If" -it- "::. -:- .x"' r 1 1 l r 1 W. II. JACOBF, ProprietorO Trnth and Iligliit God and onr Country Two Dollars per Annan. VOLUME 13. BLOOMSBURG, COLUMBIA COUNTY, PA., WEDNESDAY APRIL 24, 1861. NUMBER 16. E NORTH. i - T f i STAR OF THE NORTH JOWHH1D ITIBT'lrtllJtlJDiT BT WM. H. JAUOBY, fflee on Haln St., 3rd Square below Market, TERMS : Two Dollars-per annum if paid within six months frdfn tHe time'of subscri bins': t,wo dollars fend 'fifty vcen fs if rjot paid within the year. No subscription taken fur 'fe less period than fix months; no discon tinuances permitted until all arrearages are tpaid, unless at the option Ot the editor. "JTJU terms of advertising vill be as follows : Orie square, twelve lines? three times, $1 00 .Every subsequent insertion, 25 One square, three months, 3 00 One year,. ................ 8 00 Ctjoice poetrrj. " Villi) .NOT TO DISK DESPAIR. Hast thou one heart that loves thee, - In this dark world of care, Whose gentle smile approves thee ? Yield not to dark despair ! One hand whose loving fingers Are pressed in thine alone One fond, confiding bosom, WhoHe thought are all thine own ? One truthful voice to guide thee, And bless thee in distress 1 One breast, when thou art weary, Whereon tby head to rest? Till deMh thy form has shrowded, And cold thy heart so warm,t . Till death the earth has clouded, Heed not the passing storm. tVou ia1 orie fre to bind tbee, And little life buds rare Let love, sweet love entwine then, In this dark world of care ! LIFE IN EXGLISH COAL MINES. THE COUJER?, THEIR DANGERS, ESCAPES ETC. . As a rale, we do not find colliers so, well informed as factory operatives but, on the other hand, they are a quieter and more tractable pet. They hardly seem to know lear ; but still, the darkness in Which they labor, and the many dangers surrounding them in their cavernous abode, appear to imperceptibly affect their general character. Though, from better application of mechan ical power, and a more scientific regulation of the currents of air in our larger coal Vnines, accidents have become less numer ous, they will, from the nature of the work, alwaytkbe "rather frequent, and the collier on descending the shaft to his daily task, if reflective, must be keenly alive to impend ing danger. In walking through the coal VJistrict about the time the men leave off work, it is arousing to watch the different bands of men emerging from the pit's rnoulh, having been quickly wound up by the powerful machinery from the regions of darkness into the welcome light of day. Many of them are as wild and frolicsome -as a pack of boyslet out from school ; and as soon as they can free themselves from trie chains, in which they have been hang ing like a large bunch of smutty grapes the youngsiers in the middle for greater aafety they run capering and. shouting from the bank, making the most ot their liberty, and dispelling, by their boisterous mirth, and false notions of pity we may bave been entertaining for their hard lot In winter certainly, during their working days, they never 6ee the sun: for those of them who labor the whole of the day, com taence before it is light, and do not leave off until it is durk, being underground nearly from 6 A. M , to 6 P. M. The Monday fol lowing the reckoning Saturday is mostly a play-day with these men ; and, if wages are good, not nnfrequenlly the Tuesday also though on these occasions they will frequent ly assemble at the pit at the customary time and then, irom come trivial excuse vastly found by men unwilling to work or -at the direct instigation of one of the young est bands, they wilt return home again. It takes but liulu, on ordinary occasions, to make a whole p it's company 'play.' Should the eogineman be but a few minutes be hind time in the morning, and cause a light delay, when they are ready to go Vlown the shaft, they will often refuse to work; and should auy onforseen occurrence prevent the whole day's work being done, they can seldom or never be pursuaded to 'begin later in the day, and do ihreequarters or half a day's work instead. Though individually the colliers do not care much for a few wound and bruises, "priding themselves npon their hardy endu rance of suffering, yet, if one of their com pany is slightly hurt in any way, so as to be compelled to leave his post,: they will in general all desist from working, regard less of consequences. We cannot give tfiem, as a class, great credit, for being prov ident ; but there are many exceptions ; and ia visiting their homes, we. find that where there is a shelf for a few books, a little store is also laid by, in the proverbial stock-tng-foci or in the savings-banks, against the rainy day.' : At present, literary , societies end mechanics' institutes- have signally failed in reaching the bulk, of these men, though free lectures, in populous places, and other means of social entertainment, appear to be attended with good effects. For religions instruction, a great portion of them are indebted to the Wesleyan con nection, and as coming nearer elill down to their level to the Primitive Methodists, or 'Ranters,' as they are. vulgarly called. In the prayer-meetings of these dissenters, there is a degree of energy and enthusiasm exhibited which ia most cases accords bet- t2r with the colliers' taste than the more formal church-servica. Another induce ment is, that many of their own number, take ihs lead at thes religious meetings, end, rk! exetnp'ary zeal and striking en thusiasm, strive, as far as their ability per mits, to inculcate the doctrines of Christi anity. There are many who will listen to the exhortation of a 'butty collier,' whom nothing would persuade to atfend the min istration of a duly ordained clergyman. 'In travelling about the neighborhood of the pits, ( frequently have opportunities of talking to the colliers about their work, or other topics, and have found occasionally, under a swarthy cloak of flannel and dirt, a degree of intelligence that much surpris ed me. On a cold, rainy day, I have tome- times entered one of their cabins by the pita, sure of 'finding shelter and a good fire. If you have riever been in one of these pla ces, you may enter with me this evening, and see and hear what is going on. A ca pacious fire-place, oa Which is a barrow ful or two of coal would be lost, occupies near ly the whole of one side. There is a neat cast iron grate, but some long bars, of old pit rails, are stretched across a wider cavity in the wall, forming an ample receptacle for the fire. Rods of iron, or sometimes strong rope-lines, are stretched across the cabin in front of the fire place, for the men to dry their wet clothes upon, when they have been working in places troubled with water. Various interstices are seen round the unplastered walls, haudy for putting dinner basins and cans in, or for stowing away other odds and ends ; and in one ot the corners furthest from the fire, a rude cupboard is generally found, where pow der, safety-lamps, fuse and cartridge bags for blasting rocks, candles and other store-, can be put under lock and key. Round the walls are fixed some short butts of trees across which are placed rough slabs for the men to 6it upon, by whom a large bottle of ale is often discussed, when for some ex tra work they have had what they call a 'fetching' from the nearesrpublic-house. Without running into any excess, there is a sort of un trammeled enjoyment about these free-and-easy sittings in the cabin that many of the pitmen have a strong relish for. The 'fetching' does not always consist only of beer ; solids, such as bread and cheese, and bam are often added ; and many a royal banquet has passed off with less sterling enjoyment than is realized by these joily colliers around their huge fire, after some heavy task is done. Silling thus, some of ibem with eyes half closed, drawing at a short black pipe, they recount to each other scenes of danger they have passed through, difficulties they have encountered, extraordinary seams of coal they have helped to get, and other wonder ful experiences. The first that speaks to night is an old man upwards of sixty, short and stiff, of the true collier build. His legs are bowed a little, but firm under him yet; and you can see that the bridge of bis Ro man nose has been broken , for a dark-blue line stretches across it, showing where a lump of coal or other black substance has fallen upon iu You will frequently see colliers with many of these blue seams upon their face, and other uncovered parts of their body, for wherever coal cuts deep into the flesh, it brands a man forever. 'It was better than forty years ago,' he began-, in 'Bonny's lime, when I was a lad drawing dans,' and doing work such as you youngsters know nothing about nowa days. There had been a bad harvest, 1 remember, and the wheat was so bad that the bread made of it would hardly hold to gether, it was so wet and soft ; and my old woman often scooped the middle of the loaf but with a spoon, and put it in cans for the children to eat with treacle, like pud ding. I have seen surely tempered chaps throw a lump of their bread against the wall, where it would stick like nrbrtar. Potatoes went up to a great price, and were hardly ever seen iu our pit; and often there has been a scrambling fight to get a taste, if the young men saw a few in somebody's dinner-basin. Well, there was a lot of us. driving a 'head' through some faulty ground with a bad roof, and I was drawing out in dans what little coal tbey met with while pushing through, i had to go about forty yards through the uneven way they were making, back, into another road, where a second lad met me with an empty dan-basket to go back with. At middle-day, this lad brought our dinners, and he took them to the end of the head, but we had barely sat down to eat them, when we heard a loud rumbling noise near at hand. 'Now we are in for it,' said one of the men ; 'the head we have been driving has fallen in, and we are shut up I' , Creeping warily along, they found it even as he said, for about half the length of the way, the roof had fallen in, completely blocking up the passage. The . hardiest collier looked pale, which, with the dirt, I remember, gave some of them a strange, leaden ook, as though tbey were numbed with cold and fright. We did not feel any more appetite for the dinner now, so it was carefully laid by, for, as one of them said, 'We shall want it oad enough by and by.' The men did not spend much time in use less grief ; but putting out all oar candles except one, for we had not more than half a dozen in all, they began resolutely to work to clear out the road again. It went ou slow and toi!some( for having no timber to prop it op, the roof was continually giving way, now that it was once broken. Candle after candle burned away, and though the sweat ran off them, they could not make much progress in clearing the road. When half the candles were gone, they had not gained above a couple of yards in length j still they kept manf ully at it, being all thorough ly aroused to the impending danger of being left with littla air and no liaht. We could i now hear men working at the other end of i the head, and knocking, as colliers do j when they wish to signal to one another, being too fur away to be heard by shouting and this revived our courage very much, for though we could tell that the head had fallen in for a considerable length, we knew every effort would be made to get at us. I j carried the 'last candle to them, and had to wipe it carefullj before giving it them, for, almost unknowingly, tears had been drop ping'oh it as'I hurried along. I told the man I gave it to, that it was the only one left ; he said nothing, but sticking it in a bit of clay against a large rock, worked on in silence with more vigor than before. 1 dragged away with all ray strength at the rocks they got out,to clear their way a little, stealing now and then a ftfrtJive glance at the small 'candle fast melting away. When it was almost burnt down, one of them pro posed that we had belter see after our din ners, and put them where we could con veniently find them in the dark. We did so, and then tried to cut up one of the hack helves inio splinters, to give light a little longer; but it was old and tough, and would not after all, give any light to work by. Bits of tobacco-paper and other scraps made a spill or two, to make a flame for a few minutes, and then we were left in total darkness. 'Judging by the time the candles would last, we had now been blocked up for six or eight hojrs, and I, for one, began to want something to eat badly, though ashamed to say so to the rest. Now we were in the dark, however, the oldest man proposed we should sit do n and eat a small portion of our dinners, and think over what we could do for the best. Oh, Low good the soft bread wa9 now ! I wondered how I could ever have disliked it before, and could hard ly deny myself from eating it all. But as 1 heard the men whispering to each other, that it may Ve a day and a night before we could be got out, I laid a portion by for another little meal, nor did 1 quite empty my can of beer. Trying to work again in the dark, one of the three men got hurt-in the back by a rock falling upon him, so that we were compelled to give over, lest some of us should get killed. We knocked occasionally, lor them to hear and answer us, but the Bounds did not seem to come much uearer. How slow the time passed away ! Our little 6tore of food, though we divided it into small portions, was soon gone, now thirst began to be felt more than hunger. After we had been shut up about twenty-four hours, as near as we could tell, the air began to feel very'cloee and oppres ive and it made the men feel so weak, that they could not have worked even if we had had candles. One of the colliers had been used to attend prayer meetings, getting us all to kneel down together, he prayed ear nestly, and encouraged us all to do the same. I cannot remember much longer myself, for they told me I had been insen sisible for some time beforo the road wa open ; but at length the way was cleared, and we were carried out all but lifeless. It had taken more than forty eight hours to get :o us, for the rocks fell in so continual ly that timber had to be eet all along to support the roof over the narrow way. When the gray-headed old collier had finished, be refilled his pipe, and wanted to know if 'nobody else had got nothing to say ' There was a lusty little fellow in one corner whom they called "Jerry,' who gave us an account of one day ho.waa pulled up the pit without his leave. It appears he was what they call a 'hooker on,' or one that connected the carriages of coal to the pit-chain, when ready for being wound up the shaft, and unhooked those which came down empty; and, if the pit's company were all at work, was continually kept close to the bottom of the shaft. It appears that one day as be was connecting a carriage of coal to the maiu chain, the engine started rather sooner than he expected; and just as was slipping the hook into the large link, his thumb got fastened, by the snatch of the engine, between the two, and before he was well aware of it, be found himself a good many yards Up the shaft. They paused slightly a short distance up the shaft, to steady the weight; but he said be was un able to shout, and consequently was pulled up in that manner to the top of the shaft, his band and arm completely numbed by the pain and tension. Practical jokes occur, it seems, even in coal mines ; and one that had nearly proved fatal to the parties engaged was now rela ted. In some pits, otherwise well ventila ted, small quantities of Carbu retted hydro gen gas collect in rooks and crevices of the roof, especially in corners partly out of the current of air which runs through the vari ous workings. To freighten a novice, a reckless fellow will pot a naked candid up into one of these places, causing a mina ture explosion of fire-damp, just sufficient to terrify any inexperienced person, but what an old band would consider a mere bagatelle. It appears a stranger bad been down one of the pits, who seemed very forward with his remarks, and altogether sceptical as to danger; indeed, the man said 'be give himself important airs, and knew all about everything a great deal bet ter than us poor colliers.' So when they came to a part of the pit by an old road, that bad not been nsed for sometime, a sly rogue among' them directed this savant's attention to some tarry fnattef oozing out from the coal in the roof, close to the air door leading into the old road. Adjusting his spectacles, the opinionated wiseacre put up his candle to the place, to note well the phenomenon! saying at the tme tints that it was nothing new to him ; but he had scarcely uttered this self-conceited re- mark, when the gas caught fire trom his candle, which he had been poking all about, and a scorching flame passed over and almost blinded them. They instantly fell down flat, as is usually the safest plan in cases of fire, and he, imitating their ex- ample, did the same. It was well they did so, for almo-t in an instant a loud ex plosion fairly shook the ground, blowing the air-door, close to them, into fragments over their heads. The flame, they said, must have passed through a crevice close to the door, and ignited a large quantity of inflammable gas in the old disused road. Fortunately, they escaped without any very serious injury, though the learned theorist's practical experience was of a paiolul char acter, such as he would not wish repeated, for his eyebrows and whiskers were singed ofi, and his clothes bore sure testimony that 'the smell of the fire had passed over them.' The introduction of flat chains into the colliers, though combated against by the men at first, as most new things are, has been the means of saving much loss of life, h was not a very uncommon thing, before, to hear of a hempen rope breaking, and dropping a whole band-full of men. Such an accident seldom or never occurs where good three-link chains are used, for as one of the chains is able to bear more is generally trusted to all three, and as they are all joined fast togeuteT at every alter nate link by a wooden 'key,' driven tightly in, and held there by stout little nails called stubbs, it is possible that all three chains may be broken in separate places, and the weight still be sustained, by the interven tion of many keys between the broken parts. An old charter-master who contracts for raising the coal at so much per ton told us how terribly frightened he had been once by two links breaking together. He was coming up the pit on the top of a loaded coal 'skip,' or basket, and when near the top he hard something snep, and looking up saw that 'one of the links had broken, and of the two remaining links, one appear ed rather slack. By ana by, he could jiUinly see that the one link which appered to bear all the weight, was parting in two. It was an old engine, which wound op slowly, and the short time taken in being pulled up, the last few yards seemed, he said, like an age. As the link parted and stretched a little, of course the other chain tightened up, and had come to its bearing before actual severance had taken place. It was impossible, he said, to describe the intensity of his feelings for the few re maining seconds as his eyes glared at the sir.gle whole link left, on which bis-lite de pended. Hj wasn't a praying man then, he said, but his heart offered up an earnest ejacuia.ory pennon, almost witnout nis mowing ir, ana nis companions stared witn aitonishment as he fell on his kneos upon the 'tacking,' or platform covering the top of the pit, and returned hearty thank for uis ea.io ueiiverance as soon as lie safely landed and out of peril. u- . - l - . i was Colliers are rather inclined to be super- stitious. Derhnns nnino tn thfir work hpinv ' 1 i r o o so frequently done in the dark, or with such a light as only makes darkness visible. They are generally too willing to believe in a special Providence averting danger and death. Where there are so many ac cidents, instances of what appear to be miraculous escapes are not uncommon Several cases have occurred of persons fall ing down shafts tome forty or fifty yards deep, and sustaining no serious injury; and though science may assert that the parachutical inflation of the man's stiff flan nel shirt, or the woman's voluminous skirts, broke their fall the collier finds it easier and pleasanter to believe that Providence interferred in a direct manner. It is an old assertion of the pitmen, thai the roads fall in more whfen all is quiet, at night, than during the daytime, wben men and hores are continually employed iu them; and they often have to clear away in the morn ing large masses of rock which could not have fallen during working hours without causing loss of life. The sexegenarian here recounted some of the narrow escapes he had undergone, of which I can only remember one or two -He had finished earlier than usual one day, and was coming up the shaft in company with another man clandestinely, as employ ers, object to one or two coming up by themselves, and expect to wail until the customary number (eight or nine) are all ready together. He was sure whether they shouted to the banksman or not wben near the top, for him to signal to the en gineman that men were coming up ; but either accidentally or otherwise, he pulled them about a yard too high, and they came in contact with the pulley, just as the tack ing was being pulled over pit. His com panion fell out, and dropped on the very edge of the tacking overhanging the pit, escaping wonderfully with only a few brui ses while he himself clung to the rim of the pulley against which he was pulled, and waa gently lowered again unhnrt. Another time he was ascending the pit with eight or nine more colliers alter their usual day's work. ; They were singing away on coming towards the pit mouth, as they often do ; the engineman pulled them up exactly to the right place ; the banks man leisurely pushed the tacking over the pit, when inttantly the large hook they were hanging by snapped in two, and drop ped them all on to the tacking just ready to receive tbemV Had the hook broken a second or so beforjbH? 'ljh been precipitated to the bottom of the shaft some six hundred feet, and consequently ; have been dashed to pieces. The old man j said, that he frequently thought of that time when death was so near; and often when he and his family had been but badly off, when wages were low and work scarce, I he gratefully trusted that the same watch ful Providence would help them through their difficulties. The big fire having burned low, and their several pipes gone out, the story-tellers, after placing a large piece of coal which a London needlewoman would think a liberal week's allowance on the j fire, to keep it in till next morning.atl wend their way homeward. Though surrounded by many dangers, a collier unless from compulsion, seldom leaves the pit for other employment. The young strong men, when working by meas ure, can often do their day's work by dinner-time, or soon after, which leaves a large portion of the day at their own dispo sal. When wages are good, of course play days are numerous, and in many other era ployments these holidays never occur ; and a collier lad is dearly fond of a loose end, as he terms it an expression derived from their sometimes having the measure they are working fast at one end, in the solid stratum, and loose at the other, from a head having been driven in it previously Besides the Field Club, to provide against colliery accidents, they often join another club or provident society, so that, in case ot illness or accident, they may be well pro vided for support and medical attendance. The collieries being now under the imme diate inspection of government, no serious accident can occur without a thorough in vestigation taking place; and if adequate protection ia not given to men's lives by efficient and good ventilation, compulsory measures are resorted to, by the imposition of fines upon the proprietors. The master in a colliery often retains that title only by courtesy, or wben the men are masters of their position, they do not scruple to show their independence, and will work or play just as they please, without letting the in terests of their employer interfere much in their proceedings. With healthy homes to live in, a moderate education given to them, and recreation free from vicious contamina tion placed within their reach, these hardy fellows would all become worthy and well behaved members of society. Chambers's Journal. i . . t A xarrow Eseapc. The following anecdote is related by a French journal of General Fanti : During the retreat of Novara, in 1849, the General who had the charge of saving- the remnant of the Piedmontese army, had given the most severe oiders to his troops. ; A w a importam t0 aTOjd attracting . ,he aUeillion o ,he Austrians, the command , wa8 g.fen ,hal n0 one under any circurn. 8tanceSj 8honId mter a cry. or above all, , firn MB ..hou. ,he comrnand of an 0ffi. cer, under penalty of anstant death. One morning, during a halt, a soldier, hearing lhe npjghing of a horce in a neighboring thicket, raised his gun and fired. General Fanti who was near, rushed upon him in fury, 6abre in hand, and plunging the weapon in his breast, extended him at his feet. "1 will do the same," he cried out, ' to any one who attempts to imitate this wertch, who was either a coward or a traitor." Ten years have passed since this occur rence, ten eventful years, which have trans formed the victors of Novara into the van quished ol Megenta and Sollerino. During thewe ten years, General Fanti has some- times related to his friends, with emotion and compunction, also, this episode of his military life. "I was brutal," he would say ; ' but the safety ol the army was at stake." A few days since, before his departure for the Neapolitan territory, he wa accost ed, in a public square at Turin, by a man, who placed himself before him, saying "Do you know me, General ?" ''Not the least in the world." "But, General, look at me." " km in a hurry. Speak, who are you?" "General, If you have forgotten me I have kept a rtmembrance of you in the bottom of my heart, lor your sabre entered here several inches." "At the retreat of Novara 1" "Yes, General." "What ! are you not dead V "You see ; but I came very near it. I bad great trouble io escaping." "You can boast of a tough life ; but do you know that you were avery bad soldier?" '1 know that I am now a very poor la bbrer." "Come to see me to-morrow." The next day the soldier of Novara pre sented himself at the war-office. "Show me my sabre wound," demanded the General. The Italian opened his breast, and dis closed a deep scar. "Ah !" said the general, "it was a good stroke. Hold, here is some lint that will staunch the wound," handing him a hand ful of bank cotes. GT"SaI," cried a girl, looking out of the tipper story ol a small grocery, addressing another girl who was trying to enter the frontdoor; "we've all been converted, so when you want whisky on Sunday you will have to come in at the back door." sJ1- jrw-i Ibe Flags. Banners are emblems. All nations have used them, and all nation have abused them. They have been, and are slid, the rallying points of bailie, and the significant beacons in peace. That which we call the ' Star Spangled Banner," is, when fully blotvn upon the breeze, a glorious thing of beauty, and well does the poet describe it : When Freedom from her mountain height, Unfurls her standard to the'air, She tore the azure robes of night, And set the stars of glory there. 4 IShe mingled with its gorgeous'dyes The milky baldric of the skies, And stripea its pure celestial white, With streaking of the morning's light. Then from his mansion in the tun, She called her eagle bearer down, And gave into his mighty hand, The symbol ol her chosen land. That 'flag, upon whose folds Josep Rod man Drake, the poet ju9t quoted, has in scribed bis imperishable fame, was, on the first day of January, 1776, raised over the Continental Army at Cambridge, in Massa chusetts. It was marked with thirteen stripes, emblematic of the thirteen colonies and of their Union, and afterwards a blue field, with thirteen stars, was added to it, and thus perfected, it was adopted as the banner of the Nation by an act passed on the 14th of June, 1777, by the Continental Congress. The flag of South Carolina was adopted when Charleston was attacked in Septem ber, 1775. Having no banner under whose folds to fight, there being no national sUnd ard at the time, and the British having fled from Fort Johnson, Lieutenant Colone' Motte, accompanied by Captain Charles Cotesworth Pinckuey, Bernard Elliot, and the famous Francis Marion, went over to the Fort and hoistsd ever the main bastion the first Republican flag ever displayed at the South. This flag was designed by Moultrie him self at the request of the Council of Safety, and as the State troops were clothed in blue, and the fort was garrisoned by the first and second regiments, who wore a silver cres cent in front of their caps, he had a large blue flag made with a crescent in the dex ter corner, to be in uniform with the troops. Since the Palmetto tree has been inserted on the field of the flag; and as much, it now waves again over the walls ol Moul trie, and casts now its ahaJow on the battlement of Sumpter. The Amsrican Ensign cf the Stars and Stripes is still the formal and official sym bol of the countries, known wherever there is a harbor to enter, or a river to ascend. It is honored by all nations, for it has proudly won its place among the archives of glory ; and so long as it was used by pa triotic hands, and loved by patriotic hearts, it was cherished as the gallant beacon of every section of country. Under a Jackson, who threatened South Carolina during his administration, it was held in the fondest reverence because it was not the symbol of a faction, but of the Feneral Government ; but now that it has been usurped by ene mies to the public peace, and abettors of civil war, and breakers of the Constitution, its stars are dimmed, and its broad stripes no longer represent the baldric of the skies. A great emblem should never be prostitu ted to bad causae, and it is with profound regret that we are forced, by any combina tion of circumstance, to Iook upon the great buting without feelings of the most enthusiastic character ; but when we know that it is to be used to lead on the forces of a fanatical party, we can but feel that it is detecratrtd, and it should not be allowed to pasi though such an ordeal oJ infamy. The Tomb.. The heart of the youth is a wild prairie. Over it hang the clouds of Heaven to water it; the sun throws its broad sheet of light upon it to wake it to life ; out of its bosoms spring, the long season through, flowers of a hundred names and hues, twining togeth er their lovely forms wafting to each other a grateful odor and nodding each to each in the summer breeze. Such would be wol'd he hold that purity of heart which God g'ves him. Therelore, O, youth, guard your heart to purity. Never lose it; if it be gone, you have lost from the casket the most precious gift of God. The first purity of imagination, ol thought, and of feeling, if soiled, can be cleansed by no fuller's soap; if lost cannot be found, though sought lor carefully with tears. If a harp be broken, art may remedy it; if a light be quenched, the flame may be rekindled ; but if a flower be crushed, what art can re pair it? If an odor be wafted away, who can collect or bring it back ? G7A teacher one day endeavoring to make a pupil understand the nature and application of a passive verb, said, "A passive verb is expressive of the nature of receiving an action, "Peter is beateu." Now, what did Peter do V The boy, paus ing a moment, wiih the gravest counte nance possible, said, "Well I don't know, without he hollered." OT A witness in court, ppeakipg in a very loud and harsh voice, the lawyer em ployed on the bther 6ide exclaimed, "Fel low, why dost thou bark so fdrious ?" Be cause," said the rustic, "I think I see a thief." Some men who pretend to back their friends, back them as they would fceir hor ses, tail formast. - tyin all matters Except a little matter bt the tongue, a woman can generally hold The Grave. O the grave 1 the grate ! It buries every error; covers every defect ; extinguishes every reaentiment. From its peaceful bo om spring none but fond regrets and recollections- who can 'look 'down on the grave even of an enemy and not feel a compunc tions throb that' ever should have warred with the poor 'ba'ndful of earth that lies mouldering before him? But the grave of those we love what a place.for medilaiiou! Then it is we call up in long review the whole history ot virtue and gentleness and the thousand endearments lavished upon us, almost unheeded in the daily inter course 'of intimacy then it is we dwell np on the tenderness of the partipg.scene ; the bed of death with all the Jstifled grief; its noiseless attendants; its mute watchful as riduities ; the last testimonies of expiring love, the feeble fluttering. Ay, go to the grave of "burried love and meditate ! There settle the accounts with thy conscience of every past endearmentunregarded, of that departed being, who never, never can re turn, to be soothed by contrition ! If ihoa art a child, and bast ever added a sorrow to the soul, or a sigh to an affectionate pa rent sf thou art a husband, aud hast ever caused the fond borom that ventured its whole happipess in thy arras to doubt one moment of thy Jkindness or thy truth if thou art a friend, and hast ever wronged in thought, or word, or deed,, the spirit that generously confided in thee if thou art a lover, and hast ever given one unkind look, every ungracious word, every ungentle ac tion, will come thronging back upon mem ory, and knocking dolefully at thy soul then be sure that you lie down sorrowing and repentant on the grave, and utter the unheard groan, and pour the unavailing tear more bitter, because unheard and . ffha Sent Them. Old Mother Banner was pious, but poor. In the midst of her extreme want, hertrust and confidence was in God. It was late one chilly night in the autumn of the year, when two rather wild young men were passing her cottage on their way home. One of them had under bis arms some loaves of bread which be had pur chased at the vilfaje store. A faint light glimmered from Mother Benner'a case ment. Said the one who had the loaves to his companion. "Let us have some fun with the old wo man." "Agreed," said the other. They approached the house, and peeping into the window, saw the old woman upon her kr.eea by the hearth, where a lew em bers were mouldering in the ashes. She was engaged in prayer. They listened and heard her offering an hone6t petition for bread. She was utterly destitute offbread. In furtherance of their fun, one of them with the loaves climbed softly up the roof of the cottage and dropped one loaf after the other down the chimney. As the bread rolled down on the heanh, they caught the lady's ee, and in the fullness of her heart she exclaimed : "Thank the Lord ; bless the Lord for his bounty." l"But the Lord did not send them," shout ed a voice from tha chimney. "Yes, he did," said the undauntedly ; "the Lord sent them, ana the Devil broBghl them." A Qpert to the Editor : "When a lady gets stalled in a gutter, In the midst of a populous street, (Like a fly that is stranded.in the butter,) And has to uncover her feet ; As gently the crinoline lifts she, And g:ves it her gracefullest sweep, Is a fellow to blame Mr. Editor, If he at her ankles should peep, Jut to see if they're thick or they're thin, Mr. Editor, is it a sic? ' To Make Water Soft. If you are troub led to get soft water for washing, fill a tub' or barrel half full of wood ashes, and fill it up with water, 6o that you may have lye whenever jon want it. A gallon of strong lye, put into a great kettle of hard water, will make it as soft as rain water. Some people use pearlash, or potash j but this costs something, and is very apt to injure the texture of the cloth. UT "Dad, have you always acted so strange?" "Why Billy ?" "Becaaoe,whea mam gets sick, you always have to fetch a baby here to squall around and make sich a noise. Good idea To preveut domestics breaking anything. Keep a cat in the house, and you will never bear of anything being broken by ths servants. CP""To wet your whistle" Imitate ths example of the locomotive. He runs along, whistled over his work, and yet never takes anything bet water when he wants to "wet his whistle." Why is an old maid like a dried orange ? Ans. Because neither of them are worth a good squeeze. .. ' EyA crusty old bachelor says, the talk of women is usually about the men. Even, their laugh is but "he ! he!!" Parents Teach your children to lov everything that is beautiful and it will teactr them to be useful and good.
Significant historical Pennsylvania newspapers