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About Weekly constitutionalist. (Augusta, Ga.) 185?-1877 | View Entire Issue (Feb. 27, 1867)
the weekly constitutionalist "WEDNESDAY MORNING. FEB. 27. 1867. TO OUE SUBORIBERS. • The Weekly Constitutionalist will here after he mailcdLon Tuesday instead of> Wednes day morning. We make this change to accom modate many subscribers. It is oui aim and purpose to make the paper a first class news and family journal, and we confidently hope that the influence of our subscribers will be exerted to aid us in doing so by extending its circu lation. A SENATORIAL REVOLT. It was fashionable among the Senators and Representatives of the North, when the South had rights in the Union and Republican gov ernment was something more than a hypocrisy, it was fashionable, we say, to sneer at Southern gentlemen and remind them that the plantation whip had been left at home. Any ordinary observer would suppose that, in the absence of Southern Congressmen and since the emancipation of negro slaves, the sages of the North at Washington might repose in security and mingle together like exaggerated lambs. Such, however, is not the case. The planta tion whip has been exehang ed for the Stevens goad in the House and the Sumner lash in the Senate. Negroes have gained a quasi freedom and intelligent white men lost their liberty. A good example of this coercion was afforded, a few days since, in the Senate chamber when Mr. Sumner, whose bravery all men recognize, charged his compeers with cowardice! Mr. Conness was stung to madness at this slur, and retorted by saying that he was “tired of the whip of this leader of the Senate—that he was determined to submit no longer to Mr. Sumner’s lash, etc., etc.” Now, here is a dis inctavowal that the “plantation whip” stilt survives in the halls of Congress, in spite of Abraham Lincoln’s proclamation; there is the further confession that no less man than Conness, of California, had been scourg ed until not only bones and cuticle, but his very soul, revolted against the, torture. It was a fact well kuown over all the South, during the ancien regime , that the most terri ble slave drivers were Yankees, and especially a Yankee from the lean streaks of Massachusetts. The bipod of Cotton Mather revealed itself un mistakably whenever a sniveling Puritan overseer was confronted with a delinquent ne gro. Times change but Massachusetts Yankees do not. The New England overseer has sur rendered his raw-hide to Mr. Charles Sum ner, and poor Mr. Conness, who has the mis fortune to be a white man and the still greater misfortune of being an Abolitionist, voluntarily seeks a pillory frora-wkich escape is impossi ble. Ply the thong lustily, brave Sumner ! By • all the memories of the moxa treatment and in honor of each particle of marrow in,your backbone, cry aloud and spare not. The King of the Crocodiles, so it is written, can do no wrong, anti Sumner is King of all the croco diles. CAPITAL FOR THE SOUTH, ETC. We understand that Mr. Jay Cooke, the financier who successfully engineered the sale oi United States bonds by proving to the peo ple of this benighted country that a 9 national debt is a national blessing,” promises no less than $150,000,000 of Northern capital will be thrown into the South, provided she accept the Constitutional Amendment. We opine that Mr. Jay Cooke will find it rather difficult to persuade the South that a national disgrace is a national virtue. If the capitalist of the North declines trusting his money to men who prefer honor to shame and honesty to sycophancy, it is not reasonable to suppose that the gold thus refused to decent men will be lavished upon them when all pride of character and iutegritv of soul are forfeited. We asked, in vain, for some explicit answer to the question: “ Will Congress guarantee Southern representation, for an acquiescence in the Constitutional Amendment ?” We beg pardon for saying that we asked iu vain. Nay, the reply came in thunder-tones from the ruling spirits of the Government that even such stultification and concession would not be ample as an atone ment or sacrifice. Wherefore, Mr. Jay Cooke’s pledge is as unsubstantial as the will-o’- wisp and, if believed in, leads to some political bog out of which wc m‘ay flounder as best we can. Many worthy gentlemen are importuned to make pilgrimages to the South, mainly to investi gate as to the probabilities of the cotton crop, the reliability of planters, and security of life. Hav ing an eye to business, the cotton crop is usu ally computed at its true value and importance; haviug a well-founded apprehension of a finan cial volcano aud having eyes to see that our planters have been and are being ruined by a paternal government, these lookers on in Vienna are chary as to bargains on time ; not ' finding any truthful evidence as to the existence of violence of any kind or to any extent, they must, if honest, report favorably. As far as the last point is concerned, we feel much doubt of the effieacy of a veracious statement. -From Gen. Grant to the last cuvoy, official or private, the report has been favorable to the South and, when compared with Northern crime, flattering and august. If Gen. Grant and his followers have not been believed, it is a desperate expo* dient for any private individual to attempt the extortion of credit from reluctant judges. No man is so blind as be who does not wish to sec; the dominant party is radically intent upou dis guising the truth. The Northern people are wilfully misled. Have they not Moses and the Prophets ? If they believe not them, neither will they believe Dives though he came from the dead, clad iu cerement and wasted with the experience of a supernatural woe. Every effort made to assist us is a compro mise with conscience. If our people are craven and lily-livered enough to exchange their heroic past and its dead, their nobly patient present and its honorable dolour, for a little yellow gold or a few bandies of greenbacks—we great ly mistake them and their purpose. Should, however, evil,counsel so far prevail as to make them even waver in the decision, let them re member that they forfeit the respect of pos terity, they are unworthy of the cause and those who died for it and, finally, that of their own base act, they abandon their birth right forever. Not only is the past forsaken and the present disgraced, but the surprises of the future will never come in glorious retribu tion for a venal race. Liberty, like heaven, is to be won by perpetual vigil; like heaven, too, it is a prize to be deserved, and not a bpon be stowed by some blind god of chance. NORTH AND SOUTH. The sinister pretext for establishing military despotism in the South is that life is not se cure. Crime is made the barometer. We have, on several occasions, demonstrated that for every murder in the South, we could pro duce fifty murders in the North ; for every theft in the South, a hundred "burgl&ries in the North ; for every corrupt official in the South —heaven alone knows how many rogues in any one New England State. As- our proof may have been rejected as partisan evidence, the following testimony from the Boston Post will pass muster. It says : “Newspaper offices have been mobbed—indi viduals seized and tarred and feathered, ridden upon rails, and executive influence interposed to shield the culprits from the punishment the court deereed. ’Robberies and murders have been alarmingly prolific—garroters, bank rob bers and burglars fiave pled their vocation as vigilantly here as in Louisiana, and with as much impunity; but this is goring a different ox, and Mr. Eliot and his Radical friends are not at all alarmed by the fact. The murders all around us—in Roxbury woods, iu Franconia, N. H., in Auburn, Me.—speak a depravity the South cannot exceed; while ,ue robbers in New York an<f New England are unprecedented in magnitude and numbers. If crime be the gauge whereby to decide upon the right of self-gov ernment, New Euglaud would be in imminent danger of territorialism, at once. But it is all a trick—a mere subterfuge to prolong power and patronage iu the hands of the Radical part}' by shutting out one-third of the territory and one third of the people of the United States from anv representation or any voice in its Govern ment.” Relief for the South. —The T> ibune says : “ Wc arp sorry to learn that the benevolent and patriotic efforts of the Southern Relief Associa tion to alleviate the distress prevailing in seve ral ofthe Southern States, are not receiving the encouragement which they deserve. •Ihe cry for help comes up day after day, but the North ern people are chary of their contributions, and the demands upou the Committee far exceed the means at their disposal.” To which the New York Times replies with no little sarcasm and point: “The ‘Noj’-thern people’ are too busy with other Southern inte rests just now to give much attention to such commonplace matters as starvation and distress. We want the Southern people well under mar tial law ; wc want to make sure that all their negroes have the right to vote, and then we will inquire whether they are starving or not. Probably two hundred thousand will perish this year—blacks and whites indiscriminately— mainly in Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, and iu the back districts of South Carolina ; but there will be a good many left, and it is very impor tart that those who are left should be under martial law. It will not answer to let starving men have the benefit of the writ of habeas corpus. Besides, while they are starving, they can be managed more easily. If wc feed them we should make them insolent, and they might think it unreasonable iu us to stick bayonets into them afterward, in order to make them sincerely sorry for their rebellion. Ihe best wav is, now we have got them dbwu, to keep them clown. Starving will help bring them to a realizing sense of their condition apd character. There’s nothing injures a man’s morale like feeding him when he is hungry. That’s just the time you can do with him as you please.” OOOLIEJjABOR. In the present condition of political affairs it is almost farcical to speculate upon questions of industry or progress. As public journalists, however, we are bound to chronicle experi ments of every kind which promise important results. For this reason we areinduced to note the introduction of Coolie labor into Louisiana. Mr. Arthur Chaler, of Natchitoches Parish, has been enterprising enough to try this kind of labor and, thus far, with great success. He reports that his workmen are industrious and sober. They arc not querulous, but on the contrary, both ready and willing to perform any amount of labor with cheerfulness and promptitude. Steadiness, sobriety, content ment, toil and fidelity are gained at a compara tively small cost, viz: the ex ict fulfillment of contract on the part of the planter. The Coolie requires rations and wages monthly. When pay and feed day are never shunned or forgotten, the Coolie observes the spirit and the letter of his bond. We shall follow this experiment with mucli interest and have no doubt as to the beneficial results of Mr. Cha ler’s example. BEHIND HIS AGE. A correspondent of the London Times has had a protracted interview with President Johnson, and, by authority, published the re sults of his audience. We have not space for so lengthened an article, but the following exr tract will give the measure of Hercules. On the delicate subject of. impeachment the Presi dent said with a smile : “ I had contracted Old World ideas, derived from Magna Charta and so downwards, respecting the right of the ac cused to be heard and to be fairly tried, but these seem to be going out of date. Now, a committee sitting in secret and hearingone side only, and that side the enemies of the accused, prejudge his case. It is a consistent part of the general system which we sec being pursued.” Wc regret that so determined an individual as President Johnson when “contracting old world ideas of Magua Charta ” did not like wise contract Old World notious as to its pres ervation. Knowledge of Common Things.— Carlyle laments that when Ke was a boy he had no teacher to instruct him as to the nature and qualities of the things which were about him, such as trees, rocks, grasses, water ; to talk to him about the stars, and to show him the con stellations &c. That lamentation is one very many have to make. Indeed w* sometimes think that education ought to begin somewhat at the other end of it. That is, that we should be taught earlier of the things that are nearest to us. Here is the ground we tread on, and the dust we kick np as we walk. What child, yes, or what man, canjtell us that of what it consists, where it comes from, or how made ? The grass we walk over, the stones which boys throw, what do they know of the substance of them ? Should we not learn first of all, about the things which are right nnder our eyes and under our feet? It mast be an amusement to go marketing In Texas ■with prices like these: Fine beeves are selling from fourteen to fifteen dollars, for spe cie. Bheep are selling at one dollar and a half per head, and pork at two and a half and five cents per pound. LITERARY NOTICES. A VERY PATHETIC STORY. It is remarkable how, year by year, much of .the imaginative talent of the world (at all events, in England and America) embodies it self with more or less of earnestness, art, cul ture and enthusiasm, in the forms of the novel and romance. The modern Novel, particularly the Novel of Society, has become a distinct power, which the gravest philosopher must recognize; after the mere plot or story is em ployed as the vehicle of profound disquisitions upoif topics of wide-spread and vital iutercst, while the tale itself has taken, unchallenged, that place in literature which, during the reign of Elizabeth and long after, was occupied by the drama.. Who, uow-a-days—unless hopeless ly bigoted, unless “ theory-mad beyond re demption”—would venture to discard this species of fiction from his library ? Coneeivc a collection of works, affecting to be belles-lettres in character, from which Scott, Bulwer Lyttou, D’lsraeli, the Brontes, Mrs. Lewes (Miss Evans), Rea'de,Hawthorne,Holmes, Dickens and Wilkie Collins should be studious ly excluded Ouc would smile, a little supercil iously no doubt, at the narrow-mindedness or eccentricity which tabooed these authors aud their famous productions ; regarding a worn out prejudice of the sort much as we should regard some fussy individual, who chose to walk along a fashionable city street, arrayed in the costume of his great-grandfather, ivith a careful ignoring of modern neck-ties and a nose (metaphorically) turned up in contempt of such trifling con veniences as glazed boots and coats unadorned by lace and bullion. Every month, every week almost, we find our notice attracted toward some new writer of elaborate stories or sparkling novelletes. Among the comparatively recent candidates for ! fame and profit in this department, Mrs. Ed- j wards—an Englishwoman, we believe—has de servedly gained reputation for the freshness, grace, aud natural pathos of her narratives. One of these— “ Philip Earnscliffe ” —we have just read with a degree of pleasure and interest we often failed to experience from scores of books more ambitious in plan,.detail and execution. The heroine is a little Breton girl, beautiful, innocent and happy in her simple home pur suits, utterly unconventional, and living with her invalid father, (himself a melancholy scholar) in an old crumbling chateau near the ocean. Marguerite is free as any bird, and very nearly as blithesome. All the fishermen and •peasants know and love her. She wanders through the woods, frequents the lonely hol lows of the hills and climbs like a chamois amongst the savage rocks ou the coast. Her mother dying at the child’s birth, (and hence the father’s seclusion and sorrowful waste of ex istence,) left her to the care of one of those faithful female dependants (Marion by name), whose race, it would appear, is becoming a pleasant fiction of the past. At sixteen years of age—an age which finds the majority of city young ladies eager for an introduction to society, or, perhaps, a trifle dis enchanted at the close of their first “ season,” with habits drilled aud regulated, their hearts in fashionable harness, and their flimsy minds controlled by the one idea of a brilliant “estab lishment ”—tlie “little wild flower,” Marguerite, still blooms among her native dells, an exquisite personification, (so to speak,) of youth, gayety and hope. But her fate approaches only too soon. On an evening of darkness and storm, while the family at the chateau are gathered around their huge wood fire, the rusty entrance bell is rung, and a stranger, of courteous manners, with that almost indescribable air, which is termed “ dis hnguc," claims tlicir hospitality for the night. This is the hero ot the tale, Philip Earnscliffe, a London author of celebrity, although his fame had not penetrated to that remote Breton household,) in the prime of manhood, hand some, well born, and, briefly, a prieux chevalier, with every grace and accomplishment necessary to the formation of that peculiar style of char acter. In many respects he is a noble fellow, unaffected, inherently sincere, and just at this period, subdued by a heavy grief, the nature of which develops itself in the course of tbc story. Disgusted by the frivoltics and hypocrisy of the “great world,” Philip turns to the artless creature, thrown by destiny in his way, with a sentiment of purest admiration. Marguerite likes him from the first. Their natures are con genial. Mr. St. John too, her father, is power fully attracted towai ds his guest. He earnestly begs Philip to remain with them for some time —as long, iu fact, as it suited his convenience. Thus, the stranger, (soon a stranger no longer,) becomes domesticated in that primitive house hold. His chiel companion is Marguerite. Over the whole wild neighborhood they wan der together. She, with the unconsciousness of Eve in Paradise, learns to love him with all the fervor of a deep, faithful, passionate soul. He, at first, feels like one in a delightful dream! What were the beauties of crow.ded London ball-rooms to this “ pearl ” he had found on the sea-shore—this fresh, unsophisticated spirit, with the dews of Heaven beaming in her sweet eyes, and the very halo of Eden round her shining hair? Almost before he is aware of his danger, Philip also loves —loves as it is per mitted to temperaments like his to love—final ly, absorbingly, desperately. But the moment which reveals to him liis own passion, is like wise the moment of his awakening from a hap py trance! For, 6ad to tell, Earnscliffe is a married man ! When a mere youth, he had been infamously cutrapped into a union of the most hateful description —and though, in point of fact, he was separated from his wife, (a cold,, unprincipled woman of fashion,) there had been , no legal divorce ! The fault of Philip’s nature was a certain lack of stern resolution sympa thy and tenderness conquered will, and 60 ( lently reproaching himself at times, sirugg iu B to become free from the bitter, sweet bondage, he yet lingers, and lingers on at Kcrsainit (the name of Mr. St. John’s Manoir,) until both those true hearts (for Philip, remember, is radically true, despite his vascillation!) are en tangled inextricably by the sevenfold golden cords of a passion, never to be broken • 1 a stern resolve, he tells Marguerite everything . The poor, guileless child-a child in innocence and touching confidinguess, a woman in fervent feeling—can hardly understand the depths of their mntnal misfortune : She does not cast Philip off—she does not reproach, she simply pities him! The pathos of this part of the story, little Marguerite’s unselfish grief, her touching faith in one who had (though certainly without de-’ liberation) fatally deceived her, EarnsclifPs perplexity and despair, these things are told with a truth to nature and a simple, vivid ear nestness, unspeakably beau Well, of course, they must part. Earnscliffe at least, recognizes the mournful necessity.— He ha,d not as yet, iu precise words, said to Marguerite, “ I love you !” —but she knew, she felt it, through the force of a hundred tokens more potent than speech. At last, the end of their tender romance is brought about suddenly, and tinder circum stances calculated to leave their impress upon* either heart for all after time. They are taking a final ramble together along the sea shore. An experienced old fisherman warns them of approaching tempest. But the air is clear, the heavens look bright and cloud less ; they arc absorbed in each other and scarcely heed his expostulations. Faither and farther along the treacherous coast line the lovers wander, speaking in soft tones, drawing insensibly nearer to each other, and only feeling that thus , perhaps, they shall never wander again I Gradually the sun de clines—the waters creep stealthily up the wide reaches of the beach —before they had dreamed of danger, the sea had surrounded and cut them off from every avenue of escape. Theu the wind rises, lashing the great tides into fury. Such a slonu ensues, as even that rock-embattled promontory had seldom seen. Philip, clasping Marguerite in his arms, hastens to the highest point of land it is possi ble to obtain. Onward, upward, with neither pause nor pity, the turaultoqs oceau rolls and rages, until the spray is dashed in volumes about their feet, and they can hardly sec each other’s face in the growing darkness. Then, amid that clash of elements, with death seem ingly about to claim both, Philip tells his love. The shivering horror cannot weaken his burniug words. The deadly danger but adds ten-fold force and passion aud- sacred vehe mence to his language and caresses, And Mar guerite, who had been pale and drooping as a broken lily all that day, is pale no longer. Separation alone, an' 1 the thought of separation, had been death to her; but death, real death, in his arms, sleep under the deep waters, heart pressed to hear:, until the Archangels voice •should bid the sea to “ give up its dead '’—that was a thought of sweetness, a fate to be covet ed and blessed! We need not prolong this scene, however. As the shrewd reader has probably surmised, tlie lovers are rescued by a gallaut party of fish ermen and coast guards, just as Philip’s last desperate hold upon the rocks had relaxed, and the waves were about to sweep Marguerite and himself to destruction! * * * # * * * * For what remains of the story, we must re fer our readers to the book itself. It will rich ly repay perusal; for, although we have read many novels more ingenious and original in plot, more brilliant in style, more elaborate in characterization, it has not been our good for tune to meet, during years of miscellaneous study, with a tale so sweet, touching, and na tural as this. As for Marguerite, she is a creation of which any author might be justly prouch And the details of the character, the filling up of the out lined conception, these, to our mind are perfect. Long will that “ little wild Flower,” plucked from the fairy field of fiction and transplanted within, bloom with a half tearful beauty in the gardens of memory. We have fallen in love with a myth, we arc lingering tenderly by the side ot a golden shadow ; but O! Reader : world-hardened, perchance, and weary, can you not, casting “ the mind’s eye” far, far back ward through the mist of years, discern where the rosy lights of your youth are hovering ere they fade in the darkened heavens, some image pure and bright and innocent, who led you by the hand a little way, along paths peaceful and happy; then left you to join her sisterhood of the augels ? Life’s battle has gone surely against yon since that day—has it not ? But, a gentle memory is like the talisman which the good Emir gave to the Sheik Abdel-Samad ; at its touch the fevered blood grows calm, and the leprosy of a thousand sins would seem to stay its angry throbbing?, and a corrupted heart renew its freshness, becoming even as the heart of a little child. In conclusion we venture to reproduce the following verses. They were composed by the author, Paul 11. Haync, while.the impression of Marguerite’s exquisite character was yet strong and fresh in his mind : MARGUERITE. I. She was a child of gentlest sir, Os deep dark eyes, but golden hair, And ah! I loved her unaware, Marguerite ! 11. She spelled me with those midnight eyes, The sweetness of her naive replies, And all her innocent witcheries, Marguerite! 111. The fever of my soul grew calm * Beneath her smile that healed like balm. Her words were holier than a ) salm. Marguerite. IV. But ’twixt us yawned a gulf of fate, Whose blackness I beheld—too late, O Christ! that Love should smile like Hate, Marguerite 1 V. Bhe did not wither to the tomb, But round her crept a tender gloom More touch ; ng than her earliest bloom, Marguerite! VI. The sun of one fair Hope had set, A hope she dared not all forget, Its Twilight glory kissed her get— Marguerite. VII. And ever in that Twilight fair. Moves with deep eyes and golden hair, The chitd who loved us unaware! - Marguerite. Trades and Practical Education.— The Columhia (South Carolina) Phoenix, in urging upon the South the importance of education and the acquisition of trades by the young men of that section, says very truly the mere routine of ordinary school studies is not all that makes the man. The Southern people have learned a lesson from the circumstances by which they are surrounded—the results of the war. They have not the ample means they had formerly to give their children a collegiate education. This, in some degree, may he re garded as a benefit; for, although we may not have the number of mere 6cholors that we had formerly, we will have more useful business men, and especially will our impoverished sec tion be more speedily recuperated if our sons learn trades and acquire a thorough, practical education, fitting them for the responsible du ties that lie before them.” Commutation of Sentence. —Drawdy and Padgett, two men sentenced to be hung on the first Friday in March, tor stealing three or four hundred pounds of bacon, have had their sen tence commuted by the Governor of South Carolina to imprisonment for ihree years in the penitentiary. [From the Mobile Advertiser and Register. Ad Alabama Planter’s Account of Brazil. Mr Joel E. Matthews, of Dallas county, from one of whose letters from Brazil we copied largely, a few months ago, has written to the Selma Times a long and interesting letter giving the result of his observations m that emoire Os course the sphere of observation of Mr. Matthews was limited. . Brazil is so vast a coun try that it would be the work of years— -almost oi a lifetime—to explore it thoroughly. He states that the part of country which he visited lies about the parallel of 24 degrees south lati tude, and 46 degrees west longitude, and com prises an area of about three times the extent of Dallas county. He says : “ I found a country where tornadoes, drougths and frosts are almost unknown— where the cli mate is so uniforml}’ mild that planting may be made ou any day of the year with * every pros pect of successful production from it—where cotton, corn, rice,' sugar, tobacco, most of the cereals, vegetables of all kinds, with all the tropical fruits, &c., &c., can each and all be grown, and when planted and cultivated with skill and industry, they may be produced in luxuriant abundance.” Coffee is the chief crop of the country, and , Mr. Mathews gives an interesting account of; the crop and its culture. Since the abolitiou of slavery in the United States, the Brazilian plant- j ers arc beginning to give more attention to the cottou crop, and expect eventually to assume the place, as a cotton-producing count ry, which has been vacated by the United States. Indeed, some of them, he says, expect, iu the course of a few years, to be exporting cotton to this coun try, for they arc satisfied that it cannot be made by the labor of free negroes. It is well known that the plow is but little used in*Brazil. The more enterprising farmers and planters are desirous of introducing it into general use, but Mr. Mathews thinks they will be disappointed iu the result. He very justly observes that the plow does not increase the productive value of lands. It only enables one laborer to cultivate a greater extent. He thinks it will tend to cause the washing away of their hilly lands. Moreover, according to his ac count, the first growth is so different from ours, and there .is such a difference iu the re productive power of roots and stumps, that the conditions of agricultural labor are altogether unlike anything in North America. We quote a few passages from Mr. Mathew’s letter : “Wherever I went I found house flies, mosquitoes, ticks, “ et id omne genus," thougn I do not think that such insects there arc any more numerous or poisonous than are to be found in the city of Selma aud its surround ings. The lands of this part of the Brazilian Empire are of great variety as to fertility, but such is the climate that auy which I saw would amply remunerate in production any labor which may be skilfully applied to it.” #** * . * Sometimes I found a large and tall growth of trees, with, in some instances, cane for the un dergrowth, which is as much as one hundred feet high. This is a long story, but the cane is equiflly long. This story will not be so sur prising if we reflect that with us the cane not unfrequently attains a height of thirty feet — the growth ot one single year—whereas that in the' Brazils the cane" may have takeu.twenty years to attain the height of one hundred feet. Sometimes the growth is all of the sapling or der, and on some of the land there is no growth other than grass, (open prairie as we call it). — 1 did not see one single species of forest growth in the Brazils, like any species which wc have here. No ouc kind can be split into rails or boards, nor will its roots die when the trunk is cut down, and its capacity to be burned is about equal to our sweet gum. Fences are made by ditches and by hedges. There are sev eral varieties of hedges, some of them with a bloom which is gorgeously beautiful, and which grow very readily and rapidly. The price at which land may be had varies from two to eighty dollars per acre, according to its sur roundings. Squatter sovereignty is fully recog nized here, both by government and people.— A person may take possession of government land and rely upon meeting with little or no trouble in respect to peaceable retention of that possessory right. The procuring lands is one of the very ieast troubles of which an im migrant to this country will have to encounter. The labor requisite to prepare woodland for cultivation is, however, “ herculean,” compared with what it is in America. Mr. Mathews gives an account of the various species of ants , some of which arc a great nuisance to the farmers. He saw some of their “hills” as much as fifteen feet high, and heard of others that were twenty five feet high. One species lives below the ground, and excavates tunnels of six or eight inches in diameter, and sometimes halt a mile in length. On some plantations one-twelfth part of the labor em ployed is devoted to the keeping of these little pests in subjection. Mr. Mathews says: I left the country with a full aud complete belief that the short staple ootton may be grown there as profitably as it ever was here Quite au abundance oi sugar, corn, rice and beans, with other edibles, for the consumption of the inhabitants is produced, indeed, rice and beans are grown for export. I saw all the domesticated, animals which we have. I saw droves of hogs being taken to market which would compare favorably with Kentucky hogs; indeed,*all kinds, when prcp-rV eved /°r, were as good as I ever saw. Poultry of ah kinds are in great abundance, and seem to do well with very little trouble. The forest and plains have a great variety of game, both of beasts and birds—many varieties of* the latter having a gaudy plumage. The rivers and creeks are well stocked with many excellent varieties of fish. During a ride of more than five months about the country, I saw but three snakes, two of them very small and the other with a body of one and a half inches diameter, and about 3>£ feet long. there I heard all the snake stories whicli we arc accustomed to hear of the Brazils, told of someone or the other part of the Empire. I inquired of several gentlemen (surveyors) whose occupation kept them al most constantly in the woods, in respect to the snakes of the countr}*. They all told me that it was rare with them to see a snake, and that but few of those were of a poisonous kind; I conclude, therefore, that the stories which we hear ot the reptiles of the Brazils are in verity snake stories. - Wc omit what Mr. Mathews says of the Bra zilian constitution and the political institutions of the empire, as people are beginning to be very generally (though superficially) informed upon that subject. His testimony with regard to the clergy of the country is, however, inter esting. He says: Many, very many, absurd stories arc told of the morality of the Roman Catholic priests. That there may be some truth in them, that some of the nricsts may be wolves in sheep’s clothing, I may not doubt, but that the rule is different, that these bad priests are exceptions, will be apparent to any one who will observe the manner of their intercourse with, and its effect upon the people under their spiritual care. I never saw a priest enter any company, whether of children or young people, or gray headed sires and matrons, that he was not re ceived with pleasure. All seemed to expect pleasure from his presence. Whenever any of his people have joy or arc stricken with sor row, the priest is with them, and always man ages to increase the joy or to alleviate and as suage the sorrow. The priests of that country would not ‘ suffer by a comparison with the clergy of this. The chief source of discouragement to Mr. Mathew’s mind, as regards the future of Bra zil, is the progress of abolitionism and of red- Republican ideas. On this subject he speaks with some warmth, and in language, the force of which is scarcely impaired by the misappli cation of a term in heraldry. We quote : That such a thing as emancipation may nap pen there, is the more to be feared because desire to have it done is stimulated by that feeling with which author of all em has found means to infect to some degree of the human family. This feeling m common par labe ls called in this country Democracy, in the Brazils it is called Liberalism, m England it to adled Reform. All men are of their party who think that all men are equal, that a majori ty of members have a Divine right to govern tbat anv six men are wiser and better than any other five, and that if any five object to the government of any six men, they do so only because thev are instigated thereto by the devil, and do not have the fear of God before their eyes; in short, that they are rebellious, require reconstruction in this world and eternal pun ishment in the world to come. Like all things which come from Satan, this is often shown, to the world under many pleasing and alluriim devices. First, it shows a banner inscribed with liberty, fraternity and equality, with the rights of man as a bar sinister. Next it ap pears with a banner, on which is inscribed p i per money, railways and the. development of the resources, with the destruction of the right of property as a bar sinister. These two are covered over with timid work, so that the busy man, the casual observer, sees nothing but beauty about it. When seen iu its third, and last stage it waves a blood red banner, with the words, “Rapine, Robbery and Blood’’ inscr.bed on it with letters of fire. Intti.i •third"Btage it is no stranger to us of the reb q States (so-called), for we have seen it pass over our country bearing destruction, desolation and death in its trail. The Brazilian Democrat like his brethren hc*re, prates about liberty, fraternity and equality, lie now has paper money, four short railway*, wants more ot them, and talks much of dev, 1 oping the resource ; son he will cry out again' the right of property, and unless God of gr mercy interposes he will, in due season, be by the devil to the third and last stage. Nevertheless, he says afterward- : A Government so wisely constituted, : for more than forty years it lias preserved t peace and quiet of its citizens, although - rounded by Governments which, during ' whole period of time, h ive been one wild see:. ■ of contusion and disorder, and so faithfully a- ’ beningly administered, that in happy eonu ment, accompanied by peace and security, e . and all of its citizens enjoy the fruits of tin own industry. Such is the satisfaction of t..' people with, and confidence in, their Gove:' inent, that during my whole tour I did not h r a single person express au apprehension a- to its duration. Mr. Mathews closes his letter with the folio ■ ing interesting statements : During a tour of nigh six months, iu tie course of which I was in the crowded thorough flires of the cities and towns, but fortlie greater part of the time, I was passing about n.e country on horseback, often crossing mour taius by wild and narrow paths ; again aloi g the dark and lonesome valleys, and also tnr.V ing along the wild sea beach —sometimes hen the guest of the Wealthy—sometirrtes of those who were so poor that a buuk of rice straw was the best substitute which they had to 02- for a bed. Everywhere, by each and by all, arc! on all occasions, I was received and treated with an hospitality and kindness accompanied by an exhibition of so much goodness of heart, that the reception of their hospitality and kindness aroused within me a degree of he?.: t felt pleasure and satisfaction for which I can find no language sufficiently expressive. I did not see‘or meet with one single occurrence or person which excited in my mind any idea r f danger or personal violence to me or any or e else ; indeed, no one thing occurred during my tour iu any way unpleasant to me. 'Never while I have life will I cease to rcinerr. her, with feelings of gratitude and thankfulness, the wonderful kindness which was shown rue by all in the Brazils with whom I came in co; tact. [From the Georgia Enterprise. Railroads in the United States in 1860 Mr. Editor: The following statistics hue been compiled from the annual report of the Railroad Journal, New York, and from the U. S. Railroad Record, 1860. They present at. one view the railroad interest of the whole country, and give some idea of the enormou a amount of capital invested: B. Total length Projected. Miles in Operation. Cost of roads and Equipments! STATES. Maine ! 718,1 544, fit $20,431,701 New Hamshire... | 599,9 562,21 17,7*5,111 Vermont | 568,5 537,9| 21,785,752 Massachusetts... . 1,507,8 1,428,01 65,319,3 jI Rode Island 80,9; 68,6 2,747 Connecticut 820,7 1 665,6 25,198,110 4,301,4 3,804,9 $153,268,251 New York 3,610,0 2,756,4 137,077,72! New Jersey I 658,9 556,4 26,463.455 Pennsylvania.. ..I 3,995,1 .3,081,11 149,501,26! Delaware r 117,9 117,9; 2,845,325 Maryland &D. C.j 889,3 883,8; 41,526,424 Virginia 2,958,5 1,525,7 43,069,360 North Carolina... 1,020,2 770.2 13,698,469 South Carolina... 1,136,0 807,3 19,0 5 3,34! Georgia 1,617,2 1,241,7 25,687,220 Florida 780,5 259,8 6,368,699 Alabama 1,822,4 798,1 20,975,689 Mississippi 445,1 365,4 9,024,44- Louisiana 1,160,0 419,0 16,073,270 Texas 2,667,0 284,5 7,573,543 Arkansas 701,8 38,5 1,130,110 Missouri 1,387,3 723,2 31,771,116 Tennessee 1,434,4) 1,062,3 27,348,14' Kentucky 698,4 ! 458,5 13,852,063 Ohio 4,084,7 3,008,2 127,949,123 Michigau 1,747,8 1,132,8 44,072,226 Indiana 1,839,0 1,182,9 81,656,371 Illinois 3,500,7 2,752,7 107,720,937 Wisconsin 2,224,4 826,0 44,576,044 lowa 1,806,8 395,3 13,347,475 Minnesota: 1,167,5 1,000,000 California 308,8 , 22,5 2,477,100 Oregon 300,0 j Total U. 8 46,981,1j20,401,0|1,11«,93i .v.. The total number of miles railroad rur. ning and under contract in the Southern States in 1860, was 16,827; and the nu:u •her of miles actually in ruuoing order was 8,784; costing in the aggregate, as per official returns, $245,M0,842/ It is esti mated that at the present time there arc about 9,063 miles road in the Southern States, most of which is in good order. Recapitulation. —Length roads running In New England States 3,8(0 Southern States 8,7*/ All other States 16,81/ Total 29,401 Aggregate cost #1,118,920,929 No. Locomotives 6,OCX Passenger Cars 5,000 Freight Cars 80,000 Freight carried 36,000 ton- Gross receipts *120,000,000 Cords wood consumed 3,000,00“ Acres wood land cut down annu ally. Average cost wood per cord #‘-*^o No. of hands employed on roads. 100,0 W Wages per day, employees *IOO,OOO Jhe rapid growth of railroads typifies more than any other element in the country, the com mercial spirit Os the age. For all this is done, merely to produce a quicker movement of com merce. It is not commerce itself, but mere!} one of the machines it employs. If, then, com merce can afford to expend 6uch vast suras for a machine to facilitate its own movement a mere carriage of what immense magnitude and value must that commerce itself be. Every year gives more and more evidence of the absorbing influence of commerce over all other things. What is to be its limit we can not imagine. f Railroad Journal. In the matter of railroads the Bouth falls very little behind the North or West, and ha* built her roads at one-half the cost. The rail road failures in the different sections are about as follows: South, 3 Companies failed, loss, *2,020,000 North, 9 “ “ “ 39,000,000 West, 21 “ “ “ 68,120,000 The South built her roads with the proceeds of her cotton crops; the West with money from Europe and the Eastern States, which was spent with so little discretion as to entail the present disastfous state of affairs so common in that section. — Stowe's Railroad Record. Personal. —The Hon. D. A. Walker return ed to his home in this city, on Monday last, from a briel sojourn in the National Capital. The Judge is not very hopeful of thfcfutnre of the Southern States. From a short conver sation with him we conclude that his idea is, the Radicals have the power and the wiU to adopt and enforce the most extreme policj* to wards our unhappy section. Cherokee ( Dalton ) Georgia#.
