AMERICAN NOTES.
Brigham Young has been released from custody on technical grounds, and Ami Eliza must go for him again. Charles Ross, the lad whose abduction set all America by the ears a little over a year ago, has been found in Connecticut. During his stay in San Francisco Baron Rothschild negotiated a loan of four millions to leading capitalists in that city at 6 per cent.
America has adopted " Let up " and " too thin;" "won't wash," &c." The polite slang phrase now in force in the States is "It won't go round," borrowed from whist. Samuel Wood, one of four brothers engaged as wholesale grocers hi New York, has given one million sterling for the erection of a musical college in Central Park, New York. A noble gift that. The total loss by the fire hi Virginia City is estimated at L 2,500,000. The insurance companies lose half a million. The city is being rebuilt with such wonderful haste that a month will see the disappearance of the burnt district.
Whatever may be the real reason for it there is no question that America is '' ordering up" every available ship, recruiting men, and preparing material of war on a large scale. The supposition is that the war is to be with Spain—the Cuban difficulty being the casus belli San Francisco's larrikins—there they are called '' hoodlums " —are giving immense trouble, so much so that the citizens have determined to form a Vigilance Committee to exterminate them. The papers suggest the establishment of a whipping post for the castigation of the hoodluns.
The 'N. Y. Herald,' under the caption "Advice to Mr Beecher," renews the discussion of the Beecher scandal, which, it says, it has given little attention to since the close, of the trial, and in the friendliest spirit, says that his (Beecher's) course should be to retire from the pulpit, and by this means satisfy the public, and allow the episode to end.
The death is announced of Americas' great capitalist, W. B. Astor, son of the celebrated John Jacob Astor. When thg father died some years ago, he left his son four millions sterling in valuable freeholds hi New York city. The property has ever since remained in W. B. Astor's hands, and is now valued at 100,000,000 dollars—say L 20,000,000 sterling. Mr Astor was in his eighty-fourth year, " Chirographic insanity" is a newly-coined Boston phrase, and may be regarded as the polite term to apply to forgery. It seems to have originated in consequence of a case in the Superior Criminal Court, where a young man tried for forgery was defended on the ground- that he had been out of health for some time, and had been accustomed to spend whole evenings in -writing imaginary checks, deeds, promissory notes, &c. A female printer employed on the ' New York Herald' was discharged. Feeling aggrieved, she " went for" the editor, with the view of whipping him, but failed. The editor charged her in his columns with being
an improper person, and named a justice of the peace—one Palmer—as being her provider. Palmer attacked the editor with a horse-pistol, shooting a bullet through his body. The correspondent of the 'N. Z. Herald' puts the matter very tersely : "Miyrray (the editor) won't-live, and Palmer is thinking over the matter in gaol." The escape of .Tweed is the crowning shame of a long series of disgraceful events, which nothing new could excel in point of infamy ; while failure of the police to retake him is a scandal upon American justice, and will make its officers the laughing-stock of the whole world. Tweed's escape was precisely similar to that of Harry Gennett. He was driven to the house by the DeputySherift', and asked permission to see his wife. He left the Deputy-Sheriff cooling his heels in the parlor, and got off safe. The ' World ' intimates its belief that the custodians, of Tweed connived at his escape, and says that probably they have been really stipendiaries of the prisoner for months, granting him for a consideration those favors which are always for sale at debtors' prisons. Whether recaptured or not, his property will serve to satisfy judgments against him in suits to recover plunder taken from the city. THE OUIBORD AFFAIR. On the 2nd of September an attempt was made to carry the decree of the Privy Council into effect." Guibord's body was taken from the vault and, followed by a large procession, carried to the Catholic Cemetery. M. Doutre, a lawyer of distinction, and president of the Institute, headed the procession. The grave had been prepared, exposing the coffin of Madame Guibord, as it is the custom of the Canadian French to bury husband and wife in the same grave. When the procession reached the Catholic Cemetery they found the gates barred and bolted, while hundreds of French Canadians stood behind the bars, hooting and jeering at the company, uttering blasphemous maledictions upon Guibord's memory, as well as on the society to which he belonged. Stones were. also thrown, and many in the funeral train were severely injured. The procession, inasmuch as the gates could not be opened, took the body back to the Protestant cemetery. The mob followed in the rear, hooting, and throwing stones. This disgraceful riot was afterwards characterised by the Bishop of Montreal as "a public but peaceable demonstration to prevent the profanation of a sacred spot." He was quite gratified by the occurence, which was, to quote his language, " spontaneous, and inspired by the deepest emotions '; but he was good enough to say that lie would have " exceededly regretted " bloodshed. An oppeal was then made to the civil authorities for protection in carrying out the decree, and this, after much delay, was granted. Meanwhile Bishop Bourget, convinced that he was playing a losing game, determined to make the best of it by laying a solemn curse upon the ground where the remains of Guibord should be laid. Accordingly, on Sunday, September 12, the curse was pronounced in a pastoral letter from the bishop's pulpit in the Church de l'Evecho. The 16th of November was set down for the day of the burial. A strong force of military and police overawed the mob, and the remains were quietly interred. The body was inclosed in a wooden coffin, and on de livery from the vault was certified to as really that of Guibord. For security against any immediate disturbance of the body, the grave was partially filled in with Portland cement, mixed with scraps of tin and sheetiron, to weld the mass firmly together and prevent brittleness. A cold drizzling rain that prevailed tended to dimmish both the numbers and the spirit of the hostile crowds that witnessed the funeral. On November 22 a pastoral was issued by the Bishop relative to Guibord's interment in consecrated ground. The third paragraph iii the letter reads:—"We have the truth and virtue of the divine power that we exercise in the name of the Pastor of Pastors, that the rebellious son of the Church is separated from the rest of the consecrated cemetery, which is to be no longer more than a profane place and ordinary piece of ground." Li Montreal it seems to be taken for granted that the fanaticism of the French Canadian will not be satisfied until the body has been removed. So far, however, law and order have triumphed over Ultramontane fanaticism and mob violence. '
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Evening Star, Issue 4021, 15 January 1876, Page 2 (Supplement)
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1,236Untitled Evening Star, Issue 4021, 15 January 1876, Page 2 (Supplement)
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