COLUMBIA M DEMOCRAT, VRMTED rf.TO VV It UHU tilt ( BIT LEVI L. TATE. POETRY. The Drunkard' Itcraorse. f ror. LDNurKLLnw. AIR -"" UtiS un Mary " I'm thinking on thy mile, Mary tht bright and trusting roile In th owning of your youth and loe, E'er torrow came, ' guilt, When thin arma were (wined b..ut my nrlf, And mine locked into thin, And the heart that throbbed for rot elun Wi neatling dote to mine. I'm thinking of the night, Mary, Thejtiighl of grief end hme, When with drunken raving on my lip, To thee I homeward came 5 0! the tear w on thy earnest eye, And thy bosom wildly heaved, Yota smile of love was on thy cheek, Though thy heart wai sorely grieved. O, my word were harsh to thee, Mary, For the wine cup dme me wild. And I chide thee when thine eye were tad, And cura'd thoe when they smild. God knewj I luted thee even then, But the nre w in my brain, ' And the curse ol drink waa in my heart To make my love bane. Thou'rt reeling in the church yard now, And nu atone ia atthyhraf,; But the aextdn know a drunkard'a if. Sleep in that lowly hed; ', And hi says the hand of God, Mary, ' Will fall with crushing weight On the wretch that brought lh gentle life To iu untimely fate. tit he knows not of the broken heart, I bear within tny bread, . 'he heavy load oi vain remorse That wito ot leave me ret : He knows not ul the sleeplese nighta, When drenminu ol thy love, I seem to see thine sneal .v LookcoUly fromatwv. Thou'rt slumbering in the peaceful grave, And thy lcp.k dreamless now, 'But Iheieel or en undying grief la on thy mourner' tvow: And my heart chill as thine. Mary, IFor thejuva of lif 'haw fld, And l long to lay my aching breast With the cold and silent dead. OLD WINTER. Old Winter ia cnminfC atnin -alack ! Hnw icy and cold is he ! He cares not a pin for a shivering back, lie's a saucy old cbap to white and black, He whistles hia chills with a wonderful knack, For he cornel from a cld country. A witty old fellow this winter is, A mighty old fellow for glee ! He cracks his joke on the pretty sweet miss. The wrinkled old maiden, unfit to km, And freezes the dew of their lips for this Is the way with such fellows a he ! Old Winter's a frolieksome blade I wot He ia wild in his humor and fret ' He'll whistle along for the 'want of his thonght,' - Andset all the warmth of our fura at naught, And ruffle the laces by pretty girls bought; For a frolickinme fellow is he ! Old Winter is blowing his g ut along, ' And merrily shaking the tree ! :From morning till night he will sing hia song ; fjnw moaning andshort now howling and His voice is loud, lor his lungs are strong A merry old lelluw is he ! Old Winter's a wicked old chap I ween As wicked as ever you'll see! He wither the flowers so fresh and green. And bite the pert nose of the mis of sixteen, ' Asshe triumphantly walks in maidenly sheen, A wtrked old fellow is he ! Old Winter's a tough old lellow for blows, Aa tough e ever you'll see ! H' will trip our trotters, and rend nnr elnthee, And stiffen our limbs from fingers to tnr He minds not the cry of his friends or hi foes- A tough old fellow i he ! A conning old fellow is Winter they say, A cunning old lellow is he ! , He ppa in the crevires day by day, 1 To er how we're paining our time away, And narks all our doings from grave lo gay, I'm afraid he is pt-eping at me ! I r to Nurr ! A pruarher who adviser! a drowsy hearer to take a pinch of sniirTnrrj.jnnslly in .rrvir, to krrp him 'akc, was d' ied in rn luro to'pul snuff in hi sermon HLOOMSBUKG, COLUMBIA 0 w u srn as & e n 0 For tht Columbia Democrat. ''At Llomc in the Evening " Cot. Tate : I recently met, in the course of my reading, with the following excel lent remark under the above caption, in a weekly eotcmporary, which are so much to the purpose, and ao appropriate to the case of almost any country village, in which it ia generally the custom for a large proportion of the adult malea to spend their evening away from their own home, en veloped in tobacco anioke, or some favor ile lounging place ; while the boy are al lowed to "to take it aa they can catch it in the alreeta or elsewhere that I am con- atrained to present it to you for publication in your own paper, which I am pleased to find ao zealously devoted lo the honor and welfare of our own village. I am persua ded that a higher standard of intelligence would soon be attained bv us as a village.if the time spent by herds of men and boys in strolling and lounging, were devoted to intellectual culturo to the delightful and profitable pursuit of well selected reading, No boy who is properly cared for, whose evenings and leisure time is properly oc cupied.will make one of the crowd desti tute alike of good sense and good manners, which blocks up the doors of our churches, rendering egress after service a difficult and harra'ssitig business. A rowdy is not the product of a well ordered family. Fathers, your place is at home, at air those seasons when business does not require your absence from it, and there in the midst of your families, with each re-curring evening, should you see to it, that your boyt are advancing in knowledge and intellectual culture, and fitting for a career of usefulness and respectability. Dut to the extract vis : 'One of the grossest neglects of youth, producing incalculable mischief and ruin, is in the improper spending of the evenings. Darkness was created for quiet home it the place of quiet. Darkness is temptation, lo misconduct; suffering the youngto be out hen the light of day does not restrain them from misconduct, is training them to We have already an abundant harvest of this seeding. Kiots,mobstcrimes giving fearful forebodings, are the result of youth becoming fit agents of outrages by running uncarcd-lor on evenings. What we see in these respects, is deplorable enough, but what is this, compared to what we do not see multitudes making themselves miser able and noxious in this world : and what in that to come? Farenls should look at the truth, that evening pleasures and recreations are often dearly purchased ; the price, their own impaired comfort.ind the blighted prospects of their offspring, it must be obvious, that in this matter there can be no prescrib ed rule. There must not be an interduct of all evening recreation common sense, sound discretion must direct the parent. Heads of families should reflect that the place, best adapted of all others on earth to be a blessing to the rising generation, is home ; and by example and wholesome regulations, they should seek to impress this fact upon all under them. Especially should home during the Sabiuth-hoitrs, be consecrated to good influences. Sab bath mornings and evenings are blessed in deed, when they pettier the family into the circle of converse and instruction : and parents and children, masters, and appren tices, in the fear of God, attending to the precepts of Divine truth.are instrumental in helping each other on to glory, honor, im mortality and eternal Kk. Think of that thing" S. A Wf-t Nursr.-A house keeper recently advertised for a wet nurse. A young Irish girl offered hentelf: "How old are you Bridget'" "Sixteen, ma'am." "Have you ever had a baby:" "No ma'am but I am very fond of them !" "Then I'm afraid you will nl do!" "h, pleas ma'am, I know I'll dn, I'm very aiy to leai;h." Knicktrluckn Magazine. Fatal Acitivkt - Mr. Henry Mnntavn, of j F.ieter, Wyoming county, recently Hir-rt from the . effects of a wound rore'ved by the acriHently di chugf of i giin h tie in hn own hands "That Government in Family Circle. Thi Swttnt$$ of Home. He who has 00 home bs not the sweetest pleaaure of life, he feels not the thousand endear menta that cluster around that hollowed spot to (ill the void aching heart, and while away bis lei ure momeul in the sweetest of life's joys. Is misfortune your lot, you will find a friendly wel come from hart beating true to your own. Tb chosen partner of your toil ha a smile ot appro bation wheu all other refused, and a heart to feel your sorrow all her own. Perhaps a smiling cherub, with prattling glee and joyous laugh, will drive all sorrows from your careworn brow, and inclose in it the wreaths of domestic bliss. No matter bow humblethat home may be, how dmtiiute its stores, or how poorly lis inmates are did, if, true heart dwell there.it is yet a home a cheerlul, pridenl wife, obedient and affectionate children, will give their poteessors more real joy than bags of gold and windy honor. The home ol a temperate industrious, honest man will be his greatest joy. Become to it, "weary and worn," but the music of the merry laugh and the happy voices of childhood cheer him. A plain but healthful meal await him. Envy, ambition and strife have no place there, and with a clear conscience be lays his weary limbs down to rest in the bosom of his fsmily and under the Protecting care of the poor man's friend and helper. The following epitaph is said to be on a tomb. stone in Pris, in Great Britain : "Reader, when in thi world, I had a world to do; Fretting and sweating to be rich, Just such a fool as you." Cumoirs Fact. One pint of water, converted into ateam, fills a space of nearly 2000 pints, and raises the piston of steam engine with the force of many thousand pounds. It may afterwards be condensed, and reappears as a pint of water. "I Grv.w the Rit."-A boy 3 years of age was asked who made him. With his little hand levelled a foot above the floor, he artlesalv reDlied Rod made m a fittle baby ao high, and I grew tie rest." Tbc Last of $20,000. On the back of a $3 bill of the Fairfield Coun ty (Conn.) Bank.which passed through oor hands the other day, were written the following word : A little while, yeu have been mine, No longer can I keep ye, I feat you'll near be mine again, Nor any other like ye. The last of a legacy of $20,000. (Jrj-ln looking over the lift of th member of the House of Representative, w observe there there are six Kings, four Thompsons, three John son's three Harris' two Caldwells, two Butlers snd two Drowns, but not a single Smith. PusiKsYLVANu'laoN The Bosrd of Canal Commissioners, at their meeting in thia city aays the Pennylvanian, yesterday, entered into a contract with the Montour Iron Work at Dan- ille, Columbia county, for the amount of iron rails necessary to lay the track of the railroad to void the Inclini d Plane. We have not heard the contract price. The Hagerstown New says that there is a prob ability of the reconstruction and revival of btisin ens on the Franklin Railroad, from Pennsylvania to that place. STA-rr Lr.r.iLATVrs.-The State legislatures ol Virginia, Kentucky, Ohio.lndiana and Iowa, met at their rexpective seats of Government Rich mond, Frankfnrd, Columbus, Indianapolis and Iowa City, on Monday, Dec. 3d, A Bicar Fioht. Mr. Mesrrve, living in the town of Jackson, New Hampshire, about ten days since, having occasion in go some distance through the woods with his little son, took his gun supposing they might see something worth firing at. He had not gone far hefor h . sign of a bear-and on looking about, discovered a monstrous she bear coiled away. He had no lead for his gun larger than partridge shot. Rut , the camp. 1 knew.too, that he would ran nothing daunted-atter opening hi. pocket-knife, j Mck mv Cfim, ,nd I hon.J .v... tn and giving it to the lad, to stand ready in the rear-he peppered away into her face ; and the bear started to run when he seized his knife and jumped on to her back caught hr by the head, threw her over, and rut her throat ! Woman, according to a German prt, is "an , . i m l. t t Hqui.il. product.on ot nature, toU,, a ,J""imal lh"1 he Wa" W,l,l,n fl2ht of lIie acid art angel." camp. I doubled my speed, content that There is said to be one vilt instrument in everv band of music and that's the bane drum. A von re woman on lithtin trr.r . drooped a ribhon from her bonnet in th. h I of the coach. ' You have lft your bow behind," said a lady j passenger. ; " No I havn'i he's gone a fishing." innocently j rejoins tne dain-.n i x T..... ir. k .,, : A IRITMM. An exchange savs All our rx- 1 perien'e gneMoshow that a per'v.n whoran l.v. in th world without suftenng slander, must he mo stupid or imijimfi.Mnt m rUim attention. the best which Rovcrn least." CO., SATURDAY, Chased by a Catamount, A C K If E lit THE LIVE Of A PIONEER. I was one? told of a thrilling adventure vf the first settler in Paris, Maine, with a catamount. Although I cannot relate it with that lively effect with which it , was told me, still I have embodied the facts in this sketch. l-hail been on a hunting excursion, and as 1 was returning I Tell in with, that oft described personage, 'the oldest inhabitant.' He kindly aacosttd me, and I gladly enter ed into conversation with him. Young man,' said he, when I first visi ted this town, there were only three famil ies living in it. You who now live in case, can never know the hardships and perilous semes through which the earlier settlers passed. Come with me,' he continued, and I will show you the exact spot on which the first hut ever erected in this town was located.' I followed silently, until the old man reached the bottom of the west side of Tar is Hill.,' ,-' . There,' said he, 'on this spot was erec ted the hut. I shall never forget the first time I visited it, and the story that I was told.' . What was it?' I asked. I will tell it to you. When the first settler moved here his nearest neighbor lived twenty miles distant in the present town of Rumford, and the onlv road be tween the two neighbors was a path that he had cut through the woods himself, so that in case of want or sickness, he might get assistance. One spring, I think it was the third season after he had settled there, he was obliged to go to Ruraford after provisions. He arose early one morning, and started for his nearest neighbor. People of the present day would think it hard to make a journey of twenty miles for a bag of potatoes, and on font, too ; but such was the errend of the first settlor. He arrived before noon, was successful in getting his potatoes,gol some refreshments, and started for home. But it was not very easy to travel with a load of potatoes ; and finally, at sundown he threw off his load, and resolved to make a shelter and spend the night. 1 have been with him to the exact locality of it; it was situated just the other side of the stream on which are mills, in the village now known as Pinhook in Woodstock. He built a shelter, struck a fire, and took out of his pack a piece of meat to roast. Ah ! young man,' contin ued the narrator, 'you little know with j what relish a man eats his food in the woods ; but as I was saying, he had com menced roasting his meat, when he was startled by a cry so shrill, that he knew at once it could come from nothing but a cata mount. I will now relate it to you as near a I can in the language of the old settler himself; "'I listened a moment,' said he, 'and it was repeated even louder, and it seemed nearer than before. My first thought was for my own safety. But what was I to do ? It was at least ten miles to my home, and there was not a single human bring nearer than that to me. I first thought of self-defence ; but I had nothing to defend myself with. In a moment I concluded to start for home, for I knew the nature of the cat- Rmount 100 we" ,0 tnin'; I nould stand tne least chance of escape, if I remained in which I left behind might satisfy his ap petite, so that he would not follow mc after eating it. "I had not proceeded more than half a mil hefnre T linpiv Kv thfl Khriolf nf iKa i the beast Fhnuld have my supper; al though I declare that I would not have run if I had had my trusty rifle with me. But there could he no rowordice in runnine from an infuriated catamount, doubl !v f.i- rious probably, by being- hungry, and I with nothing that could be called a weapon, ve a j.orket knife. " 'I had proceeded, probably, about two of (jstnnre nm(, an, hPiirjn(, j nothing mon! of my feared cnentv, I bcran ,0 icn m.v riirp' anJ thought I hail ! nothing to fear. I had left brhind mc, i about two pound of meat, bc f and prk, J DEC. 15, 1849. which 1 hoped had satisfied the monster. Just as I had come to the conclusion thai 1 would run no further, and was lookit g back astonished almost, at the distance I had travelled in so short a space of time, I was electrified with honor to hear the ani mal ihriek again. ' 'I then knew my worst fears were re alized. The beast had undoubtedly en tered the camp and ate what he could find, and then had scented my track and follow ed after me. I was about three miles to my log cabin, and it had already become dark. 1 redoubled my speed ; but I felt that I must die. And such a death! The recollccttion of that feeling come to my mind as vividly as though I knew the ani mal was now pursuing me. But I am' no coward, though to be torn in pieces, and almost eaten alive by a wild beast was horrib'e ! ; " 'I calmly unbuttoned my frock, with the determination to throw it off before the beast should approach mc, hoping thereby to gain advantage of him by the time ha would be in tearing it into pie ces. '"Another shriek, and I tossed the gar ment behind me in the path. Not , more than five minutes elapsed before I heard a shrill cry as he came to it. How that shriek electrified me '. I bounded like a deer. But in a moment the animal made another cry, which told me plainly that the garment had only exasperated him to a fiercer chase. " '0, God 1' said I, 'and must I die thus 1 can, I must live for my wife and chil dren,' and I ran even faster than I had done before, and unbuttoning my waist coat, I dropped it in the path as I proceed ed. The thought ot my wife and children urged me to desperate speed for I thought more of their unprotected slate than the death I was threatened with, for, fchouldl die, what would become of them t " 'In a moment the whole events of my life crowded through my brain. The lint blood coursed through my vein with tor rent's force ! The catamount shrieked louder and louder, and fast as I was run ning, he was rapidly approaching me. Nearer and nearer he came, until I fancied I could hear his bounds. At last I came to the brook which you ?ee vonder, and it was double the size which it is now, for it was swollen by recent freshets, and I longed to cool my fevered brain in it: but I knew that would be as certain death to me as to die by the claw of the beast. With three bounds I gained tho opposite bank, and then I could clearly see a light in my log cabin not a hundred rods dis tant, i " 'I had not proceeded but a hort dis tance, before I heard the plunge of the cat amount behind me. 1 leaped with more than human energy, for it was now life and death. In a moment, the catamount gave another wild shriek, as though he was afraid he should lose his pray. At the same instant,! yelled at the top of my lungs to my wife. In a moment I saw her ap proach the door with a lirht. '"With what vividness that moment comes back to my mind ! The catamount was not so far from me as I was from the house. I dropped my hat, the only thing I could leave to slay the progress of the beast. The next moment I fell prostrate in my own cabin.' "Here the old settler paused, and wiped the big drops from his brow ere he contin ued : " 'How long I lay when I fell I know not, but when I was restored to conscious ness, I was lying on a rude coach, and my wife was bathing my head with cold water, and my children were gazing anx iously at me. My wife told me that as soon as I fell 6he immediately shut the door and barred it, for she knew that I wuh pursued: but by whom or what she knew not, and that as soon as 1 had fallen and the door closed, a fearful spring was made upon it: hut the door was strong and well barred, and withstood the spring of the beast. " 'As nine as I fully recovered, I knelt anf) 0fjercd the most fervent prayer to the Almighty (hat rvrr pasted my lips, or ever will again. My family and myself shortly retired : but no sleep viwitcd mc that night. In the morning, when my little hon six yLU SLItlLS-l Ol.. TWELVE. ( voiTa VOL. 3, NUMBER 39. years old. told me lhat he saw the eyes of the colt lo. king in at the window jn the night. I knew the catamount had been wati hingtogain admittance : but our win dons, you will perceive, are nut large en ough to permit a catamount to enter. "'When 1 looked into the glass next morning, I was horror truck at my aller ed appearance. My hair which was tha day before black as midnight, wa changed to the snowy whiteness you now see it: and although I have enjoyed very good health since, I shall never recover from the effects of the fright I experienced on being CIUSKD BT A CATAMOUNT Woman's) Lore. A Char mink Story, Onei thediioi ti.e .w Orlea., Pita. R'!" on the moral cul.u.-e of Ida airrciions, relate, the following pretty .tory; In the course of our peregrinations, w were oi.ee introduced to a family consist ing of a widow lady and two daughter. The elder was. about twenty, and exceed ingly interesting girl, well educated, and of considerable personal attractions. I,, t,e rrnnpral dfmeonn. -C .L - . .. w.,i.u, , ,c skiers t,crt. Was a striking contrast; the youngest was hII gaity, with a transparent candor on her features that embled you to read her very heart. Kvery word, every move, of the cider, evinced aome predominant idea that she habitually "chewed the bud of bit ter melancholly." What that idea was, in a young girl, of course every body might divine. After a time, a little intimacy having sprung up between us and the wi.l. ow. the cause of the melancholly in her eldest daughter was explained to u. She had been brought up near a family whew there was a youth of her own age, and reciprocal affection was the result of Ion year of intimacy between them. Tho mother only became aware of the state 0f her daughter's feelings by the demand for her hand made by the lover. The png. tion of the young couple was such, in re gard to worldly affairs, ,0 render their marriage imprudent in the extreme. Tho widow, therefore, pointed out to her child all the evil consequences which it would cntad on her, and the latter, like a sensible young woman, omcurred in the mother1, views. It was .hen agreed on between them to remove from the scp(0 jf nd the family accordingly established' themselves at a. pot forty mirg off wh we first 4aw them, the young lil(y prnmij. mg to hold no corrccnoiiri,.,,... ..:.L .. gentleman. 1 r "nn Circumstances shortly after caIU! another part of the country, but about nine months subsequenily we were again thrown -"to intercourse with the family atthesam, pace Somewhn, :.o,lrturpri,ff hewtdowwtth theynunge,, daughter on y; the elder had left her home fLl " i ne explanation wa8 readily gjveil M ' It appeared, that, notwithstmwli,, effort on the part of the youn U,h- ,i pass.oi, she had conceived for ion of her infancy could not be eradivLi" Her gloom and despondency dailv. mcrease . She uttered no complain,, but plain that memory, " like a orm t e bud" preyed on her yhl 'Z H..ng one evening in a carriage with her mother in the outskirts of the vile wher they lived, whilst the latter was end,,. ' ing to rouse her from her melancholly, by descanttng on thebeautie. of .., 7 suddbroke from her topor and e,- 'Look ma. at yonder oak alone i ,he middle of that ploughed field ! I WJ! rather be Morton', wife, ,nd tv, o acorn, be.ath that tree, than be Struck almost speeehles. by ler er s unaccustomed eergy,,he po, widL er a moment, ad burat tears. "Do you really mean that, FIetlv f Thfln asthere is. living God. V01J MiM him ! am too much nf . understand you, and will ' ' " ""man not to l"fger oppose your wishes, The wo werfl , , jnMani each other., sweeping tears 0f love and gra.u e. They rel.rned hflJ; s.antly ; a letter was forthwith address d to the lover, and the wedding of the;"' couple was duly .olemnised, month from that day. a