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[Wriiten for the Georgia VVteklj.}
Musio —To Bosa.
»V PKOr. A. (CHLICHTI*.
Rosa, when with masn-r-hand thou glidrst
Through the string*, obedient 1o thy call,
Then reality steals from my presence,
And enchantment fills the raptured soul.
Listening then the zephyrs hush their murm'ring
Nature pauses to thy harmony ;
So did Orpheus touch his heav’nly lyre;
Forest* moved through god-like melody.
Now a plaintive strain, like sorrows pining,
Wakes a melancholy echo in the breast;
Now, as sunbeams paint the glist'ning niubow,
SmileS, the tearful tone, the heart to rest.
Like the warbling of the forest songsters,
Like the rippling of the silver lakes,
Like the merry songs in dale and valley,
When the spring time slumb'riug nature
wakes;
Then again like distant rolling thunder,
Muj Stic the deep accords resound ;
Now they breathe a calm and holy prayer,
Ou its wings the spirits hear'nward bound.
Rosa, not of earth can be the power
Which thy mighty genius here wields,
Angels only teach the heav’nly language,
Thus they speak in the Elysian fields.
.Greenville, Ga , Het,., 1861.
(Written for the Georgia Weekly.)
Westminster Abbey.
This ancient edifice, often been
described by our countrymen, visiting
England. It has long been the pride
of Brittain ; and its renown is world
wide. No American sees London,
without contemplating the grandeur of
its architecture, and exploring its con
secrated chapels, and beautiful aisles.
Within its walls repose the remains of
Kings, Queens and members of the
Royal Family of England. Here too,
is the last resting place of many, who
in their day, performed great public
services. And here is the dust of
poets, orators and others, high on the
roll of literary fame. “To sleep the
last sleep ” in Westminster Abbey,
is an honor, that any Briton may well
Civet. One of the most interesting
features connected with the place, is
the great number of monuments erect
ed to the memory of the dead, many of
them the work of the most celebra
ted sculptors of Europe. These have
been accumulating for centuries, at
least from the reign of Edward the
Confessor, down to the present time.
An American cannot but be deeply
moved as he wanders, in solemn calm
ness along the aisles, and under the
lofty arches of this grand old cathe
dral. iJeneafK his*feet are the mighty
dead. All around their sculptured ef
figies gaze upon him, in mute and ev
erlasting silence. He pauses to con
template, with mixed feelings of awe,
and admiration the production, it may
be of a Flagman, or a Chantrey, dedi
cated to some illustrious Statesman or
hero, whose deeds have long since
passed into English History.
It is hoped that it will not he unin
teresting to present a more full des
cription of this celebrated Abbey.—
As we have severed all political ties
with New England, with a prospect of
a more intimate connection with old
England, at least-in point of commer
cial intercourse, it may not be inappro
priate, to become more familiar with
some of the great names of that
kingdom. It is however, more to
gratify a laudable curiosity, than to
obtain historical information, that or.e
wishes to see, or read of this ancient
abbey. What is stated is derived
mostly from works, and authorities in
the possession of the writer, and
which he knows, to be in every wav, reli
able. The subject, or perhaps it
ought to be said the manner of treat
ing it, may be too dry and dusty for
the general reader; but it is hoped
that some few, who have regard for
old things, and old ways, with a lit
tle antiquarian appetite, may be com
pensated in spending an hour or two
in, and about, this venerable pile.
The founding of the Abbey is in
volved in much uncertainty, some por
tion of it, is said to have been built in
the the sixth century. No doubt that
during the eleventh century a magnif
icent structure for that age, was erect
ed upon the place where the Abbey
now stands, and bore the figure of a
cross. Henry 111, seems to have en
larged the place and added a chapel
dedicated to the blessed Virgin. But
not till the time of Henry the VII was
the stately edifice planned and execu
ted ; more particularly that portion of
it, known as his chapel. This part of
it was designed by that King as a
burying place for himself and succes
sors, expressly enjoining by his will,
that none but those of the blood royal
should be inhumed therein. And
most of the Kings and Queens of En
gland have been buried here, up to the
time of George 111. Since that time
a chapel, in Windsor Castle has been
the burying place of the Royal
Family.
The building sustained great ravage
during the civil wars in Cromwell’s
time. Subsequently, Sir Christopher
Wren was employed to give it a thor
ough repair. The beautiful and ma
jestic towers at the West end, were
planned and executed by that great
architect. If has since been repaired
from time to time and kept in a good
state of preservation.
As already remarked, the building
bears the form of a cross. The style
of architecture is Gothic. Its length
from East to West is 530 feet.—
Breadth from North to South 200
feet. Height from pavement to in
ner roof 101 feet. It contains many
beautiful windows of painted glass. —
The towers are 225 feet high. With
in the walls are nine chapels known
as chapels of St. Benedict, St. Ed
mund, St. Nicholas, Henry VII, St.
Paul, St. Edward the Confessor, St.
Erasmus, St. John, St. Andrew and
St. Michael. The ceremony of crown
ing and enthroning the sovereigns of
England, takes place here. Religious
service is held twice every day. The
organ is said to be one of the finest in
the Kingdom.
Let us now examine some of the
many monuments to the departed.—
The reader will perhaps he surprised
to find that quite a number of those
referred to, are to persons little known,
or it may be never heard of, in this
country, but no doubt were celebrated
characters in their day and genera
tion.
In the chapel of St. Edmund is a
monument with the following inscrip
tion :
“ Here lies interred all that was
mortal of the most illustrious and
most benevolent John Paul Howard,
Earl of Stafford, who in 1738 married
Elisabeth, daughter of A. Ewens, of
the county of Somerset- Esqv. Ilis
heart was as truly great and noble, as
his high descent. Faithful t.o his
God. A lover of his country. A re
lation to relations. A detester of de
traction. A friend to mankind. Nat
urally generous and compassionate,
bis liberality and his charity to the
poor were without bounds. Being
snatched away suddenly by death,
which he had long meditated and ex
pected with constancy, he went to a
better life the Ist April 17(52.”
from the preceding, is a
'm-oßwieWl'’ yoViTR in
Grecian armour, sitting on a Greek
ahar, to the memory of Francis
Holies, by John Earl of Clare, his af
llictcd father. This brave youth, af
ter returning home from a campaign
in Flanders died Aug. 12th I(362aged
18. His epitaph is thus written:
“ What so thou hast of nature or of arts,
Youth, hearty, strength, or wba* excelling parts
Os mind and body, letters, arms and wrrth,
His eighteen years, beyond his years, brought
forth,
Then stand and read thyself, within this gins ,
How soon these perish and thyself may pass,
Man's life is measured by the work, not days.
Not aged sloth, but activeyouth bath praise.”
Not far from the above is a monu
ment to Lord John Russell and his
son Francis. He died in 1584. He
is represented in a cumbent posture,
habited in his robes, with his infant
son at his feet. The following by his
lady, is inscribed on the monument:
Right no v *le twice, hy virtue and by birth,
Os Heaven loved, and honor'd on th»* earth,
Hi> countrv's hope, his kindred’s chief delight,
My husband dear, more than this world’s light.
Death hath me ref r ; but I from death will take
His memory, to whom this tomb I make.
John was his name, (ah was !) wretch must l
?*y ?
Lord Russell once, now my tea'-tliirsty clay.
Monument to William Pitt. This
illustrious Statesman is represented,
habited in the robes of chancellor of
the exchequer. To the right of the
base of the statue is History, recording
bis speeches, whilst Anarchy on the
left lies subdued and writhing in
chains at his feet. The statues com
posing this group are nine feet in
height. Inscription, “ This monu
ment is erected by Parliament to
William Pitt, son of William, Earl of
Chatham, in testimony of gratitude
for the eminent public services, and of
regret for the irreparable loss, of that
great and distinguished minister. He
died Jan. 23d, lSOti, in the 47th year
of his age.
Major Andre. On a moulded pan
neled base and plinth, stands a sar
cophagus, on the panel of which is in
scribed, “ Sacred to the memory of
Major John Andre, who, raised by his
merit at an early period of his life to
the rank of Adjutant General of the
British Forces in America and em
ployed in an important, but hazardous
enterprise fell a sacrifice to his zeal for
his King and country on the 22d
Oct. 1780, aged 29, universally be
lovd and esteemed by the army in
which he served, and lamented even
by his foes. His gracious sovereign
George 111, has caused this monu
ment to be erected.” On the plinth ;
“ The remains of the said Major An
dre, were deposited on the 28th Nov.
THE GEORGIA WEEKLY..
1821 in a grave, near this monument.”
The projecting figures, one of them
(with a flag of truce) is presenting to
General Washington a letter, which
Andre had addressed to His Excellen
cy, the night previous to his execution
worded thus: “ Sir, buoyed above
the terror of death, by the conscious
ness of a life devoted to honorable’
purposes, and stained with no actions
that can give me remorse, 1 trust that
the request which I make to your Ex
cellency, at this serious period, and
which is to seften my last moments,
will not be rejected. Sympathy to
wards a soldier, will surely induce
your Excellency, and a military tri
bunal, to adopt the mode of my death
to the feelings of a man of honor.—
j Let me hope, sir, that if aught in my
I character impresses you with esteem
! towards me. If aught in my misfor-
tunes marks me as the victim of policy
and not of resentment, I shall expe
rience the operations of those feelings
in your breast, by being informed that
I inn not to die on a gibbet". I lAva**
the honor to be, your Excellency,
John Andre, Adjutant of the British!
Forces in America.”
The head now upon the figure of
Washington, is said to he the third.—
The original, and the one that was.put
in its place, were broken off, and taken
away, by some person unknown. —
Wiiether it was done to gratify a feel
ing of resentment against Washington,
or for some other purpose is not
known.
Sir John Puckering. The inscrip
tion on his monument says, “ lie was
remarkable for his knowledge in the
laws, as well as piety, wisdom and
many other virtues. He was
Keeper of the Great Seal of England
four years in the reign of Queen Elis
abeth, in which office, he died April
30. 1696. Ilis epitaph over his effigy
is thus:
“ The public cares an<l laws my breast:
To live was toilsome, but to die is rest,
Wealth, maces, guards, crowns, lilies, things
ill at fade,
The pray of lime and sable death are made.
Virtue iuspites men.
Hh wife this statue rears io her loved, spouse,
The test of constancy and marriage vows. v
Temple.
[To be continued."]
The Old Men of Meriwether.
BY VIVTAN.
i- ~ V T"
NO. 3.
Abner Durham was born in Sur
ry County, N. C., 23d August, 1779.
He emigrated to Georgia A. D. 1800,
the year lie became of age, and set
tled-in what was laid out in 1807 as
Randolph, but, in 1812, was changed
to Jasper County.
He married-Miss Frances Cooper in
the fall of 1811. Her father was one
of the early settlers of Putnam Cos.
The Act of CongVess, June, 1812,
declaring war against Great Britain
opened anew field *£or the display ot
courage and that intrepid bravery
which had so recently a past gen
eration through a Revolutionary fiflpijffif
gle. The Creek Indians were at that
time a powerful nation of savages and
a war of extermination existed be
tween them and the white settlers on
the frontier. They also became the #
allies of the British and made such
frequent attacks upon the whites as to
often destroy whole families, and com
pel others to build and live in forts.
September, 1813, the Federal Gov
ernment called for a levy of Georgia
troops, and 3600 men were ordered to
rendezvous at Fort Hawkins. Gen.
Stewart, being the oldest Brigadier,
was ordered to the command, but from
age and infirmity he resigned his com
mission, leaving Gen. John FloyiFtf^r
senior officer in the State. Under
many difficulties and disappointments,
by the failures of the Government to
supply subsistence and even transpor
tation for military stores, they very
patiently constructed a line of forts
and block houses from the Ocmulgee
to the waters of the Alabama River.
T ’iere was another restless spirit in
Georgia, a citizen of Jasper County,
who could not quietly look on the
scene around him without participa
ting. This was Major David Adams.
He was appointed by the Legislature
to the command of an expedition
against the towns on the Tallapoosa
River. Abner Durham was on? of the'’
three hundred volunteers who set out
with their brave commander through
a wild, rugged forest in search of a
cunning, savage, stealthy foe. Reach-,
ing the Tallapoosa, they drove the In
dians out of the town, set fire to it and
enclosed them in their fortifications
within the Horse Shoe Bend, only one
of the whites being wounded. Dur
ham had agreed to serve for six months,
and at the end of that time he return
ed to his family. He soon, however,
joined a second expedition against the
Indians and passed out along the j
Okfuskee Trail. Camping on the hill 1
east of Walnut Creek, near the trail (
which ran a little south-east of the
town of Greenville, he selected that j
gpot for his future home and deter- |
mined some day to live there. He j
hrd befkn absent from home three j
AlJjts when circumstances changed so
that his future services were not re
quired.
A portion of Jasper County was set
off to Morgan in 1815, and Mr. Dur
ham’s residence was included in the
grant to Morgan, hence he afterwards
was a citizen that county. In 1825,
he moved out into the Creek Nation
with his little family to his old camp
ing ground, the place lie had selected
years before. Quite probably he was
a “squatter sovereign.”
* Troup County was laid out in 1826,
and included the cabin of this man of
the woods. Oar pioneer was a candi
date for the Legislature this year
and came within fifteen votes of being
>1 ected. The nearest precinct Was at j
Hunter’s Cross Roads. Joseph Sen- j
tell owned a little mill at the Flat
Shoals. The site of the present town
of Greenville was a canebrake. The
savage war-yell of the Indian had been
hushed by the relentless hand of An
glo Saxon civilization and nothing
but an echo fa” away in the distance
reverberating over forest and dell re
minded one of the noble spirits who
once roamed here free and happy.
Doer and turkey were plenty and the
streams were full of fish. Mr. Dur
ham delighted in hunting and fishing,
and none were more successful. He
Used to see the deer entirely destroyed,
and but few wild turkeys in the coun
try. He had, however, a fondness for
the wild turkey, and procured a nest
of eggs of the breed and raised large
flocks every year for his own use.
He was fond of hunting the beaver
and caught a great many of them.
.His mode was to entrap them in strong,
heavy, steel traps, fastened to a chain,
the end of which was inserted by a
staple in a tree or log on the bank of
thafeteek, go that when the beaver
ca^re' for the bait the trap was so .set
that in climbing out of the water he
would place his foot upon the trigger;
the fall of the trap and the pain caused
by the pressure of the spring on the
Foot would frighten him back into
the water, dragging it after him, the
weight of which would soon drown the
creature —which is an important part
of the game—for if the trap itself is
made stationary on the bank, as soon
as a beaver is caught by the foot he
instantly goes to amputating the limb
to relieve himself. But the great
secret in Mr. Durham’s beaver hunt
ing was preparing the bait. He first
caught a male beaver, procured the
musk bag—scraped it nicely, put it
into an ounce vial. Took equal parts
nf pulverized cinnamon and cloves and
added a little rum until it attained
jhe consistency of table mustard—he
put this into the vial until the musk
had imparted to it the desired flavor.
This he put upon a raw potato and
placed upon the trap. He said that
they would often cotne a considerable
distance for this bait. He built a little
.brick house in his yard and kept a
pair of beavers for years. He would
often in the summer take them to the
creek and amuse himself seeing them
swim, and enjoy the water. He had
quite a number of white rabbits, and
built them a nice house, and they in
creased rapidly and were very beauti
ful. He was a great bee hunter, and
had more practical knowledge of the
-bee than any man I ever saw. He
professed to know his own from any
others, and could hive them without
trouble, take them in a gum with
out angering them in the least or being
stung by them. He collected more
than a hundred stands, and used the
honey as common syrup—putting up
barrels of it in a year.
Merriwether was organized in 1827,
and in March the next year, the first
Superior Court was held in the county
—Walter T. Colquitt, Judge; Hugh
W. Ector, Clerk ; only one case re
turned—confessed judgment. Abner
Durham was one of the Grand Jury.
The report was as follows: “ We, the
i/Svnnd Jury of Merriwether County,
present our thanks to the Honorable
Court, and inform him that we have
no presentments to make. Joseph Sen
tell, Foreman.” How many such re
ports of Grand Juries from that day
to this I have not taken the trouble to
inquire, but judge that is the first and
the last. This was a happy band of
citizens, with homes unstained by any
crime worthy of their notice. Would
to-day that Merriwether could blot
from the record some dark blurred
pages of her history, that she might
boast of a people of unexampled mor
ality and purity. This year Abner
Durham ha*d 202| acres of land and
one negro woman. His family was
growing up and becoming able to help
him cultivate his farm. He began to
live well and enjoy life. He was elec
ted Justice of the Peace, which office
ho held for nearly twenty years, lie
always took great interest in the affairs
of the county. An uncompromising
Democrat—a great admirer of Gen.
Jackson, and during the unprecedent
ed struggle in the S'ate between the
l Troup and Clark parties he was a
| strong and ardent supporter ol the
! Clark ticket.
(Jen. Frank Pierce was a model
statesman with him, and after Judge
Colquit became a Democrat he thought
few men his equal. The Federal In
ion was his organ ; he was one of the
first subscribers to it, continued it as
long as he lived, read it carefully and
believed every word it uttered. He
always managed the election and ex
hibitedmuch interest in the success of
his party. When the Governor and
Members to Congress were elected on
the General Ticket system, he would
often call votes for ths tally-men all
night long, and one time for thirteen
consecutive hours he sat and called
tickets without any apparent difficulty.
He was a strong “Fire-eater” in 1850,
and sustained the election of Hon.
Charles J. McDonald for Governor.
A few years afterwards he became
very much dissatisfied with some of
his old political associates upon the
Temperance question. He Relieved
that it was impossible to prohibit any
thing—that we could not prohibit mur
der nor theft, and that prohibition was
contrary to the very nature of men.
and that it was his right to eat and
drink whatever he pleased. He made
his own peach brandy. I never knew
him to drink to excess. His next de
tested and perhaps his most, hated po
litical opponents, were the “Know
Nothings.” He fought a myth a long
time, but after he got to the substance
he handled them ungloved. lie was a
Primitive Baptist, and opposed to all
secret societies—Free Masons, Sons
‘of Temperance, Know Nothings, all
came under the ban of his anathema.
He was elected Judge of the Inferior
Court in 1848, and served for two
terms as’ one of the guardians of the
public interest of the County.
We have followed him along until
he has attained a good old age. lie
has seen the native forest felled and
the lands worn out —a town built in a
canebrake —the log-cabin give place
to a stately mansion—his one negro
woman raising her dozen stout, able
bodied boys to labor for and wait upon
him in bis declining years. His own
children are grown and seveval of them
have families. Judge Durham, still
stout and able to hunt all day and go
fishing with the boys at night, and at
seventy years of age can mash a crust
of bread without a tooth in his head,
and boast that he never took a dose
of medicine in his life. He was a
man of medium height, rather muscu
lar frame, broad chest, keen, black
eye—his head became very bald, by
which he was often designated. His
firmness was a predominating trait in
his character. His family relations
were happy—had an an affectionate,
amiable wife —his boys grew up to be
moral, good citizens, and his daughters
virtuous and kind. A good husband,
an affectionate father, an indulgent
master, a fast friend and a noble old
patriot. There is a story told of Ab
garus, I believe it is related by Jose
phus. He brought several beasts, ta
ken in different places, to Rome, and
let them loose before Augustus. Every
beast ran immediately to that part of
the circus where a portion of earth
taken from his native soil had been
laid. Education and habit, obligation
and interest attach most men to their
country, but Abner Durham had an
instinctive love for everything the
South called her own. Her mountains
and swamps, her rivers and lakes, her
prosperity and enterprises —the elo
quence of her orators —all inspired
him with a noble enthusiasm. Even
in his last breath, with a stammering
tongue, he would, as if echoing from
the grave, the song of his life, tell
them to “ Stand by the Constitution!
Stand by the Constitution !”
About the Ist March, 1856, he was
attacked with pneumonia, and his
friends soon saw that it must prove
fatal. He made his will and distribu
ted his estate to his family as equally
as he could—appointed two of his old
friends, Dr. 11. S. Wimbish and John
Robinson, his Executors, and on the
14th, at the good old age of seventy
five, he passed away into that “last,
long, dreamy sleep, that knows no
waking.”
(Ejie ©ratgia fptrftlg.
WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 20.
Prepare for War!
We have been one of the last to
yield a credence to the many rumors
of impending civil war; for notwith
standing our knowjfdgc of the spirit
of fanaticism now maddening the
Black Republican party, our confi
dence in the common sense and fra
ternal patriotism of the descendants
of a common ancestry, inspired us
with the hope, that even the fierce po
litical strugglo of 1861, in the late
Union, would end in a peaceable ad
justment of all difficulties.
Our trust in the common sense of
man, even as a mere animal, devoid of
reasoning faculties forced us to be
lieve that the consolidation of our
powerful and warlike States, number
ing fully eight millions of whites,
would serve as an insurmountable bar
rier to those ambitious, insane and bo
sotted views of negro equality which
have shattered the mighty American
Republic, as irremediably as if an
ocean of flame rolled its billows of
fire between and beneath the disrupt
ed confederacies.
This trust has proved to be a vapor,
a mere ignis fatuus —a belief now
shattered, crushed, ground to dust by
the belligerent threatenings of the
arch traitor, Abraham Lincoln, backed
by the fearful fact that the Federal
city is bristling with bayonets, and re
sonant with the alarms of fast ap
proaching war.
It is vain to hope for peace, for the
High Priest of Abolitionism in his
triumphal march to the City of Wash
ington, has declared his unalterable
determination to retake every fort and
arsenal of the “ Confederate States of
America;” to hold every armed fort
of that Republic, vi et arm is ; to col
lect its rightful revenues ; to blockade
its seaports with hostile navies, and to
punish the leaders of its people.
The glib-tongued traitor, Seward,
declares for war, and that the enemies
of negro equality “shall be swept
away as moths before a whirl wind
the Northern Senators avow “the fate
of traitors” to all advocates of disu
nion ; States that cowardly shrank
from every war with a foreign foe
since the warof the Revolution, States
which hoped for foreign triumph in
1812 and 1846,are arming and breath
ing bloody menaces against the South.
At length the old serpent of Spring
field has coiled for his spring and
raised his detested crest above the hiss
ing brood of minon vipers and vermin,
and unsheathed his fangs for war.
Citizens of the South! that for
which all of you have waited, that up
on which many of you have delayed
ere your voices should be one united
cheer for a Southern Confederacy
forever, that which has clogged the
action of the slow moving border
States has, at length, become a real
ity, a fact, a destiny. Abraham Lin
coln has spoken! and like Moloch in
lhe infernal Senate of Satan, he cries:
“ My sentence is for open war!"
The Black Republican party was
born in fanaticism, grew to power in
confusion, and now must live or perish
in the roar of bloody and extermina
ting civil war.
It is, therefore, our sad duty to de
clare our firm belief that within one
short month the birth of the Southern
Confederacy will be baptised in South
ern blood.
This must happen, or the Abolition
party must retrace its triumphant ad
vance and sink to ignoble oblivion.—
The history of all nations proves that
fanaticism never dies a natural death
—it never perishes without a fierce
and bloody struggle for life or power.
Guided by this experience it would be
folly for us to hope that the incoming
administration of the Abolition party
will yield without an appeal to the
sword. He who imagines or hopes
that the South will, or can yield after
the late mighty events, is a fool and a
traitor. She cannot, and the North
will not —war is inevitable, unless
some prodigy in political history shall
suddenly, and at once, change th e
minds of nearly two millions of aboli
tionists, who believe they are right and
all others are wrong.
To your arms, men of the South !
Hope no more for peace; or if you
cannot cease to hope, hope with your
rifles in your hands and your swords
unsheathed. Hope as you see the en
emy inaugurate its blood-thirsty and
renegade chief amid loaded cannon
and sharpened bayonets, upon South
ern soil, in a Southern city, with a
Southern warrior—old in. fame, young
in infamy—daring your brethren to