AMERICAN SUMMARY.

Press, Volume XLVIII, Issue 7870, 22 May 1891, Page 6

AMERICAN SUMMARY.

SAN FRANCISCO, May L The "New York World's" London special says it is reported that Michael Davitt has decided to abandon his English career and emigrate to San Francisco with the view of making his home on the Pacific slope. The Ohio Farmers' Alliance declares for a Uniform system of school books, the Australian system of ballot, reduction of railroad rates to two cents a mile, taxation of real estate at its assessed value, less mortgage and i -debtedness. Governor Abbett, of New Jersey, has Signed a Bill making it unlawful for Corporations to establish a relief department and retain the money of employees for such a purpose. It is understood in Ottawa that the smuggling Chinese from Canadian to American territory is at present the subject of diplomatic correspondence between the Imperial and United States Governments. A Chicago paper says that as the result of a conference in that city the oatmeal millers of the country have formed a combination to take the place of the Oatmeal Trust, which went to pieces a year ago. The Customs officials made a heavy seizure of opium on the Pacific Mail Dock on April 30th. The Inspectors were paying special attention to merchandise unloaded off the steamer China, and at last, in a consignment of forty cases of alleged crockery, discovered twenty cases of Lai Yuen opium. In all there were 11701b of the drug, valued at 23,000d0L The value placed against the 'entire invoice of forty boxes, which were marked "J. M.," according to the shipper, ■was only 80doL Later in. the day John H. tßoden, a Custom House broker, called and made an exportation entry for the forty cases to Albert Marks, in Mexico. The drug was removed to the 'appraiser's store. Another attempt to smuggle some of the drug ashore was frustrated by Inspector Ahem, who arrested S. P. Carter as he was descending the gangplank from the China with 25 tael cans of prepared opium. Carter is associated in the peddling business with an ex-inspector of Customs, Veider, and the opium was hidden in his pack. Carter offered to turn States evidence to evade arrest, but was sent to the county gaol until he obtains 1000 dollar bonds. Although Carter's partner, Veider, was once an _nspector of Customs, the authorities profess to believe that he is not in any way connected with Carter's smuggling, but believe that the latter has been carrying it on, more or less frequently, on his own account. A man and woman registered at a cheap hotel at New York, on the night of April 23rd, as man and wife. They immediately retired. As nothing was seen of them in the morning, the door of the room was broken in; On the bed lay the woman covered with blood. She had been dead for hours. Her body was ripped open with a dull, broken table knife that lay in the blood. The viscera had been cut, and, from appearances, part was missing. The man had escaped. A very imperfect description of him was given to the police, and they went to work on it with the utmost secrecy and speech They think he is "Jack the Ripper." The Coroner made a hasty examination of the body, and found that the wpman had been dead a number of hours. He removed the clothes from the neck and face, and revealed a ghastly visage, the appearance of which convinced the Coroner that the woman had first been strangled and then mutilated. On turning over the body it was found the murderer had left his mark. The broken end of a knife had been used to make a large cross on the the base of the spine. The proprietor, ' Jennings, and assistant housekeeper, Mary j Muniton, told the police all they knew j about the case. The housekeeper said the j murdered woman's companion was decidedly German in appearance. She said he re- j tembled a seafaring man, and said the | •woman was a well-known character around the neighborhood, but no one seems to know her or where she lived. The police are scouring the city and vessels around the docks for the murderer.

Charles Santley, the great baritone, is Bow touring Canada. A Saturday half holiday law, passed by the New Jersey Legislature, has caused some consternation in legal circles, it being claimed that all sheriff's and public sales held on Saturday afternoon since March Bth, the date when the Bill was signed, are illegal.

Reports from various sections of New Jersey show that forest fires are doing immense damage to young timber. A whole forest south of Pomona has been burned. People living on the edges of the town of Conoverton lost their houses, the furniture being removed to the open fields. Many farm houses were destroyed. Hundreds of people are fighting the fire at Alio and Chisewurgt. The whole country is covered with clouds of black rsmoke. There is much apprehension of the -ate of Bailey Town, but it is believed the experience of people in fires of this character •wi 1 serve to save the town this time. Reports from Reading, Perm., say that a fire on the south side of the Blue Mountains is six _niles long and two wide. At Bellefonte, 3?enn., a million feet of valuable timber has already been destroyed, and it is reported every sawmill in the mountains between 3ellefbnto and Lewisburgh has been burned. ■ The Japanese Legation at Washington ltaa received a telegram from San Francisco tegarding four Japanese landed there -recently, and whom the Immigrant Inspector intended to Bend back to Japan on the ground that they came to the United States an violation of the Alien Contract Labor -Law. Counsel for the Legation requested the Treasury Department to authorise the officials at San Francisco to let them i s > e-Q-in there until an investigation can be -TEuadei