Financial Difficulties---Sale of City's Stock in Muscogee R. R.

The municipal election, under the new law, was held on the second Saturday in December, 1854; but we continue to notice the new government in our report of the events of the year of its administration:
Wiley Williams, Mayor,
Aldermen:
1st. Ward, John C. Ruse, J. J. McKendree
2d, Henry T. Hall, Wm. A. Bedell
3d, Thomas K. Wynne, T. O. Douglass
4th, S. R. Andrews, D. A. Ridgeway
5th, F. A. Jepson, Israel F. Brown
6th, Wm. Daniel, Wm. Matheson
Marshal, Wm. Mahaffey
Deputy Marshal, H. P. Robison
Clerk, Calvin Stratton
Treasurer, Isaac Mitchell
Sexton, Thos. Nix

Council elected:
Robt. E. Dixon, City Attorney
Enoch Dudley, Bridge-keeper
Henry M. Harris, Clerk of the Market
Dr. R. H. Lockhart, City Physician
Mrs. Isabella McGee, Hospital-keeper
Health Officers--William H. Alston, Wm. Y. Barden, A. F. Brannon, Charles E. Mims, Dr. H. M. Cleckley, A. K. Ayer, William Alley, Wm. G. Andrews, H. J. Smith, O. Danforth, Wm. Brooks, M. L. Patterson.
Port Wardens--Edward Croft, A. R. Andrews, William E. Love, J. L. Hill, F. G. Wilkins.
Fire Wardens--R. H. Greene, William Perry, I. G. Strupper, R. R. Goetchius, John A. Frazer, George Hungerford.
Magazine-keeper--William G. Andrews.

The question of raising means to pay $25,000 of bonds issued as subscription to the Muscogee Railroad was a perplexing one this year. The Finance Committee reported on the 30th of April an ordinance levying a special tax of one-fourth of one per cent, on real estate and one-eighth of one percent, on slaves; the tax collector to give each tax payer a certificate of stock (divided into whole and half shares) proportionate to the amount of his special tax; which was amended by giving authority to the Mayor to sell a sufficient amount of the stock to make the payment. As thus amended, the ordinance was adopted. In June Council passed an ordinance authorizing the hypothecation of $100,000 of the stock owned by the city in the Muscogee Railroad for the loan of $30,000, for this purpose. On the 25th of June the Finance Committee reported an arrangement with P. J. Semmes, agent of the Bank of the State of Georgia, in accordance with the terms of the ordinance last mentioned; and Council ratified the agreement.

On the 19th of November, Council ratified a contract for the sale of the city's stock in the Muscogee Railroad to Messrs. Richard Patten and John L. Mustian. It amounted to 1800 shares, and was sold for $151,000, the purchasers assuming the city's liabilities for that amount. There was some opposition to the sale, and P. J. Semmes, Esq., filed a bill of injunction. This injunction was dissolved by the Superior Court; Mr. Semmes appealed, and the Supreme Court affirmed the decision dissolving the injunction. The contest over this question was continued in the next Council.

On the 30th of January the Opelika Branch Road was finished, and the connection of Columbus with Montgomery by railroad was unbroken. The trains did not then cross the river, but stopped at the depot on the Alabama side.

The assessors appointed to appraise the real estate of the city reported the total valuation at $2,025,000, showing an increase of $140,000 over the previous year.

The river was unusually low during the winter, and steam boat arrivals before April were rare.

John King, an employee of the Muscogee Railroad, was run over by one of the cars, in January, and so badly injured as to cause his death.

D. A. Garrett, who was run over by a train near Atlanta, died in Girard, of the injuries received, on the 5th of March.

The State Medical Convention was held in Columbus in April.

The Rock Island Factory was sold under mortgage, on the 23d of April, and bought by R. L. Mott for $20,250.

The Montgomery Blues and Montgomery Rifles visited Columbus in April, going into camp and remaining several days. They were cordially received and handsomely entertained.

The house of Mrs. Ann Dillon, in the 5th Ward, was burned on the 13th of May.

Among the public entertainments of this spring were well contested races over the Chattahoochee course, and a series of theatrical performances by Mr. W. H. Crisp's Company.

The Daily Sun was established on the 30th of July, by Mr. Thomas DeWolf. It was the first daily paper ever published in Columbus. The Enquirer and the Times and Sentinel then published tri-weeklies.

David Magouirk was shot and killed on the 1st of October, by Zachariah Rogers, they having a difficulty near the polls on the day of the State election.

On the night of the 4th of December, the depot of the Mobile and Girard Railroad, in Girard, was consumed by fire, with about one hundred bales of cotton and some of the papers of the company.

The Opelika Railroad bridge over the river was finished and trains passed over on the 25th of December.

The question of the amalgamation of the Muscogee with the Southwestern Railroad was submitted to a vote of the citizens of Columbus (to determine the action of Council in casting the vote at the stockholders' meeting,) and they voted against it, 9 for to 371 against, on the 5th of October.

Receipts of cotton up to the 1st of May, 69,876 bales. Prices - January, 5�@7�c.; March, 6�@8c,; April, 8�@9c.; May, 9�@9�c.; June, 11@12c.; September, 8�@8�c.; October, 7�@8�c.; December, 7�@8c.

Personal

Rev. S. H. Higgins was installed Pastor of the Presbyterian Church on the 31st December, 1854.

On the 1st Monday in January, Harvey W. Nance was elected a Judge of the Inferior Court; Thos. Chaffin, Tax Collector; Edward Birdsong, Tax Receiver.

P. J. Semmes was Captain of the Columbus Guards, and Peyton H. Colquitt of the City Light Guards.

J. B. Wright and James Lloyd were Constables of the upper district, and R. T. Simons and Jacob Shoup of the lower district.

Dr. Lockhart resigned and Dr. W. W. Flewellen was elected City Physician, in July.

David J. Barber, Clerk of the Superior Court, died in September, and on the 2d of October the Judges of the Inferior Court appointed A. S. Rutherford to the office.

Rev. Mr. Dalzell was Rector of the Episcopal Church.

Hon. Walter T. Colquitt died at Macon on the 7th of May.

Marriages

January 4, John Berrien Oliver and Virginia A. Shorter
Jan. 4, Thomas I. Granberry and Emily V. Ferguson
Jan. 8, Charles P. Morgan and Sarah E. Horne
Jan. 10, Samuel B. Law and Georgia W. Harden
Jan. 11, John Harris and Barbary Gammell
Jan. 11, Absalom McDonald and Mathena Langey
Jan. 11, Samuel R. Brannon and Mary A. Williams
Jan. 18, Parker Fisher and Juda W. Clark
Jan. 23, Henry B. Nicholson and Sarah A. E. Kemp
Jan. 25, Augustus A. Dill and Jackobim Wood
Jan. 25, James Phillips and Martha W. Sherwood
Jan. 31, Thomas E. Young and Georgia P. Butt

February 1, David Ennis and Elizabeth Williams
Feb. 4, John W. Phillips and Catharine Wiggins
Feb. 11, George W. Blow and Martha A. Heath
Feb. 14, John Coleman and Ellen Lyons
Feb. 27, Wm. M. Jepson and Cynthia G. Hall
Feb. 28, Wm. R. Cobb and Maria R. Hamill

March 1, Walter S. Clark and Sarepta A. Wood
March 3, Henry M. Hames and Martha Little
March 8, Charles P. Watt and Sarah P. Eley
March 8, Jean B. Beamont and Melvina Moore
March 13, Theophilus S. Henry and Sarah I. Edwards
March 15, John W. Freeman and Caroline I. Hook
March 15, Thomas F. Watt and Minerva Harrell
March 15, Jas. E. G. McNeal and Amanda C. George
March 19, Joseph Cary and Elizabeth Dukes
March 22, John N. Tilley and Mary E. Beauchamp
March 22, Henry R. Sedbury and Margaret A. Roper
March 28, James Hood and Maria M. Clark
March 29, Henry T. Hall and Elizabeth I. Howard
March 29, William R. Martin and Jane McCallister
March 22, Jackson Harrison and Susan H. Murrell

April 5, William I. McMillen and Elizabeth Connolly
April 8, Aaron D. Brown and Amanda McClesky
April 10, William S. Reynolds and Sarah B. Ford
April 11, Exton Tucker and Mary T. Speller
April 11, Francis O. Goodale and Martha A. Fincher
April 21, George W. Scroggins and Nancy I. Dudley
April 22, Solomon Belcher and Vicey M. Cauline
April 23, Joseph B. Ripley and Mary A. Scoonmaker
April 23, James Torry and Elizabeth Dickson
April 29, George F. Cherry and Mary E. Willingham
April 30, Mathew Kenady and Temperance Hudson

May 8, Thomas W. Camak and Laura A. Ragland
May 13, James W. Wellborn and Nancy Davison
May 15, James J. Buford and Sarah Bedell
May 16, Oliver P. Tillinghast and Mary Jane Thomas
May 21, Wm. McMichael and Caroline F. Calhoun
May 24, Joseph S. Hood and Caroline Jacobs
May 30, John R. Little and Frances L. Ingram

June 1, Benjamin F. Crittenden and Elizabeth Owen
June 5, John P. Cox and Frances Knight
June 17, Joseph Cartledge and Martha J. Glenn
June 21, William C. Clifton and Clara B. Jones
June 26, Moses Simmons and Catharine Kitchens

July 2, George L. Granberry and Winifred B. Drew
July 8, Daniel Odom and Eleanora Pattillo
July 19, William C. Bellamy and Fannie H. Lindsey
July 22, Jas. Jimmerson and Harriet E. Burton
July 24, Wiley J. Howard and Cynthia J. Roach

August 6, Garland M. Barlow and Sophronia A. R. Lester
August 6, James Roe and Jane Wynne
August 7, Samuel A. Billing and Ann E. McDougald
August 8, Alpha Dinkins and Mahala Johnson
August 13, Charles H. Morris and Louisa Olive
August 20, John W. Beakley and Martha I. Hawes
August 30, William Nance and Eveline Weddington

September 3, James Y. Boyd and Frances C. Ivey
Sept. 6, John W. Worden and Endoxy Gunn
Sept. 7, Henry Wilson and Naome E. McCarty
Sept. 8, James McCormack and Angelina R. Seay
Sept. 9, James L. Mane and Sarah L. Perry
Sept. 12, William L. Head and Frances E. Devon
Sept. 15, William H. Radcliff and Matilda Hatcher
Sept. 17, Gustavus F. Mertins and Jenny Stahl
Sept. 20, Alexander M. Brannon and Julia A. Fuller
Sept. 20, Adam J. Livingston and Missouri W. Biggers
Sept. 2t, Lovick P. Fann and Mary Duke
Sept. 25, Benjamin P. Jenkins and Mary E. Ferguson

October 2. Leander F. Ritch and Eliza A. Graham
Oct. 3, David Williams and Lucy C. Henry
Oct. 9. George L. Massey and Savannah L. Parkman
Oct. 10, William L. Wornam and Sarah E. Hudson
Oct. 11, Asbury Hudson and Mary Y. Champion
Oct. 16, Robert Flournoy and Eugenie Moffett
Oct. 17, Columbus M. Jordan and Mary A. Slack
Oct. 17, Benjamin S. Smith and Elizabeth Milner
Oct. 17, James Waddell and Elizabeth Parker
Oct. 21, Willis Hastings and Martha Lawrence
Oct. 21, James Donelson and Patsy Smith
Oct. 28, David J. Bray and Ann Benson
Oct. 30, Mannering Toles and Elizabeth J. Puckett

November 4, James V. B. Calhoun and Rachel Hearn
Nov. 14, James M. Chambers, Jr. and Mary F. Threewits
Nov. 17, Lee Harkness and Maley Anderson
Nov. 28, James Robinson and Eliza Maddox

December 2, Thomas C. Rees and Martha M. Kimbrough
Dec. 4, Benjamin N. Gafford and Martha Speer
Dec. 4, William B. English and Harriet L. Weddington
Dec. 5. William Davis and Rebecca Walker
Dec. 6, James H. Stagg and Elizabeth R. Simpson
Dec. 11, William A. Stansell and Sarah C. Passmore
Dec. 13, James Sims and Lucretia J. Cross
Dec. 13, John N. Sherdon and Martha A. Rodgers
Dec. 16, Henry Newsom and Mary E. Abney
Dec. 19, George W. Turner and Amanda C. Key
Dec. 20, James M. Hughes and Louisiana E. Blankenship
Dec. 20, Thomas C. Satton and Cordelia Wise
Dec. 20, Christian Laud and Martha Bass
Dec. 20, William E. Cropp and Harriet A. Matthews
Dec. 27, C. Wyman and Nancy Morris
Dec. 27, James A. Granberry and Caroline A. Haynes
Dec. 27, James Anderson and Martha A. Tinsley
Dec. 31, Neil Wilkinson and Caroline V. Browning

Deaths

From The Sexton's Reports

January 1, John Sullivan
Jan. 12, child of Mr. Stewart
Jan. 12, child of Charles Shirley
Jan. 14, Miss Moore
Jan. 15. James Jackson
Jan. 19, Mrs. Martin
Jan. 19, Clara Ingraham
Jan. 22, child of Mr. Allen
Jan. 26, Arabella Eastwood
Jan. 27, Elizabeth Balyeu
Jan. 29, infant of George Jones
(Most of these were children who died of scarlet fever.)

February 7, Mrs. King
Feb. 12, child of Mr. Ford
Feb. 15, child of Mr. Biehler
Feb. 16, child of Mr. Bailey
Feb. 17, Miss Wilson
Feb. 18, Mr. Powell
Feb. 18, Mr. Coulter
Feb. 19, child of Wm. Carlisle
Feb. 22, infant of A. Holmes
Feb. 24, Mr. Pratt's child
Feb. 25, Samuel B. Harvell

March 4, Child of Benj. Rhina
March 8, child of Mrs. Gronbeck
March 9, infant of J. H. Daniel
March 13, H. Noble
March 20, Mitchell Sneed
March 21, child of Wm. Deignan
March 30, Jane Clayton

April 2, Child of Richard Warner
April 10, Isaac Thornton
April 14. Robert Forsyth (child)
April 17. child of Wm. Hale
April 18, Martha Holmes
April 21, Elizabeth Counts
April 21, Jordan Odom
April 22, child of Mr. Ingram
April 27, child of E. W. Starr

May 4, Mrs. Stubblefield
May 6, child of E. Chatterton
May 14, Mr. Cox
May 15, Mrs. Wood
May 17, Mr. Hackney's child
May 17, child of Joseph Pranglin
May 29, James Lloyd, Jr.

June 26, Child of L. Hopkins
June 29, daughter of John Kyle
June 30, child of Thos. Stubblefield

July 6, Child of Francis Ray
July 10, child of F. C. Johnson
July 14, child of ___ Walter
July 18, son of Mr. Meredith
July 20, child of Jane Bowers
July 21, child of Mr. Ward
July 22, child of Stephen Adams
July 29, child of John Lewis
July 31, child of J. W. Pease

August 5, David Wright
August 9, child of John Trawick
August 13, child of A. Calhoun
August 23, child of Elisha Jackson

September 2, J. Magonigal
Sept. 3, George A. Harris;
Sept. 4, Mrs. Clarady
Sept. 8, Hugh McCall
Sept. 13, child of Mr. Hicks
Sept. 13, Mr. Moore
Sept. 17, Mr. Scott
Sept. 17, child of Mr. Bowen
Sept. 17, child of Mr. Pike
Sept. 20, Mrs. Cornelia Daniel
Sept. 23, David J. Barber
Sept. 25, Mrs. Hicks
Sept. 25, Mrs. Townsley

(From The Newspapers)

October 7, Mrs. Mary W., wife of J. Rhodes Browne.
November 12, Leonard Melick.
December 12, Mary Lizzie, infant daughter of R. E. Dixon.