Arlertttl fflortql.
SPRING CONCERT.
DT 14118. 1.. /I, 810001tNlir
Tanta% 'Concert, n concert of gladness and gleo,
The programme is rich and the tickets are free I
In a grand, vaulted hall, whore there's room and to
spare
With.no gaslights to ont up the oxygen there.
The musicians excel' in their wonderful art,
They have compass of voice, and the garnet by heart
They travelled abroad In the winter recess,
And sung to vast crowds with unbounded success,
And now 'tie a favor and privilege rare
Their arrival to 'hall, and their melodies share.
Those exiluislte rultudrels a fashion have sot
Which they hops you'll comply with and may not re
gra :
They don't keep Into hours, forJhoy've always been
'Twould injure their voices and make - them look old.
They invite you to come, if you hare a tine ear,
To the garden or grove their rehearsals to hear;
Their chorus is full ere the sunbeam is born;
Their music the sweetest at breaking of morn ;
It was learnodat heaven's gate, with its rapturous
lays,
And may teach you, perchance. its own spirit of praise.
gil i roc vi !all, an iO.
From tho Atlantic Monthly.
A CALL TO MY COUNTRYWO-
PI'M
In the newspaper 4 and magazines you
shall see many poems—written by wom,!,n
who meekly term themselves weak, and rnc•
destly ptotess to represent only the weak
among their sex,—t usefully - discussing the
duties whicli — Me weak owe to their country
in days like these. The invariable conclu
sion- is, that thotigh they cannot -fight, be
cause they are nut men,—ur go down en
nurse the sick and wonuded, because they
have children to take care of,—or write effec
tively, because they do not know how,—or
do any great and heroic thing, because they
have not the ability,—they can pr.. y; and
they generally do close with a melodious
and beautiful prayer. Now praying is a good
thine It is, in tact, the very best thing in
the world to do, and there is no danger of
our having too much of it ; but if women,
weak or strong, consider that praying is all
they can or ought to do (or their country,
and to settle down contented with that, they
make as great a mistake as it they did not
pray at all. True, women cannot tight, and
there is no, call for any great number of fe
male nurses; notwithstanding thi , , I be
lieve, that to-day, the issue of this war de
pends quite as much upon American women
"as upon American men,—and depends, too,.
not
. upon the few who write, but upon the
many who do not. Tlie women of the Re
volution were not - only Mrs. Adams, .Mrs.
Reed, and :11rs. Schuyler, but the wives of
the farmers and shoemakers and blacksmiths
everywhere. It is nut Mrs. Stowe, or Mrs.
Howe, or Miss Stevenson, or Miss Dix, alone,
who is to save the country, but the thousands
upon thousands who are at this moment
darning stockings, tending babies, sweeping
floors. . -It is to them I speak. It-is they
whom I wish to get hold of; or in their
bands lies slumbering the future of this na
tion.
The women of to-day have not come up to
the level of to-day. They do not stand abreast
with its issues. They do not rise to the height
of its great argument. Ido not flirget what
you have done. I have beheld, 0 Durease.i,
with admiration and gratitude, the coats and
garments. the lint and bandages, which you
have made. Tender hearts, if you could
have finished the war with your needles, it
would have been finished long ago; but
stitching does not crush rebellion, does not
anuhilatc treason; or trew traitors-in'pietes
before the Lord. Excellent as far as it goes
it •stops fearfully short of the goal. This
ought ye to do, but there arc other things
which you ought not to leave undone. The
war cannot be finished by sheets and. pillow
cases. Sometimes lam tempted to believe
that'it Cannot be finished' till we have flung
them all away. When l-rea lof the Rebels
fighting bare headed, bare-footed, haggard,
and unshorn, in rags and filth,--lighting
bravely, heroically, suce, ssfully,— I am rea
dy to make a burnt-offering of our slacks of
clothing. I feel and fear that we must come
down, as they have done, to a reek!, ssness
of all incident ils, down to the rough and
rugged fastnesses of life, down to the ve-y
gates of death itself, before we shall be ready
and worthy to win victories. Yet it is not
so, for the tta:de.st lights the earth has ever
known have been made by the delicate-han
ded and purple-robed. S a, in the ultimate
analysis, it is neither gold lace nor rags that
overpower obstacles, but the fiery soul that
-consumes both in the intensity of its furnace
heat, bending impossibilities to the ends of
its passionate purpose.
This soul of fire is what 1 wish to see
'kindled in our women,—burning white and
strong and steady, through all, weakness,
timidity, vac Ilation, treachery in Church or
State or press or parlor, scorching, blasting,
annihilating whatsoever loved' and maketh
a lie,—extinguished by uo • teanpest of defeat,
.no drizzle of delay, but glowing on its stead
fast path till it shall have cleared through
the abomination of our desolation a highway
for the Prince of Peace.
0 my country-women, I long to see you
stand under the time and bear it up in your
strong hearts, and not need to he borne up
through .t. 1 wish you to stimulate, and not
crave stimulants from others. I e ish you to
be the consolers, the encouragers . , the sus
tainers, and not tremble in perpetual need
of consolation and encouragement. When
men's brains are knotted and their brows
corrugated with fearful looking for and hear
ing of financial crises, military disasters, and
any and every form of national calamity
consequent upon the war, come you out to
meet them, serene and smiting and unafraid.
And let your smile be no formal distortion
of your lips, but a bright ray from the sun
shine in your heart. Talce not acquiescent
ly, but joyfully, the spoiling of your goods.
Not Only look poverty in the face with high
disdain, but embrace it with gladness and
welconie. The loss is but for a moment;
the gain is for all time. Go farther •than
this. Consecrate to a holy- cause not only
the incidentals of life, hitt life itself. Path
er r husbandvehild,-1 - tio - not sa , Give them
-up exp - o - snre,r - sulrerityg, - death, '
out a ndurnitir ; 7 -that implies reluetance.-
-I-rathergay;' Urge them to theofferiiig - ; - fill
them with.sacred fury ;stir° them. with irre
sistible desire ;, strengthen them. tassheroie
. will. Look not on details, the present, the .
trivial, the flectinginapead of our conflict,
but fix your ardent gaze.. on its eternal side.
Be not resigned, but rejoicing. - Be sponta
neous and exultant: 'lin late and lofty.—
Count it all joy that you are tYekoned - worthy
to suffer in-a:grand and. righteous "can
Gi've thinks evermore that •yeu were borne .
in:thiOime vend because it is dark, be'you
The.light of the: world:
- .Kud follow the soldier7io the. brittle-field
h 1 t i
• I F '• •-•
VOL. 63.
A.. K. RHEEM, .Editor & Propr
with your spirit.• The great arfny of letters
that marches Southward with eve s ry morning
sun is a powerful engine of war. Fill them
with tears and sighs, Inment.separation and
stiff ring, dwell on your loneliness and fears,
mourn over the dishonesty of contractors
and the incompetency of leach rs, doubt if
the South will ever be conquered, and fore
see financial ruin, and you will damp the
powder and dull the swords that ought to
deal death upon the foe. Write as tenderly
as you will. In camp, the roughest man
idealizes his far-off home, and every word of
love uplifts him to a lover. But let your
tenderness unfold its sunny side, and keep
the shadows for His pity who knows the end
from the beginning, and whom no forebod
ing can dishearten. Glory in your tribula
tion. Show your soldier that his unflinch
ing courage, his undying fortitude, are
your crown of rejoicing. Incite him to ea
thusiastn by your inspiration. Make a mock
of your discomforts. Be unwearying in de
tails of 0 e little 'interests of home. Fill
your letters with kittens and Canaries, with
baby's shoes, awl Johnny's sled, and the old
loak: which you have turned into a hand
some gown: Keep him posted in all the
village gossip, the lectures, tile...acturting4, the
sleigh rides. anti the singing-schools. Bring
out the good points of the world in strong re
lief. Tell every smeet and brave and pleas•,
ant and funny story you can think of. Show
him that you clearly apprehend that all this
warfare means it ace, and that a dastardly
peace would pave the way for speedy, inert
sant, and more apalbug warfare. Help, him ,
to bear his burdens by showing him loW elan
tic you are under yours. hearten hint, en'
liven him, tone him up to the true hero-pitch.
flush your plaintive .111.rerere, accept the an
non', pain for pentium:, and commission every
Nurttierti breeze to bear a Te beam laudaznus
linder" ,
ul od, the only question, as to wheth
cr this war shad be conducted to a shameful
or an honorable close, is not of-men or money
or material resource. In these our superiori•
ty is unquestioned. As Wellington phrased
it, there is hard' pounding"; but we shall
pountl the longest, it only our hearts do not
tail us. Women need not beat, their pewter
spoons into bullets, for there are plenty of
ballots without them. I. is, not whether our
soldiers shall tight a good tight; they have
played the man On a hundred battle fields It
is not whether officers are or are not compe
tent; generals have blundered nations into
vat:tory since the world began. It is whether
this people shall have virtue to endure to the
end,—to endure, not idarvina - , not cull, but
the pangs-of hoße deterred L ef - disappotti t
and uncertainty. of commerce deranged and
outward prosperity checked. Will our vigi•
lance to detect treachery and our persever
ance to punish it hold out? If we stand firm,
we shall he saved, though so as by fire If.
we do not, we shall fall, and shall richly de
serve to fall ; and may God sweep us oft from
the lace of the (firth, and plant in our stead
a nation with the hearts of turn, - and not of
chickens!
U women, stand here in the Lreach,—for
here you may stand powerful, invincible, I
had almost said omnipotent. Rise now to the
heights of a sublime courage,—tor the hour
_has need-of you: - When the. -first-ball smote
the rocky sides of Sumter, the rebound thrilled
front shore to shore, and waked the slumber
ing hero in every human .soul. Then every
eye flamed, every lip was touched with a live
coal from the sacred altar, every loran dilated
to 1.110 stature of the Golden Age. Then we
felt iu Our veins the pulse of immortal youth.
Then all the chivalry of the ancient days, all
the heroism, all the self-sacrifice that shaped
itself into noble living, came back to us,
poured over us, swept away the dross of sel
fishness and deception and petty scheming,
and Patriotism rose front the swelling wave
stately as a goddess. Patriotism, that had
',teen to us but a dingy and meaningless an
tiquity, took on a new mien, a countenance
divinely lair and futever young, and received
once inure the homage at our hearts. Was
that a childish outburst of excitement, or the
glow of an aroused principle ? Was it a pue
rile anger, or a manly indignation ? Did we
spring up startled pigmies, or girded giants ?
the former, let us veil our faces, and march
swiftly (and silently) to merciful forgetful
ness if the latter, shall we not lay affide
every weight, and this besetting sin of despon
dency, end run with patience the race set be•
fore us ?
A true philosophy and a true religion make
the way possible LO us. The Most, High
ruleth in the kingdom of men, and giveth it
to whomsoever He will; and Ho - never yet
willed that, a nation strong in means and bat
ting for the right should be given over to a
lja.Lloll weak and battling for the wrong. Na
tions hare their future—reward and penalty
—in this world ; and it is as certain as God
hurt that Providence and the heaviest battal
ions will prevail. We have hail reverses, but
no misfortune bath happened unto us but, such
as is ,common 'ante nations. Country has
been sacrificed to partisanship. Early love
has fallen away, and luke warmness has ta•
ken its place. Unlimited enthusiasm has
given place to limited stolidity. Disloyalty,
overawed at first into quietude, has lifted its
head among us, and waxes wroth and raven
ing. There are dissensions. nt home worse
than the guns of our foes. Some that did
Ann well Ave faltered; some signal-lights
have gone shamefully out, and some are lurid
with a baleful glare. But unto this end were
we born and for this cause came we into the
world. When shall greatness of soul stand
forth, if not in evil times ? ' , Wheu• the skies
are fair_ and the seas sttioll ships• sail
festively. But the clouds lower, the winds
shriek, the waves boil, anti iminediately.eaeli
craft shows its quality. The deep is strewn
with broken masts, parted :keels, floating
wrecks;. but hero and-there a . shiji ;rides the
raging sea, and Hinge defiance to the
She overlies the sea because she is sea- worthy.'
Not our eighty yetirs or peace alone, but our
twd,years of war ere The !totiolietenii• of our
oltaranter. - We have rolle - Fd - c - nii -. Democratu as
a sw eetiriorsel under our tongue; we have
glOried in the prosperity which it brought to
the individual; but if . the cotaferts of aced
minister to the degradation of man, if Dein.
°Grimy levels down and does not_level up, if
our era of peace and plenty leaves In Bo fee.'
ble and frivolous,- so childish, so impatient,',-
so deaf to all that calls to us from the past
and entreats us in the future, that we faint
and fail under the stress of oar ono shott-of
fort; then indeed is our Demooraay ourshame
`axid curse. 'Let us show nOw what wanner of
people we are. Lot us be clear sighted and
fei , eighted to spo now great is the isbue that,
bangs. epee the occasion. '-It is not _a_ more
military reputation that is at Woke, not the
decay of a sepal:44oWe commerce, not the
CARLISLE, PA., FRIDAY, MARC,II 1863.
etor
determination of this or that party to power.
It is the question of the world that. we have
been set to answer. In the great conflict of
ages, the long strife between right and wrong,
between progress.and sluggardy ; through the
Providence of God we are placed in the van
guard. Three hundred years ago a world was
unfolded for the battleground. Choice spirits
came hither to level and intrench. Swords
clashed and blood flowed, and the great re
connoisance was successfully made. Since
then both sides have been gathering strength,
marshalling forces, planting batteries; and
to day we stand in the thick of ihe fray.—
Shall we fail? Men and women of America,
will you fail? Shall the cause go by de
fault? When a great Idea, that has been up
lifted on the shoulders of generations, comes
now to its Thermopylte, its glory gate, and
needs only stout hearts for its strong hands,
—when tlie eyes of a great multitude are
turned upon you, and the fates of dumb mil.
lions in the silent future with you,—when the
suffering and sorowful, the lowly ; whose im
mortal hunger for justice gna•tvs at their
hearts, who blindly see, but. keenly feel, by
their God given instincts, that somehow you
are working out their salvation, and the high ;
born, monarchs in the domain of mind, who,
standing far-off, see with prophetic eye the
two courses that lie before you, one to the
Uplands of vindicated Right, one to the Val
ley of the Shadow of Death, alike fasten upon
you their hopes, their prayers, their , tears,—
will you, for a moment's b)dily comfort and
rest and repose. grind all these expectations
and hopes bet wren the upper and nether
millstone? Will you fail the' world. in this
fateful hour by your faint heartedness? Will
you tail yourself, and put the knife to "your
own throat? For the peace which you so
dearly buy shall bring to you neither ease
nor rest. You will buthave spread a bed of
thorns. Failure will write disgrace upon the
brow of this generation, and shame will out•
last the age It is not with us as with the
South. She can surrender without dishonor.
She is t he weakerpower, and her success will
be against the nature of things. ller dishon
or lay in her attempt. not in its relinguish
ment. lint we shall fail, not because of me
chanics and mathematics, but because our
manhood and wornanlymd weighed in the hal
ftime are found wanting. There ardi'ew who
will not share in the sin. There are none
who wilt not share in the shame. Wives,
would you hold back your husbands ? -Moth
erf. would you keep your sons ? From what ?
for what ? From the doing of the grandest
duty that ever ennobled man; to the grief of
the gl cutest infamy that ever crushed .him
You would bold him back from prizza
before which 'Olympian laurels fade, for a
fate before which a helot slave might cower.
-Ills country in the agony of her death.strug
gle calls to him for succor. All the bitted in
all the ages, poured out for liberty, poured
out for him, cries unto him from the ground
All that life has of noble, of heroic, beckons
him lorward. Death itself wears for him a
golden crown. Ever-since-the -world swung
trim trout God's hand, men have died,— obey
iug the blind fiat of Nature; but only once in
a generation comes the sacrificial year, the
year of jubilee, when men march lovingly to
meet their fate and die for a nation's life.—
liolding back, we transmit to those that shall
come after us a blackened waste The little
one that ae:i in his cradle will be accursed for
our sakes. Every child will be base worm.
springing from ignoble blood. We inherited
a fair fame, ilea bilis from a glorious battle ;
but for him is no background, no stand point.
llis country will be a burden on his shoulders,
a blush upon his cheek, a chain about his
feet. There i, no career for the future, but a
weary effort, a lung, a painful, a heavy-hearted
struggle to lift the land out of its slough of
degradation and
. set it once more upon a dry
place.
Therefore let us have done at once and for
ever with paltry considerations, With talk of
despondency and darkness. Let compromise,
submission, and every form of di-honorable
peace be not so much as named among us.—
Tulerate no coward's voice or pen or eye.—
Wherever the serpent's bead is raised, strike
it down. Measure every man by the stand
ard of manhood. Measure country's price
by country's worth and country's worth, by
country's in: egrity. - Let a cold, clear breeze
sweep down from the mountains of life, and
drive out these miasmas that befog and beguile
the unweary. Around every hearthstone let
sunshine gleam. In every home let fatherland
have its altar and its fortress. From every
household let words of cheer and resolve and
high-beartineSS ring out, till the whole .land
is shining and resonant in the bloom of awaken
ing spring.
I NSURANCE AND ASSURANCE.
FEIIVANDISE —I have been drinking hard all Might,
and will have more time to prepare me, or they shall
heat mkt my brains with billets. I will not consent to
dia thIS day, that's certain.
DUKE.— 0, sir you must ; and therefore I beseech you
look forward on the journey you shall go.
FERN 081)1:IE.—I swear I will not die to (lay for any
persuasion. [Measure for Measure , .
" IT is inconceivable to the virtuous and
praiawortby part of the world, who have, been
born and bred to respectable idleness, what
terrible straits are the lot of those scandalous
rogues whom Fortune has left to shift for
themselves." Such was my feeling ejacula
tion, when, full of penitence for the sin of
urgent necessity, I wended my way to the
attorney who had swept together, and for the
most pert picked up, the 'crumbs which fell
from my father's table. He was a little griz •
sled, and sardonic animal, with features which
were as hard as his neart, and fated . their
leather jacket so tightly that one 'would have
thought it had shrunk from washing, or that
they had bought. it second band, and were
pretty nearly out at the elboWs. They were
completely emblematic of their possessor whose
religion it was to make the most of everythinq.
and amongst the rest, of the distresses of has
particular friends, amongst wheat L had the
happiness of standing very forward. .
business re_auired bat little_explanation,lor-l
_wasAppressed_by_zeitheri-rant-rolls-nor- ti tie '-
deeds, (Cod we eat dein to 'consider the read
iest means of turning O.U.exaellent income for
one year into something decent for a - few — more.
,ftly adviser,' whose smell experienced eye had
twinkled through all the speculations of• the
age; and, at the same time, had taken a very
exact measurement- of My capabilites of turd.
ing them to,atiVantage, seemed Ist:be of opin.
ion. that Vivas-fit'fitir nothing on earth. For
one , undertaking, I-wanted application; for
another .I wanted capital. • " Now," said he;
. .
"as the Ores of• thee° deflcinoies is irretne
dittble, wo must do what we tan to supply the
latter., Take my. advice rineariryour.life for
a (ew thoussods,; you will have but.little pre
mitun to pay, for you look es-i 4 you would
live forever and front my knowledge: of your
TERMS:--$1,50 in Advance, nor $l2 within=the year.
.
Tattle-pated habits, • entitle Various changes
against You;o1. will give you a handsone . ,sum
for the insurance." Necessity obliged me to
acquiesce, in the proposal, and assured the
old cormorant that there 'was every likelihood
of my regulating his, liberality by the most
unremitting persevei4t.nce in all the evil'hab
its which . had:procured Me his countenance.
We shook hands in mutual ill-opinion, and ho
obligingly volunteered' to accompany me to an
insurance Office. whore they wore supposed
to estimate the•duration of a man's-life to a
quarter of an hour anli Odd secondti.
We,arrived a little before the business hour,
and were shown into a large room, where we
found several more 'speculators waiting rue•
fully for the oracle to pronounce sentences.—
In the centre was a large table, round which,
at equal distanceelivere placed certain little
lumps - of money,. which my friend told me
were to reward the labors of the Inquisition,
amongst Whom the etirplus arising froni the
absentees would likewise be divided. From
the keenness with'whielt each individual liar.
ted upon his share and ogled that of his ab•
sent nelghbor, I surmised that some of my
fellow sufferers would find the day' against
them. They -would be -examined- by -eyes
capable of penetrating every crevice of their
constitutions; - by noses which- could smelt a
rat a mile off, and hunt a guinea hreast high.
How, indeed could plague or pestilence, gout
or gluttony expect to lurk in Its hole undis•
turbed when surrounded by a pack of, tor
t iers which seemed hungry enough to devour
one another? Whenever the door slamnied,
and they looked for an addition to- their-cry,
they wers going to bark: audit' 'straggler
really entered and seized Ilion his moiety,_
the intelligent look of vexation was precisely
like that Of a dog who has lost a bone. When
ten or a dozen of these gentry hail assembled,
the laborof the day-commenced. - -
Most of our adventurers for raising sup
plies upon their natural lives, were - afflicted
with a natural conceit that they were by no
means circumscribed in foundation for such a
project. 'ln vain did the hoard endeavor to
persuade them that they were half dead al.
ready. They fought hard for a' few more
years, swore that their fathers bad been al
most itatogrtai, and that their whole families
had been as tenacious of life as eels themselves.-
Alas ! they, were first ordered into an adjoin
ing boom, ;wltiolt I soon learnt lees -the con
ilvinned cell, and then delicately informed that
the establishment could have nothing to say
to them. Some, indeed, had the . gciod luck to
he reprieved a little longer, 'but even these
did not effect, a very flattering or advantage
ous bargain. One old gentleman had a large
-premium to ---- pay -- kifeeti-;
another for an extracirdinary circumference
in the girth; and a dowager of high respect.
ability, who was afflicted with certain undue'
proportions of width, was fined most. exorb
itantly. This tanly,eustomer who met with any
thing like satisfaction was a gigantic man of
Ireland. with whom death, thought was like
ly to have a puzzling contest,
" Flow old are you, sir ?" inquired an et
aminer.
Forty."
" You seem a strong man."
'• I am the strongest man in Ireland."
" But subject to the gout ?"
" No—The rheumatism —Nothing else upon
my soul."
" What ago wnsyour father when he died?"
" Oh, be died young, but then he was killed
in a row."
Have you any uncles alive?"
" No : they were killed in rows too."
"Pray, sir, do you think of returning to
Ireland?"
May be I shall, some day or other."
•• What security can we have that you are
not killed in a row yourself?"
"Oh, never fear! lam the sweetest. tem
per in the world, barring when I'm dining
out which is not often."
What, sir, you can drink a little ?"
" Three bottles, with ea9e."
"Ah that is bad. You have a red face and
look apoplectic. You will. no doubt, go off
suddenly."
" Devil a bit. My face was born - with me ;
and I'll lay a bet I live longer than any two ip
the room."
" But three bottles-"
"Never you mind that. I don't mean to
drink more than a bottle . aud a half in future.
Besides, I intend to get• married, if I oan, and
live enug."
A debate arose amongst the directors re
specting this gentleman's eligibility. The
words ..row"'and "three bottles" ran, hurry
scurry, round the table. At last, however,
the leader of the pack addressed him in a
demurring growl, and agreed that, upon his
mending irregularities, ho should be admit-
Led as a fit subject.
It was now my turn to exhibit; but, as my
friend was handing me forward, my progress
was arrested by the entrance of a young lady
with an elderly maid servant. Showas dressed
in slight mourning, was the most sparkling
beauty I had ever seen, and appeared to pro
duce an instantaneous effect,- even upon the
stony hearted directors themsellies. The
chairman politelyrequested4or to take a seat
at the table, and she immediately entered into
her business, which seemed little more than
Le shay; herself and be entitled to twenty
thousand pounds, for which her ?ate Ausband
had insured his life.
• Zounds," thought 1, twenty thousand
pounds and a widow."
" Ah, madam !" observe the chairman,
" your husband made too good a -bargain
with us. 1 told him be was an elderly, sickly
sort of a man, and no, like .to last: but I
never thought ho would die so soon after his
marriage."
An elderly. sickly sort of a man 1 She
would marry again, of course! I was on tire
to rte examined before her, and let her hear a
favorable report of me. Ai luck. would have
it, she had some further transactions which
required coma[ papers to. be sent for, and, in
the pause, I stepped boldly forward.
" tintlemen,l. said trey lawyer, iwithirom -
whicth-wh itenetl-t he-t ip-of-bitr-twei-artiktery
nearly sent it through the external teguments,
" allow me to introduce Mr, a particu
lar friend of mina; whoitydesirous of insuring
his life.. You perceive ho is not % of yourdying
sort."
The directors turned their eyes toward me
with - evidenteatiefaction, and Iliad the vaulty
to belieio that the widow did eo too.;
4 , you Intve a broad' ehest,'! eahleno,
Aare Bey your lungh are never affected."
64 Clood shoulders; Ina," 'said attot.ltp,l4.-;-
44 Not, likely to Ito knocked•tlownin a row." ,
4 1,8iroag in the lege; and not tiebilltitediby
dissipation,,' cried ft 'Elthink thie e n'
tiemin will ouitve.". '
could - para.:lva that,unaglaa,_ ampli
tnenta, and a . Cow Citbara, Ilia Id dir IT*3 tei7
,~,
'~ ~ .-
- ;, ' -
(7 41 1% .
.1111i11111:11)
" Why, I begin to think I shall be obliged
to give up my harum-scarum way of life_;
d: ink moderately,: leave otf. lox-hunting, and
sell my spirited horses - , - whitli, you • knew,
will make a material difference in the pro
bable date of my demise." -
to her late husband. On the table was a
half-finished drawing of Apollo, which was,
equally without doubt, meant to apply to her
future one; and round about were strewn
the seductive pems of Moore, Campbell and
Byron. "This witch," thought 1, "is the .
very creature I have been sighin g afier l"
would have married her out of ithedge-way,
and worked upon the roads to maintain her ;
but. with twenty thousand poundii— aye, and
much more, -unless I am mistaken, aho
would create a fever in the frosty Caucasus 1
I was in the moat melting mood alive, when
the door opened, and in walked the fascina
ting object of my speculations. shu was
dressed in simple gray, wholly without orna
ment, and her dark brown hair wad braided
demurely over a forehead which looked as
lofty as tier face was lovely. The reception
she gave -me was polite and graceful, but
somewhat distant; and I perceived that she
had either forgotten,-or was determined nut
to recognize me. I was not quite prepared
for- this, auk-in-spite of my constitutional
confidence,, felt a little embarrassed. 1 had,
perhaps, mistaken the breakinga' forth 6f a
young;and.huoyant spirit, under 'ridiculous
circatustances,for the encouragement of %Mt
;.and, for a moment; I was in
doubt',whether I.'shonid „not apologise and
pretend that - she ;Witi: - . j tiot - ,thei lady 14 whom
Ives
HOLiettetitut
keg on earth could have. aent.me. demmetairs
unless I had beed,icieked down t " Madaesi"
I began ;- but my bleed' was in a turmoil,
no have never. 'heeti able to r.ecOkid.ol4-
clear That said. • Something 'Ntrio;.llo4:; .
ever; about my late father. aiid'her lepeated
husband, 4.isceee and,tho last Indies, liver
-eonipltkietkaud, ye' iesilrapeT;[iiiitti 6 01 4-
plaiuts, eeedoleacek Ordoe t i.pertuilletio.e, -
and, .pretc,r4iliifvprteet., Impartiquem . f.
140 Y 109kact Aer.prieed i . hreke: sat speech with
.twe. tkrowwo,ll;briL4.::•itiou!iiticlui%-.aud , 48.
tipeisheC ate4Tivtapelk. by; protesting that,
she hid.'nevevbeiro.beptoldboa teetitiee
Tither niy:(o44o4:ic. totiliotnising Mats heir-,
IMM
Sehiticlitie& to - titter; 'which I considered
'ad much as 'a flirtation commenCed,r and
when I was ordered into another roonCto be
farther examined .by the surgeon -in atten
dance,' I, longed to tell her to step till Lcome
back. he professional gentleman did his,
utmost-to find-a-flaw in - Mei - but' was obliged
to Write a, Certificate, with which I re-entered,
and had the satisfaction of hearingthe
man'read that I visa Warranted sound... ; The
Board Congratulated me somewhat jocosely,
, and the widow laughed outright. Our affairs
Were settled' exactly at the same moment,
and I followed her closely down Stairs.
" Whatimad - trick, arc you at now ?" in
quired the corrnoratit.
"I aril going to hand that lady to hercar
riage," I responded ; and I kept 'my. Word.
She bowed with much courtesy,. laughed
again, and desired her servant to drive home.
" Where that, John ?" said I.
".No. —, sir, in street," said John
and away they went.
We walked steadily away, the bird of prey
reckoning. up the advantages of hie bargain
with me, and I in a mood of equally inter
esting reflection.
" What are_ you pondering about,-young
gentleman ?" he at last commenced..
"I um pondering whether or no you hav - o
riot overreached yourself in this transaction."
" Flow so ?"
" But vette: e is the necessity of your doing
till this ?"
" My wife will, most likely, nuke it at stip
" Your wife?" •
"Yes. That pretty, disconsolate widow
we have just parted from. You may laugh;
but if you choose to het the insurance which
you have bought of me against the purchase•
money, I will lay you that she makes me a
sedate married man in lesS than two months,"
" Done I" said the cormorant, his features
again straining their buck-skins at the idea
of having madtka double profit of'me. " Let
us go to" iiiyiltbase, and 1 wi4l draw a deed
to ihat effect, gratis."
I did not flinch froM theitgreemant. My
case, I knew, was desterate. I should have
hanged myself a month be'ore had it not
been for the Epsom races, ht which L had
al reason for disgust to the world, Would, I
thought, be rather a pleasure than a
pain—
provided I was disappointed in the lovely
widow..
. ,
`Widest . ) , is a bad bugbear upon fortimM
1 have known many who have not been op
pressed that remain in the shade, but !Alive
never known one who emerged with it into
prosperity, In my own case it was by no
means a family disease, nor had I lived iii
any way by which I was likely to contract
it. Accordingly, on the following day, 1
caught myself very coolly knocking at the
widow's door ; and so entirely had I been
occupied in considering the various blessings
which would accrue to both of us frorri our
onion, that I was half way up stairs before 1
began to think ot an excuse for my intrusion.
The drawing-room was vacant, and I was
left for a moment to wonder whether I was
not actually in some temple of the Loves and
Graces. There was not a thing to be seen
which did not breathe with tenderness. The
ceiling displayed a little heaven of sportive
Cupids, the carpet a wilderness of turtle
do', es. The pictures were a aeries of the
loves ofJupiter, the vases presented nothing
but heart s-ease and love-lies bleeding ; the
very canary birds were inspired, and bad a
nest with two young ones ; and the cat her
self looked kindly over the budding beauties
of a tortoise-shell kitten. What a place for
a sensitive heart like mine ! 1 could not
bear to look upon the mirrors which reflect
ed my broad shoulders on every side, like so
many giants; and would have given the
world to appear a little pale and int,resting,
although it might h .ve injured my life a
dozen years purchase. Nevertheless, I was
not daunted, and I looked round, for some,
thing to talk about, on the beauty's usual
occupations, which funnd were all in a tone
with which I had before remarked. Upon
the open piano lay "Auld Robin Grey,"
which had, no doubt, been sung in allusion
MEM
eftliar'ent, Wi11402, Henry. the
Whole dim's° of their, union.: ittedem,"
onsiesiozi is 'extretfiely.nikt*al
1: ern- sure I ain:;not' at all offendit with
-your late hosband noon that score. Hie*
an",elderly,. eickly - sort of man. 'My father
always told' him 'he' 'Could not lust, but he
never ;theught he-would haiekdied so soon
after Marrihge. HO had not time—=he, had
riot tune, madam, to:make lis,friendehappy
-by intro ducing, them, to you."
' I believe, upon the T
whole, muss hale be
haved remarkably welli for the widow:could
not quite make' up her' mind Whether, to
not,which, white Tfti consider
credit me or
the' very slender materials ' l - had to-work
Y
pon, is saying El, great dell. At last I con
trived to make the conversation :glide away
I to Auld Robin Grey and the drawing , of Ap
' Olio, ivhioli I pronounced to - be eke( it'
r enure. "Permit me, howeier, to suggest,
' that the "syminetry,of the figure would net
be d.e.strciyed by a little more of the Hem.
les in the shoulders, which would make'his
life a much longer purchatici. , A, little more
amplitude :in the chest, too, and, a - trifle
stronger on the legS, as 'they say at the . In
'aurance office. The widow.looked comically
at the recollections Which I brought-to her
'mind ; her rosy lips began to diseloets. their
treasures iu a halt smile; and this, in turn,
-expandelt in a laiigh like the latigh of Eu
phrosyne. 'This was the very thing for me.
I was always rather dashed by beauty on the
stilts ; but put us upon fair ground, and I
never supposed that I could be otherwise
than charming. I ran over all the amusing
topics df the day, expended a thousand ad
mirable jokes, repeated touching passages
from a new poem which she had not -read,
laughed, sentimentalized, cuddled the kit
' ten, and forgot to go away till - I had sojourn
ed full two hours. Ephrosyne quite lint sight
of my questionable introduction, and chimed
in with a wit as brilliant asher beauty ; nor
did - sh - erput - on a - single grave - look - when r
volunteered to call the next day and read
the remainder of the poem.
It is impossible to'conceive how carefully
I walked home. My head and heart was
full of the widow and the wager, and my life
was more precious than the Piga Diamond.
I kept my eyes sedulously upon the -pave
ment, to be sure that the coakholes' were
closed ; - and I -stover once - crossed thy_ street
without looking both ways, to calculate the
dangers ofbeing run over.' Whea I ar
rived, I was presented with a letter ihma my
attorney, giving me the choice of an en
signcy hi a - regiment which was ordered to
the West Indies; ad going as missionary to
New Zealand. I wrote to him, id answer,
that it was perfectly immaterial to me wheth
er I was cut off by the yellow fever or de•
voured by cannibals, but that I had busi
ness which would prevent me, from availing
myself of either alternative for two mouths,
at least.
=EA
NO,. it.
The next morning foui.d me again. of the
door of Ephrosyne, who gave me her lily
hand, and received me wtth a smile of an
old acquaintance. Affairs wont on 'pretty
much the -saute as they did on the preco.
(hug day. The poem was long, her singing
exquisite, my anecdote of New Zealand - lc
resistible, and wu again forget••ourselves till
it wasitecessary, in common politeness, to
ask me to dinner. Here her soberatfire,
which fur some months had been a piece of
mere gratuitious respect, was exchanged for
'a low evenimi-drec,si and my soul, whichwas
brimming before,:was its agony to find room
for my increasing transpOrts.' Her Spirits
were sportive' as butterflies over the - flow.
ors of her imaLtivation with a grace that was
quite miraculous. She ridiculed the rapidi
ty of our acquaintance, eulogized my mod
esty_till..it ~was, well ni gh lntrat.to cinder, and
every now and then sharpened her wit by a
delicate recurrence to Apollo and the should
ers of Hercules.
The third and the fourth and the fillidiys,
with twice as many more, were equally pro
ductive of excuses for calling, and reasons for
remaining, till at last I took upon me to call
and remain without troubling myself about the
one or the other. I was received with pro
gressive cordiality ; and at last, with a mix
ture of timidity which assured me of the an
ticipa:ion of a catastrophe which was, as once.
to decide the question with the insurance of
fice, and determine the course of my travels.
One day I found the Peri Bitting rather pen
sively to work, and us usual: I took my seat
oppm-ite to her,
" I have been thinking," said she, that I
have been mightily imposed upon."
" By whom ?" I inquired.
"
Ely 'one of whom you have the highest
opinion—by yourself "
" In what do you mistrust me ?"
"Come, now, will it please you to be can
did and tell MC honestly that all that exceed
ingly intelligible story about your father and
the liver complaint, and heaven knows what,
—was a mere fabrication."
" Will it please you to let me thread that.
needle, for I see that you are taking aim at.
the wrong end of - it ?"
" Nonsense. Will you anwer me ?"
" I think I could put the finishing touch to
that sprig Dont you coo ?" I continued,
jumping up and leaning over her. "It should
bo done so—and then so. What stitch do you
call that ?"
The beauty was not altogether in a mood
for joking. I took her hand—it trembled—
and so did mine.
Will you pardon me ? I whispered, "
am a sinner, a counterfeit, a poor, swindling
disreputable vogabond—but I lovo you to my
soul:"
* * * * * *
In about a fortnight from this time I Att.
dressed the following note to my friend:
. Data Sin :—lt will give you groat pleasure to hear
that my prospects are mending and that you have Nit
your wager. As I Intend settling the insurance on my
wife, I Shall, of enures, think you entitled to tbejotk—
Should your trilling loss in me oblige you to become
an ensign in the West Indies, or a missionary in New
Zealand, you may rely upon my Interest there.
ANECDOTE OF POPE.--Onc day, as Popo
was ono•au o nd in translatine , the "Iliad," be
came to a passage which ° neither he Or
his assistant could interpret. A Stranger,
who stood by, in, his humble garb, very
modestly suggested that, as he had some
little acqualtanco with Greek, perhaps he
could assist them.
"Try it, try it 1" said Popo, with the
air of a boy who is encouraging a monkey
to eat red pepper.
"There is an error in the print," said
the stranger,' lookin - g - 'at - the text. "Read
iiirthere interrogation point
the end of the - line, and you haVe die nieo-P
-itm ono." , s •
° Pope's assistant at vhoeitepteved upon
this hint, and4endered the passage With
out difficulty: "'
Pope was .°
.. be could never
endure to b e:-.1414 ,B P4' aDAiiing.
Tii to i n i t o the' f ittanger, ho
sOrbwillo 01 26 :
'Will Sou please tell we what an
tie '
Toga n tor" ^1 1
"Why, sir." said the strtingorsetionutt%
the ill-shaped poet, "it is a little`orooked;
contemptible thing that asks questr,--k."
Tho work dropped upon her knee