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Mary. —Oh sir you are too com
plimentary. ( Aside ) The sickening
creature !
Major . — (Aside) I’d like to knock
him into the clcarvoyant state, as
i bey call it, so far that he’d never
tind his way back into these parts
again.
Caroline. —Come Major, do let Mr.
Orotchett magnetise you.
Dr. J. —Yes, Joe, for the amuse
ment of the ladies.
Major. —Well, let him fire up, I’m
ready.
Crotchett. —I’d much rather un
dertake one of the ladies; but for
iheir amusement, I wall endeavaw
foput the Majaw to sleep. (Draws a
(hair in front of the Major - who is also
seated.) Now, Majaw, give me your
hands. Now you must fix your eyes
steadfastly in mine, and you must
not remove them till you feel your
self undaw the influence. (Turns to
Mary, who, with the remainder of the
company,are looking on andlaughing.)
Major.—(Settling himself in his scat.
I reckon, Mr. Crotchett, you’ll find
me a ruther hard subject. (Aside.
It’s enough to give abody the night
mare to look three minutes in his
bominable ugly face.
Crotchett and the Maj<*r sit with their
eyes fixed on each other while the compa
ry laugh, and whisper to each other,
Crotchett occasionally manipulating
the Major, and making the usual passes
about his face. The Major begins to
make hub ous faces and glare his eyes at
Crotchett.
Crotchett. —Now’, ladies, you can
perceive the action of the mysteri
ous fluid. He is fast passing into
the magnetic state. He is now
losing all consciousness. He will
soon be completely subject to my
control, when I will shew’you some
interesting phrenological experi
ments.
The Major looks fiercely in Crotchett's
face, and grasps his hands with such
face as to cause him to cry out . Crotch
ett endeavors to release himself. They
both rise from their scats, aad pass round
the stage.
Crotchett. —Oh T,ord ! Oh ! He’s
in convulsions! Oh! he’ll murder
me !Oh ! ( The women in great alarm
fhj from the room. Crotchett and the
Doctor seize their hats and rush from
the stage, pursued by the Major , who
utters most terrific groans .)
(To be continued.)
ftiisrdlatnj.
RATHER DISAGREEABLE.
About a fortnight ago, the son of
a wealthy merchant of Bordeaux
arrived in Paris, to enter one of the
colleges. He had a letter of intro
duction to an old friend of his fa
ther’s, hut having found that he had
lost it, resolved to postpone bis visit
until he should be able to get anew
letter. The Tost letter unfortunate
ly fell into the hands of a clever
ihief, who took it to the gentleman,
and was by him received with the
warmest cordiality. Ihe next day
ihe thief presented himself at the
house before the gentleman was up,
and requested permission to write a
few letters. The servants recogni
sing him as the honored visitor on
o
the previf us evening, left him alone
in the room, arid the thief then pos
sessed himself of a considerable
sum of money, with which, after a
while, he went away, on pretenee
of posting his letters. On discover
mgthe robbery, the gentleman w r as
naturally greatly indignant, but,
out of regard to his old friend, re
frained from making a complaint to
the police. Yesterday the young
man, the real Simon Pure, presen
ted himself with the letter, but no
soon did he announce his name to
the servant, than the latter seized
him by the collar and cried, “Thief,
thief! ” Astonished at such a sin
gular reception, the young man
struggled to break from the ser
vant’s grasp, but in vain, and he
was safely locked up. The gen
tleman, however, having heard his
explanation, immediately had him
released. The cunning thief has
net yet been discovered. — Paris Pa
ccr.
INFLUENCE OF FEMALE TASTEJ
A cultivated taste marks a wo
man of elegance and refinement as
decidedly as a knowledge of classi
cal literature does a gentleman ; and
there is nothing in which female vul
garity is more clearly shown than in
a want of taste. This is an axiqm
that I think w r ill not admit of any
dispute ; but it is a question how
far taste is natural and how far it
may be acquired. A delicate taste
must, to a certain extent, depend
upon the organization of the indi
vidual ; and it is impossible for an}’
rules to be laid down which will im
part taste to persons entirely devoid
of it. But this is very seldom the
case with women, as it is one of the
few points in which women natu
rally excel men. Men may be, and
probably are, superior to women in
all that requires profound thought
and general knowledge ; but in the
arrangement of a house, and the in
troduction of ornamental furniture
and articles of bijouterie, there can
be no doubt of the innate superior
ity of women. Every one must
have remarked the difference in
the furnishing of a bachelor’s house
and one where a lady presides; the
thousand little elegancies of the lat
ter, thougli nothing in themselves,
adding like ciphers, prodigiously to
the value of the solid articles they
are appended to. It is true that it is
chiefly in tiifies that this kind of
taste is shown ; but, as it has been
often said, “ it is trifles make the
sum of human bliss ; ” and I must
confess I should not like to visit in
any family where trifles are consid
ered beneath the attention of the la
dy of the house. There is frequent
ly only a slight difference between
the solid articles of furniture in an
elegant looking room ; and in one
quite the reverse ; and it is the mag
ic hand of taste that produces the
striking contrast between the two.
For instance we may fancy the dif
ference between flowers tied to
gether, and thrust into a common
jug, and the same flowers tastefully
arranged in a flower stand, or if a
proper stand be not on hand, in a
common soup plate. It is in the
adaptation of the articles not orna
mental in themselves to the purpo
ses of ornament, that female taste
is displayed most conspicuously ;
and even articles beautiful in them
selves may lose nearly all their at
tractions, it unsuitably placed.—
Thus a room may be full of expen
sive furniture, and yet look only
ike an upholsterer’s warehouse ;
and it may be furnished with the
simplest materials, and yet have an
air of elegance and refinement.—
Ladies Companion.
Selfishness. —Intense selfishness is
a very excellent thing, in some res
pects, for those who possess it; for
although they may be very sensitive
upon the one central spot, yet at ev
ery other point, where all the world
are vulnerable, they are guarded
with triple steel. I wonder when
Lord Bacon wrote his essay upon
the wisdom of the ancients, he did
not show that the character of Achil
les was a mere allegory of the blind
Greek to represent a perfectly selfish
man ; for there cannot be the slight
est doubt that such was the case.—
Take his whole history and it is ev
ident ; first, he was dipped in the
Styx, that hellish stream which ren
dered him invulnerable to all the
stings and arrows of the general en
emy. There was but one point in
which he could be wounded, and
that was the lowest point in his
whole frame, his right heel. What
could this mean hut that he could
not be reached through the head or
the heart! 1 his gave him very
great advantages over all his com
panions, and he was able to over
come, and even kill, a great many
much better men than himself; but
still it did not secure him happiness
nor obtain for him ultimate success.
What a fine moral to the Allegory !
and a Phrygian boy in a night cap,
found out the weak point, and dis
patched him with a missile !G. JP.
11. James.
INTERESTING INCIDENT.
Every thing that relates to An
drew Jackson, the hero of New Or
leans, and the friend of his country f
is of deep interest to the American
people. And although the incident
that we are about to relate is, in it
self, of no great interest, it becomes
so to us in consequence of those
connected with it.
At the Nashville Convention of
August, 1846, we visited the Hermi
tage, (only twelve miles distant,) in
company with Judge Douglass, ot
this State, who had been invited
thither by the venerable patriot on
the day succeeding the Convention.
Governor Clay, ot Alabama, was
near General Jackson, who was
himself sitting on the sofa in the
hall of his residence ; and as each
person entered, Governor Clay in
troduced him to the hero, and he
passed along. When Judge Doug
lass was thus introduced, General
Jackson raised his still brilliant
eyes, and gazed for a moment in
the countenance of the Judge, still
retaining his hand: “Are you the
Mr. Douglass of Illinois, who de
livered a speech last session on the
subject of.the fine imposed on me
for declaring martial law at New Or
leans ? ” asked General Jackson.
I have delivered a speech in the
House of Representatives upon that
subject,” was the modest reply of
our friend.
“ Then stop,” said General Jack
son, “ Sit down here beside me.—
I desire to return to you my thanks
for that speech. You are the first
man who has ever relieved my mind
on a subjeot which has rested upon
it for thirty years. My enemies al
ways charged me with violating the
Constitution of my country, by de
claring martial law at New Orleans ;
and my friends have always admit
ted the violation,but have contended
that circumstances justified me in
that violation. I never could un
derstand how it was, that the per
formance of a solemn duty to my
country —a duty which, if I had neg
lected, would have made me a trai
tor in the sight of God and man—
could properly be pronounced a vi
olation of the Constitution. I felt
convinced in my own mind, that I
was not guilty of such a heinous of
fencq ; but I could never make out
a legal justification 6F my course;
nor has it ever been done sir, until
you, on the floor of Congress, at the
late session established it beyond
the possibility of cavil or doubt.—
I thank you sir, for that speech ; it
has relieved my mind from the only
circumstance that rested painfully
upon it. Throughout my whole
life I never performed an official
act which I viewed as a violation of
the Constitution of my country;
and 1 can now go down to the grave
in peace, with the perfect conscious
ness that I have not broken, at any
period of my life, the Constitution
or laws of my country.”
Thus spoke the old hero, his
countenance brightened by emo
tions which it is impossible for us
to describe. We tarried to look at
Douglass. He was speechless. lie
could not reply, but convulsively
shaking the nged veteran’s hand, he
rose and left the room. Certainly
General Jackson had paid him the
highest compliment he could have
bestowed on any individual.—llli
nois State Register.
More “ Humanity." —The last wc
heard of Dial, he was engaged in
forming a society for ameliorating
the condition of job-wagon horses,
which, under the present absurd
regulations of society, are compell
ed to lake their dinner standing in
the streets, with baskets of oats tied
to their noses. Waiting on one of
our first men for his signature, the
benevolent reformer asked, “ how
would you like to have your soup,
fish, beef, turkey, pudding, desert,
brandy and water, wine, marashino,
and coffee, all put into a tin pail
and strapped over your long ears ?
The citizen put his name down at
once.
PORTRAIT OP SOCRATES.
“He was a cool fellow, adding
to his humor a perfect temper and a
knowledge of his man, be he whom
he might he talked with, which laid
the companion open to certain de
feat in any debate, and in this de
bate he immoderately delighted. —
The young men are prodigiously
fond of him, and invite him to their
feasts, whither lie goes for conversa
tion. He can drink, too ; has the
strongest head in Athens ; and af
ter leaving the whole party under
the table, goes away as if nothing
had happened, to begin new dia
logues with somebodv that is sober.
O *
In short, he was what our country
people call an old one “ Under
his hypocritical pretence of know
ing nothing* he attacks and brings
down all the finest speakers, all the
fine philosophers. Nobody can re
fuse to talk with him, he is so hon
est, and really very curious to kuow ;
a man who was willingly confuted
if he did not speak the truth, and
who willingly confuted others, as
serting what was false. A pitiless
disputant who knows nothing, but
the bounds of whose conquering
intelligence no man had ever reach
ed, whose temper was imperturba
ble, whose dreadful logic was al
ways leisurely and sportive, so care
less aud ignorant, as to disarm the
wariest, and draw them in the pleas
antest manner, into horrible doubts
and confusion. But he always
knew his way out, knew it, yet
would not tell it. No escape ; he
drives them to terrible choices bv
his dilemmas, and tosses the Hipia
ses and Gorgiases with their grand
reputations, as a boy tosses his
balls.”—it. IV. Emerson .
The Results of Education. —A few
days since the authoress of ‘ Ceylon
and Cingalese,’ who is alo a contri
butor to periodicals for the upper
classes, was examined as a witness
in the Westminster County Court.
Mr. Dod, the well known solicitor,
was about to cross-examine her,
when the authoress, herself the wife
of a barrister, placing her arms a
kimbo, and looking contemptuously
at her interrogator, had the indiscre-
O 1
lion to say, “ Mind do not badger me
—recollect where lawyers go to
when they die.” On being asked
the ordinary question, where she re
sided, a display of uncontrollable
passion and indignant astonishment
ensued, which convulsed the audi
ence with laughter for many minutes
Thus it frequently happens that per
sons totally ignorant of the ordinary
customs of their own countrv, after
a few months sojourn in a foreign
land, presume to criticise the ancient
usages of the natives. By a singu
lar coincidence, the subject in dis
pute was an essay on “ The Results
of education.”
Rom an Engineer . —John Smex
ton, who did much to advance his
profession in England, may almost
be said to have been born an engi
neer, his genius appeared at so ear
ly an age. His playthings were
not those of children, but the tools
which men employ. Before he
was six years of age he was dis
covered on the top of his father’s
barn, fixing up what he called a
windmill, of his own construction ;
and at another time, while he was
about the same age, he attended
some men fixing a pump, and ob
served that they cut off’ a piece of
the bored pipe, he procured it, and
actually made a pump with it, which
raised water. When he was under
fifteen years of age, he made an
engine for turning, and worked sev
eral things in ivory and wood,
which he presented to his friends.—
A part of every day was occupied
in forming some ingenious piece of
mechanism.— Builder.
Sign of Character. —A man who
habitually speaks disparingly of the
female character, gives conclusive
evidence that there is something
wrong in his own. A true man al
ways has a high idea of female ex
cellence, and cherishes it with a re
spect bordering on worship.
FBEIND OF THE FAMILY.
SAVANNAH, MARCH 23, 1850.
To Clubs.
As an inducement to our friends to exert
themselves in extending onr circulation* we
offer the following liberal terms :
To any person sending us Five Dollars and
the names of three new subscribers, we will
give a Copy extra for one year.
Or Eight Dollars for Five, a Copy extra.
Or Teu Dollars, Seven Copies and a Copy
extra.
Or Fifteen Dollars, Twelve Copies and a
Copy exl.*a.
Or Twenty Dollars, Twenty Copies and
a Copy extra.
St. Patrick’s Day.
St. Patrick’s Day was celebrated with all
the customary ceremonies on Monday. The
orator of the day, Osborne A. Lochrane,
Esq., was escorted by the Members of the
Hibernian Society and the Irish Union Socie
ty and Irish Jasper Greens to the Theatre,
where he delivered an eloquent and impress
ive address. They then adjourned to the
City Hotel.
The following are the officers elect of the
Hibernian Society for the ensuing year:
G. B. Cumming, President.
R. H Griffin, Vice President.
John J. Kelly, Treasurer.
L. J. Guilmartin. Secretary.
F. Shiels, Standard Bearer.
The following are those of the Irish Union
Society :
Dr. John R iordan, President.
Michael Finney, Vico President.
John Everard, Treasurer.
Martin Duggin, Secretary.
Thomas Ford, Standard Bearer.
Athenaeum.
We had the pleasure last Monday night
of hearing Miss Rosa Jacques as Marie in
The Child of the Regiment. Prepared as
we were by report, we were nevertheless
astonished and delighted at the power and
beauty of her voice,which combines flexibilty,
volume and compass. Her acting too is nat
ural arid spirited, and her broken English
instead of being a defect, in our opinion,only
renders her the more interesting. The au
dience though small, was select, and appear
ed much pleased.
Mr. Chas. Mueller led the orchestra and is
a gentleman who stands high in his profes
sion. If he would determine to stay in Sa
vannah and give lessons, we know many who
would, no doubt, like to profit by his instruc
tions.
rF 3 Wo call the attention of those of our
readers, who are fond of scientific matters, to
the letter of an esteemed and learned gen
tleman regarding the Literary Association
which has recently met in Charleston.
OP We have reason to know that Prof.
Agassiz, if practicable, will deliver a course
of Lectures next week in this city. The
celebrity of this great man as a naturalist and
geologist, induces us to recommend our rea
ders to attend these lectures. The sub
scription list is left at CoL Williams’ book
store.
Sea Serpent.
It appears that this individual lias been
identified with two or three whales. If such
is the case we will venture to console our
neighbor in telling him that “Munky Joe ”
may experience the fate of his great proto
type Jonah, aud reappear on some desolate
coast. If the chivalry of Beaufort succeed
in their valiant designs, his resuscitation will
be certain.
From California.
Our readers may rely upon the correctness
of the information contained in the following
letter from a friend in California. We give
it entire to convince the skeptical that it is
bona Jide the sentiments of one who has
had every opportunity of forming correct
opinions. He is well known to most of our
city readers, and could have no motive for
deception.
SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 13,1850.
Friend Ned —What soy you to my giving
you a small epistle occasionally from these
diggins ? Will it be of any service to your
little enterprise, two or three copies of which
I have received from some kind friend. If
you had your establishment in these parts I
rather guess you would bo able to get your
pile in a few years and return home. There
is a great deal of printing done here, judging
from the quantity of bills posted about, and I
calculate ihey get something for it. I had
one hundred business cards struck off a few
days since (a copy 1 enclose) the price was
only S2O, I sent you a copy of one of our
papers sometime since, with returns of the
election here, and as I supposed, the State
followed suit and my friend Mr. King did
not get elected to the Senate as you no doubt
have seen by later returns. 1 for one am
sorry for it for he was the right kind of a
man for this country. Law is a great busi
ness in this country and those who have es
tablished themselves have as much as they
can attend toin the way of bleeding unfortu
nate individuals who get within its meshes.
I should not be surprised if the greater por
tion of the property here will have to pay a
tax one of these days to gents of that profes
sion. There is a movement here by a lot of
Yank’s squatting down on a mission near
town, and my impression is, if they get an
chored, it will take some law and funds to
hoist sticks, for land is worth something
around tho city. I heard sometime since
of old Dutch and Torn Duko leaving fur- this j
country j J. suppose they took the Fort I
Smith route, and consequently
rived. They must have a sever^ 0 aN
it in the mountains this winter h of
of those who came over that Wa / aCcoi3l Hs
of Floridians arrived here about * A
since, amongst them was “H
formerly of Savannah. They
months on the road, and had a sever
it. If a man wants a pleasant trip \
six or eight join and travel the Nations
across Mexico. The scenery i 8 p N
and he will pass through a g jeat m
ces and cities which will repay hin! ?
trouble. There is no danger if
armed, but they must carry very ]; t! ,
gage; say one pair of blankets ‘ ’
suits of clothes, for through most * **
distance your baggage is carried
mules. There are vessels nlwa • °
Bias and Mazatlan on the Pacific f
former place the steamer stops
ward trip.
I would not advise anyone of mr
tances to come out here in search
for I do not believe in the inexhau*!-,
the mines, and I think the cream h'?*
taken off, nor do 1 believe they e ‘
much more country than has
explored, and every place where I w
the earth has been upturned and L*”
deep as the rnetal can be found. \ i
been over most of the Southern
flie crowd was not half as large as at J t
Northern or Sacramento diggins. j if
was too large a crowd there for the ‘
going on, and God kuows where the tho
ands will find places to dig the coming
son. for they are flocking in from every,. •
of the glebe, and I should not be surprise,j f
the want of room would be the cause,*’
great deal of bloodshed ; in fact there r
some of it a few weeks since on the Caliv
ras by a party of Americans ordering off;,
party of Chilians; 1 look upon this as ,
beginning, but I am afraid it will not be the
end. .
I suppose you have seen accounts of a
disastrous fire which occurred here od ||,
25th December. The burnt district has
been rebuilt, aud the gamblers hard at work
dealing monte, &c. What a nation these
Yankees are ; you see an open Jot to-dav
aud the next week some chap has a sign u;
of potatoes for sale.
I will present to you two pictures as an ar
gument in favor of my advice in reference
to any of the boys coming out here gold
digging. First, I notice in Ne\v York papers
what a rush there is for steamer's tickets
coming this way, and the disappointment in
not being abie to procure them. Secondly.l
was at the agents office for the steamers in
the latter part of .December, when a day was
appointed for tbe sale of tickets for the Jan
uary steamer; they had to fotm lines and
await their turn, and a great many were dis
appointed in not getting a passaga. I knew a
great many of them, and to a man \Wj
home disappointed, and so it is with sixty
nine out of seventy who came to this country,
a great many return with broken downer
stitntions, for the life in the mines is a <k<s
life, and the climate awful a portion of th
year.
I have spun this out to a greater lengtli
than I intended. If there is anything which
will interest your readers you can make ab
stracts, for as I have before said I do not as
pire to be a letter-writer.
M. T.
[communicated.]
Messrs • Editors:
I was fortunate last week in having been
present at the proceedings of the “ American
Association for the Advancement of Science,’
assembled in Charleston, by previous agvee
ment;’ which was highly gratifying to that
intell gent community, and formed the be
ginning of a scientific era among those who,
for many years, had contributed their genius
arid labor to the progress of science.
There is something so beautiful and calm
in tho deliberations of men of science, when
contrasted with the heat of political contro
versy or the strife of polemics, that it is quite
refreshing to see equanimity the comm J
characteristic of every member that spoke-
As far as my memory serves me,
give a slight synopsis of what subjects^ 10
investigated: much of these discnssi° n3
were intended more to correct errors of what
had already been received and published in
books of science, than to be advanced as ne' v
theories; and the listener was struck” 1
the language of such a philosopher ash •
Agassiz, (now of Cambridge,) cautioning llll
of science to be slow in their
himself, after concluding on some
nature, found it necessary to change his opl
- This he showed on the examina’ 101, 0
certain molusca, that had hitherto been r
ceived as of several species, while a “
investigation proved that the reproduction
tho fourth and fifth generation was ideD ,lj
with the first; and what had been h l * ll^1
Tbe
multiplied into many species, was one
importance of establishing a law in 1L
vestigation of nature was the point h e
ed to enforce. It was ouly by close °^ el
tion, in regard to the changes in develop®
to maturity, that the proper position ®
IlilUlUl llj | lilClt lilL/ ]' v
scale of being and proper place should
determined on. The Frog was an iH u
lion of this—the changes
breathing apparatus—the want oi lee ”
ceeded by external gills, and the app® 8 *
of fore, and later hind legs; after re
external gills disappear. That th ere
animals of the class of the Frog, “hie
responded in their mature state with tne
bryo frog—the mud eel with gi'ls
foot only , and some others ;
lizards have four foot and have j o st til©