Valley Spirit

One branch of Congress is in ferment about the sale of several colored people in Maryland under a decree of court, after conviction of crimes. One of the parties-Dick Harris-was found guilty of stealing beef, and sentenced to be sold for six months. Not being a very valuable woolen fabric, he was brought in by his brother for fifty dollars, and he is now working at Annapolis for eight dollars per week. Had he been a white man, the law would have required a sentence from one to fifteen years in the penitentiary. None of the other blacks who were sold brought so high a figure.

The law under which this sale was made was passed by a Radical legislature and approved by the Radical Governor Bradford. In the Senate it received every vote except tow, and the vote in the House stood 48 to 6.

The same Legislature which passed the bill, passed the "treason bill," and the "defense loan bill," which put the "loyal" stamp upon its character beyond question. If there any wrong about "the revival of slavery in Maryland," it is, therefore, to be laid at the door of the Radical league house.

What is singular enough-or what would be strange in any other times than the present-is the fact that out in Missouri the Radical Legislature lately passed a law requiring white vagrants (persons out of employment) to be sold to the highest bidder, and under it some six vagrants were, a few days ago, sold by a court at St. Louis for six months. Is it worse to sell a negro beef thief for six months than to sell a white man for the same period, for no other crime than being out of work?-New York Express

General John W. Geary was inaugurated Governor of Pennsylvania on Tuesday the 13th inst. The ceremonies were attended by quite a demonstration of military and firemen from Philadelphia and other places, and by citizens from all parts of the Commonwealth. At 12 o'clock M. the Governor elect attended by the retiring Governor and a committee of the Legislature appeared on the platform erected in front of the State House, where, in the presence of the members of both Houses and a large concourse of people, the oath of office was administered to him by Speaker Hall, of the Seventh [UNCLEAR]. The newly sworn Governor then delivered his inaugural address, which is remarkable only for its length and its sophistry. It is not worth publishing. Gov. Geary's whole character is embraced in one expressive word-humbug-of which this address affords abundant proof.

On the same day, Simon Cameron was elected United States Senator for six years commencing on the 4th of March next by a strict party vote, the Curtin men who had charged Cameron with nearly all the crimes in the calendar, swallowing their resentment marched up to the party rack [UNCLEAR] like some many whipped spaniels. Senator Billingfels [UNCLEAR], of Lancaster, was the only republican in either House who failed to record his vote for the "great [ILLEGIBLE]."

"That Gen. Geary throw his whole personal and official power in favor of the election of Cameron, bartering his offices as Cameron directed, can no longer be concealed, and his administration stars with this stain stamped upon it. Gov. Geary may soon learn who easy it is to wreck an administration, but he will prove himself a wise man if he demonstrates how it can be secured and restored to the confidence of the people who created it."

As among thieves, there is among renegades, a close community of purposes and interests. Hence Geary's affiliation with Cameron, the pioneer renegade, is a natural combination, aside from the fact that Geary's nomination was brought about through Cameron's machinations. As a class of politicians renegades are anomalous. Having no fixed principles or defined orbits, their satellites are, in consequence, compelled to pursue a like eccentric series of movements or fly off at a tangent. It is useless, however, for those who nominated and elected Geary as "a Democrat without affic or prefix" to attempt to undo their work.-The Radical party of Pennsylvania is now so effectually under renegade domination that there is nothing left for the originals-the dyed-in-the-wool class-to do but fall into line. They may complain and sputter and make wry faces, as they are doing most vigorously in this city and elsewhere over Geary's appointments, but that is all the comfort left them. The renegades have the whip in their hands and they are using it industriously. Fall in, fall in, gentlemen! All is Simon-pure now-so-called. - Patriot & Union

I wished also to arm all black men who would volunteer. Of course, I thought that clothing a black man in the American uniform clothed him also with the rights of an American citizen; and I am always sorry to see a black soldier, and reflect that even Pennsylvania denies him the ballot-the only weapon by whereby he can protect himself. I hope to live to see the word "white" stricken from our own Constitution, and the spirit of caste, based upon color utterly destroyed."

It was not to save the Republic, then that Simon Cameron wanted the negro clothed with the Federal uniform, but merely to make his claim good for citizenship and the ballot. This admission shows that throughout the war the Radical leaders kept negro suffrage in view as the goal to be reached with Northern pluck and resources and not the restoration of the Union.-And yet it was declared "treason" for a Democrat to say that they were prosecuting the war entirely for the negro and their own profit. Before his death H. Winter Davis declared that it was "numbers, not intelligence that the Republican party wanted," and now Cameron admits that he always considered clothing the black man in the American uniform clothing him also with citizenship and invested him with the ballot.

In his inaugural Geary declares that the negroes "are rapidly preparing to assume their rights as citizens." Cameron follows and hopes to life to see the word "white" stricken from our Constitution. People of Pennsylvania, is this the object you had in view when you elected a renegade Democrat as Governor of your State? Is this the object you set your minds upon when you allowed your representatives in the Legislature to barter their votes to another renegade Democrat for a seat in United States Senate? We are greatly in error if such were your thoughts and desires. Before the election Geary denied that negro suffrage was an issue in Pennsylvania.-Cameron was silent. They worked together and now both are in office - both have thrown off the mask and tell you, as though you were serfs, that the negro must be made a sharer of your rights and privileges. Are you content?-- Patriot and Union

To the Editors of the Valley Spirit:

SIRS: The subject of my letter may surprise you, but I hope it may be an agreeable surprise, as that of which I am about to speak, is a subject of some importance which has not recently been brought before the people of this city. Unfortunately no other pen has written concerning it, or I would not have undertaken the task. The question I propose to argue is, whether it is proper to encourage amusements that have a tendency to corrupt our taste.

Now Messrs. Editors I consider it a most deplorable fact, that an intelligent, community tolerate and permit their children to attend the place of amusement in this city, to behold the supremely ridiculous performance of slight of hand, practiced by buffoons, who now night after night amuse vulgar audiences. Why do not parents let their children cultivate at home, a taste for things of refinement, instead of sending them to hear the silly remarks of men whose knowledge does not extend beyond the deceptive tricks they practice to entertain an audience of the lowest class?

Pray now, what benefits are to be derived from attending such places of amusement? Surely one is not taught there to admire the classics; your eyes do not meet with that which is calculated to develope a taste for a higher order of things, but on the contrary, the youth is instructed in the art of deception, or is led to believe the performers of "those wonderful tricks"-as he deems them-possesses a supernatural power.

Parents, is it any wonder that your children become rude and even wicked under the evil influence of that corrupt school.-Yet in the face of all this, intellectual persons permit their children to go to the Hall almost every night to listen to the absurd nonsense of performers and to hear the more absurd remarks of the low and ignorant grown persons who are in attendance at these exhibitions.

What is the result? The mind being perverted or corrupted by a false training and evil influence, the morals also become tainted, then when it is unfortunately too late parents perceive their great mistake. - I shall now close, letting your readers to decide whether I be right or wrong.

THE AUTHOR OF "BEATRIX."

The writer of the above is right in his opinion about the evil influences attending the kind of exhibition to which he refers, and of such our town has had a surfeit for some time past, but he is wrong in attributing the evil to the tricks and jests of the performer. These constitute but a small part of the cause of the evil complained of. The main cause is the gambling feature connected with these exhibitions - the distribution of gifts to the holders of tickets containing the lucky numbers. - This is neither more nor less than a game of chance, and it is the hope of drawing a valuable prize on the investment of a quarter that draws a crowd to these places, and not to witness the silly tricks of these monnteback [?] performers. Without this "gift" attachment, we venture to say, the audiences attending these exhibitions would number but a few dozen at most, whilst with it they number hundreds. They are certainly most demoralizing in their tendency, and should receive the censure and reprobation of all right-thinking persons in the community.