(HE DOLLAR PER ANNUM INVARIABLY IN ADVANCE.
TOWANDA:
Thursday Morning, December 1,1859.
jscleticb
[From the N. Y. Evening Post ]
LAYING DOWN THE KINGDOM.
BY J. B. ORTON.
So Thomas is going to get married,
To bring home a bride, a young wife,
He said it himself, and he never
Deceived or joked me in his life.
When AVilliam got married it gave rae
No thought of regret or surprise ;
For the boy seemed just made for a woman—
To live in the light of her eyes.
And when Clara was wed to the Southron—
Though Clara, my daughter, was dear—
And removed to the far Rappahanaosk,
It cost but a sigh and a tear.
But Thomas, my staff and my eldest,
Seemed never to care for the girls.
So proud, like the oak, to surrender
At last to soft eyes and soft curls !
Since John died—six years ago Christmas—
Our Thomas—he's always the same—
With more than the strength of his father
Has stayed up the house and the name.
I never once thought he could marry,
So kingly, so firm and so kind—
Ah me .' tears will come ; they are needed ;
For my old eyes, indeed, must be blind.
He tells me I'm getting so aged,
I need more repose, more Iresh air;
So a daughter he'll bring me to lighten
My burthen of labor aud care.
Ah me! He may think so ; he brings nle
A mistress, it must be, instead.
The sceptre must pass to another,
And I to my grave, or my bed.
But, hold ! It is well. omy Father!
Help me to subdue my proud heart,
I have reigned like a queen ; but 'tis over ;
And another of right takes the part.
I yield her my empire forever f
And. Thomas, I'll love all that's thine.
Thy chosen shall have all her honors,
As I've always had all of mine.
Come hither, my little man. Tommy,
Come hither, my rosebud, my Jane !
You are Grandraama's darlings and treasures—
Her pearls hung about her again.
Not Papa.tlncle Will, nor Aunt Clara--
So grand and so sweet when he comes—
Ever gave me one half of the pleasure
Of these little sproutlings of Tom's.
They have kisses and cheer in the morning ;
They have kisses and cheer all day long ;
And their sports, and their griefs so alarming,
Which always are cured witli a song.
They know where to find a consoler ;
As little birds fly to their nest,
They climb Grandma's knee for a co\ er,
And always find peace on her breast.
Miscellaneous.
[From the Common School Journal ]
To Directors.
State Appropriation: The 36th section of |
the general school (C. S. L. & D. page 18,)
authorizes the State Superintendent (but only
on certain important conditions) to issue his
warrant for -the State appropriation to the
several school districts. It is iu the following
words, viz :
SECTION 36. That as soon as the schools of
any district have been kept opeu and in op
eration at least four mouths subsequent to the
first Monday in June preceding, the presinent
of the board of directors, or controllers, shall
certify the same under oath or affirmation, to-'
gether with the name of the districts treas- 1
urer and his post office address, to the county |
superintendent, who shall immediately forward j
the same to the Superintendent of Common j
Schools, who upon the receipt of the same shall j
draw his warrant on the State Treasurer for j
the whole amount such district is entitled to
receive from the annual State appropriation :
Provided, That said board of dirctors or con
trollers shall have nuide RF.POST of the condition
of the schools in their districts, as directed in the
txceut y-third section of this act : And provided
also, That the foregoing certificate shall have
been transmitted to the Superintendent of
Common Schools within the school year for
which the warrant is to be issued.
These plain, clear provisions of the law,
most be complied with hereafter. The four
months' certificate must be transmitted within
the school year, and the annual report of the |
board ot directors must be received at the Dc ;
partment, before the warrant for the State ap
propriation can be issued. There is no hard- j
ship iu these legal requirements, and they are S
absolutely necessary to the proper and success
ful administration of the system. It is true i
that some directors—whose promptness and |
fidelity in this respect are worthy of the high .
est comraeudation —make out their report in I
due form und in due time, after having received
the appropriation ; but us a general thing
there is so much negligence as to time in for
warding the annual report, and so much care
lessness and inaccuracy in preparing it, that
in self defence the Department can no longer
extend the indulgence heretofore granted, and
which seemed in some degree proper while
school officers were getting accustomed to the
act of 1854, aud the changes which it made in
the workings of the system.
County Superintendents are instrncted not
to mail the four months' certificates to the De
partment, unless accompanied by the district
report ; and they are particularly requested to
examine both documents carefully to see that
they are properly made out, and the different
items correct. After the certificate und report
reach the Department, they will be carefully
examined, and if fouud correct, the school
warrant will be immediately made out and
mailed to the Treasurer to the district ; but I
if not properly filled up, they will bw returned
to the Secretary of the board for correction,
and the warrant withheld until they come back
again. It is in vain to hope for statistics that
shall be worth the printing, unless this mode
of procedure be adopted.
The shabby reports complained of are not
confined to obscure rural districts, with direc
tors of limited education, but some of the
most striking examples have come from the
hands of respectable lawyers and merchants,
whose business habits and skill in arithmetic,
• as illustrated by their school reports, would
not command much higher figures than 3 or 4,
if presented at a teachers examination.
Directors should beur in mind that the dis
trict report cannot be made out until the
schools have closed for the year. The report
embraces the whole year, and uot a part of it;
and as jt i 3 the official history of what the
schools have been anil done, for that period,
! the record cannot be truthfully made up, uutil
i ufter the schools have finished their work.
One district is not dependent upon another.
Therefore when any district has transmitted
j its certificate and report, the County Super
intendent will immediately mail them to the
Department, without waiting for other dis
tricts ; the school term in some districts being
only four or five months, while in other* it is
eight or ten, and some directors are more
I punctual than others.
The principal cause of the imperfect district
j reports, is the carelessness of the Secretary in
keeping the minutes and a. counts of the
: Board. There is no justification for this nog
1 lect, for the Secretary can be. paid for his ser
> vices ; and if he is not, when he accepts the
office, he accepts its whole duties, absolutely
and without reserve, and should either perforin
; them or resign. Wiih this timely notice that
a bungliug report will not procure the Stute
i appropriation, it is hoped that the respective
j Secretaries will take pains to keep their ac
i counts and records in an intelligible und accur
ate manner, so that neither they nor their suc
cessors in office will have any difficulty in
making out the annual report, from the re
corded und documentary evideuce in possession
of the Board.
Blank District Reports : The blanks tor the
four months' certificates and district reports
for the current school year, are not printed
yet, but will be within a short time, —as soon
as the statistical tables of the past year are
finished, and the detailed examination of the
last year's reports has been completed, and it
has been ascertained what modifications of the
form, or additional instructions may be ne
cessary. Superintendents will be duly notified
by mail.
Teacher's Sheets: The new style of blanks
for Teacher's Monthly Reports, will be fur
nished to Teachers by the Secretary of the
Board. If be have none, he will apply to the
County Superb.teudent, who is charged bylaw,
with the duty of supplying the School Boards
of his county, (C S. L. & I>., page 21, No.
61.)
Teacher's Statistics: The " Recapitulation"
on the back of the Teacher's Monthly Report,
is intended to secure greater accuracy in tlie
statistics of the schools. Tfce " average daily
attcndance of [Hi pits," means the average num
ber of scholars attending daily during the
month.
Teacher's Wages: Economy is always a
j commendable virtue in School Directors, pro
vided it be the genuine article, and not blind
parsimony. But the last place to economize
is in teacher's wages, and directors cannot
practice the virtue in this direction, without
losing vastly more than they hope to gain by
the operation Skillful and successful teachers
are entitled to full compensation and can fair
ly earn it ; and if it cannot be had, they will
as a matter of course go where they can get
it, or quit the business ; while half price teach
ers are a dear bargain although it only takes
! half us much money to pay them. To tie sure,
' the district has paid out less cash, but what is
' paid is lost, for the teacher could not earn it,
; and the pupils have spent the r lime without
being benefitted, and quite likely will after
wards have to unlearn what they did attempt
i to acquire A low priced teacher is not a cheep
! teacher, and it is a great misfortune that this
; fact is not more generally understood. I'enu
?ylvaiiia loses a large per centage of her best
teachers, because they are properly compensa
ted at home. Some of the western counties
have been deprived, this fall, of many of their
most worthy teachers, because of the large re
; duction in the wages offered ; and wherever
this has been the case, the schools will go
backward more during the coming winter, than
they cou'd go forward iu two winters iu the
bauds of good teachers. Even " hard times"
and the " frost" are no justification for the
; employment of low priced, incompetent teach
ers. Teacher's examinations can not build up
the system, so long as those who merit and re
j ceive first class certificates, are driven out of
the schools by the inadequate compensation
offered.
There is another cryiug evil, and it is this :
i Paying fair wages to inferior teachers, that
j should not he paid to any but good teachers,
j The wages should always be gradueiled to the
qualifications of teachers. Pay a good teacher,
good wages ; and if you must put up with an
inferior teacher, cut down the wages, unti he
qualifies himself, or a better one can be had,
and then raise the wages accordingly. But
don't cut the throat of the school system by
paying good wages to good and bad teachers
ulike, indiscriminately, for it is only offering
a premium for incompetency. School Direc
tors ure the buck bone of the school system.
They have more power and responsibility
than all the other officers of the system put
together. And this is right; but they can
only " magnify their office" and uphold the
system, by looking at their duty in its true
light, and then faithfully performing it, with
the same practical shrewdness and sound
judgment that they would exhibit in the man
agement of their own private business affairs.
The principle is the same, the policy the same,
\ and the results cannot be otherwise than erai
! nently beneficial ; while the contrary policy
. ucjst, every where aadalways prove disastrous
PUBLISHED EVERY THURSDAY AT TO WAN DA, BRADFORD COUNTY, PA., BY E. O'MEAKA GOODRICH.
" RESARDLESS OF DENUNCIATION FROM ANT QUARTER."
Railwayism.
A correspondent joins issue with us on the
questiou—to whom is the world indebted for
the system ot Railwayism ? We have claimed
the credit of that development for George
Stephenson upon the following grounds :
As early as the reign of Charles the Second
way-leaves (which would now be called rail
roads), were in use in that part of England
called Northumberland, chiefly in connection
with the coal-mines near the town of Newcastle
upon-Tyne. A century later they were des
cribed by Arthur Young, who noted that
pieces of wood were let into the roads for the
the wheels of the coal-wagons to run upon,
which so much eased the traction, that one
horse was able to draw, with ease, fifty or six
ty bushels of coal. The same principle may
be seen in operation in our streets every day.
The Passenger Railroad Cars ewe their facili
ties and success to it.
The wagon roads were not confined to the
North of England. They were to be seen in
; part of Scotland, and in connection with col
lieries at Whitehaven, Sheffield, Longborough, j
i Derby' and Coalbrookedale. Cast iron rails ;
were first used over a century ago, at White- :
i haven. By degrees, great economy in horse
! power was obtained. Numerous projectors i
j suggested plans for impelling wagons or other
| carriages along the rails : some by rails, some ;
by the application of steam-power on the nigh ;
| pressure principle.
Over two hundred years ago, one Solomon i
j de Cans was imprisoned iu the Bieetre, at Paris
! as a madman, one of his out-of-the-way points j
! being the belief that by steam ships could be
navigated and carriages moved. At a later
period, others got the idea that carriages
might be propelled along ordinary highways,
by this same motive power. In 1763, a French
man named Cugnot exhibited a steam carriage
before Marshal Saxe. which, when set in mo
tion, went forward with so much force that it
knocked down a wall which stood in its way.
; D''. Smiles says, in his excellent Life of George
Stephenson, " Au American iu vector, named
Oliver Evans, was also occupied with the
same idea, for, iu 1T72, he invented a steam
carriage, to travel on common roads, atid iu
1787 he obtained from the State of Maryland
the exclusive right to make and use steam car
riages. His invention, however, never came
into practical use "
This, our correspondent informs us, is a mis
take. Mr. Evans invented and constructed a
high pressure steam locomotive capable of good
work upon iron railroads, (practically had it
tunning in the streets of Philadelphia,) and,
as early as 1809, vuinly endeavored to organ
ize a company to make a railroad from Phila
delphia to New York. He clearly saw what
i might be, though he did not anticipate the
full extent. In 1813, Mr. Evans wrote as
follows : "The time will come when people
will travel iu stages moved by steam engines,
, from one city to another, almost as fast us
\ birds fly, fifteen or twenty miles an hour A
carriage will set out at Washington in the
morning, passengers will breakfast at Balti
more, dine at Philadelphia, and sup at New
York the sutue duv. To accomplish this, two
! sets of railway* will be laid so nearly level us
not in any place to deviate more than two de- !
i trrees from a horizontal line, made ol wood or j
iron, on smooth parts of broken stone or !
; gravel, with u rail to guide the carriages so j
i that they may puss each other in diflVient di j
! rcetions, and travel by night as wd! as by j
' day ; and the passengers will sleep in these 1
| stages as comfortably as tin y now do in steam j
j sta-re boats."
; In 1784 Mr. Symington, who made experi- !
meats on stgam navigation—though Fulton
most undoubtedly must be considered the in j
ventor of steamboats, seeing that he was uc- j
tually the fii t person who did run a vessel by :
steam upon t e water, for a distance—con- j
strueted a steam carriage to run on common j
roads. In the same year William Murdoch, ;
assistant of James Watt, made a steam-loco- j
motive, on the high-pressure principle, which j
actually ran e.way with him. In 1802, Rich
cliard Trevetliick patented a similar invention, j
with the improvement of moving a piston by |
the elasticity of steain against the pressure
only of the atmosphere, un l actually ran it,
on ordinary roads, from Cornwall to Loudon. ;
j He subsequently made several improvements.
In 1813 Mr. Blackvtt, a northern colliery
! owner, who made a great many experiments
jon adapting steam locomotives to railway
i travelling, discovered that the weight of the
engine would of itself produce sufficient ad- j
, hesion to enable it to drag ufti-r it,on a smooth
tram road, the requisite number of wagons, in
all kinds of weather. This was a great step
I in advance.
About the same time, George Stephenson,
then a man with little education, was engine
wright of the collieries at Killingworth, near
Newcastle, and desired to save expense by a
| more economical haulage of the coal from the
i pits to the side of the river Tviie. The keep
of horses was costly, and he wished to use an
! engine on the tram road to supersede them.—
He made himself acquainted with the principle
' und working of Trevetliiek's and other steam
! locomotives within reach, and set to work to
; make one of his own—combining, embodying,
! and improving the good points of the others.
I Lord liavensworth, who had a large coal
\ property in the vicinity, authorized him to con
struct an engine at his cost. He put smooth
| wheels uoon his locomotive, and his enirine,
1 after ten months labor upon it, made its first
trip in July, 1814, drawing eight loaded car
riages of thirty tons' weight at four miles an
hour, and continuing in regular work for some
time. In the following year, Stephenson in
: vented the steam-blast, which doubled the
' power of the engine. Practically, that was
the commencement of the Railway system..
Other improvements followed, and, witUqmt
much original invention, but great adaptive :
skill, George Stephenson, iu 1815, had pro
duced the type of the present locomotive on
giue. Still it was", not yet capable of being
worked, on the colliery tram ways, at a cheap
er rate tbaD horses worked. He bad to im
prove tbe railroad itrelf. At last, iu 1822,
Mr. Stephenson constructed the Helton Rail
way, eight miles in length, near Sunderland,
and each of his engines, at four miles au hour
speed, drew after it a train of seventeen wag
ons, weighing about sixty-four tons. At the
same time he was constructing the Stockton
and Darlington Railway, twelve miles long,
which was opened for traffic in September 1825
—the locomotives running upon it sometimes
at tbe speed of twelve miles an hour, and tak
ing passengers as well as drawing coals.
The material and pecuniary success of this
railway was sufficient to encourage the inonied
, men of Manchester and Liverpool, to construct
a line between these two great commercial
towns,the execution of which was entrusted to
Goorge Stephenson, who accomplished it amid
numerous difficulties. At last, however, on
the 15th of November, 1830, the line was
opened. The Rocket, Stephenson's prize loco
motive, had actually run 35 miles in an hour. !
I This properly commenced railwayism iu Eng- j
land, which immediately radiated over this and
other countries, until the length of the lines J
muy be counted by thousands of miles.
George Stephenson, who had been working '
at Railwayism for over twenty years, who was
the man whose ability and perseverance sue
cessfully completed it, who did what others
j talked of, ai d who improved the old wooden
! tramway into the malleable irou railway, must
| be looked upon as the person to whom the
world is indebted for the system of Railwayism.
| Mr. E vans invented the high-pressure en- j
j gine ; but, with worse luck, he made nothing j
lof it, did nothing with it. The principles of
his discovery were speedily appropriated liy
other persons—by Stephenson himself among
them—but he was a generation or two too
soon, George Stephenson, no one can doubt,
was the practicel person who gave Railway
travelling to Euglaud, aud to the world.
SECRET OF UNHAPPY HOMES.—Why goes
forth that man this Saturday evening from the
roof under which his children live? Why j
turns he from the engaging little attempts to
detain him, and roughly moves them away,
while he loves them dearly? Why sits another j
by his fire, sullen, discontented, unwilling to
speak the kindly word, while his heart isyearu
ing for converse aud enjoyment .' Why flies
the cruel speech to her for whom the bosom's
strongest affection is nourished ; And why,
searching into deep depths, why does man be- I
come so often a tyrant, so often a criminal, in
l.is home? Truth has to be told ; but oh ! !
listen to it kindly, for it is hard to tell. It is
because woman does not truly appreciate her '
mission in domestic life. Under the present |
conditions of existence, she has become weighed !
down by cares. As a wife she is different lo j
what she was as a mistress. She is ever em !
ployed in drudgery for children and household.
She neglects her dress, she torgets her man- i
tiers, ner husband sees tlie change, does not
perhaps find sufficient excuse for it trom the !
condition she labors under. He flies to the
tavern and billiard tables ; and she increases
in sourutss and asperity as the" increases in
years. That much of this is owing to the -
present circumstances of social life is true ;
but that much of it is cliurgrabie to a sad
submission to those circumstances is also but
too true. It is more or less in the power of
woman to make their domestic life nun at- !
tractive to their husbands, and more holy in
| its discipline and ends than they now do. A :
j great reguiuri'y iu time a great simplicity in
I ilr-ss —a more determined adherence to that '
i which is right in one's oa n eyes, rather than
that which is well thought of in the eves of I
j others—an orderly apportioning of various pe- |
riods for different occupations, —would make ;
i evenings at hoiue pass away very differently!
! low hat, in the great majority of cuses they
; are now doing.
~
j CACCHT IN HIS OWN TRAP.—Once two ■
! ministers of the gospel were conversing on ex
| temporaueous preaching.
" Well," said the old divine, waxing warm,
"yuu are ruining yourself by writing your ser
mons and reading them off. Your congrega
tion cannot become interested in your preach
i ing ; and if you were called upon to preach
unexpectedly, unless you could get hold of an
j old sermon, you would be completely confused."' |
| The young divine used all his eloquence but ,
in vain, to convince the old gentleman that I
the written sermon expressed his own thoughts
i and feelings, and, if called upon, he could preach I
: extemporaneously.
I "As we are of the same faith," said the j
| voting minister, "suppose you try me next 1
i Sabbath morning. On ascending the pulpit '
I you can hand me a text from any part of the
Bible, and 1 will convince you that 1 can
| preach without having looked at the text be
fore I stood up. Likewise, I must be allowed
tiic same privilege with you, and see who will
make the best of it."
The idea seemed to delight the old gen
; tlenian, and it was immediately agreed upon. ;
The following Sabbath, on mounting the
' pulpit, his senior brother handed him a slip of
paper, on which was written : "And the ass
opened his mouth and spake from which he
preached a glorious sermon, chaining the at
tention of his delighted hearers, and charming
his old friend with his eloquence.
Iu the afternoon, the young brother, who
was sitting below the pulpit, handed his slip. !
After rising and opening the Bible, the old
man looked sadly around—" Am 1 not thine
ass ?" Pausing a few minutes, he ran his fin
gers through his hair, straightened bis collar,
blew his nose like the last trnmp, and read
alobd—"Am I not mine ass?" Another!
pause, in which a deadly silence reigned. After
reading the thire time—" Am I not thine ass?" 1
—he looked over the pulpit at his friend, and j
in a doletu' voice, said— " I think IBroth
er."
If you want an ignornmns to respect
you, dress to death, and wear a watch 6oal
about the size of a brick-bat.
BgL- A year of pleasure passes like a fleet
(lng breeze, bat a moment of misfortune stoni?
au age of pain.
Living on Stilts.
Did the reader ever observe the motions of
an aspiriug juvenile mounted on wooden con
tinuations of his rather short legs ? Did you
ever observe how pertinaciously he risks a
bloody uose and bruised limbs for the satisfac
tien of stalking awkwardly about some three
or four feet above the ground ? That boy is
the typo of the future man. He may throw
away his deal-board and leather supporters
when he is old enough to play billiards or "run
with the machine," hut the chances ure that
he will continue to use stilts all his life ; that
is to suy, thut he will always endeavor to be
higher in the esteem of others than he deserves
Towards the close of a long life of bitter ex
perience he many acquire the good sense
to kick off his stills and walk among men with
! his own natuiai gait. Now and then, too, we
j find a man who acts and talks naturally, aud
J who has no disposition to he esteemed better,
wiser or richer than he is. But the greater
; part of the world, dissatisfied with a just esti
| ination, are continually striving to appear and
| be thought better than they are.
That writer who is endeavoring *;o magnify '
a trifling subject by long winded essays, or j
who expresses his ideas in the words of " fear
ful length and thundering sound" instead of
of the plain simple and natural language to
which he is most accustomed, and which is the
ouly kind to attract the favorable notice of ;
| men of common sense—that writer is on stilts, i
and there will never be any comfort to him or
satisfaction to his readers until he tomes down I
Ito the common level. Turgid, heavy, dull and I
! obscure, Ins essays cost him more labor tliu.ii 1
j if prepared in a simpler style without being of'
j much benefit to his readers. There arc those
of that class who seem to spend their whole i
time in ransacking the dictionary for words of .
imposing sound.
The young man who receives all he earns,
: yet w hose income is limited, but who wishes to j
appear to have au abundance and to keep
I puce with the extravagant and spendthrift j
I folly of the wealthy of his age, is on stilts.
He must appear a little higher in the world
j than he is entitled to, and therefore must spend
more money than ho has earned. His pride !
keeps bis pocket empty, and prevents him j
from resorting to such rational and innocent
pleasures as are within his reach. His position is
j consequently as painful as itisawkward and un
natural. Throw away your stilts, voung
i friend —cultivate pleasures which ure not ex- j
| pensive—live within your income, and you will !
j be much better and much happier for it .'
j Fashion-loving and fashion-following people
I are ail on stilts—run mad with notions of gen
i tilitv—forever desirous of crcatiug for them
j selves a peculiar circle, and of excluding the
i great mass of mankind from it —u peerage of
i rags—au aristocracy of gloves, cravats, laces
1 and jewelry. Of the wild m izes which the vo- i
turies of lolly dance through, that of the peo
ple who are on stilts of fashion is the most j
absurd. The love of tiu< ry chokes out all
i thut is good in their hearts—they become iden
tified with their garments —they arc laced and
I starched into uoncnities —wholesome natural
feelings, vigorous thought, generous emotions,
lofty impulses are all swallowed up in show
Squalid poverty has nothing half so pitiful us
j the state ot those whose souls are all taken no !
witti pomp, purad-, show, styie, fadnon and i
; cclat. The wild Indian that limits his game j
for food, adores the Great Spirit, loves his '
( friend and hates his enemy, walks on this earth
a head and shoulders taller than the dandy on
, his st.lts of fashion, f.r he is twice as much a
' man Still, awkward and unsafe is the -tilt J
march of those who chase this ever-changing I
phantom fashion. Their heads are raisei
above the sphere of affection aud of rational ;
: enjoyment. All the noble traits of the char- !
j acter in tlicm huve been replaced by dillet- I
i lanism and snobbery. Taste they may indeed !
. have, but it is a taste which gives its possess- i
ors no genuine pleasure. Refined they may 1
I be, but in the process of refinement their na- '
; tive excellencies have been destroyed.
Equally to be pitied are those who are '
raised upon literary stilts—who have imposed
i upon themselves, and who ure sworn to main
tain the reputation of " well-read people." !
The t.t.-k they assume, compels them to read
or glance over every new hook, although not
! one in twenty, is worth n thought, leaving no
i room for originality. They are compulsory ;
I book-worms, with little pleasure, except what
| they derive from the gratification of a child
; ish vanity—of no other use to the world but
j to serve as walking catalogues.
I In short, a large proportion of our people
j ure raised upon stilts of some kind oi another, 1
j above nature, above usefulness, above enjoy-
I nient. The examples we have presented, are
i sufficient to convey our meaning. It is too
! much, perhaps, to expect that any great im
| proveuient will soon take place, but it 111 i<t be
j plain to all who will think, that mankind can
,- never hpgin to fulfiil their proper sphere, or to
I attain lo any great excellence, until tliey begin
! to fallow nature—until they become willing to
tbe taken for precisely what they are. IVhen
; men act out their real dispositions, and cease
j to set a fictitious value upon themselves, when
i they are satisfied with simple justice, and are
j contented to occupy only the space in public
: estimation to which they are entitled—then, |
j and not til! then, will the era of true pleasure |
| and real excellence begin. The great business
! of life, with too large a class, is to keep upap- i
pearanees—to keep themselves balanced on
; their stilts. Let them comedown to their true
level und they will find more genuine pleasure
i in the real life of truth and naturalness, in one
month, thnn can be found in a dozen years of a
; life of uffectation.
No situation is so exposed to perils and
evils as that of one who lias to conduct others,
unless he himself has God for his guide
Ray That was a horrible uff.iir—the mur
der of Dean, and the sealing np of his remains
in a tin box ! "What Dean ?" asked a half
dozen voices at oaro " Why, Bar dean, of
cour3t>"'
VOL. XX. K0.26.
The Mine of Schuylkill County.
In company with a tciuud, wc recently paid
a visit to that great cariosity of the Anthracite
cuai region, the burning iniue. It is located in
what is known as the "jugular veiu " of the
Broad Mountain, near the village of Coal
Castle. Tne scenery around this ruining vill
age is strikingly grand aod beautiful. Wher
ever the eye may turn, the smoke of stenrn
engines can be seen ascending, while their deep
pulsations break the stillness of the giant
mountains. A hundred little brooks and rivu
lets make music in the deep gorge* and over
the shining pebbles. Immense structures built
of timber and blackened by the coal dust, tell
of the enterprise of the operators ; while the
dusky countenances of the toil-worn miners
bear witness to their industry.
Leaving the high road which passes through
the village, we wended our way op along the
mountain gorge to the burning mine. A well
worn path indicated the locality of the curiosity
we were iu search of, and following this we
soon cam" within range of the sickening ordors
which rise from the hidden lire. After climb
ing with some difficulty from the gorge to the
j .summit of the mountain spur, beneath which
which the devouring element rages, we catne
to the direct evidences of the magnitude of
this subterranean fire. Immense holes wero
formed in the mountain, funnel shaped aud
: about twenty feet in depth, where the surface
j of the earth had caved in upon the cavity form
ed by the fire. Those extend iu a line from
, the entrance to the mine a distance of several
' hundred yards, and present a most singular ap
' pearance. Around them the trees are killed
by the vapors which continually arise in the
form of steam from the bidden laboratory.—
The rocks and pebbles are colored with a sul
phurous coating of a yellowish-red hue. The
earth over the mine is loose and porous, being
apparently disintegrated by the continual action
! of the hot air and steam which arises from the
fire below and by thrusting a stick into it the
; vapor will at once burst out.
\\ e cannot describe the sickening odor of
this vapor. It is sulphurous, and there is a
damp, stifling effluvia about it which is very
I nauseating. The steam which rises through
j the earth is only modern)ely warm, owing to
the great depth of the fire. We lingered
around the externa! evidences of this wonder
ful subterranean combustion nntil we wero
sickened by its breath, and the odor of ithr.ng
about us for bouts after we had reached a
i purer atmosphere.
'1 11s burning mine was first ignited in thb
winter of One of the watchmen placed
a light near a prop, wfcich caught fire, and
; soon the fire was communicated to the coal,
.m l since then has been burning incessautlv.
llow much coal has been consumed in this
scoi eof years can only be conjectured, but
I certainly many thousands of tons have been
1 necessary to feed the devouring element. A
vein underneath that which is burning is now
worked. Several times the lire has communi
: cated 10 this vein, but it lias always been ex
tinguished by filling the mine with water. At
present there are no signs of fire in the lower
vein, and the miners work without any diffi
culty or uppa at tear. We could not but
j iiiiik, however, that tile labor of digging coai
i near six hundred feet below tht earth's surface,
with u Ure of iweuty years' standing, covering
; acres ot ground, above their heuds, was not
the most agreeable occupation iu the world.—
| Mining Reurd.
i
MEDICAL USE OK SALT.—IU many RATES of
| d surdere i stomach, a teaspcoufull of salt is a
! certain cum. In the violent internal aching,
termed ciiodc, aii'.l a tea.ipoonlu! of salt to a
pint of cold water - drink it and go to bed ;it
is one of the speediest remedies known. The
i -nine will revive receiving who seems ultuost
i dead from receiving a heavy fall.
In an aj o ibctic fit, no time ihould be lost
l in pmring dow i salt and water, il sufficient
' sensibility remain to allow the swallowing—if
• not, tiie head must be sponged with cold wa
ter iiitH.the senses ritirn, when salt will im
mediately restore the patient Iroiu the lethargy.
Iu a fit, the feet should be placed iu warm
, water, with mustard added ; and the legs brisk
ly rubbed, all bandages removed from the
neck, and a cool apartment procured if possi
, b!e. In many cases of severe bleeding at the
lungs, and when other remedies fail Dr. ltuch
found two spoonfuls of salt completely stayed
1 tile blood.
In case of bite from a mad dog, wash th©
port \vi h >'ro g •r n ■ for an hour, then bind
on some salt a iili u rig
lu toot! a li', warm sulC—.ind water held to
the jirt ami renewed two or three times will
relieve in most eases If the gnuis be affec
ted, wash the mouth with brine ; if the teet
be covered with tartar wash them twice a d*<
with alr and water.
in swelled neck, wash the part with brine
, and drink it also twice a day until cured.
Salt will expel worms, if used in the food
in a moderate degree, and aids digestion ; but
salt meat is injurious if used too much.— .Sa
j en'ifi Arric.ri -n it
ttkfe'* A barn filled with tobacco, oats and
wheat, belonging to Aiulnw Mi* thorn of this
I village, was destroyed by fire with ail its con
j tents, at Ilig Flats on Friday night. Thecoij.
j tents belonged to Mr Geo. Tenbrok of Big
Fiats. 'llie los< is estimated at .$ 1.000. No
t insurance. The fir© was undoubtedly kindled
by the torch of an incendiary. Similar de
! perflations have been committed in, and about
Ibg Flats for some time past. It is ardently
hoped that these black hearted vidians will I o
speedily smelt out and brought to justice ere
any more destruction flow from their ruinous
hands.—JL/vti a Advertiser.
FATAL RxtLnoAb Accibrsr —The engine
No 111. attached to a freight train on the
New-York and Erie R lroad, ex plod t d about
9 o'clock on Wednesday morning last, thrt-o
miles West of Suvjo* h.uimi, seriou.-ly injur
ing N .than Whitnee, eiig necr. H. Vease",
fireman, a:•! Fred Bowers at;J S. Harris.!,
broken.tn.