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THE REFLECTOR. MlLLEDGEVllLLE, G. TUESDAY, DECEMBER 8, 1818. NO. MISCELLANY. om a letter of advice, written from a lis only daughter, immediately after ige. is handed to us. < from the of the best,' and our corrrspon- iu his < onsi ienre, • one of the thai Virginia has produced.' in an adinirahle manner upon a sting subject—and it is worthy of mtation which the author hears, excellent supplement to the cele- i of Dr. Gregory to his daughter. —You have just entered into the is replete with happiness or tnis- issue depends upon that prudent, liform conduct, which wisdom strongly recommend on the one li that imprudence, which a want passion, may prompt, on IBut as there is no wish nearer than that you may ensure all «, which the union of virtuous capable of bestowing; and as times err for want of previous on the line of conduct which to he pursued, how can I ren- ther service, than by presenting advice, which the warmest af- its. laxim, which you should im- ?ply upon your mind, is, never bnntroul your husband, by op- ispleasure, or any other mark [man of sense, of prudence, of enunot, and .will not bear an any kind, which is attended ry look, or expression. The affections is suddenly stopper!; it is weakened ; he begins to iration the most pungent; he is in his own eyes ; and he assur- who once excites those senti- breastof her husband, willnc- lo high ground which she might have retained.—When he mar ie he. a good man, he expects niles, not frowns ; he experts to who is not to controul him, >m him the freedom of acting as ;nt shall direct ; hut one w ho sell confidence in him, as to bc- own prudence is his best guide. which, in reality, are mere elves, often produce bickerings rrels. Never permit them to be [dispute. Yield them with plea- smile of affection.—Be assured Terence outweighs them all, a thousand times. A differ- lity, with your husband, ought hredthe greatest calamity, as one [most studiously guarded against; i, which must never be permit- habitation, where all should be laired confidence and heartfelt [esides, what can a woman gain [ition, or her differences ?—No- tshe loses her husband's respect she loses his love, and with ?ct of future happiness. She m misery, and then utters idl llaints ; but utters them in vain, husband can be retained only pinion which lie entertains of Iness of heart, of her amiable the sweetness of her temper ^e, and of her devotion to him ton any occasion, even lessen )n the contraryit should aug lie should have much more her for those excellent qaa a lustre over a virtuous wo- lersonal attractions are no liatid staid out longer than When lie returns receive St of your heart, lias he i in something you expected, aent, of furniture, or of any i ? nover evince discontent; ijy with cheerfulness. Does i a housekeeper, invite coni- forming you of it, or bring |i'riend; whatever may be uver impossible it may be; s them with a pleasing i your table with checr- lour husband and to your welcome; it will more than every other deficiency : it br your husband, good sense ^Imt politeness of manners, most powerful charm ; it laincst fare a zest superior ’ can boast. Never be dis hy occasion of this nature, idly people often think, be ■husband will make them ; ife will, with good humor, fd for giving his friends so It. , as your husband’s suc- i will depend upon his po- manners of a wife have extending or lessening tm of others for her hus- jike care to be affable and as well as the rich. A i is the sure indication of I unfeeling heart. ^our servants, teach them lyou, whilst you expect iablcdlschargc of their re spective duties. Never toazo yourself bud them by scolding ; it lias no other effect than to render them discontented and impertinent. Admonish them With a calm firmness, and if that will not produce the desired effect, let them be moderately punished. Cultivate your mind by the perusal of those hooks, \Vhirli instruct whilst they amuse. Do not devote too much of your time to novels. There are few which may bo useful in im proving and giving a higher tone to our mo ral sensibility ; bul, in general they tend to vitiate the taste, and to produce a disrelish for substantial intellectual food. Most plays are of the same, class ; they are not friendly to that delicacy, which is one of the orna ments of the female character. History, ge ography, poetry, moral essays, biography, travels, and well written religions produc tions, will not fail to enlarge your under standing, to render you a more agreeable companion, ami to exalt your virtue. A wo man devoid of rational ideas of religion, has no security for her virtue ; it is sacrificed to her passions, whoso voice, and not that of ier God, is her only governing principle. Besides, i:i those horn s of calamity, to whirl families must he exposed, where will sin find a support, if it be not in her just reflec tions upon that all ruling Providence, which governs the universe, whether animated inaniinated ? Mutual politeness between the most inti mate friends, is essential to that harmony which should never he once broken, or inter- upted ; how important, then, that between man anti wife ? The more warm the attach ment, the less will either party bear to be slighted, or treated with the smallest degre of rudeness, or inattention. This politeness, then, if it he not itself a virtue, is at least the means of giving to real goodness a new lustre; itistlie means of preventing discon tents, and even quarrels ; it is the oil of in tercourse; it removes asperities, and gives to every thing a smooth, an even, and a pleas ing movement. 1 will only add, that matrimonial happiness does not depend upon wealth ; hut in minds properly tempered and suited to our respec tive situations. Competency is necessary ; all beyond that point is ideal. Do not sup pose, however, that 1 would not advise and stimulate, if requisite, your husband to augment his property by all honest and com mendable means, i would wish to see him engaged in such an active pursuit; because, .'ngagement, a sedulous employment in ob taining some laudable end, is essential to happiness. In the management of your domestic con cerns, let prudence and wise economy al ways prevail. Let neatness, order, judg ment, be seen in all your different depart ments. Unite liberality with a just frugali ty ; always reserve something for tiio hand of charity, and never let your door be clos ed to the voice of suffering humanity .—Your servants in particular, will have the strong est claim upon your charity—let them be well led, well clothed, nursed in sickness, and ne ver unjustly treated.—Richmond Enquirer. CHARACTERS. MRS. ABIGAIL ADAMS. The late wife of the ex-president Adams was a woman, whose talents and virtues will place her on the list of those, who have ben efited their generation and honored their country. She was the daughter of a New- England clergyman, settled within a few miles of Boston—a man respectable in bis holy office, and who educated his children in the best manner of the times ; an unquestion able proof of his good sense. The personal and mental accomplishments of his daugh ter attracted the attention and secured the respect and affections of Mr. Adams, then a young man of distinction and promise at tli bar in Massachusetts. They were married in the year, 1764, and resided in Boston. The revolutionary difficulties were then fast increasing, and Mr. Adams was conspicu ously engaged. When a continental con gress was formed he. was sent a delegate from Massachusetts to this body. It was a peril ous moment. The wise were battled, the. courageous hesitated, and the great mass o!' the people were inflamed, but confused ; thej bad no fixed and settled purpose, but all left to the dcvclopcment of time. Mr. Ad ams was one of the boldest in the march of honest resistance to tyranny. He looked farther than the business of the day, and ven tured, at that early period, to suggest plans of self-government and independence. To Mrs. Adams he communicated his thoughts freely on all these high matters of state, for lie had the fullest confidence in her spirit, prudence, secrecy, and good sense, without the test, which the Roman Portia gave her lord for his confidence, in matters of policy “ when the state was out of joint.” When Mr. Adams was appointed to repre sent his country at the court of St. James, his wife went with him, and such was her ex quisite sense of propriety, her republican simplicity, her delicate anti refined manners, her firmness and dignity, that sho charmed the proud circles in which she moved, and they speak of her, to this day. as one of the finest women that ever graced ari embassy to that country. When *.ir. Adams was chosen vice presi dent, she was the same unaffected, intelii- gent and elegant woman. No little manage ments, no private views, no sly interference with public affairs was ever for a moment charged to her. When her husband came to the chair of chief magistrate, then the widest field opened for the exercise of all the talents and acquirements of Mrs. Adams ; anil such was her whole course, that her fond est admirers were not disappointed. She graced the table by her courtesy, anil ele gance of manners, and delighted her guests by the powers of her conversation. Through the drawing room she diffused case and ur banity, and gave the charm of modesty and sincerity to the interchanges of civility.— But this was not all; her acquaintance witli public affairs, her discrimination of charac ter, her discernment of the signs of the times, and her pure patriotism made Iter an excellent cabinet minister; and, to the ever lasting honor of her husband, he never for got or undervalued her worth; and in the pride of place and power, he never dispised the Ncw-England simplicity of manners, in which it is a rule to take count'd from a wife. The politicians of that period speak with en thusiasm of her foresight, her prudence and the wisdom of her observations. Tracy re spected, Bayard admired, and Ames eulo gised her. All parties had the fullest belief in the purity of tier motives and iu the eleva tion of her understanding. It was a stormy period and the world went wrong. Fatigue and anguish often over whelmed the president from the weight anil multiplicity of his labors and cares ; but her sensibility, affection and cheerfulness chased the frown from his brow, and plucked the root of bitterness from his heart. To those who see the matters of state at a distance, or only through the medium of letters, ali things seem to go on fairly and smoothly ; hut, those practically acquainted with the difficulties m administering the best of gov ernments, will easily understand Imw much necessity there is for the wisdom of the ser pent united with the gentleness of the dove ; and they too ran comprehend how much the delicate interference of a sagacious woman can effect. Bride, vanity, and selfishness arc full of claims and exactions, all hustling and importunate for office and distinction. Peremptory denial produces enmity and con fusion, but gentle evasion and cautious re plies soften ihc heart of the restless and tem per the passions of the sanguine. An intel ligent woman of address can control these repinings and hush these mitrmurings with much less sacrifice or effort than men. A woman knows when to apply the unction of soft words without forgetting her dignity or infringing on a single principle which the most scrupulous would wish to maintain.— Mrs, Adams calmed these agitations of dis appointment, healed the rankling wounds of offended pride, and left them in admiration if her talents and in love with her sincerity Notwithstanding these numerous duties and great exertions as the wife of a states man, Mrs. Adams did not forget that she was a parent. She had several children and felt iu them the pride and interest, if she did not make the boast of the mother of the Gracchi. Many Women fill important stations with the most splendid display of virtues ; hut few are equally great in retirement; there they want the animating influence of a thousand eyes and the inspiration of homage and flatte ry. This is human nature in its common form, and the exception is honorable and rare. Mrs. Adams, in rural seclusion at Quincy, was the same dignified,’sensible, and happy woman, as when surrounded by fashion, wit and intellect. No hectic of re sentment, no pangs of regret were ever dis covered by her, while indulging in the re trospection of an eventful life in these shades of retirement. Her conversation showed flic same lively interest in the passing occur rences as though she. had retired for a day only, and was to have returned on the mor row to take her share in tire business and plea sures of a political existence. There was no trick, no disguise in this. It arose from a settled and perfectly philosophical and Christian contentment, which great and pi ous minds only can feel. Serenity, purity and elevation of thought preserve the facul ties of the mind from premature decay, and indeed, keep them vigorous in old age. To such the lapse of time is only the change of the shadow on tho dial of life. The hours which arc numbered and gone arc noticed but their flight does not “ chill the genial cur rent of the soul.” Religious thankfulness for the past, and faith in assurances for the future—that mortal shall put on immortality —make the last drop in the cup of existence clear, sweet and sparkling. When the biographer of a future age, shall do justice to tho characters of the illi - rious women of our country, Mrs. Adams will lie found conspicuous on his page, as a dutiful daughter, an excellent wife, a kind, affec tionate and careful mother ; ono who lived longanddidmuch, who discharged the du ties of common life with faithfulness and ala crity, and filled the highest stations with suc cess and honor; one, who though a politi cian, “ could be defended from the cradle to the grave,” and who, though a philosopher, had no doubts of the Christian religion. Mr. Adams is now far advanced in the vale of years, and must feci his ioss as irre parable ; but lie is ton wise to repine and has no much to he grateful for to be cast down. The wife of his youth lived with him for more than half a century. With her in his heart and in his hand he “ sounded all the depths and shoals of honor.” While he mourns her loss, her virtues will rrowd on his soul, clo thed in colors made brighter by death. This patriarch is now turned of eighty and pos sesses his intellectual faculties in an extraor dinary degree. May they long continue to be fresh and vigorous, that he may give to the world the mental portraits of his contem poraries, and illustrations of our history. In him the lamp of life seems to burn mure vi vidly as he gathers the. gents which oblivion was about to receive. The genius of the sage isevery where respected, and his long and im portant services to his country every where acknowledged ; but our last gaze shall he on his domestic virtues; for they were the bright est in the constellation of his merits. Moral and religious principles, and pure and virtu ous affections are indistructible; God has put on them the value of his promise, and the seal of eternity.—JV. E. Galaxy. AGRICULTURAL. Address of Governor Clinton to the Agricultu ral Society of Jefferson County. Mr. president, and gentlemen. —Indepen dently of the flattering references winch have been made in the. very able address just delivered, and which demand my arkuowl- dgments, it would be difficult for inc to re frain from expressing the high gratification wliii h 1 have derived from the first exhibi tion of this respectable association. When we recollect that scarcely twenty years have passed away since the first inhub- taut erected bis hut in this county ; and when we see that it contains flourishing vil lages and a considerable population, charac terized, as the proceedings of this day evince, by intelligent views and well dim ted exer tions ; that its soil is uncommonly fertile, and its climate eminently salubrious ; anil when we consider, that, with the natural ad vantages which flow from its extensive con nection with our interior seas, and toe arti ficial facilities which it will derive from tho mprovementof our mutual navigation, tne markets of the north and the south will be open to productions, we must be persuaded, that the attainment of population and exu berance of wealth, depends entirely upon yourselves. You 'have, gentlemen wisely chosen the true road which leads to prosperity. Agri culture is the source of subsistence ; subsist ence is tlie basis of population ; and popula tion is the foundation of prosperity and pow- Agriculture is also the parent of indi vidual and national opulence. It compre hends in its operations, all the sources of wealth. It employs land, labor, and capi tal. It comprises the cultivation of all tlio fruits of the earth, embraces almost every method of obtaining food by labour, and in cludes the raising of domestic animals, be cause. that employment is necessarily identi fied with the cultivation of vegetable food. And as tire prosperity of a country essential ly depends upon the quantity of surplus pro duce derived from the soil, and as the amount of the materials of subsistence will ulwujs be regulated by the exertions of agriculture, it is evident that its benefits in thes' respects cannot be too highly appreciated. Jjut when we further reflect, that it is lavorable to exercise, the guardian of health-^to con templation, the parent of wisdom—to aetivi- ty, the friend of virtue ; and (to adopt tho emphatic language of a sublime poet) to that “ Sweet peace, which goodness bosoms ever,” we must all admit, that as it was the first it is also the best pursuit of mankind. Among the various measures adopted for the promotion of this pursuit, and its invari able companion, domestic manufactures, the most effectual is the establishment of socie ties for the collection and diffusion of infor mation, and, for the excitement of industry and emulation. This plan has been adopl"d in this county, and a wise legislature w 1 cherish such institutions with extraordinary patronage. It is pleasing to sec at the head of this establishment distinguished men, ap plying with so much public spirit 1 the gifts of nature, the endowments of education, and the bounties of fortune, to the improvement of this favoured region. It is gratifying to perceive men Who have encircled themselves with high renown, and elevated the character of their country, planting the olive by tho laurel, and cultivating the acts of peace with the same zeal and ability with which thoy directed the storm of war. And it is a su» jeet of high felicitation to witness this con federacy of scientific and practical nun, to behold flic experienced agriculturist and enlightened professional man combining their powers in favor of agriculture and domes tic manufactures, and devising ways and means to promote the public prosperity. There was a period of danger when tho eyes of the people of this state wire direct- "d with peculiar anxiety to this region ; when you passed with honor, throogu tlio difficulties with which you were environed, and vindicated the character of America at the pointof the sword. On tins day the pub. lie eye is fixed on you with equal attention, to view the prosperity of your agriculture,