as would make fraud upon these people an offence indictable in any courts in the State, and that testimony de bene esse should also be permitted on the part of people. These enactments seem to us to be necessary, If practicable, it would be advisable that some method should be taken of giving the proper information to the immigrants before they leave the vessels. The subscribers would suggest that the distribution of handbills might be made imperative on the pilots, and would have some hope that through the British Consul at New York, a plan might be adopted by which the agents employed in Great Britain and Ireland, to examine the quantity, &c., of the provisions of each emigrant, might by the Government of that country be employed, also in the distribution of handbills, such as would be of no material expense, and would forewarn those who are now so often imposed upon.

We have seen the present effort to protect the immigrant, made in the Legislature of this State, with feelings of the deepest gratification. We rejoice in hoping that the immigrant may be made more and more to feel that as soon as he lands on these shores, he is watched over and cared for by the Government of the country he has adopted; and we may be allowed to express a hope that it might properly be deemed true policy to protect those who by emigratingWestward, contribute so largely as our own countrymen do, to develope the mineral and agricultural resources, forming a considerable proportion of the material of the commerce which renders the State of New York so prosperous.

We are, with every feeling of respect and confidence, the members of the Societies of persons born in the British Islands, but now resident in Buffalo.

Hon. THOMAS SMITH,

Through ROBT. HADFIELD, Secretary.

Chairman of Committee to investigate frauds upon Emigrunts.

( No. 67. )

Communication from Charles H. Webb, Agent of British Protection Emigrant Society.

To the Committee of Delegates from the Legislature to investigate the frauds upon Emigrants on arriving in this city.

GENTLEMEN:

In addition to the evidence laid before you by the undersigned, he would beg to state further facts which he is cognizant of.

Another system of fraud adopted by the boarding house keepers (emigrant) is, that they generally have five or six persons about their establishment, who if they cannot prevail on the emigrant to accompany them to the boarding house they represent, when coming from the quarantine to the city on their arrival at the dock, they seize upon their baggage by force, having carmen who are privy to their operations in their employ, to take it to the boarding house whom they act for, and when the luggage is once in the house, and the emigrant find he is in a place, that he could not be satisfied with the accommodation for himself and family, and wish to have his luggage moved after looking about, finding more suitable accommodations, it is then held by the landlord either for a demand of storage or a charge of one days board, subjeciing the emigrant to put up with the accommodations offered him, or pay some five or six dollars for that he has received no equivalent for. These boarding houses make it a rule, for instance, if emigrants arrive at 7 o'clock P. M., and leave the next day at 10 or 2 o'clock, charge two days board and lodging, what in fact is only one day. All which may be summed up, by stating that for the past season, a numerous gang of runners in the employment of various forwarding houses, whose names have been very frequently before the public, charged with gross frauds upon emigrants, act in concert with certain boarding houses, and have been in the constant practice of forwarding emigrants, to admit of their luggage being taken to these houses, when one way or the other, they have surely been extorted upon.

If the undersigned might suggest measures necessarily to be adopted, he would urge that a dock be set apart for the landing of emigrants in New York, with suitable sheds, and that police officers should be in attendance to preserve order and protect the agents of

the Societies in performance of their duties, and further as a check upon these runners, they should be required to take out a licence and be under heavy penalty for their good conduct.

MY DEAR SIR:--I think it my duty to inform you as Mayor of the city of Albany, of some of the frauds and robberies that are daily being practiced on the unsuspecting, ignorant emigrant that are passing through this city, by the self styled passenger agents, Henry D. Smethurst & Co., and George W. Daily. The amount is enormous, and not one passenger seemingly gets off without being cheated out of something, more or less, in some way. I will mention only a few out of the many ways of cheating that have come under my observation while I have been a clerk here at Mr. office in Buffalo, to whom passengers are forwarded.

1st. They make their tickets for the number of persons, making short the full passages, and consequently the passenger gets on the steamboat and have to pay over say nine persons, eight full passage tickets will read nine persons, four full passages.

2d. They collect luggage at four times the customary prices for St. Louis, Cincinnati, Pittsburg, and all the southern routes, and say on the back of tickets, paid on the lake only, and they have to pay over from Erie and on the southern canal.

3d. They collect over 1000 lbs. luggage, and put on the ticket, 400 lbs.

4th. And in many cases where the passengers pay the fare through in New York, they will write due on the ticket, a sum about equal to what they pay at this office for the lake fare, thus cheating the emigrant out his lake ticket, and more than one hundred cases of this kind have come under my observation, where the passenger was not able to pay his passage over, and had to apply for charity.

I would recommend for humanity sake, and the honor of our city, that you place a competent man at both of those passenger offices to examine all the tickets, and see that passengers are not defrauded out of their last dollar. You probably have no correct idea of the amount they are daily and hourly swindled out of. Mr. Paff is a tool that they use to cheat thousands, and a Wm. Smith also. I can send back many cases every day that come to hand if you wish me to do so, and can provide funds to pay their fare on the railroads, for they are not able to go back, for which reason they are becoming more embolden in their frauds. They are increasing daily and scarcely a passenger passes without a fraud being practiced upon.

Mr. Matthews passage office at Troy is in not much better repute.

Any service that I can render in the way of giving information, will be done with pleasure. If you wish any reference to place confidence in this epistle, I will refer you to Mr. E. B. Bennett, A. C. Churchill, Reuel Clapp, and Elder Stephens Wilkins.

A lot of eighty-six Hollanders lay here waiting, that paid fare over $1,150-$680 passage, $433 in Troy for their luggage. We weighed the luggage, and the over weight at a fair price will not come to $75. Shipped by P. O'Hern, New York, Emery Matthews, Troy.

Smith shipped some two weeks since, a lot of Hollanders, and collected $463 in Albany, and receipted to Buffalo only, gave a spurious receipt, signed by some Dutch runner, to St. Louis. Freight to Buffalo was about $50. They had to pay their luggage over, but it did not cost but about $80 from here.

Respectfully yours,

P. S. Keep this to yourself, so far as my name is concerned, it might be the means of my losing my place this season, if my name was brought in question as the exposer, &c.

In haste.

Please call on Rev. Dr. Wyckoff, of your city who is somewhat conversant with some frauds practiced on Holland emigrants, and he may be able to render you some assistance and information.

( No 65.)

Letter from Moses G. Leonard, of New York, to the Committee.

GENTLEMEN:

To comply with your request, viz: to give you some account of the effects of the law of the 5th of May last, (known as the emigration law,) as it relates to the city, the relief afforded thereby to our charity institutions, and whether or not it was productive of the greatest benefits to the immigrant, in consideration of the amount of money received. Permit me to call your attention to the report of the Commissioners of the Law, in which you will find a detailed and full account of the action of that board and the result of their labors.

That there were very great embarrassments to be overcome in perfecting proper and suitable arrangements for the reception, and provision of the poor and sick, when it is recollected, of the numbers and condition of those to be provided for, none will question, and and that the Commissioners exerted all due diligence in meeting the exigencies of the case, will not be doubted, when it is known that after four days they had made temporary arrangements for all falling to them to provide for. This arrangement was, however, made with the constituted authorities of the city, and until after the most perilous season of the sickness, (which was the only cause of real difficulty and embarrassment,) has passed, the sick, as well as paupers, were provided for in the institutions of the city.

About the time the Commissioners had prepared their buildings for the reception of paupers, the law of Congress, passed at the last ses