D3LLAS PER ASN'JM, INVARIABLY IN ADVANCE.
TOWANDA :
glprsYin fUormmj. SJoucinbcr 13. 183 U.
jsflcctcb |joctrn.
[From tLe Knickerbocker.]
AUTUMN AND ETERNITY.
IF'*. 0 Autumn ! shall f dare
T>) thy gorgeous hues ;
Tiic softness of thy m rning air,
Ti.ine evening's pearly dews ;
'i'iie solemn grandeur of thy uight,
V. h >-e starry crwu is set
Vfita gem-, in re radiantly bright,
Thau earthly coronet I
The <l-):y of thy sun-et hour.
When all is calm and still.
Brings full conviction of the Power
That heaven and earth J >th till ;
Oh ! wh l ran gaze upou the skies,
A twilight shades thein o'er,
And nit from earthly dreauiings rise,
Their Maker to adore ?
The wrath of fading summer flowers
Is vet upon thy brow.
But a.l the mirth of Summer hours
Is changed to sadness now,
And -et. up >n th it dyiug head
As d.- U.i l-iatylies,'
M >re gl >ri • than the riches spread
'Xeith Summer's gl ovlng skies.
Tver. 0 Ant inn ! shalt TIIUC be
To i s an emblem meet
Ofspir ti sii king peacefully
To .slumber calm and sweet ;
Th egh THY delights not long may last,
Yet oi its shall still increase ;
Tin reign be >oon forever past,
But oi us shall never cease.
Ah ' not Uke thee shall pass away
The Christian's hope and joy ;
We ! .JK ' T an eternal day,
And Miss without alloy
K - glories hid from mortal sight,
lit vto.led ia realms above—
}\ r failt ieus crowns of heaven light.
And pt l ft ctness of I JYC.
% iuMiitioarmi Shctclj.
Daniel Morgan, & his American Riflemen.
The outposts of the two armies were very
nr to each other, when the American roni
is-'ier, desirous of obtaining particular infor
•iinum respecting the position of the tulversa
'y, M innioiii ii the famed leader of the Rifle
en, Colonel Daniel Morgan, to head quar
ters.
It arts night and the chief was alone. Af
'• r his usual polite, vet reserved and dignified
salutation, Washington remarked : " 1 have
•cut for you, Col. Morgan, to entrust to your
oymity a small but important enterprise. 1
* -'i yon to reconnoitre the enemy's line, villi
. \itw to your ascertaining correctly the posi
' "it of their constructed redoubts, also the en
.•!!:■ nts of the British troops that had lute
. nr: veil, and those of their Hessian uiixiliar
• Select, sir, an officer, a uon commissioned
3 -<r, and about twenty picked men, and, un
•r cover of the night, proceed, but with all
H.'ioii, g< t as near as yon can, and by dav
-,v.ii retire and make your report to quarters.
- r iv irk mc, Col. Morgan, mark me well, up
>ii i:o in-count whatever are you to bring on
y skirmish with the enemy; if discovered,
■ike a speedy retreat : let nothing induce you
• fire u .single shot, I repeat, sir, that no
ret of circumstances will induce yon to lire
it single shot. I repeat, sir, that no force of
.MiiiManccs will excuse the discharge of a
-mule rille on your part ; and for the extreme
prccfseiiess of these orders, permit me to say,
I have inv reasons," Filling two glasses of
*'.(. the General concluded: " And now,
•ol Morgan, we will drink a good night, and
•access to your enterprise." Col. Morgan
vied the wine, smacked his lips, and assured
s l-.x<-riicncy that his orders should be punc
•■■( V ol served, and left the tent of the Coin
bininler-iii-t 'hicf.
( inm dat being chosen as the executive
svr i(l u during enterprise, the leader of the
a O(Ki-t!.en repaired to his quarters, and calling
V Gabriel Long, his favorite captain, order
'•tl linn to detail a trusty sergeant and twenty
•'time fellows, who being mustered and order
dto lay on their arms, ready at a moment's
varniiig. Morgan and Long stretched their
j:| Niv tonus before the watch lire to wait the
-"'"It (lowij of the moon, the signal of de
jirttire.
A little after midnight, and while the rays
'he si tting moon still faintly glimmered in
' *-stcru horizon, " up sergeant,"cried Long.
s ':r up your men," and twenty athletic fig
*cre on their led in a moment. " Indian
• march," and away they all sprang with the
"A. and yet light and stealthy stop of tin
*"<xhniHii. Tliev reached the enemy's line,
it up effise to the pit kets of the lies
as to inhale the o or of their pipes ; (lis
•vi'ii i.y t| u , | l( , w jy earth the position
" Ha: redoubts, and by llie uunie.ous tents.
:i Gtted the fields for " many a rod around,"
-l.oweil dimly, amid the haze, the encamp
' "f the Iliitish and German reinforcements,
i, in s|„, r t ( performed their perilous duty
'■""t tiie slightest discovery, and pleased
• themselves and the success of their enter
"■ prepared to retire, just as a chanticleer
a neighboring farm-house was " bidding
- Ration to the morn."
Km adventurous party reached a small emi
c nun- distance from the British camp,
,J uoiiuuitudiiig an extensive prospect over
•ntj.ivent country. Here Morgan halted
tc In* men a little rest, before taking up
'V- oi march to tiie American outpo.-ts.~-
-"'.v had tluy thrown themselves upon the
hen they jK-rceived issuing from the
f advanced pickets a body of horse, com
a "V an officer, and proceeding along the
• directly by the spot where the riflemen
'ailed. .Vi *pot could be better for an
's'-mie, for there were rocks and ravine,
' also s< rubby oaks, that grew thickly f>u
1 tr> by which the road wc have ju t
THE BRADFORD REPORTER.
mentioned passed, at not exceeding a hundred
yards.
" Down boys, down cried Morgan, as the
horse approached ; nor did the clansmen ol
the Black Roderick disappear more promptly
amid their native heather than did Morgan's
woodmen, in the present instance, each to his
tree or rock. " Lie close there, my lads, till
we see what these fellows are about."
M eantiine the horsemen had gained the
height, and the officer dropping the rein on the
charger's neck, with spy glass reeonuoitered
the American lines. The troops closed up
their lilts, and were either caressing the noble
animals they rode, adjusting their equipments,
or gazing upon the surrounding scenery, now
fast brightening in the beams of a rising
sun.
Morgan looked at Long and Long at his
superior, while the riflemen, with panting chests
and sparkling eyes, were only waiting some
signal from their officer "to let the ruin fly."
At length the martial ardor of Morgan
overcame his prudence and sense of military
subordination. Forgetful of consequences,
reckless of everything but his enemy, now with
in Ins grasp, lie waved his hand, and loud and
sharp rang the report of their rifles amid the
surrounding echoes.
At jaunt blank distance, the certain and
deadly aim of the Hunting Shirts of the Re
volutionary army is too well known to history
to need remark at this time of day. In the
instance we have recorded, the effect of the
fire of the riflemen was tremendous.
Of the horsemen, some had fallen to rise no
more, over the adjoining plain, others, wound
ed, but entangled with their stirrups, were
dragged by the infuriated animals cxpiringly
along, while the very few who were unscathed
spurred hard to regain the shelter of the Bri
tish lines.
While the smoke yet canopied the scene of
slaughter, ami the picturesque forms of the
woodsmen appeared among the foliage, as they
were re-loading their pieces, the colossal figure
of Morgan stood apart. He seemed the very
genius of war, and gloomily he contemplated
the havoc his order had made. He spoke not,
he moved not, but looked as one absorbed in
the intensity of thought. The martial shout
with which he was wont to cheer his c omrades
in the hour of combat, was hushed ; the shell
from which he had blown full many a note of
battle and of triumph on the field of Saratoga,
hung bv his side ; no order was given to spoil
the slain ; the arms and equipments, for which
there was always u bounty from Congress, the 1
shirts of which there was such a need, at that,
the sorest period of our country's privation, all,
all were abandoned, as, with an abstracting
air, and a voice struggling for utterance, Mor
gan, suddenly turning to his captain, exclaim,
ed, " Long, to the camp, to the camp." The
favorite captain obeyed, the riflemen with trail
ed arms fell into file, and Long ami his party
soon disappeared, but not before the hardy
fellows hud exchanged opinions on the strange
termination of the late affair. And they
agreed, arm. con., that their colonel was trick
ed, (conjured) for assuredly, after such a fire
as they had given the enemy, such an empty
ing of saddles and scattering of the troopers,
he would not have ordered his poor rifle boys
from the field, without so much as a few shirts
or a pair of stockings being divided among
them. " Yep," said u tall, lean and swarthy
looking follow, as he carefully placed ins mocas
siued feet in the foot-prints of the file-leader,
" Yes, my lads, it stands to reason our colonel
is tricked."
Morgan followed slowly on the trail of his
men. The full force of iiis military guilt had
rushed upon his mind, even before the report
of his rifles had ceased to echo in the neigh
boring forests. He became more convinced of
the enormity of his offence, as, with dull and
measured ftrides, he pursued his solitary way,
soliloqu'zing : " Well, Daniel Morgan, you
have done for yourself. Broke, sir, to a cer
tainty. You may go home, sir, to the plough;
your sword will be of no further use to you.—
Broken, sir, nothing can save you ; and there
is the cud of Col. Morgan. Fool, fool, by a
single act of madness, thus to destroy the earn
ings of so many toils, and of many a hard
fought battle. You are broken, sir, and there
is an cud ol Col. Morgan."
To disturb his reverie, tin re suddenly ap
peared at full speed, the aid-de camp, the Mer
cury of the field, who, reining up, accosted the
Colonel with, " I am ordered, Col. Morgan, to
ascertain whether the firing just now heard,
proceeded from your detachment."
" it did sir," doggedly replied Morgan.
"Then. Col. Morgan,"continued the aid, "1
am further ordered to require of you your im
mediate attendance upon his Excellency, who
is fast approaching."
Col. Morgan bowed, and the aid, wheeling
his charger, galloped back to rejoin the
chief.
The gleams of the morning snn, shining up
on the sabres of the horse guard, announced
the arrival of the dread commander —that be
ing who inspired with a degree of awe every
one who approached him. With a stern, yet
dignified composure, Washington addressed the
military culprit :
" Cuii t be possible, Col. Morgan, that my
aid-de-camp has informed me aright't Can it
lie possible, alter the orders you received last
evening, that the firing we have heard proceed
ed from your detachment / Surely, sir, my or
ders were so explicit us not to be easily misun
derstood." i
Morgan was brave, but it has been often,
and justly too, observed, that man was never
born ol woman who could approach the great
Washington, and not feel a degree of awe and
veneration trom his presence. Morgan quail
ed for a moment beloro the stern, yet just
displeasure of his chief, till, arousing ail his
energies for the effort, he uncovered and re
plied :
" \ our Excellency's orders were perfectly
understood, and agreeably to the same, I pro
ceeded with the select party to reconnoitre the
enemy's lines by night. W e succeeded even
beyond our expectations, and I was returning
to the head-quarters to make my report, when,
haiing halted a few minutes to rex I the
PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY AT TOWANDA, BRADFORD COUNTY, PA., BY E. O'HEAR A GOODRICH,
" REGARDLESS OF DENUNCIATION FRO* ANY QUARTER."
we discovered a party of horse. coming out
trom the enemy's line. They came up imme
diately to the spot where we lay concealed by
the brushwood. There they halted, and gath
ered together like a tloek of partridges, afford
ing me so tempting an opportunity of annoy
ing my enemy, and, may it please your Excel
lency, flesh and blood could not refrain."
At this rough, yet frank, bold and manly
explanation, a smile was observed to passover
the General's suite. The Chief remained un
moved ; when, waving his hand, hecontinued :
" Col. Morgan, you will retire to your quarters,
there to awa t further orders."
Arrived at liis quarters, Morgan threw him
self upon his hard couch, and gave himself up
to reflections upon the events which had so
lately and rapidly succeeded each other. lie
was aware lie had sinned beyond all hopes of
forgiveness. Within twenty hours he had fal
len from the command of a regiment, and be
ing the especial favorite of the General, to be
what ?—a disgraced and broken soldier. Con
demned to retire from the scenes of glory, the
darling passion of his heart—forever to aban
don the " fair fields of fighting men," and in
obscurity to drag out the remnant of a wretch
ed existence, neglected and forgitten. And
then his rank, so hardly and so nobly won,and
all his " blushing honors," acquired in the
march across tlie frozen wilderness of the
Kennebec, the storming of the lower Town,
and the gallant and glorious combat at Sara
toga.
The hours dragged gloomily away, and night
came, and with it no rest for poor Morgan.—
The drums and tiles merrily sounded the sol
dier's dawn, and the suu arose, giving " pro
mise of a goodly day." And to many within
the circuit of this widely extended camp did
his genial beam give hope, and joy and glad
ness, while it cheered not with a single ray the
despairing leader of the Woodsmen.
About ten o'clock, the orderly on duty re
ported the arrival of an officer of the stall'
from headquarters, and Lieut. Col. Hamilton,
the favorite of the Commander-in-chief, enter
ed the marque
" lie seated," said Morgan ; " I know your
errand, so be short, my dear fellow, nud put
me out of my misery at once, i know tiiat 1
am arrested ; 'tis a matter of course. Well,
there is my sword ; but surely his excellency
honors me indeed, in these last moments of my
military existence, when he sends for my sword
by his favorite aid, and most esteemed friend.
All, Hamilton, if you knew what I have suffer
ed since that accursed horse came out to tempt
me to my ruin."
Hamilton, about whose striking intelligent
countenance there always lurked a playful
smile, now observed, " Col. Morgan, his excel
lency has ordered me to"
'• I knew it," interrupted Morgan, " to bid
me prepare for trial ? but pshaw, why a trial ?
Guilty, sir, guilty pa.-L all doubt, lint then,
recollecting himself, "iierhaps my services may
plead—nonsense—against the disobedience of
a positive order ; no, no, it's all over with me.
Hamilton, there is an end to your old friend,
Col. Morgan."
The agonized spirit of the hero then mount
ed a pitch of enthusiasm as he exclaimed :
" Hut my country will remember my services ;
and the Dritish and Hessians will remember
rue ; lor, though I may be far away, my brave
comrades will do their duty ; and Morgan's Ri
flemen will be, as they always have been, a ter
ror to the enemy."
The noble, the generons-souled Hamilton
could no longer bear to witness the strug
gle of the brave unfortunate ; he called out,
•' 11 <:ir me, my dear Colonel ; only promise
to hear me for one moment, and 1 will tell
you all."
" Go on, sir," interrupted Morgan, despair
ingly, " go on."
" Then," continued the aid-de camp, " you
must know that the commanders of regiments
dine with his Excellency to-day."
" What of that ?" again interrupted Col.
Morgan ; " what has that to do with we a
prisoner"
"Mo, no," exclaimed Hamilton ; no prison
er—a once offending, but now forgiven soldier;
my orders are to invite you to dine with Lis
excellency to-day, at three o'clock precisely ;
yes, my brave and good friend, Col. Morgan,
you still are, and likely long to be, the valued
and famed commander of the Regiment."
Morgan sprang from his camp-bed, upon
which he was sitting, and seizing the hand of
the great little man in his giaut grasp, wrung
and wrung it, till the aid-de-camp literally
struggled to get free, then exclaimed : " Am
1 in tpy senses ? but 1 know you. Hamilton—
vou are too noble to.sport with the feelings of
an old brother soldier."
Hamilton assured his friend that 11 was
true, and gaily kissing his hand as he mounted
his horse, bidding the now delighted Colonel
to remember 3 o'clock, and be careful not to
disobey a second time, galloped to headquar
ters.
Morgan entered the pavilion of the Com
mander-ill chief, as it was filling with officers,
all of whom, after paying their respects to the
General, filed off to give a cordial squeeze of
the hand to the commander of the ltifle Regi
ment, and to whisper in his ear words of con
gratulation. The cloth removed, Washington
bid his guests till their glasses, and gave his
onlv, his unwavering toast of the days of trial,
the* toast of the evening of his " time honored"
life amid the shades of Mount Vernon, " AH
our Friends." Then, with his usual old-fash
ioned politeness, he drank to each guest by
name. When he came to " Col. Morgan, your
health, sir," a thrill ran through the manly
frame of the gratified and again favorite sol
dier, while every eye in the pavilion was turn
ed on him. At an early honr the company
broke up, and Morgan had a perfect escort of
officers accompanying him to his quarters, all
anxious to congratulate him upon his happy
restoration to rank and favor, all pleased to
assure him of their esteem for his person and
services.
t&f The man that can stop rum drinking
" whenever he. lias a mind to." has gone west
dniv- wiUioTuotual motion.
Epidemics.
One unvarying character of epidemics is,
that they are nil fevers. The Black Death of
the fourteenth century, an aggravated form of
the Oriental or Bubo plague, was a fever, de
riving its name froui effusions of black blood
forming spots on the arms, face, and neck.—
The Oriental plague, still in existence in Egypt
and eastern Europe, and the sweating sickness
of the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, were
; both fevers ; and even the cholera of the pre-
I sent day, in the last or perfect stages of its
developments, is a fever. All the ordinary
! epidemics such as typhus, scarlet fever, mea
les, and small-pox, are rccoguized fever.
Epidemics arc generally preceded by 2 signs.
Oue is the influenza. The plague, cholera Ac.
have all been heralded by this disease. The
first attack of cholera in England was prece
ded by an outbreak of influenza, which resem
bled in the minutest particular that which ush
ered in tliu mortal sweating sickness of 1810 ;
and the cholera of 1818 was preceded by the
influenza of 1847.
Epidemics are periodical. The first appear
ance of the sweating sickness was in 1485.
It spread over England for a year, then dis
appeared. After a lapse of twenty years it
broke out again, went over all its former liauuts,
and after six months died away. In eleven
years it came again, and again died away in
six months. A fourth time it returned after a
sleep of eleven years, continued six months,
then disappeared. Its fifth and last visitation
was after a period of twenty-three years. It
raged—as it had raged before—in six mouths,
as usual, disappeared ; and since then, this
1551, it has never been known in any country
whatsoever. The oriental plague breaks out
in the East every ten years ; the fever epidem
ics of London occur every ten or twelve years;
the Irish typhus epidemics have been decennial
visitations for the iu>t liundercd and fifty years.
Epidemic cholera remained with us fifteen
mouths, on its first visitation. After sixteen
years it broke out again, for exactly fifteen
months us before. Again—this time after an
absence of only five xears—it came for seven
teen months : coming earlier and leaving ear
lier than it bad done before. According to
this rule we may expect it again, after oven a
shorter absence.
Epidemics are rapid in their effects. Death
generally occurs after a few hours ; seldom, if
the disease can be protracted. The great ob
ject of all modern treatment of cholera, for in
stance, is to gain time ; for if the disease does
not kill at once, the patient will ofteuer reco
ver than die after a prolonged attack. It is
the shock, rather than the exhaustion which
dest rovs.
Lastly, epidemics are alike in cause. Over- i
crowding, filth, exhalations from foul sewers, ;
livers, ditches, canals, etc., putrescent animal .
or vegetable matter, impure drinking water,
unwholesome meat,decayed vegetables, unsound
grain—these are some of the predisposing per
sonal causes of epidemics, which make all those
living under such conditions more likely to be
attacked than those in healtlaercirciimstances.
But of all predisposing causes foul air ranks as
chief. The condensed air of a crowded room
gives a deposit which if allowed to remain for
a few days, forms a solid, thick, giuteuous mass,
having a strong odor of animal matter. If ex- j
aniiued by the microscope it seems to undergo
a remarkable change. First of all, it is con
verted into a vegetable growth and this is fol
lowed by the production of multitudes of ani
nialcuhe—a decisive proof that it must contain
organic matter, otherwise it could not nourish
organic beings. This was the result arrived
at by Dr. Angus Smith, in his beautiful ex
periments on the air and water of towns, where
in he showed that the lungs and skin gave out
organic matter, which is in itself a deadly poi
son, producing headache, sickness, or epidemic,
according to its strength. Why, if few drops
of the liquid matter, obtained by the couden
sat ion of the air of it foul locality, introduced
into the vein of a dog, eati produce death with
usual phenomena of typhus fever, what incal
culable evil must it not produce ou those hu
man beings who breathe it again and again,
rendered fouler and less capable of sustaining
life with each breath drawn.
Goon HUMOR. —Keep in good humor. It is
not great calamities that embitter existence ;
it is the pettv vexations, the small jealousies,
the little disappointments, tiie minor miseries,
that make the heart heavy and the temper
sour. Don't let them. Anger is a pure waste
of vitality ; it is always foolish, and always
disgraceful, except in some very rare cases,
when it is kindled by seeing wrong done to an
other ; and even that noble rage seldom mends
the matter. Keep in good humor.
No man does his best except when lie is
cheerful. A light heart makes nimble hands,
and keeps the mind free and alert. No mis
fortune is so great as one that sours the tern
-1 per. Until cheerfulness is lost, nothing is lost.
Keep in good humor.
The company of a good humored man is a
perpetual feast ; he is welcomed everywhere—
eyes glisten at his apprtviuh, and difficulties
vanish in his presence. Franklin's indomita
ble good humor did as much for his country in
the old Congress as Adams' fire or Jefferson's
wisdom ; he clothed wisdom with smiles, ami
soiled contentious minds into acquiescence.—
Keep in good humor.
A good (Otiscieiice, a sound stomach, a clean
skin, are element* of good humor. Get them
and keep them, and—be sure to keep iu good
luimur.
fvsT A writer of a love tale, in describing
his heroine, says :—" Innocence dwells iu the
rich curls of her dark hair." Some critic,
commenting on the passage, says:—"Sorry
to hear it—think it stands u perilous chance
of being combed ou,t."
tetf- MATTHEW L.vxsixq used to say :—" If
you wish to have, u shoo made of durable ma
terial, you should make the upper leather of
the mouth uf JU 01-.l toper, for that never lets
in water."
A Schoolmaster " Boarding Round."
Extract from the journal of a Yermout school
master :
MONDAY —Went to board at Mr. B s ;
had a baked goose for dinner ; supposed from
its size, and thickness of the skin, and other
venerable appearances, to have been one of the
first settlers in Vermont ; made impression on
the patriarch's breast.
Supper —Cold goose and potatoes ; family
consisting of the man, good wife, daughter
Peggy, four bovs, Pompey, the dog, and a
brace of cats—lire built in the square room
about 9 o'clock, and a pile of wood lay by the
fire-place : saw Peggy scratch her fingers, and
couldn't take the hint—felt squeamish about
the stomach, and talked about going to bed ;
Peggy looked sullen, and put out the tire in
the square room ; went to bed and dreamed of
having eaten a quantity of stone wall.
TUESDAY —CoId gander for breakfast, swamp
tea, and some nut-cake, the latter some conso
lation. Dinner—the legs, etc., of the gander,
done up warm—one nearly dispatched. Sup
per—the other leg, etc., cold ; went to bed as
Peggy was carrying in the fire to the square
room—dreamed I was a mud-turtle, and got
on my back and could not get over again.
WEDNESDAY —CoId gander for breakfast ;
complained of sickness, and could eat nothing.
Dinner—wings, etc., of the gander warmed
tip : did my best to destroy them, for fear
they would be left for supper ; did not suc
ceed ; dreaded supper all the ufternoon. Sup
per—hot Johnny cakes ; felt greatly relieved,
and thought I had got clear of the gander ;
went to bud for a good night's rest ; disap
pointed ; very cool night, and couldn't keep
warm in bed ; got up and stopped the broken
window with my coat and vest ; no use ; froze
the tip of ray nose before morning.
THURSDAY —CoId gander again ; felt very
much discouraged not to see gander half gone;
went visiting for dinner ai u supper ; slept
abroad and had pleasant dreams.
FRlDAY —Breakfast abroad. Dinner at Mr.
B 3 ; cold gander and hot potatoes ; ate
these and went to school quite contented.—
Supper, cold gander and no potatoes ; bread
heavy and dry ; had the headache and couldn't
eat. Peggy much concerned ; had a fire built
in the square room, and thought she and i had
better set there out of the noise ; went to bed
early ; P.'ggy thought too much sleep bad for
the headache.
SATURDAY— Breakfast, cold gander and hot
Johnny cake ; did very well ; glad to come off
so. Dinner—cold gander again ; didn't keep;
I had lost six pounds the last week ; grew
alarmed ; had a talk with Mr. 8., and conclud
ed 1 had boarded out his share.
PHYSICAL ASPECT OK MAX. —An examina
tion of 20,000 infants, at the Materuite, in
Paris, gives for the weight of the new-born
G 1 4 lbs. ; the same mean value obtains for |
the city of Brussels For about a week after
birth, this weight undergoes an actual diminu
tion, owing to the tissue destruction which is
sues through the establishment of respiration,
and which for a time exceeds the gain from '
nutrition For the same age, the male infant j
is heavier than the female; but this difference
gradually diminishes, and at twelve years their
weight is sensibly the same. Three years la
ter, at the period of puberty, the weight is
one-half of what it is I'm ally to be, wheu full
development is revealed.
The maximum weight eventually attained,
is a little more than twenty times that at birth
this holding good for both sexes ; but since
the new-born female weighs less than the stan
dard, and the new-born male more, the weight
of the adult male is 137 lbs., and of the adult
female 121 lbs. The mean weight of a man,
irrespective of his period of life, is about 107
lbs., and of a woman, nearly 94 lbs. Tte
mean weight of a human beiug, without refer
ence either to age or sex, is about 99 lbs.
M. Quotelet, to whom we are indebted fur
the above statistics, as tiie result of his re
searches, states that communities seem to bl
under the influence of unchangeable laws, as
much as the individual. "In communities,
man commits the same number of murders
each year, and does it with the same weapons.
We might enumerate, beforehand, how many
individuals will imbue their hands in the blood
of their kind, how many will forge, how many
poison, very neary as we enumerate, before
hand, iiow many births and deaths will take
place.''
BE NOT DISCOURAGED. — It is a fine remark
of Genolou, " Bear with yourself in correcting
faults, as you would with others." We cannot
do all at once. But by constant pruning away
of little faults, and cultivating humble virtues
we shall grow towards perfection. This sim
ple rule—not to be discouraged at slow pro
gress, but to persevere, overcoming evil habits
one by one—such as sloth, in gligctice, or bad
temper ; and adding one excellence after anoth
er —to faith, virtue ; and to virtue, knowledge;
and to knowledge, temperance ; and to tem
perance, patience ; and to patience, godliness;
and to godliness, brotherly kindness ; and to
brotherly kindness, charity,—will conduct the
lowest Christian to high religious attainments.
MOKE GOOD THAN EVIL. —Good never got
published, unless it be the good that goes info
diaries and biographies, Pharisaic good, good
which is on the turn, and to delicate nostrils
smells extremely like evil. But the evil that
men do fairly gravitates to the newspapers. 1
suppose the reason is, that we arc one day to
get rid of it utterly, and it is first of all re
quisite that it should come to the light, or be
made known in its true proportions. However
j this inay be, lam satisfied that the actual
I evil of the world, if it could only be utiee
; viewed in the light of its actual good, would
| amount to mottling mure than a spot in the
j sun.— Henri, Jams.
fST" John, I fear you are forgetting me,"
said a bright evt-d girl to her sweetheart. —
" Yes, Sue. I have been for gating you thr-e
VOL. XVII. NO. 2:5.
TJIL PRAIRIE DOG. —In Captain Marcy's
Exploration of the Red River of Louisiana
ure given some interesting facts I tout tint
singular uniniul, the prairie dog. He S iys :
" Passing through these do/ villages, the lit
tle auiinuls are seen in countless numbers, sit
ting at the entrance of their subterranean
dwellings, presenting so much the appearance
of stumps of small trees, and so incessant is
the clatter of their barking, that it requires
; but little effort of the imagination to I'inov
! one's self surrounded with the busy ham of u
; city." The immense number of animals in
some of these towns, may be conjectured from
the large space they sometimes cover. Cap
tain Marcy passed one of these towns, twenty
live miles in length, ami supposing it to be ai
large in other directions, it would embrace an
area of six hundred mid twenty-five square
miles, or eight hundred and ninety-six thou
sand acres. Estimating the holes at 20 yards
apart, the usual distance, and each dwelling
occupied by four or five dogs, the whole pupil
lation of this tract would be in round number*
forty millions of <l<gs. The food of these an
imals consists principally of a coarse, wiry
grass, which grows in abundance on elevated
plains, often many utiles from any water, which
does not seem necessary to their existence.—
About the last of October, the prairie dog
carefully closes all the passages to his habita
tion, and turns in for a long nap. He keep*
j housed until the warty days of spring, when
| he removes the obstructions in front of his
door, and emerges full of life, fun and frolic - -
The rattlesnake is often an inmate of their
dwellings, and sometimes preys on them when
: hungry.
Civir. LIRERTY. —Men are qualified for civil
liberty in exact proportion to their disposition
to put moral chains upon their own appetites ;
in proportion as their love to justice is abovu
their capacity; in proportion as their sound
ness and sobriety of understanding is above
their vanity and presumption ; in proportion
as they are more disposed to listen to the coun
sels of the wise and good, in preference to the
flattery of knaves. Society cannot exist, un
less a controlling power upon will a d appetite
be placed somewhere ; and the less of it there
is within, the more there must be without.—
It is ordained in the eternal constitution of
things, that men of intemperate mi.ids cannot
be free ;. their passions forge their fetter#.
BRtGTTT HOURS AND GLOOMY. —Ah, this beau
tiful world !—I know not w hat to think of it.
Sometimes it is all gladness and sunshine, and
heaven itself lies not far off, and then it suJ
d oily changes and is d irk and sorrowful, and
the clouds shut out the day. In the lives of
the saddest of us there are bright days like
this, w hen we feel as if we could take the great
world in our arms. Then comes gloomy hours,
when the fire will not burn on our hearths and
all without and within is dismal, cold and dark.
Believe inc. every heart has its secret sorrows,
which the world knows not, and oftentimes wo
call a man cold when he is only sad.—Long
fellow.
WHAT THE UNITED STATES WERE ONCE. —•
Capt. Nat. Johnson—everybody knows Capt.
Nat. Johnson—was traveling in the cars the
other day, when he overheard two Englishmen
commending this country iu terms of unusual
warmth :
" Do you like this country, though ?" asked
Capt. Nat.
" Indeed we do," replied the Englishmen.—
" We are surprised and delighted with every
thing we see ; your institutions, and habits,
and life are all so different and so much more
wonderful and attractive than we had ever sus
pected."
"If you think so well of < ur country now,"
rejoined Capt. Nat., " Good God, what wouldn't
you have thought of it if you had seen it be
fore Pierce was elected President." —-V. Y.
Ihcning Post.
A GOOD MAXIM. —The more peaceably and
quietly we get 011 the better—the better for u>
and others. In nine cases out of ten the wisest
policy is, if a man cheats you, quit dealing
with him ; if lie is abusive, quit his compui.y ;
if he H aiders you, take care to live so thai no
body will believe him. No matter who he is,
or how he misuses you, the wisest way is gen
erally to leave him alone, for there is nothing
better than this cool, calm, quiet way of deal
ing with the wrongs we meet
I)vi NO CONFESSION OF BORGIA. —It is said
of the celebrated Ciesar Borgia, that in his
l ist moments he exclaimed :—" I have pro
v'ded, in the course of my life, for everything
except d uith, and now, alas ! I am to die, al
though entirely unprepared."
KH?~ A naturalist, describing the rook, says:
" He loves the blue empyrean, and he quits his
loft v height w hen he is IrTouglit to this dull
earth by the mere force ol c Uerpdlcry attrac
tion."
FACTS. —Oid Mr. Singlestick mystified a tea
party by remarking that women were facts.—
When pressed to explain his meaning he said,
" Facts arc stubborn things."
A young man recently married, says he
, "didn't find it half so hard to get married as
I he did to find the furniture." Nothing new.
; How many begin this game of folly at the
i wrong end ' The phrase is :—" Marry iu
haste, repent at leisure."
fsirThe rose of Florida, tiie most beautiful
jof flower's, emits 110 fragrance. The birds of
i paradise, the most I eautiful of birds, give no
i song. The cypress of Greece, the finest of
) trees, yields 110 fruit.
Ef-y A mnn who dfclikes mop-handles should
be careful how lie spits tobacco-juice On a r< 1
I licadtd woman's .arp t