Mr. Stephens has published "A Constitutional View of the Late War between the States, its Causes, Character, Conduct, and Results" (2 vols. 8vo, Philadelphia, 1868-'70), and several speeches. "Alexander H. Stephens, in Public and Private," with his letters and speeches before, during, and since the war, by Henry Cleveland, was published in 1867. STOUGHTON, EDWIN W., United States Minister to Russia, was born in Windsor County, Vt., in 1818. He removed to New York in 1837, where, for many years, he has been a prominent member of the bar of that city. Until within a few years past he was a pronounced Democrat. During the administration of President Grant, he published an elaborate letter in which he defended on constitutional grounds the President's use of the army in Louisiana. Mr. Stoughton has since been an active Republican. He was one of the Northern men who, at the request of the President, visited New Orleans after the election of 1876 to witness the action of the Returning Board; and was one of the counsel who argued the Republican case before the Electoral Commission. In October, 1877, he was appointed Minister to Russia by President Hayes, and was promptly confirmed by the Senate. SULEIMAN PASHA, the successor of Mehemet Ali as commander-in-chief of the Turkish forces in Bulgaria, is said to be a most unostentatious and reserved man. His headquarters are the very reverse of the gorgeous establishments one sees with many generals of much less pretense than this the most successful and favored of the Sultan's field-marshals. He has received a European education, and is considered intelligent and clever. After having been stationed for some time in the provinces, he received a call as teacher to the military school in Constantinople. As such he began to take part in politics, was involved in the palace plot of 1876, and was rewarded with the rank of Pasha. Upon the resumption of hostilities with Montenegro in 1877, he was appointed to the command of the division operating from the north, with the orders to provision and relieve Nicsic. In this he was completely successful. His march afterward through Montenegro was not as successful. He was next ordered to take command of the Turkish forces in Roumelia, and here attracted the attention of the world by his fierce struggle for the Shipka Pass. On October 4th, he was appointed to succeed Mehemet Ali as commander-in-chief. SWEDEN AND NORWAY, two kingdoms of Northern Europe, united under the same dynasty. King, Oscar II., born January 21, 1829; succeeded to the throne at the death of his brother, Charles XV., September 18, 1872; married, June 6, 1857, to Sophia, born July 9, 1836, daughter of the late Duke Wilhelm of Nassau. Oldest son: Gustavus, heir-apparent, Duke of Wermland, born June 16, 1858. SWEDEN.-The executive authority is in the hands of the King, who acts under the advice of a ministry, formerly called the Council of State. The composition of the ministry at the close of 1877 was as follows: Baron L. de Geer, Minister of State and of Justice, appointed 1875; O. M. Björnstjerna, appointed 1872; J. H. Rosenswärd, Minister of War, 1877; Baron F. W. von Otter, Minister of the Navy, 1874; C. J. Thyselius, Minister of the Interior, 1875; H. L. Forssell, Minister of Finance, 1875; F. F. Carlson, Minister of Education and Ecclesiastical Affairs, 1875. Besides these, there are three ministers without portfolio: H. G. Lagerstråle, 1875; Baron C. J. O. Alströmer, 1870; and J. H. Lovén, 1874. The following table shows the area of Sweden, inclusive of inland lakes, according to a new survey by the Swedish general staff, and the population on December 31, 1876: Of the total population, 2,151,326 were males, and 2,278,387 females. In 1875, there were 30,762 marriages, 140,317 births (inclusive of still-births), 92,798 deaths (inclusive of still-births), and 4,359 still-births. In the same year, 9,727 emigrants left the country. The population, according to the census of 1870, was 4,168,525. Of this number 4,162,087 were Lutherans, 3,809 Baptists, Mormons, and Methodists, 573 Roman Catholics, 1,836 Jews, and 220 others. The population of the principal cities of Sweden, in 1876, was as follows: Stockholm Göteborg.. Norrköping Malmö. Gefle. Carlskrona... 157.215 Jönköping. 68,756 Upsala.. 33,292 Lund. 26,787 Oerebro. 17,617 Helsingborg.. 17,290 Calmar.. 13,744 13,049 12,794 10,496 10,066 10,009 3. To provide, by appropriate legislation, for the expenses of the first extra session of the Fortieth General Assembly, and of the session hereby convened. A report of the Controller was submitted, conveying the following information regarding the resources and debt of the State: ASSESSMENT OF TAXABLE PROPERTY IN THE STATE FOR THE YEAR 1877. East Tennessee.. ...... Total taxable property.. $28,208,400 40,000 support. A bill was finally framed and passed in the Senate, providing for an adjustment of the debt on the basis of fifty cents on the dollar, represented by thirty-year bonds, bearing interest at 4 per cent. for five years, 5 per cent for the second five years, and per cent. thereafter. This failed in the House, a portion of the opposition being in favor of the sixty per cent. plan as the only one likely to be accepted by all the creditors, another portion contending for 4 per cent. interest for the whole term, and others objecting to a provision in the bill making coupons receivable for taxes. Legislature finally adjourned on the 28th of December, without accomplishing any part of the purpose for which it was called together, and leaving the subject of the debt where it was at the beginning of the year. The The regular session of the Legislature, which began on the first day of the year, came to a close on the 27th of March. The general legislation was of small importance. The returns of the vote for Governor at the election of 1876, as originally announced in joint convention of the two Houses, stood 122,507 for James D. Porter, the Democratic candidate; 73,612 for Dorsey B. Thomas, independent candidate; 10,571 for George Maney, Republican; 1,690 for W. F. Yardley, colored Republican; and 603 for A. M. Hughes. The correctness of the canvass was questioned, and the matter referred 8,487,410 to a committee for investigation. Their report gave the vote as follows: Porter, 123,740; Thomas, 75,695; Maney, 10,436; Yardley, 2,165. This was accepted as the correct official declaration. Two United States Senators were chosen, one for the full term of six years, from March 4, 1877, and the other to fill the vacancy occasioned by the death of Andrew Johnson, whose term expires in 1881. Isham G. Harris was elected on the first ballot for the full term, but for the unexpired term 73 ballots were taken, resulting finally in the choice of James E. Bailey. The Secretary of State, Treasurer, and Controller, were also chosen by the Legislature. Thirty-eight ballots were taken for Secretary of State, resulting in the choice of C. N. Gibbs. M. T. Polk was elected Treas urer on the second ballot, and J. L. Gaines Controller on the first ballot. The following resolutions were adopted early in the session: $28,776,810 8,634,908 $23,141,902 256,125 Total bond debt funded and registered..... $22,885,777 The school fund was stated as $2,512,500, the interest on which is included in current expenses. A statement of receipts of the treasury from December 19, 1876, to December 1, 1877, showed an aggregate of $1,258,386.55; expenditures for the same period on warrants issued, $649,357.12, and $230,988.54 not included in current expenses, or $880,345.66 in all. The propositions received for an adjustment on the fifty per cent. basis came from various creditors who claimed to be holders of large amounts of bonds. One J. J. MacKinnon also appeared as the agent of "The Funding Association of America, Limited," claiming to represent the interests of a large portion of the creditors, and submitting a similar proposition. Wide differences of opinion prevailed in the Legislature, ranging all the way from a sentiment in favor of complete repudiation to that of meeting all obligations in full; but the extreme views on either side had little Whereas, During the recent Presidential electior, his Excellency the President of the United States has seen fit to invade the rights of our sister States, of the United States into the borders of said sister South Carolina and Louisiana, by sending the army States on the eve of the elections, with a view to influence the result of said elections and perpetuate the sway of certain individuals against the will of a majority of the voters in said States; and, stationed within the borders of said States, was Whereas, The army of the United States, being then placed beneath the orders and under the control of certain evil-disposed persons to be used by them for the promotion of their own personal ends, and to that all good citizens have the right and should prothe injury of the liberties of the people therein, and test against this usurpation on the part of the Chief Magistrate of the nation: therefore be it Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of Tennessee, That the action of his Excellency the President of the United States, in this extraordinary license of arbitrary power, deserves and receives the hearty condemnation of the body of liberty-loving people throughout the entire country. Be it further resolved, That we deprecate all Federal Executive interference in State elections for partisan purposes, and invoke the law-abiding spirit of a free people to correct the evils complained of, as well as to effectuate the will of the people as expressed in the late elections, State and national. Among the acts passed was one authorizing municipal corporations to compromise or settle their indebtedness; one creating the new county of Haines out of portions of Benton, Carroll, Henderson, and Decatur; one repealing the 10 per cent. interest law; one prohibiting the sale of intoxicating liquors near institutions of learning; one depriving the State of the power to borrow money; one repealing the act of 1875, establishing an Immigration Bureau; and one creating a State Board of Health. Bills reducing the rate of taxation from 40 to 10 cents on a hundred dollars, and amending the assessment laws, were vetoed by the Governor and passed in spite of his objections. The amendments to the Constitution proposed by the previous General Assembly were defeated, failing to receive the necessary two-thirds vote in the House. A litigation of long standing, involving the conflicting claims of the depositors and noteholders of the old Bank of Tennessee to the remaining assets of that institution, was decided in January in favor of the note-holders. The bank, which was located in Nashville, suspended on the approach of the Federal army, in 1862; its assets were carried south and afterward captured by General Sherman at Atlanta, Ga., and delivered to the State authorities. A large portion of them consisted of Confederate bonds, Tennessee war bonds, and bills and notes which became worthless. A part of the balance was wasted or lost while nominally in custody of the State authorities, so that only $275,850 remained of what nominally footed up at $10,325,000. There was $1,500,000 due to depositors, and about the same amount outstanding in notes. According to the decision of the Supreme Court of the State, the holders of the notes are entitled to receive what is left of the assets, after the payment of various costs and expenses. A case was decided by the Supreme Court in February, which involved the validity of the act of 1875, declaring the keeping of dogs a "privilege," and imposing a tax upon it as such. The Constitution requires all taxation upon property to be uniform according to value, and authorizes the taxing of "merchants, peddlers, and privileges." The court held, substantially, that dogs were property, and the keeping of them could not by legislative action be made a privilege in any proper legal sense. Neither could the taxing of these animals, under the provisions of the law in question, be regarded as a police measure for the restriction of their number, as it was clearly intended as a measure for obtaining revenue. Accordingly the act was declared null and void. The judge, in concluding a long opinion on the subject, said: The result is, that the law before us must be held void as a revenue measure or tax imposed in violation of the limitations of our Constitution, and not sustainable under the police power of the State, because not so purposed in the first place, and, second, because not using the appropriate remedies for the exercise of such power. However lightly we may esteem the animal subject to this tax, the Constitu tion of our State is not thus lightly to be esteemedand must be held, both in great and small matters, to be the supreme law of the land. The semi-annual interest on the State School fund, which was apportioned among the counties on the 1st of April, amounted to $75,375. The assessed value of the railroads of the State for purposes of State taxation is: Nashville, Chattanooga & St. Louis.. Louisville & Nashville, with branches and leased roads. St. Louis & Southeastern. 8,596,523 18 970,584 12 1,016,613 89 721,126 66 1,647,360 00 932,660 05 281,974 71 11,448 96 96,861 20 114,429 82 144,438 15 151,870 93 224,205 76 McMinnville & Manchester.. 834,429 92 Roane Iron Company.. Tennessee Coal & Railroad Company. Nickajack Railroad & Mining Company. 107,652 00 lawless acts on the part of Mexicans. The result of this deliberation was embodied in the following letter of instructions written by the Secretary of War to the General of the Army: WAR DEPARTMENT, WASHINGTON, DEAR, JUN'1, 1877. GENERAL: The report of W. M. Shafter, lieutenantcolonel Twenty-fourth infantry, commanding the district of the Nueces, Texas, concerning recent raids $2,762,924 89 by Mexicans and Indians from Mexico into Texas for marauding purposes, with your indorsement of the 29th instant, has been submitted to the President, and has, together with numerous other reports and documents relating to the same subject, been duly considered. The President desires that the utmost vigilance on the part of the military forces in Texas be exercised for the suppression of these raids. It is very desirable that efforts to this end, in so far at least as they necessarily involve operations on both sides of the border, be made with the cooperation of Mexican authorities; and you will instruct General Ord, commanding in Texas, to invite such cooperation on the part of local Mexican authorities, and to inform them that, while the Presi dent is anxious to avoid giving offense to Mexico, he is nevertheless convinced that the invasion of our territory by armed and organized bodies of thieves and robbers, to prey upon our citizens, should not be 182,067 29 longer endured. General Ord will at once notify the Mexican authorities along the Texas border of the great desire of the President to unite with them in the efforts to suppress this long-continued lawlessness. At the same time he will inform those authorities that, if the government of Mexico shall continue to neglect the duty of suppressing these outrages, the duty will devolve upon this government, sud will be performed, even if its performance should render necessary the occasional crossing of the border by our troops. You will, therefore, direct General Ord that, in case the lawless incursions continue, he will be at liberty, in the use of his own discretion, when in pursuit of a band of the marauders, and when his troops are either in sight of them or upon a fresh trail, to follow them across the Rio Grande, stolen property taken from our citizens and found and overtake and to punish them, as well as retake in their hands, on the Mexican side of the line. I have the honor to be, very respectfully, 10,359 00 2.608 50 15,509 70 A convention in the interest of the improvement of the navigation of the Tennessee River was held at Chattanooga on the 5th of December. Resolutions were adopted declaring the work to be one of national importance, and calling for assistance from the Congress of the United States. TERGUKASSOFF, ARSAS ARTAMYEVITCH, the commander of the Russian Erivan column, is the son of an Armenian priest, and was born in 1819. He received his education in the corps of engineers, which he left in 1839, with the rank of lieutenant. After serving for several years in the department of road construction in St. Petersburg, he was appointed to the board for war communications in the Caucasus, in which he remained four years. In 1850, he retired from the military service with the rank of lieutenant-colonel, but entered the active army again within two years. Since then he has served in the Caucasus, distinguishing himself on various occasions, particularly at the capture of Shamyl, in 1859. For his many brilliant actions he was decorated with numerous orders, and received from the emperor a golden sword. Appointed colonel in 1858, he advanced to the rank of major-general in 1865, and was shortly after appointed to the command of the Nineteenth Infantry Division. Shortly before the opening of the present war, he was raised to the rank of lieutenant-general. TEXAS. The peace of this State was much disturbed during the past year by the troubles on the Rio Grande border, which not only caused great local excitement, but engaged the consideration of the General Government. As early as the 1st of June the Cabinet was occupied in discussing measures to prevent cattlestealing raids into Texas from Mexico and other GEORGE W. MOCRARY, Secretary of War. To General W. T. SHERMAN, commanding Army of the United States. On the 12th of August an armed band of from 10 to 15 Mexican outlaws crossed from the Mexican side, entered Rio Grande City, the county seat of Starr County, where they broke open the jail and released Esproneda and Garza, two notorious criminals, one of whom had been indicted for murder, and the other for theft of cattle. While perpetrating this outrage they severely wounded the countyattorney, Noah Cox, and three jailors. With the released prisoners the desperadoes recrossed the river, pursued by a detachment of United States troops under Major Price. On being notified by General Ord of these lawless proceedings, Governor Hubbard wrote the facts to President Hayes, concluding as follows: Under the extradition treaty in force I am vested with authority to demand extradition of criminals from any neighboring Mexican State. I propose to make this demand, but desire cooperation by a simultaneous demand from the President. To this the following reply was sent : here. (Signed) F. W. SEWARD, Acting Secretary of State. Acting under orders from Governor Hubbard, John C. Russell, of Corpus Christi, judge of the twenty-fifth judicial district, and exofficio extradition agent, made formal demand of General Canales, the Governor of Tamaulipas, on August 23d, for the extradition of the persons engaged in the jail-delivery as well as for the felons released by them. This demand was delivered by the Sheriff of Starr County to the Governor of Tamaulipas, at Matamoras. After much delay and discussion as to the proper construction of the extradition treaty, President Diaz, of the Central Government, through his accredited agent and member of his Cabinet, General Benavides, ordered Governor Canales to have delivered to the Texas agent the released prisoners Esproneda and Garza, and also the raiders who delivered them and attempted to murder citizens of Texas. Governor Hubbard had instructed the ex tradition agent representing Texas under the special provisions of the treaty of December 11, 1861, to demand-First, the prisoners released, irrespective of nationality, because, having committed the crimes of theft and murder on Texas territory, within organized counties, and having been legally indicted by the grand juries of said counties, arrested by the high sheriffs under proper capias of the courts, lodged in jail in default of bail, the jurisdiction of the criminal courts of Texas had already attached, and the clause of the treaty excepting citizens of either country from the operation of its general provisions could not be invoked. These prisoners were released by an unlawful mob, without the consent of this government, and the Republic of Mexico should place them back, if within her power, in their original position inside the jail of Rio Grande City. The extradition agent also demanded, in an able and exhaustive paper, the delivery to the Texas authorities of the outlaws engaged in this affair as an act of comity toward a neighboring and friendly Republic. In this demand the Governor of Tamaulipas, General Canales, did not concur, nor did any one of the local, civil, or military authorities of Tamaulipas; and they refused to become the instruments of extraditing any person charged with crime in Texas, fleeing to Mexico, and who claimed to be simply of Mexican origin. General Benavides, however, representing the Central Government, concurred in the views of Judge Russell that all the persons engaged in the Rio Grande City outrage should be delivered to the On Texas authorities, and it was so ordered. September 11th three of the persons were so delivered. Under the directions of Governor Hubbard the commissioner reiterated his demand for the remaining murderer, Garza, and the confederates of the two raiders already delivered. Governor Canales, and Passamento, Judge of the First Instance, replied that rather than comply with the orders of President Diaz every civil officer of the border Mexican States either had resigned or would resign, freely and frankly confessing," says Governor Hubbard, "as the correspondence will show, that the excited public sentiment of the Mexican people would not allow any more extraditions of fugitives from Texas, of Mexican origin or blood, in any event. It has proved true in letter and spirit. Troops of the regular army of the Central Government of Mexico were ordered from Vera Cruz, and proceeded to Matamoras in the Mexican war steamer Independencia ostensibly to enforce obedience to the orders of the Central Government, and especially in the matter of the extradition of fugitives from justice under the extradition treaty. These troops have not caused the arrest of any of the Rio Grande City outlaws, nor endeavored to arrest them; and instead of upholding their government have deserted its standard and affiliated with the revolutionary elements of Tamaulipas and the other border States in their determination to hold the treaty at defiance for the future." "I cannot fail," continues Governor Hubbard, in his communication of October 4th, to Secretary Evarts, "to call the attention of the United States Government to the fact-undisguised-that Garzą and the bandits who released him have been and are now in and around Camargo, in sight of the very spot on which they shot down innocent men and women, and released murderers from the jail. It is a fact, likewise well known, that Esproneda and the two others who were delivered at midnight, opposite Matamoras, were friendless and homeless vagabonds, who, it appears, had depredated as much upon Mexican as upon American citizens; but Garza and the other outlaws are noted desperadoes and representative men of their class-perhaps owning ranches near Camargo and beyond, and have never been molested or in danger of arrest by the Mexican military or civil authorities. In the presence of these facts, and when advised that now and henceforth a demand for fugitives from justice would be to reenact a solemn farce at the expense of the pride and dignity and honor of Texas, I directed that, until further orders, no more efforts should be made for extradition under a treaty ignored on the one part, but which has always been observed in earnest good faith toward the sister republic by the State of Texas and by the General Government. We have no assurance of peace and security along the Mexican border, nor have we had such security since the Mexican War and the annexation of the Republic of Texas as a State to the American Union." On December 13th a mob of Mexicans and Texas citizens, of Mexican birth, attacked the State troops at San Elizario, in Texas. Six persons were reported killed, including five of the State troops. On receipt of the news of this affair, Governor Hubbard telegraphed for the aid of federal troops, saying: |