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Newspaper
Bristol Phenix
Location
Bristol, Rhode Island, United States of America
Date
Jan 15, 1859
Page
2
A 1859 editorial argues that liquor selling corrupts voters and undermines public duty, urging prohibition of alcohol traffic to protect society. It warns drinking saloons influence politics, degrade youth, and threaten constitutional rights, calling for enforcement against intoxicants.
Tuesday brought the coldest spell in years with 13 degrees below zero at dawn, rising to single digits by noon before snow began. Reports describe frozen limbs, stranded riders, and a Broadway driver freezing to death, as many suffer extreme conditions across New Hampshire Vermont and Boston areas.
A damaged column complains that freight rates from New York to Bristol are excessive with express charges cited as too high, noting a minor difference of about $1.51 between competing packets.
Town meeting set for today to decide on a Representative to the General Assembly to fill the vacancy from M. Eat's resignation. Debate over leasing the law to completions of the Half under the Normal School or to others under bond to finish. Also discusses potential five year lease and whether to authorize funding for fuel and provisions for the needy amid harsh winter.
The Wool Grower publisher in Cleaveland Ohio opens a free reading room for travelers. The Obio publisher is praised as a public benefactor for aiding those away from home. The Pukenoket Steam Mall exterior repair is nearly finished and machinery is to be installed, bringing spring operation and jobs.
Thirty seven families on Constitution Street raised 13421 pounds of pork in the past year. Each family averages about 374 pounds, a figure our street doubts others can match.
The Rhode Island Schoolmaster outlines January middate appearance and a plan to publish a historical descriptive view of Rhode Island schools each year. It pledges monthly articles on English language study and a biography series of eminent men, aiming to rank among leading educational journals.
Henry Wilson of Natick was re elected for six years from March 4 in a Senate vote of 34 ballots to 0 for Caleb Cushing and others. The House ballot followed with Wilson defeating Cushing and Lawrence. Girls in Washington Iowa foresaw Christmas mischief as husbands and sons drank less on New Year’s Eve.
Liverpool and Queenstown harbor reports list steamships Niagara Africa Hamswell North Britain City of Washington and others with arrivals from New York Hamburg Bremen and London. Also notes include Napoleon pardoning Montalembert and a London theatre fire causing deaths. Political shifts in France and Serbia marked by proclamations and unrest.
News from New York and ports recounts ship arrivals and losses. The Africa and Aragu report arrivals at Southampton and Gibraltar while the Isaac Wright and Kate Wheeler suffer wrecks and rescue efforts amid migrant traffic and a leaking vessel. The London Times and Count Montalembert’s appeal are noted alongside cable disruptions between Malta and Cagliari.
The text records extreme cold across multiple cities with thermometers dropping near and below freezing. Providence reported 32 degrees, Boston 16, Charlestown 20, Jamaica Plain 23, Medford 28, Reading 36, Dover 44, Bangor 44, Calais 39, White River Junction 48, Woodstock 43. St Johnsbury and Field note the coldest nights and frozen mercury, with field thermometers showing the coldest weather in 40 years.
From Providence comes news that Elisha N Rhodes of Worcester sailed from Philadelphia for Mobile aboard the Worcester with cargo. The ship foundered on December 10 in the Banamas eight days out. Captain Rhodes and the first officer John Adanmen drowned while the second mate Jones Adameon and four sailors were saved and reached Charleston on the seventh. The 170 tun vessel built at Bristol in 1847 was insured in several offices for about $7000 with various sums in cash and outfits. ownership remains with Rhodes and associates.
The report notes several hundred Americans in Cuba with revolutionary aims. About thirty Americans traveled to Cuba from New York to work on a railroad but faced a nonfulfillment of the contract. The Governor intervened, expending funds to settle the dispute as the story gains credibility.
A New York State farmer agreed to deduct 400 dollars from his property's price if the buyer would commit to maintaining the wife in ill health as a condition of the purchase. The terms were accepted.
News reports a catastrophic mine collapse at Linares during heavy rainfall. Rescue efforts reveal over 70 miners buried, with more than 30 confirmed dead, as authorities investigate the cause and await further details from state officials.
The Moses Taylor from Aspinwall arrived at midnight with nearly 1.4 million dollars added to treasure. Reports cover gold dust receipts, trade in dry goods, and varying prices, along with ship losses and weather in California. Other items note a Kansas banditti fort and a marine disaster near Providence, plus a fatal fall in Suffolk and political remarks on a January 8 precedent.
In Waaminotos on January 11 1859 a bill introduced by Mr Slidell outlines a plan to spend thirty million dollars to acquire the island of Cuba through negotiation. It argues Cuba's strategic position controls the Mississippi Valleys trade and would relieve tensions with Spain, proposing funds from the Treasury or five percent bonds redeemable in 12 to 20 years.
Naples correspondent reports increasing Vesuvius activity daily with strong eruption risk. Guides describe a dramatic night with crater noises, lava coverage, twelve visible currents, two deep craters, and a mile long bed of fire in the mouth amid dangerous fissures. Spain may offer Cuba to the United States as a counterpoint in a shifting colonial debate. A Florentine Hutchinson family member dies by suicide in Lynn.
The report covers Senate and House actions the first weeks of January 1859, including Mr Douglas’s Senate seating, homestead and spoliation debates, Cuban cession concerns, and foreign affairs resolutions. Notable votes address the French spoliation bill, naval and land forces authorizations, and the Paulding pardon debate. The House also discusses Indian appropriations and the Wanderer incident.
The body of Timothe Harrington, a 23 year old Irishman employed by Dow & Shedd at Woburn Centre, was found in the snow at East Woburn on Sunday. He was last seen in delirium tremens and likely died during the recent snow storm.
In New York on Saturday a man calling himself Father Welch, a Catholic priest, asked for use of a state room on Broome street for prayer. He spent about half an hour in devotion then departed with a new pair of pantaloons that belonged to the house occupant, leaving his old ones behind.
A Despreado recounts how Tom Middleton, a noted Texan desperado, was seized by citizens after arrest in Louisiana and hanged near Rastrop Texas while authorities sought jail custody. North Carolina lawmakers consider two humane bills granting free colored residents two years to relocate or select an owner and to be sold into public school benefits.
Heavy westerly winds crippled the Vanderbilt, rough seas prevented alongside operations, and wreckage including furniture and machinery washed ashore. Boiler salvage uncertain as cold hampered pumps. widespread cold and fuel shortages afflicted coastal towns. Reports describe drastic weather, stranded people, and frostbound routes across the region.
A remark attributed to Dr. Franklin notes that good people live where ash is scattered on slick sidewalks. The line about Richaud adds a marginal contrast, delivering a concise witticism from a bygone era.
A Victorian style advertorial extols Holloway’s Pills as an empirical universal cure. It lauds Professor Halloway’s medical genius, claims dramatic patient recoveries across diseases, and notes widespread endorsements in medical religious and independent press outlets.
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