SIXTH ANNUAL
PIO N E
-J.ND
EISTORICAVFESTIVAL.
. .
The sixth annuid Pioneer-and Historical
Festival of Bradford, Broome, Chemnng; Cbe
'nango, Luzarne. Schuyler', stetiben, Susque
henna, Ticika,Tornpkins,Wyoming and other
Counties, was held in Montrose, Susquehanna
Co., Fa.isen the 2d day of June, 1858.
The procession was formed, at the call of a
Band of Music; in front of Searle's:Hotel, at
le o'clock A. NE., and marched, tinder, the
direction of Col. C. D. Lathrop, Mitrshall of
the day,,: to: the court house. _There the
meeting was organized with . Hon. \Vqi. des-.
sdp`,. President, in the chair. Tho order of
the exercises was a follows :
I. Prayer, hyllie Rev. Dr. Peck, of Luzerie
Co., Pa. -
2. Introductory remarks by the President,
iii which he gave a sketch okhe origin of the
Assobiation ; and the state of things when he
first came to - Montrose, in Ifina. Then he
introduced theprator of thwday.
3. It. B. LiAe, N, of Montrose, delivered
the following
0: It AAL' I 0 ?I:
• Mr. President and Fellqw , Citizens Rep
resenting the presoit generation, addiass
the remnant left to us, of the past. thus we
stand—two generations,—gie one, with all
its varied life and - memories, lying behind
the other,with its, high hopes, lying bejoini,-=
met here, to mingle otirsyropathies - together,
ere we part, to meet not again in time.
Strange scene ,— touching communion,—and
cold indeed must the heart be that is un
moved in 'this presence !
PIONtEgS : We are glad. to meet you at
this annual festival ;' and so b ather up as we
May, and conserve to poste rity the seenes'
and memories of the past. Else, in the flight
.of time, they would fade from our knowledge;
and tradition herself would not speak -to our
gratitude. - -• • -
But oser the hilarity of this Occassion (
lingers a shade of sadness. Most of your
number have already taken tbeirchambers in
thewilent halls of_death ; and each returning
year, we see that Death has been busy,' thin
ning your diminished ranks. Stern, relentless
-death r who, like time; pauses. tot \ in. his
career, nor knows the weight "of 'sleep or
weariness. On, still - O, he goes,-=-bruising,
crushing, desolating,—heeding noeries,
ing no sorrows ! And your gray hairs,
dimmed eyes, bowed .foyma i and unsteady.
steps, warn us fiat you, too, will soon go 0'
that count'' , that lies on the other side of the
77"Slipphire floor,"where the ,Vreaked cease
troubling, and the weary are at rest. With
some of you ; already ,'the spirit's - wings are,'
faint and weary, and you pine to fold them
its that -"better land." . •
It will be over soon. Since your last meet
ing in this capacity, another year is gone,
"and its losi knell is tolling uow,o'er thedark I
ocean of the past." Soon these gatherings
must cease, for the Pioneers will all be gone,
where they cannot tell us the tail, privation,
and gloom, amid which they the ti3dur
ing foundations =of this 'spiels/lid fabric of
. human life, in which we move. It is well.
- Like strong mep armed, who have "fought
the good fight, and kept the-faith.," look be
yond the rngg,ed hills of the world, and see a
window opened in Heaven, and a .wounded
hand. put forth in welcome; then lay asid
the armour you have worn so long and well;
. and as you go down. in the dark river, with
a hope g„kurified to faith, cry, "I shall be
over the Jordan td it:torn:T."
Now, let us speak of the present.'-
Star:Manna, like her sister ccbuzities, in
all het suifece, displays signs of human in
dustly and comfort. Sixty years are but a
speck in time, a point in duration ;.and yet a
less time - has sufficod to work .all this great
ness. Sixty years ago this county was an un
broken Wilaerness,where,save the wild Indian,
human foot_' had scarce trod,and human voice
bad scarce startled the thrilling and immense.
solitude that blooded over all, as it did over
Chaos, before the , world was. Nature held
• her own revels, amid her dark forest aisles,—
upon hill-side and valley,—by .fount and .by
murpuring•brook,—still, SOICIOD, and majes•
tic,—glorious in the sunshine, and awful in
the storm!
NO le; upon her hilljnd long-withdrawing
`tales cultivation lie., luxuriant and unbOund ,
ed. Fertility and beauty smile Upon us, from
-field,. otchiiid, and woodland. Contented .
herds graze in every valley, and rich harvests
gladden every hill. e." Human habitations
rise everywhere r in quiet comfort; the &hob:
and Chinch meet us at every turn, and town
and, villages dot her surface. The telegraphic
wire informs as of
_distant events at the very
,moment- when they transpire; and the Steam-
Car that rashes from city to city, while she
pauses here to take breath, 'receives our lib
eral production; ttrdeposite them, ere niiht:.
fell; in distant markets. •-•
. .
Tell me, Pioneers,—when you came with
?four weary axe and pack,—camped"in the
4 - woocts: until you could roll up your log-hut,
—and saw wild Naiure toss her defiant head,
and shake her lu?turiant iresses, in' mockery
of your puny' efforts to subdue her to - man,—
did you dream that your eyes would rest up
on
,such at - scene as We now behold ? How
rapidly has civilization trod upon year 'heels,
uring into our lap science, art, wealth and
liberty, until our whole _land has - bee:imp a
theatre of wonders •
Shall we pause here,„atut venture, reverent-
Iy,,with• hushed 13;eath,to• lift the curtain that
hartgs-oyer the- future,—and lock forward,
other sixty years ? 0, what changes, what
improvements, what miracles of progress, are
revealed, to match tbe warders of the past !
If our growth has been 10 rapid i our in
fancy, what shall it be. in. the strength of our
manhood r
For all this greatness, we are indebted,
wider Providence, to You. ftialts a work of
intense selfdeniatand trial, this of beginning
life, in the forest. Small_ companies penetrate
MOIL° the" wilderness, and begin, atone a
great struggle' with Nature, to wrest froth her
herhidden stores. The forestis to be cleared a
way,and little openings ; made,- to let in the
sun' upon their rude and their simple
husbandry. - :Ciit off' from the world, almost
from all human associations, fir solitude and
pris = ations, they go' on in their earnest work
of laying the foundations of social and civil'
life. What a discipline I, _lmagine a few,
straggling huts in a boundless wilderness,--,
n-o escape, no. help, no syrimathy. Perhaps a
great storm- is pouring its fury upon the earth,
and swaying to and fro-the mighty forest..it
may be it is noid-wintei',. And the deep snow
lies upon the ground,untracked,save by Warns
of prey. Stirely, these were men of 'Mailed
'ad impervious fortitude,=nursed. in vieissi.
vie,—and beaten.- by the rough winds of I
t.
•
.-lut this discipline vraniotkd not, only...priy
' ; but also moral developement:,
- 0- necessity, their life was plain and f fro
dtheir habits industrious. Ofneismity,
r
as they were from - the world; -they
6together in the closest ' and most self
cing friendship. This condition was
able to virtue. Besides, the - temptations
crowd our daily life, were to thetrrun-
F L Anal the spirit of money getting, - of
in • and of display, that convert ,our
idesi life into one hot-bed of unrest, care,
aelfiah'cOrnpetition,. litgl no place in the
.Ile.life of the Pioneer:Aiatrltion, ,aiarice, i
envy, and bate,—those deforming passions,
that_are stimulated to such excess in our rest
less, Self-seeking irMentive in
their breasts."
- Let us now:go - buck of all-this, and look at
the causes that produced this wonderful eleva
tion of humanay v in the nesb aorld•,—so diff
erentfrom all its condition in the vld.
And this cpeni one of the most: interesting
chapters in the whole book oftime,--cue that
illustrates the fact that civil- acid religious
freedom are the elements, the atn:iosphere, in
which alone the p - hysical,- intellectual, and
moral nature of man can be developed to their
felllest proportions. Civil and religious bondage
dwarf and pervert his nature ; rind from age
to -age, humanity descends in the scale of
'being. Centuries .of oppression_ have reduced
the once proud and ,gifted Rotrian, to the
ivhining, miserable beggar that now cowers
under the broken walls Lof the seven-billed
city,_ in - conicicius degradation and misery.
And so with the Jew; the Greek and the
Spaniard. ' No SELF-thought of action, no
lofty reason upon the brow,no elastic freedom
in the step, nor proud empire In the eye
Government givii its creed to the consaience,
arid prescribes all the habits of life ,- backedup 'by its armies and itsdungeonsj. 'low can
a wan -growl
Catch the eagle and confine him. A - ow his
glossy plumage fades, how his eye dims, and
his whole bearing sinks away into an expres
sion Of fear and humility I Let" him go,—
y'tsu have broken-his destiny. See what a cry
ofjoy' escapes him, and how - Proudly he.soars
away into hiselement,—again to'outgaze the
sun,—again to bathe his wildplumage in the
thunder's home ! It i*his 'NATURE to be free.
•
So with man.
The spirit of liberty broke main Scotland,
and Government burned it at ; %h& martyr's
stake,—inSpain,rind they buried it in the In
quisition,—in- France, and they starved it in
the Bastile,—in Germany, and they pierced
it . with balls. It took refuge in he fastnesses
of files, behind the dykes in liollaunl,:and
upiethe inaccessible Alps. Bu s t all the ty=
rants.of Europe made acommon canse against
it, and banded Nether to bunt it from the
world. It was their mission'; and an army of
martyrs attests how; well it waPfulfilled.
- Separated from the oppressed Masses of the
Old World by their inyiucible of truth
and freedom,the Pioneers to the New World
bade adieit to the associations of home,--en
countered the perils of the deep, and finally,
worn and weary, stepped froth the .deck of the
Mayflower, upon Plymouth rocki There, was
the great wilderness, frowning 1 upon them,
peopled with the savage foe,--and - the vigors
of an c almost Polar winter,uniteaLwith a scare
i ty - of provisions, And of shelter, made up an
aggregate of distress, that would' have driven
other men hopelessly back to the arms of
thraldom. How sublime was-their trtst in
Croill. "Give me liberty, or git 4 l e me death,"
was the sentiment find inspiration of their
hearts, the same that afterwards was so uttered
in Patrick .11enryls electric eloquence, as to
thrill thestartled continent. • i _
From such ..men, so tried, you, Pioneers,
derive your lineage and descen. Not from
aukes, earls ; or princes; but from Naturci's
own nobilit.y, who were purified by 'trial, as
in a furnace.
''Twas not in bowels of wantoM ease that free
dom and virtue nursed their sacred energies ;
but in the bracing air of toil, of that high-, rare,
ethereal virtue s which alone can give to freedom's
flowrets, health, beauty and lustre."
Yet,another trial awaited them,—their cup
must run over. Providential events soon in
dicated tLat the political tie that bounty the
infant colonies to the throne, Must be broken
forever,--else the. d ream, of ,thei r hearts would
i
I fail ; and the future ages would;
be unblessed.
Gad was with then still. The simple provin
cial was seen rising lifte4f hunted lion from
his slumbers; the energies of his mind . Thrown
in & powerful action; the shackles which
habit had imposed, flung'off; his countenance
impressed. with intense determination, and
lighted up with an expression pf enthusiasm
arid feeling. All saw the sudilen brilliance
with which the- patriot wm:linvested ; but
most men regarded it as a meteor -light, that
would set in two-fold darkness, The result
'of thatcontest became history.i 4
Then the most - delicate and; difficult task
still remained to be done. It was to frame a
government, that should at once secure order,
and- yet retain to .the citizen, his individual
freedom. A new Work,-upon which history
shed little light; -for all human experiments
had ended in despotism. 0, what godlike
wisdom is now requisite, 'to save from failure
- all the sacrifices of the past'. ' '-,
Mow, and where Ara the - different' Pevet'S
necessary to efficient government, be divided
and ,deposited; and checked and balanced, so
as to move in harmony together;. and yet not
tend to consolidation ! The world had never
seen this ! Centralization of .power must be
avoided; for that begets individual' ambition,
and that deipotism. France was in- Paris,
hence France was in bondage. Once the
Roman Ea g le touched, with one. wing, the
sunrise, and with\lie other, the sunset, and
threw h 0 shadow over the world. So, Eng-'
land bh/sted that . her morning drum-beats
encircled the earth with the martial ails of
Old Britain,—but their empires were by con
quest and subjugation,—not by popular will
- and choice. Power was centralized in Rome,
and London- ' - while the distant dependencies
wereiridisorder and rebellion. laehce, vast
ness of empire begat -- weakness and dissr!•-
iution. .
But our fathers looked upon the starry
heavens, and caught'-thence the luminous
idea of a Federal Republic,—one that, tho'
ocean-bound, should grow stronger, by its
very expansion ! The States were each
sovereign and yet were to revolve:in their
respective spheres,around the central Govern
nient, shining like stars in their orbits,—the
latter vi,ith—jusi enoUgh centripetal influence
to balance the centrifugal tOvatt. of their na
tures. And when it was done, they made
our nation's flag, and put upon it the likens
cia• star;—a star for each Stete,—and they
wrote upon it ni. nation's motto, , 7 "E Pluri
bus rnIIM !" A political constellation !
.with thelun for its centre,—;not abso,sbing,
but combining all in one plitn of revolving
harmony r They called it Union,—gat; and
yelmony
Washington; in his day, beheld the scene,
and was.glad. Tyranny
_looked out fiord
iXiirckpe upon this wondrous, prophetic light,
I . and . was amazed,. and fear-stricken. 'The op
pressed of all lands greeted its mild radiance
with- a cry of emanciplted joy, and fled to
our shores,—became like
.us;—and • gaie us•
their strength;
Oh, touch oat the Union, !any more than
yap would pluck its brightness from the Sin,
or,
with polluted finger, tarnish it.
One word to fhe present genetation. Each
age'has its distinctive' d'uties. The Pioneer
age hid to endure, to sutler, and to create - ,--
ours it is, to preserve, enlargi; .and improve.
Cherish freedom of the - individual conscience;
and erthe perscm.
It may welt! e doubted whether the people
of ta-dey have the adaptation to this - work
that belpnged to thoie - of the I.eioneerageiind
whether prosperity itself does not Abase
rather than amble character. The race
after wealth' beget selfishness, its possession
brings idleness , that, in turn, breeds. all the
Love of • disphiy, and distinction;--
that universal paHision,—grows with that it
feed's upon, until life itself is a mask to cover
heartlessness. F4ppery, 'elegant • uselessness,
and effeminacy take the place of sturdy,
tobust virtue. ;
Popular institutions wilt be impressed with
the popular charoctee, whatever that is; and
freedom herself but the handmaid of
virtue.
We must remember that our institutions
are but an experiment, and that their failure
would blot out the bdpes of mankind. The
only great strains; our system of Goverment
has yet endured., have arisen'in the acrimony
and violence of jut Triy—strife. The fury of
party spirit mustibe abated. It is intolerance
itself, 7 -that %eryt spirit which banished the
pilgrims from th'is Old World. Let us learn
to.toleiate differences of faith and opinion in
others; nor exp6t Universal conformity to
our own. how nitiural it is for power to seek
to coerce all matt) and thought into, its own
forms and manifestations. This is tyranny
' itself,—whether ixereis.ed by a king, or by a
political party. ~
How often, after the fever of the-hoar has
subsided, have we looked batik upon a paid
san battle-grounci,' all strewed with broken
honor and rnind reputations,—the victims
of malice and Tiate,--and been astonished at
the trifling charricter of the issues and differ
ences that exci ed such passion and such
perversity. We then realize, that even if it
begun in principfe, it ended in will,—will a
roused, and seqrver against will, in bitter
conflict,-sometimes arising into-open violence
and death. 'Ki a -gly order is infinitely better
than popular anarchy,—and the very worst
government, than no government at all.
For myself, I love to contemplate primitive
life and charade r, and to exhibit it, 'in con
trast:with Asent -degeneracy, And I can
not conclude tlris address.better than by giv
inglfacaulay's eloquent description of the men
of the Pioneee age : . .
"The Pulitani were men whose minds had
derived . a peculiar character from the daily
contemplation cif superior beings and eternal
interests. They rejected!, with coutempi, the
ceremonious homage which other sects sub
stitutes fur
tl. el - pure worship, of the soul,
Hence originated their contempt for terrest.
rial distinctions! The difference between - the
greatest and the! meanest of mankind seemed
to vanish, wheni compared with the boundless
interval that separated. the whole race from
Rim on whom tiheir,own eyes were constant
ly fixed. They recognized no title to superi
ority, but his favour; and confident of that
favour,They despised all the accomplishments,
and all the dignities of the world. If 'they
were unacquainted with the works of philoso
phers and poets,lthey were deeply read in the
oracles of God. llf their names were not found
in the registers iof heralds, _they felt assured
that they were recorded in the Book of Life.
If their steps were not accompanied by a
splendid train of menials, legions of minister
ing angels Uri charge over them. .Their
palaces.were luiuses not made with hands ;
their diadem; drowns of glory, which should
never fade away ! On the rich and the elo
quent, on nofdes and priest; they looked
down with conepmpt,for`they esteemed them
selves rich in a more precious treasure, and
eloquent in a more sublime language ; .noble
by the right ot'An earlier creation, and Heat.
by the impositiOn of a mightiershand.
„The very meanest of them was a being to j
Whose fate a terrible and mysterious' import
ance belonged; For his sake, .empires had
risen, flourished and decayed. For his sake,
the Almighty had proclaimed his will by the
pen of the evangelist, and the harp of the
prophet. He [lad been rescued by no com
mon deliverer, ifrom the grasp of no common
foe. He bad lieen ransomed by the sweat of
no vulgar agony, by the blood OT no earthly
sacrifice. It Was for hint that the Lun had-
been darkened,} that the rocks had been rent,
that the dead had ati,en, that ail nature had
shuddered at the sufferings of the expiring
God! -
. .
"Ms the Puritan was made up of two dif
ferent met); the one, all self abasement, peni
tence, gratitude, passion ; the other, proud,
calm ; inflexible, sagacious. lie prostrated
himself into the dust &fore his Maker, but he
set his foot -on' the neck of his king. The
intensity of their feelings on rergous subjects,
made them tranquil on every other. One
overpowering sentiment had subjected to it
self pity and hatred, ambition and fear.
Death had lost its terrors, and pleasure its
charms. net bad their smiles ,and their
tears, their raptures and their soiiows, but
not for the things in this world. Enthusiasm
had cleared their minds from every vulgar
passion and pri.judice, and raised them above
the influerice of danger and of corruption."
New, Pioneers ! such 'men, so portrayed by
one of the foremost writers in all the world,
were your ancestry. Is it any wonder that
you should ha l ve displayed. such tic courage
and self-denial,--you so' nearly allied to the
Puritan fathers!
Now, fellow citizens, let us guard this in
heritance, let . us watch . over , -our country's
honor and integrity, as a father doth over his
own children.! Then our Republic will be,
indeed, ocean-bound ; her Pacific coast a%
domed with Statesand cities, more rich and
glorious than those that line Ler Mantic
borders ; a coutinept, swarming with life in
its highest refinement and. exaltation, sending
her thoughts and influence into emery land,
spreadica lies-; sails of commerce on every
sea, lifting up : the down trodden, and rebuk.
itrr tyialny to all the world
If to be u feornan Citizen once"was greit . ter
than a king';,", what shall it be to wear the
prouder title of AMERICAN Citizen ! An
element in this great sovereignty, whose
mighty power is pledged to protect her feeb
lest son from! the slightest wrong, in the
darkest or remotest corner of the earth !
cow, Mr: l'residant, if I have enkindled
one new sentiment of gratitude toward our
-Pioneer fatheris,—awakened a now emotion of
love for our couatry,—or: another "pity for
earth's suffering andoppressed ones, then m'
mumble efforts will be thriee 'repaid.
4, Music. !Stirring even, to old as well .as
young blood.'
5. B. S. Bentley. EN, of Montrose, being
introduced by Presideat,read tht3lollotying
POEM:
E'er since old time its chum° on Earth began,
Change bath been the never varying lot of man.
Empires and Kingdoms, glorious in their day,
Have shone in splendor and have passed away :
Eabylon preceded Greece, and Greece a Rome,
Proud mistresi of the world—she too has gone;
Cities and towers and monuments of fame
Lie mingling in the dust from whence they came.
And'tnant prong; mighty man; has had his sway ;
Where is he now Ah, gone and passed away ;
The high, the ilow, the noble and the slave, '
Have slept forages in one common rive.
Let bat your theta go back when time 'began
And folfow thence the destinies of man—
N.Vhat wars and bloodshed,and what fearful crimes
Have stained One fair Earth with crimson lines.
Monarchs and despots, tylaints of an hoar, .
Drunk' with ambition and the lust of power,
Have bathed the Eartd'in sorrow and in blood,
Alad.giv'n
with
image far the Vulture's food.
Bran; with his fellow man in deadly strife;
With 'da milk; bate hath sought his brother's life,
And oft the pall of mourning bath been-thrown
O'er bleeding•trationi, ttracipport a crown.
Ven our own nation, now so bless'd of God,
Was born in tinfrritit, sorrow, and in blood. _
Seiren long yn t
ers iroweariness and' pain;
Our fathers fought and bled; but not in vain—
Thrice gloriotts Patriots,' Oh most noble men -1
We can but pause and drop a tear for them.
• ,
Far-finned Wyoining too haii bad her share
In all the horrors of a bloody•war.
Her sons were butchered by a savage foe—
And she was clad in sad habiliments of wo.
Incarnate devils, while mil rel,
Fought side by side that day;
And savage yells rose - o'ar tlie-dead,
The living to dismay.
No age, nor sex; nor plea, nor.prayer,
Could make the demons feel ;
The only answer to their tears, • -
- %Vero tomahawk and steel.
They scalped the hoary locks Of age,
•
The young, and gentle too— t .
The infant's wail cheekei not their rage,
But fiercer still they grey. -
The treaeh'ries of that fatal day
Made Hell ashamed of man ;
And fiends shrank back' inzAleeri. dismity
. At old John Butler's elan. -
The soul is sick, the heart is faint,
With reading their dark crimes,
The heart-felt anguish,' who can paint
The terror of those times ?
But though the day has long,since passed,.
And pence is on that late,
Surviiing actors still remain ,
To tell the bloody' tale. •
A monument to those who fell
Now marks their hallow'd,dust •
That monument, we knew full we ll,
Is well deserved and just ;
But yet a-more enduring one,
Replete in-every part
More lasting than the.chisel'd stone— .
Is reared within the heall.
But time forbils,us longer now to dwell
Upon the scenes and memories of those days,
And bidding them-a long anf sad farm:veil,-
We come to speak of more propitious days.
In all time past the aims haw proudly sung
The glorious deeds of their illustrious sires ;
So we, who from a noble nee - have sprung,
Would light out souls with true poetic fires.
Yo living Pioneers of that brave band
. Who left their homes anthill to them so dear—
Who came to this, a wild aid rugged land,
A land of Forests and in aspect drenr!
flow did you come ? In each and four ?
Or did the iron horse precede your Vain,
And bring alike yourselvesand store
Safely through snow an mud and rain I
Did roads as smooth as pavements then
Run all along each stream ' . •
O'er every hill, through every glen, •
Through pleasant fieldsaud forests green ?
Did towns and villages appear,
Where'er you turned your eyes,
Yout hopes to raise, your soul to cheer ?
Yonr wonder and surprise ?
A school-house then at every turn,
A church with tasteful spire ?
Where youth with thirst for knowledge burn,
And t.',ltrintiuns with devotion's fire
Did princely mansions then appear
On every hill, in t vety vale,
The eye to please, the mind to cheer,
• When hope and strength began. to fail ?
Did.orehard bloom and garden smile
With every flower that ever grew?
So rich that they the soul beguile—
So ninny—Eden never knew?
Ah, no, my friends, not so indeed—
But one vast wilderness was here,
Forestal() forests did succeed—
Thick and unbroken, far and near,
No railroads then—the trees were marked,
Your only road and guide,
As through the forest deep and dark, _ •
You walked but could.not ride.
But hardy hands were soon employed ;
The brush and logs were piled
A road from Jolla to James was made,
Though rugged, rough and wild,-;
It answered for the old gray mare,
To draw, on rough made sled,
If John could J Ines a littlo eparo,
Of corn to make somo bread.
No glass was in the house, those (Lys,
But piper was in stead
And through the same the the Bun's bright rays
A calmer light did shed.
Oh proud ambition, bane of human peace,
How oft dost thou lead us all astray,
And make for us the ills of life increase,
° And cause us trouble in our onward way?
A worthy flierl, now gone, a scholar too,
Seized with ambition to excel the - rest,
Had built a cabin, and it still was new,
And thoughts of glass his soul oppress'd.
What could he do? he struggled with the thought,
Paper is not glass; no glass is herb;
Full fifty miles to...where it can be bought;
No way to ride, the path is lone and drear.
Bat to the will all obstacles must yield;
To Wilkes Barre, (an unpoetie tranirl) he went,
And there with glistening eyes beheld •
Some 7 by. 9, which ramie his heart content.
Twelve lights - he bought, and did them up Kith
care,.
In checker'd handkerchief, to make them all
secure,
Slowly he jogged along, nor did forbear
Ills footsteps, till he reached his home once
more. -
ettrefully he laid them on the bed,
intending to surprise
HiECii7ife who after table spread
Could feast her wond'rion' eyes.
But sad, to tell ! she in her Taste,
While on her work Intent,
Took up the bundle, Mere misplcced,
And to the floor it went!
The wife and husband stood agliasi, -
They vicw'd the fragments o'er;
Ten thousand pieces rf small - glass
Lie scattered round the'floor.
God made the country, man the town hath made;
God's glorious works We universe pervade;—
His worlds of light that far above us shine,'
Draw out our thoughts to him in praise sublime;
While all the grr: leer of this lower sphere
In panoramic beauty doth appear,
The soul to ravish and the mind to fill,
The heart to cheer, and banish every ill,
The mighty ocean, surging. to and fro—
The mighty rivers, with eternal flow— •
The mighty mountains, pile - on pile so high,
To our weak vision seem to touch the sky—
The dimpling lake in beautrdoth display
Ten thousand diamonds in the moonbeams' play,
The hills and valleys with their lowing herds,
Made vocal; and the groves with happy birds—
These all are glorious, and draw out the soul
To God, the Maker arid source of all.
'Tis not the man of luxury and pride,
'Tis not the woman fit to be his bride.
Who, reared in fashion and the halls of ease;
Whose morbid-tastes vain fancies please—
These never are the ones to go
Where the prinreral forests grow;
But those of daring soul and,mind,
Whom discipline bath well refined,
Who can with nature hold commune, •
When earth is robed in richest bloom—
Who hare a heart, a soul, a mind,
None of the upe Or dandy kind?
These rtre the men designed'of God,
Togo where man bath never trod—
Where crouch the panther, wolf, and bear,
Whose howls disturb the midnight air,
Where the fleet deer and beauteous fawn
Crop the sweet flowers at earliest dawn—
Where speciledtrout, throughout the day,
In sparkling streams their gambols play—
ftVitere birds, in hopping, chirp ng throngi,
Pour out their sweet meiodiouti longs.
Do you remember well the drly.
When this whole region di&display •
Nought but a forest far and wide,
Of trees that stood in stately pride?
Have you the very place forgot
You first selected for your hut?.
The-first blow struck, the. firs? tree NI,
Are they not all remembered well?
Can you remember how you made
Your first log cabin in theshade
Of towering trees that yet o'erhtkie
The- little.clearing you'd begun?
And•soon that clearing far and wide
Began to spread on every side:;— •
Tree after tree, bereft of strength,
Lay prostrate on the earth at length,
And being burnt, there might'be seen;
The growing crop of corn between;
For without help you could not clear,
The ground from logs till the second_year.
Nice pastures then, well fenced an green,
Could' not on any side be seen;
But•the one cow, then, loved so- well,
Was found at night by her well known bell;
The old till horn was blowed in time
To call you to the house ' , to - dine;
And sweeter sound was never heard
By hungry man, if long deYerred:
Your sap troughs made in early Spring,
You tapped your trees, and thence did bring
A auger sweeter than Havana,
Or ever came from old Sayana
d work,. . t
And. leaving work,. l ti
To find some twenty geoids of pork,
You'd travel twenty miles Inore, 1 ,
Where you had never been '
.b fore, : • , •
And with some sugar In ' a sank, :
And that suspended *teas your bac k,
You trudged along, and, as - I live,
Five pounds for one you'd freely gill,:
• The forests now begin to yield; ~
The sun shines (limn on waving field;
.From Earth her bOunties you moire; . ,
And you again begin to live. -
You then wrote home to lot them knots ,
How rich the soil, how crops did grow- -
Soon others came, and by your aide
The forests opened, far and wide.
New Hampshire sends her sons along;
Green Mountain boys help make the throng;
Connecticut that good old State, •
The birth.place of both good and. great,
Old Massachusetts, where the free _ ,
In Boston Harbor made their tea;
Rhode Island, too, though very amain
Answered at once, her every call,—
These are the States that sent their sons
Inured to hardship that no conflict shuns;
They in this land their virtues did display;
We know they're represented here to.day.
By their strong arms and nerves, how very soon
The rugged wilderness began to bloom;
The forest vanished, liße the smoking flax,
Before the hero of the.ewinging ax;
Villas and farms May now be seen
And mills go op on every stream.
The noble Susquehanna bears to tide
Lumber and plaster and all-else beside
That _makes return of wealth to those
Who this exciting busineks-chose. ,
Happy us larks that sing at morn j '
The raftsman with his sounding Born.
Now herds and flocks of sheep are seen
In pasttiies of the richest green. •
Old Continental bills no longer pass,
Nor Paper now is . used instead of glass.
Our mothers acted well their part;
Strong courage raised and cheered the heart;
They milked the cows, and baked the bread;
They swept the house, the table spread;
They spun and wove, and clothes they-made;
The hats of straw were of their braid; -
The children they both washed and fed,
And them undressed and put to bed.
Oa Sunday, with supreme content,
They to some distant meeting went.
They rode old "Dapple," meek and kind—
The man before, the•wife behind.
-No silks or satins did they wear,
But muslin frock, quite neat but,spare.
No hoops they wore, but I confess
They would have much improved their dress;
For even though they take more space,
They give to form an airy grace;
And if they're made of medium a *ze,
They must be fools or overwise—
Who dare not say, without alarm,
They add to comfort, health, and charm:
As backward we our thoughts do send, ,
Who does not think of some dear friend
Who toiled andstruggled in those days,
And well deserves our highest praise? _
Could we but know and see and feet;
Would some kind power to us reveal
What the,first settlers suffered here,
When want and famine gathered near,
When sickness came, and those must die,
Whose prayer for aid none could supply,
Whose life they knew was ebbing fast,— •
They felt—they knew it could not last—
What deeper anguish who can know,
In all our trials here holow,
Than watching the expiring breath '
Of loved ones in the embrace of death?
-.. Yet deeper still the wound we feel,
When we alone around them kneel,
Alone to hear the last drawn breath—
Aihnejs, close the eye in death, •
When all without is dark and drear,
Within, cold death and-sobs and fear.
'Tis midnight and the storm is high;
The lightning blazes o'er the sky—
The thunder rolls. In deep despair, -
You feel that death is reigning there. -
From break of day till late• at night,
The settler toiled with all his might; ~
And midnight fires, oft blazing high,
Revealed the fact that he was nigh.
And as ho labored thus, alone,
He thought of his lor'd ones at home;
And kneeling „en the ground he prayed
That they from famine might be saved.
' But my weak pen can never . tell,
Nor is it fit that I should dwell
Upon those scones, so hard and rife,
As settlers, learn in early life.
How many names I might recall
Of those remembered by you all,
Who shared with you the joy and wo,
That each did feel - and all did know.
Bat memory will much sooner trace
Their names, their forms, their voice, andlace,
And you will bring them in review, .
More quickly far than I can do.
Ah yes ! More swift than lightning chain,
They'll pass before your mind again,:
And in :his moment while you hear,
The thrilling scenes of many a year,
Your quickened minds will all reclaim, -
And, like the lightning's flash, again
Tey'll all lie with you. Don't you see
Them all around as they used to be?,
-- Ah, gone again! How sad that sound,
How many lie beneath th' ground
Which you and they together trod--
You yet remain—They've gone to. God.
Of many I would like to speak. to-day, -
Some yet live, but more have passed away;
But one short line for them must now suffice,
They lice in memory till that• inemory dies.
. But one there is, a friend whom all of us may
claim, '
I need sot tell you who be is, or give you now
• his name;
From earliest youth I'ye knoirn, and I have lov
ed him too;
I hope he is a friend to me, as sure he is to you.
His head, with toil and age, is silvered over now,
But what he is and was is pictured on his brow.
Long hath he been a traveler o'er life's preca
rious road,
Long bath he labored faithfully for man and for
his God,
He, in his early youth, when all around was new,
When woods wore growing here, and people
were but few;
Began his course of usefulness with armor gird
ed on,
•And never will he lay it off till life-itself is done.
In all the settler's thrilling scenes he.bore his
. humble part; . -
In sickness, he was by- their side, - in sorrow
cheered the heart;
In all the varied ills of life, in sadness and in pain,
No person ever sought hik aid and sought that
aid in vain—
As often by the hand Of &Oath his Weeding heart
was torn,
So he, his sympathy could give' to those wAb'
deeply mourn. .
In all the offices of life, in civil and divine,
His virtue and his love of With along his path
way shine—
We're glad be has been spared to us and spared
to us so long,
And hope that mary happy days to hint do yet
belong s — -
We all are glad he has thus lived to he with us
to-day—
,A Pioneer indeed he is, in every God:like ° way.
Oh ! may God's blessing ever rest upon that
worthy head,
Till he shill, after many years, be numberbd with
the dead;
And when to him the hoar shall come to lay
. him down to die,
May he exchange this - lower earth for better
worlds OD high. .
• Will you, my friends, this day compare
With sixty years ago?
When mails' were carried far and nee
Olt horse back, as you ,know;
N
,Bat now, o'er lends and ocean's depths,
By lightning and' by' steam. ,
Have we like Rip Van Winkle slept,
Or do we now but dreamt .
We have not slept, we do not dream,
No veil is on our eyes;
It - is the age of mind and steam;
• Of wonder' and surpise.
Couldyoui-my friends, at all recoup[; `
The progress of your day? .
All obstacles we do surmount,
No barrier stops oar way:
If we go on foi• fifty yesri.
A; wethe past have dooet•
.res not , ing, as it now appears,
But.what may s tben be done. , -
Wet.? may make us .oil for light;
We through the air may sail; .
And over rivers take our !light,
laixtmb or iron shell;
But I must close - my friend's,
Perhaps we'll meet no more, '
Till-wit can each to othe-s - tell
The scones of lifo,when o'er.
.
l've s trelpissed long upon your time—
learned one lesson by it; •
If you are asked to write a poem, se
I only hope you'll try it. - - '
o..Musio. A rong:
"Loved ones - at houie."_
7. A. L. Post, of Montrose, introduced by
the President, to give historical sketches. Ile
gave a brief outline of the' controveray. be
tween Connecticut and Pennsylvania, in Ma
lion to the jurisdiction and title to all North
ern'Pennsylvania, and of its final settletnent ;
rin4Coocluded with a few reminiscences relativa
to persobs, things and incidents,' connected
mostly with till history of Montrose.
8. Music. '
9: The response to seal) for the number of
Pioneers who have died, in each county dur.
ing the year not being in readiness, the Pi 4
neera present were called_ upon to give
sketches of first settlements. The Call was
responded to by Scott. Baldwid of Bridge:
water, Seth Mitchell of Montrose,and Stephen
Barnum of New Milford. The President read
communications deeply interesting from
Charles Miner, gig., anther 'of the-"llistory
of Wyoming." The meeting then (3 o'clock)
adjourned for dinner.
10. The procession again formed, and
under the lead of the band, marched to
Searle'i hotel, where they were supplied with
an abundant repast,
,suited to thesoccasion.
After dinner the procession reformed and
returned. to the Court Rouse.
• 11. President in the chair. Proceeded to
the designation of the place of holding the
next Anniversary, and the eltrrion of officers.
Voted-: That the next Anniversary of the
Festival bo held in Wilkstarre,' Luzerne
Penn's, on the first Wednesday in June, 1859.
Officers were elected, as follows :
PRESIDENT :
Hon. Goe. M. Hollenback.
VICE PRESIDENTS :
Hon. John N. Conyngbsm.
Hon. Ziba Bennet.
EXEC LIVE COMMITTEE
Rev. Geo. Peck, D. D.
Rev. John Dorrance. -
Rev. Reuben Nelson.
lion. C. D. Shoemaker.
E.-B. Harvey, EN.
C. M. Wright, Esq.
12. Letters were read from the Hon. D. S
Dickinson of Binghamton, N. Y. and Hon.
D. Bullock of Bradford Co. Pa. Other letters
have since been received from Col. Asa Bull
ock of Harrisburg, and Edward Tompkins of
Binghamton N. Y., although too late to be
read,,they are herewith ptitlisited. -(Omitted
for want of room.—Ed.)
13. The call for pioneers or their represent
atives fro m different counties, was responded
to by Wm. Stuart, Esq., editor of the Broome
Republican. After a few introductory
marks,"he presente'l and read a number of
obitualy notices , of Broome Co. Pioneers,
hetewith publibbed: (Omitted for want of
room.—Ed.) • -
Dr. Peck of the Methodist Church,Luzeroe
Co. followed with the description of the pio
neer life of anitinerant preacher as exempli
fied in his own experience and observation, in
Broome Co"
N. Y., Susquehanna, Bradford,
'Wayne aid Luzerne counties, Pa, he com
menced in 181 g.
Eld. Davis Dimock of the Baptist Church
Montrose Pat., responded playfully, that 1)r.
Peck had told his experience as a pioneer, as
well as a Methodist could tell it.
Justus Lewis, from Bradford county, gave
a sketch of pioneer life and settlement on the
%alining creek, said in pleasantry, that
there was some dispute between him and
John Hancock, who sat near 'him, which of
-the two was the oldest native. He referred
to some one who in' early time thought Han
cock must have been a great man .as his
name was marked on all of the trees by the
old Wyalusing road. '•
G. G. Waller of Honesdale, in' the absence
orany other from Wayne Co., spoke of the
interest of the meeting. He bad:•before no
conception of their interest and value. He
spoke of his father, a Wyoming pioneer, now
-now aged 85 years—of Sarah Benjamin who
recently died in Wayne Co. aged 117 years r
and of Rufus Grenneli, aged I.o6—Lalso, of
the mother of Judge Collins, who 'in early
times came from Connecticut on horse back.
`The President rehited the fact that old,
Mrs. Benjamin knit a pair of fine wool stock=
into which were exhibited at the World's
Fair in N. Y. city.
Dr. Peck said be knew her well. She had
cooked many meals for Gen. Washington.
Eld. Dimock, by request, gave a sketch of
the first marriage that kikever solemnized.—
The groom had no money and asked him to
take his pay in nice goose quills,s=which-he
of course accepted with thanks.
The President read further communications
from Charles Miner, Esq., which were full of
interest.
The President asked, in behalf of Mr. Mi
ner, if any person present was living in the
county in 1798, when such immense num
bers of pigeons covered all this region of
country with.tbeir encampments.
Doud, responded that he was in the
county, a boy, and remembered the time
well., He could not , however tell how exten
ded the encampment was. He knew it ex
tended all along the bills of Tunk'hannock
creek.
Janus - W. Chapman, EN., spokwof the
first born in the county—read a letter from
Eld. Charles Miller, in. which be expresses the
belief that hie brother William, born in 1789,
and he in 1792, were the two first born,—
They were born in Brooklyn on the farm now
owned•by Mr. Breed.
Nehemiah Scott spoke of his experience in
the early settlement of this region of country.
He was a mill and doctor boy. Had to go
to Great Bend after a doctor in cases of sick
nem He taught the first school in Montrose,
in a basement . room of J. P. Foster's house.
0. C. Tiffany, inJhe absence of othel speak-.
era for Harford; spoke of the nine partners.
He said they came from Attleboroitgh, Mass. in
1793, and settled in Hanford this county; They
first pitched their tent about two miles west of
where Harford village 'now is, and ,about one'
mile west of Harford 'University. The nearest
Grist Mill at that Waimea at Great Bend; Told
how they cured one of their number of his tom:
plaining diiposition, by rolling him
,on a bilrel.
Stirring music closed the scene.
14. Voted to publlsh the proceedings I to
the county papers. Also, that the (Nati.
and Poem' be requested for publitirtihn:
After prayer by Dr. Peck; the'rueeting ad
journed to meet, next year at, Wilkesharn3,
according to previous vOttr: '-The meeting
was throughout deipty interesting—wwi
thought to• be more so, by those *ha• have
attended theta, than any of the former'Ones.
A.L. Pon' Seey Pro: Tat:
A wit of mandsinicie;lnte been granted by'
the Sisprente. , Cono of Pennsylvania, •at the
%stance of MkThomas, directing the Cora'
missionered Allegheny county to levy a, tax
to net the' interest on thArallrandbonile now
the antl,ootpingpluev
.iioutto ‘ st -.gemp,iTai...
A. a. GERRITSON, Editor.
,1101ITZOCIE,
Thuriday. Jane 10. HMS.
DEMOCRATIC NOMINATIONS.
SUPREME JUDGE;
WILLIAM A. PORTER,,
PHILADELPHIA.
CANAL COMMISSIONER:
WESTLEY FROST,
FAYETTE.
Special Notice.
A LL persons indebted to the late firm of.
LI McCollum & Geiritaon for aubacription
to the Montrose Democrat are hereby forbid.
den settling with J. B. McCollum, or any
person in whose hands be may place tbe.ac
counts. Said accounts Faye not yet been as
signed to him, in conselquence of his baiing
refused to render value for them as agreed
upon before the firm was dissolved; anycol %
leetions which he may make will be fraudu
lent, and .his receipts void, until further notice
be given. GERRITSON.
Montrose, April Ist, 1858. •
4 PER CENT. PREMIX:rig Will be al.
lowed on SPANISH and , MEXICAN
QUARTER and H A L JaDOLLARS,
of good weight, - paid in on accounts dne us at
this office. during the present month. [je Ilm
AM A notice of the burning of the barn
of Mr. Henry Drinker of this place, :was acci.
dentally omitted last week. Three valuable
horses were burned.• The 'fire. occufed on
Tuesday morning, June Ist. Cause unknown.
,nr' We omit from the report of the pro
ceedings of the Pioneer and Historical Festi
val the letters from different personator want
of space.' We received no copy in time for
the outside of our paper, and, indeed, did not
anticipate a longer report than could be made
mom for, inside. Had we published all, it'
Would have occupied about five itdditional
columns.
News of the • Week.
Flxos-EnsrEn.=—The select Committee in
Congress, 'appointed to investigate_ certain
charges in connection with the sale of the
Pennsylvania Bank buildins , for Post Office
purposes, have brought their labors to a close.
They say tl4t there is nothing to justify even
a suspicion-that Mr. Campbell, the'late Post
master-General, was at ail interested, save in
the honest discharge of his official duty. No
improper'or corrupt influences, in the'judg
meat of the Committee,; operated on any
officer of the Governmentsin any transaction
connected with the sale or 'purchase of that
property, excepting those which attach to
John Miller, the late Poitrnaster of Philadel
phia, who received a total sum of $23,000,
paid him at different times . by Thomas S.
Mahone, the former President of the_ Bank
of Philadelphia, given, as is alleged by Atli
bone, as a gift, reward or commission, for
servicespin bringing about a satisfactory ter.
mination of the purchase of the Banking
House by the Government.
JIM LASE A MERDERER.—The details of
of the affray at Lawrence, June 3d, between
Jim Lane and Mr. Jenkins, have been, received.
Lane and Jenkins were 'living upon con
tested claims. The former enclo=ed an acre
of land, in which there was a well that was
used bp both parties in common. Lane re
cently., locked the well, fenced up the entrance
to it, and forbade Jenkins access to it. Jen-
kins declared that he would have water.at all
hazards, and Lane threatened him if he made
a forcible entry into the premisei. •
. On Thursday afternoon, Jenkins, accompa
nied by four friends, all well armed, cut down
Lane's fence and proceeded towards the well
- Lane warned them not to advance ea he
would bhoet. them. Disregarding the threat,
Jenkins' party advanced, when Lane fired,
killing Jenkins instantly, and one of Jenkins'
party returned the tire and shot Lane in the leg,
inflicting a wound which confined him to bed.
Laneh been arrested and was under
examinatio . Much excitement esrsts in
consequence of this affair„ Jenkins was bell
in high estimation, and his death is deeply
deplored.
The Hon. J. P. Henderson, a ttnat or from
Texas, died at Washington on the 4th inst.
This distinguished Senator was a native 4 , f
North Carolina, from which State he emigra
ted to Texas in 1836. On the breaking out,
of the war of the Texas Revolntion,"Mr. Ilen
derson was appointed a - Brigadier General in
the army of the Republic, and fought with
great bravery throughout the memorable
struggle which resulted in the liberation of
Texas from the Mexican yoke. '
• The President has signed the bill declaring'
the title to land warrants to-vest in the wid
ow, heirs or legatees in all cases where proof
was filed, but the warrants not issued, during
the lifetime of the,claimant, and makes them
personal chattles. The warrants issued un
der the act of March 1855 are assignable . .
Orrersmos Umos.—A meeting of the
Chairmen of the "Republican," "Union," and
"Straight-American" State Committees, has
been held, at which it was agreed .to adopt
the suggestions of the Philadelphia Com
mittee of Superintendence, to withdraw a
call for a State Convention issued by Mr.
Lemuel Todd, and hold tlfe same instead on
the 14th of July next,in,Harrisburg. The very
important gentleman holding the positions of
Chairmen of the different Committees publish
a series of communications expressive of their
"satisfaction" at this event.
ELECTION IN KANSAS.---The election in
Kansas on the English bill, will be held on
the 2d of August. Gov. Denver has beeifin
,structed to use all possible means to secure a
fair vote. Teo thousand copies of . the act are
to be printed and circulated in Kansas.
The State election , in Missouri is held on
thj . vame day. .
- .Excrrairas: IN 0:-=-4- "Vigilance
Committee" has taken possession of New
Orleans. They assign as a reason, the "dis
order, outrage, and assassination; _which has
so long. prevailed. here unchecke d."
At the election held on the 7th the Ku
elected their candidate. for of
as usual,.
The Pioltibitory,Liquor -Law was ratified
by the people of Maine on the i 7th, by :war
mast unanimous vote.
, .
Portland, For Probib;tion, 1207, Licenee,22B
Gbrhati, ii .. 244, "' 1
Falmouth; "' • ', 147; 4 " 0
Aud the other towns irt•proportion2-
EimmEn.— Congress 4111 dot adjourn ud
til Una 14tb, instead of the 70, as bad been
agreed upon by both branchis. The exten
-610A•of the session' was illetifAtir ' y to complete
iMPOttaltt, bushiest': ~_, ,
... f.
• . .
. Three powder mills at liti\Prd, Mass.; belong
ing, to Messrs. Fay dr.-Potter exploded on the,
-4t ;inst. One ruim was kilfed.j..
Itaritan' fasonacz.—Tbe boarding of
Americqin •vessel&•by Btitish'crutiOrs still cot-
thibes. .
Aituist:—:-The "New York Stater'
liebtiSte bsylum" is to beloosted at Bing
hstritori. ‘
- Tbia . bemoorstio candidate: - for. , Mayor in •
Washfugloo, C.,..was elected ow tlitil?tbs,