1 4 iti 'WE CO WHERE DEMOCRATIC PRINCIPLES POINT THE WAY J WHEN THEY CEASE TO LEAD, WE CEASE TO FOLLOW. BY JOHN G. GIVEN. EBENSBURG, THURSDAY, OCTOBER 31, 1850. VOL. 7. ISO. 4. St J II II II I II l - II I III MISCELLANEOUS From the Olive Branch. EDWARD SHELDON; Or, Tic Wayward XV i:e. BY ELIZA S. PRATT. CHAPTER I. It has been my lot, during my past life, to be frequently thrown into the society of the newly married, and to mark, with much interest, the difference which they exhibit in their deportment towards each other, their style of living, habits of industry or ease, frugality or evtravagance, and the consequent effect upon the happiness of the married couple; andhowever much or often the husband may be at fault, I can but admit, as far as my observation ex tends, that the wife is moie frequently the cause of Uiscontentand misery at the Ijome fireside, and even of broken fortunes, than the husband himself, who, however much he may have striven to keep his baik afloat, is nevertheless obliged to bear upon his unoffending head the whole weight of evils which their downfall produces. The want of that cheerful acquiescence in those habits of industry and frugality which the early career of every man obliged to mike his own fortune demands from the wife, has discouraged and crushed many a man of good talents and bright prospects, ha3 teen the ultimate cause of ruined fortunes and disappointed hopes. For the better illustration of the princi ple I have advocated, I will give my read ers a story, hoping that us moral may not be without a beneficial effect upon some beneath whose eye it may chance to fall. Edward Sheldon was a young mechan ic of a persevering and ambitious turn of mind, industrious, intelligent, and highly respected in his native village. He was one in whom ambition was an active prin ciple, leading him to foreign countries in the spirit of enterprise; and though fortune at times favored him with success, he was often overwhelmed with leverses, and obliged to commence anew in that struggle for independence upon which his eye was set. But nothing daunted, he would a gai et himself to work, and at the age of 30 he returned to his native village snc cessful and prosperous and there establish ed himself in business. It was then that he cast his eyes about him for a companion, a wife, to share his solitary hours and render his home inviting and happy; and fortune so will it that a gay girl of seventeen should lead him captive, and without reasoning upon the -disparity of their ages, and the consequent incongruity of their sentiments for love never reasons he led her to the hymenial altar, and their destinies became insepara ble forever. For a time things went on smoothly, for a tolerable lucrative business enabled him to indulge in fancies, and humor the caDrices of his young wife, who seemed to look upon life as but a holiday, and the t .l ri 1 . .1 creaming 01 ner wants as uui wi mcuium ; of their fulfillment. INothmg was denied her, public amusements were made a source of frequent resort, and Edward la bored hard to supply the folly and extrav agance of his wife, who, in dress, strove to rival the wife or daughter of a million aire. But it could not last long; and be fore twelve months had gone by, he found to his surprise, that his expenses had far exceeded his income, and to add to his perplexity the birth of a little daughter promised greatly to enh?nce them for the future. How to remedy the evil he knew not, for the most remote hint to his wife upon the subject was met with sullen discontent or open rebuke; and instead of limiting her expenses within reasonable bounds, ihey seemed rather to increase with each day, and every morning and evening poor Edward was obliged to gratify some nsw demand, or bear the unkind retort and ill- 1 humor of his spoiled wife. He strove hard to keep on firm footing, and . would have racked his very sinews to save the annoyance and trouble which the gentlest refusal was sure to bring him; but as month after month went away, notwith standing all his effoits, he found himself daily sinking in debt, his property mort gaged, and ruin, staring him in the face. Racked with anxiety, he knew not which way to turn, and scarcely two years had elapsed since his marriage, ere Edward Sheldon felt himself a doomed man. One bright morning ia January, after a hasty breakfast, Edward kissed his little girl, a beautiful child of somethiag more than a )ear old, whose sweet smile and innocent prattle was his chief source of comfort, and taking his hat and cane pre pared to go out to his usual task. There was a look of anxiety on his brow and a light compression of the lip as he cast a hasty glance at his wife, who appeared to have arrayed crself for a promenade, and now stood before a" 3SS smoothing her hair, but without uttering a word he was making liis exit, when she caught his re treating form reflected back from the mir ror and instantly called him back. "Wait a moment, Edward," said she, and taking a purse from a drawer she ex amined the contents. "I am going out shopping, this morning, and have not half money enough to make my purchases. You must give me some, for I have quite a number of articles to buy." ''What have 3 0U to buy?' "O! I am going to get a new dress,' said she in a careless tone,you know that beautiful cashmere which Jane Roberts wears; I think I will get one like that, it is so pretty, and I may as well get baby a frock while I am about it; and must gel some new ornament for my neck, too, I am tired of this gold chain, aud think a string of coral beads would be much more be coming they are quite fashionable now. And there's that silver comb you gave me a year ago; it is getting quite out of date, and I must have a new shell one, they are more genteel. Let mo see with what I have got I think I can manage with twelve dollars to-day. During this rapid enunciation of intend ed purchases, Edward had stood with his eyes cast down, and his cheek blanched with emotion. lie had hitherto never re fused his wife in her demands upon his purse, however unreasonable they might be; for possessed of a kind and affectionate heart, he shrunk from discord as from the deadliest ill of life. But suddenly a new spirit seemed to possess him, and raising his head he betrayed a flushed cheek, as he hastly stepped to her side, and stood with her confronting the glass. "Ellen, ' said he in a clear lone of voice "which should dress the better, a man or his wife?" "Neither, to he sure," replied she, re garding him with a look of unfeigned as tonishment; "they should both appear alike in that respect." 'And who is dressed the better now?" said he glancing at his clothes, which were his best, and though of good materials worn and thread-bare , then at her rich velvet shawl and satin dress "who is dressed the better now, pray?" 'And whose fault is it that you do not dress better?" said she in an ironical tone of voice, in whose chords not the least blending' of kindness could be detected; "It you do not choose to dress better, I am sure I cannot help it. I did not marry you to dress you, but expected to be dressed decently myself without all this fuss. You owe me fifteen dollars now?" Sheldon turned his dark, penetrating eye upon the face of his wife, and gazed till her own sank beneath his look and a blush of shame crimsoned her cheek. s owe you, do I?" said he at length with a heavy sigh, as he threw himself in to an arm chair, and resting his head a gainst the back, seemed for a moment lost m thought. "xes Ellen, 1 did stipulate U) give a hundred dollars a year for your . 1 . .1 personal expenses, iignieen monins ago. but then business was far better than it is now, and our expenses were less. Then I was free from debt and comparatively happy; now, let me toil as Imay, I cannot meet our accumulated bills from week to week, and from month to month the debt is growing heavier rpon my hands. Look at me 1 have not spent ten dollars for clothing the last year, and prefer now to appear in this shabby suit, rather than leave my creditors unpaid, while you in sist upon the payment of the whole sum I have promised. Our last three months board is yet unsettled, and it is but a few days since that you warned me that our washerwoman's bill had run up to fifteen dollars. You might, Ellen," he continued and his voice grew husky with emotion as he rapidly proceeded; "you might aid me in the struggle. Our expenses might be immediately curtailed one-half, if you would consent to keep house and do our worK; I could hire suthcient room lor us to live comfortably at a moderate rate and by frugality and industry on your part, we might be saVfid from this continual downfalf which wilt ultimately ruin us. If instead of one dollar a week for wash ing, you would cheerfully do it, and spare at least one-half from your, personal ex penses, which, with the other plans I pro pose would bring our expenses within our means, we might yet be prosperous and happy." While speaking, Sheldon had drawn his chair towards his wife, and taking her del icate hand in his, with that kindness and gentleness of manner, which was his wont when unrepulsed by coldness or severity. Now a tear had risen to his eye, which he hastily brushed away as unmanly; but his lip quivered with emotion as he finished his appeal. I know not how woman's heart could resist language like that, uttered as it was with that indescribable earnestness of man ner which romes from an overburdened heart. But Ellen's heart and temper were if not spoiled by self-indulgence, soured and disturbed. She drew back coldly, and with an angry gesture, which repelled all 'the warm feelings that were ebbing from the heart of the husband, petulently replied: "I can't help it, you know I can't work, I don't know how; besides I am sure it is enough for one to do to take care of baby; and as for dressing less, you can do as j'ou please, but I don't intend to appear more meanly clad than at present. Come I'm 1n- a liirrryr will J you 'give me the money." "Yes, I will give it to you," replied he in a deep guttural tone of voice, which al most startled the insensible wife; and any one who had observed his countenance as lie opened his purse, might have seen that something unusual was at work at his heart. "I'll pay you what I owe you." and he counted out the fifteen dollars and placed them in her hand. "Is that all I owe you?" and liis voice grated strangely as he asked the question. "That is all," replied she carelessly, and donning her bonnet she left him with the same cold unconcern that had always fallen like ice upon the warm impulsive feelings of her husband. She had no sooner left the apartment, than he caught his child to his bosom, and pressing her soft downy cheek to his, burst into tears a torrent of unchecked tears which came from an agonized heart, lie had hoped hoped beyond reason, to soften the heart of the being he called liis wife to wake her to a sense of duty that they might yet be happy. But now all hope was lost, his last and boldest effort was repulsed, she liaci turned away callous and unsofi ened from an appeal that might have touch ed a savage heart. He had done all in his power to do, and as hope went out in his heart, a firm and settled resolution, a new-born purpose rose ap and precluded despair. "She has no friends to support her," said he, casting his eyes around the a part- t ment which was richlv furnished by him elf, "a poor orphan I brought her here, and no more than such shall I Her uncle, who reared her in leave her. charily, is dead, and she will be obliged to earn her bread a severe lesson, but a necessary one; she must yet learn to help herself, or she can never be what I hoped to find her." So saying, he left the child in the care of a little girl and went out. It might have been two hours after the above-mentioned occurrences took place, that a cab drove up before the door of the house in which Sheldon and his wife boarded, and a moment after he stepped out, bringing a large travelling trunk, which, with the aid of the coachman, was placed on the top of the carriage. He then went back to his room, and immediately returned, bearing his little daughter in his arms, neatly dressed in a little hood and pelisse, and prattling in high glee at the prospect of a ride. A moment more the door closed, the carriage wheels rattled oer the pavement, and Sheldon had left his wife and home, that which he had so eagerly sought, and deemed as the highest felicity of life perhaps forever ! But his child was in his arms, or on his heart, and though the. burning tears rushed to his eyes, he was still half happy in the inno cent caresses of his beautiful and idolized child. CHAPTER II. Five years had elapsed since the com mencement of our story. Again it was January, cold and biting, and a stormy evening was closing up a dull and lower ing day. Alone, in an humble and poorly fur nished apartment, in an obscure part of the city, by the side of a diminutive coal fire, sat the wife of Edward Sheldon. She was busily engaged in sewing, and as she rapidly plied her task, would now and then pause, rest her head upon her hand, apparently engaged in deep thought. Once she dropped her work, buried her face in her hands., and while her frame trembled with emotion, the tears trickled through her fingers, and fell fast and thick on her lap. But there was no sound, or murmur of complaint; it was evidently the grief of a contrite heart; and only till she had subdued her emotions, and taken from a littie ebony box the miniature of her hus band, did she give vent to her feelings in words. "Oh, that I could recall the past !" said she at length, in trembling accents, as she gazed on the faithful resemblance of him who should have been more to her than life itself. "Oh, that I could recall my past wedded life, and rc-live again those days which should have been the happiest, but were, alas! the most wretciied of my life ! That proud, selfish heart of mine was wearing the very life-blood from his generous heart so kind, faithful and for giving ! I could have made him happy, I could have been happy mypelf, but alas ! it is now too late; I have made him an exile from home, and entailed upon myself a life of loneliness and misery!" and again she buried her face in her hands, and wept long and bitlerl'. And well she might weep, for she had merited her sufferings, but was now an altered woman; she had passed through the bitterest ordeal it is woman's lot to bearshe was a deserted wife; and tha; very desertion had proved a bless ing to her- ( E-yiing, upon the departure of her hus band, to find any clue to hi3 residence, farther than that he had left in a steamship for Europe; and believing, like every one else, that he had left her forever, she im mediately set herself to work, and by the necessity of toil, soon learned the value of that money she had before so foolishly squandered. Nor was this all, the effect upon her mind and temper, for grief had touched a chord of love which prosperity had never done. Her child, too, her beau tiful, but lost how, in her loneliness, did her heart yearn for that sweet one, on whom she could have lavished a eper i'd in lountain ot love man had ever welled in her heart when it lay on her 1 1 uusum jiiu was cradled in her arms! But the dear one was lost to her lost, perhaps forever I- and she was alone ia the rripf nnil agony of her heart. 1 Why did the ringing of the door-hell at that late hour of the night, so startle the i lone one? It was often rung at that hour I and she heeded it not, but now she started ' from her dreamv posture and pressed her j hands upon her heart which throbbed al - moai iu imrsuiiu. rvgam 11 waa rung iixuva j MuiL'imy man ueiore, anu again me lomr ges OI ?arn m:gnty Cities, and tne labours : forsook the cheek of the wife, and the : of such advanced civil. zation, as the his j breath seemed stayed on her parted lips, tonans of the c mquest relate as existing j as with every nerve awake she stood in 'at the beginning cf thesixteenth century, j mute posture of suspense. There was j These glowing records were doubtless j something in the peculiar manner in which made, partly to swell the importance of ' ,1.. .i. 1 : 1 . I . 1 ine cnoru was puiieu mat was associated with memory of days gone by, as the last sound died on the air, she drew her breath with a quick sigh, and murmured. "How like his ring!" Again, there was a quick step on the stair a manly tread and soft feet fol lowed mingling their echoes with the heavier ones. That step O ! how could a wife mistake the step of one who had been the lord of her heart although five . weary years had rolled between her heart and his ! It nearsnearer, and nearer , question Spanish authorities, or to meas and now it is on the threshold, and as the ure old Spanish literature by the standard door swirgs back on its hinges, with that same impulsive turn it always took from his hand, the wife sank back in her chair without the power of motion or utterance. But the kind familiar voice of the lost one, breathing accents of love, and mingled with the clear, sweet voice of her child, aroused her. and with a heart full of peni tence and gratitude, she threw herself into his arms and wept tears of contrition and thankfulness. N eed I rwhl ll:r spmial in mv strtrv- or. . . ... 7 will any one doubt if the restored husband aud wife were happy ? Will any one question if she longer hesitated to conform to what necessity and duty demanded? or repined if every wish was not gratified ? No ! a lesson of forbearance and self-denial were graven on her heart, too deep to be erased by time, and with cheerful and earnest will she performed the various duties of life, and became from that hour a blessing to her husband and child. A Knotty Question. A sucker, being put to it for a glass of the critter., went into a grocery store, and commenced the following dialogue: 'Mister, I'll take fourpence worth of crackers.' Yes, sir,' replied the grocer; and the crackers were accordingly bagged up. On second thoughts,' says the sucker, 'I'll take a fourpence worth of gin, and here's your crackers.' The grocer received the crackers, and the sucker received the gin, which was speedily drank, and sucker was about departing. Here,' says the grocer, pay me for that gin!' Pay ycu, says sucker, 'din't I give you the crackers for the gin? True,' says grocer, butrou didn't pay for the crackers!' In course not,' says sucker; I didn't I keephem! Hain't you got your crackers? You don't want a man to pay for what he didn't have, do you?' Sucker departed, leaving grocer en gaged in the process of scratching his head! Ali ens who have been three years in the U. S. and who did not arrive under eighteen years of age, in order; to be qualified to vote at the Presidential elec tion, in 1S52, must declare their inten tion to become Naturalized on or before the seventh day of November next other wise they will loose the priviege of vo ting on that ccension. SERVICE WANDERINGS. BY AN OFFICER OF ARTILLERY. CHOLULA. Who has not heard of the Pyramid of Cholula represented by a wood-cut in the primergeographies, as a truncated pyramid, with a long, four-sided base, and regular steps on every side, to the famous temple of the more famoas Quet- zalcoatl at its summit' Or what reader of Prescott does not recall the thrilling me moriesof the' massacre, by Cortez and the allied Indians, of thousands cf the natives, in the town at its base, in retaliation of their treachery? The story is not doubt exaggerated, and the child's wood-cut is as like actual re ality as "Hyperion to a satyr." I say the memories are exaggerated; for Pres. cott draws his materials from the Spanish historian and it has passed into a pro verb among the Spanish, that of what historians and travellers relate, we mav believe "a ?nilad de lamitad" But even j when this quartering process h?s passed ; upon the story of Bernal Diaz, there still - - . . ... remains enough at tne ir.idir. nm thp ; remains enougn 01 me irasric ana tne ro- 1 mantle in tho ti-r, rllrMon nf ihnt n'rtnr. ! esoue srot. to invest it with necnii.ir in- .1 1 i teresl to the traveller. The impression, I think, which is forced U!)on the mind of one i jurn-jving in Mexico, is, that the numbers, the mag- l nificence, the civilization and the virtues of the race which Cortez met when he marched into the tablelands of Pueb'a have ! Leen strangely exaggerated. Sufficient time has noteCans-d to destroy the vesli- r a r ... - : me littie Land ot conmierors. part v to . , - j please tne young and m:gnty emperor who had just ascended the throne, and who regarded the new discoveries as giv ing a glorious celebrity to his reign, and partly, loo, in accordance with the literary fashion of the times, which borrowed from the stage meretricious ideas of ornament and nrtifice, and which considered, oft times, the accessories mere important than the truth. 1 1 - , But without undertaking farther to of the present age, iet us speak of Cholula as it is now, divested, by the testimony of an eye-witness, of the romance of his tory, and the story-telling of pictorial geographies. It was in July, 1S17, while the army was resting from the labours of Veia Curz and Cerro GrJo, and gathering its en ergies for the Sampsonian task of taking j the gates of Mexico; when action had been i diatui bed, and we were left in the ner- vnne nriYinnc trtto nf vous, anxious, state o: suspense which none but a soldier can realize; it was at this tune, and under these circumstances, that parties were formed to visit all the lions of Pueb!a. First in order come the curiosities within the city. We explored the Cathedral, of which mortals had built the walls, and w hich angels had capped with a mighty dome, of a symmetry and perfection in stone-work unequalled, of course, by human builders. In gratitude to the supernatural architects, the city has since been called "La. Puebla de los An. gcles." Then we went to the foot of the storm mountain, Malinche, and some of the ad venturous climbed to its summit. In the afternoons we had bull-fights, and in the evenings a wretched icatro, to keep up the excitement. With these aids to kil ling time, (which peaceable occupation we were obliged to substitute for killing Mexicans,) we postponed Cholula, as one often keeps a gratification in prospect.net w ishing to destroy the pleasing anticipa tion. rtt last, hovVever. the bull-fights ceased to excite, the theatre was a prodigious bore, and the time had drCidly come for enjoying Cholula. On a beautiful morning in Juh', with latitude and elevation conspiring, by their contrary efforts, to render the weather de lightful and the air baimy, twenty or thirthy officers, escorted by a squadron of 1 dragoons, set out upen the level road that stretches over an almost treeless plain, to Cholula. The pyramid hove in sight" fis soon as we le't the city, looking, at a distance of seven miles, like a little hump-backed mound of earth, covered with a luxrinnt vegetation. But let us advance with the party. They presented a motley but pic turesque appearance. The dragoons n close order, but the officers galloping hither and thither, some in full undress, others with the soldier's jacket straw torl Cr1T 1V2, tit'on in T - U ' Cerro Gordo fought in April". hats, felt hats, of all shapes, sizes and color beards the tear lung, or cut into gro tesque forms some carrying portfolios to "take a likeness" others provided with mathematical instruments to determimi the height some practising wiih pistols and others imitating the gravity of tha children of the country by quietly smo king their puros, and keeping their cog itations to themselves no.ie, I venture to say, concerned absut lhecha.ncea cf the war, and nil eager to see the queer, old, dumb chronicle of long ago, among the Tollecs, orvn their predecessors in the (and. As for the Aztecs, they were yar -venues to the pyramid. What a j.i:y Memnon had a fabulous voice! Who can lock upon arelic of ages, like this, with out having the simple thought pasa through tne mind, "What this could tsl!, if it had a tongue?" We galloped up to the base of the pyr amid, which stands near the entrance of the town, and many of the officers dis mounted, to make the ascent on foot. A horse can go almost anywhere; relying on this principle, I kept rr:y seat, and wan paid for my venture by finding myself, safe and unfatigued, in the grounds of the Chapel of Our Lady of some queer name, which has happily replsced that horrid old temple of human sacrifice, which marked the ignorant devotion of a bar barous people to their "unknown Uod." Who can blame me for not remembering one name among the thousands which Our Lady chooses, in the countries which nationally acknowledge her manifold claims ? Bat my readers are not prepared to reach the top so summarily, and without j taking a survey as we approach the pyr amid. It was originally a frustum of a right pyramid, with a rectangular base, "one thousand four hundred and twenty-three feet long twice as long as that of th great pyramid of Cheops. "t Its base covers forty-four acres, and its summit i more than one acre in area. These di mensions have not been appreciably al teted, but the edges have become roundedl by constant attrition, deep fissures have been cut by time in its faces, and the road which winds around from one side nearly to the other at the top, has been, by de grees, excavated so as to present a wall of well-pressec, usiburnt brick on each side. In all the clefts, as well as in the parapets of the road, i: appears that it vra3 built of unburnt brick, and as deep as it has ever been penetrated, the same formation ia evident. Most of us agreed with Humbolt in the opinion that three was a natural mound, which was taken as the nucleus, and which the builders covered, and thus brought to its present shape. Be that as it may, it is still a stupendous work, and covered as it now is with a thick growth of centuries, it bespeaks age, grandeur, and a consecra tion of the mighty, the immense, and the eternal, to their fearful but revered dity. We reached the summit, and without waiting to see the magnificent spectacle, we rushed into the church, and ascended to the belfry, to gain, if possible, some thing by the additional ninety feet of ele vation thus afforded. In reaching the top, we passed up a spiral staircase, which might architecturally define "the blackness of darkness," as there is no window in the whole ascent. It is, however, a fine preparative for the view upon which we emerged the most magnificent panorama which has ever greeted my eyes. A pure, thin atmosphere, and a cloudless sky, were indeed necessary elements of the view, and these we had. Around, iu every direction, we looked upon a beautiful champaign country, irrigated with canals, many of which seemed to falsify the mathematical axiom that parallel lines, if produced, will never meet; here and there a cluster of houses, w ith their plantaia irees, and little curling wreaths of smoke,' La Puebla in clear sight, ar.d every spot of the road between us so marked, that we could almost compute distances as upon a map. But thf-se were all last i:i our wraot contemplation of the mighty volcanies. Far away to tha west, and vet so clearlv defined as to be apparently v. id. in pistol shot, Popocatepetl and lziecfihnatl "Ac fire mountain and lh. dead ioi?nan'"X the one with it3 smooth, conical top, nni the other with iis unevenly cat outline, rise boldly from among the surrounding hills, and pierce the clouds.- At their ap parent basf they partake of t!i3 common verdure; a little higher, they become brown and wintry to the limit of vegetation, and then presenting a parallel st.-atuin of baie. rock, as far as the limit of perpetual snow. "Hijos de! called, . . tPrescott. pais, as the natives sre t l he lat ted ouiline er to colled becr.u?e its scrra- the appearst:: ot a I human body. 1 J