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AURELIA’S UNFORTUNATE YOUNG M.iN. The facts in the following come to me by letter from a young lady who lives in the beautiful city* of San Jose ; she is»?ei’fectly unknown to me, and simply signs ‘Aurelia Maria,’ which may, possibly, be a fictions name. But no matter. The poor girl is almost heart broken by the misfortunes she has undergone, and so confused by the conflicting counsels of misguided friends and enemies, that she does not know what course to pursue in order to extricate herself from the web of difficulties in which she seems almost hopelessly involved. Jn this dilemma, she turns to me for help, and supplicates for my guidance and instruction with a moving eloquence that would touch the heart of a statue. Hear her sad story : blie says, that when she was six¬ teen years old. she met, and loved, with all the devotion of a passionate nature, a young man from New Jer¬ sey, named Williamson Breckenridge Caruthers, who was some six years her senior. They were engaged, with the free consent of her friends and relatives ; and for a time, it seemed as if their career was destined to be characterized by an immunity from sorrow beyond the usual lot of hu¬ manity. But at last the tide of for tuns changed. Young Caruthers became infected with small-pox of the most virulent type ; and when he recovered from his dines?, his face was pitted lik 3 a waffle; mould, and his comeli¬ ness gone forever Aurelia thought to break off the engagement at first; but pity for her unfortunate lover caused her to postpone the marriage day for a season, and give him anoth¬ er trial. The very day before the wo filing wa, to have taken place, Breckenridge. while al*s< r >ed in watching the flig it of a balloon, walked into a well, imo fractured one of his legs; and it had to fie taken off above the knee, ' gain Aurelia was moved to break the engagement ; but again true love triumphed ; and she set the day for¬ ward, and gave him another chance to reform. And again misfortune overtook the unhappy youth. He lost one arm by the premature discharge of a fourth of July cannon, and, within three months, he got the other pulled out by a carding machine. Aurelia's heart was almost crushed by these calamities. She could not but be deeply grieved to see her love passing from Ler by piecemeal, feeling as she did, that he could not last forever under this disastrous process of re¬ duction yet knowing of no way to stop its dreadful career, and, in her tearful despair, she almost regretted, like brokers who hold on and lose, that she had not taken him at first, before he had suffered such an alarm¬ ing depreciation. Still her brave soul bore her up, and she resolved to bear with her friend’s unnatural disposi¬ tion vet a little longer. Again the wedding day approach¬ ed, and again disappointment over- phadowed it. Caruthers fell ill with erysipelas, and lost, the use of one o! his eves entirely. The friends and relatives of the bride, considering that she had already put up with more than could reasonably be expected oi her, now eamc forward, and insisted that the match be broken off. But., after wavering a while. Aurelia, with a generous spirit which did her credit said she had reflected calmly upon the matter, and could not discover that Breckenridge was to blame. So she extended the time once more, and he broke his other leg It was a sad day for the poor girl, when she saw the surgeons reverently bearing away the sac k whose uses she ha l learned by previous expeneuce. and her heart tol l her the bitter truth that some more ofher lover wasgone She felt that the field of her affections wns"rowing mor^circuinscribed every day : but once more she frowned d iwa her relatives, and renewed her betrothal. Shortly before trie time set for nuptials, another disaster oorurr d There was but on« man scalped bv the Owens River In lians last year, That man was \V. B. Caruthers. of New jersey. He waa hurrying 1 ome with happiness iu hi* heart when he lost his hair forever; and in that hour of bitUm#»« he almost carted the TOCCOA NEWS By fdw SCHEAFER- }• VOL, IX. mistaken mjrcy that had spared his head. At last Aurelia is in serious per- plexity as to what site ought to do. She still loves her breckenridge, she writes, with true womanly feeling— she still loves what is left of him. But her parents arc bitterly opposed to the match, because lie , has no property, and is disabled from ing and she has no sufficient means to support comfortably. ‘Now, what should she do?’ she r, 3 ks with painful and anxious solicitude It is a delicate question ; it is one which involves the life long happiness of a woman and that of nearly two- thirds of a man, and I feel that it would be assuming too great a responsibility to do more than make a mere suggestion in the case. How, would it do to build to him? If Aurelia can afford the expense, let her furnish her mutilated lover with wooden arms and wooden legs, and a wig, and give him another show; give him ninety days, without grace, and ifhe docs not break his neck in the mean time, marry him and take the chances. It docs not soetn to me that there is much risk anyway, Aurelia, because, if he sticks to lus infernal propensity for damaging himself e ery time he sees a goo l opportunity, his next experiment is bound to finish him, and then you are all right,you know married or single If married, the wooden limbs and 4 su di other valuables as he may pos¬ sess, revert to the widow, and you see you sustain no actual loss, save the cherished fragment of a noble but most unfortunate husband, who hon stly strove to do right, but whose extraordinary instincts were against him. 1 ry it, Maria ! I have though the matter over carefully* and well, and it is the only chance I see fo you. It would have been a happy conceit on the part of Caruthers, if he had started with his neck and broken that first; but since he has seen fit to choose a different policy, and string himself out as long as possible, I do not think we ought to upbraid him for L if he has enjoyed it \\ c must do the best we can under the circumstances, and try not to feel exasperate l at liim.-=-M. Twain SUICIDE OF AN EX-NOBLEMAN AT BIRMINGHAM. Birmingham (Ala.) Age. 14th Yesterday morning about nine o’clock the guddeu report of a pistol m the bar and restaurant of v\. B. Jones, oj Second avenue, near Twen¬ ty first street, attracted the attention of passers by, and investigation revealed the faot tiiat Prof. F. A. PlatLnsldaeger had committed sui cide. For some time past the dec aaed bad seemed to appear de¬ pressed in spirit, and had oft-times been sjco under the influence of strong drink- A friend of the gentle¬ man gives us the following account of the sad affair, the substance of which was in evidence before the cor¬ oner s jury, lie says that on unday morning about seven o'clock deceased met him and, complaining of being troubled exhibited a derringer pis¬ tol, remarking that in a short time lie would take his life. This friend gays that, although he vlid not be heve Mr. P. was in earnest, he made every effort to get the deadly wcap- on away from him whioh he sue- needed in doing, and placed it in the fluids of the barkeeper. Then he b came more quiet, did not seem so much exoited, and seamed to give up ail thought of doing violence to b m* self. Yesterday morning (Monday) be- tween 7 and 8 o'clock deceased went to our informant perfectly cool an sober, a .d said : Friend, ail i was saying yesterday was foolishness. I was out of my mind, and I knew not whatl was doing, i shall do no such thing as that I was talking about Devoted to News> Politics* Agricu **re and ^en/^al prrgiess- TOCCOA, GA., APRIL 1. 1882. yesterday. And now let the man give roc me pistol back.’ Perfectly sure of his candidness, and seeing that ho was entirely quiet, our informant returned to him bis property. All this took place at Jones’ restaurant, Having received his pistol, Mr. P. sat at the table with this gentleman and had a conversation for one hour. It was nearly 9 o'clock when our in- formant got up and went across the room, and spoke to Mr. Jones, the proprietor of the place, saying, ‘I do not believe P. is going to commit any such thing, he is speaking too much of it'—and in that moment they heard a report. Mr. Jones called out, ‘Sure enough, be has done it’ and when they ran to him he was dead, having shot himself through the right temple. about one inch above the ear. De¬ ceased did not fall out of his seat, although he died instantly. His head fell over and rested on his shoulder until he was removed to the rear room. Prof. Plaffenshlager was about sixty odd years of ag‘, but had been a resident of Birmingham not longer than two years. Since he came here he has been engaged in teaching music, in which art he stood excel¬ lency well. A very intimate friend of the de¬ ceased tells us that the real name of the gentleman is Loyd Secau—»aid he was banished from Austria after the revolution ip 1S48, when the Empe- ror out of consideration lor the family, and for lie long and great services that family had given to the house of i apsburg, had changed the sentence of death to that of perpetual banishment and loss of title. The present incumbent of the estates and of t he title is Fransicus Adolphus Lord Secau, at Sceau, in Upper Austria, the son of the departed gen¬ tleman—hereditary member of the douse of Lords, and the seventh Lord of that name. Before being elevated to the Feership, the Seeaus were Baronets in Austria, and gave immense services to the crown. After coming to this country, Prof. P. learned the printer’s trade in New York, and served on the Herald for a number of years then came South. He married a widow' lady, a Mrs, Stone, of Pickens county, this State, several years ago, and she is the only one of his family on this side of the water. AN OPIUM K »TER BURGLARIZES A HOUSE TO PROCURE SOME OF TIIK DRUG. A ease of peculiar interest was tried before Judge Holt of the county court yesterday morning. It is one of those instances where a man ad¬ dicted to the use of opium will resort to any means, fair or foul, tq get possession of the terrible stuff. One Parr was arrested for forcing the ch>or of a small house on the prem¬ ises of Mr. T. K. Youngblood, and stealing therefrom a number of car¬ penters’ tools belonging to Mr. W. S. Y)ungbl«od. After stoaling the tools he sold a brace and several bits to Mr. Hightowerat h)His factory for two dollars, and a saw lie soaked with P. S Hannon on Fourth street for thirty cents. The case was a clear one, admitting of but one fact— that he stole them. Indeed, he vol¬ untarily confessed to Lt. Wood, who arrested him, that he had taken the tools for the purpose of buying laudanum, r Dessau, counsel for the defense. get US> the plea that the defendant cam- out of the late war with a case of chronic D arrfloea, for which he was obliged to take morphine. The habit thu<> grew upqri him, and ever since he has taken great quantities of the drug. When deprived ol it, and when suffering from a desire to get that which he lia 1 no funds to pay ! for las agony was fearful, and every conscieut.ous scruple was overcome, Dr. J. Emmett Jblaeksheer testified that a man in the coi d t ion of Parr whom he knew, could not well deter- mine between right and wrong, an- that he would resort to any m-aus t- get the drug. This, too, was corrob- orated by Parr’s brother-in-law, who said that Parr had stolen from him in order to get money to buy the opium : that his condition was, when lu wanted laudanum and oouldn t get i!» simply terrible. Judge bolt saw but one disposi¬ tion to make of the case, having satis¬ fied himself that Parr was really a confirmed opium cater and hardly responsible for his acts when suffer ing from a want of it, and his verdict was that Parr was guilty of the laroeny, but suspended sentence, Solicitor Hardeman offered to do all in bis power to carry out the lenient disposition of the court. He was taken back to jail, but will be carried to the hospital this morning, where Dr. Wright will endeavor to cure him of the habit. While in court Parr trembled like one shivering with a cold; and the peculiar expression of his face aryl eyes, plainly told of the agony the poor man had endured from a habit that is the most fearful a human being can contract.—Macon Tele¬ graph. JEB STUART’S LAST FIGHT, irow THE DASHING TROOPER MKT Ills DEATH FROM SHERIDAN'S MEN AT VKI-LOW TAVERN. [J. Esten Cooke in Phila. Times ] The battle had evidently reached the turning point, and Stewart saw the desperate character of his situa¬ tion. It was difficult to use his artillery in auoh a melee of friend and foe, and his left wing was soon in utter disorder. The Federal attack had at last succeeded in breaking it to pieces ; the men were scattering in every direction, and seeing Major Breathed near him, Stuart shouted : ‘Breathed! take command of all the mounted men in the road, and hold it against whatever comes. If thjs road is lost we are gone !’ Such an order was precisely suited to the tastes of such a man like Breathed. I Was intimately acquaint¬ ed with him and never knew a human being who took such sincere delight in desperate fighting, At Stuart’s order Breathed saluted, and shouting to the men to follow him, charged the Federal column, apparently careless whether he was followed or not. He was immediately surrounded and a hot sabre fight took place between himself and his swarm of enemies. A sabre blow nearly cut him out of the saddle and he received a pistol shot in his side, but he cut down one Federal qffjcer, killed another with his revolver, and made his way out, his face streaming with blood. At this moment the artillery opened, but a determined charge w^s made on the guns and all the pieces were captured but one. The driver of this piece lashed the horses and rushed the gun off towards the Chiqkahominy, fol lowed by the ccnnonecrs, cursing and shouting: ‘For God’s sake, boys, lets go back; they’ve got Breathed!’ It would have been better for the gun to have been captured. As it was whirl¬ ing on at wild speed it broke through the cavalry, throwing them intq disorder, and before the line was reformed the enemy struck it. and the ba.tle was ended. Both the Southern wings were driven, and there was no hope of continuing the contest. JStflart wgs nearly in despair, and was seen galloping about, shout- m g and waving his sabre in a desper- ate attempt to rally his men, but was impossible. The field was a scene of the wildest disorder. Fcderals a „d Confederates were darting in every direction, and one of the e r as he darted by Stuart, fired at him and shot him through the body, The bullet entered his side, and i TERMS- $1 60 A TEAR. NO. passing through the stomach, inflicted a mortal wound. In its passage *it just grazed a small‘Bible which he always carried, the gift of his mother. He reeled in the saddle and was caught by Captain Dorsey, of First Virginia, and as he closed his eyes lie seemed about to expire on the field. His immense vitality, however, sustained him, and, endeavoring to rise erect again in his saddle, he exclaimed to those around him : *Go l.ack ami do yonr duty as 1 have done mine, and our country will be safe!’ LOST IN THE FOG. Burlington Hawkeye. Erasmus T. Ruggleson, a young man of Saxon lineage, worked on a farm out here in Yellow Springs township. He was not rich, but he was industrious and just too pretty for anything. So was the daughter of the farmer for whom he worked. She was wealthier than Erasmus, but she was not proud. When the chores were done in the winter evenings, she went with him to the singing school and she walked by his side to church. She loved him : she had rather sit at her casement in the gloaming, and hear him holler ‘po-qo-ey !’ in long- drawn, measured cadences, at the hour of the feeding of the swine, than hearCampanini sing ‘Macaroni del Vermicelli’ from ‘Handorgzhanni in Venezuela.’ And he—lie was clean gone on her. Mashed past all surgery. When they foolishly' let the old man into their plana for each other’s happiness and half the farm, the wrathful agriculturist said if he heard one more word of such nonsense, just another word, he would lay that farm waste with physical havoc, ami blight its winter wheat with the salt tears of his only child, and that was the kind of a father in law he was inclined to be. Naturally the young people determ ined to fly. Their plans were laid; the night was set. So was the ladder. At its foot waited the ardent Eras mu3 Ruggleson, gazing at the window for the appearance of his love. Presently the window opened softly, and a face be loved appeared. ‘Rasmus !’ ‘Florence !’ ‘Yes, dearest. Shall I drop my things right down?’ •Yes love; I will catch them. Let the bundle fall/ The glittering starlight in the clear March night fell on Erasmus’ glad and upturned face. Fo did a trunk, four feet high, four feet wide, and about eight feet long. It weighed about 2J00 pounds It contained a few ‘things’ that no woman could be expected to travel without, and Florence spent three weeks packing that trunk for her elopement. Erasmus Ruggleson did not screara* He did not, moan. He couldn’t. He had no show. Florence came down the lad ler, having first, with a maid enly sense of propriety, requested her lover to turn his back and look at the barn. was busily engaged in looking at the bottom of that trunk, and thinking how like all creation he would yell if he ever got hi» mouth outdoors again. Florence reached the bottom of the ladder. ‘Did you get my trunk, Erasmus?’ she said, locking around for him. ‘Oh, yes,’ said a horse mooking voice at her elbow. ‘Oh, yes, he got jt. Got it bad, too/ She turned, knew her papa, shrieked once, twice, again and once more for the boys, and fainted away, T never worried about it %.minute,’ the heartless, old man told his neigh the next day, ‘though I well enough what was going on all the time. I’ve been married twice, an’I’ve married off four daughters and two sons, an’ if I don’t know what baggage a woman carries when she travels, by this time, I'm too old to learn/ And Erasmu* Ruggleson! The Jury brought in a verdict that he came to his death by habitual drunk enness, and the temperance papers didn't talk about anything else for the next six weeks. WHOM NOT TO MARRY. Women who love their husbands are happy and at rest. Those who do not are disturbed and restless, They are always seeking for some means of killing time. They are rea d v to flirt at any moment. Their ohik j ren arc> accor ding to their means, either hidden in nurseries undsr the care of French ‘bonnes,’ or handed over to Sallie, the slatternly nurse, to shake, and slap, and stuff with sugar, as her wisdom dictates, while society and amusements of all sorts occupy their mother's time. Homo is not always happy to the poor woman, hccau60 she hll5 chosen her roatc foolishly— because she trusted to that dove after marriage’ which mercenary old people promise those who make what they call a sensible match. Sad, as a neglcoted wife, who love* her husband well, must be, I believe she is happier than this poor restless creature, though she be worshipped. The love of one who does not love becomes simply a bore, especially in the close intercourse of home life; and she who docs not give her heart to her husband is not likely to care much for her children, Sa, girls, if you do not love your lover, .don’t marry' him, Remoraber that mar* riage is a serious step, and that when you give him your hand that he may encircle it with a wedding ring, you seal the happiness or misery of your natural life. Don’t marry unless you arc sure of your love for him, and his for you. KILLING ALLIGATORS. A Detroiter who had just returned from Florida after spi absence of several months, was asked the other day if he had any fun with the alliga¬ tors down there. ‘Yes, sir—dead loads of fun,* he replied. * ‘Kill many?* * JFell, I should say so '/ ‘How many clid you ever krill in a davT Three hundred/ •No! you don’t mean 300 alligator* in one day?’ ‘Yes, I do-’ ‘You must have struck a rich spat. Three hundred in one day ! Wlxcw ! UTiat time did you begin !* •Oh, about 10 o’clock in the morn - ing/ ’And how long did it take you?* ‘About an hour/ There was a pause, during which astonishment, incredulity and wone were visible on the faces of the crowd. Finally one man stepped forward aid said: ‘Did you use artillery?’ ‘No, sir.’ ‘A saw mil£ 'No. sir/ ‘Dynamite? ‘Ao, sir/ ‘Maybe you 11 tell us how you did it?* «Ves, sir—/ talked ’em to death, Please call at my office for pamphleU of Florida—its resources, fruits, cereals, alligators, people and hotel charges. 7’ra-la! —Free Press, OLD JERRY’S PHILOSOPHY. B’hat de white folk* call humor and pithos is not dc result ob eddycation, Ter laugh and ter cry comes natural to a child. Nature can get down ter mighty fiue work. Look at de saws on de hind legs ob a grasshopper. Congress ain’t passed no law yet dat kin take de kidney outen a nig^ ger 8 foot, Ef de descendants ob da rooster what crowed atReter was ter make a noise cbery time a lie is told dar would be such a noise in de world dat ysr couldn’t heah de hens cackle. ‘Mary says you can’t come to sec her auy more, sati a l » sister s admirer. ‘\Yhynot. y° u c° mc to sc€ ter cv ® r - v ere ° in S. » nd hovr could J’ ou cowe an v mor *' -