hereafter granted for such corporations shall be made to conform to such general law. And it is provided that no such corporation shall have any capital stock, nor shall the trustees thereof, or any of them, have any interest whatever, direct or indirect, in the profits of such corporation; and no director or trustee of any such bank or institution shall be interested in any loan or use of any money or property of such bank or institution for savings. The Legislature is prohibited from passing any act granting any special charter for banking purposes; but corporations or associations may be formed for such purposes under general laws. The following new sections are added:

Sec. 10. Neither the credit nor the money of the State shall be given or loaned to or in aid of any association, corporation, or private undertaking. This section shall not, however, prevent the Legislature from making such provision for the education and support of the blind, the deaf and dumb, and juvenile delinquents, as to it may seem proper. Nor shail it apply to any fund or property now held, or which may hereafter be held, by the State for educational

purposes.

Sec. 11. No county, city, town, or village shall hereafter give any money or property, or loan its money or credit, to or in aid of any individual, association, or corporation, or become, directly or indirectly, the owner of stock in or bonds of any association or corporation, nor shall any such county, city, town, or village be allowed to incur any indebtedness, except for county, city, town, or village purposes. This action shall not prevent such county, city, town, or village from making such provision for the aid or support of its poor as may be authorized by law.

An additional section was made to Article X., providing that "no officer whose salary is fixed by the constitution shall receive any additional compensation. Each of the other State officers named in the constitution shall, during his continuance in office, receive a compensation, to be fixed by law, which shall not be increased or diminished during the term for which he shall have been elected or appointed; nor shall he receive to his use any fees or perquisites of office or other compensation."

Besides the ordinary oath prescribed in section 1 of Article XII. for members of the Legislature (and all officers, executive and judicial, except such inferior officers as may be exempted by law), all such officers who have been chosen at any election are required to take the following oath or affirmation: "And I do further solemnly swear (or affirm) that I have not, directly or indirectly, paid, offered, or promised to pay, contributed, or offered or promised to contribute, any money or other valuable thing as a consideration or reward for the giving or withholding a vote at the election at which I was elected to said office, and have not made any promise to influence the giving or withholding any such vote," and no other oath, declaration, or test shall be required as a qualification for any office of public trust. The constitution was further amended by adding the following new articles:

ARTICLE XV., Section 1. Any person holding office under the laws of this State, who, except in payreceive or consent to receive, directly or indirectly, ment of his legal salary, fees, or perquisites, shall any thing of value or of personal advantage, or the promise thereof, for performing or omitting to perform any official act, or with the express or implied understanding that his official action or omission to act is to be in any degree influenced thereby, shall be deemed guilty of a felony. This section shall not affect the validity of any existing statute in relation to the offense of bribery.

bribe to any officer, if it shall be received, shall be Sec. 2. Any person who shall offer or promise a deemed guilty of a felony and liable to punishment, except as herein provided. No person offering a bribe shall, upon any prosecution of the officer for receiving such bribe, be privileged from testifying in relation thereto, and he shall not be liable to civil or criminal prosecution therefor, if he shall testify to giving or offering of such bribe. Any person who shall offer or promise a bribe, if it be rejected by the officer to whom it is tendered, shall be deemed guilty of an attempt to bribe, which is hereby declared to be a felony.

Sec. 3. Any person charged with receiving a bribe, or with offering or promising a bribe, shall be permitted to testify in his own behalf in any civil or criminal prosecution therefor.

Sec. 4. Any district attorney who shall fail faithfully to prosecute a person charged with the violation in his county of any provision of this article which may come to his knowledge, shall be removed from office by the Governor, after a due notice and an opportunity of being heard in his defense. The expenses which shall be incurred by any county in investigating and prosecuting any charge of bribery, or attempting to bribe any person holding office under the laws of this State, within such county, or of receiving bribes by any such person in said county, shall be a charge against the State, and their payment by the State shall be provided for by law. ARTICLE XVI., Section 1. All amendments to the constitution shall be in force from and including the first day of January succeeding the election at which the same were adopted, except when otherwise provided by such amendment.

An important decision was rendered in June by the Court of Appeals, in what is known as the "Ring suits," brought in the name of the people of the State against James H. Ingersoll and others, for the recovery of certain moneys, "alleged to have been obtained by the respondent and the other persons named in the complaint, his associates and confederates, by false and fraudulent means and devices." The crucial question was whether the State or the county of New York had the right to bring the action. This question was presented by demurrer in the case of W. M. Tweed, one of the defendants, but the demurrer was overruled at the trial by the Special Term, and this decision was affirmed by the General Term, thus upholding the right of the people of the State to maintain the action. This result was acquiesced in by Tweed, who answered over, and the action stood for trial upon the issues of fact joined. Subsequently, upon the motion of Ingersoll, about one-third of the complaint was, by order of another judge, stricken out as "irrelevant and redundant," the court holding that the allegations were not essential either to the right of the plaintiffs or the liability of the defendants, in respect to the cause

some sections, and almost wanting in others. Mr. Colvin places the lake-sources of the Hudson River in the lakelets known as Tear of the Clouds, or Summit Water, and Moss Pool, near Mount Marcy, and shows that the watershed of the Adirondacks chiefly supplies the canals and rivers of the State.

There still remain small portions in all probability never trodden by man, but along the streams and lakes navigable by canoe. The accessible portions of this region are now famous resorts for camping and hunting parties in summer, and a class of men termed guides has arisen who obtain a livelihood in their mingled avocations of boatmen, huntsmen, fishermen, and cooks, for the party they guide. With the increase of travel has come an increase of cost, and men who would once accompany a party will now only guide for one person, obtaining from $2.50 to $3.00 a day, with board

and expenses. The expense of carrying boats overland by team at certain points (a few dollars) must also be borne by the tourist. A Commission of State Parks, appointed by the Legislature, have reported in favor of setting apart as a State park from 600 to 3,000 square miles of the high mountain-region of the Adirondacks, embracing Mount Marcy and all the great peaks; the chief objects being to preserve the forests for their beneficial climatic effects, moderating the spring freshets in the Hudson by sheltering the snow from the heat of the sun, shielding the sources of this river from evaporation, and affording a healthful pleasure-ground for the people of the State. The establishment of this park is beginning to attract earnest attention from the leading men of the State, not only on account of the pleasure it may afford to the people, but also for reasons of political economy.

chant.

SAMUEL J. TILDEN, the present Governor of New York, was born in New Lebanon, Columbia County, N. Y., in 1814, where his grandfather, John Tilden, settled in 1790, and where his father, Elam Tilden, was a farmer and merIn 1837 young Tilden entered Yale College, but did not graduate. He completed his collegiate course at the University of New York, and was subsequently admitted to the bar. In 1846 he was a member of the Assembly from New York; he was also a member of the Constitutional Convention, and served on the Committee on Canals and Finance. In 1860 he exerted himself to avert the civil war, and during the war sustained the Administration. He became chairman of the Democratic State Committee in 1866, and was a leading member of the Constitutional Convention of

1867, serving with distinction on the Finance Committee.

For several years past Mr. Tilden has been an indefatigable laborer in the cause of judicial and political reform in the city of New York. He was active in the organization of the Bar Association of the city, which has for its object the correction of judicial abuses.

When the contest was waged against the city officials who were charged with defrauding the city treasury of many millions of dollars, Mr. Tilden rendered invaluable services to the cause of reform by his famous analysis of the accounts of the Broadway Bank, showing conclusively how the alleged culprits had shared their spoils, and furnishing legal proof for their conviction. In 1872, Mr. Tilden was again elected to the General Assembly, where he continued his ex

ertions in the cause of reform. In politics Mr. Tilden has always been a Democrat.

Soon after the organization of the Legislature, in 1875, FRANCIS KERNAN was elected to the United States Senate for six years, from March 4, 1875, to succeed Hon. Reuben E. Fenton. Mr. Kernan was born in Wayne, Steuben County, N. Y., January 14, 1816. After graduating from Georgetown College in the District of Columbia, he studied law in the office of Joshua A. Spencer, and subsequently became his partner. He was Reporter of the Court of Appeals from 1854 to 1857, and in 1860 was elected to the Assembly from a district which the previous year had elected a Republican by a large majority. In 1862 he was elected to Congress, where he rendered valuable service as a member of the Judiciary Committee. He was a member of the Constitutional Convention in 1867, and of the Constitutional Commission, whose work was ratified at the election of 1874. In 1872 he was the unsuccessful candidate of the Democrats and Liberal Republicans for Governor. In politics, Mr. Kernan has always been a Democrat; in religion, a Catholic. He possesses, in a preeminent degree, all the qualifications essential to the discharge of the duties of the high position to which he has been elected; and his election gives general satisfaction. His efforts in behalf of the public schools of the State have identified his name with that cause. He holds a high rank as a jurist and a statesman, and is described as "very forcible in debate and argument, being clear and concise. in his statements, logical and direct in reaching conclusions, pointed and pertinent in illustration, chaste and strong in diction, attractive in manner, and commanding in presence.'

NICARAGUA (REPÚBLICA DE NICARAGUA), a republic of Central America, situated between Costa Rica and Honduras, and the shores of which are bathed by the Caribbean Sea on the east and by the Pacific Ocean on the west. It comprises an area of 39,000 square miles, and has a population of 350,000.

By the terms of the existing constitution, promulgated on August 19, 1858, after the filibuster war, the country is under a popular representative government. The power is divided into three branches-legislative, executive, and judicial. The legislative power is vested in a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies, the first composed of two members for each of the seven departments of the republic, and elected for a term of six years; and the second of one representative from each of the four common districts, and two from each of the seven head-districts of departments: in all, eighteen deputies, their term of office being four years.

The legislative period embraces two years, and commences on the 1st of January. Twothirds of the senators are changed at a time, and one-half of the deputies. Every senator must be a native of Nicaragua, or of Central

America, and have resided ten years in the republic, and possess landed property equal to an income of $2,000 per annum, be a layman, and not less than thirty years of age.

The only indispensable requirements for a deputy are five years' residence in the republic, if born in any part of the territory of Central America, and to have completed twentyfive years of age.

The executive power is vested in a President, aided by a number of ministers, to be determined by law. Of these there are a present four. The presidential period is four years, and no one can be reelected to that office.

The judicial power is divided into two sections, one of which resides in Leon and the other in Granada. They are composed of four magistrates each, and appeals may be made from either one to the other.

The magistrates are elected for four years each; and one-half of the members of each section is changed during each legislative period. They are elected by the Congress.

The first constitutional Congress was inaugurated on January 1, 1859; and the first constitutional on March 1st of the same year.

Since then there have been eight uninterrupted congressional, and four presidential periods. The first two presidential periods were embraced by the administration of General Tomás Martinez; the third, by that of General Fernando Guzman; and the fourth, by that of Señor Don Vicente Quadra, to end on March 1, 1875.

The members of the Quadra cabinet were as follows: Minister of Foreign Affairs, Public Instruction, Agriculture, and Commerce, Señor Don Anselmo H. Rivas; of the Interior, Justice, and Ecclesiastical Affairs, Dr. Francisco Barberena; of War, Marine, Police, and Public Works, Licentiate Isidoro Lopez; and of Finance, Dr. Teodoro Delgadillo.

The outgoing administration is the only one in Nicaraguan annals throughout the whole course of which peace has been preserved, with the single exception of the first presidential period, inaugurated with the common cousent of the various parties which had been exhausted by a three-years war that began in May, 1854, and terminated in the expulsion of the filibusters in June, 1857. The junta gubernativa, composed of Generals Martinez and Jerez, was then intrusted with the reorganization of the country.

During the last period of peace the interests of agriculture, commerce, and public instruc tion, have been considerably developed. In the departments of Leon and Chinandega the sugar-cane has been more extensively culti vated than ever before; and the same may be said of coffee and indigo in Granada and Rivas. The wealth of Matagalpa, Chontales, and Nueva Segovia, chiefly consists of cattle; and in the last two there is a mining-district of considerable importance.

The zealous activity with which public and private enterprises have been carried forward is particularly noticeable in the improvements in many of the towns throughout the country, those made in Leon and Granada being mentioned among the most considerable. A school has been founded in Rivas, under the direction of Dr. (formerly General) Máximo Jerez. In Leon have been established two schools for males, under the auspices of Señores José Victor Valle and Alfredo Alvarado; and one for females by Señorita Emilia Dawson. But, of all the educational establishments, that most worthy of especial mention is the Colegio de Granada, with professors from Europe, magnificent furniture and appointments, the whole expenditures for which were met by the citizens themselves.

It is officially reported that the condition of the national Treasury has undergone a favor able change under the recent reforms in its administration; and that the revenue derived from the sources enumerated below has been so considerably in advance of that obtained in former years as to be sufficient to cover all the expenditures, without leaving any arrears, and to admit of a certain appropriation on account of the national debt.

SOURCES OF REVENUE-CUSTOMS.

Tax on slaughtered cattle.

Domestic spirits,

Gunpowder,

Monopolies.

Tobacco,

The first four branches are the most pro ductive.

During the years 1872, 1873, and 1874, three exploring expeditions were sent from the United States to examine the isthmus, and ascertain the most suitable route for an interoceanic canal. The result of the surveys was, in each case, favorable to Nicaragua, owing to the peculiar facilities presented by its territory, level in the main, and the vast repository of water situated between the two oceans, and sufficient to feed thirty canals.

It may here be added that, in the opinion of M. Lesseps, the successful engineer of the Suez Canal, no one of the American isthmuses admits of the problem being solved in the same way as on the African isthmus; that is to say, without weirs. The interoceanic canal must be a large one, with weirs, and with no small number of them; hence the indispensable necessity of an inexhaustible supply of water, such as could alone be afforded by the Lake of Nicaragua. It was long supposed that the San Juan River was navigable from the lake to its embouchure at Greytown, and consequently that, to complete the transisthmian water-route, it was only necessary to cut the narrow neck-some eighteen miles-on the other side, from the lake to the Pacific. In

view of this theory, numerous surveys of the narrow neck have been made since the first half of the sixteenth century: one for the Spanish Government, in 1781, by Manuel Galista; and again, in 1838, by a Mr. Baily, for the Central-American Government. But it is not generally known that, between 1842 and 1844, a survey was made at the instance of Prince Louis Napoleon, afterward Napoleon III., and then a captive in the castle of Ham. The Government of Central America decreed, on January 8, 1846, that the cut should be called "Canal Napoleon de Nicaragua." Louis, after his flight to England in the same year, gave publicity to his plans, laying down the very line reverted to by the American surveyors in 1872.

Nicaragua offers a salubrious climate, abundance of building-materials, and robust and willing hands to undertake the work within her borders.

On October 4, 1874, was elected the new President, who is to enter upon his functions on March 1st of the present year. After a lengthy and obstinate struggle, the Republican party triumphed in the person of their candidate, Señor Don Pedro Joaquin Chamorro, distinguished for the active part he took in the defense of his country against the filibusters, and again in the rebellion of 1869. A proof of his popularity, and of the spontaneity of the suffrage tendered to him, is afforded by the fact of his absence in Europe at the commencement, and almost up to the close, of the electioneering campaign.

NORTH CAROLINA. The Legislature of this State adjourned on the 16th of February, and assembled again on the 16th of November. Chief among the acts passed during the session, in the early part of the year, was one providing for the local prohibition of spirituous liquors. By this law it is made "the duty of the county commissioners of any county, upon petition of one-fourth of the qualified voters of any township in their respective counties, to order an election to be held on the first Monday in May in every year, to ascertain whether or not spirituous liquors shall or may be sold in said township or townships.' If a majority of the votes cast are in favor of prohibition, "it shall not be lawful for the county commissioners to license the sale of spirituous liquors, or for any person to sell any spirituous liquors within such township for one year next after any such election; and, if any person so prohibited shall sell any spirituous liquors within such township, such person offending shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor, and on conviction of such offense shall be fined not exceeding fifty dollars, or imprisoned not exceeding one month." But if a majority of the votes are cast in favor of license, then spirituous liquors may be sold in such township as now provided by law, and not otherwise.

This act, however, does not affect locali