Independent Republican. (Montrose, Pa.) 1855-1926, December 24, 1857, Image 1

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    C. F. READ H. FRAZIER, EDITORS
THE DYING YEAR.
fly 1 irssr MORFORD
A Dim:s goes past on the Founding blast
As the north wind hurries by,
And the spirit's wail on the sighing gale
Moans through the wintry sky.
Hark the passing dirge of Time is borne
On the fierce wind cold and drear,
The 11 of days that can ne'er return,
Tho knell of the Dying Year. _
It has passed along since the cheerful song
Rung unt.for its natal day ;
()•,, earth and sky it has basted by,
Nor paused on its hurried way:
Fell :naitv a smile it brought - us then,
And tbe sigh it hath left us here;
The hopes and tears of the SOMI of men
Bare passed in the Dying Year.
Arl rinvr: a smile, that has shone awhile
tile lips of the young and proud,
Tat:: tinted away, with the grave and gay, -
Like the sintlxiarn from the 'cloud.
Glad voices have passed away from earth,
That gave us the Christma.scheer; •
rale Sorrow has palled•their hour of mirth
- They have died with the Dying Year. •
The foling gleam that lope's rale beam
found our patltawhile hath shed,
_Io la : passed 'and gone, and its knell rung on
'The dirge of the-early dead,
ICe have heaved the sigh for the loved that sleep,
w ei lave wiped the pearly tear,
And splitas we loved around us keep
The watch oft& Dying Year.
•
Tlar
ti:e dirge is rung for the souls. that hung
Oct the hope of -earthly bliss;
world more fair they have gathered there—
They were all too bright for this.
Tl ! , ,,:Nuilled as, the changing season pass e d,
'With the leaf grew. pale and sere,
They ~ ;t1111::'oeath Autumn's chilling blast,
They died with the Dying Year.
Time's. tireless wave to the silent grave
h-ming us ever on, - •
in the steps to-tread of the early dead,
• 'Where the Dying Year bath gone.
Hulk ! the passing dirge of Time i. home
On the north wind cold and drear—
The knell of days that can neer return,
The knell of the Dying Tear. - .
AN ADDRESS
' I.I.I.ITEEEP raTora: TUE
SUSQUEHANNA COUNTY NORMAL SCHOOL,
Montrose, Tuesday, Dec. Ist, 1857. -
ny nn - . HENIIT HARRIS JESSCP.
it hay Lech said that " the word Education
is so large, that one may almost as well put
v ,.. 0r 1 0 r erd and object of - being,' at the
-licA of an essay." . Nothing is more evident.
it is :1 word of singular-significance, of wide
Like the firmament above, the
I:cneath, or the air we breathe, it is
ver su.,: t zested t and ever present, to whatever
departmcut of human though!, ot* action we
turn our attention. It is a word which logi
cin-; miuht call a " universal." It covers
('‘'....r3 thing., It has as Many meanings as
r.re chapters in - earth's history, as there
vibmtions in the.penduluin of individual
(xpvileLi..o.
reference
:o
kzac, the word is defined, by reference
'to Lhe c r 014c:30011AI machinery of a government
,yslein, like that, of Prussia, where all are
I:l,invil upon one model, and complied to
1.,•: . ,rn, upon penalty of fine and imprisonment.
SQ..:.ie unders:tand by it, the routine of Aead-
i , zl:l. and College, terminated at one end by
a Latin Grammar, at the other by a Latin
Diploma. Some make it to be a few
rflowhs' schooling in the winter, with en-
Lire reelect of everything which tends to
inrprosi; Nand make available the knowledge
tiJui at:aieed, during therest of the year...r
ya...Ts would subscibe fully, ".verkgim ct
Likrati?p," to• the 'sentiment. of . the English
yc. , man, expressed on a public occasion,
- The three R.'s -which have made England•
what she is: Reedit), ljtin and Rithmeticl"
Some will make Education the arena-for
the Ciseussion of the question, whether Dr.
llell or Mr. Lancaster originated the mord- .
• torial ‘n mutual system of instructicrt, while
could call every well digested system,
- A eLtitli-h waste of plilosoptic pains." :
ST,nne claim that educatiOn is purely
Intel
.lectu:cl. others lay greater stress on the phys
ical, 11 ii'de many justly claim that both corn- .
Althout the religious, element., are of
little er no avail. - Some make it simply a
u es: i in of economics, and-wonder that men
, uf sense will countenance any attempt at im
vi tient. upon the 'orthography of the ira
inorq.al Cobb, or the arithmetic of a Diboll I
Even the teacher sometimes thinks of Edam
, Lion as a patient; wearisome, thankless toil,
anti the pupil in turn regards it; as a necessary
evil.. 7.ae ';.x..4lt.ician.,..makes it a convenient
toolex . alting himsell in popular f:tv;ir ;
die mechanic wlelconies it .as introducing new
facilities fur the prosecution of his work ; the
farmer, as giving him thecontrol of agents
Jedure unserviceable because unknown.—
. These are some of the varied phases in which
Education appears to different minds. Some
....re radical and extreme, though each con
. an element of truth, and . all serve to
ilith.tt ate the diVerse aspects of .the Subject,
::r.-itg from diVereitita in the human mind.
Yet these differer,ces are not all mere-ques
tions as to form.' There is real 'diversity as
to nthstance. One will be satisfied .if 'the
young are trained in French, music, and' the
i.uli,,hed arts, leaving weightier matters for
intr.mer veers.. 'Another, and by far. -the
insist upon laying deep the feun.
Al:Ilion with logic'and philosophy and bi4tory,
using the lighter accomplishments, as the
out:.ide txchitecture of the glowing soul
hhin.
-.7. To write an exhaustive and complete trey. •
t3s e upon Education, would be to write a.
A‘ornplote treatise' upon - all things under the
sun. AS well write .a Universal. history or
geography. Education 'is the development
of mon—not man .as a physical, intellectual,
mural, or religious being, but as nil 4:otn.
hined. All things bring to man their tribute,
the kings of the earth and the "queen of.
The South" brought their treasures to the
feet of Solomon. All scenes ; all experience,
nistruction-all successes, ail failures—eve.-
ry current of influence without, every cher
habit within, operate upon and modify
IL; man, develop contribute to his_Ed
ue.ition. In some sense, every man Is' educe,
ted; though sad to state 'the majority of the
!Ace are schooled in-ignorance and tire.—
'l'he Mohammedan boy is .educated. Ills
is drawn out and developed, though it
is in servile attachment. to soul-destroyieg
error. Yet it is an education. Whatever
forms a &it'll in . man,' forms ''a part of his
Education. The great- problem is, how to
educate man, so as to keep the, lower . pats
ofhis nature in subordinaon W the higher?
Aee the passions and Appetites . In be domi
nant and controhng,. or are theAgber.,sad
• holier aspirations .4 the human , •. to
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be placed upen the throno ? Is self to rule
society or be ruled by it? Are men to groat
up in shapeless deformity f with one-sided
views of all subjects, and a just, impartial
view of none 'I What does man know ?
What does hi not know ? How can men be
trained and disciplined so at to live with men
Is there a training which will fit man for
communion With God ! Who are qualified
to impart instruction and mould immortal
mind ? How should instruction be imparted ?
How snotan IT as RECEIVED? These are .
grave questions, each worthy of mature de
liberation. Their just solution is of great
importance, and we cannot study them too
closely. It is, jiowever, chiefly to the lust
of these questions, that I propose to give a
partial answer at the present time? Bow
should instruction be received
What is the preper spirit of a Student,—
"Limited as it may seem, this question is one
of nearly universal application. We are ail
-students. No one has reached such an emi•
mace in scientific or literary attainments_,_ as
to soar above the atmosphere of study. You
may sink below it, but you cannot rise above
it,. Apathy and cOtroding care may gnaw
out the vitals, of the highest aspirations, and
degrade man to. the level of the irrational crea
tion ; but let him fix his thoughts upon great
themes, let him ascend among the towering
summits of truth, and his field of vision will
be enlarged his mind will be clearer, his
passion for study more insatiate, and every
energy be fixed upon making nearer and
nearer approaches to the fountain of Eternal
Truth.
The fat mer studies. as he notes the phßifvs
ophy of the seasons, the composition of soilS,
the laws and' processes of vegetable growth,
whether it be when the winter stricken earth
is arraying itself in the mantle , of hopeful
spring, or amid the rustling sheaves of golden
autumn. The loom and. the anvil, the count.
mg-room and the exchange, furnish ample
themes fur profitable and continued study.
The - lawyer is a student, or should be, all his
days. The physician who' does not study
with the greatest assiduity and patience the
nature of diseases and- their •remedies, is a
curse rather than a blessing to society. The
Minister of - the gospel, too, the language of
whose heart and lip- is to be moulded by the
" - Rook of books,' who must be conversant
with individuals and society, with facts - and
their philosophy; with theology; that sci
ence which embraces 'ail other sciences,
"which attracts all to itself, subordinates
' them and receives from them their tribute ;"
surely he must be a student. The teacher is
nu less a student than the taught. It is safe
to assert, then, that we are all students, and
a brief consideration of the spirit which
should animate us in the 'pursuit of knowl
edge may not be inappropriate to the present
occasion.
The first characteristic of this spirit is in
tellectual humility. -
Nothing can be more important to a stu
dent, one whose . very occupation is a tacit
confession of ,his ignorance, than that he be
humble. Ni thing is more fatal to intellectual
progress this intellectual pride. We live in ,
a world of Beat realities. There is a solem
nity and a sublimity in truth, which some
times comes upon the mind with an over
whelming power, bringing with it an oppress
ive sense of human weakness. Tha'greatest
men of our earth bear unbroken testimony
to the fact, that their highest flights and deep
est explorations have only disclosed greater
heights and more profound •deptbs, beyond
their intellectual scope. Pride of intellect is
evidence of a weak mind. No one who thinks
great thoughts, and comes in contact with
great truths, can ever harbor a proud spirit..
It were an . easy thing for one who dwells
only among pigmies, to regard himself a gi
ant, but he, whose companions are giants, will
fee I conscious of his own littleness. A man
to be humble, must be great.
6uld an ()garnet pry into Itself, it might marvel at
its own anatomy;
But let it look omeagl, wt, to discern how mean a thing
it is."
A Newton could_ reply without aflctation
to the congratulations of his admirers, "To
:pyre', I seem to have been as a child playing
on the sea-shore, while the immense ocean of'
truth lay unexplored before me." And Bax
ter, whose warm devotional. spirit and gifted
intellect are embalmed imperitihably in his
writings, a priceless treasure to the Christian
world, exclaimed at the close of his life, " I
was but a pea in God's hand, and what praise
is due to a pen 1" •
If you would lose all vitality and vigor, if
you would have all -that is noble, and good,
and great witt in you, dwarfed' . and dwindled
to a skeleton, cherish high ideas of yourself!
Huw fatal to intellectualgrowth, to-be satis
fied with a drop, when the fountains of truth
are flowing at your side untouched. It will
not do to minister the stimulus of pride to
one who is thirsting for knowledge. You
wig* as well feed with firo, a man dying fur
want of water.! The great want still remains.
The man is ignorant, and - by becoming - vain
iW .-- t
has only ado his ignorance, fur now be
is proud and does not know it.. It is 'said
that ",of all the passions, vanity is the most
unsocial." It is true especially of him whose
fortune is linked in with others in the acqui
sition of knowledge. The loss of humility,
is the forfeiture of mutual confidence. A
wall of ice shuts off the warm greeting and
kind embrace. There is distance, suspicion,
alienation. . And if this exists between friends
how wide the separation between the unfor
tunate man and the truth ! No longer does
he seek it with ardent zeal. No longerare
his earnest questionings reiterated , with' im
portunity. He stands alone, unenvied, un
loved. Whethek you interrogate Natore,
Providence, or the volume of human science,
you must be an humble questioner, or be
spurned away unanswered.
Remember, too, thst as you see a student,
you are also * man. You ere not only to
jive with books but with men; 'and the "art
of living with others," is by far too much one
of the " lost arts" in our day. It needs more
of attention than we are wont to give it. And
nothing is more clear, than that Aussiiity is
one of the indispensable elements in the
character of one who is to live with men.--
Humanity and humility are sister virtues.
But if you should never mingle with men,
if your life is to be hidden in the cloister, and
no human form .but your own should , ever
darken your threshold, What. can contribute
more to, your culture and enjoyment,,dtin
humility, 04 .is simply a ilia estimate of
one's e4f. 1., ,;
:yet, . m 504 say, this is easier said than
•Xitund writer hss declared he
rnia, to be . a Yggra4e—citanethini oat de
"FQIEEDOIAI 4134 MONT ilanamn g3Law[grA27( amp wßomau"
1111ONTIOSE, THIIRSDAY, DECEMBER 24, 1857.
of and above
rare
attribute of the
divine—a rare exotic, not indigenous in man.
Be it so. , What can • justi y the neglect of
him who never puts forth n . effort to attain
it, robs himself of its heav ly influence,- and
builds around him a wall o exclude its en-.
trance forever! , It am onl. ,be attained by
communion with exalted th mes and superior
beings. Be it - then your al , while You give '
your humble energy to the study of self and
society, also to study, with more self-sacri-,
ficing energy, and a more 1' verential humil
ity, the Character of tho " High and lofty One
who inhabiteth Eternity."
The second element in t`le spirit of it stu- .
dent is noroughnep. ,,
The Romans had a proverb, "Mutt=
non ,nulla,"
." Much not malty things," which
is well rendered in our troverb,' "Better
know everything of some hing than some
thing of everything." Thee i s great danger
that students will try to !learn too many
things. - Not unfrequently ire teachers beset
by their pupas with the Imost pertinacious
requests for permission toistudy Chemistry,
Geology, Astronomy, Lc - fic, and Mental
s
Philosophy, when these .me pupils tiligfit
l
with more propriety stud" words of three
syllables in .the Spelling li k and practice
o
in the first elerr.ents of Sim ply Arithmetic.
It is a common remark 'that students .of
ten graduate in our colleges, who arc not
able to translate their Latin i)iplornas. • :It
is equally • true that man 4 of the y2lting lof
both sexes, speak of knoll:iffy Latin, French,
Geometry, Astronomy, Ntitttral Philosophy
and. other branches of study, when their
knowledge is at best but al mere figment of
their own fancy. How tininy,. think you, of
those who know French, can converse freely
and accurately in the French language? How
many who know Astronohy in this sense,
can repeat the names of th constellations, or
point them • out in a clear evening ' or calcu
late-an eclipse . ? Would. it not be better for
us to cultivate a small fiehl and d.) it well,
rather than add acre to sere and field to field
and let all run to wasteana weeds 1
I remember once hearing a conversation in
Tripoli, my Syrian borne, - between several
Greek boys whose ages raoged.from eight to
twelve years: Said one to another, "Selim,
how many languages do you know 1"
- " Why, Giurgius, I litio , iir Antbic,ana Eng
lish, and French, and Turkish; and I am now
going to study Itallan., - How many do you
know, Giurgius ?"
" May your good be iteremed, 0 Selim.
I know Arabic, and Italian, and English, and,
Torkish,but my brother Yakoolispeaks Eng
lish better than I do."
"Well, Yakoob, let us heir . .you speak
English.". :
"This is my English,
hes -d
and then another won. 7 ery ices
you.' That is all I know '
" Very good," answered the rest.
Now Yakoob's English was. a - pretty good
specimen of the linguistic !Attainments of the
crowd, and had any onb. of them put his
French, or Italian, or Tu4kish, to the test, it
would probably evaporat in the same way.
And similar would be /the fate of many
American boys, I doubt not, were their sup.
posed, attainments subjeclted to a . fair' and
searching trial.
I have even heard it sad by good authori
ty, that it is no slight tai fur the printers in
the city of Washington to correct the bad
spelling and false syntax f manuscript Con
gressional speeches sent to them for publica
tion. It once happened, to my certain knowl
edge, that a literary preiduction received a
second prize in a celebiated Institution of
this country, when nothing prevented its re
ceiving the first prize but the fact that many
of the words- were outrsqeoesly misspelled.'
Above all things I insist upon it that 'you
learn your own language well Learn to
speak, and read, and writ t e, and spell, correct
ly. If you read books, read a-few and mas
ter them. Better know one book well, than
many books superficially Better read "Rob
inson Crusoe" thoroughl and intelligently,
than a whole library wi out knowing what
it contaira.
. I do , not mean by -thoto ugliness, a magni
fying of tithe things. 4 few years ago the
Patriarch Maximus of Ditrnaseus, spent three
years of precious - time aid a vast amount of
money in litigation about the shape of an ec
clesiastical cap! Ile wrote letters and pamph
lets, argued and discussdd, journeyed to Con
stantinople and back agsko, and all to decide
°the shape of a cap. Yotl would not call such
a man thorough or great; for though he may
be great on little things,, you would expect
him to be little on grey things. '
Abulfeda, an Arab hi iorian, tells a story
of a fatuous controvcra, which once took
place between two oelett.rated grammarians,
Sibuyah,'and Ira.ai. - The dispute was on the
words, " I thought the 'sting- of a scorpion
worse than the sting of , wasp."
Sibuyah maintained that the word " sting"
,was in the nominative,ad Kasai maintained
that it was in the accu `Live..The Khalif,or
prince, before whom tit discussion was held,
deeidei is favor of K i, and Sibuyah was
s l i
so greatly distressed .a his defeat that he
travelled away from I kto Shiraz and died
there. It might be sSid in justification of
such an intense devotion to a comparatively
trifling question, that minuteness is uecesta
ry to thoroughness, but you will allow me
to say. that dying in defence of a nominative
owe is a very ingloriouis kind of martyrdom.
It is a very easy thing to be superficial—
It is very hard to be thorough. It is very
easy to make mistakes. It is not easy to
I
correct them. If you would be thorough,
you'must work. One' the most common
errors of students, rs in composition
writing. What has not been amazed
and confounded, if not diverted, at the mis.
takes in punctuation stantly occurring in
school boys' composite s.
Here is a specimen of false punctuation,
which will illustrate importance of put.
ting tbe comma in the - right place. . When
:properly pointed. the WOW id quite sensi
ble andoorrect. As i is, you will readily
!'observe that them ' is grossly pervert.
ed : ' . .
"- Lord Palmerston tend th e room on
his bead,--his old fami iar bat on his feet,—
his well - polished boots his brow, his spec.
j
tacles under his arm, It . cane Which be held
with the fi rmness of oath completing the
pieture, and after s -lug a few words si.
Jently, he turned and 10t - tbe room." -
Sometimes the -wMpositions of boys in
our schotils. are equal this In
_punctuation
and meaning. -
.
We all,bs, we need greater thoroughness.
A
' deep furrow is th en a elide otke.—
equal this
to bO-ttsXo4. Abhor superfsislitl.
The third point to which I ask your atten- I
tion is an appreciation of the true object of
academic study.
You do not attend school for the purpose
of learning everything, or mastering every
science, or penetrating the mysteries of all
knowledge. The true object of study is
mental discipline.. God has given you minds,
and you tome here to learn how to use them.
The great difference between educated men,
and men who are not educated is not that the
former are naturally more gifted or have
better minds, but that they know better how
to use what they /vre.
Solomon says, "If the iron be blunt and
he do not whet the edge, then' must he put
to more strength." This is the reason why
an educated man can accomplish a g:ven in:
tellectuat task with half the exertion requi
site for an uneducated man in the perform
ance of the same task. The one is working
with a sharpened axe, and the other with a
dull one. It is said that the lamented Pres;•
ident Harrison had been so little accustom
ed to close mental toil, that when - the rou
tine of official duty, the preparation of im
portant documents and the intense mental
application thus involved, were thrown upon
him, he sank Mider . the burden. A man ac
customed to literary labor, can accomplish
in one day that which another unaccustomed
to it 'Might •not be able to accomplish in
weeks . . Do not be afraid of hard studies. 'Your
teachers give you hard problems in.math-e
-matics, long lists of dates ir, history, and
hard sentences in Greek and Latin, not so
much for- their own sake, as for the sate of
disciplining the mind and strengthening the
memory.
Hard' studies are e grindstone. A grind
stone is not beautiful, It would not make a
good parlor ornament, but it is of vest im
portance in sharpening and . polishing axes,—
Every battle with a toed problem, every ef
fort to commit to memo& a' difficult task,
sharpens the edge of your intellect i and flakes
the next tack easier.
There is another use of academic study.—
It teaches you how to concentrate your mind
—bow to be short, pointed / concise. •
There are many words wasted in this
world. There would not be so many books
in the world if all authors were men of well
disciplined mind ; at all events iamb books
there are would be shorter: We have a
proverb, " Brevity is the soul °twit." The
Aiabs have a proverb of similar import:
• - . "If words ere silver,
-* "Silence is gold - -
And another Eastern nation have a story
illustrating the same point, which runs some
what thus: There was once in a certain part
of India, such a voluminous library, that one
thousand camels were requisite for its trans
' port, and one hundred Brahmins had to be
paid for its care. The king felt no inclina
tion to waAle through this heap of learning
himself, and ordered his librarians to furnish
him with an extract, or abridgment, for his
private use. Therret - to - work, - apd in about
twenty years' time they produced a nice lit.
tle Encyclopedia which might have been ea
sily carried by thirty camels.
But the monarch found it still too large,and
had not even patience enough to read the
preface.
The indefatigable Brahmins began there•
fore afresh; and - reduced the thirty camel
loads into so small a substance that a single
donkey could bear it with ease. But the
king's dislike for reading had increased with
age, and his servants wrote at last on a palm
-leaf:
rood morning , air
-- 11 , „I thank
"The quintessence of all science consists
in the little word, Perhaps." -
"Three expressions contain the history of
mankind: They were 'born ; they suffered;
they died."
Now this story, whether fabulous or real,
illustrates the %ery important truth "that
of making books there is no end," and that
there is in this 'world a great deal of " dark
ening counsel by words without knowledge."
There are more books than the world
needs, and more words than , ideas, and tho'
I would not say that it would be better for
you and the world if all books were thns con
densed, yet I doubt not it would be a bless
ing if we had ono hundred men like the li
brarians of the Eastern tale, to go through
some of our libraries, and sift out. the wheat
from the chaff.
And it-would be an interesting experi
ment to take the compositions of the pupils
of such a school as'this, and put them into a
hydraulic press, and see how much solid mat
ter would remain after all the gaseous and
irrelevant expressions had made their escape.
Perhaps the experiment wouldprove equal
ly interesting if applied to lawyers at the
bar, and to the addresses of other men in
other professions.
There is a great evil, a sad neglect in the
education of South, 'which may find its appro
priate remedy in the fixtrth characteristic of
a student's spirit—Charity.
It is that %road, comprehensive, liberal
spirit, which enables one to lead not only a
happy, but a useful life. In science, it teach
es the student that while one theory is most ,
generally accepted and eleSrly established,
there are others which are 4ntitied to candid
and careful investigation ;in politics, th at
there is no ground for believing that all
the sound ,principles, and all the pure
minded men belong to one party, while all
others are corrupt and unworthy of confi
dence ; in society, it teaches that neither birth'
nor wealth, nor accidental- elevation renders
one class better than another, but that true
worth of character is to be loved and imita
ted, in whatever sphere it had its.origin ; in
religion, that, there are other creeds besides
its own—that there is no evidence that any
'pee sect has all the truth, but that while they
have Enrich in common, each may be the ser
vitor of some distinctive truth—that religion
is a life, not a name, and that the simple,
heartfelt worship of a disciple in the desert
or the wilderness, tray be more acceptable
to God than all the pomp and circumstance"
of gorgeous ceremonials and external fionrs,
in the midst of which the hollow-hearted of
fering is like - the dry rattling of " a skeleton
among the arches and aiska and columns of
a cathedral !
There is too much of narrow-mindedness
in our site. A republic should be a republic
of kind)) Wine', generous sympathy and
broad charity. Every man is king, And should
learn to treat every other one as possessed of
equal dignity. If men are trained to study the
inscriptions only on one side of the grand pyr
amid of truth, they will be prone to treat
with Suspicion, if not with bitterness, those.
who have *Waled Gootbetigdtk siom iwOhi
be men of great hearts and great minds, they
must view the truth on every side.
It is not well to confine the mind to a sin- .
gle study or pursuit. There shad be a
variety—not a distracting, but a refreshing
variety. The mind
to'
it. Instead of a
minute attention to a single point, because
the mind of a youth has a particular, ,bent
toward'it, the attention should be given the
more to other things. if a man would rear
a lofty monument, there must be breadth of
base, else it will come tumbling to the ground.
" As another has well remarked, " Much
may be mid of the advantage of keeping a
man to few pursuits, and of the great things
done thereby in the making of pins and nee
dies. But in this matter, we are not thinking
of the things that 'are to be done, but of
the persons who are to do them—not wealth,
but men. A number of one-sided
. men may
make a great nation, though I much incline
to doubt that; ; but such a nation will not
contain a number of great men." Charity is
a lesson to be learned in youth. If you
cramp the mind,' and give it .a particular de
partment and that alone for the concentration
of its energies, you will compress the entire
range of intellectual and moral vision. You
imprison Jaen in the valley, little dreaming of
the magnificent prospect from the mountain
tops, and whether his "name be Norval" or
not, he will think -the " moon no broader
than his father's shield," and that the sun was
made to shine for him alone.
I do not mean .here by Charity that species
of infidel philosophy known as Modern. Pla
tonism, which teaches "that the great prin
ciples of nil philosophical and religious truth
are to be fitund equally in all sects, differiug
only in the mode of expressing them"—a
principle which opens the flood-gates of error
upon all that is pure and holy, and baptizes
all heathenish systems in the name of God,
but a charity which is tolerant, which suffer
eth long and is kind ; which envied' not,
vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, doth not
behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own,
is not easil provoked, thinketh no evil ; re
joiceth not es " in iniquity tnit rejoiceth in the
truth ; bcsreth all things, believeth ail things,
hopeth all things, endureth ail things."
It dues not acquiesce in error, nor treat it
with bitterness and threats, but strives kindly,
intelligently, and manfully, to inform and re
form it.' •
One of the great advantages of a college
education, to a young man, to say nothing of
the discipline of mind and habits of study, is
the fact that be is thrown into contact with
young men of his own age from all parts of
the land, of every' variety of political and
social views and opinions, and learns to ap
preciate something of the hidden influences
and under currents which form :the distinct
features of character in different parts of the
land and the world. The Georgia stu
dent will be surprised that the Vermonter
is not, that impersonation of foxy conning,
blustering impudence and uncouthness of
manners, which he had pictured to himself,.
and there will be equally agreeable surprise
in the other party. There is thus incidental
to the very acquisition of knowledge, the
growth of a large and liberal spirit ;
Lord Bacon says, " Custom is most per
fect, when it beguneth in young Years • this
we call education, which is, in effect, but an.
early custom." And the same author remarks
in another connection;" Certainly it is heaven
upon. earth to have a man's mind move in
Charity, rest in Providence, and turn upon
, the poles of Truth."
There is need of greater charity in our
day. Conflicting 'opinions bring men into
frequent opposition. Elements arc brought
into combination, which have no af fi nity for
t eam!' other, and t he student, who should study
men and things as well as books, and fit
himself to . act thoughtfully and discreetly,
should not neglect' to cultivate this gem of
all the graces of character—Charity.
There is something sad in the contempla
tion of
,a majestic ship in the midst of a tem
pestuous sea, without a pilot, unmanageable
and on the verge of ruin; there is something
fearful in the thought of a ponderous engine,
without anY.restraining hand, dashing on at
full speed to certain destruction ; but there
is something sad and fearful beyond express
ion, in the condition of a great and good
man, enjoying universal confidence and
crowned with earth's laurels, suddenly were-.
ing from the path of rectitude, and plunging
into the gulf of disgrace DM : wretchedness.—
It sends a shock through society, and a voice
comes thrilling in deep undertone: " Let
him that thinketh he standeth, take heed lest
he fall." Buell histories are mournfully sug
gestive, and lwe inquire, why this sad con
summation ? Alas, the unhappy victim had
not self-control.
It is said that when Peter the Great, in.
violation of one of his own laws, had inflicted
a blow upon his gardener which resulted in
his death,, be exclaimed : "Alas, I have civ
ilized my own subjects, 1 have conquered
other nations,.yet, I have not been able to
_civilize or conquer myself!" -
What a lesson to the young, especially - to
those whose temptations are so great as those
of the student! You live in a world very
much by yourselves. You are in danger of
forgetting what kind of men live outside,
making, up the great mass of society. If
you trim your sails only - for an inland sea,
you vrili be unable to weather the storms of
life's great ocean. You need a habit of self
control. There is a self-diseipline in small
things, which will fit a man at length for the
shock of the fiercest battle. And there is a
sell:neglect in small things, which in the e
results in great discomfiture and sorrow.—
Impatience in study, irregularity, inattention
to health and recklessness as to the future, all
betray a want of self-control, and betoken the
certain triumph of the sours worst enemies.
I need not insist upon a truth so evident;
but remark in conclusion, that one of the
most important characteristics of the spirit of
a student, is a reference tolhs end of life. _
It is said that there is a final cause, !.9 Which
ever,y creative and Providential act vf 'God
is referrible, and should there nothe final
cause to which we may refer.all human effort
and human 'action I A final 'cause is igt end,
which acts as a cause. Sometimes'. motives
make their appeal from the regrets and dis
appointments of the fast. History holds out
its page, now illumined with promise - , now
veiled in sorrow ; the soul looks upon It, and
it wrought up with new energy. But there
are influences from thefatiere, prospective,
which come in upon the :Saul laden with all
that is mysterious sad uncertain, ;possible
sod
sod hopeful, in that realm Of shadows, and
expand the ftpirit, operating as a potent cause
to detertnitung htdisidual destiny. Like
1 H. H. FRAZIER, PUBLISHER---VOL 8. 150
magnetic pole, they act with Controlling force
upon the plans and purposes and pursuits of
men, keeping the neeole always in one di
rection, so that by observing the man, you
may know at once for what be is living. -
One of the seven wise men
.. of Greece se
lected for his motto, " Reline* nernr—
Consider the end—think of the end. Think
as you live and suffer and enjoy, as you float
in the iris-hued clouds of imagination over
the dizzy mountain summits of life, and then
sink suddenly to the very depths of its dark
ravines;' think as glory gleams on 'your oath,
or sorrow arrayi you in the mantle of the
sepulchre; when your highest aspirations
quiver and reverse their flight like wounded
birds; when you seem to have strayed from
life's sonny fields; and like miners to'• .be
working in the dark ; in fine, be your mind
blank and dreary as iTdeserted house, or
busy and confused as w tumultuous throng,
think of the end ! It is something certain,
something real. You know that it will come,
though you know, not when, nor how. You
know that it, is that for whie.h you are study
ing, striving, waiting. You must be efficient,
faithful now, if you would be ready for it.,
"In ancient times, them were instituted in
the honors of Prometheus, certain games of
lamp-bearers, in which they that strove for
the prize, were , wont to carry torches lighted,
which whose suffered to go out, yielded the
place aud' the victory to those that followed,
and so cast back themselves ; so that whoso
ever, came first• to the mark with his torch
burning, received the prize."
Thus, let it be your aim, while you press
forward toward the mark, to keep your
torch burning. Go not impetuously, lest
your self-control be lost, and your light ex
tinguished; linger not, lest you lose sight of
the golden prize. keep: it burning, with the
.gentle flame of humility and the radiating
besins of an expansive charity, and while it
illumines your own path, it will guide many
a wandering, desponding brother. There is
a dark valley in every, life's pilgrimage, be
fore ,the enchanted mountains - are reached,
and you will need a , light to guide you there.
You know where to look for the fountain
of all light and truth. You know that there
is a book which
,contains the earliest and most
accurate history, the sublimest poetry, the
profoundest reasoning, the most burning elo.
quence, the purest morality—whose wisdom,
profound and, pure, runs like a stream through
all literature, so that if the thoughts copied
from and suggested by the Book of books
were taken out - of Milton, Shakspeare and
other eminent authors, there would- be an
empty skeleton instead of the living fire and
strength, which have immortalized them :
all this you know. Need I urge you to study
it, to ponder it, to infuse it into your very
bein e' .
if are young and wish entertaining
stories, there-is the story of Piradise, of Ad
am and Eve, of the Flood and the Ark, of
the tower of Babel, ef Abraham , offering
Isaac, of Esau selling his birthright, of the
story of Joseph, the birth of Moses, the
plagues in Egypt, the crossing of the Red
Sea, the pillar of cloud and the pillar of fire,
the means, the brazen serpent, the return of
the. spies, bringing - the gripes of Rsehol, the
siege of Jericho Elijah ..nid the-ravens, Eli
sha and the - boys: at Bethel, the wars with
the Philistines, the wondrous history or.
Sampson, the thrilling career of David the
shepherd boy who became king, of Solomon
and his wonderful temple, of his wisdom,
his way of deciding which of two claimants
was the mother of the child, and then Daniel
and the lions' den, Ruth the gleanerynd Queen
Esther, and a thousand other stories with
which the old Testament abounds,. And
then the New Testament, it scents . to have
been made on 'purpose for the young. Its
life of Christ, its simple language, its para
bles, its , teaehirgs of gentleness and love, its
beautiftil images, its sweet and winning invi
tations, its accounts of Jesus! miracles and
Hie pure, lovely .and loving; character, :the
deeds done by the Apostles, their voyages
and travels, their shipwrecks, falling among
robbers, being stoned and persecuted and put
in prison, and then their letters, especially
those of John addressed to little children,
and his Book of Revelation winding.up' the
glorious Book of the Lord with a !post inter
esting and attractive picture of the holy city,
the new Jerusalem whose gates are of pearl
and whose streets are of fine gold, which
has no night, and needs not sun, or moon or
stars.
Can there be a richer .
,or more attractive
treasure House of story and incident for the
young ?
If Alexander the great' could carry a copy
of Homer in a - golden casket enriched with
jewels; so may you bear enshrined in a cas
ket more precious than gold r even, Your own
heart's affections, that book, whose author is
in heaven. Read it to learn, to grow, to
vrefit by it, to app ro priate and assimilate
elements' which nay contribute to your cul
ture and your growth.
In it you will find the sweetest and mast
attractive exemplar of Humility-03e broad.:
est precepts and examples of Cher,ity—Abe.
clearest directions to the exercise of ;self-Eon
trot—and while its." royal preacher?' reminds
you that" much study is a weariness of .the
flesh." he also calls upon youThimmedi
ately to " hear the conclusion of tie w&•le
matter. fear God and keep his conanund
meats." "Respire finetn"—Consider the
-
end t
THE CITY. OF CARTON.—PeopIo who have
never seen an unadulterated Eastern city,
are apt to entertain very exvoneotts ideas upon
the subjectivhen we talk ofa great city of a
million of inhabitants.. The whole circuit of
the walled city is just six miles. ,-,The mass
of habitations are about fifteeti feet high, and
contain three rooms;
they have one entrance
closed by bambo o screen.! Scant of, . the
shops have a low upper story, and tbe tiniest
roof and terrace, all together, may rise twist•
ty•five feet from the street. Better houses
there are, but they:are not more lofty. All
these edifices are: of the most fragile descrip•
tion, built of soft brick, wood,or mud.—Lon
dos Times Corr.
.
Cocnuttat. max Cannata 'a.-- The Placer
Courier mentions the reception of a minpls
of the cochineal from, Dr. Trask, of Todd's
Valley, California. it has all 'the properties
of the cochineal found in Brasil and the south
erri part of Mexico, the
_tmly apparent dirk:
roma being :that the article foun in Caliror:
nia is a log pink, whilo that elsewhas
is a deep *Cadet. \ It ,is said, to beAulte Plan
tiful this year, sala oralet sql,uaßtitY could
bltaill gathered.
_
For Mil indepaidelit Rqrshlicess.
INVOCATION.
Where hat thou Hawn. 0 iluOt -
Come'sid me
,w ilo? sing. • • -
Come.-hie thee to oar terehtg -
With fleet and faithful wing.
Cone tell of days when yinth
First mought - this sylran
Fine felt the beauty of thy andlem..
They must not bet forgot.
For I am - sad tented. _ •
Friend Kum. toy dearest Weigel,_ -
And fib would neeiftinina mini* tow; -..
To, with the puma,
A strange, tweet - sound steads *nth,
As winery's chords I ewe',
And echoes o'er the hearer' die4/ 0111 1 11, -
Where stranger memlbei sleep: - ,
-Then, lightly touch thignrimn—
DC mita* aniglit the
_tone---
Oh lei then
ft:HA:ale
Forgive, 0 friend, the teats,
That gather , in my eye; . .
I will not weepthough It were sweet--
While illou art UpechliP l 3 l4 '
Why Should I mourn o'er hope._
Long trampled in the Oast; .
Or sigh that *Tough the axes of life,
Love's Medan linkit may mit?
No. let me meet file's Ma,
With calm, undouded brow ; .
• And ever, down the strewn afire,
My bark glide smooth as now,
EA.
TRIITIES.
" Every man's house is bis castle," bat he
has'no right-to make his castle the _unutufac - -
tory fur diffusive nuisances-4o render it a
stronghold or keep t _say, for the non-drainage
of a . particular spot. " Every man's house
is his castle," but he must not be allowed to
shoot poisoned arrows at the community
from the battlements of his castle.—Lord
John Russel. .
o Land! o.Land for all the breken-heateall
The mildest herald by our fate allotted,
Beckons and with inverted torch doth stand,
To lead us, with a - guide hand, ,
Into the Land of the great departed--
Into the Silent Land!. ' -
Were but human beings alwayi that -which
they are in their best moments,theat 'heat
we know here already on earth 'a kingdotn
of heaven of beauty and goodiets.—Freder
ika Breuer..
All is the gift or industry; .whate'er • •
Exalts, embeZsbes, and renders life --
DelightfuL Pensive Winter, cheered bY far; - I
Sits at the social'fire,ll.l2tl happy Items
The excluded tempest idly rave aloes
_•
His hardened fingers deck the pardy Spring; •
Without him Summer were an arid waste; -
Nor to the autumnal months could thus transmit
Those full, mature, Wm - insurable stores, • ,
That, waving round, recall my wandering. sung.
_ „ . ..;7.33/10111PIOn.-
It is a dangerous thing sten - tor assist kr
envious MILS, fors whilst-be receives yoursuc
ocir, he feels-your poweilusi his corn depend
ence, and that . excites the gangrene of his
moral . constitution.---Laeon. •
Ohi bonne el tight:
It crushes out the ussahtmal ti ntsn,,.
,Bob the bright eye eirboidollit,inliests . his Hash*
Of elasticity, unnerves his bulk
Beclouds las jadgmag, hL tatelieei
Perils his upriiihtosin, and stainsbis se! •
And minifies luso to his *Bow men; i ,
Yea, fie. worse dew, to blood,. :
thinester-
The shallowest undersianding; the rudeit
band, is more than equal to the.task of pull
ing down-and -destroying. Folly and- rage
can dilapidate more In a balf. SO hotly; Than'
wisdom, delibeation and forecast Can build
in many yeara.ltorke. • - • -
There are some. beirtiithst,' - 111 ti the 10;44 ?hie;
CUng ta-uukindku seeks saidnduststovrem4
Spirit' that suffer sed.do itOt immhte=i—,
Psdeut end sweet ssllMSly.tioddes Soviet*
That from a nd
the Passer's bad wipe;
And give be& odorous breath indeed ateighl:'
We cannot always see into the heart, =rind ,
our judgment wouldiperbaps ba ccadanned,
as often as approved by our aivicior. In- -
stead of - coifing stones at an
would often, if we
_knew and *lt is Jesus
does, sympathizing, sa to the alias; "Go
and sin no more." We are Gib* arm to
exercise not= judgment so . much as mercy
and lovc.-4eremy Taylor; -
Fair stint! are net roar babes pen
Can sin; can birth 3roor wands awn.
Else why so sweil the tboonhta atypic
• Aspect above , 7
Ye must belle/wens Oat mike us lore
Of beateuly lave,l
Live well, and make virtue thy guider, turd
then let death come sonnet...or later, it trutt-T
tern-not. Then it will 'be "a friendly hit&
that Opens the Inlet to a= Certain happinehts, -
and puts an end to doubtful and alloyed
plessures.-i-Penn. •
Not vainly did the earir rendmi snake • -
His altar the high plamatind - tho Pak
Ot earih—o'er gazing tammlnimg„ and limalakik, -
A. fit and unviailiggi Tentigictimes 'to seek-
The Spirit, in whose honor-VI:UM, arelreak;
Upreared of human hands.- Ono', and camipara
- Colmnim and - idol 41walliaga, Goth, area,—
with Nattgre's mho" of worship, earth and Mr, •
Nor fix on fond advdeztocimuniserib" %rograyer!
Some ao . monaam
to be - tfliert out 9f • nIAI!!!.
Adam, 'by .
putting -Y
' - LaAvitTAnnitir. liaineain I& article, '.
"The Autocrat or the Breaking: TOW in
the 'Atlantic Xonthly, sari t. '' - - "-- '"' '
foe
F suc a: h: 7l. .to°l 4 : l: l 6l .l. l l l o Y rfit u the°Tileu 4 l n lit o l 4 i w 7 9s4i .ll°l4 . :l toei b it t liliS kta ni: :lia lt er l i timoH afr: ll l ll ll4l:l . t i li a ::l l Y t ... ; i:' ° ,..
bow to 'tne.nagoi tt, - __ One .vrottll4l6k they
bad been , built in yOur parlotiOtririmd
were waiting to be Isauncited - . 2 1 itait*,:con
trived a tort of ceremonial' int
.4htitid, Airorfor
certain smooth - etrases, Asselui . thaiL,down,
tnetaphol'iodly'apeaking; itantillt s onexkinto
their.native element nr 0at:4 07-= z:i'-'
lar Thom citiligulAajilini Ot
sitiPi, 004 ietiwirweeks******l4lW*
second :Mit ii-setiiegibipoi:liK - tie
stint. Witt4itro liii***o,os**ollloo:
ESSI
lot Arrov.
—Longtdtow:
"' 43 eMPb.e/L' '
HUI