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A POSTILION IN LUCK.
Madam Cinti Damoreau, the famous French
vocalist, who traveled in this country some
years ago tells a very good story of one of
her traveling experiences in France.
She was traveling in a post chaise, and the
postilion who rode one of the horses took so
many glasses of eau-de-vie, to fortify his
stomach against the cold, that he became non
seipse , or in other words, extremely tipsy. His
great coat lay on the back of one of his horses,
and after sliding out of place from the jolting
of the amimal, fell into the road. The posti
lion noticed it, dismounted, picked it up, and
laid it on his horse.
“ I’m in luck.” said he with a hiccup; “ I've
found a great coat.”
A little while afterwards'the same accident
occurred to the coat. The postilion picked it
up again.
“ I’ve found another coat,” said he.
The circumstance was repeated a third
time.
“By Jupiter!” said the postilion, “this
road is full of overcoats. However, I've got
three besides my own, and I'll not get of!
again.”
With these words he rode onto Marseilles,
without finding any other surtout, but unluck
ily lost his own.
PUNNING IS CATCHING.
It has been well said that punning, like
mocking, is catching. One Cooke, an incor
rigible English punster, being asked where
Ole Bull came from, said “from Cowes.' 1 ' 1 —
“Yes,” said a hardened punning sinner, “and
when he was dining lately at Ox-ford, a cock
ney present observed : “Did you heifer see a
better culver /” — Yankee Blade-
THE IRISH TRI-COLOR.
In a speech at -Limerick, the other day,
Smith O'Brien announced that orange and
green will henceforth he the Irish Di-color!
Thus the Hag of the young Irelanders will be
a bull.
Xntispapei* Analects.
EVILS OF RAILROADS,
The New York Gazette has the following
humorous argument, which it says was used
by a canal stockholder in opposition to rail
ways. “He saw what would be the effect of
it; that it would set the whole world a gad
ding. Twenty miles an hour, Sir! Why, you
will not be able to keep an apprentice boy at
his work; every Saturday evening he must
take a trip to Ohio, to spend the Sabbath with
his sweet heart. Grave, plodding citizens
will be Hying like comets. All local attach
ments must be at an end. It will encourage
slightness of intellect. Veracious people will
turn into immeasurable liars, all their concep
tions will be exaggerated by their magnificent
notions of distance. “Only one hundred
miles off! —Tut, nonsense. I'll step across,
Madam, and bring you your fan ! ” Pray sir,
will you dine with me at my little box in Al
leghany? Why, indeed l dont know, 1 shall
be in town until twelve, well I shall be there,
but you must let me off in time for the thea
tre.” And then, Sir, there will be barrels of
pork, and cargoes of flour and chaldrons of
coal, and even lead and whiskey, and such
like sober things that have been used to sob
er traveling.whisking away like a set of sky
rockets. It will upset all the gravity of the
nation. If two gentleman have an affair of
honor they have only to steal off to the Rocky
Mountains, and there no jurisdiction can
touch them. And then, Sir, think of flying
for debt, A set of bailiffs mounted on bomb
shells could not overtake an absconding debt
or, only give him a fair start. Upon the
whole, Sir, it is a pestelential topsy-turvy,
harum-scharum whirl-gig. Give me the old
fashioned, solemn, straight forward, regular
dutch canal —3 miles an hour for express, and
two for a jog and trot journey—with a yoke
of oxen for a load. Igo for beasts of bur
then ; it is more primitive and scriptural and
suits a moral and religious people better.—
None of your hop, skip and jump whimsies
now for me.”
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END OF A RICH POPE.
Clement V. during his feeble and profligate
reign, emassed enormous riches by the sale
of eclesiastical benefices and by other scan
dalous means. He had enriched his relations
and his dependants, but he had not secured
their gratitude. The moment that his death
was announced in the papal palace all his in
mates rushed upon his treasures as if they had
been their lawful booty. Among his nume
rous household not a single servant remained
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to watch the dead body of his master. The
wax candles that lighted his bed of state fell
upon his bed clothes, and set them on lire. —
The flames spread over the whole apartment,
hut the palace and wardrobe were so plunder
ed, that only a miserable cloth could he found
to cover the half burnt remains of one or the
richest popes who had ever governed the
Church.— Campbell 1 s life of Petrarch.
A BOOT SUB-TREASURER.
Some time before the Schoolmaster had
gone abroad through the glens and braes of
Scotland, and before Preston and others had
published their systems of double-entry book
keeping, and old Treasurer of the town of
Sterling, in Sterlingshire, Scotland, knowing
but little of either writing or arithmetic, con
trived a simple method of keeping his finan
cial accounts. On each side of the chimney
he hung up an old boot ; in the one on the
right he put in all the money he received, and
in the one on the left, all receipts for money
paid out. Whenever he wished to balance
his accounts, he counted up the contents of
each boot, and by setting the one off against
the other, was enabled to square his ac
counts.
SELF-MADE MEN.
Akenside, the author of the Pleasures of
Imagination, was a butcher until twenty-one,
and tirst took to study from being confined to
his room by a wound produced by the fall of
a cleaver; Marshal Ney was the son of a coop
er: Roger Sherman, Allan Cunningham and
Gifford, were shoemakers in early life; Sir
William Herschell was a lifer boy ; Franklin
a printer’s devil: Ferguson, the astronomer, a
shepherd, until twelve years age; Ben John
son was a brick-layer, and James Monroe the
son a brick-layer; Gen. Knox was a book
binder, Gen. Green a blacksmith, and Gen.
Morgan a wagoner; Burns was a ploughman,
Hogg a shepherd. Bloomfield a farmer’s boy,
Frazee a stone-cutter, an 1 Crabbe and Keats
apothecaries; Sir William Blackstone was the
son of a silk mercer, and a posthumous child.
Ben Burke was a printer's devil, and the son
of a tailor.
Medical Advice. —“ Doctor,” exclaimed a
love-sick girl, to a quaint “ saw-bones, - ’ “ I
have a terrible heart-burn—what must I take
for it!”
“Why,” answered the fastidious M. D.,
“if I am not mistaken as to the cause of the
complaint, I should recommend you to procure
Swain s panacea.” — Rambler.
Quaint old Thomas Fuller, speaking
of recreation, wittily and wisely says: —“ Spill
not the morning (the quintessence of the day)
in them. For sleep itself is a recreation; add
not therefore sauce to sauce. He cannot
properly have a title to be refreshed, who was
not first faint. Pastime, like wine, is poison
in the morning.” Again, he adds; “Chiefly
entrench not on the Lord’s day, to use unlaw
ful sports; this were to spear thine own flock,
and to shear God's lamb.”
So ret git €or reap o nil cit cc.
For the Southern Literary Gazette.
LONDON LETTERS,—NO. VI.
London, June 10, 1848.
My Dear R. —l have but a short time in
which to prepare a despalch for you, to go by
the Britannia. The interval which has elaps
ed since my last, has not been prolific in great
events, (speaking of course comparatively, for
otherwise they would be feariully significant)
and the condition of affairs, both here and on
continent is much the same as when I wrote.
The greatest event of the week just passed
is the arrest of several of the Chartist leaders,
who have shown themselves particularly se
ditious in their language and movements.—
Fussell is one of their number, and l am in
clined to think that he will find that he has
made quite too much fuss. He and the others
await their trial, under the recent act of Par
liament, at the approaching Criminal Sessions,
and the prevailing impression in the city is
that they will follow poor Mitchel to Bermu
da, if they don’t fair worse.
Be assured that I write understandingly
when I say that these continued agitations and
disturbances are conducted by the most ignor
ant and least virtuous part of the community,
and have ceased to create any general excite
ment in the city.
In the part of London “where I reside —the
west end—such outbreaks are utterly un
known, and one must cross over that mighty
Babylon into the eastern precincts to come in
to contact with the Chartists. The movement
of government in the arrest of Jones, Vernon,
and their confederates, was probably induced
by the intention of the Chartists to make a
“demonstration” on the 12th instant—which
will be Whit-Monday—and on which occa
sion they were to gather on the Middlesex
side of the river—their former meeting ground
being on the Surry side, and placing London
Bridge between them and London proper. —
This decisive step may however nip the mis
chief in the bud, and prevent these enthusiastic
devotees of the 4 largest liberty,’ from making
fools of themselves by another bootless array
of their weakness. The Chartests have sense
enough after all, to keep out of the way
of the authorities ; and the apparition of
a constable’s staff is sufficient to put them to
flight. If, however, they should assemble in
any large numbers, some collisions between
them and the police, or possibly the military,
may take place, which Heaven forefend! Ido
net sympathize with these misguided people in
their rash movements, but I cannot contem
plate without horror, the shedding of their
blood by the soldiery.
The recent action in Parliament on the con
duct of the late minister to Spain is ominous of
evil to that country —or rather to the pres
ent government. Sir Henry Bulwer is tri
umphantly sustained, and the Spanish agents
who was sent over to put the best face on the
matter will go back with a flea in their ear,
satisfied of the poltroonery of their masters
in their recent rash provocation of the British
Government. Speculation is now active, as
to what ministers will do to heal the affront
put upon them. Mercantile affairs have im
proved not a whit—nor can I see much pros
pect of a change for a better, while affairs in
the continent remains so unsettled. In Man
chester, I am told, there are more than 6000
operative out of employ and of those at work
thousands are not doing full labor. This
may be taken probahly as a fair specimen of
the condition of the manufacturing districts.
There was a very brilliant fete--an official
ball given at the superb mansion of Lord John
Russell in Downing street a few evenings
since, and among the lions of the occasion
were our accomplished minister and his lady.
Mr. and Mrs. Bancroft are very highly es
teemed, and command universal respect at
court
One of the most prominent events in Paris’
of the present week, is the passage of an anti
mob law, to prevent tumultuous assemblages
of the people—which is looked upon here as
a measure of great prudence, and as a step
forward in the organization of a good govern
ment. It is of course not at all relished by
the lower classes—the Communists and the
rabble. A monster breakfast had been pro
posed by the Ouvriers —tickets to which were
to he only a quarter franc each—but it is now
doubtful if they will carry out the plan.
The popular elections for several new assem
bleymen have resulted in the return of six
moderate members, and five of the ultra re
publican party. The leading candidate, how
ever, is a prominent ultra, which is a some
what significant fact.
There is of course great complexity in the
reports we have of affairs in Paris—and it is
difficult to determine what the real truth is.—
Undoubtedly there exists much agitation in
that capital, and the elements of harmony
are not altogether apparent in the National
Assembley. The assembley has refused the
demand that Louis Blanc should be subjected
to trial before the civil tribunals for his par
ticipation in the affairs of the 15th of May.
Asa member of that body, his personal liber
ty is inviolable. . The committee appointed
to consider the demand of the law officers
reported favorably to it, five to one, but after
much exciting descussion the assemblv re
fused to grant the request by a vote of 370 to
-340.
We may expect to hear speedily of the
working of the new law I have spoken of.—
It was passed by an immense majority; j n
fact only 80 voter were recorded against it.—
It is a high handed measure on the part
of the government beyond all question!—
but the exigency of the times demanded it, and
if it be faithfully carried out it will create in
tense excitement and possible collisions be
tweet the populace and the guard—hut it must
eventually promote order and peace.
I have not alluded to Irish affairs—but must
afford you a hasty glance thereat. Smith
O'Brien is apparently desirous to share the
exile of Mitchel, for his language, in an
address to the members of the New Associa
tion, is daring to the verge of sedetion, accord
ing to the construction of the recent treason
act. The first number of the “Irish Felon”
has not yet appeared, and for my part I do
not expect to see it—for I cannot help think
ing that the leaders are getting tired of a game
in which there are “more kicks than cop
pers.” It seems that funds—the sinews of
agitation—have run wonderfully low of late.
While I am upon Irish affairs, I will men
tion that a very pretty piece of enthusiasm
was gotten up by the bidders at the sale of
John Mitchel’s furniture and other effects, on
Monday last. There were a few books with
autographs on the fly-leaves and these sold for
quite extravagant prices, while a pair of le
gitimate Irish pikes worth perhaps fifty cents,
were sold for Ten Dollars. Vive la baga
telle !
Jenny Lind’s career continues with unaba
ted brilliancy. She appeared on Thursday
night as Adina, in that favorite opera of Don
izette's L'Elisir d 1 Am are ; and I need not
say that she was received with tremendous
applanse. She is the star of fashion and
taste at this time.
The Queen and the Count have again gone
to the Isle of Wight—a measure which some
suppose ro have been adopted to remove the
former from any possible excitement on the
approaching Whit Monday.
You ask me my serious and decided opin
ions on the state and probable results of the
Chartist movement. Although to some ex
tent an eye-witness of the demonstrations, I
feel at a loss to express my convictions in
very decided language.
There is doubtless an unquiet spirit abroad.
The working classes, and more particularly
the lower orders of society, are infected with
the Revolutionary spirit so rife on the Conti
nent. They have a vague idea of increased
liberty, of “ better times,” if the enormous
expenses of Government should be abridged;
the most sensible feature, by the way, of the
Chartist petitions; but they have not well
defined and liberal views of constitutional
liberty. They are for striking in the dark,
and taking the result as it may turn up. —
Government is on the alert, watching and
prepared for emergencies, while its public tone
is that of dignity and scornful indifference to
the clamors of the excited malcontents. I
think it not unlikely that the spirit of discon
tent may yet spread and deepen, until physi
cal force shall be resorted to by the faction
ists, and then the Lion will he aroused, and
the sword and the musket will be the argu
ments which will overawe and suppress the
rebellion. It is a somewhat significant fact
that petitions are now being circulated with
great success, praying the queen to adopt vig
orous measures to suppress by force, all Char
tist gatherings, unions, &c.
Chartism has grown feeble and disreputa
ble since the farce of Kensington Common.
The name will scarcely do to rally again the
actual claimants of Reform—of whom be it
remembered, are many thousands of conside
rate and sensible men.
But 1 have exceeded my limits, and must
hastily close, remaining,
Yours as ever. E. F. G.