J LEWI BURG CB 1 1 h Volnme VIH, Wnmter 23. Whole Wnmber 387. H. 0. HICKOg, Editor. 0. N. WORDEN, Printer. LEWISBDBG, IMOX COUNTY, PEW., WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 1851. BON CL LEWISBUltG CHRONICLE AW IKP1"T FkMILt JOCUXsX, lttu'd on Wednesday mornings at Lcwisburg, Union county, I ennsulvnma. TRR& I y0", for wh actually in advance l 7A. if tmHi williio tlircc- mouths: li.t if itaiii Mitltin I Tear: $--i0 if nut paid before Uie v1" expire: 6 MiU lor iiil numbers. &ulMcrijtious hr Ml tuoiillis or le. ui he paid in advance. llismutmuancrs nptimial vritli the rublixher, exrwpl a lieu the year is paid up. ADVCKTigcvETfl lianiifnuiely iiiwrtM at SO cvnta per uara, one wca, f 1 four weeks, jo a year: two squares. $4 fur six mouths. $7 for a rear. Mercantile atYcrli.e. lu nt, not exceedjur one fourth of a column, $10 a year. JOB WOltK and ra.ual a.lvertiseuieut to be paid fur wtwii banded in or ilelivercu. Commcmoation.s solicited on all stilyiTts of peroral inte rest ni witliin the ranee of party or sectarian eontest. All l-:ters nu4 m it-paiii. tt'-conipaiii. d l-v the real altlms of the writer, to nwirt' attentiou. tj-Tletse lelating exclusively to tlie lvlitorial lleitartlnciit. to In; di rected to llrsaT Hickok. K., tjjit'jr and those on lai-ines to O. X. WoUKtv, i'tr-or. Mice on Market street, between Second and Third, over tlw Post-ollice. o. .. vtoltliKN. I'roj.netor. For the Lewisbnrg Chronicle. Df HXEIE BOSUr. Exodus X. 22. And M'Wi stretched hie Iiand and, to. there came A thick, felt darkness over all the lanL A learful spell seenvd renting on the earth A huta unbrrtken and profound a." dealh. Hours passed ty unnoted on the dial The crowinjr note that echoed forth at morn Was heard no more. No morning sun aro5e. Nor gentle breeze stirrcl through the forest trees. The silv'ry stream, so calm and clear before, Now bore the hue of midnight Uacknc5s, till It weuied to be a Stypiau ti le of death. The busy insect Cea.-4d to hum, and Snnjllt Their liolea for refuse: while the frightened birds Shrank in their nests; and beast that li-lly roamed Tha forest tlrou.:li in farle-e tjue.-t of j r.y. Now shrank in new-found terror to their laira. And man, with soul so far above The brute creation with strong reaFoning powers So codlike in tlieir action where was hrf Shrinking affrighted like tlie weaket worm, .4ud daring not to more from out hi -lace For three whole days. And Ac, who dared Tlie great Jcbivah who had rais-il bin arm of feeble flo,,h releliiou.-.Iy. and held God's people lock when lie b.-.tl lad them po Where stayed h- then? TrriMiirr ujou hi Uirone Writbiiifr in tortun-,1 apony of f ar, Yet unprepared to bow his stub! rn will. Terror at length prevailed : -Vc5, they may rr, Aud take with tltem their wives and littl- ones, To serve their tiyl," be said; "only 1 will Tlteir flocks and herds, remain. I can not j art with them As jt for sacrifice up-sn Ih's altar." Are th re nM hearts yet livirp. quite a'hard As that of Pharaoh ? such a.s now refuse To yiold the s.-rvice of tl'.eir powers to (osl Wlto, when has f:iTT"n the thick, f it darkness of afllicUou o'er tiiem till Ihoy trem-le Villi strange fear, would even yet refuse To plve Him all rorsacrint, but fain Would tamper with Jehovah, and retain. A portion of His just and riphtful doc ! property purchased, there is au incuin Iranec of ?2,413 CO, pnalle at the death of Hunnuh Lrown, widow of John Irowu deceased ; the interest on which is to bi paid to said widow annually during her natural life. The Board of Trustees expended in building and other improvements, about 21,839 81, and Bold lots to the amount of 81,118 51 J. Since the former report, above 9500 have been expended in making additions to the library and philosophical apparatus. Ihe number of volumes iu the library is 1127, aud they are estimated to be worth about S1200. Samuel T. Walker, Ej., the Treasurer and Superintendent of the University prop erty, deserves the highest commendation for the manner in which he has discharged the arduous duties imposed upon liiui. This Institution, located in the most healthy part of our State, on a delightful spot, in the midst of a beautiful grove which seems to be desigued by I'rovideuce fur the object to which it is now devoted, within a few rods of tho beautiful Susjue hanna, and at the mouth of the great Uuf- faloc Valley, presents peculiar attraction; to all those who are desirous that tlieir children should have a sound education, and at tle same time preserve their health unchanged. The Charter of this Institution is so lib eral that all denominations may patronize t without fear of encroaching on their re- Iiirinus views. We would therefore rec ommend this seminary of learning to the public as worthy of patronage. Judging from the past, v. ith the continued blessings of Heaven upon it, it will ere long be cijual, f not superior, to any other literary insti tution in this great lieimblie, and as last- ug as the ''Stars and Stripes" that wave over our happy land. One matter, connected with our Univer sity, is deeply regretted, namely, the res ignation of Stephen W. Taylor, LL. D., Professor of Mathematics & Natural Phi losophy, and also acting President, tendered to the Board of Trustees on the 10th day of April last, to take effect on the 20th of August, 1851. Prof. Taylor was connected with the University from its infancy. By request, he drew up the Charter, and visited Ilarrisburg to urge its passage through Since ihe last Annual Meeting of this the Legislature. On the 5th of October, Board, our Heavcv.ly Father has seen fit to j 1S40, he commenced a High S'.-hool in the take from our midst four of the Curators, basement of the Baptist wectiiig-houso of viz., Bev. Charles Tucker, of Philadelphia, j this place, which, under his fostering care, aud John Suans, 1 tavid Pye, and Jackson j rose, step by step, till it obtained its pres TM'Til,lr.n of I'nJoti pniintv Nothu-itli. cut high rank as a College. The Tru.v standing this afiliction, we have ronsou to 'es were reluctant to accept the rcsigna le thankful to Pivine Providence that the' tion ; but it seemed that Providence had rest of us have been spared, and permitted ' pointed out another field for him to labor t.. assemble again to promote the interests and ne msisteu mat, ins resignation nf t!iU s,.iniiifirv of le.-iripiie. must be accepted, stating that he was con- At the time your former Committee re- viuced he had the permission of Divine parted, to wit, ou the 20th fcf August, A. j Providence to retire from their employ. . 150, the examination of rtudents had , At the same time he cheerfully promised not occurred, and of course notice of it ! his earnest prayers for the continued pros equi! be taken in that report. The exam-! Inty of our I uiversity. 1'rof. 1 aylor re lation was f ubscipjcntly held, r.nd bro't j tires from this Institution, beloved and ad mired by all who had the pleasure of be coming acquainted with him. We understand that the Board of Trus tees have made arrangements for a succes sor to Prof. Taylor, so that the University will again bo well officered at the begin ning of the next session, and strict attention paid to students, as heretofore. All of which is respectfully submitted : . For the Lewisbarg Chronicle. "Report of the Committee of Publication 7i tttc Huant J Trtutrts i'tvr-i'y at LttcitLurg. credit to both students and teachers. The compositions rend would have reflected honor on older heads. The number of students, during the cur rent year, in the different departments, was 219 18 of whom were in the Colle giate department, 1 S3 in the Academic, aud 3S iu the Primary. Some of them have been dismissed. The Seuior Class arc expected to graduate at this Commence ment. The west wing of the Unrrersity edifice, which ws about under roof at the former meeting of this Board, was completed last fall, at a cost of about ?1 1,000. It fur nishes study-rooms and dormitories for the accommodation of seventy students. With ihe buildings now erected, about 230 stu dents can le accommodated. When the centre building and east wing are comple ted according to the plan of Thomas U. Walter, Esj., the architect, uuauimously adopted by the Board of Trustees on the 18th of January, A. 1., 140, at least 500 students can be accommodated. For the adoption of such a uiagnitieeBt plan, the Board of Trustees deserve the thanks of all fii nds of ed.ication ; and it is hoped they will have the buildings all erected in a short time. There can be little or no doubt of ti c feasibility o raising funds sufficient for that purpose, while they are Messed with such an indefatigable financial agent as the Bev. Ww. Shadrach, a man who seems destined by Providence for such a noble undertaking. If those who Lave Subscribed to the University funis, will only be prompt iu paying their instalments as they become due, the Bjard of Trustees will be enabled to carry out their plans Without delay. Would the contributors but pay visit to our University and sec the beautiful location, aud tho rapid prog ress of the students, they would save the Agent the trouble of calling oa them the freconl time for payments. The total amouut of subscriptions collec ted tfll Aug. IS, 151, amounts to the sum of 811,856 251. $s,lC0 19 have bccn! jail on real estate purchased. On the F. MILLEU, W. YOUNG, y Committee. JOHN GUNDY,) The Haunted Well. Those, whose recollection carries them back as far as the year 1816, doubtless remember that the summer of that year, was of a peculiar character, insomuch that it is still spoken of as the "cold, dry sea son." From th middle of May to the month of September, the dust in many places was scarcly laid ; springs, rivulets, and wells of water that had never before failed, were dried up ; and great inconve nience was experienced for the want of water. Ik the interior of the State, on a lime stone range of country, there lived at the time a prosperous and wealthy farmer, whom we shall call Peaeou N. lie, like the rest of his neighbors, was blest with that most useless of nil commodities, a dry well ; and tho family were tinder the ne cessity of bringing tlie water they used for domestic purposes from an old well, on a remote part of the farm, which held out during the drouth, (the task usually fall ing on Ichabod, the hired man.) This well pertained to an establishment erected by Mr. K., who had emigrated to this country from Ireland during its first settle ment, and, as no public roads were yet laid out, selected such a spot as was best adapted to Lis business. He erected a dwelling and store house, the latter of which he filled with domestic goods; to this he added an ashery, and for several years carried on a successful business with the early settlers. And here it may not tie improjKT to add, that having at the time n9 children of his own he brought with him a Lid about twelve or thirteen years of ago. This lad, after residing in his family about six months, disappeared very suddenly ; and as nothing was ever heard of him afterwards, a rumor prevailed among the gossiping portion of the com munity, that Mr. K. had murdered him. The story, if ever believed at all, was sub sequently disproved by tho excellent char acter of 3Ir. K., which was above suspic ion. After a residence of some five years in the place, public roads and thorougfaies begat to be laid out, and the one nearest to Mr. K., passing across the opposite end of his farm, his establishment was left completely in the back ground. He accor dingly disposed of his premises, and re moved to a little village that had sprung up about three miles distant ; aud as his successor settled upon the road, on tho opposite end of the farm, the establish ment fell into ruin, having at the date of our story, nothing but an old cellar and chimney, a well, and a heap of leached ashes, little short of an Egyptian pyramid. It was now about the middle of the summer, before mentioned, and the- Pea eon with the rest of his neighbors was busily engaged in hay gathering. As he w ith sonic half a lozen others were clos ing up the labors of a long sultry day, he called Ichabod to him, aud thui addressed hiiu : 'We shall be detained some half an hour yet; yuu may therefore return home and bring a bucket of cold water from the old well, which you will be able to do by the time we get to the house." Ichabod looked at the sun, which was ust upon the horizon, teratehed his head, andjthough he made uo open remonstrance, it was very evident ho did not much fancy the job. The fact was, for a Yankee, Lis intellect was none of tho brightest, and having been brought up by a superstitious old grandmother who was continually re lating stories of ghosts, witches, goblins, Ac., Le had become an intolerable coward, and several times during his residence with the J'caeon, had afforded the family great amusement, by some ridiculous fright. He saw from the position of the sun, that it would probably be dark before he should complete his task, aud it was this conside ration that made it so distasteful, lie dared not remonstrate, and with a kiud of desperation set ofT at full speed, hoping thus to anticipate tho dreaded darkness as much as possible. But as it was some dis tance to the house, and from thence a full half mile to the well, in spite of his ut most exertions the short summer's twilight had faded before Le arrived at the spot. With a palpitating heart he at length stood by the well. Turning aside his head, lest in the dark orifice he should en counter some unearthly spectre, with a trembling hand he drew down the bucket. The well was deep, and ou the present oc casion it seemed almost interminable. At length, however, he heard it splash in the water, aud at this critical moMeEt, when the falling of a leaf would have startled him, a horrid so'iud, between a screech and a groan,ascended from the dark abyss. To say that he was frightened, would not even begin to express his emotions. He was actually horrified, and struck dumb with amazement, and had he not instinct ively laid hold of tho curb for support, would have fallen to tho ground. How long he would have remained in this con dition, it 13 difficult to say had not a second groan, had the tendency of arous ing him from his stupor. lie did not wait for a third, but with all the energy inspired by fear, set out for home, leaping whatever obstacle appeared in his passage, and did not even pause to look behind him, till he reached the Beacon's kitchen. AYith a distorted countenance!, pale as death, and dripping with cold sweat, he entered tho apartment, a few moments af ter tho laborers from the field, who wore not a little surprised to see the poor fellow in such a plight. Uncollecting, however; his constitutional infirmity, they soon be gan to amuse themselves at his expense, asking a variety of questions as w his ad ventures, to which, cither through obsti nacy or inability, he returned no answer. At length the Deacon, out of patience at his having returned without the expected water, and considering his conduct as the result of some ridiculous fri;-h', asked iu a stern tone, "What is the matter?" The poor fellow, after two or three efforts, faltered out : "The Devil is iu the well !" The announcement was received with a roar of laughter, and as the Deacon had but little sympathy for such folly, he bad him, in an angry tone, return to the weil aud bring the water. But on this point, Ichabod was inexo rable. He told the Deacon ho might dock his wages, might discharge him, or do what else he pleased, he would never again go to the well after the hour of sun set. As there was no alternative, and the whole company wore parched with thirsty the Deacon, in no amiable humor, set out himself for the well, leaving Ichabod to the mercy of his tormentors. "Now that is too bad," said one of the company, "to compel the Deacon to go for the water, which you might just as well have brought yourself. If I was in his place, I would dismiss you and send you home. "I wish I was there," sobbed Ichabod. "What,have they no ghosts and witches down in old Berkshire?" said another. "If they have," replied Ichabod, "folks are not laughed at for being tormented with them." "Come, Ichabod," said another of the company, "1 liave not lauglied at you,now just tell me what you did see ?" "I didu't see any thing," sobbed the poor fellow. "Did not see anything, aud make all this fuss, why, this is too bad. If I was the Deacon 1 would discharge you to-morrow." "But I heard something; and now, if you'll stop your laughing, I will tell you all about it." "We will listen with all gravity imagin able," responded one of the company, "and now for the story." Ichabod then proceeded in a most dolo rous tune to relate his adventure ; when he came to describe the effect on himself, the scene was so ludicrous that the whole company burst into a roar of laughter. "You may laugh," said he, "but I tell you, it is a. call to some of us." "To none but yourself then," said one of his listeucrs'for no other one heard it." This was probably a more gloomy view of the scene than he had before taken, as in a luost sorrowful tone fce sobbed out, "I have no doubt of it, I shouhrnt wonder if I should die before a fortnight. Bo-hoo- hoo I" "Xor I neither," said one of Lis tor mentors ; "and now while I think of it. it was two weeks to a day, that old mother Draper died, from the time that you saw the man without a head, wrapped in a winding sheet, which, however, turucd out to be the Deacon's old white marc with her tail towards you." Just at this moment, Deacon N., with a countenance very pale, and emotions some what tremulous, entered the kitchen, and set down his bucket of water. "Why, Deacon," said one of the com pany, "what is the matter ? you look as pale as Ichabod did ; have tho spirits also been calling for you ?" "Hush, hush," said he, "lam no silly bumpkin, to be frightened at my own shadow, but there is something about the well that I can not comprehend." lie then proceeded to relate the same story that had been told by Ichabod, snd it wos agreed on all hands that the subject ought to be inquired into. They then sat down to supper, with countenances somewhat more grave thnn had proraded the com pany a few minutes before, and as soon as it was over, being provided with a lantern, all Lands set off for the well. On arriving at the spot, they first took a careful survey of tho premises, to see whether any person was concealed about the place ; but as they discovered nothing to excite suspicion, they assembled around tho well. The Deacon then drew down the bucket, which no sooner came in con tact with the water, than a piercing groan as before asefnded, causing the very h;;ir of the listeners to rise upon their heads. As soon as the first thrill of terror had in some measure subsided, the Deacon in a solemn tone of voice, and in the name "of nim whom demons fear," demanded who and what was there ? He was answered, in the voice of a lad of some twelve or fourteen years of age : "I am tho spirit of the boy whom Mr. K., twenty-three years ago murdered near this spot. My body was buried in the center of the ash heap, where my bones still remain. My spirit, at times, is suffered to visit this spot, and can have no rest till my remains receive christian Dtinai, ana me muraerer is brought to justice." All stood aghast at this terrible annun ciation, an 1 retired from the spot, speaking only in whispers as the' returned home. An event like this, was not calculated to be kept long as a secret, and in the course of the following day, had spread through the neighborhood, while at eve ning, a numerous company, of all ages and conditions, had assembled at the well. When all was in readiness, the worthy deacon, who had constituted himself as the high priest of mysteries, advanced to the well, and drew down the bucket. As had been anticipated, as soon as the bucket was heard to come in contact with the water, it was followed by a piercing groan, and while some seemed rooted to the earth with consternation, others fled in terror from the spot. " Again the Deacon, in the same solemn invocation as before, demanded who and what was there. - " I have already toll you," was the re If the answer was not satisfactory as had been expected, it was sufficient to increase the wonder of the terrified company, who, however incredulous they may have come, wore now fully satisfied that there was something rather serious in the affair ; and poor Ichabod, who had long been the laughing stock of the neighborhood, was rcarded with a kind of veneration from the first of carthlv mortals with o - whom the troubled spirit had chosen to hold communication. While some fled from the spot with ter ror, and others were frightened into hys terics, the graver part of the company held a consultation as to what course ought to be pursued in the mysterious affair. Some were for having the supposed murdrrr arrested immediately, before the rumor should reach him, and justice be robbed of its demand by Lis escape; and one of the company abused a worthy mag istrate who happened to be present, most outrageously, for refusing to issue a war rant immediately, offering himself to go and serve it that very night, which might, as was supposed, have been done, as Mr. K. still residud in the little village before mentioned, a few miles distant. Others, however, of a less hasty tem perament, were for proceeding with more deliberation, and first ascertaining whether a murder had actually been committed. This could only be done by discovering the remains, which, if they existed at all, were in the center of the neighboring mound of ashes, to remove which, was a task, at which Hercules himself might have stood aghast. But, laborious as was the undortaking. and hurrying as was the season of the year such was the zed for clearing up the mystery, that a competent number volunteered their services on the spot. As many as could work to advan tage, wore selected for the following day ; these wore to be succeeded by others, and thus they agreed to proceed till the task was finished ; and, bright and early ou the following morning, the labor was com menced. Through the tedious hour3 of the long, in the bushes. As their motions appcarei somewhat suspicious, he fancied they might be in some way connected with the mysteries of the well and, approaching them unperceived, had the good fortune to secure each of them by the nap of thi' neck ; they resisted bravely kicked pulled, scratched, and bit ; he, neverthe less, succeeded in bringing them forward to the light, when they were at once rec ognized as two of the greatest rogues in the neighborhood. The one, a lad about fourteen, was rather ill-favored, with red hair, and a peculiar sinister expression of countenance. He was the son of the zeal ous old farmer already mentioned, who had manifested so much anxiety in bring ing Mr. K. to justice, and who had dis played equal zeal in his labors at the ash heap. He had but little sympathy for the follies of youth, and was exceedingly rigid in his system of family government. H had ruled the elder branches of his family with a rod of hickory, if not of iron ; but this, his youngest aud darling son, had proved more than a match for him, having been iu a constant state of rebellion ever siuee he was four years of age. He hated his honored parent most filially, and took great pleasure in playing off his tricks upon him. It is true his back often atoned for these little pleasantries, but every correc tion was sure to be followed by some act of petty revenge, which usually more tLan balanced the account. The other, a lad about a year younger, was son of a 3Ieth- odist clergyman of the neighborhood. He possessed a fine intellectual countenance, in which, however, the love of fun and frolic seemed to predominate. He was in the main a kind hearted lad, ami, although somewhat exposed to mischief, was in gen eral as much beloved as his companion was hated. That two lads so different in disposition, should have become boon com panions, might appear unaccouutablc,wcre it not for one leading trait they possessed in common, and that was the love of fun and mischief; though in this, they wre actuated with different motives. If the former played off a trick upon another, it sultry day, they continued to ply the pick i was for the pleasure of witnessing their and the shovel, and when the sun finally ; pain and vexation, while the latter was ac went down, so little impression had made , tuated more by the love of exeitcmeut and upon the massy pile, that men less resolute would have abandoned the task in despair. But it was not so; day after day the work mirth. Such was the character of the two cul prits, who stood writhing under the grasp went on, while visitors from far and near j cf the young man, who had no sooner re resorted nightly to the place. As all who latod the circumstances under which he came bore evidence to the truth of the discovered them, than a general suspicion mysterious sounds, the matter became a i pervaded the company, that they were in subject of much grave debate and philo- .some way connected with the mysteries of sophising among different classes of spec-1 the well and Hone were more so than the known, had been entirely forgotten ; ana. as the water, during the present season, find sunk considerably below its Usual lev el, the logs were left empty. The pro jecting end having been discovered by the two lads while at play in the vicinity, and , finding that sound could be conveyed through the orifice to the well, were next led to consider to what useful purpose the liscovery might be converted. Knowing that the deacon's hired man, whom they regarded as rather flat, was iu the habit of eoming here in the evening for water, they letermined for their own diversion to give him a fright. They accordingly placed themselves at the log on the night already mentioned, aud, as we have seen, succeed ed to their wishes with their first experi ment ; and seeing him depart without his . water, they had no doubt but that he or some other member of the family would -oon return, aud they, therefore, lingered it the spot with a view of trying a second. Uut when they saw the deacon himself come for the water, who was rather a favo rite among the boys iu the vicinity, they cad some scruples whether they should -repeat the experiment with him, or not. fhe love of fun, however, predominating, the experiment was again repeated, and hey succeeded in frightening him nearly . is bad as they had the more simple serviug man. This last trick, as they had anticipated, brought the whole family to the spot and very fortunately for their purpose, they recollected the old story of the murdered boy, and once engaged in the affair, were nightly on the spot ; and thus carried on he enterprise till discovered as above re- atcd. The company, as we may well supiose, , felt exceedingly foolish though most of . hem enjoyed a hearty laugh at their own gullibility and even interceded for the wo lads, who had played their part with much ingenuity. There were some. however, who were not disposed to regard he subject as a laughing matter. Among these was the amiable father of the hope- ful son. A recollection of the zeal he had manifested in bringing the supposed uiur- erer to justice so little flattering to self love was sufficiently mortifying; but tators. Of thc.-c,son'e were of the opinion, that the whole was a trick ingeniously played off by some lover of mischief; and amiable father of the hopeful son. Casting a glance at his darling in which one was strongly reminded of wormwood though they did not attempt to solve the and vinegar, and in a corresponding tone, riddle, ventriloquism, legerdemain, and other species of deception, were suggested as the means by which it was probably effected. Another elars of reasoners, among whom was a certain L. L. D., of a neighboring city, maintained that it was but the re sult of natural causesand, though ope rating in a manner mysterious to us, was, nevertheless, in perfect accordance with established laws of matter. The said L. L. D. took so much interest in the affair, that he wrote a lengthy dissertation on the subject, under the title of "The Philoscr phy of Mysterious Sounds" in which, by a reference to the celebrated box of Madocaan, the speaking oracle of Pclphos, and singing statue of Memnon he at tempted to prove that dormant matter could be made to speak, groau, and sing, by a proper arrangement of its particles, which was sometimes caused by accident, as in the case above quoted. The world, however, was uofortunately deprived of the pleasure and profit they would doubtless have derived from these sapient lucubra tions, by circumstances hereafter to bo mentioned, which prevented their publica tion. But far the most numerous class, how ever, were of athe opinion that a murder had actually been committed, and that the groans proceeded from no other than the troubled spirit of the lad, crying like the blood of Abel for vengeance, and encour aging the laborers to proceed in their task, not doubting but that they would be rewarded with such tangible proof of guilt, as should bring the offender within the foils of the law. Fortunately, no doubt, for Mr. K. and family, they were absent on a visit during this excitement, aud thereby escaped much annoyance and mortification. Things went on in this manner for about two weeks, when a ray of light was accidentally cast upon this dark and mys terious subject. A young man of the neighborhood, on Lis way to join the com pany at the well, took his course across the fields, in a direction different from that ry which theplase was usually approached; and while ascending an eminence, some ten or twelve rods from the spot, came suddenly upon two lads; skulking closely when he looked back upon the weary days lie had toiled at the ash heap, and corres ponding neglect of his domestic affairs, he was absolutely furious; aud it was well, no doubt, for the safety of the yotiiiy.iier't bones, that he was in some measure pro tected by tho company from the first ebul lition of his wrath. But, though their in- . tercessious protected him from more serious consequcnces,rhey did not save his back from a severe chastisement, which was publicly administered : and, doubtless, if not for the present offence, was richly merited for other derelictions. The worthy clergyman followed the example, but with more mod eration : alter which, tlie company dis persed, on the whole very well tati.-fitd with the night's adventure. W. Jaiiiesvilio, X. Y., July 25, 1351. The Decline of Engl an L That England had passed the xcuith of. her greatness has. often been asserted ; but never, until lately, by her own citizens. In the Augit number of Blackwood's Magaziue, however, au article appears, ev idently from the pen of Allisou,. the his- : torian, iu w hich the decline of Great Brit ain is frankly .admitted. Tho first evidence of this decay is in tho : decreasing population. For centuries the number of inhabitants had been steadily increasing, up to the year 145; but since . that period the population has as steadily fallcu off. The greatest perils throgrr which England passed failed ti reduce the . ; number of her deuizeHs. , Neither the eon- . he exclaimed, "nu young imp of Satan, what were you doing in the Lushes With a most insolent air, the loving son replied, "I waint doing nothin." "You was'nt, was you? But why were you there, young gallows bird V "'Cause I want nowhere else," replied tho dutiful offspring, casting a sarcastic aud insolent glance at his enraged parent. "Well, well, my lad, if I find you have been playing a trick upon us all, as I more than half suspect, I'll break every bone in your body, hang me if I don't." Then seizing Li in by the nap of the ueck, gave him a shake that caused Lis teeth to chat ter like those of a. skeleton. After ad ministering this wholesome discipline, he again asketl, "What were you doing iu the bushes V "If you must know," said he, with an expression between a griu and a smile, "I was laughing at fools." "You were, were you 7 Well, you have had your laugh we will see who has the ,quet of William, uur the drain if the -: next" Crusades, nor even ih j Wars of the Bosc. : The company, who now began to fear j lessened the ever-swelling tide of huiu.ui ; they had been duped, Sliding that nothing , life within her borders. The plague failed t was to be elicited from this family collo- j equally to keep U jwu tho increase. The. quy, requested the father of tlie other lad, ;iial changes of the Bufoniution, the who happened to be preseut, to questiou great rebellion, an I the many f.reigu w in since, were, also, inoperative to reduce die population. It w.ts uot until l?4i, or his sou on the subject. Tho worthy clergyman came forward, and with au expression of countenance j more properly, perhaps, 1 ?!.", that the dc' t that he intended to be severe,askcd his son what he was doing iu the bushes ? The lad, with a good humored smile, answered promptly, but respectfully, "Perhaps it would lie more satisfactory to go there and sec for yourselves." "I know," exclaimed several of the com pany, who immediately adjourucd to the spot where, close under tho rout of the willow, they discovered a projecting pump log. The wondrous mystery now became a very simple affair and if ever there was a time when a hundred persons looked like so many fools, it was the present. The whole matter was now easily ex dine beg in Bat from that date it ccuis to have steadily progressed. Iu live yeaM . ; ihe population of Great Britain has falU-a. off a luilliou and a half. ' That this occurred in a period cf pro i found j.ace is the most extraordinary tea; lure of the ctt-e. it is a common notion . that wars exhaust population, but though ;i this may be true of particular districts, it 'r. is false of natious at large. During the ? last great struggle of Great Britain with France the inhabitants of the former ro."I from lit, 400, W0 in 1T81, U l$,740,0t;l -in IS It). Iu the same period the populo- tion of France, exhausted .as it was suiv c plained: Mr. K., who had constructed 'posed to he by ineessant conscriptions, an the Well, had laid . a tier of pump logs some, ten or twelve rods, to convey the surplus water into the neighboring field. During the cpurse of more than twenty years, aild tho corresponding change of inhabitant the circumstance, if ever vanced from 25,400,000 to 2cS50O,000; Yet, during this interval, not less than four ' millions of Frenchmen alone, it is onipu- -ted, perished in cousequenre of the war How then shall we acriunt for the dveliue- ' feu 4th pagfJ . - '; ?
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