Newspaper Page Text
jhe countrv is believed, for the most part to be
already 1:1 profitable investment, from wnich
it cannot be abstracted to the extent required,
without injury to some of tj>c great interests of
the oo . 1 '
practical men concur in t*- cr r recti .ess t! t
which i.s required lor our present pu . o-> -
must lie in a great tY-givc </'*•;. < ,ro..a>ro: .
To do tjjis is on toe e:leafiest terms, t a mo :
oHdOuUei! secuiitv for its re-un uiseine.it
inii't bead i ' is tl
to c ous. Ci'c i
Jb but the agent in ex • in" r our prouu
for the articles which w< co me. »
facilities we afford to ;h :v t, !■ ■ -
diminish the exper. -e ot <h " r : L
change. is licaefies <1 to tlie co: - -r. ■ 1
mifiis.-iin" the prices of the articles oi ; 's co
vunritlo.!. and le exp*
shipment of a car.' 'ot • I *■ - 1 : •
molasses, from the \\ ■ 1 cs to Nt w Voi..
or of dry goo Is, hardware. ‘Sic., i.oinLvc -
pool to t ie same ; »rt, to 1
i >Sat u or<
interest, comm ■ *■ : ••
so far diminish thev e»1 ' cn.lo.i, *• -'■ ol
lumber, which i.r.y ■ ■ lor i : £on‘.;i
Carolina has aht . sv : * l : ‘
]. f. I . < lount of
Lankin" capital u •:: 1' c i•.
principal s< port, she m w t . pt'» •’.-.it ■ "'< -
-rs ? *n ‘‘ml v-:inl To Civ lnteif "j ,(r
people, provided a flirt ' r increase ol it from
foreign sources, to the 1 ' cit <•: npvv ins of
s;x millions more. I nle-'s we to; iw toe ex
ample, we sit- . soon -••• I ':' ;l |n'o til •
purchased in our interior inai '.i and trans
ported to Charleston for export to foreign
countries: wl.-fie she w : > turn.-It tm
supplies ?<*r our con • ». It ■ ready
occurred in ni-.tiv ins* : • that die n - . rciiai.t-s
of Savanna!i hate l :q -vie! the proem- ■ ol u
South, exchanged il in forei-in markets lor
articles oi’constant and general consuiiiptioii
at the South, and have been come, I. for
want of sudi fa- :l.l> a- ; ■•• •• fi la. r
to send thorn to \ew-\ mk tor a m .il.i t.
Tiler# are even iusta.ic- wbi'M toe ' cry n <t
chanl of Savannah who had sent t!<e returns
of in's produce from foe pi ports to Xevv-Y ork
lor sale, has received in ••on.dgc.mcii’ route ol
his own imports, to lie s .id in ; ".rt i i Savan
nah, and in pa>t to he lm w a rde 1 to tile interior
of the State. It is too obv ions to inquire in tins
case who j aid the increased expenses on these
goolshere? These considerations in ti.ev.i.w
oftlie committee, author ’-e an earn t i;j , e.,1 to
the constituted authorities of Georg i to in: r*
pose for the protection of our mer 'limits and
our people, bv such an increase oi the banking
capital of our principal seaport as may be ad
equate to the j>ur| osesof a thrr • t foreign tra '< ■.
Toe amount of banking capital which w,!! 1«*
required for thecontciii] I ifed purposes w,d be
large since the credits \\ hieh are neee- - irv to
tiie import trade, arc much greater than what
is requisite in the exportation of our produce.
It cannot be stated at less than ten millions, to
protect us from the evil under winch we at
present labor. In iliustrathm of these facts, it,
may be stated, that even foreigners are driven
from our port > by the impossibility of realizing
in cash the sales of their cargoes. Vessels
loaded by foreigner <, ; . ! entering i ‘o our,
ports, with i.istiu. '.ion •to ob'aiua return ear
go, have been ncce-sardy ordered to other
ports, from the incapacity of our ban!;.: to
allbrd the facilities neces ary to realise their
sales, so -as to put them in funds for the pur
chase of a return cargo of our pro luce.
In pursuance oftlie views advanced in the
foregoing report, the Committee beg leave to
nit the following resolutions :
Ist. Resolved, That it be recomnu n k dto
the Legislature to alibi'd the in ■ < ary addi
tion of banking capital to tlie city of' Favannali
both by tlie creation of anew bank, with n
large capital, and the increase oftlie capital
and resources of any bank already located
tiiere, by tlie introduction of a foreign capital
to be added to it, on such terms, and in such
manner, as the Legislature may deem advisa
ble and prop* r.
On motion of Mr. Terrace, the above reso
lution, after the words “city of Savannah,”
was amended as follow s :
“ And all other places requiring additional
capital.”
2d. Resolved, That this Convention do re
commend toihc banking institutions located
at tlie commercial points ::i the State, tlie ne
erssity of a direct credit with fore'gn capital
ists, with a view to the extension of the requi
site pecuniary facilities to our merchants, in a
direct trade with fmigu countries.
2d. Resolved, That :h. - Convention do re
commend to tlie Legislature the repeal of all
such provisions in the e l . -iter of any incor
porated companies, as prohibit foreigners from
being stockho lers
4th. Resole !, That this Corivt ion re
gard as of high importance the successful com
pletion of our gieat sy 'em of internal im
provements, and recommend to tlie Legisla
ture the vigorous prosecution of the Western
and Atlantic Rail Load, an ! the ex elision oi
efficient aid to companies engaged in works of
internal improvement, which m >y he deemed
by the Legislature of general
By Mr. Sanford, ol 1! tbershuni :
Resolved, That this Convention respect!';:’!;,
recommend to the General Assembly ofthe
State, the expediency of inquiring into the
policy of the enactment of a general law, au
thorizing tlie format : ou ol a Joint Stock Com.
panes for the purpo e of promoting a direct
trade with Foreign Countries, with such ic
strietions and limitations as they may deem
advisable.
Bl.ootl SHED AT LAST.
We un ferstooil that a party of tour rega.
lira were conducting twelve Indians from
North Carolina, when about dark on Friday
lust, t'ue Indians, made a concerted attack upon
ti:cir guard—killed and sr i) ! two oftlie ic.
gulars,and wounded a third dangerouslv, and
then nude t'ne'r escape. (Jen. Scott lr
turned the regulars, not yet left for the West,
upon these Mountain Indians, suppo-e 1 to he
several -hundred in number, ami lias also called
lor a company of volunteers for t'.<* same ser
vice. A part of this fotee Las already n ire! -
cd to the Mountains, and tlie rcmuitidcr will set
oflf m#oob.m possible. Gen. Scott h . de
termined on asunmrv course with these strug.
gling refugees. We think, however, it will
be difficult to find them.
Atlienn (Tenn.) Courier.
M ISCELLANY.
From the LVccmls r Number ot the Southern Literarv
Messenger.
THE LAST TREE ARTICLE.
“Lastscem fall, • :1 • .
Shakspeare.
Mvlast [ a per was sent to you from the
!.. oi'Oj.v.ood,—and contained
a promise of ano'- er. to Ic dated in mv own
New E . V ' ; eit is now my
inter. l :o:i to re leetn.
(Viit.t a transiti >:i it was from those fine old
n \ , i . ■ ■ crowded thro igh
It \ Ia change, an I
c . ('rum ti.e coa e ■ 'V' of w.iien 1 have
i.o • t tv .: now, i tovered.
••Ti ro. at *]:>• r •• y .ft r t:coding beech,
T it wreat roots*
thing seamed ! i new
T i ol the rail
v ovi r-cn iw < i street x
t iu ii i jtjt il.f ;V s cOfi-.ti;iit moving
• • -
wuijk ' LcToro.
.
ivcnr t t!> < : ;n u; -i t t r-.lr.nd lawn t”
Dc.-'t'.xotl ant! discon-oktto Mah! Slie could
not shave these reverses w ith him who had
made her the partner of almost all Ins rural
pleasure ! .Sue t irii * her nose over the pal
ings, and whinnied forth a not unmusical
farewell, and as i was whii:< 1 away towards.
■ vn, she gazed v ti me, whose
departure rut > i r i lucent en
m ts. Mow M i tlie] hsea
son! S e ate tiie delicio'.’s fruit ge from the
each rare
■ . ! melicatcon separately,
. —as a w i- :Id do : dain
liing, w th her delicious lip, the juicy
from the roi ;h i one, 1 11 if she were
discu ing her «'«• eit with a silver knife. Poor
Mab! to wiiosn < anion, a
moiig tlie breezy lii'.ij of old i'aii'iiix ? Os
coiir-e. she well ii'inemljcrs yet Vcr summer
friend: metliinks I see her - soft expensive
face,” saying, a : plainly as a horse can speak.
‘‘One morn, I missel him on tlie Vuslomcil hill,
favorite tree;
Another conu s, —not yet beside tlie rill,
Noruj> the lawn, nor at the wood, is he !”
Excuse this digres ’ a, my dear reader: but
men and mare j have feelings, you must be
aware.
1 have been quoting freely from Gray’s fine
Elegy in a Country Church Yard. A beau
tiful copy of this celebrated poem lies before
me, os I w rite, —a book from wh eh it is de*
to copy. E ich stanza is appropriate
ly illustrated in the most perfect manner by
wood engravings, after designs of Charles
Landseer, Thomas, his brother, Westall,
Stohard, Cooper, (' lleot, ( .'.a!<>n, Wright.
C'attermole, Mulreudy, Copley. Fielding, and
ot!:crdistinguished artists. It is a London
book, and has a deserved celebrity. Each
page is a sc a rate gem, and t nctly ami beauti
fully set.—the touching talc being told ns
ex e- July by the painter, as by the poet:
and
“ those rufreed elms, that ye'.v tree's shade,
Wht re '.leaven* the L.ifiu i.iany a iii'iuldtriiiy huip,’’
as weil as
“Full many a flower, whs h, !■ >rn to blush unseen,
Still wastes itsswi etn< • the di sen air, - ’
being depicted tlierein with the most truth!..l
•mi natural fitielity.
How touchingly does this rare poem draw
wood-pictures ! How breathes this stanza of
the pure country ;.ir 1
“Oft did the harvest to their sickle yield;
Their furrow oft the «tubbum glebe has broke;
flow jocund did they drive their team afield !
How bow’d the * >ods bt ath th< ir sturdy stroki 1”
The custom of wood-felling always attack
me as a barbarity. Rea on lias convinced
me of t Ijc necessity oftlie ease, but still it
an rks of cruelty, as 1 view the mutter. The
trade oftlie butcher is innocent and respecta
ble enough, so custom wills it to he esteemed:
but only look at it in detail, —knocking down
<t fine ox, or cutting the throats of tender
lambs, in cold blood: and yet 1 know more
than one very gentlemanly butcher, —and 1
have known othenvi e very good kind ofpeo
p!c to order their oaks and maples felled, lor
firewood. You cannot imagine how para
doxical all this strikes me hs being. But 1
have blown my blast against wanton wood
cutters heady, in one of the earliest of these
desultory papers,—an ! will give them now a
re pile—only tip g ing to the iegi lators,
whether or not it would be a constitutional
, enactment, to order that everv man who fells a
tree shall plant two, either in its or another
place.
Old Herrick, (with whom I have already
made quite free, in these articles.) has an ap
posite thought.
“ All things decay with time; the f.ir< ?t sees
'i he growth and downfall of her attch ::t tr< cs.
'1 hat revt rend oak, whit h, threes core lustre;', stood,
The proud dictator < f the slutc-like wood,
Has bowed at last 1”
Here is a beautiful simile, drawn from a kin
dred s',licet, by 1 l.ibniglon, an English poet
of the sixteenth centuary Speaking of an
old weather beaten tar in Greenwich hospital,
lie says,
“ Thu ■■ (■ " - he, tike some f, a!lant pine,
l amed : r its travels on the sea,
Broken wi l.storms and age,decline.
And in some qua : creek unnoticed rots away 1”
At Oak wood, we bad all kinds of oaks, as 1
have already told you in a former article.
Among t: two, the willow oak was to me the
greatest ; uriosity. Miehaux gives a very
minute account of tills tree, which scents to
have no great reputation, however, in the pla
ces where it grows. It is not so useful as tlie
other \ iir etits, and, as tlie “utile” is more of
a consideration w th our good ; eople than the
“ dulce,” it is ranked in every quarter as tar
beneath them all. It certainly is a singular
freak of nature, how ever, and interests tlie na
tural st who sees it for the first time. It bears
an neorn. and this alone distinguishes it from
the march willow, excepting when it grows to
TIIE SOUTH ER \ PO S T
i a larger size than any of this specie s ever
does.
Apropos of willows. Johnson
this tree as one, “whose branches am worn
by forlorn lovers:” and Virgil in bis EclogtAs
tells us that willow is a badge of mourning for
shop! erds. Byron lias these lines :
“On the tcil’oir thy harp is suspended.
Oh Salem ! Its sounds should be free !
And the hour when thy glory was ended,
/Jut left me that token of thee!”
But it was not always an emblem of sa loess.
At the feast of “first fruits,” it was borne in
triumph. -Ye shall take, on the first day,”
x..ij Moses, in Leviticus, •• thg, boughs of
goodly trees, branches of palm, and boughs of
thick leaves, uml willows, —and so shall you
rejoice!”
There is but one poet worthy of a coronal
of oak-leaf, as The l’oct of Trees, —and he is
our countryman. Ills splendid poem, entitled
“Forest Hymn,” entitles him to this meed.
The whole of it might well be copied here, in
proof: but it is too well known ai.d too easily
accessible to be allowed such space in this
clo ing paper of my series as it would occu-
I’ . Lead it, reader, if thou hast not; and. if
thou hast, read it yet once more, — blend it
with tkv memory’s strongest associations, and,
with the poet, J
“ meditate
In tho-s calm shades God's glorious majesty,
And, t > the beautiful order of His works,
Learn to conform ihe order of thy life !”— Bryant.
Accept his invitation, —
“Thou, who wouldst see the lovely and the wild
Mingled in harmony on Nature’s face,
A >ad our Rocky .Mountains. Thou shall look
I 'poo tlie green and rolling forest-tops.
And down into the secrets of the glens,
A :.1 streams, that, with their bordering thickets, strive
To hide their windings.”
Cos w ith him to the glen, where, he tells you
“Tlie fragrantbireh above him hung
Jh r tassels in the sky,
And many a vernal blossom sprung
And noddled carelessby.”
Follow him, and
“ know where tlie tim’d fawn abides,
In the depths of the shaded dell,
Where the leaves are broad, and the thicket hides,
With its many stems and its tangled sides,
From the eye of the hunter, well I”
What he tells you is true : that,
“When our wide woods and mighty lawns
Bloom to the April skies,
The earth hath no more gorgeous sight
To show to human eyes.”
I fe will show you,
“ tokens
Os ages long ago,—
Our old oaks stream with mosses,
And sprout with mistletoe :
And mighty vines, like serpents, climb
Th* giant sycamore;
And-trunks, o’etthrown for centuries,
Cumber the forest floor.”
He will lead you to the woodland fastnesses
of brave Marioa’s men, and teach you their
wild soil" ;
“(Lir fortress is the good green wood,
Our tent the cypress tree, —
We know the forest round us
As seamen know the sea !
know its walls of thorny vines.
Its glades of reed y grass,
Its safe and silent islands
Within the dark morass I”
“Tke woodland rings with laugh and shout,
As if a hunt were up :
And woodland flowers are gathered,
To crown the soldier's cup.
With merry songs wemoek the wind.
That in the pine-top grieves,
And slumber, long and sweetly,
On beds of oaken leaves.”
He will tell you when ’tis the bettci time to woo:
“ when autumnal dyes
Tinge the woody mountain :
When the drooping foliage lies
In the chocked up fountain.”
And, as you rove with him,
“Err, in the northern gale
Tlie summer tresses of the trees are gone,
The woods of autumn, all around the vale,
Have put their glory on.
Amid the woods that crown
The upland, where the mingled splendors glow,
Where tlie gay company of trees look down,
On the green fields below,” —
With him you will own, that
“ ’Twere a lot too blest
Forever in those colored shades to stray’;
Amidst the kisses of the soft southwest,
To rove and dream for aye ;
And leave the vain low strife,
That makes men mad, the tug fir wealth and power,
The pasrior.s ana the cares that wither life,
And waste its little hour.”
Henry Longfellow’s is a kindred spirit with
that of Biyant, and breathes, at times, most
eloquently and touchingly, with the true inspi
ration of tlie forest. He describes the Spirit
or Poetry, as moving
“In the green valley, where the silver brook,
From its full laver, pours the white cascade,
Ami, amid the silent majesty ofthe deep woods,
Its presence shall uplift the thoughts from earth,
As to the sunshine and the pure bright air
Their tops the green trees lift.”
He says, elsewhere, that the old and
“ gifted bards
Wave ever loved the calm and quiet shades
For them there was an eloquent voice in all
The sylvan pomp of woods, —the golden sun, —
The flowers, —the leaves, —the river on its wav, —
Blue skies, —and silver clouds, —and gentle winds, —
The swelling upland, where the sidelong sun
Aslant the wooded slope, at evening, goes,”—<j'c- d l '-
This is a beautiful picture, and brings back
Oakwood scenes most vividly. There is a
broad belt of woods stretching far from south
to north, upon the crest of a green slope, be
iiiud which the sun sets slowly and redly tit
the close of a hot summer day. Farther
down tiie hid is a hedge-row. beneath which it
was delightful to sit, and watch the gradual
decline of the fiery orb, even after its yellow
beams were hidden from the view: tor th*
long and regular shadow ofthe whole wood)
mass seemed to come gradually creeping
icarerand nearer to my feet, until there was i
no ’ r ghtness left but that reflected from the
s: nkeii sun upon the rich masses ol cloud,
that hung, like curtains of purple and gold,
over the green wood-taps. But I was quoting
Longfellow : and here is another of his wood
land pencillings. 1 low touchingly appropriate
to the rich scene of sylvan beauty spread out
before me as 1 write!
“There x a beautiful spirit breathing now
Its mell'tw richness on the clustered trees,
And, froiu a beaker full of richest dyes,
/'oaring new glory on the autumn woods,
Hud dippiil in warm the pillared clouds.
3/ m,on tfc mountain, like a summer bird,
Lifts up b. | purple wing; and, in the vales,
The gentlawind,
Kisses the flushing leaf, and stirs up life
Within tin]solemn woods of ash, deep crimsoned,
And silver leech, and maple, yellow leaved, —
Where au’pnn, like a faint old man, sits down,
By the wa/side, weary.”
“Oh wfat a glory doth this world put on
For him,/'ho, with a fervent heart, goes forth
Under tit bright and glorious sky, and looks
On dutid well-performed, and days well spent!
For hiiudie w ind, ay, the yellow leaves,
A'hall h/ve a voiee, and give him eloquent teachings ;
i/e shJl so hear the solemn hymn, that Death
//as-fed up, fi»r all, that he shall go
To lis long resting-place without a tear!”
Perhaps after this I ought to recall what I said
of Bryant, as the only American wood-poet:
“ Let both divide the crown 1”
Peabody of New England lias a truthful
pen, when writing of such subjects.
“God of the forest’s solemn shade !
The grandeur of the lonely tree
That wrestless singly wi.h the gale,
Lifts up admiring eyes to thee !
But more majestic far they stand,
When, side by side, theirranks they form, —
To wave on high their plumes of green.
And fight their battles w ith the storm I”
But I must draw this lengthening paper to
a close. A mass of pencilled passages, mark
ed in my books, lying around my desk, by
numerous dogs-ears, otter themselves for quo
tation, but 1 must limit my selections. I have
been writing in the midst of all a New En
gland autumn’s glory. October in Massa
chusetts is the most picturesque of all the
months. The harvest is in,—the orchards are
yielding up their red and golden fruitage,—the
, brown and polished chesnuts are falling from
their husks, —the oaks are shedding their
brown cupped acorns, —the maple, the ash. the
j low sumac are putting on their brilliant color
ing, the hectic glow that tells of speedy de
cline, and early dea'li, —and, as Bryant says,
i “The melancholy day’s are come, — the saddest of the
year 1”
Yet why are they called “melancholy”?
“ IFliat is there saddening in the autumn leaves ?
i ll. we they that green and yellow melancholy
That the iwect poet spoke of ? II,\A he seen
i Oar variegated woods, when first the frost
Turns into besuty all October's charms,
H hen the storms
Os the w ild Equinox, wiih all its wet,
/fas left the land, as the first deluge left it,
With » bright bow of many colors hung
Upon the forest-tups,—lie had not sighed.”
Brainard.
It is now the time of “The Hunter’s Moon,”
and, to quote this sweet poet once more,
“The moon stays longest for the hunter now, —
The trees east down their fruitage, and the blithe
And busy squirrel hoards his winter store :
While weenjoy the breeze that sweeps along
The bright blue sky above us, and that bends
Magnificently all tlie forest's pride,
Or whispers through the evergreens, and asks,
'What is there saddening in the autumn leaves ?’ ”
William Howitt, the husband of Mary, that
sweet poetess, in his “Book oftlie Seasons,”
discourses with all the fondness of a true na
turalist. cf woods. He says, “Ariosto, Tasso,
Spencer, Shakspeare, and Milton, have sanc
tified them to the hearts of all generations.
What a world of magnificent creations comes
swarming upon the memory as we wander in
woods ! The gallant knights and beautiful
dames, the magical castler and hippogriffs of
the Orlando; the enchanted forest, the Atmida
and Erminia of the Gerusalemma Liberate ;
•Fair linn, with her milk-white lamb,’ and all
the satyrs, Archimages, tlie fair Florimels and
false I Inessas of the Faery Queene; Ariel,
and Caliban, Jaques, and tlie motley fool in
Arden, the fairy troop of the Midsummer-
Night’s Dream, Oberon, Titania, and that
pleasantest of all mischief-makers, ineffable
Puck, —the noble spirits of the immortal Co
mas. With such company, woods are to us
any thing but solitudes. What wisdom do
we learn in the world, that they do not teach
us better ? What music do we hear like that
which bursts from the pipes of universal Pan,
or comes from some view less source with the
JEolian melodies of Facry-land? Whatever
woods have been to all ages, to all descriptions
of superior mind, to all tiie sagos and poets of
tlie past world, they are to us. Wo have tlie,
varied whole of their sentiments, feelings and
fancies, bequeathed as an immortal legacy,and
combined and concentrated for our gratifica
tion a id advantage,—besides the innumerable
pleasures which modern art has thrown to the
accumulated wealth of all antiquity.”
Again, he asks—“ What can be more beau
tiful than trees ? Their lofty trunks, against
in their simplicity, asserting to the most inex
perienced eye, their infinite superiority over
the imitative pillars of man’s pride; their
graceful play of wide-spre iding branches; and
all tlie delicate and glorious machinery of buds,
leaves, flowers, and fruit, that, with more than
magical effect, burst forth from naked and
rigid twigs, with all the rich and brilliant colors
under heaven ; breathing delectable odors,
pure, fresh, and animating; pouring out spices
and medicinal essences ; aid making music,
from the softest and most melancholy under
tones to the full organ-peal oftlie tempest. I
wonder not that trees have commanded tl e
admiration of men, in all nations and periods
oftlie world. What is the richest country
without trees ? What barran and monoto
nous spot can they not convert into a para
dise? Xerxes, in the midst of his most ambi- i
tious enterprise, stopped his vast army to con
template tlie beauty of a tree.” Arc.: and so
he goes on a strain which impels the wish on
mv part that Messenger articles might be ex
tended, ad libitum, and that your readers could
have the whole of this delicious essay spread
before them. One passage more, beautiful I
and timely, I must transcribe.
“It is in this month, [October.] that woods 1
may be pronounced most beautiful towards i
the end of it, what is called the Fading of the :
Leaf, [with us, The Fall,] presents a mngiiifi- :
cent spectacle. Every species of tree, so 1
beautifully varied in its general character, the
silver-stemmed and pensile-branchcd birch,
the tall smooth beech, the wide-spreaking o k
and chesnut, each devclopcs its own florid oak
of orange, red, brown, or yellow, which, min
gling with the gicen of unchanged trees, or
the darkness of tlie pine, presents a tout en
semble rich, glowing, .mil splendid. Yet, fine
as our woods are at this season, far are they
exceeded by those of America; the greater
variety of trees, and the greater efiect of cli
mate, conspiring to render them in decay
gorgeous and beautiful beyond description.”
Before this last of my lucubrations is turned
to type, all this will have experienced a yet
more striking change. The iast leaf of the
trees the foliage of winch falls at all, will have
been whirled from their branches by tlie cold
wintery winds, and the gigantic arms of the
forest will be bared to t';e howling blasts that
will shriek shilly among them. The ever
greens will retain a portion of their verdure,
duller, however, than tlie summer tinting.
Holly and mountain ash will alone keep their
red berries, and some few faded leaves will
cling with desperate tenacity to their brown
branches. Max the season prove one of un
diminished comfort to all who have accom
panied me in these my woodland rambles!
May the “Christinas chimes” sounding merri
ly in their ears, welcome them to good cheer
and happy fireside enjoyments : and among
their chosen topics of reflection, may tlicbeau
| ties and wonders of nature find a prominent
place. May they cultivate a taste, which
every \mcriean should peculiarly cherish, as
a sure source of the richest enjoyment, and the
highest mental and moral improvement,—the
taste for forest-trees. Our own Irving, of
w hom two worlds are justly proud, says truly
that “there is something simple, and noble,and
pure, in such a taste.” It argues as sweet and
generous nature to have this strong relish for
the beauties of vegetation, and this friendship
for the hardy anil glorious sons oftlie forest.
There is a grandeur of thought connected
with this part of rural economy. It is, if I
may be allowed the figure, the hcrioc line of
husbandry. It is worthy of liberal, and free
born, and aspiring men. lie who plants an
oak, looks forward to future ages, and plants
for posterity. Nothing can be less selfish
than this. He cannot expect to sit in its
shade, nor enjoy its shelter : but he exults in
the idea, that tlie acorn w hich lie has buried in
the earth shall grow up into a lofty pile, and
shall keep on flourishing, and increasing, and
benefitting mankind, long after he shall have
ceased to tread his paternal fields.
“Indeed, it is the nature ofsuch occupations
to lift the thoughts above mere worldlincss.
As tlie leaves of trees are said to absorb all
noxious qualities ofthe air, and breath forth a
purer atmosphere, so, it seems to me, as if
they drew from us all soi did and angry pas
sions, and breathed forth peace and philanthro
py. There is a serene and settled majesty in
woodland scenery that enters into the soul,
and dilates, and elevates it, and fills it with
noble inclinations.”
Indulgent reader, farewell ! J. f. o.
Ncwburyport, Get. 7th, 18.'18.
A silk worm was placed on a Morns Multi
caulis growing on our plantation, a few days
since, soon after it emerged from the egg. It
•grew finely, and wc watched its progress to
'maturity with some interest, anxious to learn
whether it would prosper exposed in the open
fie'd, and fearing that a storm might do it in
jury, anti perhaps destroy its life. A shower
at length came, and when it was over we ic
paired to his wormship’s head-quarters, not to
inquire, but too look after his temporal condi
tion. We found him safely enconsed under
one of the leaves of this wonderful plant, ap
parently in a meditative moot>nnd seemingly
careless of the state or condition of the ele
ments. The leaves of the Chinese mulberry
are so arranged upon the tree, that a worm
may find protection from the sun or rain in
whatever point of compass it approaches. Tlie
insect, in its native state, lies on the mulberry
tree in the open air, and in the position of :ts
leaves, the worm fin is shelter and protection
in the vicissitudes of weather. In this, as in
every thing else, we discover the munificence
of Providence manifested in the care bestowed
even on a worm, and to us it is proof conclu
sive, that nature intended the Morus Multicau
lis for the special protection and sustenance
of this valuable and interesting insect.
Silk Grower.
CHANCE AND DESIGN.
Aristippus was shipwrebked on an island,
where he and his companions were apprehen
sive of being destroyed by barbarians, or torn
to pieces by wild beasts, lie perceived some
geometrical figures roughly sketched on the
shore. “ Let us take courage, my friends,”
exclaimed he, ‘’for I see the vestiges of civil
ized men !” The judgment which he formed
was instantaneous and certain. lie never
suspected that those figures had been scratch
ed by the talon of the eagle, the paw of the
lion, or even by the finger of a savage. If,
however, upon landing on an unknown shore,
instead of a few figures rorghly sketched on
the sand, we were to find a geometrical trea
tise, such, for instance, os the first six books
of Euclid, with all the propositions, diagrams
and demonstrations, would any one hesitate, for
a single moment, to pi onounce that this was
the work of some civilized and intelligent be
ing ? No man capable of exercising reason
would pronounce it the work ofchance. Would
a voyager landing on an uninhabited island,
and finding a magnificent and splendid city,
adorned with palaces, and temples, and tow
ers, imagine, b cause be saw no inhabitants, |
that the city hud risen up there without the j
operation of an intelligent agent ? No. A
nativeof 01 iental climes might pronounce it the !
work of the genii; hut no person would ima
gine that it had come there w ithout a designing
cause, a contriving mind.
4 LL persons indebted' otlu-rubwrihir.piibcrbj im'e '
•/w or upon account, r 3 very respectfully invitee to
call and seidt: he eery YV M. It. JOHNSTON
January 21 Ifcf I
CAUSE OF THE INDIAN SUMMER.
What occasions that return of soft, miltl and
sutninc: -like weather alout the end of Septem.
ber and the beginning of October, to which
we give the name of Indian summer, has been
often made a question. An article on tie
subject, in the Democratic Review, fumisl.w
explanation.
“ It is well known that water, when passing
into the form of ice. gives out a large quantity
!of its latent heat. In the high Northern hti.
tides visju and by Party and Ross, it appears that
the winter commences in tlie beginning of
September and that throughout the whole of
that month the congelation proceeds with (Treat
activity. It is reasonable to suppose, there
fore, from the immense amount of ice formed
during that period, that the quantity of heat
thrown into tin atmosphere during tlie month
of September, must be sufficient to exert a
very powerful and perceptible effect upon the
temperature of the air in countries lying South
ot the Article circle, especially as the Norther,
ly winds prevails at the season.”
INGENIOUS CALCULATION.
In one ofthe spinning and power-loom cs.
tablishmen s in Bury, there arc 1.140 looms at
work. An intelligent book-keeper employed
at these works has made the following curious
calculation, namely: The shuttle of each
loom, in traversing through the shed formed
by the w harp, passes over a space of 4 feet 6
inches at least, some more but none less than
that. Whilst at work, the shuttle is thrown
100 times per minutes, or 27,000 foot per
hour. The looms arc in operation twelve
hours [ier day, consequently each shuttle tra
verses 324,000 feet or 61 miles 030 yards in
one day. Among so many looms, there will
be always scr.ie standing from various causes.
Allowing, then, 110 out of the 1,140 to he
the average number standing, and assuming
that 1,000 are kept constantly going for
twelve hours each day, these shuttles will tra
vel 51,303 miles and 1,120 yards each day,or
through a space almost equal to 2 1-2 times the
circumference of the earth, hi theshort period
of twelve hours.
“ Let the heavens thunder and tlie earth
rock!” For the Countess of Westmoreland
; cometli! Yes—the Countess of Westmore.
! land, with a niece, six servants, a travelling
I carriage, and a medical attendant, embarked
tit London on the 18th Sept, in the packet
ship President for New Yoik. She engaged
| the whole ofthe lady’s cabin for her own use.
Her purpose is to travel for two or three years
lin tlie United States, his said that she brings
over a brilliant retinue of hounds, three race
horses and the most splendid collection of
I playing cards that ever crossed the Atlantic.
We ‘reckon’she calculates to see lots of fun
among our fo.ks. Microcosm.
EPIGRAMS.
An Epigram should never be extended to
eight lines. Four lines ought to be the nc plus
ulra ;if only two so much the better.— Here
|is one uttered by an old get tlemnn whose
'daughter Arabella importuned him for money:
'* Dear Bell, to gain money, sure silence is best,
Fordumb Bells are fittest to open the chest.’
Another, on a lady wearing the miniature
of tut unworthy person round her neck :
“ What, hang from the neck of a lady !” cries Bill,
“ Were ever such folly and impudence known ?
j As to hanging, indeed, lie may hang where he will,
/Jut ar to the neck, let it l>e by his own.”
Another by Dr. Jennir, sent with a cotipie
! of ducks to a patient:
i “I’ve despatched, my dear landau, this act a;> of a letter
! To say that Miss****** is very much bettor:
A regular doctor no longer she lacks,
I And therefore I’ve sent her a eouple of quacks.”
And two more, cun fined to the Spartan
I limits; one by a disconsolate husband upon
j the death of his wife :
“ Two bones from my body have taken a trip,
! I’ve buried my Rib, and got rid of my Hyp."
And tiie other, by the friend of a gentleman
who was expecting the deceat.e of his :
“/Jrutus, unmoved heard how his Portria fell,
Should Jack's wife die, he would behave as well.”
OdF The New York Correspondent of the
j National Intelligencer of the 12th inst. says
'that Mrs. Hamlin, late Miss Medina, the au
thoi of the dramas of Lafitte, Rienza, &c.,
was found dead in bed, on the morning of tlie
12th inst.
SUPPOSED MURDER.
On the 13th inst. the body of a man was
discovered on a hollow log, near Johnson’s
Mills, in Jones county ; apparently having
been in that situation eight or ten days. On
i the body were sixteen or seventeen cuts and
! stabs; showing conclusively that he must have
| come to his death by foul means. Some pa
jpers w ere found on him, by which it appeared
{that his name was Elias M. Isaacs, —some of
them were hills lor the purchase of Jewelry in
Albany, Utica, and Syracuse, N. Y. A note
was found, addressed to him by a Mr. Whit
ney of New York, who appeared to have
[been his counsel in some diiliculty he had
been involved in respectidg the purchase, or
possession of Jewelry.
The only light that lias been elicited re
specting him, is, that a person who was sup
posed to be a French Jew', answering to his
name and description, w'as in this city a few
days, and left here on the sth inst. in a Jersey
wagon, with a man by the name of Williams,
a Ventriloquist, and slight of hand performer;
and another individual, who appeared to be
an Italian. While here the murdered man
was engaged in peddling Jewelry, and claim
ed to have the value of three t.» four thousand
dollars in watches, Jewelry and money ; which
probably was the immediate cause of his mur
der. No money, or jewelry was found with
him, except a ring, which he wore, which lias
been recognized as belonging to him, by per
sons who had noticed it. A wagon, and in
dividuals answering the description of those
w ho left here with him, were seen at the place
when the body was found, the morning after
they left here.
Os course strong suspicions arc fixed on
the persons who accompanied the murdered
man from this place, and the public would do
well to be on a lookout for tbe perpetrators of
such a foul deed. Georgia Messenger.