tho opening scone "f the comedy. When onco the two parlies were fairly aboard they soon came 10 loggerheads. A representative of each made a speech of congratulation to the arrived heroes, and proceeded naturally from that to mutual reproaches and recriminations. O’Oorman, the Tnmmanyite, and himself a “man of dS, said that Murphy’s interference was nngentlemanly and impertinent. 1 his was the signal for a general verbal row, which it is said, degenerated, in severa 1 cases, into actual blows. The sachems of Tammany at last tried to pitch their opponents overboard, but v/ero forced to stfty their tnnus by toe assuming even a more ,'crious shape. The collector, as guardian of tbc _ revenue, ordered the decks to be cleared o! all outsiders, under pain of arrest for smuggling, and the health officer retort-’dby threatening to quarantine a'l Murphy’s friends for a couple of weeks. This he had the undoubted right to d i, as there were a couple of cases of small-pox reported. He even went further, and menaced all his political foes with enforced vaccination as well. 1 hendismay at this threat, which was made in serious earnest, may be imagined. Both sides at last agreed upon a compromise---to both leave the ship. The Murphj'itcs, therefore, escaped vaccination, nor were the Tammany men arrested as smugglers. What the exiles thought of ithe unseemly quarrel among their would be friends, may bo guessed from their action. After mutual consultation, they agreed to accept no hospitalities from cither, and to have nothing to do with any public demonstration until tbc rest of tho refers ;d convicts should arrive. Last night, however, they were serenaded at their hotel, and I!ossa accepted a purse of 1001) dols. for himself and comrades. Before leaving tho Fenians, I have still another item to give you. Sitting at my desk, : a report baa jest reached mo that Murphyja attempt to receive 'the exiles has been taken very ill at Washington, raid that General Grant has called upon hj ui to resign his place, The telegaaph will tell you whether this bo true or not ; it boars great promise of being well founded, at any rate.