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| author | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 04:42:35 -0700 |
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| committer | Roger Frank <rfrank@pglaf.org> | 2025-10-15 04:42:35 -0700 |
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diff --git a/13634-h/13634-h.htm b/13634-h/13634-h.htm new file mode 100644 index 0000000..b48489e --- /dev/null +++ b/13634-h/13634-h.htm @@ -0,0 +1,9147 @@ +<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" + "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"> +<html lang="en" xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"> + <head> + <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=UTF-8" /> + <title>The Continental Monthly - February, 1862.</title> + <style title="Standard Format" type="text/css"> + /*<![CDATA[*/ + <!-- + body {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + p {text-align: justify;} + p.TOC {text-align: left; font-variant: small-caps;} + p.sc {font-variant: small-caps;} + html>body p.TOC {margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%;} + blockquote {text-align: justify;} + h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 {text-align: center;} + pre {font-size: 1.0em;} + hr {text-align: center; width: 50%;} + html>body hr {margin-right: 25%; margin-left: 25%; width: 50%;} + hr.full {width: 100%;} + html>body hr.full {margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 0%; width: 100%;} + hr.short {text-align: center; width: 20%;} + html>body hr.short {margin-right: 40%; margin-left: 40%; width: 20%;} + .footnote {font-size: 0.9em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + /* To hide page numbers */ + .newpage { display: none; } + /* To display right-aligned line numbers */ + .poem { + margin: 0em 10% 0em 10%; + text-align: left; + } + .poem .stanza { + margin: 1em 0em 1em 0em; + } + .poem .author { + text-align: right; + } + .poem .line:after { + display: block; + content: attr(title); + text-align: right; + } + /* To indent wrapped lines */ + .poem .line { + height: auto; + margin-left: 3em; + text-indent: -3em; + } + .figure, .figcenter, .figright, .figleft + {padding: 1em; margin: 0; text-align: center; font-size: 0.8em;} + .figure img, .figcenter img, .figright img, .figleft img + {border: none;} + .figure p, .figcenter p, .figright p, .figleft p + {margin: 0; text-align: center;} + .figcenter {margin: auto;} + .figright {float: right;} + .figleft {float: left;} +span.rightnote { +position: absolute; +left: 88%; +right: 1%; +font-size: 0.7em; +border-bottom: solid 1px; +text-align: left; +} +/* Use this if there are inline transliterations. */ +/* [lang][title]:after {content: " [Trans: " attr(title) "]";} */ + --> + /*]]>*/ + </style> + <style title="Original Page Numbers" type="text/css"> + /*<![CDATA[*/ + <!-- + body {margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + p {text-align: justify;} + p.TOC {text-align: left; font-variant: small-caps;} + p.sc {font-variant: small-caps;} + html>body p.TOC {margin-left: 20%; margin-right: 20%;} + blockquote {text-align: justify;} + h1,h2,h3,h4,h5,h6 {text-align: center;} + pre {font-size: 1.0em;} + hr {text-align: center; width: 50%;} + html>body hr {margin-right: 25%; margin-left: 25%; width: 50%;} + hr.full {width: 100%;} + html>body hr.full {margin-right: 0%; margin-left: 0%; width: 100%;} + hr.short {text-align: center; width: 20%;} + html>body hr.short {margin-right: 40%; margin-left: 40%; width: 20%;} + .footnote {font-size: 0.9em; margin-left: 10%; margin-right: 10%;} + /* To show page numbers */ + .newpage {position: absolute; left: 1%; right: 91%; font-size: 8pt;} + /* To display right-aligned line numbers */ + .poem { + margin: 0em 10% 0em 10%; + text-align: left; + } + .poem .stanza { + margin: 1em 0em 1em 0em; + } + .poem .author { + text-align: right; + } + .poem .line:after { + display: block; + content: attr(title); + text-align: right; + } + /* To indent wrapped lines */ + .poem .line { + height: auto; + margin-left: 3em; + text-indent: -3em; + } + .figure, .figcenter, .figright, .figleft + {padding: 1em; margin: 0; text-align: center; font-size: 0.8em;} + .figure img, .figcenter img, .figright img, .figleft img + {border: none;} + .figure p, .figcenter p, .figright p, .figleft p + {margin: 0; text-align: center;} + .figcenter {margin: auto;} + .figright {float: right;} + .figleft {float: left;} +span.rightnote { +position: absolute; +left: 88%; +right: 1%; +font-size: 0.7em; +border-bottom: solid 1px; +text-align: left; +} +/* Use this if there are inline transliterations. */ +/* [lang][title]:after {content: " [Trans: " attr(title) "]";} */ + --> + /*]]>*/ + </style> + </head> + <body> +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 13634 ***</div> + + <a name="page113" id="page113"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 113]</span> + <h1>THE CONTINENTAL MONTHLY:</h1> + <center> + DEVOTED TO + </center> + <center> + <b>LITERATURE AND NATIONAL POLICY.</b> + </center> + <hr class="short" /> + <h2>VOL. I.—FEBRUARY, 1862.—NO. II.</h2> + <hr class="short" /> + <h2>OUR WAR AND OUR WANT.</h2> + <p>Can this great republic of our forefathers exist with slavery in it?</p> + <p>Whether we like or dislike the question, it must be answered. As the war + stands, we have gone too far to retreat. It clamors for a brave and manly + solution. Let us see if we can, laying aside all prejudices, all dislikes + whatever, discover an honest course, simply with a view to preserve the + Union and insure its future prosperity. Let us avoid all foregone + conclusions, all extraneous issues, adhering strictly to the one great need + of the hour—how to conquer the foe, reëstablish the Union, and + do this in a manner most consonant with our future national prosperity.</p> + <p>It is manifest enough that in a continent destined at no distant day to + contain its hundred millions, the question whether these shall form one + great nation or a collection of smaller states is one of fearful + importance. He who belongs to a <i>great</i> nation is thereby great of + himself. He has the right to be proud, and will work out his life more + proudly and vigorously and freely than the dweller in a corner-country. Do + those men ever <i>reflect</i>, who talk so glibly of this government as too + large, and as one which must inevitably be sundered, to what a degradation + they calmly look forward! No; Union,—come what may,—now and + ever. Greatness is to every brave man a <i>necessity</i>. Out on the craven + and base-hearted who aspire to being less than the co-rulers of a + continent. See how vile and mean are those men who in the South have lost + all national pride in a small-minded provincial attachment to a State, who + love their local county better still, and concentrate their real political + interests in the feudal government of a plantation. Shall <i>we</i> be as + such,—<i>we</i>, the men who hold the destinies of a hemisphere + within our grasp? Never,—God help us,—<i>never!</i></p> + <p>On the basis of free labor we are pressing onward over the mighty West. + Two great questions now require grappling with. The one is, whether slavery + shall henceforth be tolerated; the other, whether we shall strengthen this + great government of the Union so as to preserve it in future from the + criminal intrigues of would-be seceding, ambitious men of no principle. Now + is the time to decide.</p> + <p>We must not be blind to a great opportunity which may be lost, of + forever quelling a foul nuisance which would, if neglected <i>now</i>, live + forever. Do we not see, feel, and understand what sort of <i>white men</i> + are developed by slavery, <a name="page114" id="page114"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 114]</span> and do we intend to keep up such a race + among us? <i>Do we want all this work to do over again</i> every ten or + five years or all the time? For a quarter of a century, slavery and nothing + else has kept us in a growing fever, and now that it has reached a crisis + the question is whether we shall calm down the patient with cool + rose-water. In the crisis comes a physician who knows the constitution of + his patient, and proposes searching remedies and a thorough + cure,—and, lo! the old nurse cries out that he is interfering and + acting unwisely, though he is quite as willing to adopt her cooling present + solace as she.</p> + <p>If we had walked over the war-course last spring without + opposition,—if we had conquered the South, would we have put an end + to this trouble? Does any one believe that we would? This is not now a + question of the right to hold slaves, or the wrong of so doing. All of that + old abolition jargon went out and died with the present aspect of the war. + So far as nine-tenths of the North ever cared, or do now care, slaves might + have hoed away down in Dixie, until supplanted, as they have been in the + North, by the irrepressible advance of manufactures and small farms, or by + free labor. 'Keep your slaves and hold your tongues,' was, and would be + now, our utterance. But they would not hold their tongues. It was 'rule or + ruin' with them. And if, as it seems, a man can not hold slaves without + being arrogant and unjust to others, we must take his slaves away.</p> + <p>And why is not this the proper time to urge emancipation? Divested of + all deceitful and evasive turns, the question reduces itself to + this,—are we to definitely conquer the enemy once and for all, the + great enemy Oligarchy, by taking out its very heart? or are we to keep up + this strife with slaveholders forever? It is a great and hard thing to do, + this crushing the difficulty, but we must either do it or be done for. In a + few months 'the tax-gatherer will be around.' If anybody has read the + report of the Secretary of the Treasury without a grave sensation, he is + very fortunate. How would such reports please us annually for many years? + So long as there exists in the Union a body of men disowning allegiance to + it, puffed up in pride, loathing and scorning the name of free labor, + especially as the ally of capital, just so long will the tax-gatherer be + around,—and with a larger bill than ever.</p> + <p>To such an extent is this arrogance carried of urging utter silence at + present on the subject of slavery, that one might almost question whether + the right of free speech or thought is to be left at all, save to those who + have determined on a certain course of conduct. When it is remembered that + those who wish to definitely conclude this great national trouble are in + the great majority, we stand amazed at the presumption which forbids them + to utter a word. One may almost distrust his senses to hear it so brazenly + urged that because he happens to think that our fighting and victories may + go hand in hand with a measure which is to prevent future war, he is + 'opposed to the Administration,' is 'a selfish traitor thinking of nothing + but the Nigger,' and altogether a stumbling-block and an untimely meddler. + If he protest that he cares no more for the welfare of the Negro than for + that of the man in the moon, he is still reviled as an 'abolitionist.' If + he insist that emancipation will end the war, his 'conservative' foe + becomes pathetic over his indifference as to what is to become of the four + millions of 'poor blacks.' And, in short, when he urges the great question + whether this country is to tolerate slavery or no, he is met with trivial + fribbling side-issues, every one of which <i>should</i> vanish like foam + before the determined will and onward march of a great, <i>free</i> + people.</p> + <p>Now let every friend of the Union boldly assume that <i>so far as the + settlement of this question is concerned he</i> does not care one straw for + the Negro. Leave the Negro out altogether. Let him sink or swim, so far as + this difficulty goes. Men have tried for thirty years <a name="page115" + id="page115"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 115]</span> to appeal to + humanity, without success, for the Negro, and now let us try some other + expedient. Let us regard him not as a man and a brother, but as 'a + miserable nigger,' if you please, and a nuisance. But whatever he be, if + the effect of owning such creatures is to make the owner an intolerable + fellow, seditious and insolent, it becomes pretty clear that such ownership + should be put an end to. If Mr. Smith can not have a horse without riding + over his neighbor, it is quite time that Smith were unhorsed, no matter how + honestly he may have acquired the animal. And if the Smiths, father and + sons, threaten to keep their horse in spite of law,—nay, and breed up + a race of horses from him, whereon to roughride everybody who goes + afoot,—then it becomes still more imperative that the Smith family + cease cavaliering it altogether.</p> + <p>There is yet another point which the stanch Union-lover must keep in + view. In pushing on the war with heart and soul, we inevitably render + slaveholding at any rate a most precarious institution, and one likely to + be broken up altogether. Seeing this, many unreflectingly ask, 'Why then + meddle with it?' But it <i>must</i> be considered in some way, and provided + for as the war advances, or we shall find ourselves in such an imbroglio as + history never saw the like of. He who cuts down a tree must take + forethought how it may fall, or he will perchance find himself crushed. He + who in a tremendous conflagration would blow up a block of houses with + powder, must, even amid the riot and roar, so manage the explosion that + lives be not wantonly lost. We must clear the chips away as our work + advances. The matter in hand is the war—if you choose, nothing but + the war. But pushing on singly and simply at <i>the war</i> implies + <i>some</i> wisdom and a certain regard to the future and to consequences. + The mere abolitionist of the old school, who regards the Constitution as a + league with death and a covenant with hell, may, if he pleases, see in the + war only an opportunity to wreak vengeance on the South and free the black. + But the 'emancipationist' sees this in a very different light. He sees that + we are <i>not</i> fighting for the Negro, or out of hatred to anybody. He + knows that we are fighting to restore the Union, and that this is the first + great thought, to be carried out at <i>all</i> hazards. But he feels that + this carrying out involves some action at the same time on the great + trouble which first caused the war, and which, if neglected, will prolong + the war forever. He feels that the future of the greatest republic in + existence depends on settling this question now and forever, and that if it + be left to the chances of war to settle itself, there is imminent danger + that even a victory may not prevent a disrupture of the Union. For, + disguise it as we may, there is a vast and uncontrollable body at the North + who hate slavery, and pity the black, and these men will not be silent or + inactive. Did the election of Abraham Lincoln involve nothing of this? We + know that it did. Will this 'extreme left,' this radical party, keep quiet + and do nothing? Why they are the most fiercely active men on our continent. + Let him who would prevent this battle degenerating into a furious strife + between radical abolition and its opponents weigh this matter well. There + are fearful elements at work, which may be neutralized, if we who fight for + the <i>Union</i> will be wise betimes, and remove the bone of + contention.</p> + <p>Above all, let every man bear in mind that, even as the war stands, + something <i>must</i> be done to regulate and settle the Negro question. + After what has been already effected in the border States and South + Carolina, it would be impossible to leave the Negro and his owner in such + an undefined relation as now exists. And yet this very fact—one of + the strongest which can be alleged to prove the necessity of legislation + and order—is cited to prove that the matter will settle itself. Take, + for instance, the following from the correspondence of a daily + cotemporary:—</p> + <blockquote> + THE ARMY SPOILING THE SLAVES.—Whatever may be the policy of the + government in regard to the status of the slaves, one thing is <a + name="page116" id="page116"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 116]</span> + certain, that wherever our army goes, it will most effectually spoil all + the slaves and render them worthless to their masters. This will be the + necessary result, and we think it perfectly useless to disturb the + administration and distract the minds of the people with the everlasting + discussion of this topic. Soon our army will be in Georgia, Florida, and + Louisiana, and the soldiers will carry with their successful arms an + element of liberty that will infuse itself into every slave in those + States. The only hope for the South, if, indeed, it has not passed away, + is to throw down their arms and submit unconditionally to the government. + </blockquote> + <p>That is to say, we are to free the slave, only we must not say so! + Rather than take a bold, manly stand, avow what we are actually doing, and + adopt a measure which would at once conciliate and harmonize the whole + North, we are to suffer a tremendous disorder to spring up and make + mischief without end! Can we never get over this silly dread of worn-out + political abuse and grapple fairly with the truth? Are we really so much + afraid of being falsely called abolitionists and negro-lovers that we can + not act and think like <i>men!</i> Here we are frightened at <i>names</i>, + dilly-dallying and quarreling over idle words, when a tremendous crisis + calls for acts. But this can not last forever. Something must be done right + speedily for the myriad of blacks whom we shall soon have on our hands. + Barracooning contrabands by thousands may do for the present, but how as to + the morrow? Let it be repeated again and again, that they who argue against + touching the Negro question <i>at present</i> are putting off from day to + day an evil which becomes terrible as it is delayed. It can <i>not</i> be + let alone. Already those in power at Washington are terrified at its + extent, but fear to act, owing to 'abolition,' while all the time the foul + old political ties and intrigues are gathering closely about. Let us cut + the knot betimes, act bravely and manfully, and settle the difficulty ere + it settles us. Something must be done, and that right early.</p> + <p>But what is to become of the freed blacks? Again and again does this + preposterous bugbear rise up to prove, by the terror which it excites, the + vast ignorance of the subject which prevails in this country, and the small + amount of deliberate reasoning generally bestowed on matters of the most + vital importance. Reader, if you would answer it, go to facts. You have + probably all your life accepted as true the statement that the black when + free promptly becomes an idle, worthless vagabond. You have believed that a + <i>majority</i> of the free blacks in the North are good for nothing. Now I + tell you calmly and deliberately, and challenging inquiry, that <i>this is + not true</i>. Admitting that about one-fifth of them are so, you have but a + weak argument. As for the forlorn, unacclimated exiles in Canada, where + there is no demand for the labor which they are peculiarly fit to render, + they are not a case in point. The black servants, cooks, barbers, + white-washers, carpet-beaters and grooms of Baltimore and Philadelphia, + which form the four-fifths majority of free blacks in those cities, are not + idle vagabonds. Above all, reader, I beg of you to read the dispassionate + and calmly written <i>Cotton Kingdom</i> of Frederick Law Olmstead, + recently published by Mason Brothers, of New York. You will there find the + fact set forth by closest observation that the negroes in part are indeed + lazy vagabonds, but that the majority, when allowed to work for themselves, + and when free, <i>do</i> work, and that right steadily. In the Virginia + tobacco factories slaves can earn on an average as much money for + themselves, in the 'over hours' allowed them, as the manufacturer pays + their owner for their services during the day. There are cases in which + slaves, hired for one hundred dollars a year, have made for themselves + three hundred.<a id="footnotetag1" name="footnotetag1" + href="#footnote1"><sup>1</sup></a></p> + <p>But the vagabond surplus,—the minority? Is it possible that with + Union <a name="page117" id="page117"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 117]</span> or disunion before us we can hesitate as to taking on this + incumbrance? In a hard-working land vagabonds must die off,—'tis a + hard case, but the emergency for the white men of this and a coming age is + much harder. After all, there are only some fifteen hundred or two thousand + lazy free negroes in New York city,—the climate, we are told, is too + severe for them,—and this among well-nigh a million of inhabitants. + We think it would be possible to find one single alderman in that city who + has wasted as much capital, and injured the commonwealth quite as much, in + one year, as all the negroes there put together, during the same time. It + would be absurd to imagine that the emancipation of every negro in America + to-morrow would add one million idlers and vagabonds to our population. + <i>But what if it did?</i> Would their destiny or injury to us be of such + tremendous importance that we need for it peril our welfare as a nation? + The standing armies of Germany absorb about one-fifth of the entire capital + of the land. Better one million of negative negroes than a million of + positive soldiers!</p> + <p>There was never yet in history a time when such a glorious future + offered itself to a nation as that which is now within our grasp. In its + greatness and splendor it is beyond all description. The great problem of + Republicanism—the question of human progress—has reached its + last trial. If we keep this mighty nation one and inseparable, we shall + have answered it forever; if not, why then those who revile man as vile and + irreclaimably degraded may raise their pæans of triumph; the black + spectres of antique tyrants may clap their hands gleefully in the land of + accursed shadows, and hell hold high carnival, for, verily, it would seem + as if they had triumphed, and that hope were a lie.</p> + <p>But who are they who dare accuse us of wishing to weaken the + administration and impede its course? Bring the question to light! If there + be one thing more than another which those who demand emancipation desire, + it is that the central government should be <i>strengthened</i>—aye, + strengthened as it has never been before; so that, in future, there can be + no return of secession. We have never been a republic—only an + aggregate of smaller republics. If we <i>had</i> been one, the first + movement toward disunion would have hurled the traitors urging it to the + dust. Aye, strengthen the government; and let its first manifestation of + strength and will be the settling of the negro question. Give the + administration as full power as you please—the more the better; it is + only conferring strength on the people. There is no danger that the men of + the North will ever lose a shadow of individual rights. They are too + powerful.</p> + <p>And now let the freemen of America speak, and the work will be done. A + great day is at hand; hasten it. The hour which sees this Union re-united + will witness the most glorious triumph of humanity,—the greatest step + towards realizing the social aim of Christianity, and of Him who died for + all,—the recognition of the rights of every one. Onward!</p> + <hr /> + <a name="page118" id="page118"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 118]</span> + <h2>BROWN'S LECTURE TOUR.</h2> + <h3>I.—HOW HE CAME TO DO IT.</h3> + <p>My last speculation had proved a failure. I was left with a stock of + fifty impracticable washing-machines on my hands, and a cash capital of + forty-four cents. With the furniture of my room, these constituted my total + assets. I had an unsettled account of forty dollars with Messrs. Roller + & Ems, printers, for washing-machine circulars, cards, etc.; + and—</p> + <blockquote> + <p>Rap, rap, rap!</p> + <p>[<i>Enter boy</i>.]</p> + <p>'Mr. Peck says as how you'll please call around to his office and + settle up this afternoon, sure.'</p> + <p>[<i>Exit boy</i>.]</p> + </blockquote> + <hr class="short" /> + <p style="text-align: right;"><i>New York, Nov. 30, 1859</i>.</p> + <p>Mr. GREEN D. BROWN,</p> + <p><i>TO</i> JOHN PECK, <i>Dr</i>.</p> + <p><i>To Rent of Room to date</i> ... $9.00</p> + <p><i>Rec'd Pay't</i>,</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>I came to the emphatic conclusion that I was 'hard up.'</p> + <p>I kept bachelor's hall in Franklin Street, in apartments not altogether + sumptuous, yet sufficiently so for my purposes,—to wit, to sit in and + to sleep in; and inasmuch as I took my meals amid the gilded splendors of + the big saloon on the corner of Broadway, I was not disposed to reproach + myself with squalor. Yet the articles of furniture in my room were so far + removed, separately or in the aggregate, from anything like the + superfluous, that when I calmly deliberated what to part with, there was + nothing which struck me as a luxury or a comfort as distinct from a + necessary of life. I took a second mental inventory: two common chairs, a + table, a mirror, a rocking-chair, a bed, a lounge, and a single picture on + the wall.</p> + <p>I declare, thought I, here's nothing to spare.</p> + <p>But things were getting to a crisis. I must 'make a raise,' somehow. + Borrow? Ah, certainly—where was the benevolent moneyed individual? My + credit had gone with my cash; both were sunk in the washing-machines.</p> + <p>I lighted my pipe, and surveyed my household goods once more.</p> + <p>There was the picture: couldn't I do without that?</p> + <p>Possibly. But that picture I had had—let me see—fifteen, + yes, sixteen years. That picture was a third prize for excellence in + declamation, presented me at the school exhibition in —— + Street, when I was twelve years old. That was in 1843, and here, on the + first of December, 1859, I sat deliberately meditating its sale for paltry + bread and butter!</p> + <p>No, no; I'd go hungry a little longer, before I'd part with that old + relic—remembrancer of the proudest day of my life. What a pity I + hadn't permitted that day to give a direction to my life, instead of + turning my attention to the paltry expedients for money-making followed by + the common herd! I might have been an accomplished orator by this time, + capable of drawing crowds and pocketing a thousand a month, or so. But my + tastes had run in other channels since the day when I took that prize.</p> + <p>Still, when I thought of it deliberately, I made bold to believe there + was that yet in me which could meet the expectant eyes of audiences nor + quail before them.</p> + <p>A thought struck me! Was not here an 'opening' for an enterprising young + man? Was not the lecture-season at hand? Did not lecturers get from ten to + two hundred dollars per night? Couldn't I talk off a lecture with the best + of them, perhaps? Well, perhaps I could, and perhaps not, but if I wouldn't + try it on, I hoped I might be blessed—that—was all.</p> + <p>I thought proper, after having reached this conclusion, to calculate my + wealth in the way of preliminary requisites to success. <a name="page119" + id="page119"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 119]</span> By preliminary + requisites to success, I mean those which lead to the securing of + invitations to lecture. I flattered myself that all matters consequent to + this point in my career would very readily turn themselves to my advantage. + The preliminary requisites were as follows:—</p> + <p>1. <i>Notoriety</i>. I could boast of nothing in this line. I had no + reputation whatever. I had never written a line for publication.</p> + <p>When I had satisfied myself that I lacked this grand requisite, I turned + my attention to the subject again only to find that No. 1 was quite alone + in its glory. It was the Alpha and Omega of the preliminary requisites. I + should never be able to get a solitary invitation.</p> + <p>Here I was for a moment disheartened; but, persevering in my + newly-assumed part of literary philosopher, I proceeded to the + consideration of the consequent requisites:—</p> + <p>1. <i>Literary ability</i>. To say the truth, my literary abilities had + hitherto been kept in the background. I was glad they were now going to + come forward. For present purposes, it was sufficient that the Astor + Library was handy, and that I could string words together respectably.</p> + <p>2. <i>Oratorical ability</i>. As already indicated, I was conscious of + no mean alloy of the Demosthenic gold tempering the baser metal of my + general composition. My voice was deep and strong.</p> + <p>3. <i>Facial brass</i>. I felt brazen enough to set up a bell-foundery + on my personal curve. My cheeks were of that metalline description that + never knew a blush, before an audience of one or many.</p> + <p>4. <i>Personal appearance</i>. I consulted my mirror on that point. It + showed me a young man of only twenty-eight, and tall and shapely + proportions; a well-dressed young man, with light-colored hair, prominent + nose, and heavy red beard and moustache. I twisted the latter institution + undecidedly, and ventured the belief that by shaving myself clean and + bridging my nose with a pair of black-bowed spectacles I could pass + muster.</p> + <p>The result total was satisfactory. I resolved to disregard the + preliminary respecting invitations, and to make a modest effort of my own + to secure an audience, by going into the country, and advertising myself in + proper form. I commenced the work of writing a lecture forthwith; and in a + few days I had ready what I deemed a rather superior production.</p> + <h3>II.—HOW HE PROCEEDED TO DO IT.</h3> + <p>I gave up my lodgings in town, sold all my salable possessions, settled + up with my landlord, paid my printers in the usual way (i.e., with + promises), and, supplied with a satchel-full of hand-bills (from a rival + establishment), started for the country. My ticket was for Sidon—a + place I knew nothing whatever about; the only circumstance of a positive + character connected with it was, that it was the farthest point from New + York which I could reach by the Rattle and Smash Railroad for the net + amount of funds in my pocket. I stepped into the streets of Sidon with a + light heart, and looked out on the scene of my contemplated triumph. I made + up my mind at once that if ancient Sidon was no more of a place than modern + Sidon, it couldn't lay claim to being much of a town. The houses, including + shops and stores, would not exceed one hundred. I walked to the tavern, and + delivered my satchel to the custody of a rough-looking animal, whom I + subsequently found to be landlord, hostler, bar-tender, table-waiter, and + general manager-at-all-work. He was a very uninviting subject; but, being + myself courteously inclined, and having also a brisk eye to business, I + inquired if there was a public hall or lecture-room in the place.</p> + <p>'I've got a dance-hall up-stairs. Be you a showman?'</p> + <p>I said I was a lecturer by profession, and asked if churches were ever + used for such purposes in Sidon.</p> + <p>'Never heard of any. 'Ain't got no church. Be you goin' to lecter?'</p> + <p>I replied that I thought some of it, and inquired if it was common to + use his hall for lectures.</p> + <p>'Wal, Sidon ain't much of a place for <a name="page120" + id="page120"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 120]</span> shows anyhow. When + they is any, I git 'em in, if they ain't got no tent o' their own.'</p> + <p>I would look at the hall.</p> + <p>We went up a rickety stairway, into a dingy room. The plaster had fallen + from the ceiling in several places, and the room had a mouldy smell. There + was a platform at one end, where the musicians sat when saltatory + <i>fêtes</i> were held, and on this I mounted to 'take a view.' I + didn't feel called upon to admire the hall in audible terms; but as I stood + there an inspiring scene arose before my mental vision—a scene of + up-turned faces, each representing the sum of fifteen cents, that being the + regular swindle for getting into shows round here, the landlord said. I + struck a bargain for the hall, at once—a bargain by which I was to + have it for two dollars if I didn't do very well, or five dollars if I had + a regular big crowd; bill-stickers and doorkeeper included, free.</p> + <p>In the evening, I went to the village post-office, which was merely a + corner of the village store, and inquired if there was a letter there for + Professor Green D. Brown. I knew very well there was not, of course, but I + had the not unexpected pleasure of seeing the postmaster's eyes dilate + inquiringly, so that I felt called upon to say:—</p> + <p>'I am a stranger, sir, in Sidon, at present, but I hope to enjoy the + honor of making the acquaintance of a large number of your intelligent + citizens during my brief stay with you. I propose lecturing in this village + to-morrow evening, on a historical, or perhaps I should say biographical, + subject.'</p> + <p>The postmaster, who appeared like an intelligent gentleman, said he was + glad to see me, and glad to hear I was going to lecture; and he shook hands + with me cordially. The store contained about half the adult population of + the village, lounging about the warm stove, talking and dozing; and the + postmaster introduced me to Squire Johnson, and Dr. Tomson, and Mr. + Dickson, and Mr. Dobson and Mr. Potkins, who, five, constituted the upper + ten of Sidon. With these gentlemen I held a very entertaining conversation, + during which I remember I was struck with the extreme deference paid to my + opinion, and the extreme contempt manifested for the opinions of each + other. They all agreed, however, that my visit would be likely to prove of + the greatest importance to Sidon in a literary and educational point of + view.</p> + <p>I returned to the hotel, and retired with heart elate.</p> + <p>In the morning, it was with emotions of a peculiarly pleasurable nature + that I observed, profusely plastered on posts and fences, the announcement, + in goodly capitals:—</p> + <blockquote> + <p style="font-size: 200%; text-align: center;">LECTURE!!</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p style="font-size: 150%; text-align: center;">PROF. G.D. BROWN,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">OF NEW YORK CITY,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">WILL LECTURE THIS EVENING, DECEMBER + 14,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">IN JONES'S HALL, SIDON,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">AT 7 O'CLOCK.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p style="text-align: center;">SUBJECT: 'EURIPIDES, THE ATHENIAN + POET.'</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p style="text-align: center;">ADMISSION 15 CENTS. DOORS OPEN AT 6 + O'CLOCK.</p> + </blockquote> + <p>The critical reader may experience a desire to propound to me a + question:—'Professor of what?'</p> + <p>Now I profess honesty, as an abstract principle—being, perhaps the + conscientious reader will think, more of a professor <a name="page121" + id="page121"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 121]</span> than a practicer + herein. But the truth is, in the present mendicant state of the word + 'Professor,' I conceived I had a perfect right and title to it, by virtue + of my poverty, and so appropriated it for the behoof and advantage of + Number One. Which explanation, it is hoped, will do.</p> + <p>Friday passed in cultivating still farther the acquaintance of the + previous evening, and receiving the most cordial assurances of interest on + their part in my visit and its object. I was candidly (and I thought + kindly) informed by my good friends, not to get my expectations too high, + as a very large house could scarcely, they feared, be expected; but I + deemed an audience of even no more than fifty or seventy-five a fair + beginning,—a very fair beginning,—and had no fears.</p> + <p>I retired to my room at five o'clock, and remained locked in, with my + lecture before me, oblivious of all external affairs, until a few minutes + past seven, when I concluded my audience had gathered. I then smoothed my + hair, adjusted my spectacles, took my MS. in my hand, and proceeded to the + lecture-room. The doorkeeper was fast asleep, and the long wicks of the + tallow candles were flaring wildly and dimly on a scene of emptiness. Not + an auditor was present!</p> + <p>I descended to the bar-room. It was full of loungers, smoking, dozing, + and drinking. Without entering, I hastened across the way to the + post-office. There was the courteous postmaster, engaged in a sleepy talk + with Squire Johnson and Dr. Tomson and Mr. Dickson and Mr. Dobson and Mr. + Potkins, who sat precisely as they sat the evening previous.</p> + <p>I returned to the hotel and called out the landlord.</p> + <p>'There's no audience, I perceive,' said I.</p> + <p>'Wal, I didn't cal'late much of anybody'd go in. They gen'ally go over + to Tyre when they want shows. Tyre's quite a town. You'd do better over + thar; 's on'y seven mile over to Tyre.'</p> + <p>I explained my position to the landlord at once, and threw myself on his + mercy. I told him I had no money, but would walk over to Tyre that very + evening, rather than task his hospitality longer. After making a little + money in Tyre, I would return to Sidon and settle his little bill. To which + the generous-hearted fellow responded,—</p> + <p>'Yas, I think likely; but ye see I'm <i>some</i> on gettin' my pay outen + these show chaps that go round. I reckon that thar satchel o' yourn's got + the wuth o' my bill in it. I'll hold on to it till ye git back, ye + know.'</p> + <p>Remonstrance was in vain. I found that my sharp landlord had entered my + room while I was looking in at the post-office door, and had taken my + carpet-bag, with everything I had, even my overcoat, and stowed all in a + cupboard under the bar, under lock and key. He would not so much as allow + me a clean shirt; and I started for Tyre, wishing from the bottom of my + heart that the inhuman landlord might engage in a washing-machine + speculation, and involve with himself Mr. Potkins and Mr. Dobson and Mr. + Dickson and Dr. Tomson and Squire Johnson.</p> + <p>I reached Tyre at ten o'clock, and found that I had not been deceived + respecting its size. It was quite a large Tillage, with well laid out + streets, handsome residences, two large hotels, and three or four churches. + I took this inventory of the principal objects in Tyre with considerable + more anxiety than I had ever supposed it possible for me to entertain + concerning any country town in Christendom. I was interested in the + prosperity of Tyre. I sincerely hoped that the hard times had not entered + its quiet and beautiful streets. The streets certainly were both quiet and + beautiful, as I looked upon them in the clear moonlight of ten o'clock at + night, an hour when honest people in the country are, for the most part, + asleep. I entered the handsomest of the hotels, and registered my name in a + bran-new book on the clerk's counter.</p> + <table width="50%" summary="Registration"> + <tr> + <th>Name.</th> + <th>Residence.</th> + <th>Destination.</th> + </tr> + <tr> + <td><i>Prof. D.G. Brown,</i></td> + <td><i>N.Y. City.</i></td> + <td><i>Lecture in Tyre</i>.</td> + </tr> + </table> + <p>'Beautiful evening, sir,' said the clerk, who was also the landlord, but + not also the bar-tender and the hostler.</p> + <a name="page122" id="page122"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 122]</span> + <p>'You are right, sir,' said I; 'it is truly a lovely evening. I have + rarely seen moonlight so beautiful. Indeed, such were the beauties of the + evening, that I have positively been tempted so far as to walk over here + from Sidon this evening, leaving my baggage to follow me in the + morning.'</p> + <p>'Ah! lectured in Sidon perhaps?'</p> + <p>'Well, ah! um! yes; that is, I intend to do so, but unforeseen + circumstances induced me to relinquish that purpose. Sidon is very + small.'</p> + <p>'Yes, sir, small place. Never heard of a lecture, or any kind of a + performance, there before. Fact is, they're a hard set over to Sidon, and + the place is better known by the name of Sodom around here.'</p> + <p>I felt much encouraged at hearing this; for, to tell the truth, my + cogitations as I tramped over the rough road between Tyre and Sidon had + been anything but cheerful. This was a realization of my fond dreams of a + ten-to-fifty-dollars-a-night lecture tour, such as I had hardly + anticipated, and as I drew nigh unto Tyre I had been thinking whether I had + not better try to get a situation as a farm-hand or dry-goods clerk before + my troubles should have crushed me and driven me to suicide.</p> + <p>But the landlord cheered me. Tyre was a model town. Tyre had a + newspaper, and Tyre patronized literary entertainments. There was a good + hall in Tyre, and the Tyrians had filled it to overflowing last winter when + Chapin spoke there. I went to bed under the benignant influence of my + cheerful host, and dreamed of lecturing to an audience of many thousands in + a hall a trifle larger than the Academy of Music, and with every nook and + corner crowded with enthusiastic listeners, whose joy culminated with my + peroration into such a tumult of delight that they rushed upon the stage + and hoisted me on their shoulders amid cheers so boisterous that they awoke + me. I found I had left my bed and mounted into a window, with the + intention, doubtless, of stepping into the street and concluding my career + at once, lest an anti-climax should be my fate.</p> + <p>In the morning, I called on the editor of the newspaper.</p> + <p>I desire to recommend my reader to subscribe at once to <i>The Tyre + Times</i>, and thus aid to sustain the paper of a gentleman and a scholar, + who was, as editors usually are, a plain-spoken, sensible man, conscious of + the presence of talent in his sanctum, by 'sympathetic attraction.' The + editor of the <i>Times</i> looked into the circumstances of my case with an + experienced and kindly eye, and then said to me,—</p> + <p>'My dear sir, you can not succeed here with a lecture. We have had + several in our village within a few years, but never one which 'paid,' + unless it was one on phrenology, or physiology, or psychology, and + plentifully spiced with humor of the coarsest sort. If you want to make + money in Tyre, you'll take my advice and get a two-headed calf, a learned + pig, or a band of nigger minstrels. Any of these things will answer your + purpose, if you want money; but if you have ambition to gratify, if you + want to lecture for the sake of lecturing, that's a different thing. At all + events, you shall have my good wishes, and I'll do all I can to get you a + house. But it won't pay.'</p> + <p>The reader knows that if I had not been a fool I would have understood + and heeded a statement so plain as this, made by an editor. But then, if I + hadn't been a fool, you know I should never have started on a lecture tour + at all. So, being a fool, I had bills printed, hired a hall (at ten + dollars), and was duly announced to lecture in Tyre on the coming Tuesday + evening. The same afternoon, <i>The Tyre Times</i> appeared, and its + editorial column contained the following notice, which I read with great + interest, it being my first appearance in any periodical:—</p> + <blockquote> + LECTURE AT GRECIAN HALL.—We take pleasure in announcing that Prof. + GREEN D. BROWN, of New York city, will favor the citizens of Tyre with a + lecture on Tuesday evening <a name="page123" id="page123"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 123]</span> next. From what we know of the gentleman, + we are satisfied our citizens will not regret attending the lecture. We + trust he may not be met with an audience so small as lectures have + heretofore drawn out in Tyre. The apathy of our citizens in these + matters, we have before stated, is disgraceful. Let there be a good + turn-out. + </blockquote> + <p>But there was not a good turn-out. The receipts were two dollars and a + half. The proprietor of the hall consented to take the receipts for his + pay, and I returned to the hotel to muse over my unhappy fortunes.</p> + <p>The landlord took occasion the next morning, as I was passing out of the + house, to remind me that my baggage had not arrived.</p> + <p>'No,' said I, 'but, as I soon leave Tyre, I shan't need it.'</p> + <p>The landlord looked at my dirty collar and bosom as if he doubted either + my sanity or my decency, and remarked that perhaps I knew his rules + compelled him to present the bills of strangers semi-weekly.</p> + <p>'O, yes! that's all right,' said I; 'I'll see you when I come back from + the printing-office.'</p> + <p>I noticed that mine host stood watching to see that I entered the + printing-office safely.</p> + <p>The editor remarked, after I had told him all the experience narrated + here, commencing with the washing-machines,—</p> + <p>'It's a bad case, and I don't admire your experience at all, to speak + candidly; but I have a little idea of my own to work out, and you can help + me do it, perhaps. In the first place, though, I want to know whether you + intend to continue in this line of business,—eh?'</p> + <p>'Not I,' was my fervent reply; 'I'm satisfied to leave lecturing to + those who have a reputation, and to earn my bread and butter in a, for me, + more legitimate way. But what is it you have in view?'</p> + <p>'Come and see me this evening, when I am at leisure, and I'll tell you + what my enterprise is. Meantime, will you sell me your lecture? I can't + afford to pay much for it, but I'll agree to settle your hotel bill if + you'll part with it. Not that I think it's worth it, but you need to be + helped somehow right away.'</p> + <p>I jumped at the chance, and thanked my friend heartily. He asked if I + would please go and send the landlord to him, and I retired to perform that + errand.</p> + <p>I was punctual to my appointment in the evening, and listened to the + project my editorial angel had in view; a plan by which he proposed to + inflict a lesson on the negligent Tyrians, and at the same time replenish + my purse. He explained to me the part I was to perform in this enterprise, + and I found I could enter heartily into the spirit of it. We shook hands in + the best of humors, and parted that evening understanding each other + perfectly.</p> + <h3>III.—HE MAKES A HIT IN TYRE.</h3> + <p>The next day, the entire jobbing facilities of the <i>Times</i> office + were brought into requisition, and toward evening a mammoth bill was posted + around the town, which read as follows:—</p> + <blockquote> + <p style="font-size: 200%; text-align: center;">MONS. BELITZ'S</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">CELEBRATED AND MAGNIFICENT EXHIBITION,</p> + <p style="font-size: 200%; text-align: center;">THE GREAT TRAVELING + HUMBURG!</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">The most wonderful entertainment, + whether</p> + <p style="font-size: 150%; text-align: center;">CAININE, PRISTINE, OR + QUININE,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">ever brought before the astonished + Public's visual organs!!!</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>The <i>avant courier</i> of this monster troupe has the honor of + announcing to the ladies and gentlemen of Tyre, that Mons. BELITZ, + accompanied by his entire retinue of attachés and supes, Female + Dancers and Dogs, Operatic Vocalists and Vixens, Royal Musicians and + Monsters, Bengal <a name="page124" id="page124"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 124]</span> Tigers and Time-servers, Magicians and + Madmen, Flying Birds, Swimming Fishes, Walking Cats and Dogs, Crawling + Reptiles, and various other extraordinary and impossible arrangements, + the like of which never before appeared in Bog county, until the arrival + of the present occasion, to wit:—</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">AT GRECIAN HALL, TYRE,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">On Saturday Evening, December 22, + 1859.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p style="text-align: center;">—> <b>LOOK AT THE ARRAY OF + TALENT!</b> <—</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p style="text-align: center;"><b>MONS. BELITZ,</b></p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the celebrated Magician from Egypt, + performer general to</p> + <p style="text-align: center;"><b>THE GRAND FOO FOO,</b></p> + <p style="text-align: center;">and professor of the Black Art to all the + crowned heads of the Cannibal Islands and Ham Sandwichlands!!</p> + <p style="text-align: center;"><b>MADEMOISELLE HELIOTROPE,</b></p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the charming Danseuse from all the city + theatres, but most recently from the Imperial <i>Deutscher Yolks + Garten</i>, Liverpool, Ireland!</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">SIGNOR STRAWSTEKOWSKI,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the celebrated Demagogue and Snake eater, + whose unrivaled feat with a living <i>Gryllus</i>, whose fangs have never + been extracted, fills thousands with awe and delight!</p> + <p style="text-align: center;"><b>YANKEE SHOCKWIG,</b></p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the mirth-splitting and side-provoking + delineator of down-east horse peculiarities. Must be appreciated to be + seen.</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">HERR BALAMSASS,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the distinguished Vocalist from Italy, + whose lower notes, as recently discovered by the celebrated examination + before the Council of Trent, reach so far below the <i>epigastrium</i> as + to be utterly inaudible to the most acute auricular organs!</p> + <p style="text-align: center;"><b>BRUDDER GEORGE AND AUNTY + CLAWSON,</b></p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the never-to-be-sufficiently-equaled + delineators of Ethiopian eccentricities, whose performances during the + winter of 1869 delighted overflowing houses in the Cape Cod Lunatic + Asylum for 4000 consecutive nights.</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">BENJAMIN BOLT, Esq.,</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the justly-celebrated trumpeter from the + splendid orchestral band attached to Marnum's Buseum, New York city, for + the past fifty years!</p> + <p style="text-align: center;"><b>FANTADIMO FANTODIMUS,</b></p> + <p style="text-align: center;">the graceful and efficient master of + ceremonies, whose efforts have been awarded by the entire available + population of Blackwell's Island, in a series of resolutions of the most + pathetic description!</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p style="text-align: center;">Owing to future engagements, the stay of + this troupe in Tyre will be</p> + <p style="text-align: center;"><b>POSITIVELY FOR ONE NIGHT ONLY,</b></p> + <p style="text-align: center;">when the Programme will be specified in + small bills of the evening.</p> + <p style="text-align: center;">Admittance, 25 cents. Doors open at 6; + Master of Ceremonies makes his bow at 7.</p> + <p style="text-align: right;">PROF. BROWN D. GREEN, AGENT.</p> + </blockquote> + <p>Against the advice of the editor of the Times, I dispatched an agent + over to Sidon, with a supply of blanked bills from the same form, with + instructions to arrange for a similar 'sell' on the following Monday + evening in that charming village.</p> + <p>I was sufficiently busy during the interval that lay between this and + Saturday evening in rehearsing my part for the entertainment thus + advertised. I was not entirely free from doubts of the success of a + 'take-in' so palpable and ridiculous, and even if a house-full of + numbsculls <i>should</i> gather, I deemed the experiment a dangerous one + for me; but my editorial friend took the risk, remarking that he had + calculated his chances, and <a name="page125" id="page125"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 125]</span> knew what he was about. Nevertheless, it + was not without some trepidation that I entered Grecian Hall by the private + door, at a little before seven o'clock, and laid my hat behind the + temporary curtain that had been erected for the accommodation of the great + Humbug Troupe. Applying my eye to a chink in the cloth, I perceived that + the hall was crowded to suffocation. My editorial friend sat in a prominent + position near the stage, and the audience was manifesting those signs of + impatience which seem to be equally orthodox among the news-boys in the pit + of the old Bowery Theatre and the coarse young rustics who go to 'shows' in + the back villages of ruraldom. I tinkled a bell. The uproar grew quiet. I + drew aside my curtain, and made my bow, amid the silent wonderment of my + auditors. Then I said:—</p> + <p>'Ladies and gentlemen: You now see before you the redoubtable Fantadimo + Fantodimus, master of ceremonies for the Great Humbug Troupe. You also see + before you, ladies and gentlemen, Mons. Belitz, the renowned magician, + Mademoiselle Heliotrope, the graceful danseuse, Signor Strawstekowski, Herr + Balamsass; and, in short, ladies and gentlemen, you see before you the sum + and substance of the Great Humbug Troupe, as it exists in all its original + splendor. We salute you!</p> + <p>'My friends, you were drawn here to-night by the extravagantly worded + and outlandish representations of a poster which promised you only one + single thing, namely, that you should behold a Great Traveling Humbug. + Nothing could be more honest, though some things might be more + straightforward. Force of circumstances compels me this evening to + represent the Great Traveling Humbug you came to see. I am this evening the + greatest of humbugs. I travel. A week ago, I traveled into this village + with the laudable intention of giving you a sensible lecture on EURIPIDES, + a historical personage of whom some of you may have heard. I traveled over + to this hall on the evening of my lecture, and spoke to a beggarly array of + empty seats. To-morrow morning, I intend to travel to church in your + beautiful village, repent of my sins, and on Monday travel home to New + York, where I shall at once take measures to rid myself of the title I wear + this evening, by earning my bread in the old-fashioned way, by the sweat of + my brow.</p> + <p>'Humbug, ladies and gentlemen, is a pill not at all disagreeable to + take, when gilded carefully. My pill has been prepared by the hand of a + novice, and you have swallowed it with your eyes open. May it benefit + you!'</p> + <p>Symptoms of a disturbance immediately became manifest, when my editorial + angel arose and spread his wings over the troubled audience.</p> + <p>'People of Tyre,' said he, 'the exhibition of the Great Humbug Troupe + is, in my opinion, one of the most interesting and least objectionable that + ever appeared in our village. It remains for us to make it instructive. I + propose that we give three cheers for our brave entertainer,—hip, + hip,</p> + <p>'<i>Hurrah!</i> HURRAH! <b>HURRAH!</b>'</p> + <p>Like young thunder the last cheer arose; and my bacon was saved!</p> + <p>The receipts placed me in possession of fifty dollars, after defraying + all expenses in Tyre and settling my bill and recovering my satchel from + Sidon—which I did by a messenger the same evening after the lecture. + My editorial friend advised me now to stop at Sidon only long enough to + take the first train home, leaving the Sidonites to discover the sell + without expense. But I scouted the idea. I was flushed with the success of + the previous evening (a success mainly due, as the sagacious reader knows, + to the editor of the <i>Times</i> and his <i>corps</i> of confidants + distributed at intervals over the hall); I was chagrined at the turn my + original enterprise had taken, but determined to carry it out 'to the + death;' and, more than all, I was burning to revenge myself on the + perfidious postmaster of Sidon, and Dr. Tomson and Squire Johnson and Mr. + Dickson and Mr. Dobson and Mr. Potkins. And on Monday evening I faced an + audience in Jones's <a name="page126" id="page126"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 126]</span> Hall, Sidon, prominent among whom I + noticed, the principal objects of my ire.</p> + <h3>IV.—HE DON'T MAKE A HIT IN SIDON, THOUGH SOME PERSON IN THE + AUDIENCE DOES.</h3> + <p>No time for contemplation was left on my hands, however; for as soon as + I had articulated the words 'ladies and gentlemen,' an offensive missile + hit me between my eyes, exploded, and deluged me with an odor in comparison + with which that of Limberger cheese would be mere geranium. I was betrayed. + Tyre had sent over a detachment of spies, and the Sidonites were armed. I + briskly dodged several companion eggs whose foulness was permitted to adorn + the walls of Jones's Hall behind me, and then undertook to escape. + Simultaneously with the explosion of the first shot, a howl had burst from + the audience, which boded no good for any prospects of comfort and profit I + might entertain. Escaping on my part became no joke; and I beg the reader + to believe that my chagrin was quite overwhelmed in the all-impressive + desire to protect myself from total annihilation. In my subsequent + gratitude at having accomplished this feat, I overlooked the little + discomforts of an eye in mourning, a broken finger, and garments perfumed + throughout in defiance of <i>la mode</i>.</p> + <p>At present, I am engaged in a business which I deem far more respectable + and lucrative than lecturing, to wit, explaining the merits and advantages + of a patent needle-threader to interested crowds on Broadway. Here my + oratorical abilities are advantageously displayed, my audiences are + attentive, and my profits are good.</p> + <p>[<i>Exit Brown</i>]</p> + <hr /> + <h2>THE WATCHWORD.</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Trust in the Lord, and keep your powder dry!' + </div> + <div class="line"> + So cried stout OLIVER in the storm, before + </div> + <div class="line"> + That redder rain on bloody Marston Moor, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Which whelmed the flower of English chivalry. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Repeat the watchword when the sullen sky + </div> + <div class="line"> + Stoops with its weight of terror, while the roar + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of the far thunder deepens, and no more + </div> + <div class="line"> + God's gracious sunshine greets the lifted eye! + </div> + <div class="line"> + Not Faith alone, but Faith with Action armed, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Shall win the battle, when the anointed host + </div> + <div class="line"> + Wars with the alien armies, and, unharmed, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Snatch victory from a field where all seemed lost. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Front Death and Danger with a level eye; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Trust in the Lord, <i>and keep your powder dry!</i> + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page127" id="page127"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 127]</span> + <h2>TINTS AND TONES OF PARIS.</h2> + <p>It is a curious test of national character to compare the prevalent + impressions of one country in regard to another whereof the natural and + historical description is quite diverse: and in the case of France and + England, there are so many and so constantly renewed incongruities, that we + must discriminate between the effect of immediate political jealousy, in + such estimates, and the normal and natural bias of instinct and taste. To + an American, especially, who may be supposed to occupy a comparatively + disinterested position between the two, this mutual criticism is an endless + source of amusement. In conversation, at the theatre, on the way from + Calais or Dover to either capital, at a Paris <i>café</i>, or a + London club-house, he hears these ebullitions of prejudice and partiality, + of self-love or generous appreciation, and finds therein an endless + illustration of national character as well as of human nature. But perhaps + the literature of the two countries most emphatically displays their + respective points of view and tone of feeling. While a popular French + author sums up the elements of life in England as being <i>la vie de + famille, la politique, et les affaires</i>,—'domestic life, politics, + and business,'—he complacently infers that <i>le fond du + caractère Anglais</i>, 'the basis of the English character,' is + nothing more nor less than <i>le manque de bonheur</i>—'a want of + anything like happiness.' An English thinker, on the other hand, finds in + the very language of France the evidence of superficial emotion and + unaspiring, irreverent intelligence. 'How exactly,' writes Julius Ham, 'do + <i>esprit</i> and <i>spirituel</i> express what the French deem the highest + glory of the human mind! A large part of their literature is + <i>mousseux</i>; and whatever is so, soon grows flat. Our national quality + is sense, which may, perhaps, betray a tendency to materialism; but which, + at all events, comprehends a greater body of thought, that has settled down + and become substantiated in maxims.'<a id="footnotetag2" + name="footnotetag2" href="#footnote2"><sup>2</sup></a> How far a Frenchman + is from appreciating this distinction, as unfavorable to his own race, we + can realize from the following estimate of the historical evil which an + admired modern writer considers that race has suffered from the English, + and from the character of the latter as recognized by another equally a + favorite:—</p> + <p>'Iniquitous England,' writes a popular novelist, 'the vile executioner + of all in which France most exulted, murdered grace in Marie Stuart, as it + did inspiration in Jeanne d'Arc, and genius in Napoleon;'—'a race,' + says another, 'gifted with a national feeling which well-nigh approaches + superstition, yet which has chosen the whole world for its country. The + gravity of <i>these beings</i>, accidentally brought together and isolated + by mere interest, their life of mechanical activity, and of labor without + relaxation as without life, all interest, yet freeze you at the same time.' + 'The Englishman has made unto himself a language appropriate to his placid + manners and silent habits. This language is a murmur interrupted by subdued + hisses,'—'<i>un murmure entre-coupé de sifflements + doux</i>.'</p> + <p>The gregarious hotel life in America commends itself to the time-saving + habits of a busy race; but the love of speciality in France modifies this + advantage: in our inns a stated price covers all demands except for wine; + here each separate necessity is a specific charge—the sheet of + writing paper, the cake of soap, and the candle figure among the + innumerable items of the bill. Thus an infinite subdivision makes all + business tedious, involving so many distinct processes and needless + conditions; at every step we realize of how much less comparative value is + time in the Old World. On the other hand, the rigid system that governs + municipal life, the means adopted to render <a name="page128" + id="page128"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 128]</span> all public + institutions both accessible and attractive, claim perpetually the + gratitude of artists, students, and philosophers. A programme of + exploration may be arranged at will, yielding a complete insight, and, when + achieved, such has been the order, communicativeness and facility, that we + have a more distinct and reliable idea of the whole circle of observation + than it is possible to obtain elsewhere. We are continually reminded of + Buffon's maxim: '<i>la genie est la patience</i>.' A curious illustration + of this systematic habit of the French occurred at Constantinople, during + the Crimean war, where they immediately numbered the houses and named the + streets, to the discomfiture of the passive Turks—one of whom, in his + wonder at the mechanical superiority of these Frank allies, asked a soldier + if the high fur cap on his head would come off. The <i>concièrge</i> + beneath each <i>porte cochére</i>, the social distinction which + makes each <i>café</i> and restaurant the nucleus of a particular + class, the organized provision for all exigencies of human life in Paris, + illustrate the same trait on a larger and more useful scale. If we survey + the institutions and the monuments with care, and refer to their origin, + associations and purposes, the historical and economical national facts are + revealed with the utmost clearness and unity. The old Bastile represented, + in its gloomy stolidity, the whole tragedy of the Revolution; and St. + Genevieve combines the holy memories of the early church with that of the + first French kings; the site of a <i>fosse commune</i> attests the valor of + republican martyrs; the Champs Elysées are the popular earthly + fields of a French paradise. One <i>café</i> is famed for the beauty + of its mistress, another for the great chess-players who make it a resort; + one is the daily rendezvous of the liberals, another of royalists, one of + military men, another of artists; they flourish and fade with dynasties, + and are respectively the favorites of provincials and citizens, gourmands + and traders, men of letters and men of state.<a id="footnotetag3" + name="footnotetag3" href="#footnote3"><sup>3</sup></a> The <i>Monte de + Piété</i> acquaints us with the vicissitudes and expedients + of fortune; the <i>Hotel Dieu</i> is a temple of ancient charity; the + <i>Hospice des Enfants Trouvées</i> startles us with the astounding + fact that half the children born in Paris are illegitimate; and the Morgue + yields no less appalling statistics of suicide. In Vernet's studio we feel + the predominance of military taste and education in France; in the <i>Ecole + Polytecnique</i>, the policy by which her youth are bred to serve their + country; at the manufactories of the Gobelines and Sévres china, we + perceive how naturally the mechanical genius of the race finds development + in pottery and fabrics instead of ships and machines, as across the Channel + and beyond the ocean; and in the self-possession, knowledge of affairs, and + variety of occupation of the middle class of women, we see why they have no + occasion to advocate their rights and complain of the inequality of the + sexes.</p> + <p>All large cities furnish daily material for tragedy, and life there, + keenly observed and aptly narrated, proves continually how much more + strange is truth than fiction; but the impressive manners and melo-dramatic + taste of the people, as well as their intricate police system, bring out + more vividly these latent points of interest, as a reference to the + <i>Causes Célébres</i> and the Memoirs of Vidocq illustrate. + A friend of mine, returning from a trip to Lyons, became acquainted in the + rail-car with an English gentleman, and when they reached the station, just + before midnight, the two left for their hotels in the same cab. After a + short drive, the vehicle suddenly came to a halt, the cabman sprang to the + ground, and his passengers were left to surmise the occasion of their + abrupt abandonment: presently a crowd collected, a shout was raised, and + they learned that a valise had been stolen from the top of the carriage, + and its owner had set off in pursuit of the thief. He ran with great + swiftness, doubled corners, sprang over obstacles, and was in a fair way to + distance <a name="page129" id="page129"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 129]</span> his pursuer, when a soldier thrust out his foot and tripped up + the fugitive, who was taken to the nearest police station. Confronted with + the owner of the valise, he declared it was his own property, placed by + mistake on the wrong cab. The official authorized to settle the difficulty + not being present, my friend and his companion were informed they must + leave the article in dispute, and the case itself, until the following + morning, when a hearing would be had before one of the courts. On reaching + their destination, the gentlemen parted with the understanding that they + would dine together at a certain restaurant the next day. The appointed + hour came, but not the Englishman; and my friend's appetite and patience + were keen set, when, after an hour's delay, the truant made his appearance, + looking pale, <i>triste</i> and exhausted. He soon explained the cause of + his detention. He had gone to the police court to prove and regain his + valise, and found at the bar a young man of genteel address and remarkable + beauty; his costume was in the latest fashion, though somewhat soiled and + torn from his fall and rough handling the previous night; but his + countenance was intelligent and refined, and his bearing that of a + gentleman. Upon a table lay the valise and the contents of the prisoner's + pockets, among them a large penknife; he held convulsively to the rail and + kept his eyes cast down; the judge had taken his seat, and a crowd of + idlers and gens d'armes filled the room. The claimant immediately satisfied + the court that the valise belonged to him by mentioning several articles it + contained and producing the key. In the mean time the accused, earnestly + watching the entrance, started and turned pale and red by turns as a + beautiful girl, in the dress of a prosperous grisette, pushed her way into + the crowd, stood on tiptoe, and exchanged glances with the prisoner. The + latter, when asked his name, replied, 'I have brought disgrace enough upon + it already,' and, seizing the penknife, thrust it into his heart, and fell + dead. He was the descendant of a noble house in one of the southern + provinces, and came to Paris as a medical student, and, through a devoted + attachment to his mistress, whose costly tastes soon drained his purse, was + induced to steal the trunks of travelers as they left the railway stations + at night. In his apartment was found a large wardrobe; and a month's + purloining was thus summarily expiated. Similar incidents occur elsewhere, + but the details, when the scene is laid in Paris, are more picturesque and + dramatic.</p> + <p>Two instances which I heard related will illustrate this same dramatic + significance in the municipal system. After an <i>émeute</i>, the + <i>chef</i> of police in a certain <i>arrondissement</i>, while engaged in + superintending the removal of corpses from a barricade, noticed the body of + a female whose delicate hands and finely-wrought robe were so alien to the + scene as to excite suspicion. He ordered it to be placed in a separate + apartment for examination. A more careful inspection confirmed his surmise + that this was the body of no amazonian whose warlike zeal or accidental + presence in such an affray could explain its discovery. There was no trace + whereby the remains could be identified except a geranium leaf that was + found imbedded in her long and disheveled tresses. This was given to a + celebrated botanist, with orders to learn, if possible, from what plant it + had been taken. The man of science visited all the houses of the + neighborhood, and critically examined every specimen of the shrub he could + find. At length, in the elegant library of a young abbé, he not only + discovered one of the species, but, by means of a powerful microscope, + detected the very branch whence the leaf had been nipped. By dexterous + management the <i>chef</i>, thus scientifically put on the track, brought + home the charge to the priest, who confessed the murder of the young lady + in a fit of jealousy, and, by depositing her body, at night, amid the dead + of humbler lineage, who had fallen in the revolutionary strife, thought to + conceal all knowledge of his crime.</p> + <p>The lessee of an extensive 'hotel' had reason to believe that a child + had entered <a name="page130" id="page130"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 130]</span> and left the world in one of his tenants' apartments, without + the cognizance of a human being except the mother; and, aware, as a + landlord in Paris should be, of his responsibility to the municipal + government, he communicated his suspicions to the authorities. The rooms + were searched, the charge denied, and no proof elicited to warrant further + action; and here the matter would have ended in any other country. But the + police agent entrusted with the inquiry raked over the contents of a pigsty + in the courtyard, and discovered a square inch of thin bone, which he + exhibited to an anatomist, who pronounced it a fragment of a new-born + infant's skull; the hogs were instantly killed, the contents of their + stomachs examined, and small portions of the body found. The question then + arose whether the child was born alive; pieces of the lungs were placed in + a basin of water, and the fact that they floated on its surface proved, + beyond a doubt, that the child had breathed; the crime of infanticide was + then charged upon the unhappy mother, who, appalled by this evidence of her + guilt, confessed.</p> + <p>In the gray of the dawn a watchful observer may behold the two extremes + of Paris life ominously hinted;—a cloaked figure stealthily dropping + a swathed effigy of humanity, just 'sent into this breathing world,' in the + rotary cradle of the asylum for <i>enfants trouvés</i>, and a cart + full of the corpses of the poor, driven into the yard of a hospital for + dissection.</p> + <p>Summoned one evening at dusk to the sick chamber of a countryman, I + realized the shadows of life in Paris. From the dazzling Boulevard the cab + soon wound through dim thoroughfares, up a deserted acclivity, to a gloomy + porch. A cold mist was falling, and I heard the bell sound through a + vaulted arch with desolate echoes. When the massive door opened, a lamp + suspended from a chain revealed a paved <i>entresol</i> and broad + staircase; there was something prison-like even in the patrician dimensions + of the edifice; the light nickered at every gust. Ascending, I pulled a + <i>cordon bleu</i>, and was admitted into the apartment. It consisted of + four places or rooms, the furniture of which was in the neatest French + style, both of wood and tapestry; but the fireplace was narrow, and so + ill-constructed that while the heat ascended the chimney the smoke entered + the room. A nurse, with one of those keen, self-possessed faces and that + efficient manner so often encountered in Paris, ushered me to the invalid's + presence. He was a fair specimen of a philosophic bachelor inured to the + life of the French metropolis; everything about him was in good taste, from + the model of the lamp to the cover of the arm-chair; and yet an + indescribable cheerlessness pervaded his elegant lodging. The last play of + Scribe, the day's <i>Journal des Debats</i>, a bouquet, and a Bohemian + glass, were on the marble table at his side. His languid eye brightened and + his feverish hand tightened convulsively over mine; years had elapsed since + he left our native town; he had drunk of the cup of pleasure, and + cultivated the resources of literature and science in this their great + centre; but now, in the hour of physical weakness, the yearning for + domestic and home scenes filled his heart; and his mind reacted from the + blandishments of a luxurious materialism and a refined egotism of life. It + was like falling back upon the normal conditions of existence thus to + behold the 'ills that flesh is heir to' in the midst of a city where such + rich outward provision for human activity and enjoyment fills the senses. + Excessive civilization has its morbid tendencies, and great refinement in + one direction is paralleled by an equal degree of savagery in another. + There is in absolute relation between the facilities for pleasure and the + frequency of suicide. Of all places in the world, Paris is the most + desolate to an invalid stranger. The custom of living there in lodgings + isolates the visitor; the occupants of the dwelling are not alive to the + claims of neighborhood; with his landlord he has only a business and formal + connection; thus thrown upon himself, without the nerve or the spirits for + external amusement, few situations are more forlorn. The Parisian French + are intensely calculating <a name="page131" id="page131"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 131]</span> and selfish; illness and grief are so alien + to their tastes that, to the best of their ability, they ignore and abjure + them. As long as health permits, out-of-door life or companionship solaces + that within; the stranger may be enchanted; but when confined to his + apartment and dependent on chance visitors or hireling services, he longs + for a land where domestic life and household comfort are better cultivated + and understood.</p> + <p>The stranger's funeral is peculiarly sad everywhere, but in Paris its + melancholy is enhanced by the interference of foreign usages. Over the dead + as well as the living the municipal authorities claim instant power, and + the bereaved must submit to their time and arrangements in depositing the + mortal remains of the loved in the grave. The black scarfs and chapeaux of + the undertakers and their prescriptive orders were strangely dissonant to + the group of Americans collected at the obsequies of a young countryman, + and seemed incongruous when associated with the simple Protestant + ceremonial performed in another tongue. Under the direction of those sable + officials we entered the mourning coaches and followed the plumed hearse. + It is an impressive custom—one of the humanities of the + Catholic—to lift the hat at the sight of such a procession; such an + act, performed like this by prince and beggar in the crowded street, so + gay, busy, self-absorbed, bears affecting witness to the common + vicissitudes and instincts of mankind. The dead leaves strewed the avenue + of Pere la Chaise, and the bare trees creaked in the gale as we threaded + sarcophagi, tablets, and railed cenotaphs; in the distance, smoke-canopied, + stretched the vast city; around were countless effigies of the dead of + every rank, from the plain slab of the undistinguished citizen to the + wreathed obelisk of the hero, from the ancient monument of Abelard and + Heloise to the broken turf on the new grave of poverty only designated by a + wooden cross; gray clouds flitted along the zenith, and a pale streak of + light defined the wide horizon; Paris with its frivolity, temples, + business, pleasures, trophies and teeming life, sent up a confused and low + murmur in the distance; only the wind was audible among the tombs. Never + had the beautiful Church of England services appeared to me so grand and + pathetic as when here read over the coffin of one who had died in exile, + and with only a few of his countrymen, most of them unacquainted even with + his features, to attend his burial.</p> + <p>However a change of government may interfere with a Parisian's freedom + of speech and pen, the autocrat is yet to appear who dares place an + interdict on his culinary aptitudes. The science of dining in Paris has, + notwithstanding, its new mysteries; and in order to be abreast of the + times, it is wise, instead of drawing on past experience, to take counsel + of a friend who holds the present clue to the labyrinth of bills of fare + and fair bills. The little cabinet of my favorite restaurant, sacred to the + initiated, had the same marble table, cheerful outlook, pictured ceiling + and breezy curtains,—the same look of elegant snugness; but, when we + had seated ourselves in garrulous conclave over the <i>carte</i>, it was to + the member of our party whose knowledge was of the latest acquisition that + we submitted the choice of a repast; and as he discoursed of the mysterious + excellences of <i>cotelletes a la Victoria, rissoles a la Orleans, + patés de fois gras a la Bonaparte, paupicettes de veau a la + Demidoff, truffes a la Perigord</i>, etc., we realized that the same + incongruous blending of associations, the same zest for glory and dramatic + instinct, ruled the world of cookery as of letters, and that, with all the + political vicissitudes since our last dinner in Paris, her prandial + distinction had progressed.</p> + <p>From the restaurant to the theatre, is, in Paris, a most natural + transition; and the play and players of the day will be found far more + closely representative of the social tone, the political creed, the + artistic tastes of the hour, than elsewhere. The drama, for instance, in + vogue not long since at the Vaudeville Theatre in the Place de la Bourse, + is one we can scarcely imagine successful in another <a name="page132" + id="page132"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 132]</span> city, at least to + such a degree. It was <i>Les Filles de Marbre</i>; and this is the plot. + The opening scene is at Athens, in the studio of Phidias. It is the day + after that on which Alcibiades cut off his dog's tail; and, exulting in the + effect produced by that exploit, he enters with the rich Gorgias, who has + ordered and paid Phidias in advance for statues of his three friends, + Laïs, Phryné, and Aspasia. He finds Phidias unwilling to part + with the statues, on which he has worked so long and ardently till, like + Pygmalion of old, he has fallen in love with his own creation; he will not + even allow Gorgias to see them, and the latter departs swearing vengeance. + Diogenes enters, and a satirical brisk dialogue ensues, at the end of which + Phidias draws aside a curtain and shows his work to Diogenes, who, stoic as + he is, can not refrain from an exclamation of delight. The group is + admirably arranged on the stage, and the effect is very fine as Theä, + a young slave, holds back the drapery from the group while the moon + illumines it with a soft light. At this moment an approaching tumult is + heard. Theä drops the curtain, and Gorgias with his friends, heated + with Cyprus wine, enters, accompanied by the 'myrmidons of the law.' He + again demands the statues, for which Phidias has already received his gold. + Phidias expostulates, then entreats,—no, Gorgias will have his + statues. At this, Theä, who had long loved Phidias, unknown to him, + hardly noticed, never requited, throws herself at Gorgias's feet and cries, + 'Take me, sell me; I am young and strong, but leave Phidias his statues.' + Gorgias says, 'Who are you? Poor creature, you are not worth over fifty + drachmas! Away! Guards, do your duty! Slaves, seize the statues.' Then + Diogenes, hitherto half asleep on a mat in the corner, cries, 'Stop, + Gorgias! You always profess justice, strict justice. Why don't you ask with + whom of you the statues will prefer to stay?' A shout of laughter from his + jolly companions makes Gorgias accede to this droll proposal. 'So be it!' + cries he; and Diogenes draws aside the curtain, and holds up his lantern, + which, with a strong French reflector, throws a powerful light on the upper + part of the group, with a fine and startling effect. The group represents + Aspasia seated, with a scroll and stylus, Laïs leaning over her, and + Phryné at her feet looking up, all draped, artistically + <i>posed</i>, and the three beautiful girls that perform the parts look as + like marble as possible.</p> + <p>'Now, Phidias,' cries Diogenes, 'come, what have you to say to your + marble girls?'</p> + <p>'Laïs, Aspasia, Phryné, I am Phidias. You owe me your + existence, and I love you; you know it, and that I am poor.'</p> + <p>'That's a bad argument, Phidias,' says Diogenes.</p> + <p>'I am poor, and have nothing but you. Stay by him to whom you owe your + glory and your immortality!'</p> + <p>The statues remain immovable.</p> + <p>Gorgias addresses them: 'I am Gorgias, the rich Athenian; I alone am as + rich as all the kings of Asia, and I offer you a palace paved with gold. + Aspasia, Laïs, Phryné, which of us do you choose?'</p> + <p>The statues turn their heads and smile faintly on Gorgias, who starts + and stands as if petrified. The Athenians look horror-struck. Phidias + covers his face with his hands, and, uttering a cry, falls to the ground. A + soft and enervating strain of music fills the air.</p> + <p>'By all the gods!' cries Gorgias, 'I believe the statues moved their + lips as if to smile upon me.'</p> + <p>'I know you by that smile, O girls of marble,' says + Diogenes,—'courtesans of the past, courtesans of the future!' and he + returns to his mat.</p> + <p>At this moment Theä's voice is heard in the far distance, singing a + few mystical, mournful bars of music, and the curtain falls.</p> + <p>This is the 'argument,'—the other four acts work it out.</p> + <p>The next act opens in a restaurant of to-day in the Bois de Boulogne, + near Paris. A young artist lives there, and falls desperately in love with + an actress, for whom he leaves his art, his mother, and his betrothed, is + ruined in purse, and <a name="page133" id="page133"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 133]</span> returns at last, heart-broken, to his old + home, to die; the actress all the while sees his despair with indifference, + and proves herself therefore a '<i>fille de marbre</i>'</p> + <p>In another recent piece, we are told that a 'procession of nuns, dressed + in white, sing a lay at midnight. In the intervals, a chorus of frogs in + the neighboring swamp croak the refrain in unison. Sax, the great + brass-founder, who made the Last Trumpets for the 'Wandering Jew,' and the + instruments for the Band of the Guides, is engaged upon the frogpipes + required. The illusion will be heightened by characteristic scenery and + mephitic exhalations. M. Sax visited the pool in the Bois de Boulogne, + known as the <i>Marée d'Auteuil</i>, and brought back many useful + ideas in reference to the quadruped with whose vocal powers he desired to + become acquainted. The frog voices will be a series of eight, representing + a full octave.'</p> + <p>The Provincial, at Paris, is a standard theme for playwrights; what the + Scotch were to Johnson, Lamb, and Sidney Smith, is the native of Provence + or Brittany to the comic writers of the metropolis,—a nucleus for wit + and an occasion for practical jokes. One of the late pieces, called 'My + Uncle,' turned upon the devices of a wild youth to obtain money from his + simple-hearted relative in the country. For months a pretended love affair, + a marriage, and the birth of an heir, elicited remittances, which were + expended upon banquets, at which a bevy of gay students applauded the + ingenuity of their entertainer. At last the uncle comes to town, and it + becomes quite a study to carry on the game, which yields occasion for + innumerable salient contrasts between rustic simplicity and city acumen. A + diagnosis of the provincial's ways in Paris, like every form of life there, + has been given by a shrewd observer, who mentions among other signs that + the novice may be recognized by the fact that he keeps his toothpick after + dinner and carries it to the theatre.</p> + <p>I found that marvelous actress, Rachel, before her visit to America, + much attenuated; indeed, she resembled a bundle of nerves electrified with + vitality; her bleached skin, thin arms, large, scintillating eyes, and that + indescribable something which marks the Jewish physiognomy, gave her a + weird, sibyl-like appearance, as of one wasted by long vigils. There was in + her glance and action the spasmodic inspiration observable in Malibran + towards the close of her career. The play was Racine's Andromache, and the + depth and energy of Hermione's emotions were illustrated by a sudden + transition of tone, a working of the features, that a painter might study + forever, and a gesture, bearing, look and utterance which were the + consummation of histrionic art; yet so exclusively was this the ease, that + admiration never lost itself in sympathy; it was the perfection of acting, + not of nature; it won and chained the scrutinizing mind, but failed to sway + the heart; it lacked the magnetic element; and while the critic was baffled + in the attempt to pick a flaw, and the elocutionist in raptures at the + sublime possibilities of his art, it was Rachel, not Hermione, the genius + of the performer, not the reality of the character, that won the earnest + attention, and woke the constant plaudits.<a id="footnotetag4" + name="footnotetag4" href="#footnote4"><sup>4</sup></a></p> + <p>That over-consciousness which belongs to the French nature, so evident + in their 'Confessions,' their oratory, their manners, their conversation, + and their life, <a name="page134" id="page134"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 134]</span> and which is the great reason of their want + of persistence and self-dependence in political affairs, modifies their + ideal representations on the stage as well as in literature. The process + described so philosophically by Coleridge, to lose 'self in an idea dearer + than self,' is the condition of all greatness. It sublimated the life of + Washington, and made it unique in the annals of nations; it enabled + Shakspeare to incarnate the elements of humanity in dramatic creations, and + Kean to reproduce them on the stage; it is the grand law of the highest + achievements in statesmanship, in letters, and in art, without which they + fall short of wide significance and enduring vitality.</p> + <p>Although thus destitute of great central principles, nowhere is human + life more enriched by minor philosophy; it may be a fate, a routine, a + drudgery, and an accident in other parts of the world, but in Paris it is + or can easily be made an art. The science of substitution, the law of + compensation, nowhere more obviously triumphs; taste cheaply gratified + atones for limited destinies; manners yield a charm, which, for the time, + renders us oblivious of age; tact proves as good a resource as learning, + wit as beauty, cheerfulness as fortune. The <i>boudoir</i>, by means of + chintz, gauze, and human vivacity, is as prolific of fine talk and good + company as the drawing-room. A bunch of violets or a box of mignonnette + suggests to sensitive imaginations the whole cornucopia of Flora. Perhaps + the eclectic provision for enjoyment in the French capital was never more + apparent than during the sojourn of the allied armies there after the + battle of Waterloo. It was as good as a play illustrative of national + manners and taste, to note how Russian, German, Cossack, and English, + hussar, diplomat, and general, found the dish, the pastime, and the + observance each most coveted, when that vast city was like a bivouac of the + soldiers of Europe.</p> + <p>The communicative habit and social tendency of life, under every aspect, + in Paris, often promotes success by making individuals famous,—a + process far easier of achievement there than in any other metropolis. A + poor fellow who opened a <i>café</i>, and had so little patronage as + at the end of his first quarter to be on the verge of bankruptcy, resorted, + one day, to the expedient of firing a heavily-charged musket in the midst + of his neat but unfrequented saloon. The report instantly brought half a + score of policemen, two gens d'armes, and a crowd of idlers, to the spot; + curiosity was on tiptoe to hear of a murder, a suicide, or an infernal + machine; strange rumors began to spread from the crowd within to the + street; and a long investigation was held on the premises. Meantime people + wanted refreshments, which the hitherto indolent waiters of the + <i>café</i> supplied; the place was found to be quite snug and + tasteful, and the proprietor quite a lion; thenceforth his credit was + established in the neighborhood, and a regular set of customers liberally + sustained his enterprise. Dr. Véron informs us that, after waiting + six weeks for a patient, upon first commencing practice, he had the good + fortune to stop the bleeding nose of a <i>concièrge</i>, in his + vicinity, which had resisted all the usual appliances; the news of his + exploit was soon noised abroad, its merit exaggerated, and he was + astonished to receive six or seven patients a day, attracted by his sudden + reputation. Unfortunately, however, one day an old lady, of much + consideration in that quartier, requested him to bleed her; she was so fat + that he made two or three unsuccessful attempts to open a vein, when she + rose indignantly and pronounced him an <i>imbecile</i>,—a judgment + which was so quickly adopted by the gossips, that in less than a week he + sank into his original obscurity.</p> + <p>Another speciality of Parisian life occurred in the person of an old + man, who came hither in youth, and while pursuing his studies received news + of the loss of his fortune,—a pittance only remained; and so enamored + had he become of the means of study and the monastic freedom here possible + for the poor dreamer, that, hiring a cheap and obscure lodging, he remained + a voluntary exile, unallured by the attractions of American enterprise, <a + name="page135" id="page135"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 135]</span> which + soon revived the broken fortunes of his brothers. A more benign cosmopolite + or meek disciple of learning it would be difficult to find; unlike his + restless countrymen, he had acquired the art of living in the + present;—the experience of a looker-on in Paris was to him more + satisfactory than that of a participant in the executive zeal of home.</p> + <p>Such instances form a pleasing contrast to the outward gayety we + habitually associate with Paris. It boasts a world of patient labor. Emile + Souvestre has drawn some faithful and charming pictures of these scenes, + wherein philosophy and cheerfulness illumine the haunts of modest toil. In + England and America only artists of great merit enjoy consideration; but in + Paris the pursuit itself insures countenance and sympathy, which in + themselves yield vast encouragement. There are more odd characters + ensconced in the nooks of this capital than anywhere else in + Europe;—men who have become unconsciously metropolitan + friars—living in celibate dens, haunting libraries and gardens, + subsisting on a bare competence, and working out some darling theory or + speculative problem; lonely in the midst of a crowd, and content in their + self-imposed round of frugality and investigation.</p> + <p>I found the dissatisfied spirit of a young artist, whom I had known in + America, here completely soothed; instead of feeling himself overpowered by + the commercial spirit of his own country, one of a neglected minority, + striving in vain to excite interest in a vocation too profitless for a + community absorbed in trade, politics, and fashion, he now experienced the + advantage of a recognized class, and the excitement of a fraternity in art; + his life, studies, aims were those of hundreds as limited in their + circumstances and as ideal in their aspirations; galleries, studios, + lectures, models, criticism, illustrious men, noble examples, friendly + words and true companionship, made his daily life, independent of its + achievements, one of self-respect, of growing knowledge, and assured + satisfaction. Without some pursuit thus enlisting the higher powers and + justifying, as it were, the independent career of a resident, it is + astonishing how the crust of selfishness gathers over the heart in Paris; + the habit of living with an exclusive view to personal enjoyment, where the + arrangements of life are so favorable, becomes at last engrossing; and a + soulless machine, with no instincts but those of self-gratification, is + often the result, especially if no ties of kindred mitigate the hardihood + of epicurism.</p> + <p>We soon learn to echo Rochefoucauld's words as he entered Mazarin's + carriage,—'everything happens in France;' and, like Goethe, cast + ourselves on the waves of accident with a more than Quixotic + presage,—if not of actual adventure, at least of adventurous + observation; for it is a realm where Fashion, the capricious tyrant of + modern civilization, has her birth, where the '<i>vielle femme remplissait + une mission importante et tutelaire pour tous les âges</i>;' where + the <i>raconteur</i> exists not less in society than in literature; the + elysium of the scholar, the nucleus of opinion, the arena of pleasure, and + the head-quarters of experiment, scientific, political, artistic, and + social.</p> + <p>Imagine a disciplined mind alive to the lessons of the past and yet with + sympathy for casual impressions, free, intent and reflective,—and + Paris becomes a museum of the world. Such a visitor wanders about the + French capital with the zest of a philosopher; he warms at the frequent + spectacle of enjoyable old age, notwithstanding the hecatombs left at + Moscow and Waterloo, Sebastopol and Magenta; he reads on the dome of the + Invalides the names of a hundred battle-fields; muses on the proximity of + the lofty and time-stained Cathedral, and the little book-stall, where poor + students linger in the sun; detects a government spy in the loquacious son + of Crispin who acts as porter at his lodgings; pulls the <i>cordon bleu</i> + at a dear author's oaken door on the <i>quatrième etage</i> in a + social mood, and recalls Wellington's marquee on the Boulevard Italien, in + the midst of the gay throng; notes the dexterity of a peripatetic shoeblack + at his work; loves to sup in one of the restaurants of the <a + name="page136" id="page136"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 136]</span> + Palais Royal, because there Dr. Franklin was entertained by the Duke of + Orleans; remembers, at the church of St. Genevieve, that Abelard once + lectured on its site; and, gazing on the beautiful ware in one of the + cabinets of the Louvre, muses of the holy patience of Palissy. By the + handsome quays and bridges of the Seine, he tries to realize that once only + an islet covered with mud hovels met the wanderer's view. He smiles at the + abundance of fancy names, some chosen for their romantic sound, and others + for the renowned associations, which are attached to vocalist, shop, and + mouchoir. He separates, in his thought, the incongruous emblems around him + at this moment,—tricolor and cresent, St. George and the Lilies, 'God + save the Queen' and High Mass, banners that have floated over adverse + armies since the crusades,—amicably folded over the corpse of a + French veteran! Nor are character and manners less suggestive to such an + observer; if an American, he beholds with astonishment, after all he has + heard of the proverbial courtesy of the French, women habitually yield the + wall to men, and stops with ill-disguised impatience, on returning from an + afternoon's ride, to have his carriage examined at the gate; contrasts the + degraded state of the lower orders with the general urbanity and quietness + of demeanor and the stern sway of political rule; marks the little crucifix + and cup of holy water at the head of the peasant's bed, and the diamond + cross on the lace kerchief of the kneeling empress; recognizes the force of + character, the self-dependence, the mental hardihood of the women, the + business method displayed in their exercise of sentiment, and the exquisite + mixture in their proceedings of tact, calculation, and geniality.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>THE TRUE BASIS.</h2> + <p>Never at any stage of American history was there such a crisis of ideas + as at present, and never was there such urgent necessity of setting + promptly, vigorously and clearly before the people the great and new + principles which this crisis is bringing to life. So vast are the issues + involved, so tremendous their inevitable consequences, that we acquit of + exaggeration the statesman who, in comparing even the gradual unfolding of + the mighty past with this our present, exclaimed, 'Now is the first of the + world's progress.'<a id="footnotetag5" name="footnotetag5" + href="#footnote5"><sup>5</sup></a></p> + <p>The reader is doubtless perfectly familiar with the fact that in the + battle between the North and the South two opposite principles are + involved,—the same which have been at the bottom of all wars for + freedom, from the beginning of time. The one party believes that one + portion of society must flourish at the expense of another part, of a + permanently sunken class; while the other holds that history proves that + the lot of all persons in a commonwealth is capable of being gradually + ameliorated, and that in any case it is our sacred duty to legislate for + the poor, on this basis, by allowing them equal rights, and making every + exertion to extend the best blessings of education to them, and open to + every man, without distinction, every avenue of employment for which he is + qualified.</p> + <p>The Northern party, or that of equal rights and free labor, like their + predecessors, hold many ideas which coming years will see realized, + for—as has always been the case in these contests—science and + learning are always on the liberal side. By a strange accident, for the + first time almost in history, the Republican <a name="page137" + id="page137"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 137]</span> party is for once in + its constituted rights, on its own ground, while the feudal or conservative + wing form the aggressors. As of old, too, the Southern conservatives are + enforcing theories once the property of their foes, who have now advanced + to broader, nobler, and more gloriously liberal views.</p> + <p>For instance, the men of the South believe that labor and capital are + still antagonisms. Now it is true enough that they <i>once</i> were, and + that when the <i>people</i> in different ages first began to rebel against + their hereditary tyrants, the workman was only a serf to his capitalist + employer. That was the age when demagogues flourished by setting 'the poor' + against 'the rich.' A painful, sickening series of wars it was, ending too + often by labor's killing itself with its adversary. Then, a foul, false + 'democracy' was evolved, which was virtually a rank aristocracy, not of + nobility, but of those who could wheedle the poor into supporting them. + Such was the history of nearly all 'radicalism' and 'democracy' from the + days of Cleon and Alcibiades down to the present time.</p> + <p>But the enormous developments of science and of industry have of late + years opened newer and broader views to the world. As capital has + progressed in its action it is seen that at every step labor is + becoming—slowly, but surely, as Heaven's law—identified with + it. The harmony of interests is now no longer a vague Fourieristic + notion,—for nothing is plainer than that the more the operative + becomes interested in the success of the enterprise which employs him, the + better is it for him and it. And all <i>work</i> in it—the owner and + the employee. But then, we are told that 'the owner gets the profits.' Does + he? Sum up the companies and capitalists who have failed during the past + decade,—compare what they have lost with what they have paid their + workmen, and then see who have really pocketed the money, and whether on + the whole the capitalists have been more than properly repaid for their + risks, and wear and tear of <i>brains</i>. To be sure we are as yet far + from having realized a regularly arranged harmony of interests. But I see + that here, even in this New England, there is nothing which the great and + most intelligent capitalists desire more than this harmony, or a system in + which every man's brains and labor shall be properly and abundantly + remunerated, since they see (as all must see who reflect) that the nearer + we approach such practical adjustment of forces, the less liable will they + be to fail. And the world, as it has reflected that labor has flourished + among barren rocks, covering them with smiling villages, under the + fostering care of capital, when fertile Southern lands are a wilderness for + want of this harmony between it and capital, has concluded that the old + battle between rich and poor was a folly. The obscure hamlets of New + England, which have within thirty years become beautiful towns, with + lyceums, libraries, and schools, are the most striking examples on earth of + the arrant folly of this gabble of 'capital as opposed to labor.' In the + South, however, the old theory is held as firmly as in the days when John + Randolph prophesied Northern insurrections of starving factory-slaves + against manufacturing lords, and—as President Lincoln recently + intimated in his Message—the effort is there being made to formally + enslave labor to capital. That is to say, the South not only adheres to the + obsolete theory that labor is a foe to capital, but proposes to subdue it + to the latter. The progress of free labor in the North is, however, a + constantly increasing proof that labor <i>is</i> capital.</p> + <p>Let the reader carefully digest this statement, and regard it not as an + abstraction of political economy, but as setting forth a vital truth + intimately allied to our closest interests, and to a future involving the + most serious emergencies. We are at a crisis which demands a new influx of + political thought and new principles. Our Revolution, with its + Constitution, was such an epoch; so too was the old strife between + Federalism and Democracy, in which both sides contended for what were their + rights. Since those days we have gone further, and the present <a + name="page138" id="page138"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 138]</span> + struggle, precipitated by the madness and folly of the South, sees those + who understand the great and glorious question of free labor with its + affinities to capital, endeavoring to prepare the way for a grand coming + North American Union, in which poor and rich hand in hand shall press on, + extending civilization, and crushing to the ground all obsolete + demagogueism, corruption, and folly.</p> + <p>It is time that the word 'radical' were expunged from our political + dictionary. Under the old system of warfare men were regarded as being + divided into the 'poor,' who were 'out' of capital, and the rich, who were + 'in.' The progress of good, honest, unflinching <i>labor</i> is causing men + to look higher than these old limitations. We want no 'outs' or + 'ins'—in this country every man should be 'in,' given heart and soul + to honest industry. And no man or woman who can <i>work</i> is without + capital, for every such person is a capital in self. When politics are + devoted, as they must be, to extending education and protecting industry, + we shall hear no more of these absurd quarrels between the 'conservative' + and 'radical' elements.</p> + <p>When the government shall have triumphed in this great + struggle,—when the South, with its obsolete theories of the supremacy + of capital over labor, shall have yielded to the great advancing truth of + the age,—when free labor, rendered freer and nobler than ever, shall + rule all powerful from ocean to ocean, then we shall see this great + American republic restored to its original strength and beauty, progressing + in the path laid down by our Revolutionary forefathers, and stripped of the + cruel impediments which have clogged its course for years, proving to the + world the great assertion of all time, that man is capable of + self-government. It is this which lies before us,—neither a gloomy + 'conservative' prospect of old-fashioned unchangeability, and still less + the gorgeous but preposterous dreams of Fourierite or other socialist; but + simply the healthy future of a hard-working country, in which every + impediment shall be removed from free labor and its every right respected. + And to bring this to pass there is but one first step required. Push on the + war, support the Administration, triumph at any risk or cost, and then make + of this America one great free land. Freedom! <i>In hoc signo + vinces</i>.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>THE BLACK FLAG.</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + You wish that slavers once again + </div> + <div class="line"> + May freely darken every sea, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Nor think that honor takes a stain + </div> + <div class="line"> + From what the world calls piracy; + </div> + <div class="line"> + And now your press in thunder tones + </div> + <div class="line"> + Calls for the Black Flag in each street— + </div> + <div class="line"> + O, add to it a skull and bones, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And let the banner be complete. + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page139" id="page139"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 139]</span> + <h2>THE ACTRESS WIFE.</h2> + <center> + [CONCLUDED.] + </center> + <p>After a few moments he arose, and, staggering towards me, grasped my + hand and shook it violently, stuttering out, 'Evelyn Afton is an + angel—that is, your wife, I mean, would have made a greater actress + than Mrs. Siddons. Sefton's a rascal—d——d rascal. You + see, Mr. Bell, I'm not what I was once. The cursed liquor—that's what + made me this. John Foster once held his head as high as anybody. Want, sir, + absolute want, brought me from my "high estate"—<i>id est</i>, + liquor. Cursed liquor made me poor, and poverty made me mean.' He continued + for some time in a broken strain, interrupted by hiccoughs and sobs, + exhibiting in his demeanor the remains of former brilliancy, but now + everything impaired—voice, manner, eyesight and intellect—by + excessive indulgence.</p> + <p>The result of my conference was learning that Foster had been the agent + of Sefton in a conspiracy against my wife. Foster had of late years made a + precarious livelihood by occasional engagement on the stages, and a few + weeks since had strayed to this city. Being well known to Sefton, the + latter had promised him ample provision if he would feign illness, induce + my wife to visit him from motives of charity, and subsequently, when called + upon for testimony, allege that her visits were the renewal of an old + licentious intimacy. To these disgraceful propositions Foster's degradation + acceded, though in his better moments he contemned his employer and + himself.</p> + <p>'What,' I meditated, 'can be Sefton's design? Can it be to compel my + wife to his passion through threats of destroying her reputation?' I smiled + as I thought of the futility of such a scheme, for Evelyn would treat with + the most scornful defiance any attempt at coercion, although resistance + would sacrifice not only her honor but her life. But this can not be his + real object, else why would he have advised a divorce? I have it. He is + really infatuated with her, and desires to free her from my possession that + she may come into his—knowing his ability to clear her character, + should it appear contaminated, but reckoning chiefly on its preservation by + my own delicacy from any public stain.</p> + <p>Foster informed me that he always made Sefton aware of my wife's + visits,—as she appointed the evenings for them,—and that Sefton + attended the interviews, concealed in the next room. I therefore arranged + with Foster to inform Sefton that she would be present the next evening, + and then took my leave, Foster repeating again and again, 'Sefton's a + rascal—Mrs. Bell's an angel. Only want, absolute want, made me + undertake this. Yes, sir,—I assure you,—<i>want</i>.'</p> + <p>In pursuance of the arrangement, I visited Foster the next evening, + arriving before Sefton, and going into the next apartment. Sefton soon + after entered and engaged in a conversation with Foster, which fully + corroborated the information I had previously obtained. During its progress + I entered upon them. Sefton was amazed, and struck with a consciousness of + discovered guilt.</p> + <p>'I am now fully aware,' I said, 'Mr. Sefton, of your cause for interest + in my affairs, and of the manner in which you have evinced it'</p> + <p>He had by a violent effort recovered his equanimity, and + said,—'Prevarication or denial I suppose to be useless. You have + probably outbid me for the confidence of this miserable villain. What do + you propose to do?'</p> + <p>'Were we both young,' I replied, 'there would be only one answer to that + question. It would be necessary to have recourse to a duel. As it is, I am + too old a man to be indulged leniently by the <a name="page140" + id="page140"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 140]</span> public in such a + proceeding. Moreover, I am conscientiously averse to initiating it. + Besides, it will not be permissible in this case to drag my wife's name + into any publicity. My only alternative, therefore, is to remain content + with the private discovery of your rascality, and hereafter to forbid you + any association with what pertains to me or my affairs.'</p> + <p>'I will obviate all your objections,' he replied. 'I will assume the + initiative, and attribute your acceptance of a challenge to such causes as + will excuse you to the public. Some story may easily be devised which will + cover the real motives for our proceeding.'</p> + <p>'<i>Now</i>,' I meditated, 'I have the clue to the mystery. Relying + properly on my wife's pride, and (alas!) her probable want of regard for + me, this man was convinced that she would not relate his attempt upon her, + and that I should never therefore be able to trace his connection with the + conspiracy. My opportune knowledge has counteracted his designs. Evidently + he has determined to possess Evelyn in marriage, since he can in no other + way. Therefore he suggested the divorce; and now, being an excellent shot + (while unaware of my own skill), he counts on removing me by + death—thus destroying all proof of his villany, and at the same time + all obstacles in his path to her. Well, I am not called on to meet him, but + I will take this hazard, as well as every other, for her.'</p> + <p>I signified my assent to his proposals, and there, on the scene of his + detected iniquity, we calmly discussed the necessary arrangements.</p> + <p>The next day, in pursuance of them, we met as by accident in the most + frequented hotel, and, after the usual salutations, engaged in + conversation, handling various papers, as if transacting a negotiation of + some kind. Gradually we warmed and our tones became louder, until finally + he exclaimed, 'It is false, Mr. Bell! Entirely false! I never made any such + representation.'</p> + <p>'Perhaps,' I answered mildly, 'you mean to intimate that I am mistaken, + and would not charge me, as your words imply, with wilful falsehood.'</p> + <p>'You must make your own application, sir,' he rejoined. 'I say your + statement is false—so false that a mere mistake can scarcely be + considered responsible for it.'</p> + <p>'Such a reiteration of your insult,' I said, 'leaves me no redress + except by force. As you gave the first offense, I return it to your + keeping.' So saying, I struck him.</p> + <p>By-standers, who had been attracted around, now seized us, and there + was, of course, much excitement and confusion.</p> + <p>'This is a simple matter of private business, gentlemen,' said Mr. + Sefton, 'and its settlement will take place elsewhere.'</p> + <p>'Yes, gentlemen,' I added, 'your interference now is not required, and + hereafter will be of no avail.' So we separated.</p> + <p>I proceeded to my place of business and retired to my secret chamber, + giving orders to admit no one to me (lest I should be disturbed by the + officiousness of friends seeking to 'arrange' matters), but to send up any + letters. Soon a formal challenge arrived, to which I despatched a formal + answer. At the hour of closing business I sought my chief clerk, whom I + knew to be a sporting man, and briefly informed him of the anticipated + duel, which was appointed for an early hour the next morning, the weapons + pistols, and the place a short distance from the city, and engaged him to + act as my second.</p> + <p>I occupied the evening in the necessary preparations of my affairs for + the contingency of a fatal issue. Near midnight I went to my residence, and + in the seclusion of my sleeping chamber passed an hour in a tumultuous + variety of thought. I had briefly written, for Evelyn's perusal, a history + of my life as connected with her, and a true version of the circumstances + leading to the duel. 'If I fall'—I sadly thought—'will she + appreciate my self-offering? Shall I leave her a legacy of sorrow, if my + death under these circumstances would grieve her? No! I will die as I have + thus far <a name="page141" id="page141"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 141]</span> lived—making no expression of the love which sways my + soul.' I tore my letter into fragments and burned them. Passing silently + into her chamber,—the first time I had entered it for long + months,—I kneeled at her bedside and sobbed. By the dim light I could + trace the marks of grief—cold, heart-consuming grief—on her + beautiful features—marks which in the day-time resolute pride + effaced; as the furrows in the rocks of the sea-shore are seen at ebb-tide, + but are concealed when the waters bound at their flood. Slowly and + cautiously I approached my lips to hers, and lightly touched them. She + stirred, and I sank to the floor. Her sleep being but lightly disturbed, I + glided like a ghost from the chamber, and with a heart-rending groan threw + myself on my bed and forced forgetfulness and slumber.</p> + <p>All parties were on the field at the appointed hour, and the + preliminaries were quickly arranged. There was in Sefton's countenance the + expression of deliberate criminality, encouraged by the expectation of an + easy triumph. Immediately upon the word, he fired. The ball grazed my + breast, tore from my shirt-front a pin, and, glancing off, fell into a + creek which partly encircled the ground. Had he been a moment less + precipitate in his determination to ensure my death, the slight movement I + would have made in raising my arm to fire would probably have changed my + position sufficiently to have received the bullet. My shot followed + immediately upon his. He was seen to stagger, but declared himself unhurt, + and demanded a second shot. The pistols were prepared and delivered. I + noticed that Sefton received his with the left hand. We were again placed, + and just as the word were being given, he fell to the ground. On + examination it appeared that at the first fire my ball had struck + immediately in front of the arm and shattered the clavicle, thence + passing—in one of the freaks peculiar to bullets—immediately + beneath the flesh, half round the body, lodging under the opposite + shoulder. He had fainted from the wound.</p> + <p>Of course the duel was ended. Sefton was confined to his house for + weeks, and on recovering removed to Texas, where in a few months afterward + he died from <i>mania a potu</i>.</p> + <p>On returning home, I found that the tidings of my difficulty with + Sefton, and its anticipated consequences, had been communicated to my wife. + She met me in the hall, her eyes flashing, but her manner evincing more + tenderness than I had ever before witnessed in it. 'Is this true, Mr. + Bell,' she asked, 'that public rumor has informed me? Have you had a + quarrel with Mr. Sefton? Have you fought with him?'</p> + <p>'It is true, my dear,' I replied. 'I have just returned from a + duel.'</p> + <p>'Are you injured? Tell me,' she exclaimed, passionately.</p> + <p>'Not in the least,' I replied, 'but desperately—hungry.'</p> + <p>'And he?'</p> + <p>'I believe he is quite severely wounded. He was carried from the field + insensible.'</p> + <p>'Thank God,' she exclaimed.</p> + <p>I knew it was on her lips to tell me that I had been drawn into a + conflict by a villain, who had met his just deserts, but I forestalled all + explanations by demanding my breakfast, and after her first emotions had + subsided, merely gave her a matter-of-fact account of our pretended + quarrel, and of the duel.</p> + <p>But I laid up in my heart, as a sweet episode in my desolate life, the + anxiety she had manifested for my safety.</p> + <p>Public conversation and the newspapers were for a time employed on the + duel, but fortunately the truth was not suggested in the remotest + degree.</p> + <p>I provided liberally for Foster, and sent him from the city. Where he + now is I know not. He had informed Evelyn, by a letter, that, his health + having improved, he designed to remove.</p> + <p>I had long since learned Frank's early history, and, through persons to + whose patronage I had commended him and who had visited his studio at + Florence, was well acquainted with all his proceedings. My charity towards + him was producing ample fruits.</p> + <a name="page142" id="page142"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 142]</span> + <p>A few months after the duel, Evelyn and I were making a tour in + Europe.</p> + <p>At a comparatively early hour on the morning after our arrival in + Florence, we proceeded, without previous announcement, to visit Frank's + studio. Being ushered into an antechamber of the rather luxurious range of + apartments, which, as I was aware, he occupied, in company with several + other bachelors, I merely sent him word that a gentleman and lady had + called to see his works, the servant informing us that he was at breakfast. + Of this our own ears received a sufficient evidence, for, from an adjacent + apartment, we heard not only the rattle of table service in industrious + requisition, but conversation and laughter, which proved that the bachelors + were jolly over their meal. Indeed, their mutual rallying was not + altogether of the most delicate kind, and several favorite signoritas were + allude to with various degrees of insinuation. In all this, Frank, whose + voice I could well distinguish (its echoes had never left my ear), and + which I was satisfied, from Evelyn's peculiar expression, that she also + recognized, bore a prominent part. Evelyn was astonished. Frank soon + appeared, looking the least like the imaginative and love-vitalized artist + possible, and entirely like the gay young dog I knew he had become. The + confused character of <i>their</i> greetings may be conceived. But of this + I professed to be entirely uncognizant, and, after a hasty visit to the + studio, gave Frank an invitation to dinner on the succeeding day, and we + departed.</p> + <p>The money with which I had liberally supplied Frank had induced him to + enter with a youthful zest into the pleasures of life, and his dream of + love for Evelyn had attenuated into a mere memory. He was now a successful + and courted artist. I was possessed of another fact in reference to + him—that he was very much domesticated in an American family residing + in the city, one of whose young lady members was greatly disposed, much to + Frank's satisfaction, to recompense to him whatever subtractions from his + fund of love had previously been wasted on Evelyn. Access to this family + had been secured to Frank on my recommendation, given before they left + America. I conveyed Evelyn to their residence, and, after also inviting + them to our proposed dinner, we returned to our temporary home.</p> + <p>I was careful not to intrude on Evelyn during the evening, leaving her + alone to struggle with the melancholy which I knew the incidents of the day + must induce.</p> + <p>Frank arrived early the next day. Evelyn's presence had evidently + renewed the power of his former feelings. Indeed, had opportunity offered, + he was prepared to give way to them, but I was careful that none should be + afforded. When our other guests arrived he was thrown into unexpected + confusion. The conflict between the past and the present love—the + ideal and the real—the shadow and the substance—the memory and + the actual—was painful, yet ridiculous to look upon. I calmly + watched, without giving any symptom of observation, the results of my + strategy, and never did a chess-player more rejoice over the issue of a + hard-fought contest. Evelyn, as I perceived, soon discovered all the + circumstances, and I could trace the conflict of passions in her + bosom—the revulsion at Frank's infidelity, yet the spontaneous + acknowledgment of her heart that he had acted wisely. She was also + reflecting, I was confident, on the weakness that constrained him to + abandon the worship of her image,—however vain and unsatisfactory it + might be,—and to elevate on the altar of his affections such a + goddess as supplied her place. For the young female in whose service Frank + was enrolled was a plump, merry and matter-of-fact girl, destitute of + genius, though possessing all the qualities which adapt woman to fulfill + the duties of the domestic relations.</p> + <p>My time for a final demonstration had now arrived. In the despair of her + abandonment, Evelyn must, either welcome me as her deliverer, or she must + perish <a name="page143" id="page143"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 143]</span> in her pride. Death alone could sever us—death alone + furnished me a remedy for the deprivation of her love.</p> + <p>In one of the large, gloomy apartments of the dilapidated palace we + occupied, I sat alone as the twilight was gathering. My pistol case was on + the table at my side. I rang the bell, and directed the servant who + answered it to desire Evelyn's presence, and bring lights. She soon + appeared—cold, passive, incurious, yet beneath this I could see the + confined struggle of passion.</p> + <p>I remarked on her looks as peculiar, and expressed a fear that she was + unwell. No, she assured me, her health was as usual. Perhaps, then, she did + not find her stay in Florence agreeable. Perfectly so. She had no desire to + go or to remain, except as I had arranged in the programme of our tour. + But, I urged, she seemed dejected. Something must have occurred to depress + her mind. Not at all. She was unaware that her humor was different from + ordinary.</p> + <p>'Indeed, Evelyn,' said I, 'there is deception in this, and I insist on + an explanation.'</p> + <p>She looked surprised, but did not yet comprehend my purport; so + answered, in a proper, wife-like manner, that my anxiety had deceived + me—that in all respects her feelings, and, so far as she knew, her + appearance, differed not from what they had been.</p> + <p>'Well, then,' said I, 'your feelings and appearance must be changed. I + will tolerate them no longer.'</p> + <p>Her features evinced the greatest astonishment. 'You are inexplicable,' + she said. 'May I beg to know your meaning?'</p> + <p>'Know it? You shall, and you shall conform yourself to it. Resistance + will be vain, for (displaying the pistols) I have the means of + coercion.'</p> + <p>She thought I was mad, and rose on the impulse to summon help.</p> + <p>'Do not stir a step,' I said, aiming a pistol at her, 'or it will be + your last.' She stopped, without exhibiting the least symptom of fear, but + simply because she saw that to proceed would be useless.</p> + <p>'Ha! ha! Evelyn,' said I, forcing an imitation of incoherent laughter, + 'I am but trifling with you. I am not mad. I sought but to rouse some + passion in you—either of fear or of anger. But, alas! I have not + sufficient power over you even for that. Sit down. I have something to + relate. When I have ended, these pistols may be useful for one or both of + us. But you do not fear them. I have long known that life was too valueless + to you for fear of losing it to make any impression.'</p> + <p>She saw that something unusual was impending—what she did not + fully understand, but calmly took her seat to await it. At this moment a + servant knocked and entered with a letter. I mechanically opened it and + read. It was an announcement from my partners that my inattention to the + business had involved us all in ruin. The clerk to whom I had entrusted it + (the sporting character before mentioned) had defaulted and fled. He had + contracted large debts in the name of the firm, and gambled away all the + accessible funds. The ruin was supposed to be irretrievable, and with many + bitter reproaches I was summoned to return with speed to extricate affairs, + and—make such reparation as I could.</p> + <p>The letter filled me with almost demoniacal joy. I was ruined, and for + her sake. I gloated over the thought.</p> + <p>'These weapons will now be useless,' said I. 'Place them on the shelf + beside you. This letter will answer in their stead.'</p> + <p>She obeyed me, and I then related the information I had received. 'This + ruin comes upon me through you.' She thought I was about to make a vulgar + complaint of extravagance, and for once flushed with anger. 'Remain + entirely quiet,' I said. 'Hear me, but do not interrupt by word or gesture. + You do not yet understand me.'</p> + <p>Then I entered on all the particulars of my life; recounted my passion + for <a name="page144" id="page144"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 144]</span> her; told how in my mad infatuation I had bargained for her; + how in my selfish exultation I had assumed all the freedoms of love, never + stopping to question my right to exercise them; how I was aroused from my + stupid content by accidentally witnessing her interview with Frank. I + related the feelings this excited within me; how for the first time I + learned the miserable and contemptible part I had acted; how I then + understood the sorrow of her life; how I would have crushed out my love and + given her to Frank, had there been any practicable way; how, knowing that + the only chance for happiness to both was in mutual love, I had determined + to gain hers by every act of devotion; how I sought to give her the only + relation to Frank she could properly bear—his benefactress. I told + her of my secret studies, designed to fit me for companionship with her; of + my withdrawing with her into the wilderness, that her grief might be + alleviated in the inspiring presence of uncontaminated nature; of my + expenditures to gratify her wishes and tastes. I narrated the incidents + which preceded the duel, and informed her that I was perfectly acquainted + with Sefton's object in seeking an encounter with me; that I gratified him + because willing to undertake every hazard for her sake. Finally, I avowed + my knowledge of all the disappointment her heart had experienced by Frank's + inconstancy.' know you feel, to-night,' I said, 'that existence is an + imposture—worse than the meanest jiggle. So do I. The only thing that + can render it a reality is love. I intended to say to you, let us end it. + For two years, I have borne the mask of a hypocrite that I might thus tell + you of my idolatry, and say give me love or die. This letter necessitates a + change of purpose. I welcome it as announcing that my sacrifice is + complete—inadequate in comparison with the one you made in uniting + yourself to me, but all that I have to give. It is requisite that I must + yet live to do others justice—to provide for our children; although + they have been valueless to me since I knew that their souls were not links + between ours. But you I release. Before dawn I shall be on my return. The + provision for your future, thank heaven, no demands of justice can + infringe. Hereafter know me not as your husband, but as one who wronged + you, devoted his all to reparation, and failed.'</p> + <p>I rose—weak and tottering—and passed to the door. I caught + but a glimpse of her face. There was in it, and particularly in her + eyes,—which, perhaps, on account of her dramatic cultivation, had the + faculty of concentrating in a wonderful manner the most powerful as well as + the most indefinable expressions,—a peculiar light, which then I did + not understand, but afterwards, oh, too well. Fool, fool, that I was, after + all my anxious scrutiny of her moods through two years of intensest agony, + not to understand this one. The alchemist, who wasted his life in vigils + over his crucible, but stood uncognizant of the gold when it gleamed + lustrously before him, was not more a dolt. Thrice afterward I beheld that + light in her glorious eyes. To my spiritual sight I can ever recall it. + When you asked me her history, those orbs of beauty beamed out upon me with + that same fascinating light.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>I went immediately to America. My ruin was entire. I had greatly + embarrassed my fortune in wild extravagances for Evelyn, and the remainder + I surrendered to my partners. Their criminations were somewhat assuaged, + and our partnership relations being dissolved, the business was + reorganized, and I was engaged in a humble clerical capacity. Moody and + taciturn, I was regarded simply as the ordinary victim of a recklessly + spendthrift wife, and was ridiculed and pitied as such. What cared I for + ridicule or pity?</p> + <p>A letter came from Evelyn, stating that she designed resuming her + profession, and would appear immediately in London. Sometime in the Spring + I should hear from her again.</p> + <p>Accompanying the letter was a formal legal surrender of such property as + she possessed by my gift or otherwise, and a <a name="page145" + id="page145"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 145]</span> demand that I should + apply it to cancel my obligations. She would hereafter, she said, provide + for herself. Except a small reservation for the benefit of the children, I + complied with her direction. No mandate of hers would I disobey.</p> + <p>So existence dragged on. I resided in a humble dwelling with my two + children. Their presence did not soothe me,—their infantile affection + made no appeal to my heart,—but their dependence claimed my + care.—Memories of Evelyn alone possessed me. I secured full files of + London papers, and watched for notices of her appearance. At last they + came. A new star, the papers said, had suddenly appeared, unheralded, in + the theatrical firmament, and rapidly culminated in the zenith. She was + understood to be an American lady, formerly an actress, who had returned to + the stage on account of domestic difficulties. Some papers intimated that + her husband was a brute, who had forsaken her; others, that by a series of + mischances she had been compelled to the stage to support a husband and + numerous dependent relations. Lengthy criticisms on her various + performances were inserted, most of them stuffed with the pseudo-taste and + finical ostentation of knowledge prevalent in that department of newspaper + literature, but all according her the most exalted merit. The tragedies + involving the intense domestic affections were those she had selected for + her <i>rôles</i>. Romeo and Juliet, Evadne, Douglas, Venice + Preserved, and others of that class, were mentioned. The critics, however, + devoted their most enthusiastic encomiums to her performance of Imogen in + Shakspeare's Cymbeline, a version of which, it seems, she had herself + adapted. The reproduction of this piece, which had vanished from the modern + <i>repertoire</i>, attracted marked attention. Her rendering of + 'Imogen'—was pronounced superb.</p> + <p>The papers also made passing allusions to her personal beauty. Soon + paragraphs appeared concerning the attentions of Lord A—— and + the Earl of B—— to her; of the infatuation of certain members + of the various diplomatic corps. Young men of fashion were reported as + throwing to her bouquets containing diamonds; others sent horses and + carriages to her residence, with requests for her acceptance. One paper + alluded maliciously to the fact that a certain antiquated nobleman had + given her a New Year's present of <i>bon bons</i>, every 'sugared particle' + being folded in a five-pound Bank of England note. The paper added some + rough witticism, and informed the nobleman that his 'assiduities' would be + ineffectual, saying that 'the lady, with true Yankee shrewdness, accepts + all offerings at her shrine, but confers no favors in return.'</p> + <p>So the season wore away until the Spring had again come around. I saw an + announcement in a New York paper that Evelyn Afton (her maiden name), who + had recently acquired such a brilliant reputation in London, etc., would + perform during a short engagement at the Park Theatre. The next morning saw + me on the route to New York. I placed myself in an obscure corner of the + theatre. The curtain rose. There was a brief absence of all consciousness, + and then she came upon the stage. The play was Cymbeline. I know nothing of + what transpired, save that when she rendered the words,—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Oh for a horse with wings,'— + </div> + </div> + <p>that light again appeared in her eyes.</p> + <p>The performance ended, and a man, feeling himself old and weary, passed + into the streets, and wandered through them till morning, wondering if he + had not in some way been connected with the brilliant being he had seen; it + seemed to him that once there had been some entwining of their fates, but + the recollection of it came like the indistinct memory of a half-impressed + dream,—as if it had been in some previous condition of existence, and + the consciousness of it had lingered through a subsequent + metempsychosis.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>I was sitting solitary in an apartment of the humble dwelling which I + occupied, poring in a slow, melancholy memory <a name="page146" + id="page146"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 146]</span> over my past life, + and questioning myself when Evelyn would fulfil the promise of again + informing me of her intentions. My mood was scarcely disturbed by a knock + at the outer door, which was responded to by the maid who had charge of my + children, and the next instant I was thrilled almost to stupefaction by + seeing Evelyn enter the room.</p> + <p>'I've come! I've come!' she cried, in wild eagerness. 'Have you not + expected me? I'm home—home once more. + Dearest—lover—husband—I'm here, never to leave you!'</p> + <p>I only gasped forth—'Evelyn!'</p> + <p>I knew not but it was an illusion.</p> + <p>Then she threw herself upon me, and covered me with kisses, uttered a + volume of passionate endearments, entwined her arms about me in all tender + embraces. I reasoned with myself that it was a dream, and would not stir + lest it should dissolve.</p> + <p>She stood above me, and again I saw that light in her eyes. Then for the + first time I understood its import. Oh! the strange, deep, glorious light + of love and resolute devotion.</p> + <p>I rose falteringly, and asked in feeble accents,—'Is it you, + Evelyn? Have you indeed come?'</p> + <p>'Yes, yes, your Evelyn at last,—come to your arms and your heart. + Your own Evelyn, so long unworthy of you. Will you receive me?'</p> + <p>I but threw my arms around her, and sank down with her on my breast. + Nature exhausted itself in the intensity of that embrace. Language was + denied to emotion. For some moments she lay like a child, nestling to my + heart, then suddenly started up and disappeared in the hall. Again I + thought it was a dream, and that it had fled. She reappeared, bearing a + small casket, which in a quick, frantic sort of way she thrust on the + table, opened and pulled out gold pieces, jewels and bank notes, flinging + them down, some on the table and some on the floor, exclaiming, 'See, you + ruined yourself for me, and I have come to repay you. Look, all these your + Evelyn brings to testify to her love. The children!' she exclaimed, as she + threw out the last contents,—'where are they? Come, show me.' She + seized the lamp, and, grasping my arm, dragged me in my half-bewildered + state to the next apartment, where the infants lay sleeping. She flung + herself eagerly but tenderly upon them, and devoured them with kisses. 'Now + you will love them, for my sake,' she said; and, for the first time since + discovering that she loved me not, I bestowed upon them a voluntary + paternal caress—I bowed over them and gently kissed their foreheads. + Her love for them had restored them to my heart.</p> + <p>Then again, with her wild, impetuous manner, she led me back to the + other room. I sat upon the sofa and drew her to my breast. She lay passive + a moment, then started up and paced the floor, with rapid utterances, + broken with half sobs and half laughter. She returned to me, and again + repeated this, till finally interrupted with a violent fit of coughing, + occasioned, as I supposed, by excitement.</p> + <p>'Be calm, Evelyn,' I said. 'Come and lie in my arms. This joy is too + great for me to realize. I must feel you on my bosom to convince me that I + am not deceived.'</p> + <p>So she reposed in my arms, and with broken sobs, the intervals of which + gradually increased, she finally slept. A lethargy also fell upon me, which + endured how long I know not. As I returned to wakefulness, I shuddered with + a cold thrill, such as one might feel on suddenly finding himself in the + presence of a spirit; for I heard what was of more terrible meaning to me + than any other sound. The rest of the precious sleeper at my side was + disturbed frequently by a short, husky cough, followed by a low moan as of + dull pain. Well I knew the prediction conveyed by those sounds. Long + watchings by the bedside of a slowly-dying mother had made me fearfully + familiar with them. Through the lingering hours of that night I sat + listening to them with an agonized ear, and in my bitterness I almost + cursed <a name="page147" id="page147"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 147]</span> Heaven for providing the doom I anticipated.</p> + <p>At the first glimpse of morning I bore her carefully to the side of the + sleeping children, and, after replacing in the casket its contents, sped to + the house of the physician whom I have previously mentioned, and, leaving + word for immediate attendance, hastened back, and resumed my watch. Oh! in + the dawn how pallid and sunken the features which I had so often seen + flushed and full with the animation of life and genius! Evelyn woke and + smiled peacefully on me, but lay as if still exhausted with weariness. The + physician came. He was already aware that my wife had been engaged in her + profession, though ignorant of the objects which had induced her to it. I + informed him of my apprehensions. Conducting him to Evelyn, I excused his + presence by stating my fear that she might require his advice after her + excitement and fatigue. With skillful caution he observed her, and in + conversation elicited the statement that some months since she had been ill + from exposure. She had recovered, she said, and was entirely well, except + that occasionally slight exertion prostrated her. Even while she spoke the + monitor was continually making itself heard.</p> + <p>I drew him to the other apartment, and in a hoarse whisper + said,—'Well, your verdict;—but I know it already from your + countenance.'</p> + <p>'If you were wealthy,' he replied—</p> + <p>'Wealthy! I am rich—rich,' I interrupted him. 'Look!' (with this I + opened the casket, and run my fingers through the glittering contents, like + a miser through his coin.) 'Tell me what wealth can do, and these shall do + it. To gain these she has imperiled life. Let them restore it if they + can.'</p> + <p>I saw suspicion on his countenance. 'It is false,' I exclaimed, 'false! + I tell you she is as pure as heaven. It was for me that she earned all + these.' And I dashed them on the floor and ground them under my feet.</p> + <p>He seized me and was weeping. 'You are mad,' he said. 'I believe you. + Now I understand all. Do not delay. Take her to Italy, and may Heaven + preserve her to you.'</p> + <p>In a week's time we were on our voyage, accompanied by the children and + the physician—the latter professing to Evelyn that he desired to make + the tour of Europe. My own apology for the voyage was a wish to complete + the tour previously interrupted.</p> + <p>The passage was long and tedious. Before reaching our destination my + hopes of Evelyn's recovery had vanished. Her demeanor was so gentle, + childlike and affectionate, my heart was wrung with anguish. I could not + break her sweet serenity by disclosing the fate which was impending. She + seemed to have reached a period of the most holy and perfect satisfaction. + All the suppressed bitterness of former years—all the earnest + resolution of the later time—had vanished, and she rested happy in + the enjoyment of our mutual love. This quiet assisted the process of + destruction. Had there been something to rouse her old energy, I am + confident she would have made a desperate, perhaps successful, struggle for + life. But I could not force myself to excite it by a warning against the + insidious destroyer.</p> + <p>On our arrival she was in a deplorable condition of weakness. She + imputed this debility to the voyage. Day by day I saw the flame of life + dwindling, but she was unsuspicious, and only wondered that her recovery + was so slow. Once, as she was watching, in a half-declining position, the + setting sun, and talking of the happy days to come, I could contain myself + no longer, but burst forth into a frenzy of sobbing.</p> + <p>'Evelyn,' I said, 'you are dying. You know it not, but, oh God, it is + true. You are dying before me, and I can not save you. Perhaps it is too + late for you to save yourself.'</p> + <p>At first she supposed that my emotion was only the undue result of + anxiety for her, but as I grew calmer, and told her <a name="page148" + id="page148"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 148]</span> more precisely my + meaning, and the causes of my fears, she said, with something of her old + firmness,—</p> + <p>'If this be true, let me become fully convinced. Call in Dr. + ——, and leave me alone with him. I have not thought of dying, + but should have known that my present happiness was too exquisite to + last.'</p> + <p>I sent in the doctor, and he told her all. What passed between us, on my + return, is too sacred for relation. It is enough that the bitterness of + that hour filled all the capacity of the human heart for anguish and + despair. Afterwards we became more reconciled to the dispositions of + Heaven.</p> + <p>The history of her gradual decline need not be related—the hopes, + the suspense, the disappointments—the reviving indications of health, + the increasing symptoms of fatal disease—the flush and brilliancy as + of exuberant vitality—the fading of all the hues of life—all + the vicissitudes of the unrelenting progress of decay—one after + another, resolving themselves into the lineaments of death.</p> + <p>It was indeed too late.</p> + <p>Frank still remained in Florence, but had discarded the society of his + bachelor friends for that of the young lady previously mentioned, who was + now entitled to call him husband.</p> + <p>Soon after our arrival I called upon him, announced Evelyn's illness, + with its hopeless character. The young man was shocked. He had never + thought of disease or death in connection with Evelyn. Who could? Besides, + I could read in his face a horror mixed with thankfulness at the escape, as + his memory recalled the madness which would have urged to guilt, her who + was about to leave the scenes of earthly passion. I invited him to return + with me. He did so, and I left him alone with Evelyn. I knew that his + presence would now give her no shock.</p> + <p>What passed between them I never heard; but it was not beyond + conjecture. The method of his regard for her subsequently, fully revealed + it. It was the most lofty and refined feeling of which humanity is + capable—the worship of the artist—the friendship of the + man.</p> + <p>Well,—the last scene arrived. We knew that the time had come. It + was, as she had hoped, at sunset. She gazed long at the changing splendors + of the western sky. 'Such,' she said, 'is death. Life merely revolves away + from us, but the soul still shines the same upon another sphere. The faith + that invests death with terror is a false one. We pass from one world to + another—drop one style of existence for a higher. We enter on a life + in which may be realized all which here we have vainly sought for. The + soul-longings shall all be there fulfilled. Come soon—all of you. I + shall be waiting you. There love and friendship—unsullied and + unruffled—without passion or misconception—will give perpetual + happiness.'</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>And so she passed away. This is the tenth anniversary of her death. We + bore hither all that was left of her to us, and Frank's chisel has marked + her resting place. Her children are beside her, and I wait impatiently the + time when I may enter with them on that existence where the budding + affections of earth shall blossom into immortal enjoyment.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>As Mr. Bell ceased his narrative, I pressed his hand, and without words + departed.</p> + <p>About noon next day the rumor circulated through the streets that he was + dead. I hastened to his house, and learned that it was true. He had been + found at a late hour of the morning lying on his bed, dressed as I had left + him. Physicians made an examination of the corpse, and attributed the cause + to apoplexy. I did not lament him, for I knew his spirit was in the embrace + of the loved ones who went before him.</p> + <hr /> + <a name="page149" id="page149"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 149]</span> + <h2>SELF-RELIANCE.</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + When the eaglets' tender wings are feathered + </div> + <div class="line"> + The old eagles crowd them from the nest; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Down they flutter till their plumes have gathered + </div> + <div class="line"> + Strength to lift them to the granite crest + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of the hills their eldest sires possessed. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + When the one cub of the lordly lions + </div> + <div class="line"> + Strikes the earth and shakes his bristling mane, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Forth they lash him, though he growl defiance, + </div> + <div class="line"> + O'er the sand-waste to pursue his gain,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Shaggy Nimrod of the desert plain! + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Still the eagles watch out from the eyrie + </div> + <div class="line"> + On the mountains, their young heirs to screen; + </div> + <div class="line"> + The old lions on the hot sand-prairie,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + If some peril track their cub,—unseen, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Stealthier than the Bedouin, glide between. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + So the noblest of earth's creatures noble + </div> + <div class="line"> + Are cast forth to find their way alone, + </div> + <div class="line"> + So our manhood, in its day of trouble, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Is but crowded from the sheltering zone + </div> + <div class="line"> + And broad love-wings, to achieve its throne. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + We are left to battle, not forsaken, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Watched in secret by our awful Sire; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Left to conquer, lest our spirits weaken, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And forget to wrestle and aspire, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Finding all things prompter than desire. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + He hath hid the everlasting presence + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of his Godhead from the world he made, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Veiled his incommunicable essence + </div> + <div class="line"> + In thick darkness of thick clouds arrayed, + </div> + <div class="line"> + On our bold search flashing through the shade. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + We are gods in veritable seeming + </div> + <div class="line"> + When we struggle for our vacant thrones, + </div> + <div class="line"> + But are earthlings beyond God's redeeming + </div> + <div class="line"> + While we lean, and creep, and beg in moans, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And base kneeling cramps our knitted bones. + </div> + </div> + <a name="page150" id="page150"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 150]</span> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Strength is given us, and a field for labor, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Boundless vigor and a boundless field; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Not to eat the harvests of our neighbor, + </div> + <div class="line"> + But our own fate's reaping-hook to wield— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Gathering only what our lands may yield; + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + If perchance it may be wheat or darnel, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Bitter herbs to medicine a wrong, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Stinging thistles round a haunted charnel, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Or rich wines to make us glad and strong,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Fitting fruits that to each mood belong. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + While such power and scope to us are given, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Who shall bind us to the triumph-car + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of some victor soul, before us driven, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Earlier hero in the work and war, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Him to mimic, humbly and afar? + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + No! we will not stoop, and fawn and follow; + </div> + <div class="line"> + There are victories for our hands to win, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Rocks to rive, and stubborn glebes to mellow, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Outward trials leagued to foes within; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Earth and self to purify from sin. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + No! our spirits shall not cringe and grovel, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Stooping lowly to a low thoughts door, + </div> + <div class="line"> + As if Heaven were straitened to a hovel, + </div> + <div class="line"> + All its star-worlds set to rise no more, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And our genius had no wings to soar. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Truths bequeathed us are for lures to action; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Not for grave-stones fane and altar stand, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Tempting men to wait the resurrection + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of old prophets from their sunsets grand,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Rather mile-stones towards the Promised Land, + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Gird your mantles and bind on your sandals, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Each man marching by his own birth-star; + </div> + <div class="line"> + God will crown us when those glimmering candles + </div> + <div class="line"> + Swell to suns as forth we track them far,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Suns that bear our throne and victory-bannered car! + </div> + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page151" id="page151"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 151]</span> + <h2>THE HUGUENOT FAMILIES IN AMERICA.</h2> + <p>The celebrated 'Edict of Nantes' was, to speak accurately, a new + confirmation of former treaties between the French government and the + Protestants, or <i>Huguenots</i>—in fact, a royal act of indemnity + for all past offences. The verdicts against the '<i>Reformed</i>' were + annulled and erased from the rolls of the Superior Courts, and to them + unlimited liberty of conscience was recognized as a right. This important + and solemn Edict marked for France the close of the Middle Ages, and the + true commencement of modern times; it was sealed with the great seal of + green wax, to testify its irrevocable and perpetual character. In signing + this great document, Henry IV. completely triumphed over the usages of the + Middle Ages, and the illustrious monarch wished nothing less than to grant + to the 'Reformed' all the civil and religious rights which had been refused + them by their enemies. For the first time France raised itself above + religious parties. Still, a state policy so new could not fail to excite + the clamors of the more violent, and the hatred of factions. The sovereign, + however, remained firm. 'I have enacted the Edict,' said Henry to the + Parliament of Paris,—'I wish it to be observed. My will must serve as + the reason why. I am king. I speak to you as king.—I will be obeyed.' + To the clergy he said, 'My predecessors have given you good words, but I, + with my gray jacket,—I will give you good deeds. I am all gray on the + outside, but I'm all gold within.' Praise to those noble sentiments, peace + was maintained in the realm; the honor of which alone belongs to Henry + IV.</p> + <p>In the first half of the seventeenth century, there could be counted in + France more than eight hundred Reformed churches, with sixty-two + Conferences. Such was the prosperity and powerful organization of the + Protestant party until the fall of La Rochelle, which was emphatically + called the citadel of 'the Reform.' This misfortune terminated the + religious wars of France. The Huguenots, now excluded from the employment + of the civil service and the court, became the industrial arms of the + kingdom. They cultivated the fine lands of the Cevennes, the vineyards of + Guienne, the cloths of Caen. In their hands were almost entirely the + maritime trade of Normandy, with the silks and taffetas of Lyons, and, from + even the testimony of their enemies, they combined with industry, + frugality, integrity all those commercial virtues, which were hallowed by + earnest love of religion and a constant fear of God. The vast plains which + they owned in Bearn waved with bounteous harvests. Languedoc, so long + devastated by civil wars, was raised from ruin by their untiring industry. + In the diocese of Nimes was the valley of Vannage, renowned for its rich + vegetation. Here the Huguenots had more than sixty churches or 'temples,' + and they called this region '<i>Little Canaan</i>.' Esperon, a lofty summit + of the Cevennes, filled with sparkling springs and delicious wild flowers, + was known as '<i>Hort-dieu</i>' the garden of the Lord.</p> + <p>The Protestant party in France did not confine themselves to + manufactures and commerce, but entered largely into the liberal pursuits. + Many of the 'Reformed' distinguished themselves as physicians, advocates + and writers, contributing largely to the literary glory of the age of Louis + XIV. In all the principal cities of the kingdom, the Huguenots maintained + colleges, the most flourishing of which were those at Orange, Caen, + Bergeracs and Nimes, etc. etc. To the Huguenot gentlemen, in the reign of + Louis XIII. and Louis XIV., France was indebted for her most brilliant + victories. Marshal Rantzan, brave and devoted, received no less than sixty + wounds, lost an arm, a leg, and an eye, his heart alone remaining + untouched, amidst his many <a name="page152" id="page152"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 152]</span> battles. Need we add the names of Turenne, + one of the greatest tacticians of his day, with Schomberg, who, in the + language of Madame de Sevigne, 'was a hero also,' or glorious Duquesne, the + conqueror of De Ruyter? He beat the Spaniards and English by sea, bombarded + Genoa and Algiers, spreading terror among the bold corsairs of the Barbary + States; the Moslemin termed him 'The old French captain who had wedded the + sea, and whom the angel of death had forgotten.' All these were illustrious + leaders, with crowds of distinguished officers, and belonged to the + Reformed religion. Wonderful and strange to relate, in the midst of all + this national happiness and prosperity, the kingdom of France was again to + appear before the world as the persecutor of her best citizens, the + destroyer of her own vital interests. The Edict of Nantes was revoked on + 22d October, 1685. It is not our purpose to name the causes of this + suicidal policy, as they are indelibly written on the pages of our world's + history, nor shall we point to the well-known provisions of this insane and + bloody act. In a word, Protestant worship was abolished throughout France, + under the penalty of arrest, with the confiscation of goods. Huguenot + ministers were to quit the kingdom in a fortnight. Protestant schools were + closed, and the laity were forbidden to follow their clergy, under severe + and fatal penalties. All the strict laws concerning heretics were again + renewed. But, in spite of all these enactments, dangers and opposition, the + Huguenots began to leave France by thousands.</p> + <p>Many entreated the court, but in vain, for permission to withdraw + themselves from France. This favor was only granted to the Marshal de + Schomberg and the Marquis de Ruoigny, on condition of their retiring to + Portugal and England. Admiral Duquesne, then aged eighty, was strongly + urged by the king to change his religion. 'During sixty years,' said the + old hero, showing his gray hairs,' I have rendered unto Cæsar the + things which I owe to Cæsar; permit me now, sire, to render unto God + the thing which I owe to God.' He was permitted to end his days in his + native land. The provisions of the Edict were carried out with inflexible + rigor. In the month of June, 1686, more than six hundred of the Reformed + could be counted in the galleys at Marseilles, and nearly as many in those + of Toulon, and the most of them condemned by the decision of a single + marshal (de Mortieval). Fortunately for the refugees, the guards along the + coast did not at all times faithfully execute the royal orders, but often + aided the escape of the fugitives. Nor were the, land frontiers more + faithfully guarded. In our day, it is impossible to state the correct + numbers of the Protestant emigration. Assuming that one hundred thousand + Protestants were distributed among twenty millions of Roman Catholics, we + think it safe to calculate that from two hundred and fifty to three hundred + thousand, during fifteen years, expatriated themselves from France. + Sismondi estimates their number at three or four hundred thousand. Reaching + London, Amsterdam or Berlin, the refugees were received with open purses + and arms, and England, America, Germany, Switzerland, Denmark, Sweden, + Russia, Prussia, and Holland, all profited by this wholesale proscription + of Frenchmen. All agree that these Protestant emigrants were among the + bravest, the most industrious, loyal and pious in the kingdom of France, + and that they carried with them the arts by which they had enriched their + own land, and abundantly repaid the hospitality of those countries which + afforded them that asylum denied them in their own.</p> + <p>The influence which the Huguenot refugees especially exerted upon trade + and manufactures in those countries where they settled, was very striking + and lasting. England and Holland, of all other nations, owe gratitude to + the Protestants of France for the various branches of industry introduced + by them, and which have greatly contributed in making their 'merchants + princes,' and, their 'traffickers the honorable of the earth.' We refer to + these nations particularly, <a name="page153" id="page153"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 153]</span> because they are so intimately connected + with the colonization of our own favored land. The Huguenot refugees in + England introduced the silk factories in Spitalfields, using looms like + those of Lyons and of Tours. They also commenced the manufacture of fine + linen, calicoes, sail-cloth, tapestries, and paper, most of which had + before been imported from France. It has been estimated that these refugees + thus brought into Great Britain a trade which deprived France of an annual + income of nearly ten millions of dollars. Science, arms, jurisprudence and + literature, were also advanced by their arrival. The <i>first</i> newspaper + in Ireland was published by the Pastor Droz, a refugee, who also founded a + library in Dublin. Thelluson (Lord Redlesham), a brave soldier in the + Peninsular war, General Ligonier, General Prevost of the British army, Sir + Samuel Romilly, Majendie, Bishop of Chester, Henry Layard, the excavator of + Nineveh, all are the descendants of the French Huguenots. Saurin secured + the reputation of his powerful eloquence at the Hague; but in the French + Church, Threadneedle street, London, he reached the summit of his splendid + pulpit eloquence. Most of the Huguenots who fled to England for an asylum + were natives of Normandy, Brittany, Picardy, and Guienne. Their numbers at + the revocation may be calculated at eighty thousand. Hume estimates them at + fifty thousand, another writer at seventy thousand, but we believe these + calculations are too low. In 1676, the communicants of the Protestant + French Church at Canterbury reached not less than twenty-five hundred. Of + all the services of the Huguenots to England, none was more important than + the energetic support to the Prince of Orange against James II. The Prince + employed no less than seven hundred and thirty-six French officers, brave + men who had been learned to conquer under the banner of Turenne and Condi. + Schomberg was the hero at the battle of Boyne. One of his standards bore a + BIBLE, supported on three swords, with the motto—'<i>Ie + maintiendray</i>.' The gallant old man, now eighty-two years of age, fell + mortally wounded, but triumphing, and with his dying eyes he saw the + soldiers of James vanquished, and dispersed in headlong flight. Ruoigny, in + the same battle, received a mortal wound, and, covered with blood, before + the advancing French refugee regiments, cheered them on, crying, 'Onward, + my lads, to glory! onward to glory!'</p> + <p>In England, the French Protestants long remained as a distinct people, + preserving in a good degree a nationality of their own, but in the lapse of + years this disappeared. One hardly knows in our day where to find a genuine + Saxon,—'pure English undefiled,'—for the Huguenot blood + circulates beneath many a well-known patronymic. Who would imagine that + anything French could be traced in the colorless names of White and Black, + or the authoritative ones of King and Masters? Still it is a well-known + fact that such names, at the close of the last century, delighted in the + designations of Leblanck (White), Lenoir (Black), Loiseau (Bird), Lejeune + (Young), Le Tonnellier (Cooper), Lemaitre (Master), Leroy (King). These + names were thus translated into good strong Saxon, the owners becoming one + with the English in feeling, language, and religion. Holland, too, glorious + Protestant Holland! the fatherland of American myriads, welcomed the + fugitive Huguenots. From the beginning of the Middle Ages that noble land + had been a hospitable home for the persecuted from all parts of Europe. + During the last twenty years of the seventeenth century, the French + emigration into that country became a political event. Amsterdam granted to + all citizenship, with freemen's privilege of trade, and exemption of taxes + for three years; and all the other towns of that nation rivalled each other + in the same liberal and Christian spirit. In the single year of the + revocation, more than two hundred and fifty Huguenot preachers reached the + free soil of the United Provinces. Pensions were allowed to them, the + married receiving four hundred florins, those in celibacy two hundred. <a + name="page154" id="page154"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 154]</span> The + Prince of Orange attached two French preachers to his person, with many + French officers to his army against James II.—thanks to the generous + Princess of Orange, who selected several Huguenot dames as ladies of honor. + One house at Harlaem was exclusively reserved for young ladies of noble + birth. At the Hague, an ancient convent of preaching monks was changed into + an asylum for the persecuted ladies. Of all lands which received the + refugees, none witnessed such crowds as the Republic of Holland; and hence + Boyle called it '<i>the grand arch of the refugees</i>.' No documents + exactly compute their number; one author calculates it at fifty-five + thousand, and another, in 1686, at nearly seventy-five thousand souls. In + the Dutch Republic and Germany, as was the result in England, the Huguenots + exercised a most powerful influence on politics, literature, war, and + religion, and industry and commerce. Holland, contrary to the general + expectation, outlived the invasion of 1672, the Prince of Orange + fortunately checking the designs of Louis XIV. Refugee soldiers had + powerfully contributed to the triumph of his cause in England, Scotland, + and Ireland, and then they followed him, with valor, in the war against + Louis XIV., which compelled that monarch to sue for peace.</p> + <p>Literary men and preachers obtained repose and liberty in that land, + with consideration and honor. Amsterdam alone received sixteen banished + refugee ministers; and more than two hundred spread themselves through all + the towns of the United Provinces. Very eloquent French pastors filled the + pulpits of the Hague, Rotterdam, Leyden, and Harlaem. Their most brilliant + orator was James Saurin. Abbaddié, hearing him for the first time, + exclaimed, 'Is this a man or an angel, who is speaking to us?' Let us dwell + a moment upon the character of this wonderful man. By the elevation of his + thoughts and brilliancy of imagination, his luminous expositions, purity of + style, with vigor of expression, he produced the most profound impression + on the refugees and others who crowded to hear his varied eloquence. What + charmed them most was the union in his style of Genevese zeal and + earnestness with southern ardor, and especially those solemn prayers, with + which he loved to close his discourses. Saurin displayed in these petitions + strains of supplication which up to this time among the Hollanders had + never been observed in any other preacher.</p> + <p>All the branches of human learning were advanced in Holland by the + Protestant Frenchmen. Here no fetters on genius, no secret censorship or + persecution, existed. The boldest democratic theories, with the most daring + philosophic systems, were freely discussed, and the refugees promoted this + spirit of investigation. They also increased the commerce and manufactures + and agriculture of the Netherlands, and rendered Amsterdam one of the most + famous cities of the world. Like the ancient city of Tyre, which the + prophet named the 'perfection of beauty,' her merchant princes traded with + all islands and nations. Macpherson, in his Annals of Commerce, estimates + the annual loss to France, caused by the refugees establishing themselves + in England and Holland, was not less than 3,582,000 pounds sterling, or + about ninety millions of francs. Until the close of the eighteenth century, + the descendants of the Huguenots in Holland were united among themselves, + by intermarriage and the bonds of mutual sympathies. But in time a fusion + with the Dutch became inevitable. Then, in Holland, as was the case with + England and Germany, many refugees, abjuring their nationality, changed + their French names into Dutch. The Leblancs called themselves De + Witt,—the Deschamps, Van de Velde,—the Dubois, Van den + Bosch,—the Chevaliers, Ruyter,—the Legrands, De Groot, etc. + etc. With the change of names, Huguenot churches began to disappear, so + that out of sixty-two which could be counted among the seven provinces in + 1688, eleven only now remain,—among them those at Hague, Amsterdam, + Leyden, Utrecht, Rotterdam, and Groningen. These are the last monuments of + <a name="page155" id="page155"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 155]</span> + the Huguenot emigration to Holland, and a certain number of families + preserve some sentiment of nationality, who consider themselves honored by + their French, noble, Protestant origin, while at the same time they are + united by patriotic affection to their newly adopted country.</p> + <p>This rapid chapter of the expulsion of the 'Huguenots,' or + 'Protestants,' or 'Refugees,' from their native land, with their settlement + in England and Holland, seem necessary for a better understanding of our + subject. Thence, they emigrated to America, and it is our object to collect + something concerning their origin and descendants among us. The Huguenots + of America is a volume which still remains fully and correctly to be + written. This is a period when increased attention and study are directed + to historical subjects, and we gladly will contribute what mite we may + possess to the important object.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>THE BLACK WITCH.</h2> + <p>'A witch,' according to my nurse's account, 'must be a haggard old + woman, living in a little rotten cottage under a hill by a wood-side, and + must be frequently spinning by the door; she must have a black cat, two or + three broom-sticks, and must be herself of so dry a nature, that if you + fling her into a river she will not sink: so hard then is her fate, that, + if she is to undergo the trial, if she does not drown she must be burnt, as + many have been within the memory of man.'</p> + <h3>ROUND ABOUT OUR COAL FIRE.</h3> + <p>In a bustling New England village there lived, not many years ago, a + poor, infirm, deformed little old woman, who was known to the middle-aged + people living there and thereabout as 'Aunt Hannah.' The younger members of + the little community had added another and very odious title to the + 'Aunt'—they called her 'Aunt Hannah, the Black Witch.' Not that she + was of negro blood. Her pale, pinched and patient face was white as the + face of a corpse; so, also, was her thin hair, combed smoothly down under + the plain cap she always wore. Very white indeed she was, as to face, and + hair, and cap, but otherwise she was all and always black, especially so as + regarded an ugly pair of gloves, which were never removed from her hands, + so far as the youngsters were aware, and which added to the fearfully + mysterious aspect of those members. Exactly what they covered, the children + never knew, but they saw that one hideous glove enclosed something like a + gigantic, withered bird's claw, while within the other there musts have + been a repulsive and horrid knob, without proper form, and lacking any + remotest attempt at thumb and fingers.</p> + <p>These shapeless members, forever covered from the world, wrought fearful + images in the minds of the children, and their youthful imaginations + conjured up all sorts of uses to which such strange members might be + applied. Upon one point they were agreed. There was no doubt in any little + head among them that Aunt Hannah had at some time sold herself to Satan, + and that he had placed this deformity upon her as a mark of ownership. Then + she had a humped back, poor woman, the result of the cruel weight of many + weary years; and she leaned upon an old-fashioned staff with a curved and + crutch-like handle; and her bleared eyes were bent forever on the ground; + and her thin lips twitched convulsively, and she muttered to herself as she + crawled about the village <a name="page156" id="page156"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 156]</span> streets; and it was said by those who knew, + that she was nearly a hundred years of age. So the youngsters called her + the 'Black Witch,' and sometimes hooted after her in the streets, or + hobbled on before her with bowed heads and ridiculous affectation of + infirmity. Thanks to her evil name, none of them ever ventured to actually + assault the poor old creature, and their taunts she bore with patient + meekness, going ever quietly upon her accustomed, peaceful way.</p> + <p>The older villagers regarded her with a pity that was half pity and half + disgust. Those fearful hands they never could forget, nor the bowed figure, + nor the strange working of the lips. Therefore, they held her in a sort of + dreading, but still her lonely life, and her patient, uncomplaining spirit, + moved their hearts. Then a vague tradition—nothing more, for neither + kith nor kin had ancient Hannah—a vague tradition said that she had + once been very beautiful; that when she was in her fresh and lovely youth, + some strange misfortune had fallen upon her, and that she had worn since + then—most innocently—the mark of a direful tragedy. One lady, + old, nearly, as Aunt Hannah, but upon whom there had never fallen any + blight of poverty or wrong, loved the poor creature well, and she only, of + all the inhabitants of the village, frequently entered the cottage where + the 'Black Witch' dwelt. This lady, it was said, had known her when both + were young, and carried forever locked in her heart the story of that + saddened youth. None called good Mrs. Marjoram a witch. <i>Her</i> face was + clear, her smile bright, her eyes sparkling, and she bore her years with an + upright and cheerful carriage.</p> + <p>The little, one-storied house where Aunt Hannah dwelt was situated in a + hollow just out of the village, in the shadow of a grove of tangled + hemlocks and pines. It consisted of two rooms only, with an unfinished + attic overhead; and before her door the poor old soul might be seen any + pleasant day, sitting meekly in the sun. She could neither knit nor sew as + other old women do, but she sat there waiting patiently for the time when + her kind Father should call her home, to lose forever the blackness that + clung to her in this weary world.</p> + <p>She did not live here entirely alone, for, true to the universal + reputation of witches, she kept, not one cat only, but several; all black + cats, too. It was the only fancy she indulged in, the only luxury she + allowed herself, and it was sad that this harmless freak should cost her so + many taunts. Sometimes the boys tried to kill her cats, aided in the + murderous attempt by the village dogs, but no dog ever came back scatheless + from those sharp and spiteful claws. Hence the boys were certain as to the + witchcraft, and 'knew' that these savage animals were true imps of + Satan.</p> + <p>This weak and defenceless creature, living thus apart from human + companionship, was supported on a small annuity, paid her quarterly by a + very honest company, that would have been ruined with many such venerable + clients. On pleasant days she crept about the town to do her meagre + marketing, or crawled to the paupers' pew in the old brick meeting-house. + During the warm summer weather her scant life was somewhat cheered, and a + faint attempt at joyousness sometimes winked in her old eyes, but with the + winter's cold came the cruel cramps and rheumatism, the sleepless nights + and painful days. Then Mrs. Marjoram frequently drove to her door, carrying + medicines and nourishing food,—over and above all, bringing cheerful + words and a warm and hearty smile.</p> + <p>One winter Mrs. Marjoram was taken ill, and, being so very old, her life + was despaired of. During this sickness there came a great fall of snow, + piling up four or five feet on the level, and driving and drifting into the + hollows, so that for several days the less frequented roads in that part of + the country were impassible. And now, when Mrs. Marjoram, but for her own + sad plight, would have thought of poor Aunt Hannah, there was no one enough + interested to give her loneliness a moment's consideration, till, one + morning, one street lad cried out suddenly to <a name="page157" + id="page157"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 157]</span> another that Aunt + Hannah must be buried alive!</p> + <p>Buried <i>alive?</i> The men, suddenly summoned from their business or + their leisure, hardly thought <i>that</i> possible in the deep hollow, + filled nearly to the level with heavily packed and frozen snow.</p> + <p>Men walked out on the firm crust till they were directly over the spot + where, full twenty feet below, stood Aunt Hannah's little house. And they + shook their heads mournfully at the sickening thought of what must lie + below them.</p> + <p>It was a good day's work for twenty men to open a gradually descending + way to the lonely house,—a good day's work; so that when they reached + the door—finding it locked inside—they sent back to the village + for lanterns and candles before bursting it in.</p> + <p>The sight that startled and horrified them after they had forced the + door, they never liked to speak of. The sounds from the furious, spitting + and snarling cats they never forgot.</p> + <p>Her disfigured and mutilated remains were decently interred, and when + the spring-time carried away the snow, they leveled the house with the + ground. But, though they buried her out of their sight and pulled down the + rotten cottage she had inhabited for so many weary years, the fearful + memory of her evil name and dreadful end remained, and nearly all the + village came to regard her as, in very truth, a witch.</p> + <p>Only Mrs. Marjoram took from the cottage with pious love an ancient and + much-thumbed book, on whose fly-leaf was written 'Jason Fletcher, His + Bible.' Then, having no longer any reason to conceal the early history of + the deceased, she related to the village gossips—as a warning against + trusting too fully to evil appearances—the following</p> + <h3>STORY OF POOR HANNAH LEE.</h3> + <p>A long time ago—before the middle of the last century, in + fact—there dwelt in one of the most flourishing towns in Western + Massachusetts a family of Puritan extraction named Fletcher. Straitest + among the strict, John Cotton Fletcher and his wife Mehitabel held all + lightness of conduct or gamesomeness of speech as sin most devoutly to be + prayed and striven against, and not only 'kept' the ten commandments with + pious zeal, but, for the better serving of the Lord, invented an eleventh, + which read 'Laugh not at all.' <i>Holy days</i> they knew, in number during + the year fifty-four, namely, the fifty-two 'Sabbaths' and the governor's + Fast and Thanksgiving days; <i>holidays</i> they held in utter abhorrence, + deeming Christmas, especially, an invention of the devil. On 'work-days' + they worked; on 'Sabbath-days' they attended the preaching of the word; + otherwise, on the Lord's day, doing nothing save to eat and drink what was + absolutely necessary to keep them from faintness. They lived to praise the + Lord, and they must eat to live. But no cooking or other labor was done on + that day, and if the old horse was saddled to carry them to meeting it was + because that was a work of necessity. On Fast and Thanksgiving + days—because they were peculiarly of Puritan origin—there was + an especial effort at godliness, and woe, then, to any profaning youngster + who dared to shout or play within sound or sight of Deacon Fletcher's + premises. Every Saturday night, at sunset, all tools for men and playthings + for children were put away, to be disturbed no more till sunset on Sunday. + All papers, books, knitting-work, sewing, were disposed of 'out of the + way.' It was necessary to milk the cows, feed the pigs, and saddle the + horse, but that was all the work that was allowed. As to any jest on any + holy day, that was, beyond all other things, most abhorrent to their ideas + of Christian duty. Life with them was a continued strife against sin, + cheered only by the hope of casting off all earthly trammels at last, to + enter upon one long, never-ending Sabbath. And their Sabbath of idleness + was more dreary than their 'week-day' of work.</p> + <p>Yet were they an humble, honest, and upright pair, walking purely before + God according to the light they had, and as highly respected and honored in + the <a name="page158" id="page158"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 158]</span> community, that the fiat of the minister himself—and in + those days the minister's word was 'law and gospel' in the smaller New + England villages—was hardly more potent than that of Deacon + Fletcher.</p> + <p>To this couple was born one son, and one only. Much as they mourned when + they saw their neighbors adding almost yearly to their groups of olive + branches, the Lord in his wisdom vouchsafed to them only this one child, + and they bowed meekly to the providence and tried to be content. Why his + father named the boy 'Jason,' no one could rightly tell; perhaps because + the fleece of his flocks had been truly fleece of gold to him; at all + events, thus was the child named, and in the strict rule of this Christian + couple was Jason reared.</p> + <p>It would be sad as well as useless to tell of the dreary winter-Sundays + in the cold meeting-house (it was thought a wicked weakness to have a fire + in a church then) through which he shivered and froze; of the fearful + sitting in the corner after the two-hours sermons and the thirty-minutes + prayers were done; of the utter absence of all cheerful themes or thoughts + on the holy days which they so straitly remembered to keep; of the visions + of sudden death, and the bottomless pit thereafter, which haunted the child + through long nights; of the sighing for green fields and the singing of + birds, on some summer Sundays, when the sun was warm and the sky was fair; + and the clapping of the old-fashioned wooden seats, as the congregation + rose to pray or praise, was sweeter music than the blacksmith made who 'led + the singing' through his nose. It would be a dreary task to follow the boy + through all this youthful misery, and so I will let it pass. Doubtless all + these things brought forth their fruits when his day of freedom came. He + was a large-framed, full-blooded boy, with more than the usual allowance of + animal spirits. But his father was larger framed and tougher, and in his + occasional contests with his son victory naturally perched upon his + banners, so that the boy's spirit (which rebelled alway against the iron + rule of the household), if not broken down, was certainly so far kept under + that it rarely showed itself. It was a slumbering volcano, ready, when it + reached its strength, to pour out burning lava of passion and + evil-doing.</p> + <p>Thus the boy grew up almost to manhood, with very few rays of sunshine + cast over his early path to look back upon when he should Teach the middle + eminence of life. And the gloom of the present cheerless and austere way + caused him to look forward with the more rapture to that time, when, with + his twenty-first birth-day, should come the power to do as he pleased with + himself: with his hours of labor and of ease, with his Sabbath-days and his + work-days.</p> + <p>A little before the time when big majority was to come and set him + partially free—for then, according to the good old Puritan custom, he + would have his 'freedom-suit,' and probably a few hundred dollars and a + horse, and might remain with his father or go elsewhere—there fell + across Jason's path a sweet gleam of golden sunshine, such as he had never + known before, nor ever dreamed of. When he was in his twenty-first year, + his father, the Deacon,—being urged thereto by the failing health of + his overtasked wife,—adopted as half daughter, half serving maid, a + beautiful and friendless girl, who might otherwise have gone to ruin. Her + name was plain Hannah Lee. No name can be imagined too liquid, sweet and + voluptuous in its sound to typify her loveliness. It was not strange, + therefore, that she had not been long in the house before Jason Fletcher, + hitherto deprived of much cheerful female society, felt stealing over him a + new and strange excitement of mingled joy and wonder. It is trite and tame + to say that for him there came new flowers in all the fields and by all the + road-sides, and a hitherto unknown fragrance in the balmy air; rosier + colors to the sunset, softer tints to the yellow gray east at dawn, + brighter sparkle to the brooks, breezier glories to the mountain-tops; but, + doubtless, this was strictly true, as <a name="page159" + id="page159"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 159]</span> it has been many + times before and since to many other men, but scarce ever accompanied by so + great and complete a change.</p> + <p>His father might have expected it, and his mother have reckoned upon it, + but no thought of love in connection with their quiet and awkward son ever + entered into their minds, and so they put this sweet creature into the + youth's way, not reflecting that only one result—on his side, at + least—could follow.</p> + <p>They kept no watch upon the pair, and knew not of the many meetings, + accidental, apparently, even to themselves, that took place between the + innocent youth and girl. It needs no reading of light books to make a + successful lover, nor grace, nor elegant carriage; and Nature points the + way to the most modest and untrained wooer. So, without a word having been + spoken on the subject, nor any caress exchanged, except, perhaps, an + occasional momentarily clasped hand, or the necessary and proper contact, + when Hannah rode, sometimes, behind Jason on the pillion (one arm around + him to keep her in her seat), they became lovers, and none the less so that + they had given no verbal or labial utterance to their loves.</p> + <p>And the summer flew by on wings of the fleetest, and Jason's + twenty-first birth-day approached.</p> + <p>It fell this year upon a Sunday. The family had 'been to meeting' all + the day as usual, no reference being made to the fact that the youth was + now 'free.' (His father had said to him, as they milked the cows on + Saturday night, 'We will put by your "Freedom Day" till Monday.') But all + day Jason had walked, and thought, and eaten, and drunk, not to the glory + of the Lord, as his father and mother piously believed <i>they</i> did, but + to the glory of himself—no longer a child, but a man!</p> + <p>It lacked a full half hour to sunset, and there was no cooler resting + place that warm summer afternoon than beneath the shade of a thick-leaved + grape-vine that overspread a stunted pear tree some little distance in the + rear of the house. Hannah, with her natural love for pleasant things and + places, had induced Jason, some time before, to make a seat for her in this + charming spot. It was quite out of sight from the house, and the little + bower the vine made could be entered only from one side. In this bower + Hannah sat this sunny afternoon, wondering if it would change Jason very + much to be a boy no longer, and devoutly praying in the depths of her pure + little heart that it would not.</p> + <p>She sat, half sadly, and not very distinctly, dreaming over this + problem, when the shade was deepened, and, looking up, she was aware that + Jason stood at the entrance to the arbor. Her heart stopped beating for + half a moment, and she felt quite faint and sick. Then she said, with a + smile, half sad, half jocose, 'You are a <i>man</i> now, Jason, are you + not?'</p> + <p>There was room for two on the seat, and she moved a little toward the + further end as she spoke.</p> + <p>'I am a man to-day, Hannah,' he said. 'Father wants to keep me boy till + to-morrow, because this is the Lord's day, and I suppose it is wicked to be + a man on Sunday. To-morrow I shall go away from here, and not come back for + a long, long time.' His voice trembled, and sounded very cold and sad.</p> + <p>Hannah put her two elbows on her knees, rested her face in her hands, + and uttered a little, low, wailing cry, most painful to hear.</p> + <p>Then Jason seated himself beside her, put his arms about her, and, + raising her gently up, kissed her on the cheek. He had never before kissed + any woman save his mother.</p> + <p>'When I come back,' he said, 'I will marry you, if you love me, and then + we will always live together.'</p> + <p>The little maid dried her eyes, and a look sweet and calm, such as, + perhaps, the angels wear, stole over her innocent face.</p> + <p>'Oh, do you love me so? Will you?' she said.</p> + <p>'So help me God, I will,' he said.</p> + <p>Then she put her arms about his neck, <a name="page160" + id="page160"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 160]</span> and lifting up her + innocent face to his, gave him her heart in one long kiss.</p> + <p>(Just then a light foot, passing toward the house from a neighbor's, + paused at the arbor door, all unknown to those within, and little Martha + Hopkins, the neighbor's daughter and Hannah's special pet, looked in upon + them for a moment. Then she sped quickly to Deacon Fletcher's house, and + burst, all excitement, into the kitchen.)</p> + <p>'Will you wait for me, Hannah, darling,' said Jason, 'all the time it + may take me to get ready for a wife, and never love any other man, nor let + any other man love you? Never forget me, for years and years, perhaps, till + I come back for you? Will you always remember that we love each other, and + that you are to be my wife?'</p> + <p>'I will wait for you, dear, if I wait till I die,' she answered.</p> + <p>He folded her yet more closely to his breast.</p> + <p>While they held each other thus, forgetting all else in the world, his + father burst, furious and terrible, into the arbor!</p> + <p>He seized them with a strong and cruel rasp, and tore them pitilessly + asunder.</p> + <p>'Go into the house, boy,' he cried, 'and leave this'—</p> + <p>'Stop!' shouted Jason, springing to his feet, his face as white as death + and his eyes flashing—'Stop! Do not call her any name but a good + name! I would not bear it if you were twenty times my father!'</p> + <p>The old man stood transfixed.</p> + <p>'She is as good as you or as my mother, and will go to heaven as well as + you when she dies,' he continued passionately; 'as well as any of us; as + well as the minister! What did you come here for? Haven't you driven my + life almost to death ever since I can remember; and isn't that enough, but + you must come here and kill my darling, my dear, my love?'</p> + <p>He knelt where she lay on the ground.</p> + <p>'Hear the boy,' cried the father, in a rage equally terrible and far + less noble. 'Hear the boy go on about the baggage!'</p> + <p>The boy still knelt, unheeding anything save the senseless form beside + him.</p> + <p>'Wasn't it enough that you should wanton with a young woman in this + style, but you must do it on the holy Sabbath day?' the old man continued. + 'Mother,' he cried, jerking the words over his shoulder at his wife, who + stood behind him, 'do you bring such profligates as this into the world, to + disgrace a pious man's fame and bring his house to sorrow? Let him go + forth—my oldest and youngest born, and eat husks with the swine; he + shall have no portion, and there shall be no fatted calf killed when he + returns!'</p> + <p>Still the youth knelt, and now his head had fallen upon the prostrate + body, and he was covering her cold hand with kisses.</p> + <p>'Look here, young man,' the father cried, 'leave go that girl's hand and + come into the house; as true as there's a God in Israel I'll teach you what + a stout rawhide is made of!'</p> + <p>Just at this juncture neighbor Hopkins and his wife, warned by + quick-flying little Martha that something terrible was going on at Deacon + Fletcher's, appeared, hurrying towards the spot.</p> + <p>Peter Hopkins was considered a somewhat ungodly but a very just man, and + while the Deacon most highly disapproved of his spiritual state, and + doubted that he and 'vital piety' were strangers, he still respected + Peter's rugged honesty and directness of purpose, and ranked him foremost + among the 'world's people.' He was a man of powerful frame and strong + impulses, and when his feelings were aroused he stood in awe of no man, + high or low. When he forced his way into the arbor, therefore, the Deacon + paused in his invective and made no remonstrance.</p> + <p>Peter Hopkins at once put the worst construction on the scene before + him. He saw in the son of Deacon Fletcher only a seducer, in poor Hannah + Lee only a victim, and his blood rose to boiling heat. Without pausing to + ask any <a name="page161" id="page161"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 161]</span> question, grasping at one guess, as he supposed, the whole sad + history, he seized Jason by the collar, and, lifting him up, dashed him + violently down again, the boy's head striking a corner of the bench as he + fell.</p> + <p>Then he took the girl tenderly up and faced about upon the father, + actually foaming with wrath.</p> + <p>'This comes of psalm singing,' he cried. 'Clear the way there!' and he + bore the still unconscious maiden toward his own house.</p> + <p>Then a sudden and strange revulsion came over Deacon Fletcher. For the + first time, perhaps, in twenty-one years, the father's heart triumphed over + the Deacon's prejudices. As he saw his son—his only son—lying + pale and bleeding on the ground, all recollection of his offense, all + thought of sinfulness or godliness in connection with his conduct, + vanished, and he only considered whether this pride of his, this strong and + beautiful son, were to die there, or to live and bless him. He stooped, + sobbing, over the boy, reconciled, at last, to humanity, and conscious of a + strong human love.</p> + <p>Not more tenderly was poor Hannah Lee borne to the house of Peter + Hopkins than the father carried the son he had only just received into his + own dwelling. There were no thoughts of husks now, but only a sorrowful joy + that one so long dead to him was at length alive, that a new heart, full of + human instincts, had found birth within his bosom. But mingled with this + joy was the fear that he had only, at length, possessed his son to lose + him.</p> + <p>While Jason Fletcher lay tossing, week after week, through the fever + that followed the scene of violence in the arbor, poor Hannah went sadly + but patiently about the light duties that farmer Hopkins and his wife + allowed her to perform.</p> + <p>Thoroughly convinced, through his wife's communications with Hannah, of + the innocence of the pair, Peter Hopkins had gone to Deacon Fletcher and + remonstrated with him on his outrageous conduct.</p> + <p>'Your son is a fine lad,' he said, 'and Hannah is fit to be queen + anywhere; and if you don't give her a fitting out when he's well enough to + marry her, hang me if <i>I</i> won't! I owe the boy something for the ill + trick I played him in my hot-headedness, and he shall have it, too! Say, + now, that they shall be man and wife!'</p> + <p>Deacon Fletcher astonished the hot-hearted man beyond measure by quietly + telling him that, God willing, his dear son should marry Hannah as soon as + the visitation that now kept him on a bed of raving illness was taken away. + He added meekly that he hoped God would forgive him if he had abused the + trust placed in him, and, misled by a vanity of holiness, had done his son + great wrong, these many years.</p> + <p>'Give us your hand, Deacon,' cried the delighted pleader; 'you are a + good man, if you <i>are</i> a Deacon, and that's more'n I'd have said a + week ago! You <i>have</i> hurt that boy, and no mistake! You've either + beaten the spirit all out of him, or you have shut up a devil in him + that'll break out one o' these days, worse'n them that went into the pigs + that we read about! But 'tain't too late to mend, an' if a stitch in time + <i>does</i> save nine, it's better to take the <i>nine</i> stitches than to + wait till they are ninety times nine. You've got to be a thousand times + kinder to the boy than you would if you hadn't been so hard on him all his + life.'</p> + <p>It was agreed that while the fever held its course nothing should be + said to poor Hannah, and so the two men parted—warm friends for the + first time in their lives.</p> + <p>And poor Hannah Lee went droopingly and patiently about her duties, + asking quietly from day to day as to the health of Jason, and telling no + soul how her heart seemed breaking within her, and how all the future + looked to her like a dreary waste.</p> + <p>Mrs. Hopkins threw out gentle hints that the Deacon might relent, and + that if he did the wish that was ever in Hannah's heart might be realized. + But the poor child paid little heed to her suggestions, <a name="page162" + id="page162"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 162]</span> a foreshadowing of + some direful calamity constantly enfolding and saddening her. Still she + kept bravely and quietly about her duties, and it was only when she was + alone in her chamber at night that she gave way to the terrible wofulness + that oppressed her, and prayed, and wept, and wrestled with her sorrow.</p> + <p>And this sweet and lovely creature was the same pious and patient soul + who was afterwards taunted by rude village boys, and pointed at as one who + had sold herself to Satan.</p> + <p>One night she had cried herself asleep, and lay in an unquiet and fitful + slumber. As she thought of him alway by day, so now in her dreams the image + of Jason Fletcher was fantastically and singularly busy. It seemed to her + that she stood upon an eminence overlooking a peaceful valley of that + charming sort only to be seen in dreams. Afar off, and still, in some + strange way, very near, she beheld the youth of her love, who reclined upon + a bank beside a quiet stream. Everything was at rest. The soft + moonbeams—for, in her dream, evening rested on the + valley—bathed all the prospect in a cool effulgence. There was no + sound, save only that sweet music of never-sleeping nature which is forever + heard within all her broad domain. Still the dreamer felt that there was + something direful and most to be dreaded that threatened to invade and mar + the heavenly peacefulness. She felt it coming, and fearfully awaited its + approach. And she had not long to wait. For presently there appeared, + flying between the calm moonlight and the figure, and casting a doleful + shadow over his form, a scaly and dreadful dragon, like those we read of + that devastated whole countries in the old, old times. This hideous beast + breathed fire and smoke from its horrid nostrils as it flew, and it flapped + its fearful way downwards to scorch and destroy the figure recumbent by the + stream.</p> + <p>Just when it was stooping upon its unconscious victim, a heavy scale, + beaten from its side by the bat-like wings, fell upon the night-mare + stricken sleeper's breast, and she awoke.</p> + <p>The moon was shining peacefully into the room, and she found upon the + bed a black cat that had leaped in through the low window. It was a gentle + and loving animal, that had made friends with her upon her first arrival, + and it had already coiled itself up on the bed with a gentle purring.</p> + <p>Everything was most quiet and calm as she lay gazing out through the + window; still the dreadful memory of her dream weighed upon and oppressed + her. She arose and leaned out into the cool night air. So leaning, she + could see Deacon Fletcher's house, standing bare and brown in the moonlight + only a few rods distant. She could gaze, with what pleasure or sorrow she + might, at the windows of the room where poor Jason lay tossing with the + fever.</p> + <p>She gazes earnestly thitherward, and her breath comes thick and short, + while her heart seems rising into her throat. For she sees, gathered thick + and dun above the house, a dense, undulating and ever-increasing shadow, + that threatens to obscure the low-floating moon! There is no wind, and it + rises slowly but steadily! Deacon Fletcher's house is on fire!</p> + <p>Her shrill cries, uttered in wild and rapid succession, aroused the + household of Peter Hopkins to the fact that there was fire + somewhere—fire, that most terrible fiend to awake before in the dead + of night. As for Hannah, it was but an instant's work for her to throw on a + little clothing and spring from the low window into the yard. Then she ran, + with what trembling speed she might, towards the burning house.</p> + <p>The smoke still rose sombre and heavy from the roof, and about one of + the chimneys little tongues of flame leaped up as she approached. She could + hear a fierce crackling, too, of that spiteful sort made by the burning of + dry wood. The house was all of wood, and old, and it was evidently + thoroughly afire within.</p> + <p>She realized this as she hurried up to it. In the brief seconds of her + crossing <a name="page163" id="page163"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 163]</span> the field and leaping a small stream that ran near the house, + she thought of Jason, so noble, so self-denying, so persecuted, so + beautiful, lying there in his little upper room, powerless from the fever, + and doomed to die a dreadful death. She thought of him, weak and helpless, + with no strength even to shrink from the flames that should lap over him + and lick him to death with their fiery tongues. All this as she sped across + the field and leaped the stream.</p> + <p>Reaching the house, she glanced upward, and could perceive the light of + the flames already showing itself through the upper front windows, next the + room where slept the Deacon and his wife. Fortunately Jason's room was in + the rear. Then she remembered that an old nurse from the village watched + with him, and she called fiercely on her name, but with no response.</p> + <p>As she had approached the house, the nearest outer door was that facing + the road, immediately over which the fire was evidently about to break out, + and this door she tried, finding it fast. Then she remembered a side + entrance, through an old wood-shed, that was seldom locked, and she + immediately made her way to it.</p> + <p>Meanwhile the fire was busy with the dry wood-work of the house, and + though there was no wind, it spread with fearful rapidity. Already the + flames had burst out through the roof in two or three places, and in the + front of the house they were cruelly curling and creeping about the eaves. + They seemed confined, however, to the upper portion of the building, and + therein she had hope.</p> + <p>As she had anticipated, she found the side door unfastened, and she made + her way rapidly to the foot of the back stairway. When she opened the door + to ascend, a thick, black smoke rushed down, almost overpowering her. The + opening of the door seemed to aid the fire, too, and there was a sort of + explosive eagerness in the new start it took as it now crackled and roared + above her. Then she recognized in the sickening smoke a smell of burning + feathers, and she felt faint and weak as she thought that it might be + <i>his</i> bed that was on fire.</p> + <p>This was only for an instant. Staggering backward before the cloud of + smoke, with outstretched, groping hands, like one suddenly struck blind, an + 'instinct,' or what you please to call it, struck her, and she tore off her + flannel petticoat, wrapping it about her head and shoulders. Then, holding + her hands over mouth and nose, she rushed desperately up the stairs.</p> + <p>No one, unless he has been through such a smoke, can conceive of the + trials she had to undergo in mounting those stairs. No one can fancy, + except from the recollection of such an experience, how the fierce heat + beat her back when she reached the upper hall. The walls were not yet fully + on fire, but great tongues of flame curled along the ceiling, and hot + blasts swept across her path.</p> + <p>She knew his room. It was but a step to it, and the door opened easily. + The nurse was fast asleep, so fast that poor Hannah's warning cry, as she + stumbled in, hardly aroused her. On the bed lay Jason, so thin, so white, + so corpse-like, she would hardly have known him. In the fierce strength of + her despair it was no task to lift that emaciated body, but, ah! how to get + out of the house with it? For when she turned she saw that the hall was now + wholly on fire.</p> + <p>But she did not hesitate. Wrapping him quickly and tenderly in a blanket + taken from the bed, she rushed out into the flames.</p> + <p>Meanwhile Peter Hopkins and his 'hired man' had been aroused by Hannah's + first screams, and had hurriedly scrambled on a portion of their clothing + and rushed out. They had been in time—running quickly across the + field—to see Hannah disappear behind the house. Neither of them + supposed for an instant that she had entered it.</p> + <p>Trying the front door, and finding it fast, Peter uplifted his stout + foot and kicked it crashing in, but he found it impossible to enter by the + breach he <a name="page164" id="page164"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 164]</span> had made. The front stairway was all in flames, and the fierce + heat drove him hopelessly back. Then they ran around to the rear. By this + time the entire upper portion of the building seemed to be one mass of fire + and smote, and now they could hear shrill and terrible shrieks, evidently + proceeding from the suddenly awakened inmates. They ran to the kitchen door + and burst it in.</p> + <p>As they did so there rushed towards them from the foot of the kitchen + stairs some horrible, blazing, and unnatural shape, that came stumbling but + swiftly forward. With it came smoke and flame and a horrible sound of + stifled moans.</p> + <p>At the approach of this strange and unsightly object they sprang back + amazed, and it passed them headlong into the open air; passed them and + <i>dropped apart</i>, as it were, into the stream before the door.</p> + <p>For many years thereafter the slumbers of Farmer Hopkins were disturbed + by visions of what he saw when the two two parts of that terrible + apparition were taken from the water.</p> + <p>There lay Hannah Lee, no longer beautiful and fresh as the morning, but + blackened, crisped, scorched and shrunken, with all her wealth of silken + hair burned to ashes, with all her clear loveliness of complexion gone + forever. And there lay Jason Fletcher, unburned,—so carefully had she + covered him as she fled,—but senseless, and to all appearance a + corpse.</p> + <p>Thus Hannah Lee went through fire and water, even unto worse than death, + for the sake of him she loved. And verily she had her reward.</p> + <p>When the sun rose, there only remained a black and ugly pit to mark the + place where Deacon Fletcher's house had stood.</p> + <p>And of all its inmates, only Jason—carefully watched and tended at + the house of Peter Hopkins—was left to tell the tale of that night's + tragedy. And he, poor fellow, had no tale to tell, the delirium of fever + having been upon him all the night. It was very doubtful if he would + recover,—more than doubtful. Not one in a thousand could do so, with + such an exposure at the critical period of his sickness.</p> + <p>Even more tenderly, with even more anxiety, did all in the country round + minister to poor Hannah Lee. The story of her love, of her bravery, of her + heroic self-abnegation, spread throughout all those parts, and there was no + end to what was done for her by neighbors and friends. So widely did her + fame spread, that people from thirty, forty, and even fifty miles away came + to see her, or sent messages, or money, or delicacies to comfort her.</p> + <p>What <i>could</i> be done for them was done, and they both lived.</p> + <p>When Jason Fletcher arose from his sick bed, he arose another man than + the Jason Fletcher who was thrown down in the arbor by Farmer Hopkins. He + went sick, a dependent, simple, good-hearted, though impatient boy, worn + out by the constraints of twenty years, but capable of future cultivation + and improvement; he arose from his sickness a moody, cross-grained, dogged + and impatient man, whose only memories were tinged red with wrong, and made + bitter by thought of what he had endured. It was little matter to him that + all his father's broad acres were now his own—the thought of the + horrible death his parents had died only suggested a question in his mind, + whether it were not a 'judgment' on them: they having lived to persecute + him too long already. Through all the vista of his past life he saw only + gloom and shadows, and no ray of brightness cheered the retrospective + glance.</p> + <p>No ray? Yes, there was one. He saw a fair young girl, loving and + innocent, whose sweet face scarce ever left his thoughts. She reigned where + father and mother held no sway; and she made, with the sunshine of her + love, a clear heaven for him even in the purgatory of the past. So he lay, + slowly gathering strength, dreaming about her. And presently they told + him—gently as might be—how she had saved him. <a name="page165" + id="page165"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 165]</span> And they nearly + killed him in the telling.</p> + <p>When he was well enough to be about, it was strange that they would not + allow him to see her. She was still very ill, they said, and the doctor, a + reasonable man enough usually, utterly refused him admission to her + chamber. He fretted at this, and as he gained strength he 'went wrong.'</p> + <p>Mingled with the memory of his old privations was a full assurance of + his present liberty. He was of age, and he owned, by right, all the + extensive property the Deacon, his father, had so laboriously amassed. + During all his boyhood he had never had a shilling, at any one time, that + he could call his own; now hundreds of pounds stood ready at his bidding, + and he proceeded very speedily to spend them. During all his boyhood he had + been cut off from the amusements common to the youth of that day; now he + launched out into the most extravagant pleasures his money could procure. + Money was nothing, for he had it in plenty; character was nothing, for he + had none to lose; only love remained to him of all the good things he might + have held, and love lay bleeding while he was denied access to Hannah. Love + lay bleeding, and he turned for comfort to the wine-cup, and raised Bacchus + to the place Cupid should have occupied. Alas for Jason Fletcher!</p> + <p>Weeks rolled on and passed into months, and still he was refused speech + with, or right of, Hannah. And he chafed at the denial. Had she not risked + everything to save his life? And he could not even thank her!</p> + <p>At length, being unable to find further excuse wherewith to put him off, + they one day told him he could see his love. They endeavored to prepare him + by hints and suggestions as to the probable consequences of the trial she + had passed through, but all that they could say or he imagine had not + prepared him for the fearful sight.</p> + <p>Poor Hannah Lee! This scarred, deformed and helpless body, without + proper hands—oh! white hands, how well he remembered + them!—without comeliness of form or feature, was all that was left of + the once glorious creature, whose heaven-given beauty had ensnared his + fresh and untutored heart! Poor Hannah Lee!</p> + <p>The rough youth, loving her yet, but repelled by the horrible aspect she + presented, fell sobbing upon his knees and buried his face in the + bed-clothing. He spoke no word, but the tumultuous throes of his agony + shook the room as he knelt beside her. And from the bed arose a wail more + terrible in its utter, eternal sorrowfulness than had ever fallen upon the + ears of those present. It was the wail of a soul recognizing for the first + time that the loveliness of life had passed away forever.</p> + <p>They mingled their cries thus for a little time, and then Jason arose + and staggered from the room. He would have spoken, but the dreadful sorrow + rose up and choked him. All the memories of the past were linked with youth + and beauty. He could not speak to the blight before him, as to his love and + his life, and so, with blind and lumbering footsteps, he toiled heavily + from the house.</p> + <p>The fires of the Revolution had broken forth and swept over New England, + burning out like stubble the little loyalty to the crown left in men's + hearts.</p> + <p>At the battle of Bunker Hill Jason Fletcher fought like a tiger. Last + among the latest, he clubbed his musket, and was driven slowly backward + from the slight redoubt.</p> + <p>He was heard of at White Plains, at Trenton, Princeton, Brandywine, + Germantown, and always with marvelous mention of courage and prowess. Then + he was promoted from the ranks, and was mentioned as 'Lieutenant Fletcher.' + Then there were rumors of some dishonor that had sullied the brightness of + his fame; and then it came to be hinted about that in all the rank and file + of the patriot army there was no one so utterly dissolute and drunken as + he. And then came news of his ignominiously quitting the service, and a + cloud dropped down <a name="page166" id="page166"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 166]</span> about him, and no word, good or bad, came + home from the castaway any more.</p> + <p>Meanwhile poor Hannah Lee languished upon her bed of suffering, but did + not die. And finally, when spring after spring had spread new verdure over + the rough hills among which she dwelt, she got, by little and little, to + venturing out into the village streets. And when they saw her bowed form + and her ugly, misshapen hands, the village children, knowing her history, + forbore to sneer at or taunt her. All the village loved the unfortunate + creature, and all the village strove together to do her kindness.</p> + <p>One man in the town—a cousin of Jason the wanderer—was + supposed to hold communication with him. This man notified Hannah one day + that a safe life annuity had been purchased for her, and thereafter she + lived at the house of Farmer Hopkins, not as a loved dependent, but as a + cherished and faithful friend. Thus freed from the bitter sting of helpless + poverty, Hannah sank resignedly into a quiet and honorable life.</p> + <p>At length, one warm summer day, when Jason Fletcher should have been + about forty years of age, there strayed into the village a blind mendicant, + with a dog for guide, and a wooden leg rudely fastened to one stiff stump. + This stranger, white-headed and with the care-lines of many years on his + sadly furrowed face, sought out poor Hannah Lee, and told her that he had, + by the grace of God, come back, at last, to die. Leading him with gentle + counsels to that Mercy Seat where none ever seek in vain, poor Hannah saw + him bend with contrite and humble spirit, and seek the forgiveness needed + to atone for many years of sin. Patient and penitent he passed a few quiet + years, and then she followed to the tomb the earthly remains of him for + whom she had sacrificed a life.</p> + <p>And this being done, she removed to a distant town, where Martha + Hopkins, now kind Mrs. Marjoram, dwelt.</p> + <p>And many years afterwards Mrs. Marjoram told her story, as a lesson that + men should never judge a living soul by its outward habiliments.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>FREEDOM'S STARS.</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + From Everglades to Dismal Swamp + </div> + <div class="line"> + Rose on the hot and trembling air + </div> + <div class="line"> + Cloud after cloud, in dark array, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Enfolding from their serpent lair + </div> + <div class="line"> + The starry flag that guards the free:— + </div> + <div class="line"> + One after one its stars grew dun, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Heaven given to shine on Liberty. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + But swifter than the lightning's gleam + </div> + <div class="line"> + Flashed out the spears of Northern-light, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And with the north wind's saving wings, + </div> + <div class="line"> + The cloud-host, vanquished, took to flight. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Then in her white-winged radiance there + </div> + <div class="line"> + The angel Freedom conquering came, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Relit once more her brilliant stars, + </div> + <div class="line"> + To burn with an eternal flame. + </div> + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page167" id="page167"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 167]</span> + <h2>ON THE PLAINS.</h2> + <p>The plains is the current designation of the region stretching westward + from Missouri—or rather from the western settlements of Kansas and + Nebraska—to the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains. Part of it is + included under the vague designation of 'the Great American Desert;' but + that title is applicable to a far larger area westward than eastward of the + Rocky Mountains. The Great Basin, whereof Salt Lake is the lowest point, + and the Valley of the Colorado, which skirts it on the east, are mainly + sterile from drouth or other causes—not one acre in each hundred of + their surface being arable without irrigation, and not one in ten capable + of being made productive by irrigation. Arid, naked, or thinly + shrub-covered mountains traverse and chequer those deep yet elevated + valleys, wherein few savages or even wild animals of any size or value were + ever able to find subsistence. Probably that of the Colorado is, as a + whole, the most sterile and forbidding of any valley of equal size on + earth, unless it be that of one of the usually frozen rivers in or near the + Arctic circle. Even Mormon energy, industry, frugality and subservience to + sacerdotal despotism, barely suffice to wrench a rude, coarse living from + those narrow belts and patches of less niggard soil which skirt those + infrequent lakes and scanty streams of the Great Basin which are + susceptible of irrigation; mines alone (and they must be rich ones) can + ever render populous the extensive country which is interposed between the + Rocky Mountains and the Sierra Nevada.</p> + <p>The Plains differ radically from their western counterpoise. They have + no mountains, and very few considerable hills; they are not rocky: in fact, + they are rendered all but worthless by their destitution of rock. In + Kansas, a few ridges, mainly (I believe) of lime, rise to the surface; + beyond these, and near the west line of the new State, stretches a + thin-soiled, rolling sandstone district, perhaps forty miles wide; then + comes the Buffalo range, formerly covering the entire valley of the + Mississippi, and even stretching fitfully beyond the Rocky Mountains, but + now shrunk to a strip hardly more than one hundred and fifty miles in + width, but extending north and south from Texas into the British territory + which embosoms the Red River of the North. Better soil than that of the + Buffalo region west of Kansas is rarely found, though the scarcity of wood, + and the unfitness of the little that skirts the longer and more abiding + streams for any use but that of fuel, must be a great drawback to + settlement and cultivation. The coarse, short, hearty grass that carpets + most of this region, and which is allowed to attain its full growth only in + the valleys of the Chugwater and a few other streams which have their + course mainly within or very near the Rocky Mountains, and which the + Buffalo no longer visit, seems worthy at least of trial by the farmers and + shepherds of our older States. Its ability to resist drouth and + overcropping and hard usage generally must be great, and I judge that many + lawns and pastures would be improved by it. That it has merely held its + ground for ages, in defiance of the crushing tread and close feeding of the + enormous herds of the Plains, proves it a plant of signal hardihood and + tenacity of life; while the favor with which it is regarded by passing + teams and herds combines with its evident abundance of nutriment to render + its intrinsic value unquestionable.</p> + <p>The green traveler or emigrant in early summer has traversed, since he + crossed the Missouri, five hundred miles of almost uniformly arable soil, + most of it richly grassed, with belts of timber skirting its moderately + copious and not unfrequent water-courses, and he very naturally concludes + 'the American Desert' a <a name="page168" id="page168"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 168]</span> misnomer, or at best a gross exaggeration. + But, from the moment of leaving the Buffaloes behind him, the country + begins to <i>shoal</i>, as a sailor might say, growing rapidly sterile, + treeless, and all but grassless. The scanty forage that is still visible is + confined to the immediate banks or often submerged intervales of streams, + though a little sometimes lingers in hollows or ravines where the drifted + snows of winter evidently lay melting slowly till late in the spring. + By-and-by the streams disappear, or are plainly on the point of vanishing; + of living wood there is none, and only experienced plainsmen know where to + look for the fragments of dead trees which still linger on the banks of a + few slender or dried-up brooks, whence sweeping fires or other destructive + agencies long since eradicated all growing timber. The last living, or, + indeed, standing tree you passed was a stunted, shabby specimen of the + unlovely Cotton-wood, rooted in naked sand beside a water-course, and + shielded from prairie-fires by the high, precipitous bank; for, scanty as + is the herbage of the desert, the fierce winds which sweep over it will + yet, especially in late spring or early summer, drive a fire (which has + obtained a start in some fairly grassed vale or nook) through its dead, + tinder-like remains. How far human improvidence and + recklessness—especially that of our own destructive Caucasian + race—has contributed to denude the Plains of the little wood that + thinly dotted their surface at a period not very remote, I can not pretend + to decide; but it is very evident that there are far fewer trees now + standing than there were even one century ago.</p> + <p>Of rocks rising above or nearing the surface, the Plains are all but + destitute; hence their eminent lack first of wood, then of moisture. Your + foot will scarcely strike a pebble from Lawrence to Denver; and the very + few rocky terraces or perpendicular ridges you encounter appear to be a + concrete of sand and clay, hardened to stone by the persistent, petrifying + action of wind and rain. Of other rock, save the sandstone ridges already + noticed, there is none: hence the rivers, though running swiftly, are never + broken by falls; hence the prairie-fires are nowhere arrested by swamps or + marshes; hence the forests, if this region was ever generally wooded, have + been gradually swept away and devoured, until none remain. In fact, from + the river bottoms of the lower Kansas to those of the San Joaquin and + Sacramento, there is no swamp, though two or three miry meadows of + inconsiderable size, near the South Pass, known as 'Ice Springs' and + 'Pacific Springs,' are of a somewhat swampy character. Beside these, there + is nothing approximating the natural meadows of New England, the fenny, + oozy flats of nearly all inhabited countries. Bilious fevers find no + aliment in the dry, pure breezes of this elevated region; but this + exemption is dearly bought by the absence of lakes, of woods, of summer + rains, and unfailing streams.</p> + <p>Vast, rarely-trodden forests are wild and lonely: the cit who plunges + into one, a stranger to its ways, is awed by its gloom, its silence, its + restricted range of vision, its stifled winds, and its generally forbidding + aspect. He may talk bravely and even blithely to his companions, but his + ease and gayety are unnatural: Leatherstocking is at home in the forest, + but Pelham is not, and can not be. On the better portion of the + Plains—say in the heart of the Buffalo region—it is otherwise: + though you are hundreds of miles from a human habitation other than a rude + mail-station tent or ruder Indian lodge, the country wears a subdued, + placid aspect; you rise a gentle slope of two or three miles, and look down + the opposite incline or 'divide,' and up the counterpart of that you have + just traversed, seeing nothing but these gentle, wave-like undulations of + the surface to limit your gaze, which contemplates at once some fifty to + eighty square miles of unfenced, treeless, but green and close-cropped + pasturage; and it is hard to realize that you are out of the pale of + civilization, hundreds of <a name="page169" id="page169"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 169]</span> miles from a decent dwelling-house, and + that the innumerable cattle moving and grazing before you—so + countless that they seem thickly to cover half the district swept by your + vision—are not domestic and heritable—the collected herds of + some great grazing county, impelled from Texas or New Mexico to help subdue + some distant Oregon. It seems a sad waste to see so much good live-stock + ranging to no purpose and dying to no profit: for the roving, migrating + whites who cross the Plains slaughter the buffalo in mere wantonness, + leaving scores of carcasses to rot where they fell, perhaps taking the + tongue and the hump for food, but oftener content with mere wanton + destruction. The Indian, to whom the buffalo is food, clothing, and lodging + (for his tent, as well as his few if not scanty habiliments, is formed of + buffalo-skins stretched over lodge-poles), justly complains of this + shameful improvidence and cruelty. Were <i>he</i> to deal thus with an + emigrant's herd, he would be shot without mercy; why, then, should whites + decimate his without excuse?</p> + <p>Beyond the Buffalo region the Plains are bleak, monotonous, and + solitary. The Antelope, who would be a deer if his legs were shorter and + his body not so stout, is the redeeming feature of the well-grassed plains + next to Kansas, and which recur under the shadow of the Rocky Mountains; + but he is an animal of too much sense to remain in the scantily grassed + desert which separates the buffalo range from the latter. There the lean + Wolf strolls and hunts and starves; there the petty Prairie-Wolf, a + thoroughly contemptible beast, picks up such a dirty living as he may; + while the sprightly, amusing little Prairie-Dog, who is a rather + short-legged gray squirrel, with a funny little yelp and a troglodyte + habitation, lives in villages or cities of from five hundred to five + thousand dens, each (or most of them) tenanted in common with him by a + harmless little Owl and a Rattlesnake of questionable amiability. The Owl + sits by the mouth of the hole till driven away by your approach, when he + follows his confrere's example by diving; the Rattlesnake stays usually + below, to give any prowling, thieving prairie-wolf, or other carnivorous + intruder, the worst of the bargain, should he attempt to dig out the + architect of this subterranean abode. But for this nice little family + arrangement, the last prairie-dog would long since have been unearthed and + eaten. As it is, the rattlesnake gets a den for nothing, while the + prairie-dog sleeps securely under the guardianship of his poison-tongued + confederate. The owl, I presume, either pays <i>his</i> scot by hunting + mice and insects for the general account, or by keeping watch against all + felonious approaches. Even man does not care to dig out such a nest, and + prefers to drown out the inmates by pouring in pail after pail of water + till they have to put in an appearance above ground. The only defense + against this is to construct a prairie-dog town as far as possible from + water, and this is carefully attended to. I heard on the Plains of one + being drowned out by a sudden and overwhelming flood; but of the hundreds I + passed, not one was located where this seemed possible.</p> + <p>Absence of rock in place—that is, of ridges or strata of rock + rising through the soil above or nearly to the surface—has determined + the character not only of the Plains but of much of the roll of the great + rivers east and south of them. Even at the very base of the Rocky + Mountains, the Chugwater shows a milky though rapid current, while the + North Platte brings a considerable amount of earthy sediment from the heart + of that Alpine region. After fairly entering upon the Plains, every stream + begins to burrow and to wash, growing more and more turbid, until it is + lost in 'Big Muddy,' the most opaque and sedimentary of all great rivers. I + suspect that all the other rivers of this continent convey in the aggregate + less earthy matter to the ocean than the Missouri pours into the previously + transparent Mississippi, thenceforth an unfailing testimony that evil + company corrupts and defiles. Louisiana <a name="page170" + id="page170"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 170]</span> is the spoil of the + Plains, which have in process of time been denuded to an average depth of + not less than fifty and perhaps to that of two or three hundred feet. I + passed hills along the eastern base of the Rocky Mountains where this + process is less complete and more active than is usual,—hills which + are the remaining vestiges of a former average level of the plain adjacent, + and which have happened to wear away so steeply and sharply that very + little vegetation ever finds support on their sides, which every rain is + still abrading. At a single point only do I remember a phenomenon presented + by some other mountain bases,—that of a water-course (dry perhaps + half the year, but evidently a heady torrent at times), which had gradually + built up a bed and banks of boulders, pebbles and gravel, washed down from + a higher portion of its headlong course, so that its current, when it had a + current, was considerably above the general surface on either side of it. + Away from the mountains, however, boulders or loose stones of any size are + rarely seen in the beds of even the largest and deepest channeled streams, + which are usually swift, but never broken by a fall, because never down to + the subjacent rock in place, assuming that such rock must be.</p> + <p>In the rare instances of rocky banks skirting the immediate valley of a + stream, the seeming rock is evidently a modern concrete of clay and the + usual sand or gravel composing the soil,—a concrete slowly formed by + the action of sun and rain and wind, on a bank left nearly or quite + perpendicular by the wearing action of the stream. In the neighborhood of + Cheyenne Pass,—say for a distance of fifty to a hundred miles S.S.W. + of Laramie,—this effect is exhibited on the grandest scale in + repeated instances, and in two or three cases for an extent of miles. Along + either bank of the Chugwater, at distances of twenty to forty miles, above + its junction with the Laramie affluent of the North Platte, stretch + perpendicular rocky terraces, thirty to forty feet high, looking, from a + moderate distance, as regular and as artificial as the façade of any + row of city edifices. I did not see 'Chimney Rock,' farther down the + Platte; but I presume that this, too, is a relic of what was once the + average level of the adjacent country, from which all around has been + gradually washed away, while this 'spared monument' has been hardened by + exposure and the action of the elements from earth to enduring rock—a + gigantic natural <i>adobe</i>.</p> + <p>The Plains attest God's wisdom in usually providing surface-rock in + generous abundance as the only reliable conservative force against the + insidious waste and wear of earth by water. Storms, rills, and rivers are + constantly at work to carry off the soil of every island and continent, and + lose it in the depths of seas and oceans. Rock in place impedes this + tendency, by arresting the headlong course of streams, and depositing in + their stiller depths the spoils that the current was hastening away; still + more by the formation of swamps and marshes, which arrest the sweep of + fires, and so protect the youth and growth of trees and forests. An + uninhabited, moderately-rolling or nearly flat country, wherein no ridges + of stubborn rock gave protection to fire-repelling marshes, would gradually + be swept of trees by fires, and converted into prairie or desert.</p> + <p>Life on the Plains—the life of white men, by courtesy termed + civilized—is a rough and rugged matter. I can not concur with J.B. + Ficklin, long a mail-agent ranging from St. Joseph to Salt Lake (now, I + regret to say, a quarter-master in the rebel army), who holds that a man + going on the Plains should never wash his face till he comes off again; but + water is used there for purposes of ablution with a frugality not fully + justified by its scarcity. A 'biled shirt' lasts a good while. I noted some + in use which the dry, fine dust of that region must have been weeks in + bringing to the rigidity and clayey yellow or tobacco-stain hue which they + unchangeably wore during the days that I enjoyed the society of the + wearers. Pilot-bread, a year or so baked, and ever since subjected <a + name="page171" id="page171"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 171]</span> to + the indurating influences of an atmosphere intensely dry, is not + particularly succulent or savory food, and I did not find it improved by + some minutes' immersion in the frying-pan of hot lard from which our + rations of pork had just been turned out; but others of more experience + liked it much. The pork of the Plains is generally poor, composed of the + lightly-salted and half-smoked sides of shotes who had evidently little + personal knowledge of corn. The coffee I did not drink; but, in the absence + of milk, and often of sugar also, and in view of its manufacture by the + rudest and rawest of masculine cooks, I judge that the temptation to + excessive indulgence in this beverage was not irresistible. Most of the + water of the Plains, unlike that of the Great Basin, is pretty good; but as + you near the Rocky Mountains, 'alkali' becomes a terror to man and + beast.</p> + <p>The present Buffalo range will, doubtless, in time, be covered with + civilized herdsmen and their stock; but beyond that to the fairly watered + and timbered vicinity of the Rocky Mountains, settlers will be few and far + between for many generations. What the Plains universally need is a plant + that defies intense protracted drouth, and will propagate itself rapidly + and widely by the aid of winds and streams alone. I do not know that the + Canada thistle could be made to serve a good purpose here, but I suspect it + might. Let the plains be well covered by some such deep-rooting, + drouth-defying plant, and the most of their soil would be gradually + arrested, the quality of that which remains, meliorated, and other plants + encouraged and enabled to attain maturity under its protection. Shrubs + would follow, then trees; until the region would become once more, as I + doubt not it already has been, hospitable and inviting to man. At present, + I can only commend it as very healthful, with a cooling, non-putrefying + atmosphere; and, while I advise no man to take lodgings under the open sky, + still, I say that if one must sleep with the blue arch for his counterpane + and the stars for its embellishments, I know no other region where an + out-door roll in a Mackinaw blanket for a night's rest is less perilous or + more comfortable.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>SEVEN DEVILS:</h2> + <h3>A REMEMBRANCE OF THE ARABIAN NIGHTS.</h3> + <p>Once upon a time—see the Arabian Nights Entertainments—as + the Caliph Haroun Alraschid—blessed be his memory!—walked, + disguised, as was his wont, through the streets of Bagdad, he observed a + young man lashing furiously a beautiful, snow-white mare to the very verge + of cruelty. Coming every day to the same place, and finding the spectacle + repeated, the curiosity of the humane Caliph, was excited to learn the + cause of such treatment. Mr. Rarey had not yet been born; but the Arab + knows, and always has known, how to subdue and to control his steed with + equal skill, without resort to severity. The explanation of this afterwards + appears in that wonderful book.</p> + <p>One Sidi Norman having married, as the custom was, without ever having + seen his bride, was agreeably surprised, when the veil was removed, at + finding her dazzlingly beautiful. He enfolded her in his arms with joy + unspeakable, and so the honeymoon began. Short dream of bliss; she became + capricious at once, and seven devils at least seemed to <a name="page172" + id="page172"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 172]</span> have nestled in her + lovely bosom. Sid was touchy himself, and not the man to bear with such + humors. Every day she sat at his bountiful board, and, instead of partaking + the food which he set before her, she would daintily and mincingly pick out + a few grains of rice with the point of a bodkin. Sid asked her what she + meant by such conduct, and whether his table was not well supplied. To this + she deigned no reply. When she ate no rice, she would choke down a few + crumbs of bread, not enough for a sparrow. His indignation was aroused, but + his curiosity also. He looked daggers; but he was a still man, kept his + counsel to himself, and set himself to study out the solution of this + problem.</p> + <p>One night, when his wife stole away from his side,—she thought he + was asleep, did she?—he followed her with the stealthiness of a cat; + and, oh horrible! tracked her steps to a graveyard, where she began to cut + and carve; and he then discovered, to his great loathing, that he had been + married to a ghoul!</p> + <p>Amina came home after a good feast. Sid was snoring away, apparently in + the profound depths of sleep, hiding away from any Caudle lectures. He was + about as sound asleep as a weasel. Breakfast passed off most charmingly + without a word said by any one; and he walked round to the khan to + scrutinize some figs.</p> + <p>'How does the lady?' said Ben Hadad, sarcastically.</p> + <p>'Very well indeed, I thank you,' replied Sid.</p> + <p>The dinner-bell rang, down they sat, and out came the bodkin. It did + not, however, 'his quietus make.'</p> + <p>'My dear,' he said, smothering up his Arabian fury, 'do you not like + this bill of fare, or does the sight of me take away your taste for food? + Could you obtain a better meal even at the Bagdad St. Nicholas?'</p> + <p>No answer.</p> + <p>'All well,' said he; 'I suppose that this food is not so toothsome to + you as dead men's flesh!'</p> + <p>Thunder and furies! A more dreadful domestic scene was never beheld. The + lovely Amina turned black in the face, her eyes bulged out of her head, she + foamed at the mouth, and, seizing a goblet of water, dashed it into the + face of the unfortunate man.</p> + <p>'Take that,' said she, 'and learn to mind your own business.' Whereupon + he became a dog, and a miserable dog at that.</p> + <p>Many adventures he then had. For full particulars, see the Arabian + Nights. He used to fight for a bone, or lick up a mouthful from a gutter. + He had not the spirit to prick up his ears, or to wag or curl up his tail, + if he had one—for, shortly after his transformation, the end of it + was wedged into a door by his wife, and he was cur-tailed.</p> + <p>Happy is he who gets into trouble by necromancy, who can get out of it + by the same. The devil rarely bolts and unbolts his door for his own + guests. He is not wont to say, 'Walk in, my friend,' and afterward, + 'Good-by.' But it so turned out in the case of Sid Norman, because he had + not been knowingly bewitched; and Mrs. Amina Ghoul Sid Norman learned to + respect the motto, <i>Cave canem!</i></p> + <p>While his canine sufferings lasted, he fell in with various masters, and + nosed about to see if he could substitute reason for instinct, and get + established on two legs again. He looked up wistfully into the faces of + passers-by, as if to say, 'I am not a dog, but the man for whom a large + reward has been offered.' On one occasion, seeing Amina come from a shop + where she had just purchased a Cashmere shawl of great size and value, he + set his teeth like a steel trap, and made a grab at her ankles. But she + recognized him on all fours, with a diabolical grin, and fetching him a + kick with her little foot, caused him to yelp most pitifully. Running under + a little cart which stood in the way, he skinned his teeth, and growled to + himself, 'By the prophet, but I can almost love her again; she + distinguished herself by that kick, which was aimed with infinite <a + name="page173" id="page173"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 173]</span> tact; + it went right to the spot, and struck me like a discharge from a catapult, + drove all the wind out of me, and left an absolute vacuum, as if a + stomach-pump had sucked me out. + Yap—yow—eaow—yeaow—yap—snif—xquiz;' + and, after a good deal of panting and distress, he at last yawned so wide + as nearly to dislocate his jaws, sneezed once or twice, and then trotted + off on three legs, with his half a tail tucked up underneath, and lay down + disconsolate in an ash-hole.</p> + <p>'Oh, how distressing it is,' said he, 'to be bewitched by a bad woman! + It metamorphoses one entirely. He loses all semblance to his former self, + parts with all his reason, no more walks upright, and bids philosophy + adieu. One drop from the cup of her incantations, and the gossamer net-work + which she threw about him is changed into prisonbars, her silken chain into + links of forged iron; strong will is dwindled, and he who on some + 'heaven-kissing hill' stood up to gaze upon the stars, is fit to grovel in + a sty.—Miserable dog! Bow-wow, bow-wow!'</p> + <p>One day, as the story proceeds, Sid's master was offered a base coin in + his shop, when this 'learned dog' at once put his foot upon it, and in fact + put his foot in the bargain.</p> + <p>'Ah, indeed!' said a Bagdad lady, who stood by; 'that's no dog, or, if + he is, the Caliph ought to have him.' So, snapping her fingers slyly as she + went out, he followed her.</p> + <p>'Daughter,' said she to the fair Xarifa, who was working embroidery, 'I + have brought the baker's famous dog that can distinguish money. There is + some sorcery about it.—You have once walked on two legs,' said she, + looking down upon the fawning animal, 'have you not? If so, wag your + tail.'</p> + <p>Sid thumped the floor most furiously with the stump of it, whereupon she + poured liquid into a phial, threw it into his face, and he stood up once + more a man,—Sid Norman, lost and saved by a woman, his eyes beaming + one moment with the tenderest gratitude, but on the next flashing with the + most deadly revenge. Heaven and hell, the one with its joyous sunshine, the + other with its lurid lights, appeared to struggle and mix up their flashes + on Sid Norman's countenance, till gratitude, that rarest grace, was + quenched, and hell triumphed.</p> + <p>'Than all the nectar ever served in golden cups and brewed by houries in + Mahomet's paradise, revenge is sweeter,' he murmured to himself.</p> + <p>'Stay,' said Xarifa, who divined his thoughts; 'you will transform + yourself back again. There will be no transmigration of soul for you, if + you are lost by your own sorcery. Let dogs delight to bark and bite.'</p> + <p>'Hold your tongue, Xarifa,' said the mother, who was not so amiable. + 'The man shall have revenge. Since he has trotted about so long on all + fours, he must be paid for it. It is not revenge, it is sheer justice.'</p> + <p>'True as the Koran,' exclaimed Sid Norman, who was becoming infatuate + again, and would have fallen down at the knees of this new charmer and + worshiped her. The fact is, that he was too easily transformed, and + submitted too quickly to the latest magic; otherwise he would have always + walked erect, instead of wearing fur on his back, and a tail at the end of + it. A coat of tar and feathers would have been a mere circumstance compared + with such an indignity. Well, it was the fault, perhaps it should rather be + called the misfortune, of character.</p> + <p>'Sidi Norman,' said the lady, fixing upon him an amorous glance, 'you + shall not only have revenge, but the richest kind of it. You have a bone to + pick with your wife. She was brought up in the same school of magic that I + was, hence I hate her. She has the secret of the same rouge, and concocts + the same potions and love-filters; but she shall smart for it. Excellent + man! injured husband! Monopolize to yourself all the whip-cords of + Bagdad.'</p> + <p>Sid Norman kneeled and kissed her hand. Xarifa looked up from her + embroidery and frowned.</p> + <a name="page174" id="page174"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 174]</span> + <p>The benefactress withdrew to consult her books, but returned + presently.</p> + <p>'Your wife,' she said, 'has gone out shopping, also to leave some cards, + to fulfil an engagement with the French minister, and to engage a band of + music for an entertainment at which Prince Schearazade is expected to be + present. Wait patiently for her return, then confront her boldly, upbraid + her, toss this liquor in her eyes, and then you shall see what you shall + see.'</p> + <p>Sid Norman went to his late home, which was in the West End, the Fifth + Avenue of Bagdad. He opened the door, but silence prevailed. Costly silks, + and many extravagant and superfluous things, lay strewn about. He sat down + in a rocking-chair and gazed at a full-length portrait of the Haroun + Alraschid.</p> + <p>About noon the lady came in, with six shop clerks after her, bearing + packages, tossed off her head-dress, and flung herself inanimately on the + sofa.</p> + <p>'Ahem,' grunted Sid Norman, who was concealed in the shadow of an + alcove.</p> + <p>Amina looked up. Furies! what an appalling rencontre! She looked as pale + as the corpses which she adored; she would have shrieked, but had no more + voice than a ghost; she would have fled, but was riveted as with the gaze + of a basilisk.</p> + <p>'Dear,' said Sid Norman, with an uxorious smile, 'what ails you? Has the + fast of Kamazan begun? Hardly yet, for this looks more like the carnival. + How much gave you for this Cashmere, my love?'</p> + <p>A great sculptor was Sid Norman, for, without lifting a hand, or using + any other tool than a keen eye and a sharp tongue, he had wrought out + before him, carved as in cold marble, the statue of a beautiful, bad woman. + Such is genius. Such is conscience!</p> + <p>'Mrs. Amina Sidi Ghoul Norman,' proceeded the husband, giving his wife + time to relax a little from her rigor, 'is dinner ready? We want nothing + but a little rice. Set on only two plates, a knife and fork for me, and a + <i>bodkin</i> for you, if you please, madam.'</p> + <p>(<i>A symptom of hysterics, checked by a nightmare inability of + action</i>.)</p> + <p>'Have you nothing to say? Is thy servant a dog? Why have you wrought + this deviltry? Take that.'</p> + <p>Therewith he flung some liquid in her face, and the late fashionable + lady of Bagdad became a mare. Sid seized a cow-skin, and laid on with a + will.</p> + <p>'You may now cut up as many capers as you please,' said he, reining her + in with a bit and bridle, and cutting her with the whip until the blood + rolled. 'To-morrow you may go to grass in the graveyard.'</p> + <p>Every day he made a practice of lashing her around the square, if + possible, to get the devil out of her. When the Caliph Haroun Alraschid + learned the true cause of such conduct, he remarked that it was punishment + enough to be transformed into a beast; and, while the stripes should be + remitted, still he would not have the woman to assume her own shape again, + as she would be a dangerous person in his good city of Bagdad.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>The moral of this tale of sorcery, which is equal to any in Æsop's + Fables, may be drawn from a posthumous letter which was found among the + papers of Sidi Norman, and is as follows:—</p> + <blockquote> + 'TO BEN HADAD, SON OF BEN HADAD. + </blockquote> + <p>'You, who stand upon the verge of youth,—for that is the age, and + there is the realm, of genii, fairies, and wild 'enchantments,—learn + wisdom from the said story of Sidi Norman.</p> + <p>'I was brought up to respect the laws of God and the prophet. When I + came to marriageable age, and, "unsight, unseen," was induced to espouse + the veiled Amina, it was, as we say in Bagdad, like "buying a pig in a + poke," although rumor greatly magnified her charms, and a secret + inclination prompted me. I longed eagerly for the wedding-day; and when her + face was revealed to conjugal eyes, methought <a name="page175" + id="page175"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 175]</span> that Mahomet had + sent down a houri from his paradise. Yet I found out, to my cost, that a + little knowledge of a woman is worse than ignorance, and that the blinding + light of beauty hides the truth more than the thick veil of darkness. Oh, + her bosom was white as the snows of Lebanon, and her eyes were like those + of the dear gazelle. Cheeks had she as red as the Damascus rose, and a halo + encircled her like that of the moon. Her smiles were sunshine, her lips + dropped honey. I thought I saw upon her shoulders the cropping out of + angelic wings. I sought out the carpets of Persia for the soft touch of her + tiny feet, and hired all the lutes of Bagdad to be strung in praise of my + beloved. I sent plum-cake to the newspapers, and placed a costly fee in the + hand of the priest. Oh, blissful moments! But I purchased hell with them, + for she began to lead me a dog's life. She had no taste for home, no + appetite for healthful food; she ran me into debt, hated my friends, loved + my enemies, and changed her soft looks into daggers to stab me with. Her + bloom became blight; her lips oozed out poison, and she dabbled in corrupt + things. I tracked her footsteps from my sacred couch as they led to the + very brink of the grave.</p> + <p>'O, my son, beware of your partner in the dance of life; for, as Mahomet + used to say, in his jocular moods, 'those who will dance must pay the + fiddler.' To be tied, forever, for better, for worse, to such a + —— as Amina Ghoul, is to be transformed in one's whole nature. + It is the transmigration of a soul from amiability to peevishness, from + activity to discouragement, from love to hate, and from high-souled + sentiment to the dog-kennel of humility. Go thou, and don't do + likewise.</p> + <p>'Woe is me! Who takes one wrong step, gets out of it by another; and so + I went on from enchantment to enchantment, and fell out of the frying-pan + into the fire. If I stood erect, and no longer groveled, if I was not any + more a beast, I became like the devils which possessed them. So did I + scourge and lash the object of my hatred with feelings of the deadliest + revenge.</p> + <p>'Oh, my Ben Hadad, presume not from my ultimate escape. If I have ceased + to snap and snarl and growl,—if I now, in the decline of life, pursue + the even tenor of my way,—if I have been redeemed from snares, and + learned even to forgive my enemies, it is because the fair Xarifa + represented my better nature, and that has triumphed because I took counsel + of her. Farewell, my son, and, in the pilgrimage of life, reflect upon the + dear-bought experience of SIDI NORMAN.'</p> + <hr /> + <h2>'WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH US?'</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + What will we do with you, if God + </div> + <div class="line"> + Should give you over to our hands, + </div> + <div class="line"> + To pass in turn beneath the rod, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And wear at last the captive's bands?' + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'What will we do?' Our very best + </div> + <div class="line"> + To make of each a glorious State, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Worthy to match with North and West,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Free, vigorous, beautiful and great! + </div> + <div class="line"> + As God doth live, as Truth is true, + </div> + <div class="line"> + We swear we'll do all this to you. + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page176" id="page176"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 176]</span> + <h2>JAMES RUSSELL LOWELL.</h2> + <p>A late <i>National Review</i> asserts with true English shrewdness that + American literature is yet to be born,—that it has scarcely a + substantive existence. 'Its best works,' says this modern Scaliger, 'are + scarcely more than a promise of excellence; the precursors of an advent; + shadows cast before, and, like most shadows, they are too vague and + ill-defined, too fluctuating and easily distorted into grotesque forms, to + enable us to discriminate accurately the shape from which they are + flung.... The truth is, that American literature, apart from that of + England, has no separate existence.... The United States have yet to sign + their intellectual Declaration of Independence: they are mentally still + only a province of this country.' With a gallantry too characteristic to be + startling, a discernment that does all honor to his taste, and a coolness + highly creditable to his equatorial regions of discussion, the critic + continues by assuring his readers that Washington Irving was not an + American. He admits that by an accident, for which he is not responsible, + this beloved scholar, writer and gentleman claimed our country as his + birthplace, and even, perhaps, had a 'full appetite to this place of his + kindly ingendure,' but informs us he was an undeniable contemporary of + Addison and Steele, a veritable member of the Kit-Cat Club. We may + reasonably anticipate that the next investigation of this penetrative + ethnologist may result in the appropriation to us of that fossil of + nineteenth-century literature, Martin Farquhar Tupper, an intellectual + <i>quid pro quo</i>, which will doubtless be received gratefully by a + public already supposed to be lamenting the unexpected loss of its + co-nationality with Irving.</p> + <p>What species of giant the watchful affection of Motherland awaits in a + literature whose unfledged bantlings are Cooper, Emerson, Holmes, Motley + and Lowell, our imagination does not attempt to depict. We venture, + however, to predict that the <i>National Review</i> will not be called upon + to stand sponsor for the bairn, whose advent it so pleasantly announces, + and for whose christening should be erected a cathedral more vast than St. + Peter's, a temple rarer than that of Baalbec. But while our sensitive + cousin across the water would pin us down to a <i>credo</i> as absurd as + that of Tertullian, and hedge us in with the adamantine wall of his own + lordly fiat, let us, who fondly hope we have a literature, whose principal + defect—a defect to which the one infallible remedy is daily applied + by the winged mower—is youth, inquire into its leading + characteristics, seeing if haply we may descry the elements of a golden + maturity.</p> + <p>It has been asserted that we are a gloomy people; it is currently + reported that the Hippocrene in which of old the Heliconian muses bathed + their soft skins, is now fed only with their tears; that instead of + branches of luxuriant olive, these maidens, now older grown and wise, + present to their devout adorers twigs of suggestive birch and thorny + staves, by whose aid these mournful priests wander gloomily up and down the + rugged steeps of the past. We have begun to believe that our writers are + afflicted with a sort of myopy that shuts out effectually sky and star and + sea, and sees only the pebbles and thistles by the dusty roadside. Truly, + the prospect is at first disheartening. The great Byron, who wept in + faultless metre, and whose aristocratic maledictions flow in graceful waves + that caress where they mean to stifle, has so poisoned our 'well of English + undefiled,' that wise men now drink from it warily, and only after repeated + filterings and skillful analyses by the Boerhaaves of the press. And Poe, + who, with all the great poet's faults, possessed none of his few genial + features, has painted the fatal skull and cross-bones upon our banners, <a + name="page177" id="page177"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 177]</span> that + should own only the oriflamme. Yet it is Poe whom the English critic honors + as exceeding all our authors in intensity, and approaching more nearly to + genius than they all.</p> + <p>Now may St. Loy defend us! At the proposition of Poe's intensity we do + not demur. All of us who have shrieked in infancy at the charnel-house + novelettes of imprudent nurses, shivered in childhood at the mysterious + abbeys and concealed tombs of Anne Radcliffe, or rushed in horror from the + apparition of the dead father of the Archivarius of Hoffman, tumbling his + wicked son down stairs in the midst of the onyx quarrel, will willingly and + with trembling fidelity bear witness to the intensity of Poe. He was indeed + our Frankenstein (of whom many prototypes do abound), wandering in the + Cimmerian regions of thought, the graveyards of the mind, and veiling his + monstrous creations with the filmy drapery of rhyme and the mists of a + perverted reason. In his sad world eternal night reigns and the sun is + never seen.</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Tristis Erinnys, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Prætulit infaustas sanguinolenta faces,' + </div> + </div> + <p>by whose red light awed audiences see the fruit of his labors.</p> + <p>But what right has he to a place in our van, who never asked our + sympathy, whose every effort was but to widen the gulf between him and his + fellow-man, whose sword was never drawn in defence of the right? Genius! + The very word is instinct with nobility and heartiness. Genius clasps hands + with true souls everywhere: it wakes the chord of brotherhood in rude + hearts in hovels, and quickens the pulses under the purple and ermine of + palaces. It has a smile for childhood and a reverent tone for white-haired + age. Its clasp takes in the frail flower bending from slender stems and the + stars in their courses. There is laughter in its soul, and a huge + banquet-table there to which all are welcome. And to us, on its borders, + come the summer-breath of Pæstum roses and the aroma of the rich red + wine of Valdepeñas; and there toasts are given to the past and to + the future, for genius knows no nation nor any age. It sparkles along the + current of history, and under its warm smile deserts blossom like the + rose.</p> + <p>And Poe? With a mind neither well balanced nor unprejudiced, and an + imagination that mistook the distorted fantasies of a fevered brain for the + pure impulses of some mysterious muse, and gave the reins to coursers that + even Phaeton would have feared to trust, he can only excite our pity where + he desires our admiration. <i>Qui non dat quod amat, non accipit ille quod + optat</i>, was an inscription on an old chequer-board of the times of Henry + II. And what did Poe love? Truth shrugs her shoulders, but forbears to + answer,—Himself. His were the vagaries of genius without its + large-hearted charities; its nice discrimination without its honesty of + purpose; its startling originality without its harmonious proportions; its + inevitable errors without its persevering energies. He acknowledged no + principle; he was actuated by no high aim; he even busied himself—as + so many of the unfortunate great have done—with no chimera. From a + mind so highly cultured, an organization so finely strung, we expected the + rarest blossoms, the divinest melodies. The flowers lie before us, mere + buds, from which the green calyx of immaturity has not yet curled, and in + whose cold heart the perfume is not born; the melodies vibrate around us, + matchless in mechanism, wondrous in miraculous accord, but as destitute of + the <i>soul</i> of harmony as the score of Beethoven's sonata in A flat to + unlearned eyes. If his analyses and criticisms are keen and graceful, they + are unreliable and contradictory, for he was often influenced by private + piques, and unpardonable egotism, and the opinions of those whose favor he + courted. He was Byron without Byron's wonderful perceptions of nature, + Byron's consciousness of the good.</p> + <p>And is it from a genius like this that our literature has taken its + tone? Heaven forbid! Wee Apollos there may be, 'the little Crichtons of the + hour,' who twist about their brows the cypress sprays that have fallen from + this perverted poet's <a name="page178" id="page178"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 178]</span> wreath, and fancy themselves crowned with + the laurel of a nation's applause. But these men are not types of our + literature. The truly great mind is never molded by the idol of a day, a + clique, a sect. Pure-hearted and strong the man must be whose hands take + hold of the palaces of the world's heart, who grasps the spirit of the + coming time. Errors may be forgiven, vices may be forgotten, where only a + noble aim has influenced, as a true creative genius gleamed.</p> + <p>But larger constellations have appeared in our literary sky, that burn + with undimmed lustre even beside that great morning star that rose above + the horizon of the Middle Ages. Historians we have, with all of Chaucer's + truthfulness and luxuriance of expression, and poets with his fresh + tendernesses, his flashing thoughts, and exquisite simplicity of heart. And + perhaps, if we inquire for the distinguishing features of our literature, + we shall discover them to be the strength and cheerfulness so pre-eminently + the characteristics of Chaucer, which we have so long been accustomed to + deny to ourselves. Observe the stately but flowing periods of Motley; his + polished courtliness of style, the warm but not exaggerated coloring of his + descriptions, the firm but never ungraceful outlines of his sketches of + character that mark him the Michael Angelo among historians. In his + brilliant imagery, his splendid scholarship, his fine analytical power, he + is not surpassed by Macaulay, while he far exceeds him in + impartiality,—that diamond of the historian,—and in his keen + comprehension of the great motive-principles of the age which he describes. + Neither are Prescott, Bancroft, or Irving inferior to Gibbon, Hume, or + Robertson.</p> + <p>And over and through our poetry blow fresh and inspiring the winds from + our own vast prairies. Those names, few, but honorable, that have become as + household words among us, are gilded, not with the doubtful lustre of a + moonlit sentimentality, but with the real gold of day-dawn. If they are + few, let it be remembered that we are now but first feeling our manhood, + trying our thews and sinews, and must needs stop to wonder a little at the + gradual development of our unsuspected powers. The most of our great men + have been but stalwart mechanics, busied with the machinery of government, + using intellect as a lever to raise ponderous wheels, whereon our chariot + may run to Eldorado. We have a right to be proud of our poets; their verses + are the throbs of our American heart. And if we do but peer into their + labyrinth of graceful windings and reach their Chrimhilde Rose-garden, we + shall find it begirt with the strong, fighting men of humor. This element + lurks under many a musical strophe and crowns many a regal verse. And yet + in real humorous poetry we have been sadly deficient. Only of late years + have the constant lions by the gate begun to rouse from their strong + slumber, to shake their tawny manes, and rumble out a warning of their + future prowess.</p> + <p>Nor is it strange that we, who were scarcely an organized people, should + have lacked this great witness to the vitality and stability of a race. The + features of a national character must be marked and prominent, and a strong + sense of a national individuality be developed, before that last, best + faculty of man is aroused, and leaps forth to maturity in verse. The one + magnificent trait of true humorous poetry is, that in its very nature it is + incapable of trivialities. It must grasp as its key-note some vast truth, + must grapple with some great injustice, must hurl its lances at some + wide-spread prejudice, or toy with the tangles of some mighty Nærea's + hair. Undines and satyrs, cupids and merry fauns, may spring laughing from + under the artist's hand, but it is from the unyielding marble that these + slender children of his mirthful hours are carved. It was not in her + infancy that Rome produced her Juvenal. Martial and Plautus caricatured the + passions of humanity after Carthage had been destroyed and Julius + Cæsar had made of his tomb a city of palaces. Aristophanes wrote when + Greece had her Parthenon and had boasted her Pericles. <a name="page179" + id="page179"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 179]</span> France had given + birth to Richelieu when Molière assumed the sack, and England had + sustained the Reformation and conquered the land of the Cid when Butler, + with his satires, shaking church and state, appeared before her king. So + with America. It was not until wrongs were to be redressed, and unworthy + ambitions to be checked, that the voice of LOWELL'S scornful laughter was + heard in the land, piercing, with its keen cadences and mirth-provoking + rhyme, the policy of government and the ghostly armor of many a spectral + faith and ism.</p> + <p>True, we had the famous 'Hasty Pudding' of Joel Barlow, the 'Terrible + Tractoration' of Fessenden, and Halleck's 'Fanny,' but these were mere + <i>jeux</i>, gallant little histories, over which we laughed and <i>voila + le tout!</i> And our Astolfo, Holmes, flying by on his winged horse, sends + down now and then</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'His arrowes an elle long + </div> + <div class="line"> + With pecocke well ydight,' + </div> + </div> + <p>which we gather, and our fair dames weave into brilliant fans that + flutter and snap in many a gay assembly, and whose myriad eyes of blue and + purple smile with irresistible mirthfulness into the most hostile + countenances. Still Holmes apparently likes best the unrestrained freedom + of prose. His genius delights in periods finished after its own + heart,—pyramidal, trapezoidian, isoscelesian, rhomboidical. But + Lowell's genius is infinitely pliable, accommodating itself without + hesitation to the arbitrary requirements of the Sieur Spondee, and laughing + in the face of the halting Dactyl. His Birdofredom could, we doubt not, + sail majestically in the clouds of a stately hexameter, make the + aristocratic Alexandrine cry for quarter, and excel the old Trouveurs in + the <i>Rime équivoquée</i>. From the quiet esteem which his + early poems and essays had won for him, he leaped at once into the high + tide of popularity, and down its stream</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Went sailing with vast celerity,' + </div> + </div> + <p>with the 'Biglow Papers' for his sail. This work electrified the public. + It pierced the crust of refinement and intelligence, and roused the latent + laughter of its heart. Even newsboys chuckled with delight over its caustic + hits at the powers that were, against which, with the characteristic + precocity of Young America, each had his private individual spite; while + they found in its peculiar phraseology a mine of fun. Patriots rejoiced + that one vigilant thinker dared stand guard over our national honor, with + the two-edged sword of satire in his hand. Men in authority, at whom the + shafts of its scathing rebukes were leveled, writhed on their cushions of + state, while, in sheer deference to his originality and humor, they laughed + with the crowd at—themselves. And in sooth it was a goodly sight, the + young scholar, who had hitherto only dabbled delicately with the treasures + of poetry, whose name was a very synonym for elegance and the repose of a + genial dignity, whom we suspected of no keen outlooks into the practical + world of to-day,—to see this man suddenly flashing into the dusty + arena, with indignation rustling through his veins and breathing more + flame</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Than ten fire-kings could swallow,' + </div> + </div> + <p>scorching with his burning words, which an inimitable carelessness made + doubly effective, the willful absurdities of government and the palpable + wrongs of society, to question which had seemed before almost a heresy. But + Lowell's humor was the chrism, snatching together parallels whose apparent + inequalities, yet real justice, were powerfully convincing. He never sought + the inconsistencies of his subject, they flocked to meet him uninvited. And + his infinite cheerfulness, his freedom, even in his most daring onslaughts, + from ill-nature, these were the influences meet,</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'That bowed our hearts like barley bending.' + </div> + </div> + <p>Scarcely did we know our knight in his new armor. Off with the hauberk + and visor, down with the glittering shield of his mediæval crusade, + and, lo! with his hand on the plow and his eyes on the fair fields of his + own New England, our country boy sings his <i>Ave Aquila!</i> while other + men are rubbing the sunbeams of <a name="page180" id="page180"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 180]</span> of the new-born day into their sleepy + eyes.</p> + <p>And it was not alone in our own country that this newly developed phase + of our poet's genius was acknowledged and applauded. Says a British Review, + with an admiration whose reservations are unfortunately too just to be + disputed: 'All at once we have a batch of small satirists,—Mr. Bailey + at their head,—in England, and one really powerful satirist in + America, namely, Mr. J.R. Lowell, whose "Biglow Papers" we most gladly + welcome as being not only the best volume of satires since the + Anti-Jacobin, but also the first work of real and efficient poetical genius + which has reached us from the United States. We have been under the + necessity of telling some unpleasant truths about American literature from + time to time, and it is with hearty pleasure that we are now able to own + that the Britishers have been for the present utterly and apparently + hopelessly beaten by a Yankee in one important department of poetry. In the + United States, social and political evils have a breadth and tangibility + which are not at present to be found in the condition of any other + civilized country. The "peculiar domestic institution," the fillibustering + tendencies of the nation, the charlatanism which is the price of political + power, are butts for the shafts of the satirist, which European poets may + well envy Mr. Lowell. We do not pretend to affirm that the evils of + European society may not be as great in their own way as those which affect + the credit of the United States, with the exception, of course, of slavery, + which makes American freedom deservedly the laughing-stock of the world; + but what we do say is, that the evils in point have a boldness and + simplicity which our more sophisticated follies have not, and that a + hundred years hence Mr. Lowell's Yankee satires will be perfectly + intelligible to every one.'</p> + <p>The predictions of the English reviewer are fulfilled already. The + prescribed century has not elapsed, and in a decade the 'Yankee satires' + are comprehended as perhaps even their author failed to comprehend as he + created them. There is something positively startling and uncanny in his + prophetic insight into the passions that have attained their majority in + this present year of grace,—passions that,</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Like aconite, where'er they spread, they kill.' + </div> + </div> + <p>He does not approach with the old show of superstitious reverence the + altar of our vaunted destiny, where men have sung their + in-secula-seculorums, while pagans at the chancel rail have been + distributing to infidel hordes the relics of their holiest saints, and + threatening the very fane itself with fire. Mere words will never strike + him dumb. He does not bow to the shadow of Justice or kneel with the + ignorant and unsuspicious at the shrine of every plausible Madonna by the + roadside. Hear him on the constitutional pillars that heaven and earth are + now moved to keep in place, and let us commiserate what must now be the + distracting dread of Increse D. O'Phace, Esquire, lest some Samson in blind + revenge entomb himself in the ruins of the Constitution.</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Wy, all o' them grand constitootional pillers, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Our four fathers fetched with 'em over the billers, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Them pillers the people so soundly hev slept on, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Wile to slav'ry, invasion an' debt they were swept on, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Wile our destiny higher an' higher kep mountin' + </div> + <div class="line"> + (Though I guess folks'll stare wen she hands her account in). + </div> + <div class="line"> + Ef members in this way go kickin' agin 'em, + </div> + <div class="line"> + They won't hev so much ez a feather left in em.' + </div> + </div> + <p>Not less wonderful than his penetration into political affairs is + Lowell's command of the pure Yankee dialect. His knowledge of it is + perfect; he elevates it to the dignity of a distinct tongue, having its own + peculiar etymology, and only adopting the current rules of prosody in + tender consideration for its thousands of English readers. There is, + however, we are tolerably assured, a certain class of critics who venture + to lament that this laughter-inspiring muse should have descended from the + sunny Parnassus of its own vernacular to the meads below, where disport the + unlearned and uninspired, <a name="page181" id="page181"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 181]</span> the mere kids and lambs of its celestial + audience: a generous absurdity, at which the very Devil of Delphos might + have demurred. These are the dapper gentlemen, who, tripping gayly along to + the blasts and tinklings of Lanner's Waltzes, would judge every man's + intellect by the measure of their own. Know, oh dwarfed descendants of + Procustes, that the quality of humor is not strained, but droppeth as the + gentle dew from heaven; and if, after patient blending with grains of + intolerance and egotism, in the mortar of your minds, it seems to you but + that poisonous foam that of old sorcerers drew, by their incantations, from + the moon, we can only smile with Voltaire at your 'foolish ingenuities,' + and recommend to you a new career. 'Go pype in an ivy lefe,' Monsieur + Mustard-seed, or 'blow the bukkes' horne.'</p> + <p>It is no trifling merit in a work of so extraordinary a character that + the original programme should have been so perfectly carried out. The poet + never relaxes, even into a Corinthian elegance of allusion; his metaphors + are always fresh and ungarnished; they no more shine with the polish of the + court than do those of Panurge. In fact, there is a flavor of the camp + about them, a pleasant suspicion, and more than a suspicion, of life in the + open air, the fresh smell of the up-turned earth, the odor of clover + blossoms. The poet is walking in the <i>fresco</i>, and the sharp winds cut + a pathway across every page. Equally remarkable and pervaded by a most + delightful personality are the editorial lucubrations of the Rev. Homer + Wilbur. The very lustre of the midnight oil shines upon their glittering + fragments of philosophy, admirably twisted to suit the requirements of an + eminently unphilosophical age; moral axioms from heathen writers applied + judiciously to the immoral actions of Christian doers; distorted shadows of + a monstrous political economy, and dispassionate and highly commendable + views '<i>de propagandâ fide</i>.' Like Johnson,</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'He forced Latinisms into his line, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Like raw undrilled recruits,' + </div> + </div> + <p>that have yet done immense service in his conflicts with the enemy. This + pedantry, so inimitable, is unequaled even by the most weighty pages of the + 'Pseudodoxia Epidemica' of Sir Thomas Browne. That it should prove + obnoxious to some critics only testifies to its perfection and their own + incapacity for enjoyment. If a man does not relish the caviare and truffles + at a dinner, he does not question the wisdom of his Lucullus in providing + them; the fault is in his own palate, not in the judgment of his host. The + aggrieved individuals, who are either too weak or too indolent to scale the + numberless peaks of Lowell's genius, may comfort themselves with the + reflection that the treasures of their minds will never be tesselated into + the mosaic of any satirist's fancy, for in them can abound only emptiness + and cobwebs—as saith the Staphyla of Plautus:—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Nam hic apud nos nihil est aliud qua sti furibus, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Ita inaniis sunt oppletæ atque araneis.' + </div> + </div> + <p>Caricatures have never been disdained by the greatest minds. They were + rather the healthful diversion of their leisure hours. Even the stern and + rugged-natured artist, Annibale Caracci, was famous for his humorous + inventions, and the good Leonardo da Vinci esteemed them as most useful + exercises. We all remember the group of the Laocoon that Titian sketched + with apes, and those whole humorous poems in lines found in Herculaneum, + where Anchises and Æneas are represented with the heads of apes and + pigs. Lessing even tells us in his Laocoon that in Thebes the rage for + these <i>caricatura</i> was so great that a law was passed forbidding the + production of any work conflicting with the severe and absolute laws of + beauty.</p> + <p>In quite another vein, yet transfused with the same irrepressible mirth, + we have Lowell's 'Fable for Critics,' which, with its 'preliminary notes + and few candid remarks to the reader,' is a literary curiosity whose + parallel we have not in any work by an American author. It is all one merry + outburst of youth and health, and music and poetry, with the spice of <a + name="page182" id="page182"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 182]</span> a + criticism so rare and genial, that one could almost court dissection at his + hands, for the mere exquisitely epicurean bliss of an artistic euthanasia. + It is genius on a frolic, coquetting with all the Graces, and unearthing + men long since become gnomes,</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'In that country + </div> + <div class="line"> + Where are neither stars nor meadows,' + </div> + </div> + <p>to join in his merry carousing. They float on floods of Chian and moor + their barks under 'hills of spice.' What golden wine of inspiration has our + poet drunk, whose flush is on his brow and its fire in his veins? For every + sentence of this poem is aglow with vigor and life and power;</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Its feeldes have een and its woodes have eeres.' + </div> + </div> + <p>And if he sometimes stumbles over a metre or lets his private + friendships and preferences run away with his cool discretion and judgment, + why, <i>bonus dormitat Homerus</i>, let us, like the miser Euclio, be + thankful for the good the gods vouchsafe us. Taken in themselves and + without regard to their poetical surroundings, no more comprehensive, + faithful, concise portraitures of our authors have ever been produced. They + unite in the highest degree candor and justice, and there is withal a tone + so kindly and a wit so pure, that we almost believe him to be describing a + community of brothers affiliated by the close ties of deep mutual + appreciation. He flings his diamonds of learning upon the page, and we + recognize the scholar whom no extravagance in knowledge can make bankrupt. + We seem to have come by rare chance upon one of those wardrobes of the + early kings, wherein are all savory treasures,—the rose and violet + colored sugars of Alexandria, sweet almonds, and sharp-toothed ginger. We + pardon his puns, indeed we believe them to be inevitable, the flash of the + percussion cap, the sparks of electricity, St. Elmo's stars, phosphorescent + gleams, playing over the restless ocean of his fruitful imagination. And we + are persuaded that if the venerable Democritus (who was uncanonized only + because the Holy See was still wavering, an anomalous body, in + <i>Weissnichtwo</i>, and who existed forty days on the mere sight of bread + and honey) had been regaled with the piquant delicacies of Lowell's picture + of a Critic, he might have continued unto this present. It is a satire so + pleasantly constructed, so full of palpable hits at the 'musty dogmas' of + the day, so rich in mirthful allusion, and with such a generously + insinuated tribute to the true and earnest-hearted critic, that we know not + which most to admire, the sketch, or the soul whence it emanated. The + following description of a 'regular heavy reviewer' is complete:</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'And here I must say he wrote excellent articles + </div> + <div class="line"> + On the Hebraic points, or the force of Greek particles, + </div> + <div class="line"> + They filled up the space nothing else was prepared for; + </div> + <div class="line"> + And nobody read that which nobody cared for; + </div> + <div class="line"> + If any old book reached a fiftieth edition, + </div> + <div class="line"> + He could fill forty pages with safe erudition; + </div> + <div class="line"> + He could gauge the old books by the new set of rules, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And his very old nothings pleased very old fools. + </div> + <div class="line"> + But give him a new book fresh out of the heart, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And you put him at sea without compass or chart,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + His blunders aspired to the rank of an art; + </div> + <div class="line"> + For his lore was engraft, something foreign that grew in him, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Exhausting the sap of the native, and true in him, + </div> + <div class="line"> + So that when a man came with a soul that was new in him, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Carving new forms of truth out of Nature's old granite, + </div> + <div class="line"> + New and old at their birth, like Le Verrier's planet, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Which, to get a true judgment, themselves must create + </div> + <div class="line"> + In the soul of their critic the measure and weight, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Being rather themselves a fresh standard of grace, + </div> + <div class="line"> + To compute their own judge and assign him his place, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Our reviewer would crawl all about it and round it, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And reporting each circumstance just as he found it, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Without the least malice—his record would be + </div> + <div class="line"> + Profoundly æsthetic as that of a flea, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Which, supping on Wordsworth, should print, for our sakes, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Recollections of nights with the Bard of the Lakes, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Or, borne by an Arab guide, venture to render a + </div> + <div class="line"> + General view of the ruins of Denderah.' + </div> + </div> + <a name="page183" id="page183"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 183]</span> + <p>He draws with a few strokes of his magical charcoal a sharp silhouette + of Brownson upon the wall of our waiting curiosity, fills in his sketch of + Parker with a whole wilderness of classical shades, disposes of Willis with + a kiss and a blow, gives pages of sharp pleasantries to Emerson, pays a + graceful tribute to Whittier, and Hawthorne,—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'His strength is so tender, his wildness so meek, + </div> + <div class="line"> + That a suitable parallel sets one to seek,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + He's a John Bunyan Fouqué, a Puritan Tieck; + </div> + <div class="line"> + When Nature was shaping him, clay was not granted + </div> + <div class="line"> + For making so full-sized a man as she wanted, + </div> + <div class="line"> + So to fill out her model, a little she spared + </div> + <div class="line"> + From some finer-grained stuff for a woman prepared, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And she could not have hit a more excellent plan + </div> + <div class="line"> + For making him fully and perfectly man.' + </div> + </div> + <p>Turning backward from these evidences of Lowell's ripening powers to his + early poems, astonishment at his versatility is the first emotion produced. + It is hard to believe that the 'Biglow Papers' slid from under the hand + that wrote the 'Prometheus' and the 'Legend of Brittany.' His genius + flashes upon us like a certain flamboyant style of poetic + architecture—the flowing, flame-like curves of his humor blending + happily with the Gothic cusps of veneration for the old, with quaint + ivy-leaves, green and still rustling under the wind and rain, springing + easily out of its severer lines. What resistless magic is there in the + fingers whose touch upon the same rich banks of keys, summons solemn, + vibrant peals as of Beethoven's grandest fugues, endless harmonies as of + the deep seas, and the light and graceful fantasies of Rossini, which are + as the glad sunshine upon their waves. Truly the poet's gift is a divine + and an awful one. His heart must needs be proud and humble too, who is + claimed as nearer of kin than a brother by myriads of stranger souls, each, + perhaps, owning its separate creed, and in whose unspoken prayers his name + is ever present. In his 'Conversations on some of the old Poets,' we + discover the alembic through which his crude opinions, his glowing + impulses, his exquisitely minute discrimination were distilled;—the + old poets, to whom the heart turns ever lovingly as to the wide west at + eve. They were the nursing mothers of his intellectual infancy, and it is + probably to his reverent but not blind esteem for them, his earnest study + of them, not merely as poets, but as men, citizens, and friends, that much + of the buoyancy and vigor of his poetry is to be attributed. The + 'Conversations' themselves are alive with that enthusiasm and sympathetic + inquiry that disproves the false saying of the Parisian Aspasia of + Landor—'Poets are soon too old for mutual love.' They are the warm + photographs of feeling as it bubbles from a burning heart; sometimes burned + over-deep, with a leaning to fanaticism, but with so much of the generosity + and justice of maturity in their decisions that these necessary errors of + an ardent youth are overlooked, and the more as they have disappeared + almost entirely from the productions of later years. He betrays in his + quick conception of an author's mood and meaning a delicacy so extreme, an + organization so nervously alive to beauties and discords, and a religious + sentiment so cultured to the last degree of feeling, that we dread lest we + shall encounter the weakness, morbidness or bigotry that naturally results + from the contact of such a soul with the passions of everyday life, + recalling the oft-quoted '<i>Medio in fonte leporum</i>'—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'In the bowl where pleasures swim, + </div> + <div class="line"> + The bitter rises to the brim, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And roses from the veriest brake + </div> + <div class="line"> + May press the temples till they ache.' + </div> + </div> + <p>But among the roses of his criticisms we look in vain for thorns. In + style, it is true, these essays are halting and unequal. His adoption of + the colloquial form for the expression of opinion to the public has never + seemed to us remarkably felicitous, in spite of its venerable precedents. + Where his imagery becomes lofty and his flow of thought should be + continuous, we are indignant at its sudden arrest, and involuntarily devote + the intruder to a temporary bungalow in Timbuctoo.</p> + <a name="page184" id="page184"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 184]</span> + <p>It is refreshing to lose the moony Tennysonian sensuousness which + induced, with Lowell's vigorous imagination, the blank artificiality of + style which was visible in several of his early poems. There was a + tendency, too, to the Byzantine liberty of gilding the bronze of our common + words, a palpable longing after the <i>ississimus</i> of Latin adjectives, + of whose softness our muscular and variegated language will not admit. Mr. + Lowell's Sonnets, too, we could wish unwritten, not from any defect in + their construction, but from a fancied want of congeniality between their + character and his own. In spite of its Italian origin, the sonnet always + seems to demand the severest classical outlines, both in spirit and + expression, calm and steadfastly flowing without ripples or waves, a poem + cut in the marble of stately cadences that imprison some vast and divine + thought. Lowell is too elastic, impulsive, for a sonneteer. But considered + apart from our peculiar ideas of the sonnet, the following is full of a + very tender beauty:—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'I ask not for those thoughts that sudden leap + </div> + <div class="line"> + From being's sea, like the isle-seeming Kraken, + </div> + <div class="line"> + With whose great rise the ocean all is shaken, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And a heart-tremble quivers through the deep; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Give me that growth which some perchance deem sleep, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Wherewith the steadfast coral-stems uprise, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Which by the toil of gathering energies + </div> + <div class="line"> + Their upward way into clear sunshine keep, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Until, by Heaven's sweetest influences, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Slowly and slowly spreads a speck of green + </div> + <div class="line"> + Into a pleasant island in the seas, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Where, 'mid tall palms, the cave-roofed home is seen + </div> + <div class="line"> + And wearied men shall sit at sunset's hour, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Hearing the leaves and loving God's dear power.' + </div> + </div> + <p>And what could be more drippingly quaint than his song to 'Violets,' + which breathes so gentle and real a sympathy with its subject, that we + almost imagine it was written in those early times when men communed with + Nature in her own audible language. It is even more beautiful than + Herrick's</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Why do ye weep, sweet babe? Can tears + </div> + <div class="line"> + Speak grief in you, who were but born + </div> + <div class="line"> + Just as the modest morn + </div> + <div class="line"> + Teemed her refreshing dew?' + </div> + </div> + <p>We give but a fragment of the Violet.</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Violet! sweet violet! + </div> + <div class="line"> + Thine eyes are full of tears; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Are they wet + </div> + <div class="line"> + Even yet + </div> + <div class="line"> + With the thought of other years? + </div> + <div class="line"> + Or with gladness are they full, + </div> + <div class="line"> + For the night is beautiful, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And longing for those far-off spheres? + </div> + <div class="line"> + Thy little heart, that hath with love + </div> + <div class="line"> + Grown colored, like the sky above + </div> + <div class="line"> + On which thou lookest ever— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Can it know + </div> + <div class="line"> + All the woe + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of hope for what returneth never, + </div> + <div class="line"> + All the sorrow and the longing + </div> + <div class="line"> + To these hearts of ours belonging?' + </div> + </div> + <p>And there are touches of what we are wont to call dear, womanly feeling, + as when the 'Forlorn,' out in the bitter cold,</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Hears a woman's voice within + </div> + <div class="line"> + Singing sweet words her childhood knew, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And years of misery and sin + </div> + <div class="line"> + <i>Furl off and leave her heaven blue</i>.' + </div> + </div> + <p>The 'Changeling' alone would sustain a reputation. It seems always like + the plaintive but sweet warble of some unknown bird rising from the midst + of tall water-rushes in the day's dim dawning. A wonderful melody as of + Mrs. Browning's best efforts pervades every verse, priceless and rare as + some old intaglio. But when we come to his 'Odes to the Past and the + Future,' the full power of poesy unfolds before us. Their images are not + the impalpable spectres of a poet's dream, but symbols hardened into marble + by his skill, and informed with the fire of life by his genius.</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Wondrous and awful are thy silent halls, + </div> + <div class="line"> + O kingdom of the past! + </div> + <div class="line"> + There lie the bygone ages in their palls, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Guarded by shadows vast; + </div> + <div class="line"> + There all is hushed and breathless, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Save when some image of old error falls, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Earth worshiped once as deathless.' + </div> + </div> + <p>Was ever picture of silence more effective and complete? We can see the + desolate quiet of the vast arched halls, left undisturbed by centuries, and + as the moldering statue totters forward from its niche, we feel a faith has + fallen which was once the heaven of nations, and the awful tumult is + audible as a voice from the drear kingdom of death. And the hymn to the + Future, with all the <a name="page185" id="page185"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 185]</span> joyful Titian hues of its opening strophes, + the glowing fervor of its deep yearning, swelling through 'golden-winged + dreams' of the 'Land of Promise':—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'To thee the Earth lifts up her fettered hands + </div> + <div class="line"> + And cries for vengeance; with a pitying smile + </div> + <div class="line"> + Thou blessest her, and she forgets her bands, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And her old woe-worn face a little while + </div> + <div class="line"> + Grows young and noble: unto thee the Oppressor + </div> + <div class="line"> + Looks and is dumb with awe; + </div> + <div class="line"> + The eternal law + </div> + <div class="line"> + Which makes the crime its own blindfold redresser, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Shadows his heart with perilous foreboding, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And he can see the grim-eyed Doom + </div> + <div class="line"> + From out the trembling gloom + </div> + <div class="line"> + Its silent-footed steeds toward his palace goading.' + </div> + </div> + <p>We pass by the 'Legend of Brittany,' which, as a mere artistic study of + light and shade in words, is worthy an extended notice. Its fine polish and + refinement of feeling remind us of Spencer's silver verses, frosted here + and there with the old fret-work of his lovable affectations. But we pause + at the 'Prometheus,' honestly believing that no poem made up of so many + excellences was ever written in America. Its defects are not of conception, + but in an occasional carelessness of execution—a gasp in the rhythm; + and when we consider its richness and majesty, when we feel its resistless + grasp upon the heart, we could pardon it if its great pearls were strung on + straws or its diamonds hidden in a sand-hill of sentimentality. But never + was poem freer from morbidness: it repels the sickly pallor of our modern + stereotyped sorrow, and is made up only of a grief that is + regal—more—divine. If any place by its side the Prometheus of + Æschylus and appeal to the unapproachable dignity of their model, we + can only say that we hold these two poems distinct as the East is from the + West, only between them springs boldly the blue arch of a universal + humanity that suffered and enjoyed as now when the earth was young. But it + must not be forgotten that the Greek lived when with men was born a + boundless sympathy for, and pride in, their gods; that what are now to us + but the wonderful dreams of a primeval poesy, shadowing mighty truths, were + to the ancients living influences that molded their lives. And if it be + urged that already faith must have grown dim in so great a mind as that of + Æschylus, then indeed we wonder not at the marvels of magnificent + despair, the death-in-life of a godlike suffering which reach in his + 'Prometheus Chained' a height of sublimity we may scarcely hope to see + approached in modern times, for the mind that created it stood in a light + shallop, drifting away from the old landmarks of a worn-out creed into the + dark, unknown night of doubt and speculation. But the Prometheus of Lowell + is not the god-man writhing in an awful conflict with his slavery but + begun. His heart</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'For ages hath been empty of all joy, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Except to brood upon its silent hope, + </div> + <div class="line"> + As o'er its hope of day the sky doth now.' + </div> + </div> + <p>The defiant pride and scornful dignity that raised him above our + sympathy in Æschylus, are tempered by Lowell with a human longing for + comfort that, in its mighty woe, might melt adamant, or draw from the + watchful heavens</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Mild-eyed Astarte, his best comforter, + </div> + <div class="line"> + With her pale smile of sad benignity.' + </div> + </div> + <p>Chained to the rock in utter loneliness he lies. Long since the 'crisped + smiles' of the waves and the 'swift-winged winds' had ceased to listen to + his call.</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Year after year will pass away and seem + </div> + <div class="line"> + To me, in mine eternal agony, + </div> + <div class="line"> + But as the shadows of dark summer clouds, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Which I have watched so often darkening o'er + </div> + <div class="line"> + The vast Sarmatian plain, league-wide at first, + </div> + <div class="line"> + But, with still swiftness lessening on and on, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Till cloud and shadow meet and mingle where + </div> + <div class="line"> + The gray horizon fades into the sky, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Far, far to northward. Yes, for ages yet + </div> + <div class="line"> + Must I lie here upon my altar huge, + </div> + <div class="line"> + A sacrifice for man.' + </div> + </div> + <p>'A sacrifice for man.' The theme has won a high significance with time. + One more passage, and we are done—a passage which rivals Shakspeare + in its startling vividness, as it whispers with awful power close to our + ears. All night had the prisoned god heard voices,—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Deeper yet + </div> + <div class="line"> + The deep, low breathings of the silence grew + </div> + <hr class="short" /> + <div class="line"> + And then toward me came + </div> + <div class="line"> + A shape as of a woman; very pale + </div> + <div class="line"> + It was, and calm; its cold eyes did not move, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And mine moved not, but only stared on them. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Their fixed awe went through my brain like ice; + </div> + <a name="page186" id="page186"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 186]</span> + <div class="line"> + A skeleton hand seemed clutching at my heart, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And a sharp chill, as if a dank night-fog + </div> + <div class="line"> + Suddenly closed me in, was all I felt. + </div> + <div class="line"> + And then, methought, I heard a freezing sigh, + </div> + <div class="line"> + A long, deep, shivering sigh, as from blue lips + </div> + <div class="line"> + Stiffening in death, close to mine ear. I thought + </div> + <div class="line"> + Some doom was close upon me, and I looked + </div> + <div class="line"> + And saw the red morn, through the heavy mist, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Just setting, and it seemed as it were falling, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Or reeling to its fall, so dim and dead + </div> + <div class="line"> + And palsy-struck it looked. Then all sounds merged + </div> + <div class="line"> + Into the rising surges of the pines, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Which, leagues below me, clothing the gaunt loins + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of ancient Caucasus with hairy strength, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Sent up a murmur in the morning wind, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Sad as the wail that from the populous earth + </div> + <div class="line"> + All day and night to high Olympus soars, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Fit incense to thy wicked throne, O Jove!' + </div> + </div> + <p>Mr. Lowell is no fine dreamer, no enthusiast in the filmy questions of + some cloud-land of poetry: the sword of power is in his hand, and the stern + teachings of Right and Justice ring through his heart. To such men, Destiny + looks for her unfolding. Woe to them, if upon their silence, inaction or + irresolution in these great days, the steadfast gaze of her high + expectation falls unheeded.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>RESURGAMUS.</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Go where the sunlight brightly falls, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Through tangled grass too thick to wave; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Where silence, save the cricket's calls, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Reigns o'er a patriot's grave; + </div> + <div class="line"> + And you shall see Faith's violets spring + </div> + <div class="line"> + From whence his soul on heavenward wing + </div> + <div class="line"> + Rose to the realms where heroes dwell: + </div> + <div class="line"> + Heroes who for their country fell; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Heroes for whom our bosoms swell; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Heroes in battle slain. + </div> + <div class="line"> + God of the just! they are not dead,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Those who have erst for freedom bled;— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Their every deed has boldly said + </div> + <div class="line"> + We all shall rise again. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + A patriot's deeds can never die,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Time's noblest heritage are they,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Though countless æons pass them by, + </div> + <div class="line"> + They rise at last to day. + </div> + <div class="line"> + The spirits of our fathers rise + </div> + <div class="line"> + Triumphant through the starry skies; + </div> + <div class="line"> + And we may hear their choral song,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + The firm in faith, the noble throng,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + It bids us crush a deadly wrong, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Wrought by red-handed Cain. + </div> + <div class="line"> + AND WE SHALL CONQUER! for the Right + </div> + <div class="line"> + Goes onward with resistless might: + </div> + <div class="line"> + His hand shall win for us the fight. + </div> + <div class="line"> + We, too, shall rise again! + </div> + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page187" id="page187"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 187]</span> + <h2>AMONG THE PINES.</h2> + <p>My last article left the reader in the doorway of the Colonel's mansion. + Before entering, we will linger there awhile and survey the outside of the + premises.</p> + <p>The house stands where two roads meet, and, unlike most planters' + dwellings, is located in full view of the highway. It is a rambling, + disjointed structure, thrown together with no regard to architectural + rules, and yet there is a kind of rude harmony in its very irregularities + that has a pleasing effect. The main edifice, with a frontage of nearly + eighty feet, is only one and a half stories high, and is overshadowed by a + broad projecting roof, which somehow, though in a very natural way, drops + down at the eaves, and forms the covering of a piazza, twenty-feet in + width, and extending across the entire front of the house. At its + south-easterly angle, the roof is truncated, and made again to form a + covering for the piazza, which there extends along a line of irregular + buildings for sixty yards. A portion of the verandah on this side being + enclosed, forms a bowling-alley and smoking-room, two essential appendages + to a planter's residence. The whole structure is covered with yellow-pine + weather boarding, which in some former age was covered with paint of a + grayish brown color. This, in many places, has peeled off and allowed the + sap to ooze from the pine, leaving every here and there large blotches on + the surface, which somewhat resemble the 'warts' I have seen on the trunks + of old trees.</p> + <p>The house is encircled by grand, old pines, whose tall, upright stems, + soaring eighty and ninety feet in the air, make the low hamlet seem lower + by the contrast. They have stood there for centuries, their rough, shaggy + coats buttoned close to their chins, and their long, green locks waving in + the wind; but man has thrust his long knife into their veins, and their + life-blood is fast oozing away.</p> + <p>With the exception of the negro huts, which are scattered at irregular + intervals through the woods in the rear of the mansion, there is not a + human habitation within an hour's ride; but such a cosey, inviting, + hospitable atmosphere surrounds the whole place, that a stranger does not + realize he has happened upon it in a wilderness.</p> + <p>The interior of the dwelling is in keeping with the exterior, though in + the drawing-rooms, where rich furniture and fine paintings actually lumber + the apartments, there is evident the lack of a nice perception of the + 'fitness of things,' and over the whole hangs a 'dusty air,' which reminds + one that the Milesian Bridget does not 'flourish' in South Carolina.</p> + <p>I was met in the entrance-way by a tall, fine-looking woman, to whom the + Colonel introduced me as follows:—</p> + <p>'Mr. K——, this is Madam ——, my housekeeper; she + will try to make you forget that Mrs. J—— is absent.'</p> + <p>After a few customary courtesies were exchanged, I was shown to a + dressing-room, and with the aid of 'Jim,' a razor, and one of the Colonel's + shirts,—all of mine having undergone a drenching,—soon made a + tolerably presentable appearance. The negro then conducted me to the + breakfast-room, where I found the family assembled.</p> + <p>It consisted, besides the housekeeper, of a tall, raw-boned, + sandy-haired personage, with a low brow, a blear eye and a sneaking look, + the Overseer of the plantation; and of a well-mannered, intelligent + lad,—with the peculiarly erect carriage and uncommon blending of + good-natured ease and dignity which distinguished my host,—who was + introduced to me as the housekeeper's son.</p> + <p>Madam P——, who presided over the 'tea things,' was a person + of perhaps thirty-five, but a rich olive complexion, enlivened by a + delicate red-tint, and relieved by thick masses of black hair, made her + appear to a casual observer several <a name="page188" + id="page188"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 188]</span> years younger. Her + face showed vestiges of great beauty, which time, and, perhaps, care, had + mellowed but not obliterated, while her conversation indicated high + cultivation. She had evidently mingled in refined society in this country + and in Europe, and it was a strange freak of fortune that reduced her to a + menial condition in the family of a backwoods planter.</p> + <p>After some general conversation, the Colonel remarked that his wife and + daughter would pass the winter in Charleston.</p> + <p>'And do <i>you</i> remain on the plantation?' I inquired.</p> + <p>'Oh yes, I am needed here,' he replied; 'but Madam's son is with my + family.'</p> + <p>'Madam's son!' I exclaimed in astonishment, forgetting in my surprise + that the lady was present.</p> + <p>'Yes, sir,' she remarked, 'my oldest boy is twenty.'</p> + <p>'Excuse me, Madam; I forgot that in your climate one never grows + old.'</p> + <p>'There you are wrong, sir; I'm sure I <i>feel</i> old when I think how + soon my boys will be men.'</p> + <p>'Not old yet, Alice,' said the Colonel, in a singularly familiar tone; + 'you seem to me no older than when you were fifteen.'</p> + <p>'You have been long acquainted,' I remarked, not knowing exactly what to + say.</p> + <p>'Oh yes,' replied my host, 'we were children together.'</p> + <p>'Your Southern country, Madam, affords a fine field for young men of + enterprise.'</p> + <p>'My eldest son resides in Germany,' replied the lady. 'He expects to + make that country his home. He would have passed his examination at + Heidelberg this autumn had not circumstances called him here.'</p> + <p>'You are widely separated,' I replied.</p> + <p>'Yes, sir; his father thinks it best, and I suppose it is. Thomas, here, + is to return with his brother, and I may live to see neither of them + again.'</p> + <p>My curiosity was naturally much excited to learn more, but nothing + further being volunteered, and the conversation turning to other topics, I + left the table with it unsatisfied.</p> + <p>After enjoying a quiet hour with the Colonel in the smoking-room, he + invited me to join him in a ride over the plantation. I gladly assented, + and 'Jim' shortly announced the horses were ready. That darky, who + invariably attended his master when the latter proceeded from home, + accompanied us. As we were mounting I bethought me of Scip, and asked Jim + where he was.</p> + <p>'He'm gwine to gwo, massa. He want to say good-by to you.'</p> + <p>It seemed madness for Scip to start on a journey of seventy miles + without rest, so I requested the Colonel to let him remain till the next + day. He cheerfully assented, and sent Jim to find him. While waiting for + the darky, I spoke of how faithfully he had served me during my + journey.</p> + <p>'He's a splendid nigger,' replied the Colonel; 'worth his weight in + gold. If affairs were more settled I would buy him.'</p> + <p>'But Colonel A—— tells me he is too intelligent. He objects + to "knowing" niggers.'</p> + <p>'<i>I</i> do not,' replied my host, 'if they are honest, and I would + trust Scip with uncounted gold. Look at him,' he continued, as the negro + approached; 'were flesh and bones ever better put together?'</p> + <p>The darky <i>was</i> a fine specimen of sable humanity, and I readily + understood why the practiced eye of the Colonel appreciated his physical + developments.</p> + <p>'Scip,' I said, 'you must not think of going to-day; the Colonel will be + glad to let you remain until you are fully rested.'</p> + <p>'Tank you, massa, tank you bery much, but de ole man will spec me, and I + orter gwo.'</p> + <p>'Oh, never mind old ——,' said the Colonel, 'I'll take care + of him.'</p> + <p>'Tank you, Cunnel, den I'll stay har till de mornin.'</p> + <p>Taking a by-path which led through the forest in the rear of the + mansion, we <a name="page189" id="page189"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 189]</span> soon reached a small stream, and, following its course for a + short distance, came upon a turpentine distillery, which the Colonel + explained to me was one of three that prepared the product of his + plantation for market, and provided for his family of two hundred + souls.</p> + <p>It was enclosed, or rather roofed, by a rude structure of rough boards, + open at the sides, and sustained on a number of pine poles about thirty + feet in height, and bore a strong resemblance to the usual covering of a + New England haystack.</p> + <p>Three stout negro men, divested of all clothing excepting a pair of + coarse gray trowsers and a red shirt,—it was a raw, cold, wintry + day,—and with cotton bandannas bound about their heads, were 'tending + the still.' The foreman stood on a raised platform level with its top, but + as we approached very quietly seated himself on a turpentine barrel which a + moment before he had rolled over the mouth of the boiler. Another negro was + below, feeding the fire with 'light wood,' and a third was tending the + trough by which the liquid rosin found its way into the semi-circle of + rough barrels intended for its reception.</p> + <p>'Hello, Junius, what in creation are you doing there?' asked the + Colonel, as we approached, of the negro on the turpentine barrel.</p> + <p>'Holein' her down, Cunnel; de ole ting got a mine to blow up dis mornin; + I'se got dis barrl up har to hole her down.'</p> + <p>'Why, you everlasting nigger, if the top leaks you'll be blown to + eternity in half a second.'</p> + <p>'Reckon not, massa; de barrl and me kin hole her. We'll take de + risk.'</p> + <p>'Perhaps <i>you</i> will,' said the Colonel, laughing, 'but I won't. + Nigger property isn't of much account, but you're too good a darky, June, + to be sent to the devil for a charge of turpentine.'</p> + <p>'Tank you, massa, but you dun kno' dis ole ting like I do. You cudn't + blow her up nohow; I'se tried her afore dis way.'</p> + <p>'Don't you do it again; now mind; if you do I'll make a white man of + you.' (This I suppose referred to a process of flaying with a switch; + though the switch is generally thought to <i>redden</i>, not <i>whiten</i>, + the darky.)</p> + <p>The negro did not seem at all alarmed, for he showed his ivories in a + broad grin as he replied, 'Jess as you say, massa; you'se de boss in dis + shanty.'</p> + <p>Directing the fire to be raked out, and the still to stand unused until + it was repaired, the Colonel turned his horse to go, when he observed that + the third negro was shoeless, and his feet chapped and swollen with the + cold. 'Jake,' he said, 'where are your shoes?'</p> + <p>'Wored out, massa.'</p> + <p>'Worn out! Why haven't you been to me?'</p> + <p>''Cause, massa, I know'd you'd jaw; you tole me I wears 'em out mighty + fass.'</p> + <p>'Well, you do, that's a fact; but go to Madam and get a pair; and you, + June, you've been a decent nigger, you can ask for a dress for Rosey. How + is little June?'</p> + <p>'Mighty pore, massa; de ma'am war dar lass night and dis mornin', and + she reckun'd he's gwine to gwo sartain.'</p> + <p>'Sorry to hear that,' said the Colonel. I'll go and see him. Don't feel + badly, June,' he continued, for the tears welled up to the eyes of the + black man as he spoke of his child; 'we all must die.'</p> + <p>'I knows dat, massa, but it am hard to hab em gwo.'</p> + <p>'Yes, it is, June, but we may save him.'</p> + <p>'Ef you cud, massa! Oh, ef you cud!' and the poor darky covered his face + with his great hands and sobbed like a child.</p> + <p>We rode on to another 'still,' and there dismounting, the Colonel + explained to me the process of gathering and manufacturing turpentine. The + trees are 'boxed' and 'tapped' early in the year, while the frost is still + in the ground. 'Boxing' is the process of scooping a cavity in the trunk of + the tree by means of a peculiarly shaped axe, made for the purpose; + 'tapping' is scarifying the rind of the wood above the boxes. This is never + done until the trees have <a name="page190" id="page190"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 190]</span> been worked one season, but it is then + repeated year after year, till on many plantations they present the marks + of twenty and frequently thirty annual 'tappings,' and are often denuded of + bark for a distance of thirty feet from the ground. The necessity for this + annual tapping arises from the fact that the scar on the trunk heals at the + end of a season, and the sap will no longer run from it; a fresh wound is + therefore made each spring. The sap flows down the scarified surface and + collects in the boxes, which are emptied six or eight times in a year, + according to the length of the season. This is the process of 'dipping,' + and it is done with a tin or iron vessel constructed to fit the cavity in + the tree.</p> + <p>The turpentine gathered from the newly boxed or virgin tree is very + valuable, on account of its producing a peculiarly clear and white rosin, + which is used in the manufacture of the finer kinds of soap, and by 'Rosin + the Bow,' and commands, ordinarily, nearly five times the price of the + common article. When barreled, the turpentine is frequently sent to market + in its crude state, but more often is distilled on the plantation, the + gatherers generally possessing means sufficient to own a still.</p> + <p>In the process of distilling, the crude turpentine is 'dumped' into the + boiler through an opening in the top,—the same as that on which we + saw Junius composedly seated,—water is then poured upon it, the + aperture made tight by screwing down the cover and packing it with clay, a + fire built underneath, and when the heat reaches several hundred degrees + Fahrenheit, the process of manufacture begins. The volatile and more + valuable part of the turpentine, by the action of the heat, rises as vapor, + then condensing flows off through a pipe in the top of the still, and comes + out spirits of turpentine, while the heavier portion finds vent at a lower + aperture, and comes out rosin.</p> + <p>No article of commerce is so liable to waste and leakage as turpentine. + The spirits can only be preserved in tin cans, or in thoroughly seasoned + oak barrels, made tight by a coating of glue on the inner side. Though the + material for these barrels exists at the South in luxuriant abundance, they + are all procured from the North, and the closing of the Southern ports has + now entirely cut off the supply; for while the turpentine farmer may + improvise coopers, he can by no process give the oak timber the seasoning + which is needed to render the barrel spirit-tight. Hence it is certain that + a large portion of the last crop of turpentine must have gone to waste. + When it is remembered that the one State of North Carolina exports annually + nearly twenty millions in value of this product, and employs fully + three-fourths of its negroes in its production, it will be seen how dearly + the South is paying for the mad freak of secession. Putting out of view his + actual loss of produce, how does the turpentine farmer feed and employ his + negroes? and, pressed as these blacks inevitably are by both hunger and + idleness, those prolific breeders of sedition, what will keep them + quiet?</p> + <p>'What effect would secession have on your business?' I asked the + Colonel, after a while.</p> + <p>'A favorable one. I should ship my crop direct to Liverpool and London, + instead of selling it to New York middlemen.'</p> + <p>'But is not the larger portion of the turpentine crop consumed at the + North?'</p> + <p>'Oh, yes. We should have to deal with the Yankees anyhow, but we should + do as little with them as possible.'</p> + <p>'Suppose the Yankees object to your setting up by yourselves, and put + your ports under lock and key?'</p> + <p>'They won't do that, and if they did England would break the + blockade.'</p> + <p>'We might rap John Bull over the knuckles in that event,' I replied.</p> + <p>'Well, suppose you did, what then?'</p> + <p>'Merely, England would not have a ship in six months to carry your + cotton. A war with her would ruin the shipping trade of the North. Our + marine would seek employment at privateering, and soon sweep every British + merchant ship from the ocean. We could afford to give <a name="page191" + id="page191"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 191]</span> up ten years' trade + with you, and have to put down seccession by force, for the sake of a + year's brush with John Bull.'</p> + <p>'But, my good friend, where would the British navy be all the + while?'</p> + <p>'Asleep. The English haven't a steamer that can catch a Brookhaven + schooner. The last war proved that vessels of war are no match for + privateers.'</p> + <p>'Well, well! but the Yankees won't fight.'</p> + <p>'Suppose they do. Suppose they shut up your ports, and leave you with + your cotton and turpentine unsold? You raise scarcely anything + else—what would you eat?'</p> + <p>'We would turn our cotton-fields into corn and wheat. Turpentine-makers, + of course, would suffer.'</p> + <p>'Then why are not <i>you</i> a Union man?'</p> + <p>'My friend, I have two hundred mouths to feed. I depend on the sale of + my crop to give them food. If our ports are closed, I can not do + it,—they will starve, and I be ruined. But sooner than submit to the + domination of the cursed Yankees, I will see my negroes starving and my + child a beggar.'</p> + <p>At this point in the conversation we arrived at the negro shanty where + the sick child was. Dismounting, the Colonel and I entered.</p> + <p>The cabin was almost a counterpart of the 'Mills House,' described in my + previous paper, but it had a plank flooring, and was scrupulously neat and + clean. The logs were stripped of bark, and whitewashed. A bright, cheerful + fire was blazing on the hearth, and an air of rude comfort pervaded the + whole interior. On a low bed in the farther corner of the room lay the sick + child. He was a boy of about twelve years, and evidently in the last stages + of consumption. By his side, bending over him as if to catch his almost + inaudible words, sat a tidy, youthful-looking colored woman, his mother, + and the wife of the negro we had met at the 'still.' Playing on the floor, + was a younger child, perhaps five years old, but while the faces of the + mother and the sick lad were of the hue of charcoal, <i>his</i> skin, by a + process well understood at the South, had been bleached to a bright + yellow.</p> + <p>The woman took no notice of our entrance, but the little fellow ran to + the Colonel and caught hold of the skirts of his coat in a free-and-easy + way, saying, 'Ole massa, you got suffin' for Dickey?'</p> + <p>'No, you little nig,' replied the Colonel, patting his woolly head as I + might have done a white child's, 'Dickey isn't a good boy.'</p> + <p>'Yas, I is,' said the little darky; 'you'se ugly ole massa, to gib + nuffin' to Dickey.'</p> + <p>Aroused by the Colonel's voice, the woman turned towards us. Her eyes + were swollen and her face bore traces of deep emotion.</p> + <p>'Oh massa!' she said, 'de chile am dyin'! It'm all along ob his workin' + in de swamp,—no <i>man</i> orter work dar, let alone a chile like + dis.'</p> + <p>'Do you think he is dying, Rosey?' asked the Colonel, approaching the + bedside.</p> + <p>'Shore, massa, he'm gwine fass. Look at 'em.'</p> + <p>The boy had dwindled to a skeleton, and the skin lay on his face in + crimpled folds, like a mask of black crape. His eyes were fixed, and he was + evidently going.</p> + <p>'Don't you know massa, my boy?' said the Colonel, taking his hand + tenderly in his.</p> + <p>The child's lips slightly moved, but I could hear no sound. The Colonel + put his ear down to him for a moment, then, turning to me, said,—</p> + <p>'He <i>is</i> dying. Will you be so good as to step to the house and ask + Madam P—— here, and please tell Jim to go for Junius and the + old man.'</p> + <p>I returned in a short while with the lady, but found the boy's father + and 'the old man'—the darky preacher of the plantation—there + before us. The preacher was a venerable old negro, much bowed by years, and + with thin wool as white as snow. When we entered he was bending over the + dying boy, but shortly turning to my host, said,—</p> + <p>'Massa, de blessed Lord am callin' for de chile,—shall we + pray?'</p> + <a name="page192" id="page192"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 192]</span> + <p>The Colonel nodded assent, and we all, blacks and whites, knelt down on + the floor, while the old preacher made a short, heart-touching prayer. It + was a simple, humble acknowledgment of the dependence of the creature on + the Creator,—of His right to give and to take away, and was uttered + in a free, conversational tone, as if long communion with his Maker had + placed the old negro on a footing of friendly familiarity with Him, and + given the black slave the right to talk with the Deity as one man talks + with another.</p> + <p>As we rose from our knees my host said to me, 'It is my duty to stay + here, but I will not detain you. Jim will show you over the plantation. I + will join you at the house when this is over.' The scene was a painful one, + and I gladly availed myself of the Colonel's suggestion.</p> + <p>Mounting our horses, Jim and I rode off to the negro house where Scip + was staying.</p> + <p>Scip was not at the cabin, and the old negro woman told us he had been + away for several hours.</p> + <p>'Reckon he'll be 'way all day, sar,' said Jim, as we turned our horses + to go.</p> + <p>'He ought to be resting against the ride of to-morrow. Where has he + gone?'</p> + <p>'Dunno, sar, but reckon he'm gwine to fine Sam.'</p> + <p>'Sam? Oh, he's the runaway the Colonel has advertised.'</p> + <p>'Yas, sar, he'm 'way now more'n a monfh.'</p> + <p>'How can Scip find him?'</p> + <p>'Dunno, sar. Scipio know most ebery ting,—reckon he'll track him. + He know him well, and Sam'll cum back ef he say he orter.'</p> + <p>'Where do you think Sam is?'</p> + <p>'P'raps in the swamp.'</p> + <p>'Where is the swamp?'</p> + <p>''Bout ten mile from har.'</p> + <p>'Oh, yes! the shingles are cut there. I should think a runaway would be + discovered where so many men are at work.'</p> + <p>'No, massa, dar'm places dar whar de ole debil cudn't fine him, nor de + dogs nudder.'</p> + <p>'I thought the bloodhounds would track a man anywhere.'</p> + <p>'Not t'ru de water, massa; dey lose de scent in de swamp.'</p> + <p>'But how can a negro live there,—how get food?'</p> + <p>'De darkies work dar and dey take 'em nuff.'</p> + <p>'Then the other negroes often know where the runaways are; don't they + sometimes betray them?'</p> + <p>'Neber, massa; a darky neber tells on anoder. De Cunnel had a boy in dat + swamp once, good many years.'</p> + <p>'Is it possible? Did he come back?'</p> + <p>'No, he died dar. Sum ob de hands found him dead one mornin' in de hut + whar he lib'd, and dey buried him dar.'</p> + <p>'Why did Sam run away?'</p> + <p>''Cause de Oberseer flog him. He use him bery hard, massa.'</p> + <p>'What had Sam done?'</p> + <p>'Nuffin', massa.'</p> + <p>'Then why was he flogged? Did the Colonel know it?'</p> + <p>'Oh, yas; Moye cum de possum ober de Cunnel, and make him b'lieve Sam + war bad. De Cunnel dunno de hull ob dat story.'</p> + <p>'Why didn't <i>you</i> tell him? The Colonel trusts you.'</p> + <p>'Twudn't hab dun no good; de Cunnel wud hab flogged <i>me</i> for + tellin' on a wite man. Nigga's word ain't ob no account.'</p> + <p>'What is the story about Sam?'</p> + <p>'You won't tell dat <i>I</i> tole you, massa?'</p> + <p>'No, but I'll tell the Colonel the truth.'</p> + <p>'Wal den, sar, you see Sam's wife am bery good-lookin', her skin's most + wite,—her mudder war a mulatter, her fader a wite man,—she + lub'd Sam 'bout as well as de wimmin ginrally lub dar husbands,' (Jim was a + bachelor, and his observation of plantation morals had given him but little + faith in the sex), 'but most ob 'em, ef dey'm married or no, tink dey must + smile on de wite men, so Jule she smiled on de Oberseer,—so Sam + tought,—and it made him bery jealous. He war sort o' sassy, and de + Oberseer strung him up and flog him bery hard. Den Sam took to de swamp, + but he didn't know whar to gwo, and de dogs tracked him; he'd ha' got 'way + dough ef de Oberseer hadn't shot <a name="page193" id="page193"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 193]</span> him; den he cudn't run. Den Moye flogged + him till he war 'most dead, and arter dat chained him up in de ole cabin + and gabe him 'most nuffin' to eat. De Cunnel war gwine to take Sam to + Charles'on and sell him, but sumhow he got a file and sawed fru de chain + and got 'way in de night to de 'still.' When de Oberseer cum dar in de + mornin', Sam jump on him and 'most kill him. He'd hab sent him whar dar + ain't no niggas ef Junius hadn't a holed him. <i>I'd</i> a let de ole debil + gwo.'</p> + <p>'Junius, then, is a friend of the Overseer.'</p> + <p>'No, sar; <i>he</i> hain't no friends, 'cep de debil; but June am a good + nigga, and he said 'twarn't right to kill ole Moye so sudden, for den dar'd + be no chance for de Lord forgibin' him.'</p> + <p>'Then Sam got away again?'</p> + <p>'O yas; nary one but darkies war round, and dey wouldn't hole him. Ef + dey'd cotched him den, dey'd hung him, shore.'</p> + <p>'Why hung him?'</p> + <p>''Cause he'd struck a wite man; it 'm shore death to do dat.'</p> + <p>'Do you think Scip will bring him back?'</p> + <p>'Yas; 'cause he 'm gwine to tell massa de hull story. De Cunnel will + b'lieve Scipio ef he <i>am</i> brack. Sam'll know dat, and he'll come back. + De Cunnel'll make de State too hot to hole ole Moye, when he fine him + out.'</p> + <p>'Does Sam's wife "smile" on the Overseer now?'</p> + <p>'No; she see de trubble she bring on Sam, and she bery sorry. She won't + look at a wite man now.'</p> + <p>During the conversation above recorded, we had ridden for several miles + over the western half of the plantation, and were then again near the + house. My limbs being decidedly stiff and sore from the effects of the + previous day's journey, I decided to alight and rest at the house until the + hour for dinner.</p> + <p>I mentioned my jaded condition to Jim, who said,—</p> + <p>'Dat's right, massa; come in de house. I'll cure de rumatics; I knows + how to fix dem.'</p> + <p>Fastening the horses at the door, Jim accompanied me to my + sleeping-room, where he lighted a pile of pine knots, and in a moment the + fire blazed up on the hearth and sent a cheerful glow through the + apartment; then, saying he would return after stabling the horses, the + darky left me.</p> + <p>I took off my boots, drew the sofa near the fire, and stretched myself + at full length upon it. If ever mortal was tired, 'I reckon' I was. It + seemed as if every joint and bone in my body had lost the power of motion, + and sharp, acute pains danced along my nerves, as I have seen lightning + play along the telegraph wires. My entire system had the toothache.</p> + <p>Jim soon returned, bearing in one hand a decanter of 'Otard,' and in the + other a mug of hot water and a crash towel.</p> + <p>'I'se got de stuff dat'll fix de rumatics, massa.'</p> + <p>'Thank you, Jim; a glass will do me good. Where did you get it?' I + asked, thinking it strange the Colonel should leave his brandy-bottle + within reach of the darkies, who have an universal weakness for + spirits.</p> + <p>'Oh, I keeps de keys; de Cunnel hisself hab to come to me wen he want + suffin' to warm hisself.'</p> + <p>It was the fact; Jim had exclusive charge of the wine-cellar; in short, + was butler, barber, porter, footman, and body-servant, all combined.</p> + <p>'Now, massa, you lay right whar you is, and I'll make you ober new in + less dan no time.'</p> + <p>And he did; but I emptied the brandy-bottle. Lest my temperance friends + should be horror-stricken, I will mention, however, that I took the fluid + by external absorption. For all rheumatic sufferers, I would prescribe, hot + brandy in plentiful doses, a coarse towel, and an active Southern darky, + and if on the first application the patient is not cured, the fault will + not be the nigger's. <a name="page194" id="page194"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 194]</span> Out of mercy to the chivalry, I hope our + government, in saving the Union, will not annihilate the order of + body-servants. They are the only perfect institution in the Southern + country, and, so far as I have seen, about the only one worth saving.</p> + <p>The dinner-bell sounded a short while after Jim had finished the + scrubbing operation, and I went to the table with an appetite I had not + felt for a week. My whole system seemed rejuvenated, and I am not sure that + I should, at that moment, have declined a wrestling match with Heenan + himself.</p> + <p>I found at dinner only the Overseer and the young son of Madam + P——, the Colonel and the lady being still at the cabin of the + dying boy. The dinner, though a queer mixture of viands, would not have + disgraced, except, perhaps, in the cooking, the best of our Northern + hotels. Venison, bacon, wild fowl, hominy, poultry, corn-bread, French + 'made-dishes,' and Southern 'common doin's,' with wines and brandies of the + choicest brands, were placed on the table together.</p> + <p>'Dis, massa,' said Jim, 'am de raal juice; it hab ben in de cellar eber + since de house war built. Massa tole me to gib you some, wid him + complimen's.'</p> + <p>Passing it to my companions, we drank the Colonel's health in as fine + wine as I ever tasted.</p> + <p>I had taken an instinctive dislike to the Overseer at the + breakfast-table, and my aversion was not lessened by learning his treatment + of Sam; curiosity to learn what manner of man he was, however, led me, + towards the close of our meal, to 'draw him out,' as follows:—</p> + <p>'What is the political sentiment, sir, of this section of the + State?'</p> + <p>'Wal, I reckon most of the folks 'bout har' is Union; they're from the + "old North," and gin'rally pore trash.'</p> + <p>'I have heard that the majority of the turpentine getters are + enterprising men and good citizens,—more enterprising, even, than the + cotton and rice planters.'</p> + <p>'Wal, they is enterprisin', 'cause they don't keer for nuthin' 'cep' + money.'</p> + <p>'The man who is absorbed in money-getting is generally a quiet + citizen.'</p> + <p>'P'raps that's so. But I think a man sh'u'd hev a soul suthin' 'bove + dollars. Them folks will take any sort o' sarce from the Yankees, ef they + only buy thar truck.'</p> + <p>'What do you suffer from the Yankees?'</p> + <p>'Suffer from the Yankees? Don't they steal our niggers, and hain't they + 'lected an ab'lishener for President?'</p> + <p>'I've been at the North lately, but I am not aware that is so.'</p> + <p>'So! it's damnably so, sir. I knows it. We don't mean to stand it eny + longer.'</p> + <p>'What will you do?'</p> + <p>'We'll secede, and then give 'em h—l, ef they want it!'</p> + <p>'Will it not be necessary to agree among yourselves before you do that? + I met a turpentine farmer below here who openly declared that he is + friendly to abolishing slavery. He thinks the masters can make more money + by hiring than by owning the negroes.'</p> + <p>'Yes, that's the talk of them North County<a id="footnotetag6" + name="footnotetag6" href="#footnote6"><sup>6</sup></a> fellers, who've + squatted round har. We'll hang every mother's son on 'em, by + G——.'</p> + <p>'I wouldn't do that: in a free country <a name="page195" + id="page195"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 195]</span> every man has a + right to his opinions.'</p> + <p>'Not to sech opinions as them. A man may think, but he mustn't think + onraasonable.'</p> + <p>'I don't know, but it seems to me reasonable, that if the negroes cost + these farmers now one hundred and fifty dollars a year, and they could hire + them, if free, for a hundred, that they would make by abolition.'</p> + <p>'Ab'lish'n! By G——, sir, ye ain't an ab'lishener, is ye?' + exclaimed the fellow, in an excited tone, bringing his hand down on the + table in a way that set the crockery a-dancing.</p> + <p>'Come, come, my friend,' I replied, in a mild tone, and as unruffled as + a basin of water that has been out of a December night; 'you'll knock off + the dinner things, and I'm not quite through.'</p> + <p>'Wal, sir, I've heerd yer from the North, and I'd like to know if yer an + ab'lishener.'</p> + <p>'My dear sir, you surprise me. You certainly can't expect a modest man + like me to speak of himself.'</p> + <p>'Ye can speak of what ye d—— please, but ye can't talk + ab'lish'n har, by G——,' he said, again applying his hand to the + table, till the plates and saucers jumped up, performed several jigs, then + several reels, and then rolled over in graceful somersaults to the + floor.</p> + <p>At this juncture, the Colonel and Madam P—— entered.</p> + <p>Observing the fall in his crockery, and the general confusion of things, + the Colonel quietly asked, 'What's to pay?'</p> + <p>I said nothing, but burst into a fit of laughter at the awkward fix the + Overseer was in. That gentleman also said nothing, but looked as if he + would like to find vent through a rat-hole or a window-pane. Jim, however, + who stood at the back of my chair, gave <i>his</i> eloquent thoughts + utterance, very much as follows:—</p> + <p>'Moye hab 'sulted Massa K——, Cunnel, awful bad. He hab swore + a blue streak at him, and called him a d—— ab'lishener, jess + 'cause Massa K—— wudn't get mad and sass him back. He hab + disgrace your hosspital, Cunnel, wuss dan a nigga.'</p> + <p>The Colonel turned white with rage, and, striding up to the Overseer, + seized him by the throat, yelling, rather than speaking, these words: 'You + d—— —— —— —— —— + —— ——, have you dared to insult a guest in my + house?'</p> + <p>'I didn't mean to 'sult him,' faltered out the Overseer, his voice + running through an entire octave, and changing with the varying pressure of + the Colonel's fingers on his throat; 'but he said he war an + ab'lishener.'</p> + <p>'No matter what he said,' replied the Colonel; 'he is my guest, and in + my house he shall say what he pleases, by G——. Apologize to + him, or I'll send you to h—— in a second.'</p> + <p>The fellow turned cringingly to me, and ground out something like this, + every word seeming to give him the toothache:—</p> + <p>'I meant no offence, sar; I hope ye'll excuse me.'</p> + <p>This satisfied me, but, before I could make a reply, the Colonel again + seized him by the throat, and yelled,—</p> + <p>'None of your sulkiness; get on your knees, you d—— + white-livered hound, and ask the gentleman's pardon like a man.'</p> + <p>The fellow then fell on his knees, and got out, with less effort than + before,—</p> + <p>'I 'umbly ax yer pardon, sar, very 'umbly, indeed.'</p> + <p>'I am satisfied, sir,' I replied. 'I bear you no ill-will.'</p> + <p>'Now go,' said the Colonel; 'and in future, take your meals in the + kitchen. I have none but gentlemen at my table.'</p> + <p>The fellow went. As soon as he had closed the door, the Colonel said to + me,—</p> + <p>'Now, my dear friend, I hope you will pardon <i>me</i> for this + occurrence. I sincerely regret you have been insulted in my house.'</p> + <p>'Don't speak of it, my dear sir; the fellow is ignorant, and really + thinks I am an abolitionist. It was his zeal in politics that led to his + warmth. I blame him very little,' I replied.</p> + <a name="page196" id="page196"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 196]</span> + <p>'But he lied, Massa K——,' chimed in Jim, very warmly; 'you + neber said you war an ab'lishener.'</p> + <p>'You know what <i>they</i> are, don't you, Jim?' said the Colonel, + laughing, and taking no notice of Jim's breach of decorum in wedging his + black ideas into a white conversation.</p> + <p>'Yas, I does dat,' said the darky, grinning.</p> + <p>'Jim,' said the Colonel, 'you're a prince of a nigger, but you talk too + much; ask me for something to-day, and I reckon you'll get it; but go now, + and tell Chloe (the cook) to get us some dinner.'</p> + <p>The darky left, and, excusing myself, I soon followed suit.</p> + <p>I went to my room, laid down on the lounge, and soon fell asleep. It was + nearly five o'clock when a slight noise in the apartment awoke me, and, + looking up, I saw the Colonel quietly seated by the fire, smoking a cigar. + His feet were elevated above his head, and he appeared absorbed in no very + pleasant reflections.</p> + <p>'How is the sick boy, Colonel?' I asked.</p> + <p>'It's all over with him, my friend. He died easy; but 'twas very painful + to me, for I feel I have done him wrong.'</p> + <p>'How so?'</p> + <p>'I was away all summer, and that cursed Moye sent him to the swamp to + tote for the shinglers. It killed him.'</p> + <p>'Then you are not to blame,' I replied.</p> + <p>'I wish I could feel so.'</p> + <p>The Colonel remained with me till supper-time, evidently much depressed + by the events of the morning, which had affected him more than I could have + conceived possible. I endeavored, by cheerful conversation, and by + directing his mind to other topics, to cheer him, and in a measure + succeeded.</p> + <p>While we were seated at the supper-table, the black cook entered from + the kitchen,—a one-story shanty, detached from and in the rear of the + house,—and, with a face expressive of every conceivable emotion a + negro can feel,—joy, sorrow, wonder, and fear all + combined,—exclaimed, 'O massa, massa! dear massa! Sam, O Sam!'</p> + <p>'Sam,' said the Colonel; 'what about Sam?'</p> + <p>'Why, he hab—dear, dear massa, don't yer, don't yer hurt + him—he hab come back!'</p> + <p>If a bombshell had fallen in the room, a greater sensation could not + have been produced. Every individual arose from the table, and the Colonel, + striding up and down the apartment, exclaimed,—</p> + <p>'Is he mad? The everlasting fool! Why in h—— has he come + back?'</p> + <p>'Oh, don't ye hurt him, massa,' said the black cook, wringing her hands. + 'Sam hab ben bad, bery bad, but he won't be so no more.'</p> + <p>'Stop your noise, aunty,' said the Colonel, but with no harshness in his + tone. 'I shall do what I think right.'</p> + <p>'Send for him, David,' said Madam P——; 'let us hear what he + has to say. He would not come back if he meant to be ugly.'</p> + <p>'<i>Send</i> for him, Alice!' replied my host. 'He's prouder than + Lucifer, and would send me word to come to <i>him</i>. I will go. Will you + accompany me, Mr. K——? You'll hear what a runaway nigger thinks + of slavery: Sam has the gift of speech, and uses it regardless of + persons.'</p> + <p>'Yes, sir, I'll go with pleasure.'</p> + <p>Supper being over, we went. It was about an hour after nightfall when we + emerged from the door of the mansion and took our way to the negro + quarters. The full moon had risen half way above the horizon, and the dark + pines cast their shadows around the little collection of negro huts, which + straggled about through the woods for the distance of a third of a mile. It + was dark, but I could distinguish the figure of a man striding along at a + rapid pace a few hundred yards in advance of us.</p> + <p>'Isn't that Moye?' I asked the Colonel, directing his attention to the + receding figure.</p> + <p>'I reckon so; that's his gait. He's had a lesson to-day that'll do him + good.'</p> + <a name="page197" id="page197"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 197]</span> + <p>'I don't like that man's looks,' I replied, carelessly; 'but I've heard + of singed cats.'</p> + <p>'He <i>is</i> a sneaking d——l,' said the Colonel; 'but he's + very valuable to me. I never had an overseer who got so much work out of + the hands.'</p> + <p>'Is he cruel to them?'</p> + <p>'Yes, I reckon he is; but a nigger is like a dog,—you must flog + him to make him like you.'</p> + <p>'I judge your niggers haven't been flogged into liking Moye,' I + replied.</p> + <p>'Why, have you heard any of them speak of him?'</p> + <p>'Yes; though, of course, I've made no effort to draw gossip from them. I + had to hear.'</p> + <p>'O yes; I know; there's no end to their gabble; niggers will talk. But + what have you heard?'</p> + <p>'That Moye is to blame in this affair of Sam, and that you don't know + the whole story.'</p> + <p>'What <i>is</i> the whole story?' asked the Colonel, stopping short in + the road; 'tell me before I see Sam.'</p> + <p>I then told him what Jim had recounted to me. He heard me through + attentively, then laughingly exclaimed,—</p> + <p>'Is that all! Lord bless you; he didn't seduce her. There's no seducing + these women; with them it's a thing of course. It was Sam's d—— + high blood that made the trouble. His father was the proudest man in + Virginia, and Sam is as like him as a nigger can be like a white man.'</p> + <p>'No matter what the blood is, it seems to me such an injury justifies + revenge.'</p> + <p>'Pshaw, my good fellow, you don't know these people. I'll stake my + plantation against a glass of whisky there's not a virtuous woman with a + drop of black blood in her veins in all South Carolina. They prefer the + white men; their husbands know it, and take it as a matter of course.'</p> + <p>We had here reached the negro cabin. It was one of the more remote of + the collection, and stood deep in the woods, an enormous pine growing up + directly beside the doorway. In all respects it was like the other huts on + the plantation. A bright fire lit up its interior, and through the crevices + in the logs we saw, as we approached, a scene that made us pause + involuntarily, when within a few rods of the house. The mulatto man, whose + clothes were torn and smeared with swamp mud, stood near the fire. On a + small pine table near him lay a large carving-knife, which glittered in the + blaze, as if recently sharpened. His wife was seated on the side of the low + bed at his back, weeping. She was two or three shades lighter than the man, + and had the peculiar brown, kinky hair, straight, flat nose, and speckled, + gray eyes which mark the metif. Tottling on the floor at the feet of the + man, and caressing his knees, was a child of perhaps two years.</p> + <p>As we neared the house, we heard the voice of the Overseer issuing from + the doorway on the other side of the pine-tree.</p> + <p>'Come out, ye black rascal.'</p> + <p>'Come in, you wite hound, ef you dar,' responded the negro, laying his + hand on the carving-knife.</p> + <p>'Come out, I till ye; I sha'n't ax ye agin.'</p> + <p>'I'll hab nuffin' to do wid you. G'way and send your massa har,' replied + the mulatto man, turning his face away with a lordly, contemptuous gesture, + that spoke him a true descendant of Pocahontas. This movement exposed his + left side to the doorway, outside of which, hidden from us by the tree, + stood the Overseer.</p> + <p>'Come away, Moye,' said the Colonel, advancing with me toward the door; + '<i>I'll</i> speak to him.'</p> + <p>Before all of the words had escaped the Colonel's lips, a streak of fire + flashed from where the Overseer stood, and took the direction of the negro. + One long, wild shriek,—one quick, convulsive bound in the + air,—and Sam fell lifeless to the floor, the dark life-stream pouring + from his side. The little child also fell with him, and its greasy-grayish + shirt was dyed with its father's blood. Moye, at the distance of ten feet, + had discharged <a name="page198" id="page198"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 198]</span> the two barrels of a heavily-loaded shot-gun directly through + the negro's heart.</p> + <p>'You incarnate son of h——,' yelled the Colonel, as he sprang + on the Overseer, bore him to the ground, and wrenched the shot-gun from his + hand. Clubbing the weapon, he raised it to brain him. The movement occupied + but a second; the gun was descending, and in another instant Moye would + have met Sam in eternity, had not a brawny arm caught the Colonel's, and, + winding itself around his body, pinned his limbs to his side so that motion + was impossible. The woman, half frantic with excitement, thrust open the + door when her husband fell, and the light which came through it revealed + the face of the new-comer. But his voice, which rang out on the night air + as clear as a bugle, had there been no light, would have betrayed him. It + was Scip. Spurning the prostrate Overseer with his foot, he + shouted,—</p> + <p>'Run, you wite debil, run for your life!'</p> + <p>'Let me go, you black scoundrel,' shrieked the Colonel, wild with + rage.</p> + <p>'When he'm out ob reach, you'd kill him,' replied the negro, as cool as + if he was doing an ordinary thing.</p> + <p>'I'll kill you, you black —— hound, if you don't let me go,' + again screamed the Colonel, struggling violently in the negro's grasp, and + literally foaming at the mouth.</p> + <p>'I shan't lef you gwo, Cunnel, till you 'gree not to do dat.'</p> + <p>The Colonel was a stout, athletic man, in the very prime of life, and + his rage gave him more than his ordinary strength, but Scip held him as I + might have held a child.</p> + <p>'Here, Jim,' shouted the Colonel to his body-servant, who just then + emerged from among the trees, 'rouse the plantation—shoot this + d—— nigger.'</p> + <p>'Dar ain't one on 'em wud touch him, massa. He'd send <i>me</i> to de + hot place wid one fist.'</p> + <p>'You ungrateful dog,' groaned his master. 'Mr. K——, will you + stand by and see me handcuffed by a miserable slave?'</p> + <p>'The black means well, my friend; he has saved you from murder. Say he + is safe, and I'll answer for his being away in an hour.'</p> + <p>The Colonel made one more ineffectual attempt to free himself from the + vice-like grip of the negro, then relaxed his efforts, and, gathering his + broken breath, said, 'You're safe <i>now</i>, but if you're found within + ten miles of my plantation by sunrise, by G—— you're a dead + man.'</p> + <p>The negro relinquished his hold, and, without saying a word, walked + slowly away.</p> + <p>'Jim, you d—— rascal,' said the Colonel to that courageous + darky, who was skulking off, 'raise every nigger on the plantation, catch + Moye, or I'll flog you within an inch of your life.'</p> + <p>'I'll do dat, Cunnel; I'll kotch de ole debil, ef he's dis side de hot + place.'</p> + <p>His words were echoed by about twenty other darkies, who, attracted by + the noise of the fracas, had gathered within a safe distance of the cabin. + They went off with Jim, to raise the other plantation hands, and inaugurate + the hunt.</p> + <p>'If that d—— nigger hadn't held me, I'd had Moye in + h—— by this time,' said the Colonel to me, still livid with + excitement.</p> + <p>'The law will deal with him. The negro has saved you from murder, my + friend.'</p> + <p>'The law be d——; it's too good for such a — hound; and + that the d—— nigger should have dared to hold me,—by + G——, he'll rue it.'</p> + <p>He then turned, exhausted with the recent struggle, and, with a weak, + uncertain step, entered the cabin. Kneeling down by the dead body of the + negro, he attempted to raise it; but his strength was gone. Motioning to me + to aid him, we placed the corpse on the bed. Tearing open the clothing, we + wiped away the still flowing blood, and saw the terrible wound which had + sent the negro to his account. It was sickening to look on, and I turned to + go.</p> + <p>The negro woman, who was weeping and wringing her hands, now approached + <a name="page199" id="page199"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 199]</span> + the bed, and, in a voice nearly choked with sobs, said,—</p> + <p>'Massa, oh massa, I done it! it's me dat killed him!'</p> + <p>'I know you did, you d—— ——. Get out of my + sight.'</p> + <p>'Oh, massa,' sobbed the woman, falling on her knees, 'I'se so sorry; oh, + forgib me!'</p> + <p>'Go to ——, you —— ——, that's the + place for you,' said the Colonel, striking the kneeling woman with his + foot, and felling her to the floor.</p> + <p>Unwilling to see or hear more, I left the master with the slave. A + quarter of a mile through the woods brought me to the cabin of the old + negress where Scip lodged. I rapped at the door, and was admitted by the + old woman. Scip, nearly asleep, was lying on a pile of blankets in the + corner.</p> + <p>'Are you mad?' I said to him. 'The Colonel is frantic with rage, and + swears he will kill you. You must be off at once.'</p> + <p>'No, no, massa; neber fear; I knows him. He'd keep his word, ef he loss + his life by it. I'm gwine afore sunrise; till den I'm safe.'</p> + <p>Of the remainder of that night, more hereafter.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>MR. SEWARD'S PUBLISHED DIPLOMACY.</h2> + <p>With the executive capacity and marked forensic versatility of William + Henry Seward whilst Governor and Senator of the Empire State, the great + public have long been familiar. That public are now for the first time + practically discussing his diplomatic statesmanship. A world of spectators + or auditors witness or listen to the debate, and are eager to pronounce + favorable judgment, because so much of national honor is now entrusted to + him. Our national history discloses no crisis of domestic or foreign + affairs so momentous as the present one. The most remarkable chapter in + that history will be made up from the complications of this crisis, and + from the disasters to or the successes of our national fame. Hence to + himself and to his friends, more than to the watchful public even, Mr. + Seward's course attracts an interest which may attend upon the very + climacteric excellence of his statesman-career during a + quarter-century.</p> + <p>Much, that remains obscure or is merely speculative when these pages at + the holiday season undergo magazine preparation, will have been unfolded or + explained at the hour in which they may be read. The national firmament, + which at the Christmas season displayed the star of war and not of peace, + may at midwinter display the raging comet; or that star of war may have had + a speedy setting, to the mutual joy of two nations who only one year ago + played the role of Host and Guest, whilst the young royal son of one + government rendered peaceful homage at the tomb of the oldest Father of the + other nation.</p> + <p>Hence, it is not the province of this paper to indulge in speculations + regarding the future of Mr. Seward's diplomacy;—only to collect a few + facts and critical suggestions respecting the diplomatic labors of + Secretary Seward since his accession to honor, with some interesting + references to our British complications which have passed under his + supervision.</p> + <p>Fortunately for the enlightenment of the somewhat prejudiced audience + who listen to our American discussion, there appeared simultaneously with + the publications of British prints the governmental volume of papers + relating to foreign affairs which usually accompanies a <a name="page200" + id="page200"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 200]</span> President's Message. + It is not commonly printed for many months after reception by Congress. But + the sagacity of Mr. Seward caused its typographical preparation in advance + of presidential use. It therefore becomes an antidote to the heated poison + of the Palmerston or Derby prints, which emulate in seizing the last + national outrage for party purposes. And its inspection enables the great + public, after perusing what Secretary Seward has written during the past + troublous half year, to acquire a calm reliance upon his skill in + navigating our glorious ship of state over the more troublous waters of the + next half year.</p> + <p>The most cursory inspection of this volume must put to shame those + Washington news-mongers, who from March to December pictured the Secretary + as locked up in his office, in order to merely shun office-seekers, or as + idling his time at reviews and sham-fights. The collection demonstrates, + that his logic, persuasion, and rhetorical excellence have in diplomatic + composition maintained their previous excellences in other public + utterances; and that his physical capacity for labor, and his mental + sympathy with any post of duty, have been as effective, surrounded by the + dogs of war, as they were when tasked amid the peaceful herds of men. The + maxim, <i>inter arma silent leges</i>, is suspended by the edicts of + diplomacy!</p> + <p>Mr. Seward entered the State Department March the fifth (according to + reliable Washington gossip), before breakfast, and was instantly at work. + He found upon his table, with the ink scarcely dry, the draft of a + (February 28th) circular from his predecessor, Mr. Black (now U.S. Supreme + Court reporter), addressed to all the ministers of the United States. That + circular very briefly recited the leading facts of the disunion movement, + and instructed the ministers to employ all means to prevent a recognition + of the confederate States. The document in question is dated at the very + time when President Lincoln was perfecting his inaugural; and why its + imperative and necessary commands were delayed until that late hour, is + something for Mr. Buchanan to explain in that volume of memoirs which he is + said to be preparing at the falling House of Lancaster.</p> + <p>From the dates of Mr. Seward's circulars, it is evident that he devoted + small time to official 'house-warming' or 'cleaning up.' Some time, no + doubt, was passed in consulting the indexes to the foreign affairs of the + past eventful four months, and in making himself master of the situation. + His first act is to transmit to all the (Buchanan) subordinates abroad + copies of the President's Message, accompanying it with a score of terse + and sparkling paragraphs regarding the rebellion; yet, in those few + paragraphs, demonstrating the illusory and ephemeral advantages which + foreign nations would derive from any connection they might form with any + 'dissatisfied or discontented portion, State, or section of the Union.' In + this connection, he refers to the 'governments' of J. Davis, Esq., as + 'those States of this Union in whose name a provisional government has been + <i>announced</i>;'—which is the happiest description yet in + print.</p> + <p>There is apparently a fortnight's interregnum, during which a procession + of would-be consuls and ministers marches from the State Department to the + Senate chamber to receive the <i>accolade</i> of diplomacy. The Minister to + Prussia, Mr. Judd, first finds gazette, and on March 22d the Secretary + prepares for him instructions suitable to the crisis. There are 'stars' + affixed to the published extracts, showing <i>coetera desunt</i>, matters + of <i>secret</i> moment perchance! And here we may fitly remark, that + whilst the labors of the diplomatist which came before the public for + inspection display his industry, it is certain that quite as voluminous, + perhaps more, must be the unpublished and secret dispatches. 'The note + which thanked Prince Gortchacow through M. De Stoeckl was reprehensibly + brief,' the leading gazettes said; <i>but are they sure nothing else was + prepared and transmitted, of which the public must remain uncertain?</i> + Are they ready to assert that Russia has become <a name="page201" + id="page201"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 201]</span> a convert to an + <i>open</i> diplomacy? Or does she still feel most complimented with + ciphers and mystery?</p> + <p>So early as the date of the Judd dispatch, the text of the Lincoln + administration appears. 'Owing to the very peculiar structure of our + federal government, and the equally singular character and habits of the + American people, this government <i>not only wisely, but necessarily, + hesitates to resort to coercion and compulsion to secure a return of the + disaffected portion of the people to their customary allegiance</i>. The + Union was formed upon popular consent, and must always practically stand on + the same basis. The temporary causes of alienation must pass away; <i>there + must needs be disasters and disappointments resulting from the exercise of + unlawful authority by the revolutionists</i>, while happily it is certain + that there is a general and profound sentiment of loyalty pervading the + public mind throughout the United States. While it is the intention of the + President to maintain the sovereignty and rightful authority of the Union + everywhere, with firmness as well as discretion, he at the same time relies + with great confidence on the salutary working of the agencies I have + mentioned to restore the harmony and union of the States. But to this end, + it is of the greatest importance that the disaffected States shall not + succeed in obtaining favor or recognition from foreign nations.'</p> + <p>Two months prior to this, and on the Senate floor, Mr. Seward had said, + 'taking care always that speaking goes before voting, voting goes before + giving money, and all go before a battle, which I should regard as + hazardous and dangerous; and therefore the last, as it would be the most + painful measure to be resorted to for the salvation of the Union.'</p> + <p>A day or two succeeding the Judd dispatch, Mr. Seward writes for + Minister Sanford (about to leave for Belgium) instructions; commingling + views upon non-recognition with considerations respecting tariff + modifications. In these appears a sentence kindred to those just + quoted—'<i>The President, confident of the ultimate ascendency of + law, order, and the Union, through the deliberate action of the people in + constitutional forms</i>,' etc.</p> + <p>From those diplomatic suggestions, which are accordant with + <i>European</i> exigencies, Mr. Seward readily turns his attention to + Mexican affairs, in a carefully considered and most ably written letter of + instructions for Minister Corwin. He touches upon the robberies and murder + of citizens, the violation of contracts, and then gracefully withdraws them + from immediate attention until the incoming Mexican administration shall + have had time to cement its authority and reduce the yet disturbed elements + of their society to order and harmony. He avers that the President not only + forbids discussion of our difficulties among the foreign powers, but will + not allow his ministers '<i>to invoke even censure against those of our + fellow-citizens who have arrayed themselves in opposition to + authority</i>.' He refers to the foreshadowed protectorate in language + complimentary to Mexico, yet firm in assurance that the President neither + has, nor can ever have, any sympathy with revolutionary designs for Mexico, + <i>in whatever quarter they may arise, or whatever character they may take + on</i>.'</p> + <p>Within one week (and at dates which contradict the prevailing gossip of + last April, that Messrs. Adams, Dayton, Burlingame, Schurz and Co. were + detained <i>awaiting</i> Mr. Seward's advices) still more elaborate and + masterly instructions are given out to these gentlemen. The paper to Mr. + Adams will in future years be quoted and referred to as a model history of + the rise and progress of the secession enormity. It may be asked, Why are + such dispatches and instructions needed? Why such elaborate briefs and + compendiums required for gentlemen each of whom may have said, respecting + his connection with subject-matter of the Secretary (none more emphatically + so than Messrs. Adams and Burlingame), <i>quorum pars magna fui?</i> Yet, + it must be remembered that diplomacy, like jurisprudence (with its red tape + common to both), taketh few things for granted, and constantly maketh + records for itself, under the maxim <a name="page202" + id="page202"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 202]</span> <i>de non + apparentibus non existentibus eadem est ratio</i>; and ever beareth in mind + that when <i>certioraris</i> to international tribunals are served, the + initiatory expositions and the matured results must not be subjected to a + pretence of diminution, but be full and complete.</p> + <p>The early dispatch for Mr. Burlingame contains the caustic sentence, + 'Our representatives at Vienna seem generally to have come, after a short + residence there, to the conclusion that there was nothing for them to do, + and little for them to learn.' But 'the President expects that <i>you</i> + will be diligent in obtaining not only information about political events, + but also commercial and even scientific facts, and in reporting them to + this department.'</p> + <p>Although the Austrian mantle was soon transferred to the classic + shoulders of Mr. Motley,—another honored Bay-state-ian,—the + caustic reference to predecessors, and the implied compliment of request, + did not at all lose their respective significance.</p> + <p>What a compact statement is contained in the following sentence of the + instructions to the representative of foreign affairs at Vienna!—'The + political affairs in Austria present to us the aspect of an ancient and + very influential power, oppressed with fiscal embarrassments,—the + legacy of long and exhausting wars,—putting forth at one and at the + same time efforts for material improvement and still mightier ones to + protect its imperfectly combined dominion from dismemberment and + disintegration, seriously menaced from without, aided by strong and intense + popular passions within.' A lyceum lecturer might consume an evening over + the present political condition of Austria, and yet not convey a more + perfect idea thereof than is comprehended by the preceding paragraph!</p> + <p>Mr. Seward in first addressing Mr. Dayton discusses the slavery element + of the rebellion, and elucidates more particularly the relations of France + to a preserved or a dismembered Union; and evolves this plucky sentence: + 'The President neither expects nor desires any intervention, <i>or even any + favor</i>, from the government of France, or any other, in this emergency.' + But a still more spirited paragraph answers a question often asked by the + great public, 'What will be the course of the administration should foreign + intervention be given?' Foreign intervention <i>would oblige us</i> to + treat those who should yield it as allies of the insurrectionary party, and + to carry on the war against them as enemies. The case would not be + relieved, but, on the contrary, would only be aggravated, if <i>several</i> + European states should combine in that intervention. <i>The President and + the people of the United States deem the Union which would then be at + stake, worth all the cost and all the sacrifices of a contest with the + world in arms, if such a contest should prove inevitable</i>.'</p> + <p>In the advices to Mr. Schurz, at Madrid, occurs a most ingenious + application of the doctrine of secession to Spanish consideration in + respect to Cuba and Castile; to Aragon and the Philippine Islands; as well + as a most opportune reference to the proffered commercial confederate + advantages. 'What commerce,' asks the Secretary, 'can there be between + states whose staples are substantially identical? Sugar can not be + exchanged for sugar, nor cotton for cotton.' And another sentence is + deserving remembrance for its truthful sarcasm: 'It seems the necessity of + faction in every country, that whenever it acquires sufficient boldness to + inaugurate revolution, it then alike forgets the counsels of prudence, and + stifles the instincts of patriotism, and becomes a suitor to foreign courts + for aid and assistance to subvert and destroy the most cherished and + indispensable institutions of its own.'</p> + <p>Thus, within six weeks succeeding his entrance into the chambers of + State, Mr. Seward had mapped out in his own brain a much more comprehensive + policy than he had even laboriously and ably outlined upon paper. He had + placed himself in magnetico-diplomatic communication with the great courts + of Europe; surrounded by place-seekers, dogged by reporters, and + paragraphed at by a thousand <a name="page203" id="page203"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 203]</span> newspapers, from 'Fundy' to 'Dolores.' And + the most remarkable rhetorical feature of these many dispatches is the + absence of iteration, notwithstanding they were written upon substantially + one text. It is characteristic of them, as of his speeches, that no one + interlaces the other; each is complete of itself. Mr. Seward has always + possessed that varied fecundity of expression for which Mr. Webster was + admired. A gentleman who accompanied him upon his Lincoln-election tour + from Auburn to Kansas, remarked, that listening to and recalling all the + bye-play, depot speeches, and more elaborate addresses uttered by Mr. + Seward during the campaign, he never heard him repeat upon himself, nor + even speak twice in the same groove of thought. Neither will any reader + discover throughout even these early dispatches a marked haste of thought, + or a slovenly word-link in the Saxon rhetoric.</p> + <p>So far, we have alluded only to the instructions prepared before + plenipotentiary departure. But the executive axe in the block of foreign + affairs having been scoured, and new faces having fully replaced the + decapitated heads in foreign diplomatic baskets, circulars, instructions + and dispatches daily accumulate, 'treading on each other's heels.' The + volume contains <i>one hundred and forty emanations</i> from the pen of + Secretary Seward. How many more there exist is only known to the Cabinet or + the exigencies of secret service. Is not the bare arithmetical announcement + sufficient to satisfy the inquirer into Mr. Seward's diplomatic assiduity? + If not, will he please to remember as well Mr. Seward's perusals of foreign + mails, cabinet meetings, consultation of archives or state papers or + precedents, examinations into the relation of domestic events to foreign + policy, and the inspection of the sands of peace or war in the respective + hour-glasses of his department?</p> + <p>The circulars of Secretaries Black and Seward are promptly answered by + Mr. Dallas about a month after the inauguration, and whilst awaiting the + arrival of Charles Francis Adams. He said, among other things, 'English + opinion tends rather, I apprehend, to the theory that a peaceful separation + may work beneficially for both groups of States, and not injuriously affect + the rest of the world. The English can not be expected to appreciate the + weakness, discredit, complications and dangers which <i>we</i> + instinctively and justly ascribe to disunion.'</p> + <p>In this connection, let us remark, that we recently listened to a very + interesting discussion, at the 'Union' club, between an English traveler of + high repute, and a warm Unionist, upon the attitude of England. The former + seemed as ardent as was the latter disputant in his abhorrence of the + Southern traitors; but he constructed a very fair argument for the + consistency of England. Taking for his first position, that foreign nations + viewed the Jeff Davis movement as a revolution, self-sustained for nearly a + year, his second was, that the most enlightened American abolitionists, as + well as the most conservative Federalist, coincided in the belief that + disunion was ultimate emancipation. Then, acquiescing in the statement of + his antagonist, that the English nation had always reprehended American + slavery, and desired its speedy overthrow, he inquired what more + inconsistency there was in the English nation construing disunion in the + same way wherein the American abolitionist and conservative Unionist did, + as the inevitable promotion of slavery's overthrow? When it was rejoined + that the canker of slavery had eaten away many bonds of Union, and promoted + secession, the English disputant demanded whether the war aimed at rebuking + slavery in a practical way, or by strengthening it as a locally + constitutional institution? When the question was begged by the assertion + that recognition of the Southern confederacy, although granted to be of + abolition tendencies, was ungenerous and unfraternal, the position assumed + was that nations, like individuals, cherished self-love, and always sought + to turn intestine troubles among competitive powers into the channels of + home-aggrandizement; <a name="page204" id="page204"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 204]</span> and it was asked whether, should Ireland + maintain a provisional government for nearly a year, there would not be + found a strong <i>party</i> in the States advocating her recognition?</p> + <p>But Mr. Seward, in replying to Mr. Dallas in a dispatch to Mr. Adams, + dismissed all arguments of policy or consistency, and remarked: 'Her + Britannic Majesty's government is at liberty to choose whether it will + retain the friendship of this government, by refusing all aid and comfort + to its enemies, now in flagrant rebellion against it, <i>as we think the + treaties existing between the two countries require</i>, or whether the + government of her Majesty will take <i>the precarious benefits of a + different course</i>.'</p> + <p>So early as May 2d, the British Secretary told Mr. Dallas that <i>an + understanding existed between the British and French governments which + would lead both to take one and the same course as to recognition</i>. Mr. + Seward comments upon this in one of the most manly letters ever written by + an American Secretary. It will be preserved upon the same historic shelf + whereon reposes the manuscript of Daniel Webster's letter to the Chevalier + Hulsemann. To Mr. Adams he says, that the communication loses its value + because withheld until the knowledge was acquired from other sources, + together with the additional fact that other European states are apprized + by France and England of the agreement, and <i>are expected to concur with + or follow them in whatever measures they adopt on the subject of + recognition!</i> Great Britain, if intervening, is assured that she will + calculate for herself the ultimate as well as the immediate consequences; + and must consider what position she will hold when she shall have lost + forever the sympathies and affections of the only nation upon whose + sympathies and affections she has a natural claim. In making that + calculation she will do well to remember that in the controversy she + proposes to open, we shall be actuated neither by pride, nor passion, nor + cupidity, nor ambition; but we shall stand simply upon the principle of + self-preservation, our cause involving the independence of nations and the + rights of human nature. These utterances were doubtless, in their book + form, perused by the British cabinet during the Christmas holidays.</p> + <p>Taking the pages which close up the word-tilts of the diplomatists at + date of November first (and we dare say our Board-of-Brokers readers regret + that complete dispatches down to the sailing of the Africa, with that + interesting pouch of letters on board, are not to be had at all the + book-stores!) we may imagine Messrs. Russell, Adams, Seward and Lyons + resolved into a conversational club, and talking as follows from week to + week:—</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. It is gratifying to the grandson of the first American + Minister at this court to feel that there are now fewer topics of direct + difference between the two countries than have, probably, existed at any + preceding time; and even these are withdrawn from discussion at St. James, + to be treated at Washington. It would have been more gratifying to find + that the good will, so recently universally felt at my home for your + country, was unequivocally manifested here.</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell (smiling blandly)</i>. To what do you allude?</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. It is with pain that I am compelled to admit that from + the day of my arrival I have felt in the proceedings of both houses of + Parliament, in the language of her Majesty's ministers, and in the tone of + opinion prevailing in private circles, more of uncertainty about this than + I had before thought possible. (<i>Lord Russell silent and still smiling + blandly</i>). It is therefore the desire of my government to learn whether + it was the intention of her Majesty's ministers to adopt a policy which + would have the effect to widen, if not to make irreparable a breach which I + believe yet to be entirely manageable.</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. I beg to assure your Excellency there is no such + intention. The clearest evidence of this is to be found in the assurance + given by me to Mr. Dallas, before your arrival. But you must admit that I + hardly can see my way <a name="page205" id="page205"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 205]</span> to bind my government to any specific + course, when circumstances beyond our agency render it difficult to tell + what might happen.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Seward (aside)</i>. But the future will care for itself. We deal + with the 'Now.' '<i>There is "Yet" in that word "Hereafter."</i>' Great + Britain has already acted on the assumption that the Confederate States (so + called) are <i>de facto</i> a self-sustaining power. After long + forbearance, designed to soothe discontent and avert the need of civil war, + the land and naval forces of the United States have been put in motion to + repress insurrection. The <i>true</i> character of the pretended new state + is revealed. It is seen to be a power existing in pronunciamento only. It + has obtained no forts that were not betrayed into its hands or seized in + breach of trust. It commands not a single port, nor one highway from its + pretended capital by land.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. Her Majesty's proclamation and the language of her + ministers in both houses have raised insurgents to the level of a + belligerent state.</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. I think more stress is laid upon these events than + they deserve. It was a necessity to define the course of the government in + regard to the participation of the subjects of Great Britain in the + impending conflict. The legal officers were consulted. They said war <i>de + facto</i> existed. Seven States were in open resistance.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. But your action was very rapid. The new administration + had been but sixty days in office. All departments were demoralized. The + British government then takes the initiative, and decides practically it is + a struggle of two sides, just as the country commenced to develop its power + to cope with the rebellion. It considered the South a marine power before + it had exhibited a single privateer on the ocean. The Greeks at the time of + recognition had 'covered the sea with cruisers.'</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell (smiling yet more blandly)</i>. I cite you the case of + the Fillmore government towards Kossuth and Hungary. Was not an agent sent + to the latter country with a view to recognition?</p> + <p><i>Mr. Seward (aside)</i>. The proclamation, unmodified and unexplained, + leaves us no alternative but to regard the government of Great Britain as + questioning our free exercise of all the rights of self-defence guaranteed + to us by our Constitution, and the laws of nature and of nations, to + suppress insurrection. But now as to the propositions sent, viz. (1.) + Privateering abolished. (2.) Neutral flag covers enemy's goods except + contraband of war. (3.) Neutral goods safe under enemy's flag, with same + exception. (4.) Effective blockades.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams (aside to Mr. Seward)</i>. It is to be agreed to, if there + be received a written declaration by Great Britain, to accompany the + signature of her minister,—'Her Majesty does not intend thereby to + undertake any engagement which shall have any bearing, direct <i>or + indirect</i>, on the internal differences now prevailing in the United + States.'</p> + <p><i>Mr. Seward (still aside)</i>. I am instructed by the President to say + it is inadmissible. (1.) It is virtually a new and distinct article + incorporated into the projected convention. (2.) The United States must + accede to the Declaration of the Congress of Paris on the same terms with + other parties, or not at all. (3.) It is not mutual in effect, for it does + not provide for a melioration of <i>our</i> obligations in internal + differences now prevailing in, or which may hereafter arise in, Great + Britain. (4.) It would permit a foreign power for the first time to take + cognizance of, and adjust its relations upon, <i>assumed</i> internal and + purely domestic differences. (5.) The general parties to the Paris + convention can not adopt it as one of universal application.</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. Touching the disagreements as to acquiescing in the + Paris convention and the proposed modification, I ask to explain the reason + of the latter. The United States government regards the confederates as + rebels, and their privateersmen as pirates. We regard the <a name="page206" + id="page206"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 206]</span> confederates as + belligerents. As between us and your government, privateering would be + abolished. We would and could have no concurrent convention with the + confederate power upon the subject. We would have in good faith to treat + the confederate privateersmen as pirates. Yet we acknowledge them + belligerents. Powers not a party to the convention may rightfully arm + privateers. Hence, instead of an agreement, charges of bad faith and + violation of a convention might be brought in the United States against us + should we accept the propositions unreservedly.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. Your Lordship's government adhere to the proposition + of modification?</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. Such are my instructions.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. Then, refraining for the present from reviewing our + past conversations to ascertain the relative responsibilities of the + parties for this failure of these negotiations, I have to inform you that + they are for the time being suspended.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. But your Lordship has many time <i>unofficially</i> + received the confederate ambassadors, so styled. This has excited + uneasiness in my country. It has, indeed, given great dissatisfaction to my + government. And, in all frankness and courtesy, I have to add, that any + further protraction of this relation can scarcely fail to be viewed by us + as hostile in spirit.</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. It has been custom, both here and in France, for a + long time back, to receive such persons unofficially. Pole, Hungarians, + Italians, and such like, have been allowed unofficial interviews, in order + that we might hear what they had to say. But this never implied recognition + in their case, any more than in yours!</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. I observe in the newspapers an account of a + considerable movement of troops to Canada. In the situation of our + governments this will excite attention at home. Are they ordered with + reference to possible difficulties with us?</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. Canada has been denuded of troops for some time + back. The new movement is regarded, in restoring a part of them, as a + proper measure of <i>precaution</i> in the present disordered condition of + things in the United States. But Mr. Ashmun is in Canada, remonstrating as + to alleged breaches of neutrality.</p> + <p>(<i>Lord Lyons</i>. I viewed the subject as cause of complaint.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Seward</i>. And I instantly recalled Mr. Ashmun.)</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. He was in Canada to watch and prevent just such a + transaction as the fitting out of a pirate or privateer—the Peerless + case.</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. Mr. Seward threatened to have the Peerless seized + on Lake Ontario.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. I respectfully doubt your Lordship's information. It + was surely an odd way of proceeding to furnish at once the warning in time + to provide against its execution!</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p><i>Mr. Adams</i>. I deeply regret a painful necessity which compels me + to make a representation touching the conduct of Consul Bunch at + Charleston. A private and opened letter, intercepted on the person of a + naturalized American citizen and colonel in the confederate + army,—Robert Mure, bearer of dispatches to Great + Britain,—disclosed these words: 'Mr. Bunch, on oath of secrecy, + communicated to me that the first step to recognition was taken. <i>So + prepare for active business</i> BY THE FIRST OF JANUARY.'</p> + <p><i>Lord Russell</i>. I will without hesitation state to you <i>that, in + pursuance of an agreement between the British and French governments, Mr. + Bunch was instructed to communicate to the persons exercising authority in + the so-called confederate States, the desire of those governments that + certain articles of the declaration of Paris should be observed by them in + their hostilities(!)</i> But regarding the <a name="page207" + id="page207"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 207]</span> other statement, I + as frankly say, Her Majesty's government have not recognized, and are not + prepared to recognize, the so-called confederate States as a separate and + independent power.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Seward (aside to Mr. Adams)</i>. The President revokes the + exequatur of Consul Bunch, who has not only been the bearer of + communications between the insurgents and a foreign government in violation + of our laws, but has abused equally the confidence of the two governments + by reporting, without the authority of his government, and in violation of + their own policy, as well as of our national rights, that the proceeding in + which he was engaged was in the nature of a treaty with the insurgents, and + the first step toward a recognition by Great Britain of their sovereignty. + His whole conduct has been, not that of a friend to this government, nor of + a neutral even, but of a partisan of faction and disunion.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p><i>Lord Lyons</i>. My government are concerned to find that two British + subjects, Mr. Patrick and Mr. Rahming, have been subjected to arbitrary + arrest.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Seward</i>. At the time of arrest it was not known they were + British subjects. They have been released.</p> + <p><i>Lord Lyons</i>. They applied for habeas corpus, and its exercise was + refused. Congress has not suspended the writ. Our law officers say that the + authority of Congress is necessary to justify this arrest and + imprisonment.</p> + <p><i>Mr. Seward (with suavity, but profound dignity, as if the nation + spoke)</i>. I have to regret that, after so long an official intercourse + between the governments of the United States and Great Britain, it should + be necessary now to inform her Majesty's ministers that <i>all</i> + executive proceedings are of the President. Congress has no executive power + or responsibility. The President constitutionally exercises the right of + suspending the writ of habeas corpus. This government does not question the + learning of the legal advisers of the British Crown, or the justice of the + deference which her Majesty's government pays to them; nevertheless, the + British government will hardly expect that the President will accept + <i>their</i> explanation of the Constitution of the United States!</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>Are not the following inferences legitimately to be made from a close + and calm study of the published dispatches respecting our foreign relations + with Great Britain, and in connection with much that has transpired since + their congressional publication?—</p> + <p>1. The British government officers were in some way prepared to expect + that the election of Mr. Lincoln would result in an attempted disruption of + the Union. The arrival of Governor Pickens in England just before the + presidential election, and his arrival in New York, and immediate journey + to South Carolina, on the day of that election, may be cited as one of many + coincidences—showing that the spirit of Cobb, Floyd, and Thompson, if + not their doings and plans, were parodied on the other side of the + Atlantic.</p> + <p>2. The British government were not averse to disunion from the outset, + and seized every pretext of tariff, or of inaction respecting the + rebellion, that it might quibble with the United States authority.</p> + <p>3. The tone of the press, ministry and people was early heard, and + echoed by Mr. Dallas to our government. Mr. Seward therefore, at the + outset, knew his position, and most opportunely and dignifiedly maintained + a bearing all the more noble because it proceeded from a government which + had taken arms against a sea of troubles.</p> + <p>4. The British government waited <i>only</i> so long as international + decency technically warranted before proclaiming an acknowledgment of + <i>civil</i> war in the United States, and accepting the government of Mr. + Davis as an equal belligerent with that of Mr. Lincoln. This was a matured + step, and a strong link in a chain of ultimate recognition.</p> + <p>5. The Crown ministers early sought and obtained an understanding with + <a name="page208" id="page208"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 208]</span> + France for mutual action: an understanding palpably hostile to the United + States and tantalizingly acknowledged by open diplomacy.</p> + <p>6. The British ministry construed strictly as against the Washington + government, but liberally as toward that of Jeff Davis, in regard to all + arising complications.</p> + <p>7. The British government palpably permitted purchases and shipments of + contraband articles by Southern emissaries, but exercised the utmost + vigilance when the United States agents entered the market for similar + purposes.</p> + <p>8. The action of Lord Russell respecting the proposition to abolish + privateering was covertly insulting. It asked to interpolate a new + condition as between France and England of the one part and the United + States of the other; and a condition conceived in a spirit of liberality + toward Jeff Davisdom, and promulgated in a meddlesome mood toward the + United States government.</p> + <p>9. The tone of Lord Lyons was a more permissible manifestation of + British spleen than the higher functionaries at home displayed, yet none + the more acrid. This appears in all his letters and dispatches respecting + blockade, privateering, the arrest of spies, and the detention of British + subjects, or the seizure of prizes. It is especially offensive in the + letter to Mr. Seward which drew forth a diplomatic rebuke upon a dictation + by English law authority regarding constitutional construction.</p> + <p>10. The correspondence of the State Department was conducted by Mr. + Seward (as was well said by the N.Y. Evening Post, Dec. 21) with great + skill and adroitness. It was also firm in the defence of our national honor + and rights. His rhetoric was always measured by the dignified, tasteful, + and cautious rules of international intercourse. Its entire tone in + correspondence was earnest but restrained, and in style fully equaling his + best, and most ornate efforts.</p> + <p>What are Mr. Seward's views in the 'Past' respecting England and the + emergency of a war with her, is a question now much mooted. It can be + readily answered by reference to a speech made at a St. Patrick's Day + dinner whilst he was Governor. 'Gentlemen, the English are in many respects + a wise as they are a great and powerful nation. They have obtained an + empire and ascendancy such as Rome once enjoyed. As the Tiber once bore, + the Thames now bears the tribute of many nations, and the English name is + now feared and respected as once the Roman was in every part of the world. + England has been alike ambitious and successful. England too is prosperous, + and her people are contented and loyal. But contentment and loyalty have + not been universal in the provinces and dependencies of the English + government. The desolation which has followed English conquest in the East + Indies has been lamented throughout the civilized world. Ireland has been + deprived of her independence without being admitted to an equality with her + sister-island, and discontent has marked the history of her people ever + since the conquest. England has not the magnanimity and generosity of the + Romans. She derives wealth from her dependencies, but lavishes it upon + objects unworthy of herself. She achieves victories with their aid, but + appropriates the spoils and trophies exclusively to herself. For centuries + she refused to commit trusts to Irishmen, or confer privileges upon them, + unless they would abjure the religion of their ancestors.'</p> + <p>Ten years later, in the United States Senate, during the debate upon the + Fisheries dispute, Mr. Seward said, after discussing England's financial + and commercial position: 'England can not wisely desire nor safely dare a + war with the United States. She would find that there would come over us + again that dream of conquest of those colonies which broke upon us even in + the dawn of the Revolution, when we tendered them an invitation to join + their fortunes with ours, and followed it with the sword—that dream + which returned again in 1812, when we attempted to subjugate them by force; + and that now, when we have matured <a name="page209" id="page209"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 209]</span> the strength to take them, we should find + the provinces willingly consenting to captivity. A war about these + fisheries would be a war which would result either in the independence of + the British Provinces, or in their annexation to the United States. I + devoutly pray God that <i>that</i> consummation may come; the sooner the + better: but I do not desire it at the cost of war <i>or of injustice</i>. I + am content to wait for the ripened fruit which must fall. I know the wisdom + of England too well to believe that she would hazard shaking that fruit + into our hands.'</p> + <p>Another question, now asked,—'Will Mr. Seward exhaust + negotiation?'—may be in like manner answered by himself. In a + succeeding debate on the same 'fisheries' controversy, commenting upon + negotiation, he said: '<i>Sir, it is the business of the Secretary of + State, and of the government, always to be ready, in my humble judgment, to + negotiate under all circumstances, whether there be threats or no threats, + whether there be force or no force: but the manner and the spirit and the + terms of the negotiation will be varied by the position that the opposing + party may occupy</i>.'</p> + <p>It can not be denied that more cordial relations exist between the + President and the Secretary of State than ever any previous administration + disclosed: so that when Mr. Seward acts, the government will prove a + powerful unit. Indeed, in this connection, history will hereafter write + precisely what Mr. Seward, in his speech on the 'Clayton-Bulwer treaty,' + said respecting the Taylor administration:—'Sir, whatever else may + have been the errors or misfortunes of that administration, want of mutual + confidence between the Secretary of State and his distinguished chief was + not one of them. They stood together firmly, undivided, and inseparable to + the last. <i>Storms of faction from within their own party and from without + beset them, and combinations and coalitions in and out of Congress assailed + them with a degree of violence that no other administration has ever + encountered</i>. But they never yielded.'</p> + <p>We can not better conclude this paper, while the volumes of Mr. Seward's + works are open on the table, than by quoting still again, and asking the + reader to apply his own remarks on Secretary of State Webster in the + fisheries-war speech, before alluded to: 'I shall enter into no encomium on + the Secretary of State; he needs none. I should be incompetent to grasp so + great a theme, if it were needed. The Secretary of State! There he is! + Behold him, and judge for yourselves. There is his history; there are his + ideas; his thoughts spread over every page of your annals for near half a + century. <i>There are his ideas, his thoughts impressed upon and + inseparable from the mind of his country and the spirit of the age</i>. The + past is at least secure. The past is enough of itself to guarantee a future + of fame unapproachable and inextinguishable.'</p> + <hr /> + <h2>TO ENGLAND.</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + The Yankee chain you'd gladly split, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And yet begin by heating it! + </div> + <div class="line"> + But when the iron is all aglow, + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'Twill closer blend at every blow. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Learn wisdom from a warning word, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Beat not the chain into a sword. + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page210" id="page210"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 210]</span> + <h2>THE HEIR OF ROSETON.</h2> + <h3>CHAPTER 1.</h3> + <center> + Qui curios simulant, et Bacchanalia vivunt. JUV. + </center> + <center> + Odi Persicos apparatus. HOR. + </center> + <center> + Indulge Genio: carpamus dulcia. PERS. + </center> + <p>Roseton awoke. A silver clock upon the mantle, so constructed as to + represent Guido's 'Hours,' had just struck the hour of eight, accompanying + the signal with the festal <i>la ci darem</i> of Don Giovanni. This was + Roseton's invariable hour of waking, no matter what might be the season, or + what might have been his time of retiring. Slightly stirring upon the + couch, the night drapery became relaxed, and from his sleeve of Mechlin + lace appeared a hand and wrist of unspeakable delicacy, yet of iron + strength. Another slight movement, and one saw the upper portions of the + form of the late slumberer; 'a graceful composition in one of Nature's + happiest moments.' It was indeed difficult properly to estimate either the + beauty of his proportions or their amazing strength. The most celebrated + sculptors of Europe had made pilgrimages across the sea to refresh their + perceptions by gazing upon a figure which, even in the unclassic + habiliments of modern dress, caused the Apollo to resemble a plowboy; and + the athletes of both hemispheres had, singly, and in pairs, and even in + triplets, measured their powers vainly against his unaided arms. To keep + ten fifty-sixes in the air for an hour at a time was to him the merest + trifle; but the <i>ennui</i> of such diversions had long since crept upon + him, and only on occasions of the extremest urgency did he exercise any + other faculties than those of the will. In compliance with an effort of the + latter nature, his favorite servant now entered the apartment. The Rev. + Geo. Langford had but a moment before been deeply engaged in solving the + problem of the fourth satellite of Jupiter, when a sharp, tingling + sensation in the rear of his brain convinced him that a master will desired + his attendance. The scholar, who thus rose to be the servant of + Roseton,—a position that even the President of a Western college + might envy, such were its dignities and emoluments,—stood for a + moment at the foot of Roseton's couch, and in silence received the silent + orders of the day. No words passed, but in an incredibly short space of + time Roseton's commands had flashed into the mind of his attendant, and the + latter withdrew to reduce them to writing for the benefit of the four + masters of the four departments of the House. They in turn methodized them + for their forty-eight deputies, and one hundred and ninety-two + servants—in addition to the female who came to the house to receive + the weekly wash—performed their daily task intelligently and + harmoniously.</p> + <p>A bath of atar of roses next received the master of the House of + Pont-Noir. This was renewed every hour of the day; for Roseton's fancy + indulged the frequent and the casual lavation, and his exacting taste + demanded the strictest purity. A careless servant once ventured to leave + the bath filled without a change of the fluid, after it had been occupied; + but the negligence was at once detected by the master of Pont-Noir, and his + weekly allowance of cologne-water was summarily reduced. Upon the ceiling, + over the bath, were frescoed, in Titianelli's richest style, the most + graceful legends of mythology. Here Theseus toyed with Ariadne; here the + infant Mercury furtively enticed the Grecian Short-horns; here Triton blew + his seaweed-tangled horn, and troops of ocean-nymphs threw the surface of + the deep into 'sparkling commotions of splendor;' here Venus allured + Anchises, by sweetly calling him to the leafy tops of Ida; here Deucalion + surmounted the <a name="page211" id="page211"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 211]</span> miraculous floods; and here Pyrrha first instructed wondering + men in the knowledge of the existence, beauties and duties of the fairer + part of creation. Here, reclining in dreamful ease, and indulging in the + perpetual warmth by which the bath confessed the power of unseen caloric + agency, Roseton was wont ever to sport with delicious memories, now with + rapturous hopes, and at times to compose those elegant sonnets for the New + York weekly newspapers, for each one of which a thousand dollars was + joyfully given by the delighted proprietors to the poor of the city.</p> + <p>Carefully wiped, and clothed in a morning robe by twelve gentlemanly + attendants, each one a scion of the first families of the metropolis, + Roseton was borne to the breakfasting apartment. Here, indeed, a scene + presented itself, among whose splendors imagination only could safely + dwell, and before which the practical and the prosaic mind might well grow + comatose or skeptical. Malachite tables of every conceivable shape from the + Ural; carpets to whose texture the shawls of Cashmere had become tributary; + paintings by all the known, and many of the unknown, old masters; these + were only rivaled by chairs of the most undeniable and gorgeous curled + maple; and a beaufet of true cherry acknowledged, in common with a Jerome + horologe, a Connecticut origin. These incredible adjuncts to luxury were, + however, eclipsed by the dazzling glory of a vast pyramid of purest oreide, + which at its apex separated into four divisions to the sound of slow music, + by forty hidden performers, revealing, as it descended to the floor, an + equal number of tables, on which plate, Sévres China, Nankin + porcelain, and the emerald glass of New England, rivaled the display of + damask, fruits, liqueurs, and delicatest meats. Here smoked a sweetbread, + here gleamed a porgy, not yet forty-eight hours caught, and here the + strawberry crimsoned the cream that lapped its blushing sides. Here the + Arabian berry evolved clouds of perfume; here Curaçoa glistened from + behind its strawy shield; and here a decanter of warranted real French + brandy, side by side with a bottle of Stoughton's bitters, suggested that a + cocktail might not only be desirable, but possible. But Roseton's eyes + gazed languidly upon the spectacle, and the walls of the pyramid again + ascending, shut the quadruple banquets from the sight.</p> + <p>A moment elapsed, and they fell once more. A fountain of cool, fragrant + distillation threw showers of delight into the atmosphere, under the canopy + of which again appeared four luxurious tables. Upon one, tea and toast + suggested the agreeable and appropriate remedy for an over-night's + dissipation; upon another, an array of marmalades, icy tongues reduced by + ether to a temperature of minus sixty, Finnane haddock, and oaten meal of + rarest bolting, indicated and offered to gratify the erratic taste of a + Caledonian. Again, upon another, a Strasburg pie displayed its delicious + brown, the members of the emerald songster of the fen lay whitely delicate, + and accompanying absinthe revealed the knowledge of Gallic preferences. + Upon the fourth, smoking and olent Rio, puddings of Indian, cakes composed + of one third butter, one third flour, one third saleratus, and the crisping + bean, surmounted by crimped pork, showed that a Providence Yankee might + well find an appropriate entertainment. But again the eyes of Roseton + looked vacantly on, and again, amid strains of music, the walls of the + pyramid ascended.</p> + <p>A short pause, and they sunk again. Now appeared, as a central figure, + an odalisque. In each ivory hand she bore a double fan of exquisite + workmanship, on each of which again glistened a delicate and fairy banquet. + Here were ultimate quintessences—pines reduced to a drop of honeyed + delight; bananas whose life lay in points of bewildering sweetness; + enormous steamboat puddings compressed within the compass of a thimble, + exclusive of the sauce; chocolates, oceans of which lay in mimic lakes, + each of which the bill of a humming-bird might expand; tongues of most + melodious <a name="page212" id="page212"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 212]</span> singing birds—the nightingale, the thrush, and the + goldfinch; lambs <i>en suprême</i>, each eliminated of earthly + particles, and spiritualized in scarcely tangible results. Over all hovered + the memories of exquisite beverages, which became realities when you + approached, and stole over the sense with insidious deliciousness.</p> + <p>These, too, faded away amid the disregard of their owner, though the + odalisque shed floods of tears of disappointment; and others succeeded, but + they tempted Roseton vainly, and a glance at the clock showed that it was + now ten o'clock by New Haven time. At this moment the Rev. George Langford + experienced another biological sensation; Roseton had conceived a + breakfast.</p> + <p>Repairing to a battery in a recess of his laboratory, Langford + attentively studied the ebullitions occasioned by an ultimate dilution and + aggregation of the chemicals in the formula HP + O^(22). During this time + the sensations in his brain successively continued to rack and agonize him; + but, faithful to his mission, he remained immersed in thought until his + intellect grasped the key of the problem. Issuing then from the recess, he + promulgated the results of his investigation to the four masters of the + house, These, with the aid of the forty-eight deputies, executed the + inchoate idea, and once more—and finally—the pyramid unfolded. + But now a single table appeared, bearing upon its snowy mantle a Yarmouth + bloater, and a bottle of Dublin stout. Roseton's eyes lighted up with + unaccustomed pleasure, and he gave instant commands for the duplication of + the salary of his esteemed attendant-in-chief.</p> + <p>In accordance with the custom of the house, the morning journals now + appeared; and here the fancy of Roseton had therein a living and + distinctive character over each. Youths, of perfect beauty, who had, during + the three previous hours, diligently studied the sheets in question, passed + before him, one by one, dressed in appropriate costume, and each one + delivered to him in mental short-hand the entire contents of the journal + which he represented. These were rendered wholly in the Sanscrit tongue, in + which Roseton was an adept; with the exception of the <i>Tribune</i>, the + language of which, Roseton was accustomed to say, is unique, and incapable + of translation. First appeared the representative of the <i>Herald</i>, + dressed as a jockey; an irresistible air of assurance accompanied him, and + he threw frequent summersaults with inconceivable quickness. Next marched + the <i>Tribune</i>;—a youth shrouded in inexplicable garments, and + the living centre of a whirlwind of exploding theories. Then stepped the + <i>Times</i> in rapid succession; a blooming boy dressed with precision, + and delicately balancing himself as he delivered his part. Next appeared + the <i>World</i>, habited as a theological student, and sorrow for + irreparable loss was indicated by a Weed upon his hat. One looked for the + embodiment of the <i>News</i> in vain, but a Wooden figure, wheeled in + silence through the apartment, was thought to convey a mysterious lesson. A + martial ghost, wearing upon his head a triple crown, like the vision of + Macbeth, yet bravely supporting himself under the three-fold encumbrance, + seemed the <i>Courier</i> of Wall Street. The pageant passed, but Roseton + seemed unsatisfied; and it soon occurred to him that the deep draughts of + secession news, which he had been accustomed to receive each morning from + the <i>Journal of Commerce</i>, had, on this occasion, failed him. But on + further reflection his infallible logic convinced him that the existence of + this paper must have ceased at the same time with that of the Southern + mails.</p> + <p>It now remained to perform the morning toilet; and a corps of attendants + conveyed Roseton to his dressing-room. Here the lavish wealth of the + Pont-Noirs found another appropriate field for its display. The floor was + of Carrera marble, curiously tesselated, rising in the centre to the + support of a fountain, where water-nymphs breathed forth shattered columns + of fragrant spray, whose parabolic curves filled a spacious lake below. <a + name="page213" id="page213"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 213]</span> Vases + of diamond, emerald and ruby crowded the mantles, each filled with some + unknown perfume—the result of Roseton's miraculous chemistry; for in + this science Roseton was supreme. In a single day he exhausted the + resources of American laboratories, and a short visit to Europe convinced + him that henceforth he must be his own instructor. Savants in vain + solicited his formulas. 'Why,' he reasoned, 'should I furnish children in + science with tools of which they can not comprehend the use?' Delicate + tables, chiseled from the humbler gems, were scattered about the chamber; + agate, topaz, lapis-lazuli, amethyst, and a smaragdus of miraculous beauty. + Chairs of golden wire completed the furniture of this unequaled + apartment.</p> + <p>The hangings of the walls were a freak at once of genius and lavishness. + They consisted of the bills of the Valley Bank, extravagantly lapped, and + of untold denomination. But the ceiling—how shall I describe it? Did + you, indeed, look up inimitably into a Hesperian sky, or was this firmament + the creation of the painter's art? Nothing flecked the profound, + unsearchable, impassive blue. There brooded the primeval heavens, undimmed + by earthly vapors, unfathomed by earthly instruments; forever indescribable + by earthly tongues.</p> + <p>Two hundred years before, a Pont-Noir of the Roseton branch accumulated + immense wealth from a diamond mine in East Haddam, Connecticut. He was a + man of deep and ardent imagination, and uncomprehended by the simple + villagers, who irreverently styled him the 'mad Roseton.' He died, and left + a singular will. It provided that his estates, money, and jewels, should be + realized and invested on interest for the space of two hundred years, by a + committee of trustees, consisting of the governors of the six New England + States, to be assisted by the fiscal board of Mississippi, whenever such a + State should be organized. At the expiration of that time, the avails were + to be paid to Roseton, of Pont-Noir, provided but one of that name should + exist; if more were living, the estate was to remain in abeyance until such + a condition should be reached. Not undiscerningly had he foreseen the + probability that his will would be disputed, and a short time before his + death he caused a formal attestation of his sanity to be made by the entire + body of clergymen comprising the Middlesex Conference. His mode of proof + was simple, consisting only of an original manuscript, refuting the + Arminian heresy; but it sufficed, and the will was obeyed. Not unwisely, + also, had he calculated upon the energies of population; for, during one + hundred and fifty years, the Pont-Noirs spread over both continents. Then + they paused, and but two of the race—chosen by lot—were allowed + to marry. At the expiration of twenty-five years, a single male of the + race, also chosen by lot, married, and became the father of the present + Roseton. On the day that Roseton was twenty-four years old, his father + summoned him to his apartment. 'To-morrow,' said he, 'the mystical two + hundred years expire, and an estate of inconceivable magnitude will vest in + the single Roseton—if there be but one. My son, my life is of less + consequence than yours, since it is farther spent; but it still has + sweetness, and it is the <i>only</i> life that I possess. Here are three + goblets of wine—one is Scuppernong, the other two are harmless. I + will apportion our chances fairly, and will drink two; you shall drink one. + The lawyers are at hand to arrange the inquest, and to confer the + title-deeds to the estate.' In silence the son consented, and the devoted + pair drank off the goblets as proposed, and at once sat down to a banquet + prepared for them, and for the legal gentlemen attendant. When the ices + came in, the elder Roseton was carried out; and the heir of Pont-Noir, + having seen the remains properly bestowed in a place of safety, and a + special inquest held, finished the night with the counsellors in the + enjoyment of a tempered hilarity, and rose next morning the possessor of + wealth so boundless, so unspeakable, that <a name="page214" + id="page214"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 214]</span> my brain reels as I + endeavor to grasp at even its outlying fragments.</p> + <p>In the hope of presenting some of its details to the reader, I procured, + at an enormous expense, a Babbage calculating engine, and during three + successive weeks worked it without pause upon the illimitable figures. It + then became clogged, and the village Vulcan, whose impartial hand corrects + at once the time-pieces and the plowshares of the neighborhood, having + knocked the machinery to pieces with a sledge, declared himself incompetent + to explain and unable to repair. My results therefore are maimed and + imperfect, but I trust they will show that I have not exaggerated the + difficulty of the process of reduction and estimation.</p> + <p>The fragmentary portions of the estate, then, are: the entire capital + stock of thirty-eight of the Banks of New York city (though here a wise + policy has suggested the employment of various respectable names as those + of shareholders, in order to protect these institutions from the fury of a + mob); all that portion of the metropolis lying between the Twelfth and + Twenty-second Avenues, from Canal Street to the suburb of Poughkeepsie, + comprising of necessity the water rights and quarries; eighteen thousand + millions of bullion specially deposited in the State Bank of Mississippi, + to the order of the six New England Governors, trustees; the Pont-Noir + mansion on Nultiel Street, surrounded by twenty-five acres of land, the + very heart of the best New York residences, and variously estimated from + six to eight millions of dollars; the remote but tolerably well known + villages of Boston and Philadelphia in their entirety; and one undivided + tenth of the stock of the Valley Bank. It was upon the last investment that + Roseton chiefly drew for his expenses. 'My fancy,' said he, 'inclines me to + convert Boston into an observatory, and Philadelphia into a tea-garden, and + nothing but an amiable regard for the comfort of a handful of families + prevents at once from carrying such plans into effect. My mansion is of + necessity unproductive; and the Mississippi bullion is greatly needed where + it already is. City property is a dreadful nuisance, the taxes are + outrageous and the tenants pay poorly; and although the New York Banks + announce dividends, yet when you come to look at their actual condition, + hum, hum;—is that door shut?—just put your ear a little this + way, so; there, I say nothing; there are Banks and Banks; but a building + may have two doors, and what goes <i>out</i> at one may come <i>in</i> + again at the other, eh? Mind, I say nothing. So you see, beside the East + Haddam diamond mines, which are at present badly worked; and a few South + American republics which are chiefly occupied in assassinating their + presidents; and a border State or two that usually leave me to provide for + their half-yearly coupons;—besides these resources, you see, I have + really little else to look to but the Valley Bank.'</p> + <p>While the possessor of this wealth is undergoing his morning toilet, let + us attend the steps of his butler in chief, whose duty it was to prepare + the eleven-o'clocker with which Roseton was accustomed to fortify himself + against the fatigues of the middle part of the day. Passing down a + succession of flights of stairs, each one consisting of two hundred and + twenty-five steps of the finest ebony, we at last find ourselves in an + immense cavern, dimly lighted by the internal fires of the earth, which are + here approached and verified. It was, however, left for Roseton to discover + that these flames consisted of negative qualities as to caloric; and a + project for cooling the streets of Newport by night, in summer, by means of + floods of brilliant radiance, every point of which shall surpass the + calcium light of the Museum, will soon evince to society that Roseton has + not lived in vain. It was indeed a place of rarest temperature, and a + sublime sense of personal exaltation thrilled you as you entered. The + butler approached an arch, and unlocking a wicker door which was + ingeniously contrived to admit air, but to exclude the furtive or the + inquisitive hand, threw open to <a name="page215" id="page215"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 215]</span> your inspection the immense wine-cellar + within.</p> + <p>Such indeed were the dimensions of the crypt that some little time might + elapse before your eye could fully gauge them: but on accustoming yourself + to the enlarged mensuration occasioned by the unearthly light, you saw that + the cavity in question could not be less than six feet high at the top of + the arch, three feet wide, and at least forty-eight inches deep. It was + musty, cobwebbed, and encrusted with stalactic nitre, but the spirit of + rare old vintages exhaled from its depths, and visionary clusters of + purplest grapes dangled in every direction. And first your eye lighted upon + a half dozen real old India Port, picked up by golden chance at an + assignee's sale in Rivington Street. The chalk-mark on the bottles was + intended to be cabalistically private, but an acquaintance with the occult + dialect of Spanish Zingari convinced you that 1/2, meant nothing else than + that the bottles represented twelve and a half cents each, with three years + interest,—a fabulous sum, but lavished in a direction where the + pledge of a dukedom had not been irrational, if the object could not have + been otherwise accomplished. Next a row of Medoc claimed the enraptured + attention; delicately overspread with the dust of years, but flashing + through the filmy covering the undeniable blood of the Honduras forest. + Here might one well pause and indulge in Clautian memories: the violent + remonstrances of Nature against, and her subsequent acquiescence in, the + primal draughts of <i>vin ordinaire</i>, whether expertly served by a + Delmonico, or carelessly decanted by the Hibernian attendant in the + gorgeous saloon of a Taylor; next the ascent to St. Julien, Number 2, when + haply a friend from the country lingers at the office, and you see no way + of escape but an exodus in quest of chicken and green peas; a blushing + crimson at the surface and unknown clouds below; then the <i>De Grave</i> + in delicate flagons, a fit sacrifice to the exquisite tastes of the editor + who is to notice your forthcoming volume, or to the epicurean palate of + some surcharged capitalist, into whose custody you are about to negotiate + some land-grant bonds. Recovering from these delicious souvenirs, your + attention was drawn to the Sauternes, indisputably titled at a Wall Street + sale, and priceless. This wine had never yet been tasted, for Roseton was + wont to say, 'I only care for vitriol when it is a hundred years old,' and + this had only seen the summer of twenty. But a precious odor breathed from + the casks, and the corroding capsules confessed the mighty powers that + lurked within. Inhaling this odor, you seemed to see the Original White + Hermit himself, brooding over his tiny principality of barren rock, and + performing miracles with the aid of the imported carboy and the indigenous + rill. As the evening gloomed, and twilight fell among the crags, a faint + snicker spread upon the air, and in the dim light of the rising moon one + might fancy a finger laid to the side of the nose of the holy man. From + these reveries, a smart blow on the back, neatly executed by the butler, + recalled your active attention to a demi-john of warranted French brandy, + and a can of Bourbon certified by the hand-writing of Louis Capet himself. + Upon the sawdust in the lower niches of the vault lay packages of the + finest Hollands, wicker casements of Curaçoa, and the apple-jack of + Jersey in gleaming glass. But the eye dwelt finally, and with a crowning + wonder and approval, upon an entire basket of the celebrated eleven-dollar + Heidsieck champagne, blue label, that lay upon the floor of the crypt.</p> + <p>The acquisition of this treasure was one of those rare good-fortunes by + which the life of here and there an individual is illustrated. About a year + previous to this, in the dead of night, a mysterious stranger solicited + audience of the master of Pont-Noir. Attended by the entire force of the + house in complete armor, Roseton granted the interview. The stranger + advanced within easy gun-shot, and said:—'The great house of + Boscobello, Bolaro and Company is in imminent peril. Unless a certain sum + can be <a name="page216" id="page216"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 216]</span> raised by two o'clock to-morrow, their acceptances will lie + over. These acceptances constitute the entire loan and discount line of + thirty-eight of the Banks of this city, for they have latterly made it a + rule to take nothing else.' A meaning glance shot from the stranger's eye + as he delivered this fearful announcement, but Roseton remained firm, + though a cold shiver passed through the frames of his domestics, who were + aware how vitally he was interested. 'The pledge of their stock of wine + alone,' continued the mysterious visitant, 'will relieve them from their + difficulties, and the capitalists then stand ready to carry them forward if + they will retire from the Southern trade. Ten hundred nickels is the sum + required, and I stand prepared to deliver the security by ten o'clock, A.M. + The discount is immense, but the exigencies of the case are weighty.'</p> + <p>A consultation ensued. The bill for the kitchen crockery had just come + in, and a set of three-tined forks were badly needed; but Roseton's + intellect grasped the necessities of the operation, and the necessary funds + were ordered to be advanced; and the pledge, now forever forfeited by the + loan clause of the Revised Statutes, lay upon the floor of the vault.</p> + <p>The aged butler delicately lifted a flask from its encampment of straw, + and bore it to that section of the apartment where the light was clearest. + 'I wonder if the boss would miss it, if we should just smell of this here + bottle,' said the faithful servitor. Turning it his hand, it flashed + brilliant rays on every side. Entangled among these played vivid and + beautiful pictures, changeable as auroras, yet perfect, during their brief + instant of existence, as the imaginations of Raphael, or the transcripts of + Claude.</p> + <p>Here then you saw a sunny hill, and troops of vintagers dispersed along + its sides, whose outlines wavered in the afternoon heats. But you rapidly + outlived this scene, and now the broad plains of Hungary lay before your + gaze. Speeding over the contracted domains of the Tokay, you entered upon + the Sarmatian wastes, where the wild vines fought for life with the icy + soil and the chill winds of the desert. Uncouth proprietors urged on the + unwilling peasants to the acrid press, and rolled out barrels of the + 'Rackcheekzi' and the 'Quiteenough-thankzi' vintage, curiously labeled to a + New York destination. Soon you beheld Water Street, and long low cellars, + where groups of boys cleansed now the clouded flask, and now the + imperfectly preserved cork. Now bubbles of the rarest carbonic acid gas + flow, in obedience to the powerful machine, in all directions through the + glassy prison; and rows of gleaming bottles indicate the activity of the + enterprise. Then you saw the dining rooms of the Saint Sycophant and the + Cosmopolitan Hotels. Here flew the resounding cork, to be instantly + snatched up by the attendant Ethiopian, and scarcely were the champagne + flasks emptied before they were reft from the tables with unimpaired + labels. At the rear doors, there seemed to wait handcarts, and soon in + these the corks, the bottles, and the baskets were carefully bestowed for + their down-town journey, and money appeared to pass from hand to hand. Then + you saw a sleighing party in the country, and soon a hostel of goodly size. + The travelers entered and demanded banquet; and while they masticated the + underdone and tendonous Chanticleer, quaffed deeply of the amber vintage of + the previous visions. Again you saw morning couches, where lovely woman + tore her Valenciennes night-cap in agonies of headache, and where her ruder + partner filled the air with cries for 'soda-water!'</p> + <p>Engaged with these enchanting dreams, the butler made a false step, and + the precious package, falling to the floor, was instantly shattered. The + fluid trickled away in rivulets, but the ascending odors made amends for + the untimely loss, and you felt that it might all be for the best, and + haply a bill for medical attendance avoided. But the butler brooded over + the scene of the calamity in hopeless despair; and you perceived that it + would <a name="page217" id="page217"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 217]</span> be necessary for him deeply to infringe upon his master's + stores of cordial before his former serenity might be regained.</p> + <p>It was now after eleven, and Roseton's carriage waited. He entered, + simply saying to the footman who lifted him in, 'To Mundus;' and shortly + the vehicle stopped before the most palatial mansion in the entire extent + of the Fifth Avenue.</p> + <p>I pause a moment before I attempt the portraiture of the young wife of + Mundus. Her shadow has indeed flitted once before across these pages (see + Chapter Four of the Novel), but the dim outlines of a shadow may be traced + by a hand that is powerless to paint the living, breathing figure. The + boudoir where she sat was draped with the fairest pinks of the Saxony loom, + and the carpet confessed an original Axminster workmanship. With this one, + the pattern was created and extinguished, and, though it cost Mundus five + thousand dollars, he drew his check for the bill with a smile. The sofas + and chairs were of hand-embroidered velvet, representing the delicate + adventures of Wilhelm Meister; and the paintings that profusely lined the + walls gave form to the warmest scenes of Farquahar's 'gayest' comedies. + Bella herself sat near a window, negligently posed, reading the 'Journal of + a Summer in the Country,' over which she had now hung for three hours in + speechless admiration, breakfastless, and with her slipper-ribbons not yet + tied. 'I <i>must</i> see what becomes of Wigwag,' she replied to Mundus, as + he called through the door that he was eating all the eggs. 'Thank Heaven,' + she finally exclaimed, as he went down into the smoking room, 'that's the + last of <i>him</i> to-day; and now I shall have this delicious book all to + myself, and all myself to this delicious book.'</p> + <p>'That's very prettily turned now,' said a silvery voice; 'nothing could + have been prettier,—but you'—</p> + <p>'Oh, you naughty man, is that you already?' said Bella; 'didn't you meet + the Bear as you came in?'</p> + <p>'He is in the front basement, sucking his paws,' replied Roseton, for it + was indeed he, 'and he is trying to do a stupider thing, if possible.'</p> + <p>'What's that?' asked the fair Bella. 'Now don't tire me with any of your + nonsense.'</p> + <p>'To read himself,' answered Roseton.</p> + <p>'You alarm me,' exclaimed she; 'it can't be possible that the servants + have let him have a looking-glass, contrary to my express + instructions!'</p> + <p>'No, no,' said the master of Pont-Noir, 'he is at work over the + <i>World</i>.'</p> + <p>'The <i>World?</i>' said Bella, inquiringly. 'Pray don't give me a + headache.'</p> + <p>Roseton leaned over her shoulder, and placed in her lap a miniature + Andrews and Stoddard's Lexicon, open at the eight hundredth page. 'You + take?' he said: '<i>Mundus</i>, the World.'</p> + <p>'Ah, Percy,' sighed Bella, 'why do you thus unnecessarily fatigue me? + Have I not often told you that, faultless as you are in every other + department of life, and how I love to dwell upon this fact, still, still, + my Percy, your puns, or rather your attempts, are worse than those of a + Yale College freshman? You are cruel, indeed you are, thus to disappoint + and wound me. Be persuaded by me, and <i>never</i> try again.'</p> + <p>Roseton paused, irresolute—it was a great struggle; but what will + not one do for the woman one loves? 'I promise,' said he, at last; and, + bending over her, laid a kiss—like an egg—upon her brow. 'This + will forever bind me.'</p> + <p>'Thank you, dear Percy,' said Bella; 'and I hope you'll keep your + promise better than you did the last one you made about giving up smoking. + You're sure you haven't tumbled my collar, and that you wiped the egg off + your moustache before you came in; get me the toilet-glass, there's a good + boy. You men are <i>so</i> careless, and I shouldn't like it to dry on my + forehead.'</p> + <p>Let us approach, and gaze into the mirror. Can one describe that + face—the lovely brown eyebrows; the eyes, like a spring sky, just as + the light, fleecy clouds are leaving it after a shower; the perfect roses, + dipped in milk, of the skin; the lips where good-nature, sprightliness, <a + name="page218" id="page218"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 218]</span> and + love, lay mingled in ambush; the dewy teeth never quite concealed? It is, + indeed, useless to attempt it. And, what is very remarkable, Bella knew it. + 'There, Percy,' said she, 'your indiscretion is cleared away, and now upon + my word I don't know which flatters me most, you or the glass.'</p> + <p>'Why, I haven't tried yet,' replied Roseton.</p> + <p>'That's only because you know you can't,' said she;' neither can this + poor little mirror. But to think what Mundus said yesterday!'</p> + <p>'What did he say?'</p> + <p>'He said—he said—he saw a pretty apple-girl in Wall Street, + and I presume the wretch paid her some compliment or other while he was + buying her apples, for he appeared very much pleased after he came home, + and he hasn't bestowed a compliment on me since the month after we were + married. Ah, fated word! Ah, Percy, Percy!—on that ill-omened day, + what caused you to linger? We <i>might</i> even then have retraced our + steps, and been—happy.'</p> + <p>'I was waiting—at the dock—for the news—of the Heenan + prize-fight, Bella,' gasped Roseton, turning away to conceal his emotion, + and to assuage the tears that fell from his manly eyes. It is a mournful + sight, a strong man, in the morning of life, weeping; but Roseton's agony + might well excuse it. 'I know it was unpardonable, but my card of + invitation had been tampered with, the date altered; and, Bella—my + Bella—we were the victims of a base deception!'</p> + <p>'Oh, yes, my Percy,' faintly cried Bella, letting the book fall to the + ground in her confusion; 'traitorous wiles, indeed, encompassed us, and the + arts of a Mundus were too subtle for my girlish brain. I sometimes fear + that my poor frame will sink under the agonies I endure.'</p> + <p>Roseton raised the volume from the floor. 'I am told,' said he, 'that + this is a very ingenious work, and that no gentleman's library is complete + without it; but I never read. My days, my nights, are filled, Bella, with + thoughts of you. Yes,' continued he, seating himself upon the sofa by her + side, and passing his arm about her throbbing waist, 'yes, you are my + muse—my only volume. You are the inspiration of the poetical trifles + that I send to the weekly newspapers, and which I may say, without vanity, + are considered equal to Mrs. Sigourney's. Without you, life were indeed a + dreary void; and without you, I should be dreadfully bored of a + morning.'</p> + <p>'Ah, Percy,' murmured the fair listener, 'so could I hear you talk + forever.'</p> + <p>'Bella,' whispered Roseton, in her fairy ear, 'could you prepare your + mind to entertain the idea of flight with me?'</p> + <p>'To Staten Island?' cried she, jumping up and clapping her hands. 'Oh, + let's go to Staten Island! Mundus can never follow us there, the boats are + so dangerous.'</p> + <p>'But, Bella <i>mia</i>' said Roseton, in the soft accent of Italy, 'as + the eminent but slightly impractical Hungarian—I refer to + Kossuth—said, Staten Island "is lovely, but exposed." We should not + be safe there. Listen; in my house I have prepared a secret chamber, fifty + feet square, plentifully supplied with healthful though plain provisions, + and furnished with a tolerable degree of comfort. There will we dwell, + until the curiosity of Mundus and the whispers of the metropolis are + overpast. We will then re-appear in society, and assert our happiness. + Bella, <i>mia</i> Bella, shall it be so?'</p> + <p>'Ah, Percy,' sighed she, leaning back in his arms, 'let it be just as + you say.'</p> + <p>Their lips—</p> + <p>'Bella,' said Mundus, leaning over the pair, and fumbling among the + vases over the fireplace, 'is there any stage change on the mantlepiece, or + have either you or Roseton got such a thing about you as a sixpence? I have + nothing in my pocket but hundred-dollar city bills, and those infernal + omnibus drivers make change with Valley Bank notes, which a certain + <i>person</i> furnishes them,'—and Mundus fixed his eyes full on the + master of Pont-Noir.</p> + <a name="page219" id="page219"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 219]</span> + <p>'Mr. Roseton,' he continued, 'will you be so kind as to call at my + office after the Second Board, to-day? I have matters of importance to + discuss with you.' And so saying, the haughty banker strode from the + apartment.</p> + <p>Roseton's eyes mechanically followed him. In an instant he turned to + Bella. She had fainted upon the sofa. His first impulse was to apply his + vinaigrette; but 'no,' he said to himself, 'this will probably last twenty + minutes, and do her good. During that time I can smoke a cigar, and arrange + my plans. But stop,'—and here a cold sweat broke out upon him, and a + livid paleness overspread his features,—'what did Mundus say about + the notes? He refuses them! Strange, strange, indeed! Can it then be that + the Valley Bank has bu—?'<a id="footnotetag7" name="footnotetag7" + href="#footnote7"><sup>7</sup></a></p> + <hr /> + <h2>OUR DANGER AND ITS CAUSE.</h2> + <p>It is certain that when this page comes under the eye of the reader, the + relations of the United States, both foreign and domestic, will have been + changed materially. At the present moment, however, the condition of the + country is unpromising enough; yet not so gloomy as to preclude the hope of + a fortunate issue. The sacrifices and sufferings of the people are greater + in civil than in foreign wars, and the ultimate advantages and benefits are + proportionately large. We speak now of those civil wars which have occurred + between people inhabiting the same district of country,—as the civil + wars of England. Other contests, as the revolutions of Hungary, Poland, and + Ireland even, were not, strictly speaking, civil wars. The parties were of + different origin, and had never assimilated in language, customs, or ideas. + The struggle was for the reëstablishment of a government which had + once existed, and not for the reformation or change of a government that at + the moment of the conflict was performing its ordinary functions.</p> + <p>The civil war in America does not belong to either of the classes named. + To be sure, in Missouri, Kentucky, and Western Virginia, the contest has + been between the inhabitants of the several localities, aided by forces + from the rebel States on the one hand, and forces from the loyal States on + the other. But those States, as such, were never committed to the + rebellion; and the struggle within their limits has demonstrated the + inability of the so-called Confederate States to command the adhesion of + Missouri, Kentucky, and Western Virginia by force; but it does not, in the + accomplished results, demonstrate the ability of the United States to crush + the rebellion. The border States were debatable ground; but the question + has been settled in favor of the government so far, at least, as Western + Virginia and Missouri are concerned.</p> + <p>In the eleven seceded States there is no apparent difference of opinion + among those in authority, or among those accustomed to lead in public + affairs. The sentiment of attachment to the old Union has been disappearing + rapidly since the secession of South Carolina, until there are now no open + avowals of adherence to the government, unless such are made by the + mountaineers of Eastern Tennessee and Western North Carolina. These men are + for the present destitute of power. Should our armies penetrate <a + name="page220" id="page220"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 220]</span> those + regions, the inhabitants may essentially aid in the reëstablishment of + the government. Still, for the present, we must regard the eleven States as + a unit in the rebellion. Thus we are called to note the anomalous fact that + the rebels seek a division between a people who speak the same language, + occupy a territory which has no marked lines or features of separation, and + who have from the first day of their national existence been represented by + the same national government. Hence it is plain, whatever may be the + immediate result of the contest, that there can be no permanent peace until + the territory claimed as the territory of the United States is again + subject to one government. This may be the work of a few months, it may be + the work of a few years, or it may be the business of a century. Without + the reëstablishment of the government over the whole territory of the + Union there can be no peace; and without the reëstablishment of that + government there can be no prosperity.</p> + <p>The armies of the rebel States will march to the great lakes, or the + armies of the loyal States will march to the gulf of Mexico. We are + therefore involved in a war which does not admit of adjustment by + negotiation. In a foreign war, peace might be secured by mutual + concessions, and preserved by mutual forbearance. In ordinary civil strife + the peace of a state or of an empire might be restored by concessions to + the disaffected, by a limitation of the privileges of the few, or an + extension of the rights of the many. But none of these expedients meet the + exigency in which we find ourselves. The rebels demand the overthrow of the + government, the division of the territory of the Union, the destruction of + the nation. The question is, <i>Shall this nation longer exist?</i> And why + is the question forced upon us? Is there a difference of language? Not + greater than is found in single States. Indeed, Louisiana is the only one + of the eleven where any appreciable difference exists, and the number of + French in that State is less than the number of Germans in Pennsylvania. + Nor has nature indicated lines of separation like the St. Lawrence and the + lakes on the north and the Rocky Mountains on the west. The lines marked by + nature—the Rocky Mountains, the Mississippi River, and the + Alleghanies—cut the line proposed by the confederates transversely, + and force the suggestion that each section will be put in possession of + three halves of different wholes, instead of a single unit essential to + permanent national existence.</p> + <p>Do the products of the industry of the two sections so conflict with + each other in domestic or foreign markets as to encourage the idea that by + separation the South could gain in this particular? Not in the least. The + North has been a large customer for the leading staple of the South, and + the South is constantly in need of those articles which the North is fitted + to produce. The South complains of the growth of the North, and vainly + imagines that by separation its own prosperity would be promoted. The + answer to all this is, that there has never been a moment for fifty years + when the seceded States had not employment, for all the labor that they + could command, in vocations more profitable than any leading industry of + the North; and, moreover, every industry of the North has been open to the + free competition of the South. Not argument, only statement, is needed to + show that by origin, association, language, business, and labor interests, + as well as by geographical laws, unity and not diversity is the necessity + of our public life. Yet, in defiance of these considerations, the South has + undertaken the task of destroying the government. Nor do the rebels assert + that the plan of government is essentially defective. The Montgomery + constitution is modeled upon that of the United States; though the leaders + no longer disguise their purpose to abolish its democratic features and + incorporate aristocratic and monarchical provisions. They hope, also, to + throw off the restraints of law, bid defiance to the general public + sentiment of the world, and reopen the trade in slaves from Africa. It + remains to be seen <a name="page221" id="page221"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 221]</span> whether the desire of England for cotton + and conquest, and her sympathy with the rebels, will induce her to pander + to this inhuman traffic.</p> + <p>It has happened occasionally that a government has so wielded its powers + as to contribute, unconsciously, to its own destruction. But our experience + furnishes the first instance of a government having been seized by a set of + conspirators, and its vast powers used for its own overthrow.</p> + <p>It is now accredited generally that several members of Mr. Buchanan's + cabinet were conspirators, and that they used the power confided to them + for the purpose of destroying the government itself. Hence it appears, + whatever the test applied, that the present rebellion is distinguished from + all others in the fact that it does not depend upon any of the causes on + which national dissensions have been usually based.</p> + <p>The public discontents in Ireland, in their causes, bore a slight + analogy to our own. There were existing in that country various systems and + customs that were prejudicial to the prosperity of the island. Among these + may be mentioned the Encumbered Estates and Absenteeism; and it is worthy + of remark that whatever has been done by the British government for the + promotion of the prosperity of Ireland, and the pacification of its people, + has been by a reformation of the institutions of the country.</p> + <p>Rebels in arms may be overthrown and dispersed by superior force, but + the danger of rebellion will continue so long as the disposition to rebel + animates the people. This disposition can not be reached by military power + merely; the exciting cause must be removed, or, at least, so limited and + modified as to impair its influence as a disturbing force in the policy of + the country. As we have failed to trace this rebellion to any of the causes + that have led to civil disturbances in other countries, it only remains to + suggest that cause which in its relations and conditions is peculiar to the + United States. All are agreed that slavery is the cause of the rebellion. + Yet slavery exists in other countries,—as Brazil, for + example,—and thus far without exhibiting its malign influence in + conspiracy and rebellion. This is no doubt true; but it should be borne in + mind that, in the United States, slavery has power in the government as the + basis of representation, and that the slave States are associated in the + government with free States. If the institution of slavery had not been a + basis of political power, or had all the States maintained slavery, it is + probable that the rebellion would never have been organized, or, if + organized, it could never have attained its present gigantic + proportions.</p> + <p>We have now reached a point where we can see the error of our public + national life. The doctrine announced by President Lincoln, while he was + only Mr. Lincoln, of Springfield, that the nation must be all free or all + slave, was not new with him. The men who framed the constitution acted + under the same idea, though they may not have so distinctly expressed the + truth. There is, however, abundant circumstantial evidence that they so + believed, and that their only hope for the country was based on the then + reasonable expectation that slavery would disappear, and that the nation + would be all free. It was reserved for modern political alchemists to + discover the idea on which the leading politicians have been acting for + thirty or forty years, that one half of a nation might believe in the + fundamental principle on which the government is based, and the other half + deny it, and yet the government go on harmoniously, wielding its powers + acceptably and safely to all. This is the error. Our failure is not in the + plan of government; the error is not that our fathers supposed that a + government could be based and permanently sustained upon slavery and + freedom advancing <i>pari passu</i>. They indulged in no such delusion. The + error is modern. When slavery demanded concessions, and freedom yielded; + when slavery suggested compromises, and freedom accepted them; when + slavery, unrebuked, claimed equal rights under the constitution, and <a + name="page222" id="page222"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 222]</span> + freedom acknowledged the justice of the claim,—then came the test + whether the government itself should be administered in the service of + slavery or in behalf of freedom. Two considerations influenced the + slaveholders. First, even should they be permitted to wield the government, + they foresaw that its provisions were inadequate to meet the exigencies of + slavery. No despotism can be sustained by the voluntary efforts of its + subjects. Slavery is a despotism; and as such can only be supported by + power independent of that of the slaves themselves, and always sufficient + for their control. The slaves were yearly increasing in numbers and gaining + in knowledge. These changes indicated the near approach of the time when + the slaves of the South would reenact the scenes of St. Domingo. The + plantations of the cotton region are remote from each other, and the + proportion of slaves on a single plantation is often as many as fifty for + every free person, The sale of negroes from the northern slave States has + introduced an element upon the plantations at once intelligent and hostile, + and, of course, dangerous, The time must come when the white populations of + plantations, districts, or States even, would disappear in a single night, + In such a moment of terror and massacre how, and to what extent, would the + United States government, acting under the constitution, afford protection, + aid, or even secure a barren vengeance? These were grave questions, and + admitted only of an unsatisfactory answer at best. The government has power + to put down insurrections; but for what good would a body of troops be + marched to a scene of desolation and blood a fortnight or a month after the + servile outbreak had done its work? These considerations controlled the + intelligent minds of the South, and they were driven irresistibly to the + conclusion that the government of the United States was insufficient for + the institution of slavery, even though the friends of slavery were + entrusted with the administration. What hope beyond? They dared to believe + that by separation and the establishment of a military slaveholding + oligarchy, to which the public opinion and public policy of the seceded + States now tend, they would be able to guard the institution against all + tumults from within and all attacks from without. If success were to crown + their present undertakings, is it probable that the government contemplated + would be strong enough for the task proposed? If Russia could not hold her + serfs in bondage, can the South set up a government which can guard, and + defend, and secure slavery? Or will a French or English protectorate render + that stable which the government of the United States was incompetent to + uphold? These questions remain, but the one first suggested is + settled:—That the government of the United States, howsoever and by + whomsoever administered, constitutionally, is inadequate to meet the + exigencies of slavery.</p> + <p>Secondly. The leaders of the rebellion foresaw, a long time since, that + slavery had no security that the government would be administered in the + interest of that institution. The admission of California, followed by the + admission of three other free States, forced the slaveholders into a + hopeless minority in the Senate of the United States. The census of 1860 + promised to reduce the delegation of the slave States in the House of + Representatives. Previous to 1870 other free States were likely to be + admitted into the Union; and thus by successive and unavoidable events, the + government was sure to pass into the hands of the non-slave States. It + would not be just to the South to omit to say that apprehensions there + existed that the North would disregard the constitution. These + apprehensions were fostered for unholy purposes; and so sealed is the South + to the progress of truth, through the domination of the slaveholders over + the press and public men, and by the consequent ignorance of the mass of + the people, that these misapprehensions have never been removed in any + degree by the declarations of Congress or of political parties in the + North.</p> + <p>The mind of the South was thus brought logically to two conclusions: + First, that <a name="page223" id="page223"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 223]</span> the government of the United States was inadequate to meet the + exigencies of slavery, even though it should be administered uniformly by + the friends of slavery. Secondly, that the administration of the government + would be controlled by the ideas of the free States.</p> + <p>These conclusions would have been sufficiently unwelcome to the Southern + leaders, if they had had no purpose or policy beyond the maintenance of + slavery where it exists; but they had already determined to extend the + institution southward over Mexico and Central America, and they knew full + well the necessity of destroying the Union and the government before such + an enterprise could be undertaken with any hope of success. Hence they + denied the right of the majority to rule unless they ruled in obedience to + the will of the minority. Thus the slaveholders came naturally and + unavoidably to the denial of the fundamental principle of the government; + and, having denied the principle, there remained no reason why they should + not undertake the overthrow of the government itself. And thus the + conspiracy and the rebellion sprung naturally and unavoidably from the + institution of slavery.</p> + <p>Further, slavery is the support of the conspiracy and the rebellion both + in Europe and America. However disastrous slavery may be to the mass of the + whites, it affords to the governing class the opportunity and means for + constant attention to public affairs.</p> + <p>In all our history the North has felt the force of this advantage. As a + general thing, a northern member occupies a seat in Congress for one or two + terms, and then his place is taken by an untried man. And even during his + term of service, his attention is given in part to his private affairs, or + to plans and schemes designed to secure a re-election. The Southern member + takes his seat with a conscious independence due to the fact that his + slaves are making crops upon his plantation, and that his re-election does + not depend upon the hot breath of the multitude. He enjoys a long and + independent experience in the public service; and he thus acquires a power + to serve his party, his country or his section, which is disproportionate + even to his experience. A good deal of the consideration which the South + enjoys abroad, and especially in England, is due to the fact that in the + South a governing class is recognized, which corresponds to the governing + classes wherever an aristocracy or monarchism exists. By a community of + ideas the South commands the sympathy, and enjoys the confidence and secret + support of the enemies of democracy the world over. Through the political + and pecuniary support which the public men of that section have derived + from slavery, they have been able to take and maintain social positions at + Washington, which, by circumstances, were denied to much the larger number + of northern representatives, and thus they have influenced the politics of + this country and the opinions of other nations. Consider by how many + sympathies and interests England is bound to encourage the policy and + promote the fortunes of the South. There is the sympathy of the governing + class in England for the governing class in the South, even though they are + slaveholders; there is the hostility of the ignorant operatives in their + manufacturing towns, who, through exterior influences, have been led to + believe that whatever hardships they are brought to endure are caused by + the desire of the North to subjugate the South; there is the purpose of + English merchants and manufacturers to cripple, or if possible to destroy + the manufactures and commerce of the North; and, finally, there is the hope + of all classes that by the alienation or separation of the two sections + England would derive additional commercial advantages, and that the scheme + of here establishing a continental republic would be abandoned, never to be + again revived. There is, moreover, a reasonable expectation, founded in the + nature of things, and possibly already supported by positive promises and + pledges, that England is <a name="page224" id="page224"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 224]</span> to stand in the relation of protector to + the confederated States. Nor will she be in the least disturbed by the + institution of slavery, if perchance that institution survives the + struggle. If she can be secure in the monopoly of the best cotton lands on + the globe, if she can be manufacturer and shop-keeper for the South, if she + can deprive the North of one half of its legitimate commerce, if she can + obtain the control of the gulf of Mexico, of the mouth of the Mississippi, + if she can command the line of sea-coast from Galveston to Fortress Monroe + or even to Charleston, and thus compel us to make our way to the Pacific by + the passes of the Rocky Mountains exclusively, there is no sacrifice of + men, or of money, or of principle, or of justice, that would be deemed too + great by the English people and government. But what then? Are we to make + war upon England because her sympathies and interests run thus with the + South? Is it not wiser to consider why it is that the South is sustained by + the interests and sympathies of England? If slavery for fifty years had + been unknown among us, could there be found a hundred men, within the + limits of the United States, who would accept a British protectorate under + any circumstances or for any purpose whatever? And is it not therein + manifest, that our foreign and domestic perils are alike due to slavery? + And shall we not have dealt successfully with all our foreign difficulties + when we shall have established the jurisdiction of the United States over + the territory claimed by the rebels? But until that happy day arrives, we + shall not be relieved for an instant from the danger of a foreign war; and + if the rebellion last six months longer, there is no reason to suppose that + a foreign war can be averted. When we offer so tempting a prize to nations + that wish us ill, can we expect them to put aside the opportunity which we + have not the courage and ability to master? We have observed the hot haste + of England to recognize the rebels as belligerents; we have seen the flimsy + covering of neutrality that she has thrown over the illegitimate commerce + that her citizens have carried on with the South, and from the time, + manner, and nature of her demand for the release of Mason and Slidell, we + are forced to infer that she will seize every opportunity to bring about an + open rupture with the United States. And though Mr. Seward has carried the + country successfully through the difficulty of the Trent, we ought to + expect the presentation of demands which we can not so readily and justly + meet. Indeed, enough is known of the Mexican question to suggest the most + serious apprehensions of foreign war on that account.</p> + <p>The necessity for speedily crushing the rebellion is as strong as it was + at the moment when Lord Lyons made the demand for the release of the + persons taken from the deck of the Trent.</p> + <p>Is there any reason, even the slightest, to suppose that by military and + naval means alone the rebellion can be crushed by the 19th of April + next?</p> + <p>Yet every day's delay gives the confederate States additional strength, + and renders them in the estimation of mankind more and more worthy of + recognition and independent government. Their recognition will be followed + by treaties of friendship and alliance; and those treaties will give + strength to the rebels and increase the embarrassments of our own + government. It is the necessity of our national life that the settlement of + this question should not be much longer postponed.</p> + <p>By some means we must satisfy the world, and that speedily, that the + rebellion is a failure. Nor can we much longer tender declarations of what + we intend to do, or offer promises as to what we will do, in the face of + the great fact that for eight months the capital of the Republic has been + in a state of siege. If, in these circumstances of necessity and peril to + us, the armies of the rebels be not speedily dispersed, and the leaders of + the rebellion rendered desperate, will the government allow the earth to + again receive seed from the hand of the slave, <a name="page225" + id="page225"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 225]</span> under the dictation + of the master, and for the support of the enemies of the constitution and + the Union? If there were any probability that the States would return to + their allegiance, then indeed we might choose to add to our own burthens + rather than interfere their internal affairs. But there is no hope whatever + that the seceded States will return voluntarily to the Union.</p> + <p>There could be no justifying cause for the emancipation of the slaves in + time of peace by the action of the general government; and now it must be + demanded and defended as the means by which the war is to be closed, and a + permanent peace secured. If before the return of seed-time the emancipation + of the slaves in several or in all of the disloyal States be declared as a + military necessity, and the blacks be invited to the sea-coast where we + have and may have possession, they will raise supplies for themselves, and + the rebellion will come to an ignominious end, through the inability of the + masters, when deprived of the services of their slaves, to procure the + means of carrying on the war.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>SHE SITS ALONE.</h2> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + She sits alone, with folded hands, + </div> + <div class="line"> + While from her full and lustrous eyes + </div> + <div class="line"> + Imperial light wakes love to life,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + Love that, unheeded, quickly dies. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + She sits alone, among them all + </div> + <div class="line"> + So near, and yet so far,—they seem + </div> + <div class="line"> + But our coarse waking thoughts, while she + </div> + <div class="line"> + Is the reflection of a dream. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + She sits alone, so still, so calm, + </div> + <div class="line"> + So queenly in her grand repose, + </div> + <div class="line"> + You wish that Love would slap her cheeks + </div> + <div class="line"> + And make the white a blush-red rose! + </div> + </div> + </div> + <hr /> + <a name="page226" id="page226"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 226]</span> + <h2>LITERARY NOTICES.</h2> + <blockquote> + CHEAP COTTON BY FREE LABOR. By a Cotton Manufacturer. Second edition. + Boston: A. Williams & Company, 100 Washington Street. 1861. Price 12 + cents. + </blockquote> + <p>It seldom happens that we find so many weighty facts within so short a + compass as are given in this pamphlet. For many years the assertion that + only the negro, and the negro as a slave, could be profitably employed in + raising cotton in America, has been accepted most implicitly by the whole + country, and this has been the great basis of pro-slavery argument. But of + late years, doubt has been thrown, from time to time, on this assumption, + and in the little work before us there is given an array of concise + statements, which, until their absolute falsehood is proved, must be + regarded as conclusive of the fact, that the white man is <i>better</i> + adapted than the negro to labor at the cultivation of cotton.</p> + <p>Our 'cotton manufacturer' begins properly by bursting the enormous + bubble of the failure of free labor in the British West Indies; showing, + what is too little known, that the decrease in the export of sugar from + Jamaica began and rapidly continued for thirty years before the + emancipation of slaves, but has <i>since</i> been well-nigh arrested. With + this decrease of export the <i>import of food has decreased, although the + population, has increased</i>; but, at the present day, the aggregate value + of the exports of <i>all</i> the British West Indies is now nearly as great + as it was in the palmiest days of slavery, while on an average the free + blacks now earn far more for themselves than they formerly did for their + masters, and are therefore 'better off.' Even those who regard the negro, + whether a slave or free, as fulfilling his whole earthly mission in + proportion to the profit which he yields Lancashire spinners, have no just + grounds of complaint. But as regards the United States, there are certain + facts to be considered. According to the census of 1850, there were in our + slave States, 'where it is frequently asserted that white men can not labor + in the fields,' eight hundred thousand free whites over fifteen years of + age employed exclusively in agriculture, and over one million exclusively + in out-door labor. Again, wherever the free-white labor and small-farm + system of growing cotton has been tried, it has invariably proved more + productive than that of employing slaves. It can not be denied that, + deducting the expense of maintaining decrepit and infant slaves, every + field hand costs $20 per month, and German labor could be hired for less + than this, the success of such labor in Texas fully establishing its + superiority,—and Texas contains cotton and sugar land enough to + supply three times the entire crop now raised in this country. Such being + the case, has not free labor a <i>right</i> to demand that these fields be + thrown open to it, without being degraded by comparison to and competition + with slaves? Our author consequently suggests that Texas, at least, shall + be made free, and a limit thereby established to slavery in the older + States. It would cost less than one hundred millions of dollars to purchase + all the slaves now there, and the completion of the Galveston railroad + would have the effect of giving to Texas well-nigh the monopoly of the + cotton supply. Such are, in brief, the main points of this pamphlet, which + we trust will be carefully read, and so far as possible tested by every one + desirous of obtaining information on the greatest social and economical + question of the day.</p> + <a name="page227" id="page227"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 227]</span> + <blockquote> + A DICTIONARY OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. By Joseph E. Worcester, LL.D. + Boston: Swan, Brewer & Tileston. 1862. + </blockquote> + <p>To boldly declare in favor of any <i>one</i> dictionary at the present + day, would be as bold, and we may add as untimely and illogical a + proceeding as to endorse any one grammar, when nothing can be clearer to + the student of language than that our English tongue is more unfixed and + undergoing changes more rapidly than any other which boasts a truly great + literature. The scholar, consequently, generally pursues an eclectic + system, if timid conforming as nearly as may be to 'general usage,' if bold + and 'troubled with originality,' making up words for himself, after the + manner of CARLYLE, which if 'apt,' after being more or less ridiculed, are + tacitly and generally adopted. But, amid the 'war of words' and of rival + systems, people must have dictionaries, and fortunately there is this of + WORCESTER'S, which has of late risen immensely in public favor. We say + fortunately, for whatever discords and inconvenience may arise at the time + from the rivalry of different dictionaries, it can not be doubted that each + effort contributes vastly to enrich our mother-tongue, and render easier + the future task of the 'coming man' who is, years hence, to form from the + whole one perfect work. Our own verdict in the matter would, accordingly, + be, that we should most unwillingly dispense with either of the great + candidates for popular orthographic favor.</p> + <blockquote> + RELIGIO MEDICI, A LETTER TO A FRIEND, CHRISTIAN MORALS, URN BURIAL, AND + OTHER PAPERS. By Sir Thomas Browne, Kt., M.D. Boston: Ticknor and Fields. + 1862. + </blockquote> + <p>Beautiful indeed is the degree of typographic art displayed in this + edition of one of the raciest and most readable of our sterling English + classics. The antique lettering of the title alone, in which words of + carmine-red alternate with the 'letters blake,' the counterpart portrait, + and the neat red-illumined capitals of every chapter, not to mention the + type and binding, all render this volume one of the most appropriate of + gift-books for a friend of true scholarly tastes. Few writers are so + perfectly loved as Sir THOMAS BROWNE is by such 'friends;' as in BACON'S or + MONTAIGNE'S essays, his every sentence has its weight of wisdom, and he who + should read this volume until every sentence were cut deeply in memory, + would never deem the time lost which was thus spent. Yet, while so deeply + interesting to the most general reader, let it not be forgotten that it was + with the greatest truth that Dr. JOHNSON testified of him that 'there is + scarcely a writer to be found, whose profession was not divinity, that has + so frequently testified his belief of the sacred writings, has appealed to + them with such unlimited submission, or mentioned them with such unvaried + reverence.'</p> + <blockquote> + TRAGEDY OF ERRORS. <i>Aux plus déshérités le plus + d'amour</i>. Boston: Ticknor & Fields. 1862. + </blockquote> + <p>The extraordinary conception of a blank verse dramatic novel of Southern + slave life. We can not agree with its very talented author in finding so + much that is touching and beautiful in the negro, believing that the motto + which prefaces this work is simply a sentimental mistake. The negro + <i>is</i> degraded, vile if you please, and not admirable at all, and + therefore we should work hard, and induce him too to work, rise, and purify + himself. Apart from this little difference as to a fact, we have only + praise for this work, which is most admirably written, abounding in noble + passages of brave poetry, and bearing, like the 'Record of an Obscure Man,' + genial evidence of scholarship and refined thoughts and instincts. It will, + we sincerely hope, be very widely read, and we are confident that all who + <i>do</i> read it will be impressed, as we have been, by the true genius of + the author, even though they may dissent, as we do, from the idealization + of the negro as is here done. The cause of the poor was never yet aided by + false gilding.</p> + <hr /> + <a name="page228" id="page228"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 228]</span> + <h2>EDITOR'S TABLE</h2> + <p>During the past month our domestic difficulties have threatened to + become doubly difficult, owing to the demand made upon this country by + England, and to the circumstances attending it.</p> + <p>Very recently it became known that on board of an English mail steamer, + 'The Trent,' were two men, Messrs. SLIDELL and MASON, accredited agents + from a portion of the United States which is in open and flagrant rebellion + against a constituted government which has been recognized as such by every + nation in the world. Those men, calling themselves ambassadors, and just as + much entitled to that dignity or to official recognition as two agents from + NENA SAHIB would have been during the revolt stirred up by that Hindoo, + were taken by an officer of the United States government from the Trent, + under the full impression by him that the seizure was in every sense + legal.</p> + <p>The British government regarded this arrest an outrage, and promptly + responded by a demand for the restoration of Messrs. SLIDELL and MASON. + Numerous 'indignation meetings' held in the great centres of English + commerce and manufactures echoed this demand, which received a threatening + form from the fact that great military and naval preparations, evidently + aimed against the United States, were at once put under way.</p> + <p>Was the seizure illegal?</p> + <p>The vast amount of international law which has been brought to light on + this subject, not merely in the press, but from the researches and pens of + eminent jurists, led us to no severely definite conclusion. That an + emissary is not a contraband of war as much as a musket or a soldier, + appears preposterous, and offers a distinction which, as Mr. SEWARD + observes, disappears before the spirit of the law, M. THOUVENEL to the + contrary, notwithstanding. It was therefore in the mode of procedure in + regard to the seizure of the emissaries that the trouble lay. According to + law, the vessel, if carrying contraband of war, is liable to seizure. But + if this assumed contraband be <i>men</i>, these may not be guilty, and are + entitled to a trial. Still, as the law—or want of law—stands, + the seizure of the vessel is the requisite step, the minor issue being + practically regarded as the major; an anomaly not less striking than that + which still prevails in certain courts, where, to recover damages for + seduction, the defendant can only be mulcted in a penalty for the loss of + time caused to his victim. It was not possible for Captain WILKES to seize + the vessel, Great Britain declined to waive her claim to the execution of + every jot and tittle of the letter of the law, and consequently the + 'contrabands' were surrendered.</p> + <p>The absurdity of involving two great nations in a war, on account of a + legal paradox of this nature, requires no comment. The dry comment of + General SCOTT, that the 'wrong' would have been none had it only been + greater, recalls the absurd line in the old play:—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'My wound is great because it is so small;' + </div> + </div> + <p>and the supplement,—</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + 'Then 'twould be greater were it none at all.' + </div> + </div> + <p>But, absurd or not, the law must be followed. Great nations must settle + their disputes by the law, even as individuals do, and there is no shame in + submitting to it, for submission to the constituted authorities is the + highest proof of honor and of civilization. And if England chooses to + strain the law to its utmost <a name="page229" id="page229"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 229]</span> tension, to thereby push her neutrality to + the very verge of sympathy with our rebels, and manifest, by a peremptory + and discourteous exercise of her rights, total want of sympathy with our + efforts to suppress rebellion,—why, we must bear it.</p> + <p>And here, leaving the letter of the law, we may appropriately say a few + words of the <i>animus</i> which has inspired the 'influential classes' in + England as regards this country, during our struggle with the South. We are + assured that the mass of the English people sympathize with us, and we are + glad to hear it,—just as we are to know that Ireland is friendly in + her disposition. But we can not refrain—and we do it with no view to + words which may stir up ill-feeling—from commenting, in sorrow rather + than anger, on the fact that such a majority of journalists, capitalists, + yes, and the mass of inhabitants of English cities, have so unblushingly, + for the mere sake of money, turned their backs on those principles of + freedom of which they boasted for so many years, flouting us the while for + being behind them in the race of philanthropy! It is pitiful and painful to + see pride brought so low. We of the Federal Union are striving, heart and + soul, to uphold our government—a government which has been a great + blessing to England and to the world. Who shall say what revolutions, what + tremendous disasters, would not have overtaken Great Britain had it not + been for the escape-valve of emigration hither? If ever a situation + appealed to the noblest sympathies of mankind, ours does. Struggling to + maintain a government which has given to the poor man fuller rights and + freer exercise of labor than he has ever before known on this earth; + fighting heroically to uphold the best republic ever realized;—who + would have dreamed that 'brave, free, honest Old England' would have + regarded us coldly, sneered at our victories, grinned over our defeats? But + more than this. Though not avowed as an aim, and though secondary to our + first great object,—the reëstablishment of the Union and a + constitutional government,—we <i>all</i> know, and so does every + Englishman, that the emancipation of the slave, to a greater or less + degree, <i>must</i> inevitably follow our success. Here comes the test of + that English abolition of the blackest and fiercest stamp which has for + years been avowed in Great Britain, and which has done as much as aught + else towards stirring up this foul rebellion. Where be your gibes + <i>now</i>, O Britannia? Where be your bitter jeers against the 'lying + Constitution,' against the 'stars for the white man and the stripes for the + negro,' against everything American, because America was the land of the + slave? We are fighting—dying—to directly uphold ourselves, and + indirectly to effect this very emancipation for which you clamored; we are + losing cotton and suffering everything;—but <i>you</i>, when it comes + to the pinch, will endure nothing for your boasted abolition, but slide off + at once towards aiding the inception of the foulest, blackest, vilest + slaveocracy ever instituted on earth!</p> + <p>Disguise, quibble, lie, let them that will—these are <i>facts</i>. + Because we, in our need, have instituted a protective tariff, which was + absolutely necessary to keep us from utter ruin, and on the flimsy pretext + that we are not fighting directly for emancipation, proud, free, and honest + Old England, as publicly represented, eats all her old words, and, worse + than withholding all sympathy from us, shows in a thousand ill-disguised + ways an itching impatience to aid the South! Men of England, <i>we</i> are + suffering for a principle common to all humanity; can not you suffer + somewhat with us? Can you not, out of the inexhaustible wealth of your + islands, find wherewithal to stave off the bitter need, for a season, of + your cotton-spinners? Feed them?—why we would, for a little aid in + our dire need, have poured in millions of bushels of wheat to your + poor,—one brave, decided act of sympathy on your part for us would + ere this have trampled down secession, and sent cotton to your marts, even + to superfluity. Or, were you so minded, and could 'worry through' a <a + name="page230" id="page230"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 230]</span> + single year, you might raise in your own colonies cotton enough, and be + forever free of America.</p> + <p>Or is it really true, as many think, that your statesmen would gladly + dismember this Union? The suggestion reveals such a depth of infamy that we + will not pause on it. Let it pass—if the hour of need <i>should</i> + come we will revive it, and out of that need will arise a giant of Union + such as was never before dreamed of. Let the country believe <i>that</i>, + and from Maine to California there will be such a blending into one as time + can never dissolve!</p> + <p>But be it borne in mind;—and we would urge it with greater + earnestness than, aught which we have yet said,—there is in England a + large, noble body of men who do <i>not</i> sympathize with the Southern + rebels; who are <i>not</i> sold, soul and body, to cotton; who see this + struggle of ours as it is, and who would not willingly see us divided. + These men believe in industry, in free labor, in having every country + developed as much as possible, in order that the industry of each may + benefit by that of the other. Honor to whom honor is due,—and much is + due to these men. Meanwhile we can wait,—and, waiting, we shall + strive to do what is right. England has her choice between the cotton of + the South and the market of the North. Let her choose the former, and she + will grasp ruin. We should suffer for a time, bitterly. But out of that + suffering we should come so strengthened, so united, and so perfectly able + to dispense with all foreign labor, that where we were before as rough ore, + then we should be pure gold in our prosperity.</p> + <p>The first statesmen of England have shown by their speeches, as the + first British journals have indicated in their articles, that they + earnestly believe what Stephens and hundreds of other Southerners have + asserted, that <i>all</i> the wealth of the Northern States has come from + the South, and that the South is the great ultimate market for the major + portion of our imports. Glancing over our map,—as was done by <i>The + Times</i>,-the Englishman may well believe this. He sees a vast extent of + territory,—he has heard and witnessed the boasts and extravagance of + Southerners abroad,—he knows that where so many million bales of + cotton go out, just so much money must flow in; he is angry at our Northern + tariff of emergency, and so believes that by opening to himself the South + he will secure a vast market. Little does he reflect on the fact that, this + step once taken, he will close up in the North and West his greatest + market, one worth ten times that of the South, and constantly increasing, + just in proportion as our population progresses more rapidly than that of + the slave States. It is no exaggeration,—strange as it may + seem,—but this extraordinary ignorance has been manifested time and + again by high authority in England since the war began. But supposing the + balance struck, and cotton found to be worth more to England than the + market of the North. Does not our very independence of English manufactures + imply such a stimulus to our own, as to threaten that we shall thereby be + in a much shorter time in a condition to compete with her in every market + of the world? Drive us to manufacturing for ourselves, and we shall + manufacture for every one. Already every year witnesses American + inventiveness achieving new triumphs over British rivalry. Has England + forgotten the report of Messrs. Whitworth and Wallis on American + manufactures, in which they were told that of late years they have been + more indebted to American skill for useful inventions than to their own? + War and non-intercourse will doubtless compel us to economy, and render + labor cheaper in America, but they can not quench our innate Yankee-Saxon + inventiveness and industry. But if labor is made cheaper in America, then + our final triumph will only be hastened. If England seeks her own ruin, she + could not advance it more rapidly than she would do by a war or a + difference with us. And this many think that she will do for the sake of + one season's supply of American cotton! <a name="page231" + id="page231"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 231]</span> The fable of him who + killed the goose for the sake of the golden egg becomes terrible when acted + out by a great nation. And if this be true, then the uplifted sword of + Albion is, verily, nothing but a goose-killing knife.</p> + <p>'God is not dead yet.' If we are in the right, He will guide and guard + us, and they who contend for right and justice and the liberty of the poor, + first fully taught on earth by the Saviour Jesus Christ, will not suffer in + the end. When we first entered on this struggle with the South, it was soon + realized that we had undertaken the greatest struggle of history, the + reformation of the modern age, the grandest battle for progress and against + the old serpent of oppression ever known. Let them laugh who will, but such + a trial of republicanism against the last of feudalism is this, and nothing + less. God aid us! But it may be that, as the contest widens, grander + accomplishments lie before us. Whether it be done by the sword, or by + peaceful industry; whether as victors, or as the unrighteously borne-down + in our sorest hour of need,—it is not impossible that, in one way or + the other, it is yet in our destiny to refute the monstrous theory that + whatever the most powerful nation on earth does is necessarily right, and + that all considerations must yield to its enormous interests. Such has been + till the present the morality of English and of all European + diplomacy,—who will deny it? Can it be possible that this is to last + forever, and that nations are in the onward march of progress privileged to + adopt a different course from that enjoined by God on individuals? 'Was + Israel punished for this?' No, it can not be. We stand at the portal of a + new age; step by step Truth must yet find her way even into the selfish + camarilla councils of 'diplomacy.' Storms, sorrows, trials, and troubles + may be before us,—but we are working through a mighty time. 'Nothing + without labor.' <i>Our</i> task for the present is the restoration of the + sacred Union. From <i>this</i> let <i>nothing</i> turn us aside, neither + the threats of England or of the world. If we must be humiliated by the + law, then let us bear the humiliation. Our Great Master bore aforetime the + most cruel disgrace in the same holy cause of vindicating the rights of + man. If new struggles are forced upon us, let us battle like men. We are + living now in the serious and the great,—let us bear ourselves + accordingly, and the end shall crown the work.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>There is no use in disguising the fact—the people of the North, + notwithstanding their sufferings and sacrifices, are not yet + <i>aroused</i>. While immediate apprehensions—were entertained of war + with England, it was promptly said, that if this state of irritation + continued, we should be able to sweep the South away like chaff.</p> + <p>Meanwhile, the North is full of secession sympathizers and traitors, and + they are most amiably borne with. There are journals which, in their + extreme 'democracy,' defend the South as openly as they dare in all petty + matters, and ridicule or discredit to their utmost every statement + reflecting on our enemies. They are, it is true, almost beneath contempt + and punishment; but their existence is a proof of an amiable, impassive + state of feeling, which will never proceed to very vigorous measures. Were + the whole people fairly aflame, such paltry treason would vanish like straw + in a fiery furnace.</p> + <p>Yet all the time we hold the great weapon idly in our hands, and fear to + use it! By and by it will be too late. By and by emancipation-time will + have gone by, and when it is too late, we shall possibly see it adopted, + and hear its possible failure attributed to those who urged the prompt, + efficient application of it betimes.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>The article in this number of the Continental entitled The Huguenot + Families in America, is the first of a series which will embrace a great + amount of interesting details relative to the ancestry of the early French + Protestant settlers in this country. Those who are <a name="page232" + id="page232"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 232]</span> familiar with the + English version of WEISS'S History of the Huguenots, and who may recall the + merits of that concluding portion which is devoted to the fortunes of the + exiles in this country, will be pleased to learn that its writer and our + contributor are the same person—a gentleman whose descent from the + stock which he commemorates, and whose life-long studies relative to his + ancestral faith and its followers, have peculiarly fitted him for the task. + Descendants of <i>any</i> of the Huguenot families, in any part of this + country, would confer a special favor by transmitting to the author, + through the care of the editor, any details, family anecdotes, short + biographic sketches, or other material suitable for his history. It is + especially desirable that some account should be given of all those + descendants of Huguenots who have in any way whatever distinguished + themselves in this country.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>According to the report of the N.Y. Central Railroad it appears that the + average reduction of wages of the employes of that company, since the + beginning of the war, has been from $1.12 1/2 <i>per diem</i> to 75 cents. + Taking increased taxation and the rise in prices into consideration, we may + assume that the working men of the North have lost fifty per cent. of their + usual gains.</p> + <p>So far as this is an honorable sacrifice for the war, it is good. But + how long is it to last? It will last until the <i>whole</i> country shall + have lost a sneaking sympathy for the enemy and their institutions, and + until every man and woman shall cease to openly approve of those principles + which, as the secessionists truly maintain, constitute us 'two peoples.' + With what consistency can any one avow fidelity to the Union and yet + profess views according in the main with the platform of Messrs. DAVIS and + STEPHENS?</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>Divested of all other issues, the great complaint of Europe against our + conduct of the war is our 'inefficient blockade.' If we are to attach faith + to those arch-factors of falsehood, the New Orleans newspaper editors, a + vessel leaves their port daily and securely for the Havana. It was the same + journals which some months since announced in each succeeding issue that + 'the fifteen millions loan is all taken;' 'the loan is very nearly taken;' + 'it gives us pleasure to announce that the loan is now completed,' and so + on, backing up their assertion's by a series of truly amusing details of + 'proof.'</p> + <p>That sundry vessels <i>have</i> broken the blockade is as palpable as + that it was for some time most inefficiently conducted. Yet, at the same + time, let the enormous difficulties of the task be remembered, and our + great want of means at the beginning of the war, when, stripped by the + machinations of traitors for years, we had indeed to <i>begin</i> from + almost nothing. The coast from Maryland to Mexico is a different affair + from that of France or England. The great Napoleon himself, with all his + efforts, could never keep his coast-line unbroken by smugglers. Had foreign + critics of our war made the slightest friendly or kindly allowance, they + would never have spoken as they do of our 'inefficient blockade.' But the + great majority of their comments have been neither kindly nor friendly.</p> + <p>Meanwhile, the work goes bravely on. 'The Stone Fleet' will soon have + effectually stopped that 'rat-hole,' Charleston, and it is evident that, + unless distracted by foreign intervention, the whole coast will be well + walled in and guarded. It must, will, and shall be done in time. 'It is + more difficult to move a mountain than a marble.'</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>It would be interesting to trace the probable European results of a war + between America and England. Russia, threatened with a servile war, would + find in a war with England the most effectual means of settling home + difficulties. Louis NAPOLEON, it is said, tacitly encourages England to get + to war. How long would he remain her ally when an opportunity would present + itself of avenging Waterloo? Or if <a name="page233" id="page233"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 233]</span> Hungary and the Sclavonian provinces blazed + up in insurrection, what price less than the long-coveted Rhine, and + perhaps Belgium, would Louis NAPOLEON accept for his services in aiding + Austria? Or would he not take it without rendering such problematic + service? Let England beware his friendship. He is a great man, and for his + subjects a good one,—but woe to those who trust him for their own + ends or believe in his lore! There was one VICTOR EMMANUEL who trusted him + once—with the result set forth in the following merry lay:—</p> + <center> + A TRUE FABLE, WITHOUT A MORAL. + </center> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + 'This LOUIS is a rascal, friend; + </div> + <div class="line"> + From all his arts may Heaven defend! + </div> + <div class="line"> + And be thou ever on thy guard, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Lest thy faith meet a sad reward. + </div> + <div class="line"> + And if he swear he loves thee, laugh! + </div> + <div class="line"> + For give him thy little finger half, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And the iron chains of his stern control + </div> + <div class="line"> + Will sink like fire on thy poor soul!' + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Now VICTOR heard all this, one day, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And smiled—'It's queer how men can say + </div> + <div class="line"> + Such things to injure their neighbors! + </div> + <div class="line"> + For do but look at this wonderful man, + </div> + <div class="line"> + So rich in thought, so fertile in plan, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Who, to place all tyranny under ban, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Never remits his labors,— + </div> + <div class="line"> + This dear, good soul, who, with magical art, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Brings freedom and peace to my trembling heart.' + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Soon after, Sir LOUIS rode over the moor: + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'My VICTOR, how comes it you're still so poor, + </div> + <div class="line"> + When I have paid all your debts, sir? + </div> + <div class="line"> + I've made you so rich, I've made you so great; + </div> + <div class="line"> + I've brought you gifts of money and plate; + </div> + <div class="line"> + Is there anything more to complete your state, + </div> + <div class="line"> + That you'd like to have, <i>I</i> can get, sir? + </div> + <div class="line"> + Come, VICTOR, confess to your faithful friend, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Who to make you happy his honor would lend.' + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + 'Oh, worthy man,—my tower and strength! + </div> + <div class="line"> + How sweet it is that I may, at length, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Confide in you as a brother!' + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'Yes, take what you will, my statesman hold, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Only ask not whence comes the shining gold. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Just see what a beauty here I hold; + </div> + <div class="line"> + If you're good I may bring you another!— + </div> + <div class="line"> + A crown so rich in costly gems + </div> + <div class="line"> + It will match the Eastern diadems!' + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Little VICTOR gazed at the sparkling crown, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Then fell at the feet of his LOUIS down, + </div> + <div class="line"> + Overcome by deep emotion. + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'Oh! oh! is it true? is it all for me? + </div> + <div class="line"> + This beautiful crown, with its diamonds <i>three?</i> + </div> + <div class="line"> + And he clapped his hands in boundless glee, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And vowed eternal devotion; + </div> + <div class="line"> + While LOUIS looked on with a happy heart, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And blessed himself for his consummate art. + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + 'Yes, VICTOR,' he said, 'it gives me joy + </div> + <div class="line"> + To present you, to-day, with this pretty toy, + </div> + <div class="line"> + With such freedom from envy or rancor! + </div> + <div class="line"> + But get up from your knees; 'tisn't quite orthodox + </div> + <div class="line"> + To kneel to a man; you might get on the rocks + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of his HOLINESS' anger. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Now lay the crown in your jewel-box, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And, lest some wandering, cunning fox + </div> + <div class="line"> + Should steal it, be sure to secure the locks.' + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + 'Oh, a friend in need is a friend indeed!' + </div> + <div class="line"> + Quoth VICTOR; 'but this is beyond my meed. + </div> + <div class="line"> + And what gift of mine can repay you?' + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'The key of the casket, friend, if you please, + </div> + <div class="line"> + I will take to my safe beyond the seas. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Your grateful heart will thus rest at ease; + </div> + <div class="line"> + So give it to me, I pray you.' + </div> + <div class="line"> + But VICTOR'S eyes grew large with fright, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And he cried, 'Oh, LOUIS! this can't be right; + </div> + <div class="line"> + For how can I get of my jewels a sight? + </div> + <div class="line"> + You might as well take them away too.' + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'Give me the key!' screamed his guardian angel, + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'Or receive the curse of the LORD'S evangel!' + </div> + </div> + <div class="stanza"> + <div class="line"> + Poor VICTOR trembled with fear and pain, + </div> + <div class="line"> + When he found his entreaties were all in vain, + </div> + <div class="line"> + And the key was lost forever. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Alas, alas for the counsel scorned; + </div> + <div class="line"> + For the jewels hid and the freedom mourned. + </div> + <div class="line"> + And the faith returning never! + </div> + <div class="line"> + For link after link of the adamant chain + </div> + <div class="line"> + Mounted endless guard over heart and brain. + </div> + </div> + </div> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>The London <i>Times</i> of Dec. 12 contained the following:—</p> + <blockquote> + Blind indeed must be the fury of the Americans if they can voluntarily + superadd a war with this country to their present overwhelming + embarrassments. It is clear, notwithstanding the sanguine spirit in which + small successes are regarded, that the Federal Government is making no + material progress in the war. + </blockquote> + <p>That is to say, 'We have you at disadvantage. Now is our time to strike. + A year ago we might have been afraid, but not now.' When John Bull is next + cited as the standard authority for fair play, let his very manly vaunts at + this time be quoted in illustration!</p> + <a name="page234" id="page234"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 234]</span> + <p>Up through the misty medium of 'News from the South' have struggled of + late divers rumors to the effect that the triumphant HOLLINS, of Steam Ram + and Greytown memory, has been somewhat shorn of his 'lorrels.' How his + stock fell below par is solemnly narrated in the second and following + instalment of our' Chronicles:'—</p> + <h3>CHRONICLES OF SECESSIA.</h3> + <center> + BOOK II. + </center> + <center> + CHAPTER I. + </center> + <p>There was a man and his name was HOLLINS.</p> + <p>He was of those that go down to the sea in ships, and sometimes across + the bay in very different conveyances.</p> + <p>Bold of speech, with a face like unto a brazen idol of Gath, and a voice + even as a bull of Bashan; a man such as Gog and Magog, and ever agog for to + be praised of men, or any other man.</p> + <p>Now this HOLLINS was greatly esteemed of the South, howbeit he was held + of but little worth in the North, since they who made songs and jokes for + the papers had aforetime laughed him to scorn.</p> + <p>For it had come to pass that sundry niggers, the children of Ham, with + others of the heathen, walking in darkness, had built unto themselves + shanties of sticks and mud, and dwellings of palm-leaves, and given unto + the place a name; even Greytown called they it;</p> + <p>And, waxing saucy, had reviled the powers that be, and chosen unto + themselves a king, wearing pantaloons.</p> + <p>And HOLLINS said unto himself, 'Lo! here is glory!</p> + <p>'Verily here be niggers who are not men of war, strength is not in them, + and their habitations are as naught.'</p> + <p>So he went against them with cannon and sailors, men of war and + horse-marines, and made war upon the children of Ham,</p> + <p>Bombarding their town from the rising of the sun even unto the going + down of the same—there was not left one old woman there, no, not + one.</p> + <p>Now when the men of the South, and they which dwell in the isles of the + sea, with those of the uplands,</p> + <p>Heard that HOLLINS had battered down the cabins of the niggers and slain + their hens,</p> + <p>Then they said, 'This is a great man, and no abolitionist.'</p> + <p>And his fame went abroad into all lands, and they made a feast for him, + where they sung aloud, merrily,</p> + <p>'We will not go home, no, not until the morning.</p> + <p>'Until the dayspring shineth we will not repair unto our dwellings.</p> + <p>'Advance rapidly in the days of thy youth,</p> + <p>'For it will come to pass that in thy declining years it will not be + possible.</p> + <p>'Let the tongue of scandal be silent, and let the foot of dull care be + no longer in our dwelling.</p> + <p>'It was in the centre of the Boomjalang, even on a summer day did it + come to pass,—rip snap, let her be again exalted!</p> + <p>'Now let all the elders who are not wedded, even they that are without + wives, fill up the goblet, and let those who are assembled live for many + years!</p> + <p>'Let them drink each unto the handmaid of his heart. May we live for + many years!</p> + <p>'<i>Vive l'amour, vive le vin, vive la compagnie!</i></p> + <p>'We will dance through the hours of darkness to the dayspring, and + return with the damsels, even unto their dwellings.</p> + <p>'There was a man named JOHN BROWN; he owned a little one and it was an + Indian, yea, two Indian boys were among his heritage.</p> + <p>'The ten spot taketh the nine, but is itself taken by the ace, and since + we are here assembled let us drink!</p> + <p>'I will advance on my charger all night, even by day will I not tarry; + lo! I have wagered my shekels on the steed with a shortened tail; who will + stake his gold on the bay?</p> + <p>'Great was COCK ROBIN, and JAMES BUCHANAN was not small, neither is + WIKOFF,</p> + <p>'But greater than all is HOLLINS,—who shall prevail against + him?'</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <center> + CHAPTER II. + </center> + <p>In the days of war, even after the South had seceded,</p> + <p>When the arrows of the North were pointed, and the strong men had gone + forth unto battle;</p> + <p>When the ships had closed up the ports of the great cities, and their + marts were desolate;</p> + <p>When the damsels that had aforetime walked in fine linen and purple, and + precious stones, were clad in homespun and went to indigenous parties; When + the Mississippi was blockaded by the Preble and Vincennes, and many more + and several such;</p> + <a name="page235" id="page235"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 235]</span> + <p>Then HOLLINS got himself ready for battle: with great boasting and + mighty words did he gird on his armor,</p> + <p>Saying, 'Be not afraid, it is I who will unfold the terrors of my wrath; + the Yankees shall utterly wither away, their ships will I burn, and their + captains will I take captive, in a highly extra manner.</p> + <p>'Did I not burn Greytown? was it not I who made the niggers run? who + shall stand before me?'</p> + <p>Now they had made a thing which they called a steam-ram, an iron-covered + boat, like unto a serpent, even like unto the evil beast which crawleth + upon its belly, eating dirt, as do many of those who made it.</p> + <p>And all the South rejoiced over it, the voices of many editors were + uplifted,</p> + <p>According to the Revised Statutes,</p> + <p>Prophesying sure death and sudden ruin, on back action principles.</p> + <p>Yea, there were those who opined that the ram would suffice to destroy + the whole North, or at least its navy—there or thereabouts.</p> + <p>And they cried aloud that the rams of Jericho were nowhere, and that the + great ram of Derby, was but as a ramlet compared to this.</p> + <p>And the reporters of the <i>Crescent</i> and <i>Bee</i>, and + <i>Delta</i>, and <i>Picayune</i>, and they of the kangaroon Creole French + press, went to see it,</p> + <p>And returned with their eyes greatly enlarged, so that they seemed as + those of the fish men take from a mile depth in the Gulf of + Nice,—which are excessively magnocular,—even as large as the + round tower of Copenhagen were their optics,</p> + <p>Declaring that on the face of the earth was no such marvel as the ram; + the wonderful wonder of wonders did it seem unto them; sharp death at short + notice on craft of all sizes.</p> + <p>Then HOLLINS got unto himself divers tugs and clam-boats, ferry-boats, + and one or two larger craft, which thieves had stolen privily aforetime + from the government,</p> + <p>For in that land all was done in those days by stealing; pilfering and + robbing were among them from the beginning.</p> + <p>And he went forth to battle.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <center> + Chapter III. + </center> + <p>Now it was about the middle of the third watch of the night,</p> + <p>Came a messenger bearing good tidings unto the Philistines, even unto + the Pelicans and Swampers of New Orleans,</p> + <p>Saying, 'He has done it, well he has. <i>C'est un fait + accompli</i>.'</p> + <p>Then got they all together in great joy, crying aloud, '<i>Vive</i> + Hollane!—hurrah for Hollins! <i>viva el adelantado!</i> Massa Hollums + fur ebber! <i>Der</i> Hollins <i>soll leben!</i> Go it, old Haulins! + <i>Evviva il capitano</i> Hollino! Hip, hip, hurroo, ye divils, for + Hollins!'</p> + <p>Then there stood up in the high place one bearing a dispatch, which was + opened, the words whereof read he unto them:</p> + <center> + [THE DISPATCH.] + </center> + <p>'I have peppered them.</p> + <p>'Peppered, peppered, peppered, peppepa-peppered them.</p> + <p>'Pip, pap, pep, pop, pup-uppered 'em.</p> + <p>'I drove 'em all before me—glory, g'lang; knocked 'em higher 'n a + kite and peppered 'em.</p> + <p>'I sunk the Preble, and the Vincennes did I send to thunder. I peppered + 'em.</p> + <p>'The ram has rammed everything to pieces, and the rest did I drive high + and dry ashore, where I peppered 'em.</p> + <p>'What was left did my ships destroy; verily I peppered 'em.</p> + <p>'The residue thereof, lo! was it not burnt up by my + fire-ships?—yea, they were peppered.</p> + <p>'The remainder I am even now peppering, and the others will I continue + to pepper.</p> + <p>'Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers—even so did + I—such a peppering never yet was seen, neither aforetime, or + aftertime, not in the land where the pepper grows, or any other time.</p> + <p>'I peppered 'em.'</p> + <p>And lo! when this was read there arose such a cry of joy as never was + heard, no, not at the Tower of Babel on Saturday night.</p> + <p>And he who read, said: 'Rome was redeemed for a thousand pounds of + pepper and a thousand of gold, pound for pound did they weigh it out. But + such pepper as this is beyond price—yea, beyond all gold.</p> + <p>'But what are they whom he has conquered, oh my soul? Dirt and Iniquity + is their name, evil are their ways, cuss and confound them!</p> + <p>'It was not worth the while for a gentleman to fight such + scallawags—behold, a <a name="page236" id="page236"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 236]</span> blind nigger in a mud-scow could have put + them to flight—even a blind nigger should we have sent against + them.</p> + <p>'Great and glorious is HOLLINS, splendid is his fame, great is his + victory, beyond all those of the Meads and Prussians, Cherrynea and + Chepultapec, Thermopilus and Vagrom.'</p> + <p>Then it was telegrammed all over the South, and the rest of mankind, + that HOLLINS had peppered the fleet, and pulverized the last particle + thereof into small-sized annihilation.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <center> + CHAPTER IV. + </center> + <p>But on the evening of the first day there came yet other tidings of a + reactive character,</p> + <p>Saying that a confounded abolitionist man-of-war was still there giving + block-aid to Uncle Sam.</p> + <p>And HOLLINS, who was in town, being asked what this might mean,</p> + <p>Said, 'Fudge!</p> + <p>'Go to, it is naught. Now I come to think of it, there <i>was</i> one + infernal little sneaking 90-gun Yankee frigate,</p> + <p>'Which, hearing of my coming, ran away six hours before the + battle—ere that I had peppered 'em.'</p> + <p>But lo! even as he spake came yet another message, declaring there were + twain.</p> + <p>Then HOLLINS declared, 'It is a d——d lie, and he who says it + is another—an abolitionist is he in his heart. Did I not pepper + 'em?'</p> + <p>But lo, even as he sware there came yet another,</p> + <p>Saying, 'Let not my lord be angry, but with these eyes have I seen it; + by many others was it perceived.</p> + <p>'Whether the ships which my lord peppered have risen again I know not, + but if the whole Yankee fleet isn't there again, all sound and right side + up with care, I hope I may be drotted into everlasting turpentine.'</p> + <p>Then the newspapers arose and reviled HOLLINS,</p> + <p>Calling him a humbug—even a humbug called they him.</p> + <p>As for the multitude, they laughed him to scorn; such a blackguarding + never received man before,</p> + <p>Calling him an old blower and bloat, a gas-bag and <i>fanfaron</i>, a + Gascon and a <i>carajo</i>, <i>alma miserabile</i>, and a pudding-head, a + <i>sacre menteur</i> and a <i>verfluchte prahlerische Hauptesel</i>, a + brassy old blunder-head and a spupsy, <i>un sot sans pareil</i> and a + darned old hoffmagander; a pepper-<i>pot-pourri</i>, a thafe of the wurreld + and an owld baste, the divil's blissing an him!</p> + <p>In French, English, Dutch, Spanish and Irish, Yankee and Creole, yea, + even in Nigger and in Natchez Indian, reviled they him.</p> + <p>And the rumor thereof went abroad into all lands, that HOLLINS had been + compelled to hand in his horns.</p> + <p>How are the mighty fallen, how is he that was exalted cut down in his + salary!</p> + <p>Beware, oh my son, that thou pullest not the long bow ere the bowstring + be twisted, or ever the arrow be at hand—send not in thy bill ere the + customer have bought the goods.</p> + <p>Sell not the skin ere thou catchest the bear, and give not out thy + wedding cards before thou hast popped the question.</p> + <p>For all these things did HOLLINS—verily he hath his reward.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>CHRISTOPHER NORTH, in <i>Blackwood</i>, and many others since him, have + popularized this style of chronicle-English of the sixteenth century, and + our contributor has sound precedent for his imitations. 'Should time + permit, nor the occasion fail,' we trust to have him with us in the + following number. Our thanks are due to some scores of cotemporaries who + have republished the last Chronicle, and for the praise which they lavished + on it.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>To HENRY P. LELAND we are indebted for a</p> + <p>SONNET TO JOHN JONES.</p> + <div class="poem"> + <div class="line"> + Thou who dost walk round town, not quite unknown, + </div> + <div class="line"> + I have a word to speak within thy ear. + </div> + <div class="line"> + Hast thou no dread to hear in trumpet tone + </div> + <div class="line"> + 'John Jones has got a contract!'—dost not fear + </div> + <div class="line"> + Thy children, yet unborn, may then disown + </div> + <div class="line"> + The parent, with whose name they thus may hear + </div> + <div class="line"> + Transactions worse than usury's heaviest loan + </div> + <div class="line"> + Of twenty odd per cent. and more a year? + </div> + <div class="line"> + Oh, John! I pray thee that within thy heart + </div> + <div class="line"> + The lesson that 'Police Court' teaches thee, + </div> + <div class="line"> + That other Jones' rob hen-roosts, and take part + </div> + <div class="line"> + In many a rousing fight and drunken spree, + </div> + <div class="line"> + May have its influence; and that thou wilt start + </div> + <div class="line"> + And have thy name changed, quickly as may be. + </div> + </div> + <a name="page237" id="page237"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 237]</span> + <p>Who has not had his attention called to the small, black carpet-bags + which so greatly prevail in this very traveling community? Who has not + heard of mistakes which have occurred owing to their frequency and + similarity, and who in fact has not lost one himself? That these mistakes + may sometimes lead to merrily-moving, serio-comic results, is set forth, + not badly, as it seems to us, in the following story:—</p> + <h3>THE THREE TRAVELLING-BAGS.</h3> + <center> + CHAPTER I. + </center> + <p>There were three of them, all of shining black leather: one on top of + the pile of trunks; one on the ground; one in the owner's hand;—all + going to Philadelphia; all waiting to be checked.</p> + <p>The last bell rang. The baggageman bustled, fuming, from one pile of + baggage to another, dispensing chalk to the trunks, checks to the + passengers, and curses to the porters, in approved railway style.</p> + <p>'Mine!—Philadelphia!' cried a stout, military-looking man, with + enormous whiskers and a red face, crowding forward, as the baggageman laid + his hand on the first bag.</p> + <p>'Won't you please to give me a check for this, now?' entreated a pale, + slender, carefully-dressed young man, for the ninth time, holding out bag + No. 2. 'I have a lady to look after.'</p> + <p>'Say! be you agoin' to give me a check for that 'are, or not?' growled + the proprietor of bag No. 3, a short, pockmarked fellow, in a shabby + overcoat.</p> + <p>'All right, gen'l'men. Here you are,' says the functionary, rapidly + distributing the three checks. 'Philadelfy, this? Yes, + sir,—1092—1740.11—1020. All right.'</p> + <p>'All aboard!' shouted the conductor.</p> + <p>'Whoo-whew!' responded the locomotive; and the train moved slowly out of + the station-house.</p> + <p>The baggageman meditatively watched it, as it sped away in the distance, + and then, as if a thought suddenly struck him, slapping his thigh, he + exclaimed,</p> + <p>'Blest if I don't believe—'</p> + <p>'What?' inquired the switchman.</p> + <p>'That I've gone and guv them three last fellers the wrong checks! The + cussed little black things was all alike, and they bothered me.'</p> + <p>'Telegraph,' suggested the switchman.</p> + <p>'Never you mind,' replied the baggageman. 'They was all going to + Philadelfy. They'll find it out when they get there.'</p> + <p>They did.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <center> + CHAPTER II. + </center> + <p>The scene shifts to the Continental Hotel, Philadelphia.—Front + parlor, up stairs.—Occupants, the young gentleman alluded to in + Chapter I., and a young lady. In accordance with the fast usages of the + times, the twain had been made one in holy matrimony at 7.30 A.M.; duly + kissed and congratulated till 8.15; put aboard the express train at 8.45, + and deposited at the Continental, bag and baggage, by 12.58.</p> + <p>They were seated on the sofa, the black broadcloth coat-sleeve + encircling the slender waist of the gray traveling-dress, and the jetty + moustache in equally affectionate proximity to the glossy curls.</p> + <p>'Are you tired, dearest?'</p> + <p>'No, love, not much. But you are, arn't you?'</p> + <p>'No, darling.'</p> + <p>Kiss, and a pause.</p> + <p>'Don't it seem funny?' said the lady.</p> + <p>'What, love?'</p> + <p>'That we should be married.'</p> + <p>'Yes, darling.'</p> + <p>'Won't they be glad to see us at George's?'</p> + <p>'Of course they will.'</p> + <p>'I'm sure I shall enjoy it so much. Shall we get there to-night?'</p> + <p>'Yes, love, if—'</p> + <p>Rap-rap-rap, at the door.</p> + <p>A hasty separation took place between man and wife—to opposite + ends of the sofa; and then—</p> + <p>'Come in.'</p> + <p>'Av ye plaze, sur, it's an M.P. is waiting to see yez.'</p> + <p>'To see <i>me</i>! A policeman?'</p> + <p>'Yis, sur.'</p> + <p>'There must be some mistake.'</p> + <p>'No, sur, it's yourself; and he's waiting in the hall, beyant.'</p> + <p>'Well, I'll go to—No, tell him to come here.'</p> + <p>'Sorry to disturb you, sir,' said the M.P., with a huge brass star on + his breast, appearing with great alacrity at the waiter's elbow. 'B'lieve + this is your black valise?'</p> + <p>'Yes, that is ours, certainly. It has Julia's—the lady's things in + it.'</p> + <p>'Suspicious sarcumstances about that 'ere valise, sir. Telegraph come + this morning <a name="page238" id="page238"></a><span class="newpage">[pg + 238]</span> that a burglar started on the 8.45 Philadelphia train, with a + lot of stolen spoons, in a black valise.—Spoons marked + T.B.—Watched at the Ferry.—Saw the black valise.—Followed + it up here.—Took a peek inside. Sure enough, there was the spoons. + Marked T.B., too. Said it was yours. Shall have to take you in charge.'</p> + <p>'Take <i>me</i> in charge!' echoed the dismayed bridegroom. 'But I + assure you, my dear sir, there is some strange mistake. It's all a + mistake.'</p> + <p>'S'pose you'll be able to account for the spoons being in your valise, + then?'</p> + <p>'Why, I—I—it isn't mine. It must be somebody else's. + Somebody's put them there. It is some villanous conspiracy.'</p> + <p>'Hope you'll be able to tell a straighter story before the magistrate, + young man; 'cause if you don't, you stand a smart chance of being sent up + for six months.'</p> + <p>'Oh, Charles! this is horrid. Do send him away. Oh dear! I wish I was + home,' sobbed the little bride.</p> + <p>'I tell you, sir,' said the bridegroom, bristling up with indignation, + 'this is all a vile plot. What would I be doing with your paltry spoons? I + was married this morning, in Fifth Avenue, and I am on my wedding tour. I + have high connections in New York. You'll repent it, sir, if you dare to + arrest me.'</p> + <p>'Oh, come, now,' said the incredulous official, 'I've hearn stories like + that before. This ain't the first time swindlers has traveled in couples. + Do you s'pose I don't know nothin'? 'Tan't no use; you've just got to come + along to the station-house. Might as well go peaceably, 'cause you'll have + to.'</p> + <p>'Charles, this is perfectly dreadful! Our wedding night in the + station-house! Do send for somebody. Send for the landlord to explain + it.'</p> + <p>The landlord was sent for, and came; the porters were sent for, and + came; the waiters, and chambermaids, and bar-room loungers came, without + being sent for, and filled the room and the adjoining hall,—some to + laugh, some to say they wouldn't have believed it, but nearly all to exult + that the unhappy pair had been 'found out.' No explanation could be given; + and the upshot was, that, in spite of tears, threats, entreaties, rage, and + expostulations, the unfortunate newly-married pair were taken in charge by + the relentless policeman, and marched down stairs, <i>en route</i> for the + police office.</p> + <p>And here let the curtain drop on the melancholy scene, while we follow + the fortunes of black valise No. 2.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <center> + CHAPTER III. + </center> + <p>When the train stopped at Camden, four gentlemen got off, and walked, + arm-in-arm, rapidly and silently, up one of the by-streets, and struck off + into a foot-path leading to a secluded grove outside the town. Of the first + two, one was our military friend in a blue coat, apparently the leader of + the party. Of the second two, one was a smiling, rosy little man, carrying + a black valise. Their respective companions walked with hasty, irregular + strides, were abstracted, and—apparently ill at ease.</p> + <p>The party stopped.</p> + <p>'This is the place,' said Captain Jones.</p> + <p>'Yes,' said Doctor Smith.</p> + <p>The Captain and the Doctor conferred together. The other two studiously + kept apart.</p> + <p>'Very well. I'll measure the ground, and do you place your man.'</p> + <p>It was done.</p> + <p>'Now for the pistols,' whispered the Captain to his fellow-second.</p> + <p>'They are all ready, in the valise,' replied the Doctor.</p> + <p>The principals were placed, ten paces apart, and wearing that decidedly + uncomfortable air a man has who is in momentary expectation of being + shot.</p> + <p>'You will fire, gentlemen, simultaneously, when I give the word,' said + the Captain. Then, in an undertone, to the Doctor, 'Quick, the + pistols.'</p> + <p>The Doctor, stooping over and fumbling at the valise, appeared to find + something that surprised him.</p> + <p>'Why, what the devil—'</p> + <p>'What's the matter?' asked the Captain, striding up. 'Can't you find the + caps?'</p> + <p>'Deuce a pistol or cap, but this!'</p> + <p>He held up—a lady's night-cap!</p> + <p>'Look here—and here—and here!'—holding up successively + a hair-brush, a long, white night-gown, a cologne-bottle, and a comb.</p> + <p>They were greeted with a long whistle by the Captain, and a blank stare + by the two principals.</p> + <p>'Confound the luck!' ejaculated the Captain; 'if we haven't made a + mistake, and brought the wrong valise!'</p> + <p>The principals looked at the seconds. The seconds looked at the + principals. Nobody <a name="page239" id="page239"></a><span + class="newpage">[pg 239]</span> volunteered a suggestion. At last the + Doctor inquired,</p> + <p>'Well, what's to be done?'</p> + <p>'D——d unlucky!' again ejaculated the Captain. 'The duel + can't go on.'</p> + <p>'Evidently not,' responded the Doctor, 'unless they brain each other + with the hair-brush, or take a pop at each other with the + cologne-bottle.'</p> + <p>'You are quite sure there are no pistols in the valise?' said one of the + principals, with suppressed eagerness, and drawing a long breath of evident + relief.</p> + <p>'We might go over to the city and get pistols,' proposed the + Captain.</p> + <p>'And by that time it will he dark,' said the Doctor.</p> + <p>'D——d unlucky,' said the Captain again.</p> + <p>'We shall be the laughing-stock of the town,' consolingly remarked the + Doctor, 'if this gets wind.'</p> + <p>'One word with you, Doctor,' here interposed his principal.</p> + <p>They conferred.</p> + <p>At the end of the conference with his principal, the Doctor, advancing + to the Captain, conferred with him. Then the Captain conferred with his + principal. Then the seconds conferred with each other. Finally, it was + formally agreed between the contending parties that a statement should be + drawn up in writing, whereby Principal No. 1 tendered the assurance that + the offensive words 'You are a liar' were not used by him in any personal + sense, but solely as an abstract proposition, in a general way, in regard + to the matter of fact under dispute. To which Principal No. 2 appended his + statement of his high gratification at this candid and honorable + explanation, and unqualifiedly withdrew the offensive words 'You are a + scoundrel,' they having been used by him under a misapprehension of the + intent and purpose of the remark which preceded them.</p> + <p>There being no longer a cause of quarrel, the duel was of course ended. + The principals shook hands, first with each other, and next with the + seconds, and were evidently very glad to get out of it.</p> + <p>'And now that it is so happily settled,' said the Doctor, chuckling and + rubbing his hands, 'it proves to have been a lucky mistake, after all, that + we brought the wrong valise. Wonder what the lady that owns it will say + when she opens ours and finds the pistols.'</p> + <p>'Very well for you to laugh about,' growled the Captain; 'but it's no + joke for me to lose my pistols. Hair triggers—best English make, and + gold mounted. There arn't a finer pair in America.'</p> + <p>'Oh, we'll find 'em. We'll go on a pilgrimage from house to house, + asking if any lady there has lost a night-cap and found a pair of + dueling-pistols.'</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <center> + CHAPTER IV. + </center> + <p>In very good spirits, the party crossed the river, and inquired at the + baggage-room in reference to each and all black leather traveling-bags + arrived that day, took notes of where they were sent, and set out to follow + them up. In due time they reached the Continental, and, as luck would have + it, met the unhappy bridal pair just coming down stairs in charge of the + policeman.</p> + <p>'What's all this?' inquired the Captain.</p> + <p>'Oh, a couple of burglars, caught with a valise full of stolen + property.'</p> + <p>'A valise!—what kind of a valise?'</p> + <p>'A black leather valise. That's it, there.'</p> + <p>'Here!—Stop!—Hallo!—Policeman!—Landlord! It's + all right. You're all wrong. That's my valise. It's all a mistake. They got + changed at the depot. This lady and gentleman are innocent. Here's their + valise, with her night-cap in it.'</p> + <p>Great was the laughter, multifarious the comments, and deep the interest + of the crowd in all this dialogue, which they appeared to regard as a + delightful entertainment, got up expressly for their amusement.</p> + <p>'Then you say this 'ere is yourn?' said the policeman, relaxing his hold + on the bridegroom, and confronting the Captain.</p> + <p>'Yes, it's mine.'</p> + <p>'And how did you come by the spoons?'</p> + <p>'Spoons, you jackanapes!' said the Captain. + 'Pistols!—dueling-pistols!'</p> + <p>'Do you call these pistols?' said the policeman, holding up one of the + silver spoons marked 'T.B.'</p> + <p>The Captain, astounded, gasped, 'It's the wrong valise again, after + all!'</p> + <p>'Stop! Not so fast!' said the police functionary, now invested with + great dignity by the importance of the affair he found himself engaged in. + 'If so be as how you've got this 'ere lady's valise, she's all right, and + can go. But, in that case, this is yourn, and it comes on you to account + for them 'are stole spoons. Have to take <i>you</i> in charge, all four of + ye.'</p> + <p>'Why, you impudent scoundrel!' roared <a name="page240" + id="page240"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 240]</span> the Captain; 'I'll + see you in ——. I wish I had my pistols here; I'd teach you how + to insult gentlemen!'—shaking his fist.</p> + <p>The dispute waxed fast and furious. The outsiders began to take part in + it, and there is no telling how it would have ended, had not an explosion, + followed by a heavy fall and a scream of pain, been heard in an adjoining + room.</p> + <p>The crowd rushed to the scene of the new attraction.</p> + <p>The door was fast. It was soon burst open, and the mystery explained. + The thief, who had carried off the Captain's valise by mistake for his own, + had taken it up to his room, and opened it to gloat over the booty he + supposed it to contain, thrusting his hand in after the spoons. In so doing + he had touched one of the hair triggers, and the pistol had gone off, the + bullet making a round hole through the side of the valise, and a + corresponding round hole in the calf of his leg.</p> + <p>The wounded rascal was taken in charge, first by the policeman, and then + by the doctor; and the duelists and the wedded pair struck up a friendship + on the score of their mutual mishaps, which culminated in a supper, where + the fun was abundant, and where it would he hard to say which was in the + best spirits,—the Captain for recovering his pistols, the bride for + getting her night-cap, the bridegroom for escaping the station-house, or + the duelists for escaping each other. All resolved to 'mark that day with a + white stone,' and henceforth to mark their names on their black + traveling-bags, in white letters.</p> + <p>MORAL.—Go thou and do likewise.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>By odd coincidence, this is not the only 'tale of a traveler' and of a + small carpet-bag in this our present number. The reader will find another, + but of a tragic cast, in the 'Tints and Tones of Paris' among our foregoing + pages.</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>There are errors and errors, as the French say. The following is not + without a foundation in fact:—</p> + <p>THACKERAY'S young lady, who abused a gentleman for associating with low, + radical literary friends, must have had about as elevated an opinion of + literature as an Irishman I lately heard of had of the medical profession, + as represented by its non-commissioned officers.</p> + <p>My friend BOB handed his man-servant some books, to return to the + Franklin Library. Noticing, a few minutes afterwards, while passing through + the hall, that he was busy carefully wrapping them up in newspaper, he + asked him what he was doing that for.</p> + <p>'Och, shure, Mister ——, I'm afraid, if they say me carr'ing + books rouhnd undher me ahrm, they'll be afther tayking me for a <i>maydical + student</i>!'</p> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>The very remarkable and enthusiastic welcome which has been extended to + our proposal to establish the CONTINENTAL as an <i>independent</i> + magazine, calls for the warmest gratitude from us, and at the same time + induces us to lay stress upon the fact that our pages are open to + contributions of a very varied character; the only condition being that + they shall be written by friends of the Union. While holding firmly to our + own views as set forth under the 'Editorial' heading, <i>we by no means + profess to endorse those of our contributors</i>, leaving the reader to + make his own comments on these. In a word, we shall adopt such elements of + <i>independent</i> action as have been hitherto characteristic of the + newspaper press, but which we judge to be quite as suitable to a monthly + magazine. We offer a fair field and <i>all</i> favors to all comers, + avoiding all petty jealousies and exclusiveness. Will our readers please to + bear this in mind in reading all articles published in our pages?</p> + <p>We can not conclude without expressing the warmest gratitude to the + press and the public for the comment, commendation and patronage which they + have so liberally bestowed upon us. We have been obliged to print three + times the number for which we had anticipated sale, and believe that no + American magazine ever circulated so many copies of a first number. In + consequence of this demand we have been compelled to go to press earlier + than was anticipated. Articles promised for February, by Messrs. BAYARD + TAYLOR and CHARLES F. BROWNE, but not yet received, are necessarily + deferred. From the latter gentleman we have a note promising a positive + appearance in March.</p> + <hr /> + <a name="page241" id="page241"></a><span class="newpage">[pg 241]</span> + <h2>THE KNICKERBOCKER</h2> + <center> + FOR 1862. + </center> + <p>In the beginning of the last year, when its present proprietors assumed + control of the Knickerbocker, they announced their determination to spare + no pains to place it in its true position as the leading <i>literary</i> + Monthly in America. When rebellion had raided a successful front, and its + armies threatened the very existence of the Republic, it was impossible to + permit a magazine, which in its circulation reached the best intellects in + the land, to remain insensible or indifferent to the dangers which + threatened the Union. The proprietors accordingly gave notice, that it + would present in its pages, forcible expositions with regard to the great + question of the times,—<i>how to preserve the</i> UNITED STATES OF + AMERICA <i>in their integrity and unity</i>. How far this pledge has been + redeemed the public must judge. It would, however, be mere affectation to + ignore the seal of approbation which has been placed on these efforts. The + proprietors gratefully acknowledge this, and it has led them to embark in a + fresh undertaking, as already announced,—the publication of the + CONTINENTAL MONTHLY, devoted to Literature and National Policy; in which + magazine, those who have sympathized with the political opinions recently + set forth in the KNICKERBOCKER, will find the same views more fully + enforced and maintained by the ablest and most energetic minds in + America.</p> + <p>The KNICKERBOCKER, while it will continue firmly pledged to the cause of + the Union, will henceforth be more earnestly devoted to literature, and + will leave no effort untried to attain the highest excellence in those + departments of letters which it has adopted as specialties.</p> + <p>The January number commences its thirtieth year. With such antecedents + as it possesses, it seems unnecessary to make any especial pledges as to + its future, but it may not be amiss to say that it will be the aim of its + conductors to make it more and more deserving of the liberal support it has + hitherto received. The same eminent writers who have contributed to it + during the past year will continue to enrich its pages, and in addition, + contributions will appear from others of the highest reputation, as well as + from many rising authors. While it will, as heretofore, cultivate the + genial and humorous, it will also pay assiduous attention to the higher + departments of art and letters, and give fresh and spirited articles on + such biographical, historical, scientific, and general subjects as are of + especial interest to the public.</p> + <p>In the January issue will commence a series of papers by CHARLES GODFREY + LELAND, entitled "SUNSHINE IN LETTERS," which will be found interesting to + scholars as well as to the general reader, and in an early number will + appear the first chapters of a NEW and INTERESTING NOVEL, descriptive of + American life and character.</p> + <p>According to the unanimous opinion of the American press, the + KNICKERBOCKER has been greatly improved during the past year, <i>and it is + certain that at no period of its long career did it ever attract more + attention or approbation</i>. Confident of their enterprise and ability, + the proprietors are determined that it shall be still more eminent in + excellence, containing all that is best of the old, and being continually + enlivened by what is most brilliant of the new.</p> + <p>TERMS.—Three dollars a year, in advance. Two copies for Four + Dollars and fifty cents. Three copies for Six dollars. Subscribers + remitting Three Dollars will receive as a premium, (post-paid,) a copy of + Richard B. Kimball's great work, "THE REVELATIONS OF WALL STREET," to be + published by G.P. Putnam, early in February next, (price $1.) Subscribers + remitting Four Dollars will receive the KNICKERBOCKER and the CONTINENTAL + MONTHLY for one year. As but one edition of each number of the + Knickerbocker is printed, those desirous of commencing with the volume + should subscribe at once.</p> + <p>[Symbol: Pointing Hand] The publisher, appreciating the importance of + literature to the soldier on duty, will send a copy <i>gratis</i>, during + the continuance of the war, to any regiment in active service, on + application being made by its Colonel or Chaplain. Subscriptions will also + be received from those desiring it sent to soldiers in the ranks at <i>half + price</i>, but in such cases it must be mailed from the office of + publication.</p> + <p><b>J.R. GILMORE, 532 Broadway, New York.</b></p> + <p><b>C.T. EVANS, General Agent, 533 Broadway, New York.</b></p> + <p>—> All communications and contributions, intended for the + Editorial department, should be addressed to CHARLES G. LELAND, Editor of + the "Knickerbocker," care of C.T. EVANS, 532 Broadway, New York.</p> + <p>—> Newspapers copying the above and giving the Magazine monthly + notices, will be entitled to an exchange.</p> + <hr /> + <h2>PROSPECTUS OF The Continental Monthly.</h2> + <hr class="short" /> + <p>There are periods in the world's history marked by extraordinary and + violent crises, sudden as the breaking forth of & volcano, or the + bursting of a storm on the ocean. These crises sweep away in a moment the + landmarks of generations. They call out fresh talent, and give to the old a + new direction. It is then that new ideas are born, new theories developed. + Such periods demand fresh exponents, and new men for expounders.</p> + <p>This Continent has lately been convulsed by an upheaving so sudden and + terrible that the relations of all men and women to each other are + violently disturbed, and people look about for the elements with which to + sway the storm and direct the whirlwind. Just at present, we do not know + what all this is to bring forth; but we do know that great results MUST + flow from such extraordinary commotions.</p> + <p>At a juncture so solemn and so important, there is a special need that + the intellectual force of the country should be active and efficient. It is + a time for great minds to speak their thoughts boldly, and to take position + as the advance guard. To this end, there is a special want unsupplied. It + is that of an Independent Magazine, which shall be open to the first + intellects of the land, and which shall treat the issues presented, and to + be presented to the country, in a tone no way tempered by partisanship, or + influenced by fear, favor, or the hope of reward; which shall seize and + grapple with the momentous subjects that the present disturbed state of + affairs heave to the surface, and which CAN NOT be laid aside or + neglected.</p> + <p>To meet this want, the undersigned have commenced, under the editorial + charge of CHARLES GODFREY LELAND, the publication of a new magazine, + devoted to Literature and National Policy.</p> + <p>In POLITICS, it will advocate, with all the for command, measures best + adapted to preserve the oneness and integrity of these United States. It + will never yield to the idea of any disruption of the Republic, peaceably + or otherwise; and it will discuss with honesty and impartiality what must + be done to save it. In this department, some of the most eminent statesmen + of the time will contribute regularly to its pages.</p> + <p>In LITERATURE, it will be sustained by the best writers and ablest + thinkers of this country.</p> + <p>Among its attractions will be presented, in an early number, a NEW + SERIAL of American Life, by RICHARD B. KIMBALL, ESQ., the very popular + author of "The Revelations of Wall Street," "St. Leger," &c. A series + of papers by HON. HORACE GREELEY, embodying the distinguished author's + observations on the growth and development of the Great West. A series of + articles by the author of "Through the Cotton States," containing the + result of an extended tour in the seaboard Slave States, just prior to the + breaking out of the war, and presenting a startling and truthful picture of + the real condition of that region. No pains will be spared to render the + literary attractions of the CONTINENTAL both brilliant and substantial. The + lyrical or descriptive talents of the most eminent <i>literati</i> have + been promised to its pages; and nothing will be admitted which will not be + distinguished by marked energy, originality, and solid strength. Avoiding + every influence or association partaking of clique or coterie, it will be + open to all contributions of real merit, even from writers differing + materially in their views; the only limitation required being that of + devotion to the Union, and the only standard of acceptance that of + intrinsic excellence.</p> + <p>The EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT will embrace, in addition to vigorous and + fearless comments on the events of the times, genial gossip with the reader + on all current topics, and also devote abundant space to those racy + specimens of American wit and humor, without which there can be no perfect + exposition of our national character. Among those who will contribute + regularly to this department may be mentioned the name of CHARLES F. BROWNE + ("Artemus Ward"), from whom we shall present in the MARCH number, the first + of an entirely new and original series of SKETCHES OF WESTERN LIFE.</p> + <p>The CONTINENTAL will be liberal and progressive, without yielding to + chimeras and hopes beyond the grasp of the age; and it will endeavor to + reflect the feelings and the interests of the American people, and to + illustrate both their serious and humorous peculiarities. In short, no + pains will be spared to make it the REPRESENTATIVE MAGAZINE of the + time.</p> + <p><b>TERMS</b>:—Three Dollars per year, in advance (postage paid by + the Publishers;) Two Copies for Five Dollars; Three Copies for Six Dollars, + (postage unpaid); Eleven copies for Twenty Dollars, (postage unpaid). + Single numbers can be procured of any News-dealer in the United States. The + KNICKERBOCKER MAGAZINE and the CONTINENTAL MONTHLY will be furnished for + one year at FOUR DOLLARS.</p> + <p>Appreciating the importance of literature to the soldier on duty, the + publisher will send the CONTINENTAL, <i>gratis</i>, to any regiment in + active service, on application being made by its Colonel or Chaplain; he + will also receive subscriptions from those desiring to furnish it to + soldiers in the ranks at half the regular price; but in such cases it must + be mailed from the office of publication.</p> + <p><b>J.R. GILMORE, 110 Tremont Street, Boston.</b></p> + <p>CHARLES T. EVANS, at G.P. PUTNAM'S, 532 Broadway, New York, is + authorized to receive Subscriptions in that City.</p> + <p>N.B.—Newspapers publishing this Prospectus, and giving the + CONTINENTAL monthly notices, will be entitled to an exchange.</p> + <hr class="full" /> + <div class="footnote"> + <a id="footnote1" name="footnote1"></a> <b>Footnote 1</b>: (<a + href="#footnotetag1">return</a>) + <p>'If the slaves be emancipated, what with their own natural ability and + such aids and appliances as the government and 20,000,000 of people in + the North can furnish, I do not believe but that they will get + employment, and pay, and, of course, subsistence.'—HON. GEORGE S. + BOUTWELL.</p> + </div> + <div class="footnote"> + <a id="footnote2" name="footnote2"></a> <b>Footnote 2</b>: (<a + href="#footnotetag2">return</a>) + <p>Guesses at Truth.</p> + </div> + <div class="footnote"> + <a id="footnote3" name="footnote3"></a> <b>Footnote 3</b>: (<a + href="#footnotetag3">return</a>) + <p>'Mes habitudes de dîner chez les restaurants,' says a Parisian + philosopher, 'ont été pour moi une source intarrissable de + surprises, de decouvertes, et de revelations sur l'humanité.'</p> + </div> + <div class="footnote"> + <a id="footnote4" name="footnote4"></a> <b>Footnote 4</b>: (<a + href="#footnotetag4">return</a>) + <p>The very description of her enthusiastic admirers suggests that such + were the original traits and the special character of Rachel. At first we + are told by the patron who earliest recognized her genius, 'a delirious + popularity surrounded the young <i>tragedienne</i>, and with her the + antique tragedy which she had revived.' How different from the original + relation of Kemble, Kean, or Siddons to the Shaksperian drama! Then the + manner in which she prepared herself for artistic triumph is equally + suggestive of the artificial and the conventional: 'Elle se drape,' we + are told, 'avec un art merveilleux; au theatre elle fait preuve + d'études intelligentes de la statuaire antique.' It was in the + external form rather than by sympathetic emotion that she wooed the + tragic muse. Véron compares her to Thiers. 'C'est la même + netteté de vues, la même ardeur, les mêmes ruses + vigéreuses, la même fecondité d'expedients, la + même tableau phllosophique que ne la comprend ni la vengeance ni + les haines, qui se contente de negocier avec les inimities, d'apaiser les + rancunes et de conquerir toutes les influences, toutes les amitiés + qui peuvent devenir utiles.'</p> + </div> + <div class="footnote"> + <a id="footnote5" name="footnote5"></a> <b>Footnote 5</b>: (<a + href="#footnotetag5">return</a>) + <p>Hon. Daniel S. Dickinson.</p> + </div> + <div class="footnote"> + <a id="footnote6" name="footnote6"></a> <b>Footnote 6</b>: (<a + href="#footnotetag6">return</a>) + <p>The 'North Counties' are the north-eastern portion of North Carolina, + and include the towns of Washington and Newberne. They are an old + turpentine region, and the trees are nearly exhausted. The finer virgin + forests of South Carolina, and other cotton States, have tempted many of + these farmers to emigrate thither, within the past ten years, and they + now own nearly all the trees that are worked in South Carolina, Georgia, + and Florida. They generally have few slaves of their own, their hands + being hired of wealthier men in their native districts. The 'hiring' is + an annual operation, and is done at Christmas time, when the negroes are + frequently allowed to go home. They treat the darkies well, give them an + allowance of meat (salt pork or beef), as much corn as they can eat, and + a gill of whisky daily. No class of men at the South are so industrious, + energetic, and enterprising. Though not so well informed, they have many + of the traits of our New England farmers; in fact, are frequently called + 'North Carolina Yankees.' It was these people the Overseer proposed to + hang. The reader will doubtless think that 'hanging was not good enough + for them.'</p> + </div> + <div class="footnote"> + <a id="footnote7" name="footnote7"></a> <b>Footnote 7</b>: (<a + href="#footnotetag7">return</a>) + <p>This is all of this interesting family tale that will appear in this + place. The remainder will be published in the <i>New York Humdrum</i>; + the week after next number of which was issued week before last. Get up + early and secure a copy.</p> + </div> + + <div>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 13634 ***</div> +</body> +</html> + + |