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