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SATUEL WRIGHT, Editor and Proprietor.
VOLUME XXVIII, NUMBER 36.]
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Egftris.
The Nest
31.1 Y.
When oaken woods With buds are pink.
And new-come birds each morning sing,—
'When fickle May, on Summer's brink
Pauses, and knows not which to fling—
Whether fresh bud , and bloom again.
Or hear frost silvering bill and plain,—
Then from the huneysuckle gray,
The Oriole. with experienced quest,
Twitches the fibrous bark away,
The cordage of las hammock-nest,—
Cheering his labor with a note
Rich as the orange of hi. throat.
high o'er the loud and du=ty road
The soft gray cup in safety swingq,
To brim ere August with iur load
Of downy brea.ts and throbbing wing,
O'er which the friendly elm-tree heave.
An emerald roof with sculptured caves.
Below the noisy world dregs by
In the otil way. (oceanic it
The bride with trouble in her eye.
The mourner following hated duet
Thy duty. winged flume of Spring,
Is but to love, and fly, and sing.
Oh. happy life, to soar and s,vay
Above the life by mortals led,
Singing the merry months away,
Master, not slave of daily bread.
And. when the A utimin conies. to flee
lA'berever sunshine beckons thee:
PALINODE.—DECC.III3r.R.
Like some lone abbey now. the wood
Stands roulle.s in the bitter air;
In ruins on its floor is strewed
The careen toliage quaint mid rare,
And houteles , complain along
The columned choir once thrilled with .ong
And thou, dear nest. whence joy nod praise
The thankful Oriole used to pont%
„Ssvingst empty, while the north winds chase
Their snowy swarms from Labrador
But loyal to the happy past.
love thee still for what thou WII.t.
Alt, when the Summer graces flee
From other nests more dear than thou,
And, where June crowded once. I see
Only bare trunk and disleaved hough.
When springs of life that glentned and gushed
Hun chilled, and slower, and are hushed,
I'll think, that. like the birds of spring,
Our good goes not ON ithout reintir,
But roily flies to soar and sing
For oil in some diviner air,
Where we shall hod it in the matins
tit that fair gurden'itentlt the puha..
[Atlantic Illontlity.
EtEZtit(lls.
The Blue Beetle.
A WONDROUS TAU: or ALCIIEMI
Day after day, and night after night did
I brood over the discovery which I thought
was about to be opened up to me. I had
long bad a belief in the progressive devel
opment of creation; I believed that it was
still possible to find the speck—the germ
from which I could raise up a perfectly or
ganized living being. I felt a new and
strange pleasure in believing that the mys
tery of creation was now solved—that from
the first inorganic atom which bad received
the force of life all other created beings had
slowly, gradually, regularly advanced, up
to the period in which I had lived.
The power of creation—the secret of life.
was my goal. My belief was, that the force
of life might be given to this inorganic atom.
fy books were those of the alchemists.—
With that wild delight I hailed the writings
of Albertus Magnus, of Arnold de ViN
neuve, Ileidenburg of Trithcim, Raymond
Lulls, and Bernard of Treves. I believed
in the alchemists. I struggled through the
intricacies of their hidden language: their
experiments in search of gold I passed over,
sronderful as they were, and strangely as
they opened my mind to the real truth. I
repeated all their experiments on life force,
and substantiated every fact I read. My
faboratory was perfectly furnished; my days
arere spent there, and often entire nights.—
..My mind was absorbed in the great truth I
was bringing to light.
The confined air of my laboratory at
length affected my health; a change was
absolutely necessary. I struggled against
the idea of removing for some time and
often left my little wife with tears standing
in'her deep blue eyes, after she had unsuc
cessfully implored me to leave London for a
short while. Dear Annie: And yet I loved
her! Heavens to think that I—. but I
must proceed with my story as it occurred.
We went to the north of Northumberland
to stay with my old friend C—, who had
frequently asked us to come on previous oc
casions. We were received warmly; and,
as it was winter time, we had plenty of oc
cupation.
A few brisk runs with the country rox
bounds almost made inc forget my labora
tory. The weather at length changed, first
o severe frost with snow, and then to at
complete thaw. The dismal north-east
wind shrieked through the leafless trees,
and drove torrents of sleet splashing against
the old-fashioned windows.
Tired of hoping and weary of grumbling,
I was driven to take refuge in C—'s li
brary. After a long search for something
interesting, I came upon a little brown vol
ume bound with two dingy metal clasps.—
On opening, its dark and discolored pages, I
found that it was written in French manu
script. A hurried glance showed me that
the work was on alchemy, a translation from
° the Arabic. All my former hopes returned
in an instant. I pured over the pages of my
newly obtained treasure till late on in the
evening—heedless of the impatience of my
friends, who, after several useless attempts
to draw me away, at last left me to my book
and self.
The secret, then, was not mine; here, in
this old neglected book, I had found a
groundwork for my exertions. All the
truths I had collected, all the experiments I
had made bore me out. I saw what had
prevented others, in ancient times, from car
rying out their designs. They knew not
the life-giving power: the wonders of elec
tricity had not been discovered. Vaguuely
hinted at and darkly guessed at in their
works I saw them groping their way in mist
and uncertainty: but I—l was surrounded
by thelight of science. Wonderful, myste
rious truths broke upon my mind. My
whole method and plan of operations stood
out clearly before me. A restless force
urged me to continence my scheme instantly.
I must leave fur London that very night.
I found my wife and friends retiring to
rest. I told them my intention of starting
for town immediately. Remonstrance and
entreaty were of no avail, and in less than
an hour I had reached the train at the
neighboring railway station, and was hast
ening, through the stormy night towards
London. The train seemed to drag slowly
through the darkness, but about noon next
day I arrived at my house.
Without rest I commenced my operations;
late at night I had nearly completed them,
and worn out in body and mind I threw my
self on the floor to sleep, lulled by the sub
dued sound of my furnace, which moaned
and muttered like an unhappy spirit.
Early in the morning after a feverish
sleep, 1 rose tired and unrefreshed, and be
gan to complete the last portion of my ar
rangements. This was to prepare the liquid
fruits which the beings to whom I was to
impart life were to spring. On account of
the experiments made in my late studies I
had all the ingredients ready in my labora
tory. I poured the mixture then carefully
into a large silver trough. The liquid was
limpid and of a beautiful blue color, proba
bly on account of a salt of copper entering
largely into its composition.
And now I prepared my batteries, and
soon afterwards the electric agent was ap
plied. To my astonishment no decomposi
tion took place—the liquid remained clear
and beautifully blue. Thus it remained for
some hours. I hung over it in breathless
expectation: the only change apparently
being that the color seemed deeper and
purer.
Night came on, and the electric fluid still
quietly streamed into the liquid. By acci
dent, in adjusting one of the wires, I dashed
a few drops from the trough on the floor.—
There was a hissing, sound as they fell, and
as they butcher] the ground they burst into
flame. This I extinguished, and then ap
plied myself to observing closely the con
tents of the vessel, fur I knew that a great
change had taken place in their constitution.
I removed the light to a distance, fearing
lest it should ignite the vapors which were
now rising from the surface. On returning
in the dark I found strange flashes of light
circling in the interior of the fluid; these
gradually became brighter till I was enabled
to see every object in the room clearly by
their radiance.
MO
Mil
Subtle fumes also were arising from the
surface. On inhaling these fumes at first I
felt faint, but the sensation passed away.—
The perfume now was delicious—it was
heavenly; I drank it in like nectar. I gazed
upon the corruscating surface, and a deli
cious ecstacv seemed to pervade my whole
being; delicious streams of music fell softly
on my ears, and shadowy forms of ineffable
beauty floated in the air around me. Sud
denly an insane desire took possession of
me: I longed to seize the silver vessel and
quaff the deep blue poison. I stretched out
my hands with a cry of joy—and then *
I recovered at last from a fever which kept
me insensible for a week. It was some
days before I could get any explanation of
how I came to be in my own bed-room, with
my little wife attending to my every want,
her little hands ever busy, and her eyes
beaming with love and tenderness.
Gradually the details of my late occupa
tion dawned upon my memory. I imagined I
perceived the subtle odor diffusing itself
through the chamber, and shuddered as I
lay back on my pillow- A feeling of re
morse came over me when I thought of my
design. I felt as if I had intruded where
mau should fear to tread, and I felt gratifi
cation in thinking that my designs had been
frustrated.
One morning, when the physician said
that I was able to bear the news, I was told
that one of the domestics hearing a scream
on that fearful night. had forced open the
door of the laboratory. A -strange over.
powering perfume, lie said, at first drove
"NO ENTERTAINMENT IS SO CHEAP AS READING, NOR ANY PLEASURE SO LASTING."
COLUMBIA, PENNSYLVANIA, SATURDAY MORNING, MARCH 13, 1858.
him hack,but rushing in a second time, he
found me lying insensible on the floor.
With breathless eagerness I asked if any
of the apparatus in the room had been
touched? No, nothing had been touched;
the windows had been opened to allow the
poisonous vapors to escape, the doors had
then been locked and had never been opened
since. A weight seemed removed from my
mind—l would instantly go down and de
stroy all that remained of my strange ex
periment.
I was still too weak: three or four days
passed over, and then I was able to go down
stairs. With trembling hands and beating
heart (why I could not tell) I turned the
key and entered the laboratory alone.—
Everything remained as I had left it a fort
night before.
There stood the ponderous batteries, long
since worked out; there loosely hung the
copper connecting wires covered with green
rust. The silver trough was tarnished and
dim, but everything stood as I had left it.'
The interior of the trough was coated
with metallic copper, while the solution had
almost entirely evaporated; there was still
a small quantity of liquid at the bottom,
covered with thick, opal-tinted mould.
On looking closely at this mould-covered
residue, I noticed a peculiar irregularity in
its surface. There were five little heaps or
hillocks in :'regular arrangement—one at
each angle of a square, and one in the cen
tre—exactly like The fire-side a gaming
die. These heaps were of such equal size
and uniform shape, that I could not attrib
ute their presence to chance. I supposed
that electricity had so acted upon the parti
cles of the solution as to make them take up
their present position.
I examined the mould under the micro
scope, and found tt to be a fungus of a pe
culiar kind, but in removing sonic more of
the mould with a glass rod, I happened to
touch one of the little heaps, and found un
der it a small blue crystal of cubic form,
and under each of the other three angular
hillocks I found a similar crystal. On re
moving the mould from the centre hillock I
found what, at first, I thought was a circu
lar mass of the same crystaline substance;
but imagine my surprise and horror when I
saw the mass begin to struggle among the
liquid, and, clearing away the silky needles
of thelmould, disclose to my view a large
searabams of perfect shape and of a deep
blue transparent color.
A feeling of terror filled my mind.—
Whence bad come this strange creature?
Whence Caine the powers with which he
stretched out his antenna:, drew the blue
case-covers from his back, and cleared
the mould from his filmy wings? Could
this be the result of my researches—my
days of toil, my nights of unrest? A beetle!
I strove to laugh, but the attempt failed.
and my heart sank within nie with estrange
foreboding. At this moment, from the in
terior of the trough arose a peculiar sound
—like the rapid ticking of a clock, although
louder, and with a metallic tinkle in it—it
was the same sound as that produced by the
"death-tick" beetle.
As soon as the sound died away I looked
once more at the creature; he was half out
of the liquid, and evidently as yet unable to
fly. The prominent desire in my mind was
to destroy the insect for his unearthly
sounds and the strange flashing of his bead
like eyes made me tremble with a vague
terror. However, I overcame the feeling,
and determined to let him live fur a few
days.
Early the next morning I visited the lab
ratory, but on looking into the silver vessel,
I was unable to detect the scarahous. Puz
zled and annoyed, I began to inspect the
room, when I suddenly heard the ominous
"death-tick," and after a few preliminary
flights round the room, the beetle alighted
upon the rim of the trough. A ray of sun
light glancing in fell upon him, his color
was exquisite—arich deep cerulamn blue, he
seemed a living sapphire, and would have
been beautiful but for his loathsome form.
I had brought a piece of sugar with me.
which I thought might please the taste of
my new favorite. I placed it on the bench
near—he flew directly towards it and settled
upon it: but, as if dissatisfied, a moment
afterwards he flew back to the rim of the
trough. I heard a low whine at my feet,
and looking down, saw my wife's little dog,
"Lalctte." I threw the rejected sugar to
wards her, and soon heard her crunching it
up in her little jaws. Shortly afterwards I
left the room, and as I closed the door.
louder than ever I heard the sound of the
"death-tick."
I was engaged out of doors during the
day, and in the evening my wife's first
question was, whether I bad seen "Lalette"
that day? I then remembered that she bad
been in the laboratory with me in the morn
ing, and fancying that she must be locked
in, I went to the door, and on opening it
called her by name. There was no move
ment or response; but ns I called again,
.omething whirred past me in the air and
dashed out into the hall. I felt certain that
my beetle had escaped. Shutting the door
hastily, I rushed back for a light. On re
entering the laboratory I could neither see
nor hear anything of the beetle; but in the
middle of the floor, exactly where I had
left her in the morning, poor "Laletto" was
lying dead.
Some portions of the sugar were still lying
beside her—she had been poisoned. Once
more before leaving I sought diligently for
the beetle, but no trace was to be found;
"Lalette" was a great favorite, and my poor
wife was inconsolable. I told her the dog
must have picked up sonic poison in my
room; and with promises of a new canine
favorite soon her grief calmed down.
All that night an indefinable horror took
possession of me. When I thought of that
living sapphire being at large in the house,
a firm belief possessed Inc that "Lalette"
had been killed by that poisonous insect.—
All that night he haunted Illy dreams; sev
eral times 1 started from ~lumber, thinking
I heard that unearthly death-tick. I deter
mined in my feverish; sleeplessness to search
every nook and corner of the house on the
morrow. I felt at times that my existence,
my destiny, was bound up in the life of this
hideous insect.
Reproaches seemed spoken to me, in one
dream of that long night, that I had created
a living poison, and sent it out into the
world. I shuddered and awoke. The
words seemed burnt upon my brain. Could
I ever forget them? Listen!
Next morning I heard that one of the do
mestics, a young and pretty girl of nineteen
years, was ill. Three days afterwards she
The doctors said it was heart disease.
One of them, a sententious old empiric, said
the only peculiarity of the case was a strange
mark upon the girl's breast. A pang shot
through my whole frame. A mark! - What
mark? What was it like? By a mysterious
perception I knew that this mark concerned
me. But how? I soon knew. On the cold
white breast of the corpse were fire blue
spots, arranged like the spots on the . fire side
of a die. Controlling my emotions as best I
could, I locked myself in my own room, and,
burying my face in my hands, cried, in ag
ony—" Accursed beast! this is thy work;
the blood of an innocent being is on my
hands!" My brain seemed whirling around,
and every attempt to collect my thoughts
was in vain. The infernal creature—my
creature?—had murdered this young girl,
and how knew I where he would stop? One
thing was plain; my wife and the whole
household must he removed immediatel2,..
, Seizing a pen, I hurriedly wrote to C—,
and explaining, as best I could, the unex
pected visit of my wife, I went up to the
station and saw her start by the first train
to the North. The corpse of the young girl
was removed by her friendsin the afternoon,
and the other servants were despatched to
their respectke homes.
I was left alone in the house all that long,
lonely night. I waited in each room listen
ing for that fearful "death-tick. Never lov
er waited more anxiously the a loving whis
per from loved lips than I for that hideous
sound. But, save the hushed murmur of
the mighty city, and the clang of the slow
hours as they missed, and the beating of my
Own heart, all was silence. I searched all
that night. and the next, but no vestige of
the loathsome creature mild I find. On the
fourth day came a letter from my wife. My
friend C-- was ill; he was sinking fast,
and wished to see me.
Locking, up my house—not without some
dread—l journeyed northward to
house. As I drove up the long avenue in
the afternoon, I thought the old mansion
had a mournful gloom brooding over it.—
My heart way depressed—a presentiment of
CN i I long about me. I could not east it off.
The tearful face of the ,Tvant who admitted
me added to my mournful forebodings.
I found C— in bed, dying. 1)::ing!
The first glance showed me that his days
were numbered. A sickly smile of welcome
played over Ida feature.; as I approached din
but it almost instantly changed for a look
of intense suffering. I asked what the par
t:cal:lr symptoms of Ids illness were. The
medical man in attendance tried to explain
the malady, but left me painfully impressed
with the idea that he was entirely ignorant
of the disease. I had turned to speak to some
of the family who were in the room, when
I was startled by a piercing cry of agony
from the bed.
C— was sitting up hi lied, his wan face
was distorted with pain; he was grasping
his neck with his white nervous hands.—
"My throat is on fire!" he shrieked.—"lt
burns, it burns! Water! for the love of
heaven! a drop of water!" Trembilinc,, , .
held a tumbler of water to his lips; he had
scarcely tasted it when lie dashed the glass
from my bands to the floor, exclaiming.
"Devil! I did not ask for vitriol—give me
water—water!" As he said this he tore
open the neck of his dressing-gown.—
Merciful heavens! cou:d I bclive my eye
sight? There was the fatal mark. There
—even among the purple distended veins
which interlaced like strong cords around
his neck—l could see it. Fire blue spots ar
ranged lil.•e the /Ice-side of a dic: The room
swam before my eyes, and the word "Mur
derer!', seemed ringing in my cars. *
*F * * When I recovered,
C— was dead. My agitation had been
attributed to grief at my friend's death; no
one had noticed the cursed mark but myself.
The members of the family were absorbed
in grief; my wife strove to soothe and
solace them: but such work was not for me.
I gave myself up to my own frightful re
flections.
The creature bad then found his way to
this remote place; how, I knew not, nor did
I ever know. It wa- enough for me to know
that he was there. My olde.t, truest friend
was dead, and a happy home had been
rendered wretched, and through me—
Through this cursed creature of mine.—
Why had I not obeyed the first impulse, and
killed him as he lay in the mould in the sil
ver trough.
I wandered out into the night; my mind
was all in desolate confusion. It was a
lovely night—the sky glimmered with stars,
and the full moon ruse as I walked. with un
even steps through the trees. I threw my
self on the wet grass and wept like a child.
Soon the soft shimmer of the moonlight
broke out into full radiance. and bathed the
whole country in a flood of beautiful light.
The gentleness of the scene after a time im
pressed me. I became calmer and reflected
on my position. "If the creature is here,
he must be hunted down," I dare not tell
the household; there was guilt and. blood on
my conscience. They would deem me mad,
I thought. Then, again, I thought the ex
citement of the last few days, together with
my late illness, might have produced the
effect of an optical illusion—that there was
no mark. This conviction strengthened, I
turned again to the house.
The servant who opened the door started
when he saw my altered appearance, mat
ted hair, and wet disorderly dress. But I
asked calmly to be shown to the room where
the body of C— was lying. I went in alone.
Need I tell the result?—tbe fearful mark
was there, and stood out brightly against
the cold white skin.
Every corner of the room I searched, but
no trace of the fiendish beat was there.—
After sonic time spent in this vain search 1
left the room, and gained my wife and her
friends below. They were shocked at my
strange appearance. I sat apart, moody
and silent. A heavy suffocating cloud of
presentiment overpowered me—l felt that
my cup was not yet tilled, I should have to
drink it to its bitter—bitter dregs. We
separated to retire to rest; but though few
of us expected to sleep, no sooner had I laid
my head on the pillow than I fell asleep—
as dreamless and almost as breathless as
that of the corpse in the next chambar. I
do not know how long I had slept, when I
awoke suddenly with an unaccountable feel
ing of terror.
How dark the room is getting—put your
ear closer to my mouth—l feel faint with
speaking loud—but I must tell you all.
I awoke, and, seemingly, close by my ear
—loud and distinct—l heard the death tick!
.3ly hands clenched till the nails penetrated
the flesh when I knew lie was within my
reach—close by my earl Heaven help me
if I do not crush the creature now.
The moonbeams poured in through the
windows and filled the room with a mysteri
ous light. The rays struck across the pil
lows of the bed and fell softly on the up
turned face of my little wife. She slu Inhered
peacefully; but on her snowy brow, glitter
ing as blue as heaven itself, was the loath
some beetle. With one blow I struck him
from her face, and then le•tped from the
bed. I saw his glittering jewel-like form
upon the ground—l seized it and crushed it
in my hands—a fierce pain shot up toy arm
—my blood seemed changed to molten lead.
The agony was excruciating. I dropped the
N ilc abortion; he flew front me, and dashing
through the glass of the wiudo w, disappeared
in the moonlight night.
My story is well nigh toll. You know—
you know how my wife sickened and—died.
But listen! you did not see the blue mark
upon her white brow.
flow dark the mon is.--and how slowly
my heart is beating-. Look at this arm—
here!—above the elbow, there is the death
brand—Fire. blue arranged like the
&pots on a die. I have lint an hour to live.
You know my secret. '''
Let me rest.
The Viigginzes
Joel Wiggins is a "merchant." You will
sec his sign at No.— Second street. It is a
small tin sign, with red letters on a white
ground. if I mistake not, the word "No
tions" is just under the name.
"What is your busband'sbusiness?" asked
a prying inquisitive of Mrs. Wiggins, at
Newport, last summer.
"Ile is a Philadelphia merchant," an
swered the lady, with dignity.
That of course settled the matter. If a
woman doesn't know how to designate her
husband, in the name of wonder who should
know? lea, Mr. Wiggins is a merchant.
"And occupies that handsome store with
the brown stone front?"
No, not exactly. If you look a little
closer, yon will see that Dick & 'Dickson
importers, are the occupants of that elegant
establishment. You must ascend to the
second floor to find our "Notion" merchant.
Bustling, active, self-important Joel Wig
gins; there he is, in his curiosity shop, sur
rounded by things grotesque and arabesque,
symmetrical and deformed, useful and orna
mental, gathered originally from all parts of
the earth. Fire crackers, crying babies,
red and white tape, fans, marbles, toys,
f4nmes masks, puzzles, hobby horses, porce
lain, bisque and Parian figures, motto cups
and motto wafers, but—the inventory is
hope]es•! If your curiosity is excited on
the subject, reader, call at \o.—and satisfy
yourself. Wiggins' store is a perfect mu-
ES=
Times were prosperous, and the credit of
Wiggins was good for anything lie wished
to purchase. So he bought freely in New
York and Boston, as well as from importers
in Philadelphia. Ire sold as freely, on the
principle, we suppose, or "come easy, go
easy." Ire had but to select goods, to any
amount, and they were promptly delivered,
81,50 PER. YEAR IN ADVANCE; 82,00 IF NOT IN ADVANCE
the invoice rendered, and a note at four or
six months .taken in payment. And as he
was treated, so he treated his customers.
and they found their way to his "Notion"
room from all parts of the country far and
QM
What a splendid business he was doing!
Sales mounted upward at the rate of seventy,
eighty, and one hundred thousand dollars a
year, and his profits ranged from ten to
forty per cent. Wiggins was getting rich
so fast that his bead swam as lie looked from
the sudden height he had obtained. Twen
ty-five per cent. clear profit annually! that
was the flattering unction which he laid to
his soul, and not very fir in the golden dis
tance he saw himself a merchant prince.
Buying on time and selling on time are
all very well, if the selling time is shorter
than the buying. The reverse is generally
the case. It was so with Joel Wiggins.—
He bought at four, six, and eight months,
and sold at six, eight, nine, and twelve
months. Of course, when his own notes be
came due he had to meet them by discounts.
The two banks in which he kept his ac
counts—checking from one and depositing
in the other a great many times in a day,
to indicate active business, just as a doctor
with limited practice rides hurriedly about
the streets to indicate the existence of nu
merous pressing calls--the two banks gave
him a certain ''line" of discount, about ten
cents on the dollar of his wants. The nine
ty per cent. was raised "on the street," that
is, through bill brokers who represents]
private money lenders and unscrupulous
bank officers. On this ninety per cent.
Wiggins paid at the rate of from one to two
and-a half per cent. a month, according to
the estimated value of paper or collateral
which he bad to offer.
So affairs went on swimmingly with Mr.
Joel Wiggins. He was getting rich fast—
"hand over fist." as he sometimes elegantly
expressed it. His bills receivable and stock
of goods showed always a large sqrplusage
over bills payable.
With the comfortable feeling consequent
upon the fact that money was being so rap
idly accumulated, Mr. Wiggins, and Mrs.
Wiggins, and Araminta Jane Wiggins, the
wife and oldest daughter, naturally enough
concluded that it was time to live in a style
better agreeing with their position. So the
modest, comfortable house in Buttonwood
street, at three hundred and fifty dollars
year, was given up, and a stylish affair be
yond Broad street rented at eight hundred
per annum.
Now, the mere increase of rent from three
hundred and fifty to eight hundred a year
would not have been so very serious a mat
ter, if the affair could have stopped at the
simple removal from Buttonwood street to
the West End. But that was out of the
question. The single item of new furniture
was twenty-five hundred dollars, and the
annual increase of expenditure, exclusive of
of rent, one thousand. Mrs. Wiggins and
Araminta Jane, moreover, attempted the
fashionable, and this cost something—not a
dime le,s than another thousand dollars; for
Shawls. Sill, lace, and jewelry bills mount
up wonderfully fast! No. a thousand dol
lars is below the mark. It costs a trifle to
be fashionable:
Next, a carriage, and nest a country
house. They came naturally. A cottage
an garden, overlooking the Delaware.—
That was the climax!
Everything went on charmingly. Mrs.
Wiggins and Araminta .Jane were at New
port last summer, bent on making a sensa
tion, and Mr. Wiggins was in Philadelphia.
taking care of his payments, which were
heavy. Money all at once grew a little
tight: banks were unaccommodating, and
Mr. Wiggins found himself obliged to sub
mit to sundry terrible hard shaves in order
to "raise the wind." One day his bill
broker could get nothing on the paper he
had to offer. So he was forced into Third
street. where, on "undoubted" collateral he
raised two thousand dollars for two days, at
one per cent. a day!
On the next day money was a little tighter.
Ire had five thousand to pay. He got
through, but only at a "terrible sacrifice."
On the day following he raised three thou
sand more to lift maturing notes, but not
enough to meet the two thousand covered
by collateral", on which he was paying one
per cent. a day. TIM arrangement was
continue I for two days longer,
Mr. Wiggins began to feel a little uneasy.
Plump on to one of his desponding after
three o'clock hours, came a letter front Mrs.
Wiggins asking for five hundred dollars.—
Mr. Wiggins crushed the letter passionately,
muttering. "Five hundred devils!" It was
unamiable and unconjugal; but he was in
trouble, and excited.
On the following day Mr. Wiggins sent
his wife one hundred and fifty dollars, with
directions to pay off her bills and return
with Araminta Jane immediately. Both
she and Araminta Jane demurred, and
scolded hint soundly for his niggardly re
sponse to their demand for money. They
did not mean to leave until the close of the
season. But Mr. Wiggins was in earnest,
and ho made them comprehend it in another
letter, That brought them off by the neat ,
boat for New York.
Joel Wiggins was getting frightened.
The banks threw him out altogether, and he
was at the mercy of the shavers. But few
country merchants had been in, and few of
them brought money. Sales were light
against an unusually large stock of good",
[WHOLE NUMBER, 1,441.
which could not be forced on the market
and sold at even half their value. His
country house cost him ten thousand dollars.
He mortgaged it for five. Tried a second
mortgage for three thousand more, but no
one bid. It must be sold, then—matters
were pressing. Mr. Wiggins announced
the fact at home, like one who expected a
strife. It came. Mrs. Wiggins and Ara
minta Jane were astounded and indignant.
"Never!" said Mrs. Wiggins.
"Never!" cried Araminta Jane.
,'What will people say at this coming
down?" queried Mrs Wiggins.
"It will kill mc!" sobbed Araminta Jane,
who had caught a beautiful beau at New
port, and was expecting an offer of marriage
by every mail.
"They'll say that Joe Wiggins has been
living too fast," was answered, bluntly,
"and they'll say the truth; I'd no business
with a country house yet awhile."
"You'll put down the carriage next, I
suppose:" said Araminta Janc, indignantly,
not really meaning to be understood as in
dread of that extreme measure, but rather
intending her words as a cutting rebuke.
"Just so," replied Mr. Wiggins, who, now
that the ice was broken at the edge of the
stream, felt his courage rise into a desperate
resolution to go through. "Just so, my
dear; the carriage will have to be rut down,
and Mrs. Wiggins and Araminta Jane must
walk, or take sixpenny rides in the omnibus.
Necessity knows 11,) law.
We will not describe the scene that fol
lowed. Mrs. Wiggins was at first indignant;
but after awhile she calmed down, and
hearkened a little to reason. Araminta Jane
indulged in a fit of hysterics, from which she
did not recover for some hours. But Mr.
Joel Wiggins was inexorable.
On the nest day the country house was
advertised for sale. On the nest came the
startling announcement of the failure of the
Ohio Life and Trust Company. And then
—but the disastrous events that followed are
of too recent occurrence to require a word of
detail. Joel Wiggins was borne down in
the general crash, a fact that will in no way
surprise the reader. Mrs. Wiggins was
inconsolable fur a time; Araminta Jane in
de , pair. Oh, the disgrace of coming downl
It seemed as if it would kill them. The
carriage went, of course, and with it the
caped and banded coachman. The folly
had gone that far.
The broken "Notion" merchant, who had
kept his carriage, and boasted a country
house, called together his creditors, and
made an exhibit of his affairs. Alas! the
column of assets did not foot up as large as
the column of liabilities by many thonsands
of dollars. The discount and interest ac
count showed a fearful balance on the wrong
side. Thirty thousand dollars bad been
paid for the use of money in less than four
scars! Mr. Wiggins owed eighty-three
thousand dollars, and his nominal assets
were sixty-four! So much for the rich mer
chant, who had set up his carriage, and sent
his wife and daughter to see high life and
spend money at Saratoga and Newport! ne
represents a class, and is rather a favorable
specimen; fur Mr. Wiggins really meant to
be honest, but the inflation of the times led
Lim into error.
The creditors of Mr. Wiggins were not
hard on him. They agreed to accept forty
cents on the dollar, taking his own notes at
six, twelve, eighteen and twenty-four months
in settlement. A few wanted to shut him
up. They were outraged at the country
house and carriage part of the business; but
the majority pitied poor Wiggins, who was
deeply humiliated, and almost ready to shoot
himself in despair.
"We must give up this house!" said Mr.
Wiggins, on returning home from the meet
ing of his creditors. die spoke like a man in
earnest. Mrs. Wiggins started and flushed,
Araminta Jane turned pale.
"Your creditors have not been so exact-
ing: so cruel:"
"Are you nothing but selfish fools!" ex
claimed Mr. 'Wiggins. his wrath leaping
over all barriers. "Hard! cruel! They have
been kinder than I had dared to hope for."
"Oh, then we will not be forced to move
from here:" sobbed Araminta Jane. '•lt
would kill me. I could never survive the
humiliation! You must not think of it,
Pa."
"It is thought of and decided," said the
resolute Mr. Wiggins. "The bubble has
burst., and lam now a bankrupt. We went
up like a rocket, and now we are coming
down like the stick."
"But we will economize," said Mrs. Wig-
MI
"I know you will, for necessity knows no
law," was the answer.
"We'll send away the waiter and let the
chamber maid attend the door and table."
"The cook can attend to the door, and
we'll wait on ourselves at table. It won't
be the first time in our lives! I, for one.
feel relieved. It always annoys me to have
a waiter gaping at me while I eat."
Poor Araminta Jane was in despair.
t "We can't get all our furniture into a
smaller house," said Mrs. Wiggins.
"Very true," replied Mr. Wiggins. "I've
I thought of that. We'll have a sale, and get
1 rid of the costly lumber that surrounds us.
Plainer furniture will suit better our reduced
style of living, and—my honorable purposes."
"A sale! Oh, disgrace. disgrace! Would
you kill me, sirr And Araminta Jane coa
-1 fronted her resolute papa with the counte
nance and attitude of a tragedienne.