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About A Friend of the family. (Savannah, Ga.) 1849-1??? | View Entire Issue (March 23, 1850)
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©
