,,the ,,atlantic ,,monthly ,a ,,magazine ,,of ,,literature1 ,,art1 ,,and ,,politics4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,vol4 ,,ix4--,,may1 #ahfb4--,,no4 ,,lv4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,man ,,under ,,sealed ,,orders4 ,a vessel of war leaves its port1 but no one on board knows for what object1 nor whither it is bound4 ,it is a secret ,government expedition4 ,as it sets out1 a number of documents1 carefully sealed1 are put in charge of the commander1 in which all his instructions are contained4 ,when far away from his sovereign1 these are to be the authority which he must obey2 as he sails on in the dark1 these are to be the lights on the deep by which he must steer4 ,they provide for every stage of the way4 ,they direct what ports to approach and what ports to avoid1 what to do in different seas1 what variation to make in certain contingencies1 and what acts to perform at certain opportunities4 ,each paper of the series forbids the opening of the next until its own directions have been fulfilled2 so that no one can see beyond the immediate point for which he is making4 ,the wide ocean is before that ship1 and a wider mystery4 ,but in the passage of time1 as the strange cruise proceeds1 its course begins to tell upon the chart4 ,the zigzag line1 like obscure chirography1 has an intelligible look1 and seems to spell out intimations4 ,as order after order is opened1 those sibyl leaves of the cabin commence to prophesy1 glimpses multiply1 surmises come quick1 and shortly the whole ship's company more than suspect1 from the accumulating data behind them1 what must be their destination1 and the mission they have been sent to accomplish4 ,people are beginning to imagine that the career of the human race is something like this4 ,there is a fast-growing conviction that man has been sent out1 from the first1 to fulfil some inexplicable purpose1 and that he holds a ,divine commission to perform a wonderful work on the earth4 ,it would seem as if his marvellous brain were the bundle of mystic scrolls on which it is written1 and within which its terms are hid1--and as if his imperishable soul were the great seal1 bearing the ,divine image and superscription1 which attests its ,almighty original4 ,this commission is yet obscure4 ,it has so far only gradually opened to him1 for he is sailing under sealed orders4 ,he is still led on from point to point4 ,but the farther he goes1 and the more his past gathers behind him1 the better is he able to imagine what must be before him4 ,his chart is every day getting more full of amazing indications4 ,he is beginning to feel about him the increasing press of some ,providential design that has been permeating and moulding age after age1 and to discover that be has been all along unconsciously prosecuting a secret mission4 ,and so it comes at last that everything new takes that look2 every evolution of mind1 every addition to knowledge1 every discovery of truth1 every novel achievement appearing like the breaking of seals and opening of rolls1 in the performance of an inexhaustible and mysterious trust that has been committed to his hands4 ,it is the purpose of this paper to collect together some of these facts and incidents of progress1 in order to show that this is not a mere dream1 but a stupendous reality4 ,history shall be the inspiration of our prophecy4 ,there is a past to be recounted1 a present to be described1 and a future to be foretold4 ,an immense review for a magazine article1 and it will require some ingenuity to be brief and graphic at the same time4 ,in the attempt to get as much as possible into the smallest space1 many things will have to be omitted1 and some most profound particulars merely glanced at2 but enough will be furnished1 perhaps1 to make the point we have in view4 ,we may compare human progress to a tall tree which has reared itself1 slowly and imperceptibly1 through century after century1 hardly more than a bare trunk1 with here and there only the slight outshoot of some temporary exploit of genius1 but which in this age gives the signs of that immense foliage and fruitage which shall in time embower the whole earth4 ,we see but its spring-time of leaf1--for it is only within fifty years that this rich outburst of wonders began4 ,we live in an era when progress is so new as to be a matter of amazement4 ,a hundred years hence1 perhaps it will have become so much a matter of course to develop1 to expand1 and to discover1 that it will excite no comment4 ,but it is yet novel1 and we are yet fresh4 ,therefore we may gaze back at what has been1 and gaze forward at what is promised to be1 with more likelihood of being impressed than if we were a few centuries older4 ,if we look down at the roots out of which this tree has risen1 and then up at its spreading branches1--omitting its intermediate trunk of ages1 through which its processes have been secretly working1--perhaps we may realize in a briefer space the wonder of it all4 ,in the beginning of history1 according to received authority1 there was but a little tract of the earth occupied1 and that by one family1 speaking but one tongue1 and worshipping but one ,god1--all the rest of the world being an uninhabited wild4 ,at this stage of history the whole globe is explored1 covered with races of every color1 a host of nations and languages1 with every diversity of custom1 development of character1 and form of religion4 ,the physical bound from that to this is equalled only by the leap which the world of mind has made4 ,once upon a time a man hollowed a tree1 and1 launching it upon the water1 found that it would bear him up4 ,after this a few little floats1 creeping cautiously near the land1 were all on which men were wont to venture4 ,now there are sails fluttering on every sea1 prodigious steamers throbbing like leviathans against wind and wave2 harbors are built1 and rocks and shoals removed2 lighthouses gleam nightly from ten thousand stations on the shore2 the great deep itself is sounded by plummet and diving-bell2 the submarine world is disclosed2 and man is gathering into his hands the laws of the very winds that toss its surface4 ,once the earth had a single rude1 mud-built hamlet1 in which human dwellings were first clustered together4 ,now it is studded with splendid cities1 strewn thick with towns and villages1 diversified by infinite varieties of architecture3 sumptuous buildings1 unlike in every clime1 each as if sprung from its own soil and made out of its air4 ,once there were only the elementary discoveries of the lever1 the wedge1 the bended bow1 the wheel2 ,tubal worked in iron and copper1 and ,naamah twisted threads4 ,since then what a jump the mechanical arts have made6 ,these primitive elements are now so intricately combined that we can hardly recognize them2 new forces have been added1 new principles evolved2 ponderous engines1 like moving mountains of iron1 shake the very earth2 many-windowed factories1 filled with complex machinery driven by water or its vapor1 clatter night and day1 weaving the plain garments of the poor man and the rich robes of the prince1 the curtains of the cottage and the upholstery of the palace4 ,once there were but the spear and bow and shield1 and hand-to-hand conflicts of brute strength4 ,see now the whole enginery of war1 the art of fortification1 the terrific perfection of artillery1 the mathematical transfer of all from the body to the mind1 till the battlefield is but a chess-board1 and the battle is really waged in the brains of the generals4 ,how astonishing was that last ,european field of ,solferino1 ten miles in sweep1--with the balloon floating above it for its spy and scout1--with the thread-like wire trailing in the grass1 and the lightning coursing back and forth1 ,napoleon's ubiquitous aide-de-camp1--with railway-trains1 bringing reinforcements into the midst of the mele1 and their steam-whistle shrieking amid the thunders of battle6 ,and what a picture of even greater magnificence1 in some respects1 is before us to-day6 ,a field not of ten1 but ten thousand miles in sweep6 ,mc,clellan1 standing on the eminence of present scientific achievement1 is able to overlook half the breadth of a continent1 and the widely scattered detachments of a host of six hundred thousand men4 ,the rail connects city with city2 the wire hangs between camp and camp1 and reaches from army to army4 ,steam is hurling his legions from one point to another2 electricity brings him intelligence1 and carries his orders2 the aronaut in the sky is his field-glass searching the horizon4 ,it is practically but one great battle that is raging beneath him1 on the ,potomac1 in the mountains of ,virginia1 down the valley of the ,mississippi1 in the interiors of ,kentucky and ,tennessee1 along the seaboard1 and on the ,gulf coast4 ,the combatants are hidden from each other1 but under the chieftain's eye the dozen armies are only the squadrons of a single host1 their battles only the separate conflicts of a single field1 the movements of the whole campaign only the evolutions of a prolonged engagement4 ,the spectacle is a good illustration of the day4 ,under the magic of progress1 war in its essence and vitality is really diminishing1 even while increasing in materiel and grandeur4 ,neither time nor space will permit the old and tedious contests of history to be repeated4 ,military science has entered upon a new era1 nearer than ever to the period when wars shall cease4 ,but to go on with a few more contrasts of the past with the present4 ,once men wrote only in symbols1 like wedges and arrow-heads1 on tiles and bricks1 or in hieroglyphic pictures on obelisks and sepulchres1--afterward in crude1 but current characters on stone1 metal1 wax1 and papyrus4 ,in a much later age appeared the farthest perfection of the invention3 books engrossed on illuminated rolls of vellum1 and wound on cylinders of boxwood1 ivory1 or gold1--and then put away like richest treasures of art4 ,what a difference between perfection then and progress now6 ,to-day the steam printing-press throws out its sheets in clouds1 and fills the world with books4 ,vast libraries are the vaulted catacombs of modern times1 in which the dead past is laid away1 and the living present takes refuge4 ,the glory of costly scrolls is dimmed by the illustrated and typographical wonders which make the bookstore a gorgeous dream4 ,knowledge1 no longer rare1 no longer lies in precarious accumulations within the cells of some poor monk's crumbling brain1 but swells up like the ocean1 universal and imperishable1 pouring into the vacant recesses of all minds as the ocean pours into the hollows under its shore4 ,to-day1 newspapers multiplied by millions whiten the whole country every morning1 like the hoar-frost2 and books1 numerous and brilliant as the stars1 seem by a sort of astral influence to unseal the latent destinies of many an intellect1 as by their illumination they stimulate thought and activity everywhere4 ,once art seemed to have reached perfection in the pictures and sculptures of ,greece and ,rome4 ,yet now those master-pieces are not only equalled on canvas and in fresco1 but reproduced by tens of thousands from graven sheets of copper1 steel1 and even blocks of wood1--or1 if modelled in marble or bronze1 are remodelled by hundreds1 and set up in countless households as the household gods4 ,it is the glory of to-day that the sun himself has come down to be the rival and teacher of artists1 to work wonders and perform miracles in art4 ,he is the celestial limner who shall preserve the authentic faces of every generation from now until the world is no more4 ,he holds the mirror up to ,nature1 paralyzes the fleeting phantom1 by chemical subtilty1 on the burnished plate1--and there it is fixed forever4 ,he prepares the optical illusion of the stereoscope1 so that through tiny windows we may look as into fairy-land and find sections of this magnificent world modelled in miniature4 ,once men imagined the earth to be a flat and limited tract4 ,now they realize that it is a ponderous ball floating in infinite ether4 ,once they thought the sky was a solid blue concave1 studded with blazing points1 an empire of fate1 the gold-and-azure floor of the abode of gods and spirits4 ,now all that is dissolved away2 the wandering planets become at will broad disks1 like sisters of the moon2 and countless millions of stars are now mirrored in the same retina with which the ,magi saw the few thousands of the firmament that were visible from the plains of ,chaldea4 ,once men were aware of nothing in the earth beneath its hills and valleys and teeming soil4 ,now they walk consciously over the ruins of old worlds2 they can decipher the strange characters and read the strange history graven on these gigantic tablets4 ,the stony veil is rent1 and they can look inimitable periods back1 and see the curious animals which then moved up and down in the earth4 ,once a glass bubble was a wonder for magnifying power4 ,now the lenses of the microscope bring an inverted universe to light4 ,men can look into a drop and discover an ocean crowded with millions of living creatures1 monsters untypified in the visible world1 playing about as in a great deep4 ,once a ,roman emperor prized a mysterious jewel because it brought the gladiators contending in the arena closer to the imperial canopy4 ,now observatories1 with their revolving domes1 crown the heights at every centre of civilization1 and the mighty telescope1 poised on exquisite mechanism1 turns infinite space into a ,coliseum1 brings its invisible luminaries close to the astronomer's seat1 and reveals the harmonies and splendors of those distant works of ,god4 ,once the supposed elements were fire1 and water1 and earth1 and air2 once the amber was unique in its peculiar property1 and the loadstone in its singular power4 ,now chemistry holds in solution the elements and secrets of creation2 now electricity would seem to be the veil which hangs before the soul2 now the magnetic needle1 true to the loadstar1 trembles on the sea1 to make the mariner brave and the haven sure4 ,we have by no means exhausted the wonders that have accumulated upon man1 in being accumulated by man4 ,their enumeration would be almost endless4 ,but we leave all to mention one1 with which there is nothing of old time to compare4 ,it had no beginning then1--not even a germ4 ,it is the peculiar leap and development of the age in which we live4 ,many things have combined to bring it to pass4 ,a spirit that had been hid1 since the world began1 in a coffer of metal and acid1--the genie of the lightning1--shut down1 as by the seal of ,solomon in the ,arabian tale1 was let loose but the other day1 and commenced to do the bidding of man4 ,every one found that he could transport his thought to the ends of the earth in the twinkling of an eye4 ,that spirit1 with its electric wings1 soon flew from city to city1 and whithersoever the magnetic wire could be traced through the air1 till the nations of all ,europe stood as face to face1 and the ,states of this great ,union gazed one upon another4 ,it made a continent like a household1--a cluster of peoples like members of a family1--each within hearing of the other's voice4 ,but one achievement remained to be performed before the whole world could become one4 ,the ocean had hitherto hopelessly severed the globe into two hemispheres4 ,could man make it a single sphere8 ,could man1 like ,moses1 smite the waves with his electric rod1 and lead the legions of human thought across dry shod8 ,he could1--and he did4 ,we all remember it well4 ,a range of submarine mountains was discovered1 stretching from ,america to ,europe4 ,their top formed a plateau1 which1 lying within two miles of the surface1 offered an undulating shoal within human reach4 ,a fleet of steamers1 wary of storms1 one day cautiously assembled midway over it4 ,they caught the monster asleep1 safely uncoiled the wire1 and laid it from shore to shore4 ,the treacherous1 dreadful1 omnipotent ocean was conquered and bound6 ,how the heart of the two worlds leaped when the news came6 ,then1 more than at any time before1 were most of us startled into a conviction of how real progress was1--how tremendous1 and limitless1 apparently1 the power which ,god had put into man4 ,not that this1 in itself1 was greater than that which had preceded it1 but it was the climax of all4 ,the mechanical feat awoke more enthusiasm than even the scientific achievement which was its living soul1--not because it was more wonderful1 but because it dispelled our last doubt4 ,we all began to form a more definite idea of something great to come1 that was yet lying stored away in the brain1--laid there from the beginning4 ,like the ,magian on the heights of ,moab1 as he saw the tents of ,israel and the tabernacle of ,god in the distance1 we grew big with an involuntary vision1 and were surprised into prophecies4 ,it was wonderful to see the ,queen of ,england1 on one side of that chasm of three thousand miles1 wave a greeting to the ,president1 and the ,president wave back a greeting to the ,queen4 ,but it was glorious to see that chord quiver with the music and the truth of the angelic song3-- ,glory to ,god in the highest1 and on earth peace1 ,good-will toward men6 ,soon1 however1 came a check to the excitement4 ,for above a score of days was that mysterious highway kept open from ,valentia to ,trinity ,bay4 ,but then the spell was lost1 the waves flowed back1 old ocean rolled on as before1 and the crossing messages perished1 like the hosts of ,pharaoh in the sea4 ,that the miracle is ended is no indication that it cannot be repeated4 ,for the very reason that the now dead1 inarticulate wire1 like an infant1 lisped and stammered once1 it is certain that another will soon be born1 which will live to trumpet forth like the angel of civilization1 its minister of flaming fire6 ,no one should abate a jot from the high hope excited then4 ,no imagination should suffer a cloud on the picture it then painted4 ,governments and capitalists have not been idle1 and will not be discouraged4 ,already ,europe and ,africa are connected by an electric tunnel under the sea1 five hundred miles in length2 already ,malta and ,alexandria speak to each other through a tube lying under thirteen hundred miles of ,mediterranean waters2 already ,britain bound to ,holland and ,hanover and ,denmark by a triple cord of sympathy which all the tempests of the ,german ,ocean cannot sever4 ,and if we come nearer home1 we shall find a project matured which will carry a fiery cordon around the entire coast of our country1 linking fortress to fortress1 and providing that last1 desperate resource of unity1 an outer girdle and jointed chain of force1 to bind together and save a nation whose inner bonds of peace and love are broken4 ,such energy and such success are enough to revive the expectation and to guaranty the coming of the day when we shall behold the electric light playing round the world unquenched by the seas1 illuminating the land1 revealing nation to nation1 and mingling language with language1 as if the cloven tongues like as of fire had appeared again1 and sat upon each of them4 ,it will be a strange period1 and yet we shall see it4 ,the word spoken here under the sun of mid-day1 when it speaks at the antipodes1 will be heard under the stars of midnight4 ,of the world of commerce it may be written1 ,there shall be no night there6 and of the ancient clock of the sun and stars1 ,there shall be time no longer6 ,when the electric wire shall stretch from ,pekin1 by successive ,india stations1 to ,london1 and from ,india1 by leaps from island to island1 to ,australia1 and from ,new ,york westward to ,san ,francisco1 7as has been already accomplished17 and southward to ,cape ,horn1 and across the ,atlantic1 or over the ,strait to ,st4 ,petersburg1--when the endless circle is formed1 and the magic net-work binds continent1 and city1 and village1 and the isles of the sea1 in one1--then who will know the world we live in1 for the change that shall come upon it8 ,time no more6 ,space no more6 ,mankind brought into one vast neighborhood6 ,prophesy the greater union of all hearts in this interblending of all minds4 ,prophesy the boundless spread of civilization1 when all barriers are swept away4 ,prophesy the catholicity of that religion in which as many phases of a common faith shall be endured as there are climes for the common human constitution and countries in a common world6 ,in those days men will carry a watch1 not with a single face1 as now1 telling only the time of their own region1 but a dial-plate subdivided into the disks of a dozen timepieces1 announcing at a glance the hour of as many meridian stations on the globe4 ,it will be the fair type of the man who wears it4 ,when human skill shall find itself under this necessity1 and mechanism shall reach this perfection1 then the soul of that man will become also many-disked4 ,he will be alive with the perpetual consciousness of many zeniths and horizons beside his own1 of many nations far different from his own1 of many customs1 manners1 and ideas1 which he could not share1 but is able to account for and respect4 ,we can peer as far as this into the future2 for what we predict is only a reasonable deduction from certain given circumstances that are nearly around us now4 ,we do not lay all the stress upon the telegraph1 as if to attribute everything to it1 but because that invention1 and its recent crowning event1 are the last great leap which the mind has made1 and because in itself1 and in its carrying out1 it summoned all the previous discoveries and achievements of man to its aid4 ,it is their last-born child1--the greater for its many parents4 ,there is hardly a science1 or an art1 or an invention1 which has not contributed to it1 or which is not deriving sustenance or inspiration from it4 ,this latter fact makes it particularly suggestive4 ,as it was begotten itself1 and is in its turn begetting1 so has it been with everything else in the world of progress4 ,every scientific or mechanical idea1 every species of discovery1 has been as naturally born of one or more antecedents of its own kind as men are born of men4 ,there is a kith and kin among all these extraordinary creatures of the brain4 ,they have their ancestors and descendants2 not one is a ,melchizedek1 without father1 without mother4 ,every one is a link in a regular order of generations4 ,some became extinct with their age1 being superseded or no longer wanted2 while others had the power of immense propagation1 and produced an innumerable offspring1 which have a family likeness to this day4 ,the law of cause and effect has no better illustration than the history of inventions and discoveries4 ,if there were among us an intellect sufficiently encyclopedic in knowledge and versatile in genius1 it could take every one of these facts and trace its intricate lineage of principles and mechanisms1 step by step1 up to the original ,adam of the first invention and the original ,eve of the first necessity4 ,there is a period between us and these first parents of our present progress that is strangely obscure4 ,it is a sort of antediluvian age1 in which there were evidently stupendous mechanical powers of some kind1 and an extensive acquaintance with some things4 ,the ruins of ,egypt alone would prove this4 ,but a deluge of oblivion has washed over them1 and left these colossal bones to tell what story they can4 ,the only way to account for such an extinction is1 that they were monstrous contrivances out of all proportion to their age1 spasmodic successes in science1 wonders born out of due time1--deriving no sustenance or support from a wide and various kindred1 and therefore1 like the giants which were of old1 dying out with their day4 ,it is different with what has taken place since4 ,every work has come in its right time1 just when best prepared for1 and most required4 ,there is not one but is sustained on every side1 and fits into its place1 as each new piece of colored stone in a mosaic is sustained by the progressive picture4 ,every one is conserved by its connections4 ,whatever has been done is sure1--and the past being secure1 the future is guarantied4 ,it is impossible that the present knowledge in the world should be extinguished4 ,nothing but a stroke of imbecility upon the race1 nothing but the destruction of its libraries1 nothing but the paralysis of the printing-press1 and the annihilation of these means of intercommunication1--nothing but some such arbitrary intervention could accomplish it4 ,the facts already in human possession1 and the constitution of the mind1 together insure what we have as imperishable1 and what we are to obtain as illimitable4 ,we come now to another suggestive characteristic of the time1--another of its promises4 ,so far we find ,progress gathering fulness and strength1--making sure of itself4 ,it has also been gathering impetus4 ,it has been1 all along1 accumulating momentum1 and now it sweeps on with breathless rapidity4 ,the reason is1 that1 the farther it has gone1 the more it has multiplied its agents4 ,the present generation is not only carried forward1 but is excited in every quarter4 ,the activity and versatility of the intellect would appear to be inexhaustible4 ,instead of getting overstrained1 or becoming lethargic1 it never was so powerful1 never had so many resources1 never was so wide-awake4 ,men are busy turning over every stone in their way1 in the hope of finding something new4 ,nothing would seem too small for human attention1 nothing too great for human undertaking4 ,the government ,patent-,office1 with its countless chambers1 is not so large a museum of inventions as the capacious brain of to-day4 ,one man is engrossed over an apple-parer2 another snatches the needle from the weary fingers of the seamstress1 and offers her in return the sewing-machine4 ,that man yonder has turned himself into an armory1 and he brings out the deadliest instrument he can produce1 something perhaps that can shoot you at sight1 even though you be a speck in the horizon4 ,his next-door neighbor is an iron workshop1 and is forging an armor of proof for a vessel of war1 from which the mightiest balls shall bound as lightly as the arrows from an old-time breastplate4 ,there is another searching for that new motive power which shall keep pace with the telegraph1 and hurl the bodies of men through space as fast as their thoughts are hurled2 there is another seeking that electro-magnetic battery which shall speak instantly and distinctly to the ends of the earth4 ,the mind of that astronomer is a telescope1 through whose increasing field new worlds float daily by2 the mind of that geologist is a divining-rod1 forever bending toward the waters of chaos1 and pointing out new places where a shaft can be sunk into periods of almost infinite antiquity2 the mind of that chemist is a subtile crucible1 in which aboriginal secrets lie disclosed1 and within whose depths the true philosopher's stone will be found2 the mind of that mathematician is a maze of ethereal stair-ways1 rising higher and higher toward the heaven of truth4 ,the ambition is everywhere1--in every breast2 the power is everywhere1--in every brain4 ,the giant and the pigmy are alike active in seeking out and finding out many inventions4 ,and in this very universality of effort and result we discover another guaranty of the great future4 ,the river of ,progress multiplies its tributaries the farther it flows1 and even now1 unknown ages from its mouth1 we already see that magnificent widening of its channel1 in which1 like the ,amazon1 it long anticipates the sea4 ,man1 the great achiever6 the marvellous magician6 ,look at him6 ,a head hardly six feet above the ground out of which he was taken4 ,his dome of thought and palace of the soul scarce twenty-two inches in circumference2 and within it1 a little1 gray1 oval mass of convoluted albumen and fibre1 of some four pounds' weight1 and there sits the intelligence which has worked all these wonders6 ,an intelligence1 say1 six thousand years old next century4 ,how many thousand years more will it think1 and think1 and wave the wand1 and raise new spirits out of ,nature1 open her sealed-up mysteries1 scale the stars1 and uncover a universe at home8 ,how long will it be before this inherent power1 laid in it at the beginning by the ,almighty1 shall be exhausted1 and reach its limit8 ,yes1 how long8 ,we cannot begin to know4 ,we cannot imagine where the stopping-place could be4 ,perhaps there is none4 ,to take up the nautical figure which has furnished our title1--we are in the midst of an infinite sea1 sailing on to a destination we know not of1 but of which the vague and splendid fancies we have formed hang before our prow like illusions in the sky4 ,we are meeting on every hand great opportunities which must not be lost1 new achievements which must be wrought1 and strange adventures which must be undertaken3 every day wondering more to what our commission shall bring us at last1 full of magnificent hopes and a growing faith1--the inscrutable bundle of orders not nearly exhausted3 whole continents of knowledge yet to be discovered and explored2 the gates of yet distant sciences to be sought and unlocked2 the fortresses of yet undreamed necessities to be taken2 ,arcadias of beauty to be visited and their treasures garnered by the imagination2 an intricate course to be followed amid all future nations and governments1 and their winding histories1 as if threading the devious channels of endless archipelagoes2 the spoils of all ages to be gathered1 and treaties of commerce with all generations to be made1 before the mysterious voyage is done4 ,and now1 before we leave this fascinating theme1 or suffer another dream1 let us stop where we are1 in order to see where we are4 ,let us take our bearings4 ,what says our chart8 ,what do we find in the horizon of the present1 which may give us the wherewithal to hope1 to doubt1 or to fear8 ,the era in which we live presents some remarkable characteristics1 which have been brought into it by this immense material success4 ,it is preeminently an age of reality3 an age in which a host of unrealities--queer and strange old notions--have been destroyed forever4 ,never were the vaulted spaces in this grand old temple of a world swept so clean of cobwebs before4 ,the mind has not gone forth working outside wonders1 without effecting equal inside changes4 ,in achieving abroad1 it has been ennobling at home4 ,at no time was it so free from superstition as now1 and from the absurdities which have for centuries beset and filled it4 ,what numberless delusions1 what ghosts1 what mysteries1 what fables1 what curious ideas1 have disappeared before the besom of the day6 ,the old author long ago foretasted this1 who wrote1--,the divine arts of printing and gunpowder have frightened away ,robin ,goodfellow1 and all the fairies4 ,it is told of ,kepler1 that he believed the planets were borne through the skies in the arms of angels2 but science shortly took a wider sweep1 killed off the angels1 and showed that the wandering luminaries had been accustomed from infancy to take care of themselves4 ,and so has the firmament of all knowledge been cleared of its vapors and fictions1 and been revealed in its solid and shining facts4 ,here1 then1 lies the great distinction of the time3 the accumulation of ,truth1 and the growing appetite for the true and the real4 ,the year whirls round like the toothed cylinder in a threshing-machine1 blowing out the chaff in clouds1 but quietly dropping the rich kernels within our reach4 ,and it will always be so4 ,men will sow their notions and reap harvests1 but the inexorable age will winnow out the truth1 and scatter to the winds whatsoever is error4 ,now we see how that impalpable something has been produced which we call the ,spirit of the ,age1--that peculiar atmosphere in which we live1 which fills the lungs of the human spirit1 and gives vitality and character to all that men at present think and say and feel and do4 ,it is this identical spirit of courageous inquiry1 honest reality1 and intense activity1 wrought up into a kind of universal inspiration1 moving with the same disposition1 the same taste1 the same thought1 persons whole regions apart and unknown to each other4 ,we are frequently surprised by coincidences which prove this novel1 yet common afflatus4 ,two astronomers1 with the ocean between them1 calculate at the same moment1 in the same direction1 and simultaneously light upon the same new orb4 ,two inventors1 falling in with the same necessity1 think of the same contrivance1 and meet for the first time in a newspaper war1 or a duel of pamphlets1 for the credit of its authorship4 ,a dozen widely scattered philosophers as quickly hit upon the self-same idea as if they were in council together4 ,a more rational development of some old doctrine in divinity springs up in a hundred places at once1 as if a theological epidemic were abroad1 or a synod of all the churches were in session4 ,it has also another peculiarity4 ,the thought which may occur at first to but one mind seems to have an affinity to all minds2 and if it be a free and generous thought1 it is instantly caught1 intuitively comprehended1 and received with acclamations all over the world4 ,such a spirit as this is rapidly bringing all sections and classes of mankind into sympathy with one another1 and producing a supreme caste in human nature1 which1 as it increases in numbers1 will mould the character and control the destinies of the race4 ,so far we speak of the upper air of the day4 ,but there is no denying the prevalence of a lower and baser spirit4 ,we are uncomfortably aware that there is another extreme to the freaks of the imagination4 ,there are superstitions of the reason and of realism1--the grotesque fancies1 mysticisms1 and vagaries which prevail1 and the diseased gusto for something ultra and outlandish which affects many raw and undisciplined minds4 ,yet even these are1 in their way1 indications of the pervading disposition1--the unhealthy exhalations to be expected from hitherto stagnant regions1 stirred up by the active and regenerating thought of the time4 ,there is promise even in them1 and they serve to distinguish the more that purer and higher spirit of honesty and reality1 which clarifies the intellect1 and invigorates the faculties that apprehend and grasp the noble and the true4 ,we glory in this triumph of the reason over the imagination1 and in this predominance of the real over the ideal4 ,we prefer that common sense should lead the van1 and that mere fancy1 like the tinselled conjurer behind his hollow table and hollow apparatus1 should be taken for what it is1 and that its tricks and surprises should cease to bamboozle1 however much they may amuse mankind4 ,nothing1 in the course of ,providence1 conveys so much encouragement as this recent and growing development of reality in thought and pursuit4 ,in its presence the future of the world looks substantial and sure4 ,we dream of an immense change in the tone of the human spirit1 and in the character of the civilization which shall in time embower the earth4 ,but1 as it has always been1 the greater the good1 the nearer the evil2 ,satan is next-door neighbor to the saint2 ,eden had a lurking-hole for the serpent4 ,just here the voyaging is most dangerous2 just here we drop the plummet and strike upon a shoal2 we lift up our eyes1 and discover a lee-shore4 ,the mind that is not profound enough to perceive and believe even what it cannot comprehend1--that is the shoal4 ,unless the reason will permit the sounding-lead to fall illimitably down into a submarine world of mystery1 too deep for the diver1 and yet a true and living world1--unless there is admitted to be a fathomless gulf1 called faith1 underlying the surface-sea of demonstration1 the race will surely ground in time1 and go to pieces4 ,there is the peril of this all-prevailing love of the real4 ,it may become such an infatuation that nothing will appear actual which is not visible or demonstrable1 which the hand cannot handle or the intellect weigh and measure4 ,even to this extreme may the reason run4 ,its vulnerable point is pride4 ,it is easily encouraged by success1 easily incited to conceit1 readily inclined to overestimate its power4 ,it has a ,chinese weakness for throwing up a wall on its involuntary boundary-line1 and for despising and defying all that is beyond its jurisdiction4 ,the reason may be the greatest or the meanest faculty in the soul4 ,it may be the most wise or the most foolish of active things4 ,it may be so profound as to acknowledge a whole infinitude of truth which it cannot comprehend1 or it may be so superficial as to suspect everything it is asked to believe1 and refuse to trust a fact out of its sight4 ,there is the danger of the day4 ,there is the lee-shore upon which the tendencies of the age are blowing our bark3 a gross and destructive materialism1 which is the horrid and treacherous development of a shallow realism4 ,in the midst of this splendid era there is a fast-increasing class who are disposed to make the earth the absolute ,all1--to deny any outlet from it1--to deny any capacity in man for another sphere1--to deny any attribute in ,god which interests ,him in man1--to shut out1 therefore1 all faith1 all that is mysterious1 all that is spiritual1 all that is immortal1 all that is ,divine4 ,there live1 alas6 of heaven-directed mien1 ,of cultured soul1 and sapient eye serene1 ,who hail thee ,man6--the pilgrim of a day1 ,spouse of the worm1 and brother of the clay1 ,frail as the leaf in autumn's yellow bower1 ,dust in the wind1 or dew upon the flower1 ,a friendless slave1 a child without a sire4 99 99 99 99 99 ,are these the pompous tidings ye proclaim1 ,lights of the world1 and demigods of ,fame8 ,is this your triumph1 this your proud applause1 ,children of ,truth1 and champions of her cause8 ,for this hath ,science searched on weary wing1 ,by shore and sea1 each mute and living thing8 ,launched with ,iberia's pilot from the steep1 ,to worlds unknown1 and isles beyond the deep8 ,or round the cope her living chariot driven1 ,and wheeled in triumph through the signs of heaven8 ,o star-eyed ,science1 hast thou wandered there1 ,to waft us home the message of despair8 ,is shipwreck1 after all1 to be the end of the mysterious voyage8 ,yes1 unless there is something else beside materialism in the world4 ,unless there is another spirit blowing off that dreadful shore1 unless the chart opens a farther sea1 unless the needle points to the same distant star1 unless there are other orders1 yet sealed and secret1 there is no further destiny for the race1 no further development for the soul4 ,the intellect1 however grand1 is not the whole of man4 ,material progress1 however magnificent1 is not the guaranty1 not even the cardinal element1 of civilization4 ,and civilization1 in the highest possible meaning of that most expressive word1 is that great and final and all-embosoming harbor toward which all these achievements and changes dimly1 but directly1 point4 ,upon that we have fixed our eyes1 but we cannot imagine how it can be attained by intellectual and material force alone4 ,in order to indicate this more vividly1 let us suppose that there is no other condition necessary to the glory of human nature and the world1--let us suppose that no other provision has been made1 and that the age is to go on developing only in this one direction1--what a dreary grandeur would soon surround us6 ,as icebergs floating in an ,arctic sea are splendid1 so would be these ponderous and glistering works4 ,as the gilded and crimsoned cliffs of snow beautify the ,polar day1 so would these achievements beautify the present day4 ,but expect no life1 no joy1 no soul1 amid such ice-bound circumstances as these4 ,the tropical heart must congeal and die2 its luxuriant fruits can never spring up4 ,the earth must lie sepulchred under its own magnificence2 and the divinest feelings of the spirit1 floating upward in the instinct of a higher life1 but benumbed by the frigid air1 and rebuked by the leaden sky1 must fall back like clouds of frozen vapor upon the soul3 and so shall its thoughts perish4 ,it would be a gloomy picture to paint1 if one could for a moment imagine that intellectual power and material success were all that enter into the development of the race4 ,for if there is no other capacity1 and no other field in which at least an equal commission to achieve is given1 and for which equal arrangements have been made by the ,providence that orders all1 then the soul must soon be smothered1 society dismembered1 and human nature ruined4 ,but this very fact1 which we purposely put in these strong colors1 proves that there must be another and greater element1 another and higher faculty1 another and wider department1 likewise under express and secret conditions of success4 ,it shall come to pass1 as the development goes on1 that this other will become the foremost and all-important1 --the relation between them will be reversed1--this must increase1 that decrease1--the ,material1 although the first in time1 the first in the world's interest1 and the first in the world's effort1 will be found to be only an ordained forerunner1 preparing the way for ,something ,else1 the latchet of whose shoes it is not worthy to unloose4 ,there is that in man--also wrapt up and sealed within his inscrutable brain--which provides for his inner as well as outer life2 which insures his highest development2 which shall protect1 cherish1 warm1 and fertilize his nature now1 and perpetuate and exalt his soul forever4 ,it is a commission which begins1 but does not end1 in time4 ,it is a commission which makes him the agent and builder of an immense moral work on the earth4 ,under its instructions he shall add improvement to improvement in that social fabric which is already his shelter and habitation4 ,he has found it of brick1--he shall leave it of marble4 ,he shall seek out every contrivance1 and perfect every plan1 and exhaust every scheme1 which will bring a greater prosperity and a nobler happiness to mankind4 ,he shall quarry out each human spirit1 and carve it into the beauty and symmetry of a living stone that shall be worthy to take its place in the rising structure4 ,this is the work which is given him to do4 ,he must develop those conditions of virtue1 and peace1 and faith1 and truth1 and love1 by which the race shall be lifted nearer its ,creator1 and the individual ascend into a more conscious neighborhood and stronger affinity to the world which shall receive him at last4 ,all this must that other department be1 and this other capacity achieve or there is a fatal disproportion in the progress of man4 ,the beauty of this as a dream perhaps all men will admit2 but they question its possibility4 ,it is the old ,utopia1 they say1 the impracticable enterprise that has always baffled the world4 ,some will doubt whether the ,spiritual has an existence at all4 ,others will doubt1 if it does exist1 whether man can accomplish anything in it4 ,it is invisible1 impalpable1 unknown4 ,it cannot be substantial1 it cannot be real1--at least to man as at present constituted4 ,its elements and conditions cannot be controlled by his spirit4 ,that spirit cannot control itself1--how much less go forth and work solid wonders in that phantom realm6 ,there can be no success in this that will be coequal with the other2 nor a coequal grandeur4 ,there is no such thing as keeping pace with it4 ,the heart cannot grow better1 society cannot be built higher1 mankind cannot become happier1 ,god will not draw nearer1 the hidden truth of all that universe will never be more ascertained than it is1--can never be accumulated and stored away among other human acquisitions4 ,it is utterly1 gloomily impracticable4 ,in this respect we shall forever remain as we are1 and where we are4 ,so they think4 ,and now we venture to contradict it all1 and to assert that there is1 there must be1 just such a corresponding field1 and just such a corresponding progress1 or else 7we say it reverently7 ,god's ways are not equal4 ,so great is our faith4 ,like ,columbus1 therefore1 we dream of the golden ,indies1 and of that unknown residue which must yet be found1 and be taken possession of by mankind4 ,we look far out to where the horizon dips its vapory veil into the sea1 and beyond which lies that other hemisphere1 and ask1--,is there no world there to be a counterpoise to the world that is here8 ,has the ,creator made no provision for the equilibrium of the soul8 ,is all that infinite area a shoreless waste1 over which the fleets of speculation may sail forever1 and discover nothing8 ,or is there not1 rather1 a broad and solid continent of spiritual truth1 eternally rooted in that ocean1--prepared1 from the beginning1 for the occupation of man1 when the fulness of time shall have come1--ordained to take its place in the historic evolution of the race1 and to give the last and definite shape to its wondrous destinies8 ,is there1 or is there not1 another region of truth1 of enterprise1 of progress1--to finish1 to balance1 to consummate the world8 ,such is the ,problem4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,my ,,garden4 ,i can speak of it calmly now2 but there have been moments when the lightest mention of those words would sway my soul to its profoundest depths4 ,i am a woman4 ,i nip this fact in the bud of my narrative1 because ,i like to do as ,i would be done by1 when ,i can just as well as not4 ,it rasps a person of my temperament exceedingly to be deceived4 ,when any one tells a story1 we wish to know at the outset whether the story-teller is a man or a woman4 ,the two sexes awaken two entirely distinct sets of feelings1 and you would no more use the one for the other than you would put on your tiny teacups at breakfast1 or lay the carving-knife by the butter-plate4 ,consequently it is very exasperating to sit1 open-eyed and expectant1 watching the removal of the successive swathings which hide from you the dusky glories of an old-time princess1 and1 when the unrolling is over1 to find it is nothing1 after all1 but a great lubberly boy4 ,equally trying is it to feel your interest clustering round a narrator's manhood1 all your individuality merging in his1 till1 of a sudden1 by the merest chance1 you catch the swell of crinoline1 and there you are4 ,away with such clumsiness6 ,let us have everybody christened before we begin4 ,i do1 therefore1 with ,spartan firmness depose and say that ,i am a woman4 ,i am aware that ,i place myself at signal disadvantage by the avowal4 ,i fly in the face of hereditary prejudice4 ,i am thrust at once beyond the pale of masculine sympathy4 ,men will neither credit my success nor lament my failure1 because they will consider me poaching on their manor4 ,if ,i chronicle a big beet1 they will bring forward one twice as large4 ,if ,i mourn a deceased squash1 they will mutter1 ,woman's farming6 ,shunning ,scylla1 ,i shall perforce fall into ,charybdis4 7,vide ,classical ,dictionary4 ,i have lent mine1 but ,i know one was a rock and the other a whirlpool1 though ,i cannot state1 with any definiteness1 which was which47 ,i may be as humble and deprecating as ,i choose1 but it will not avail me4 ,a very agony of self-abasement will be no armor against the poisoned shafts which assumed superiority will hurl against me4 ,yet ,i press the arrow to my bleeding heart1 and calmly reiterate1 ,i am a woman4 ,the full magnanimity of which reiteration can be perceived only when ,i inform you that ,i could easily deceive you1 if ,i chose4 ,there is about my serious style a vigor of thought1 a comprehensiveness of view1 a closeness of logic1 and a terseness of diction commonly supposed to pertain only to the stronger sex4 ,not wanting in a certain fanciful sprightliness which is the peculiar grace of woman1 it possesses also1 in large measure1 that concentrativeness which is deemed the peculiar strength of man4 ,where an ordinary woman will leave the beaten track1 wandering in a thousand little by ways of her own1--flowery and beautiful1 it is true1 and leading her airy feet to sunny spots of greenery and the gleam of golden apples1 but keeping her not less surely from the goal1--,i march straight on1 turning neither to the right hand nor to the left1 beguiled into no side-issues1 discussing no collateral question1 but with keen eye and strong hand aiming right at the heart of my theme4 ,judge thus of the stern severity of my virtue4 ,there is no heroism in denying ourselves the pleasures which we cannot compass4 ,it is not self-sacrifice1 but self-cherishing1 that turns the dyspeptic alderman away from turtle-soup and the pt de foie gras to mush and milk4 ,the hungry newsboy1 regaling his nostrils with the scents that come up from a subterranean kitchen1 does not always know whether or not he is honest1 till the cook turns away for a moment1 and a steaming joint is within reach of his yearning fingers4 ,it is no credit to a weak-minded woman not to be strong-minded and write poetry4 ,she couldn't1 if she tried2 but to feed on locusts and wild honey that the soul may be in better condition to fight the truth's battles1--to go with empty stomach for a clear conscience's sake1--to sacrifice intellectual tastes to womanly duties1 when the two conflict1-- ,that's the true pathos and sublime1 ,of human life4 ,you will1 therefore1 no longer withhold your appreciative admiration1 when1 in full possession of what theologians call the power of contrary choice1 ,i make the unmistakable assertion that ,i am a woman4 ,of the circumstances that led me to inchoate a garden it is not necessary now to speak4 ,enough that the first and most important step had been taken1 the land was bought1--a few acres1 with a smart little house peeking up1 a crazy little barn tumbling down1 and a dozen or so fruit-trees that might do either as opportunity offered1 and ,i set out on my triumphal march from the city of my birth to the estate of my adoption4 ,triumphal indeed6 ,my pathway was strewed with roses4 ,feathery asparagus and the crispness of tender lettuce waved dewy greetings from every railroad-side2 green peas crested the racing waves of ,long ,island ,sound1 and unnumbered carrots of gold sprang up in the wake of the ploughing steamer2 till ,i was wellnigh drunk with the new wine of my own purple vintage4 ,but ,i was not ungenerous4 ,in the height of my innocent exultation1 ,i remembered the dwellers in cities who do all their gardening at stalls1 and in my heart ,i determined1 when the season should be fully blown1 to invite as many as my house could hold to share with me the delight of plucking strawberries from their stems and drinking in foaming health from the balmy-breathed cows4 ,moreover1 in the exuberance of my joy1 ,i determined to go still farther1 and despatch to those doomed ones who cannot purchase even a furlough from burning pavements baskets of fragrance and sweetness4 ,i pleased myself with pretty conceits4 ,to one who toils early and late in an official ,sahara1 that the home atmosphere may always be redolent of perfume1 ,i would send a bunch of long-stemmed white and crimson rose-buds1 in the midst of which he should find a dainty note whispering1 ,dear ,fritz3 ,drink this pure glass of my overflowing ,june to the health of weans and wife1 not forgetting your unforgetful friend4 ,to a pale-browed1 sad-eyed woman1 who flits from velvet carpets and broidered flounces to the bedside of an invalid mother1 whom her slender fingers and unslender and most godlike devotion can scarcely keep this side the pearly gates1 ,i would heap a basket of summer-hued peaches smiling up from cool1 green leaves into their straitened home1 and1 with eyes1 perchance1 tear-dimmed1 she should read1 ,my good ,maria3 ,the peaches are to go to your lips1 the bloom to your cheeks1 and the gardener to your heart4 ,ah me6 ,how much grace and gladness may bud and blossom in one little garden6 ,only three acres of land1 but what a crop of sunny surprises1 unexpected tendernesses1 grateful joys1 hopes1 loves1 and restful memories6--what wells of happiness1 what sparkles of mirth1 what sweeps of summer in the heart1 what glimpses of the ,upper ,country6 ,halicarnassus was there before me 7in the garden1 ,i mean1 not in the spot last alluded to74 ,it has been the one misfortune of my life that ,halicarnassus got the start of me at the outset4 ,with a fair field and no favor ,i should have been quite adequate to him4 ,as it was1 he was born and began1 and there was no resource left to me but to be born and follow1 which ,i did as fast as possible2 but that one false move could never be redeemed4 ,i know there are shallow thinkers who love to prate of the supremacy of mind over matter1--who assert that circumstances are plastic as clay in the hands of the man who knows how to mould them4 ,they clench their fists1 and inflate their lungs1 and quote ,napoleon's proud boast1--,circumstances6 ,i make circumstances6 ,vain babblers6 ,whither did this ,napoleonic ,idea lead8 ,to a barren rock in a waste of waters4 ,do we need ,st4 ,helena and ,sir ,hudson ,lowe to refute it8 ,control circumstances6 ,i should like to know if the most important circumstance that can happen to a man isn't to be born8 and if that is under his control1 or in any way affected by his whims and wishes8 ,would not ,louis ,,xvi4 have been the son of a goldsmith1 if he could have had his way8 ,would ,burns have been born a slaving1 starving peasant1 if he had been consulted beforehand8 ,would not the children of vice be the children of virtue1 if they could have had their choice8 and would not the whole tenor of their lives have been changed thereby8 ,would a good many of us have been born at all1 if we could have helped it8 ,control circumstances1 forsooth6 when a mother's sudden terror brings an idiot child into the world1--when the restive eye of his great-grandfather1 whom he never saw1 looks at you from your two-year-old1 and the spirit of that roving ancestor makes the boy also a fugitive and a vagabond on the earth6 ,no1 no4 ,we may coax circumstances a little1 and shove them about1 and make the best of them1 but there they are4 ,we may try to get out of their way2 but they will trip us up1 not once1 but many times4 ,we may affect to tread them under foot in the daylight1 but in the night-time they will turn again and rend us4 ,all we can do is first to accept them as facts1 and then reason from them as premises4 ,we cannot control them1 but we can control our own use of them4 ,we can make them a savor of life unto life1 or of death unto death4 ,application4--,if mind could have been supreme over matter1 ,halicarnassus should1 in the first place1 have taken the world at second-hand from me1 and1 in the second place1 he should not have stood smiling on the front-door steps when the coach set me down there4 ,as it was1 ,i made the best of the one case by following in his footsteps1--not meekly1 not acquiescently1 but protesting1 yet following1--and of the other1 by smiling responsive and asking pleasantly1-- ,are the things planted yet8 ,no1 said ,halicarnassus4 ,this was better than ,i had dared to hope4 ,when ,i saw him standing there so complacent and serene1 ,i felt certain that a storm was brewing1 or rather had brewed1 and burst over my garden1 and blighted its fair prospects4 ,i was confident that he had gone and planted every square inch of the soil with some hideous absurdity which would spring up a hundred-fold in perpetual reminders of the one misfortune to which ,i have alluded4 ,so his ready answer gave me relief1 and yet ,i could not divest myself of a vague fear1 a sense of coming thunder4 ,in spite of my endeavors1 that calm1 clear face would lift itself to my view as a mere weather-breeder2 but ,i ate my supper1 unpacked my trunks1 took out my papers of precious seeds1 and sitting in the flooding sunlight under the little western porch1 ,i poured them into my lap1 and bade ,halicarnassus come to me4 ,he came1 ,i am sorry to say1 with a pipe in his mouth4 ,do you wish to see my jewels8 ,i asked1 looking as much like ,cornelia as a little woman1 somewhat inclined to dumpiness1 can4 ,halicarnassus nodded assent4 ,there1 said ,i1 unrolling a paper1 that is ,lychnidea acuminala4 ,sometimes it flowers in white masses1 pure as a baby's soul4 ,sometimes it glows in purple1 pink1 and crimson1 intense1 but unconsuming1 like ,horeb's burning bush4 ,the old ,greeks knew it well1 and they baptized its prismatic loveliness with their sunny symbolism1 and called it the ,flame-,flower4 ,these very seeds may have sprung centuries ago from the hearts of heroes who sleep at ,marathon2 and when their tender petals quiver in the sunlight of my garden1 ,i shall see the gleam of ,attic armor and the flash of royal souls4 ,like heroes1 too1 it is both beautiful and bold4 ,it does not demand careful cultivation1--no hot-house1 tenderness-- ,i should rather think not1 interrupted ,halicarnassus4 ,pat ,curran has his front-yard full of it4 ,i collapsed at once1 and asked humbly1-- ,where did he get it8 ,got it anywhere4 ,it grows wild almost4 ,it's nothing but phlox4 ,my opinion is1 that the old ,greeks knew no more about it than that brindled cow4 ,nothing further occurring to me to be said on the subject1 ,i waived it and took up another parcel1 on which ,i spelled out1 with some difficulty1 ,delphinium exaltatum4 ,its name indicates its nature4 ,it's an exalted dolphin1 then1 ,i suppose1 said ,halicarnassus4 ,yes6 ,i said1 dexterously catching up an argumentum ad hominem1 ,it is an exalted dolphin1--an apotheosized dolphin1--a dolphin made glorious4 ,for1 as the dolphin catches the sunbeams and sends them back with a thousand added splendors1 so this flower opens its quivering bosom and gathers from the vast laboratory of the sky the purple of a monarch's robe and the ocean's deep1 calm blue4 ,in its gracious cup you shall see-- ,a fiddlestick6 jerked out ,halicarnassus1 profanely4 ,what are you raving about such a precious bundle of weeds for8 ,there isn't a shoemaker's apprentice in the village that hasn't his seven-by-nine garden overrun with them4 ,you might have done better than bring cartloads of phlox and larkspur a thousand miles4 ,why didn't you import a few hollyhocks1 or a sunflower or two1 and perhaps a dainty slip of cabbage8 ,a pumpkin-vine1 now1 would climb over the front-door deliciously1 and a row of burdocks would make a highly entertaining border4 ,the reader will bear me witness that ,i had met my first rebuff with humility4 ,it was probably this very humility that emboldened him to a second attack4 ,i determined to change my tactics and give battle4 ,halicarnassus1 said ,i1 severely1 you are a hypocrite4 ,you set up for a ,democrat-- ,not ,i1 interrupted he2 ,i voted for ,harrison in '#dj1 and for ,fremont in '#ef1 and-- ,nonsense6 interrupted ,i1 in turn2 ,i mean a ,democrat etymological1 not a ,democrat political4 ,you stand by the ,declaration of ,independence1 and believe in liberty1 equality1 and fraternity1 and that all men are of one blood2 and here you are1 ridiculing these innocent flowers1 because their brilliant beauty is not shut up in a conservatory to exhale its fragrance on a fastidious few1 but blooms on all alike1 gladdening the home of exile and lightening the burden of labor4 ,halicarnassus saw that ,i had made a point against him1 and preserved a discreet silence4 ,but you are wrong1 ,i went on1 even if you are right4 ,you may laugh to scorn my floral treasures1 because they seem to you common and unclean1 but your laughter is premature4 ,it is no ordinary seed that you see before you4 ,it sprang from no profane soil4 ,it came from the--the--some kind of an office at ,,washington1 ,sir6 ,it was given me by one whose name stands high on the scroll of fame1--a statesman whose views are as broad as his judgment is sound1--an orator who holds all hearts in his hand1--a man who is always found on the side of the feeble truth against the strong falsehood1--whose sympathy for all that is good1 whose hostility to all that is bad1 and whose boldness in every righteous cause make him alike the terror and abhorrence of the oppressor1 and the hope and joy and staff of the oppressed4 ,what is his name8 said ,halicarnassus1 phlegmatically4 ,and for your miserable pumpkin-vine1 ,i went on1 behold this morning-glory1 that shall open its barbaric splendor to the sun and mount heavenward on the sparkling chariots of the dew4 ,i took this from the white hand of a young girl in whose heart poetry and purity have met1 grace and virtue have kissed each other1--whose feet have danced over lilies and roses1 who has known no sterner duty than to give caresses1 and whose gentle1 spontaneous1 and ever active loveliness continually remind me that of such is the kingdom of heaven4 ,courted yet8 asked ,halicarnassus1 with a show of interest4 ,i transfixed him with a look1 and continued1-- ,this ,maurandia1 a climber1 it may be common or it may be a king's ransom4 ,i only know that it is rosy-hued1 and that ,i shall look at life through its pleasant medium4 ,some fantastic trellis1 brown and benevolent1 shall knot supporting arms around it1 and day by day it shall twine daintily up toward my southern window1 and whisper softly of the sweet-voiced1 tender-eyed woman from whose fairy bower it came in rosy wrappings4 ,and this ,nemophila1 'blue as my brother's eyes1'--the brave young brother whose heroism and manhood have outstripped his years1 and who looks forth from the dank leafiness of far ,australia lovingly and longingly over the blue waters1 as if1 floating above them1 he might catch the flutter of white garments and the smile on a sister's lip-- ,what are you going to do with 'em8 put in ,halicarnassus again4 ,i hesitated a moment1 undecided whether to be amiable or bellicose under the provocation1 but concluded that my ends would stand a better chance of being gained by adopting the former course1 and so answered seriously1 as if ,i had not been switched off the track1 but was going on with perfect continuity1-- ,to-morrow ,i shall take observations4 ,then1 where the situation seems most favorable1 ,i shall lay out a garden4 ,i shall plant these seeds in it1 except the vines and such things1 which ,i wish to put near the house to hide as much as possible its garish white4 ,then1 with every little tender shoot that appears above the ground1 there will blossom also a pleasant memory or a sunny hope or an admiring thrill4 ,what do you expect will be the market-value of that crop8 ,wealth which an empire could not purchase1 ,i answered1 with enthusiasm4 ,but ,i shall not confine my attention to flowers4 ,i shall make the useful go with the beautiful4 ,i shall plant vegetables1-- lettuce1 and asparagus1 and--so forth4 ,our table shall be garnished with the products of our own soil1 and our own works shall praise us4 ,there was a pause of several minutes1 during which ,i fondled the seeds and ,halicarnassus enveloped himself in clouds of smoke4 ,presently there was a cessation of puffs1 a rift in the cloud showed that the oracle was opening his mouth1 and directly thereafter he delivered himself of the encouraging remark1-- ,if we don't have any vegetables till we raise 'em1 we shall be carnivorous some time to come4 ,it was said with that provoking indifference more trying to a sensitive mind than downright insult4 ,you know it is based on some hidden obstacle1 palpable to your enemy1 though hidden from you1--and that he is calm because he know that the nature of things will work against you1 so that he need not interfere4 ,if ,i had been less interested1 ,i would have revenged myself on him by remaining silent2 but ,i was very much interested1 so ,i strangled my pride and said1-- ,why not8 ,land is too old for such things4 ,soil isn't mellow enough4 ,i had always supposed that the greater part of the main-land of our continent was of equal antiquity1 and dated back alike to the alluvial period2 but ,i suppose our little three acres must have been injected through the intervening strata by some physical convulsion1 from the drift1 or the tertiary formation1 perhaps even from the primitive granite4 ,what are you going to do8 ,i ventured to inquire4 ,i don't suppose the land will grow any younger by keeping4 ,plant it with corn and potatoes for at least two years before there can be anything like a garden4 ,and ,halicarnassus put up his pipe and betook himself to the house1 and ,i was glad of it1 the abominable bore6 to sit there and listen to my glowing schemes1 knowing all the while that they were soap-bubbles4 ,corn and potatoes1 indeed6 ,i didn't believe a word of it4 ,halicarnassus always had an insane passion for corn and potatoes4 ,land represented to him so many bushels of the one or the other4 ,now corn and potatoes are very well in their way1 but1 like every other innocent indulgence1 carried too far1 become a vice2 and ,i more than suspected he had planned the strategy simply to gratify his own weakness4 ,corn and potatoes1 indeed6 ,but when ,halicarnassus entered the lists against me1 he found an opponent worthy of his steel4 ,a few more such victories would be his ruin4 ,a grand scheme fired and filled my mind during the silent watches of the night1 and sent me forth in the morning1 jubilant with high resolve4 ,alexander might weep that he had no more worlds to conquer2 but ,i would create new4 ,archimedes might desiderate a place to stand on before he could bring his lever into play2 ,i would move the world1 self-poised4 ,if ,halicarnassus fancied that ,i was cut up1 dispersed1 and annihilated by one disaster1 he should weep tears of blood to see me rise1 ,phoenix-like1 from the ashes of my dead hopes1 to a newer and more glorious life4 ,here1 having exhausted my classics1 ,i took a long sweep down to modern times1 and vowed in my heart never to give up the ship4 ,halicarnassus saw that a fell purpose was working in my mind1 but a certain high tragedy in my aspect warned him to silence2 so he only dogged me around the corners of the house1 eyed me askance from the wood-shed1 and peeped through the crevices of the demented little barn4 ,but his vigilance bore no fruit4 ,i but walked moodily with folded arms and fixed eyes1 or struck out new paths at random1 so long as there were any vestiges of his creation extant4 ,his time and patience being at length exhausted1 he went into the field to immolate himself with ever new devotion on the shrine of corn and potatoes4 ,then my scheme came to a head at once4 ,in my walking1 ,i had observed a box about three feet long1 two broad1 and one foot deep1 which ,halicarnassus1 with his usual disregard of the proprieties of life1 had used to block up a gate-way that was waiting for a gate4 ,it was just what ,i wanted4 ,i straightway knocked out the few nails that kept it in place1 and1 like another ,samson1 bore it away on my shoulders4 ,it was not an easy thing to manage1 as any one may find by trying1--nor would ,i advise young ladies1 as a general thing1 to adopt that form of exercise1--but the end1 not the means1 was my object1 and by skilful diplomacy ,i got it up the backstairs and through my window1 out upon the roof of the porch directly below4 ,i then took the ash-pail and the fire-shovel and went into the field1 carefully keeping the lee side of ,halicarnassus4 ,good1 rich loam ,i had observed all the gardening books to recommend2 but wherein the virtue or the richness of loam consisted ,i did not feel competent to decide1 and ,i scorned to ask4 ,there seemed to be two kinds3 one black1 damp1 and dismal2 the other fine1 yellow1 and good-natured4 ,a little reflection decided me to take the latter4 ,gold constituted riches1 and this was yellow like gold4 ,moreover1 it seemed to have more life in it4 ,night and darkness belonged to the other1 while the very heart of sunshine and summer seemed to be imprisoned in this golden dust4 ,so ,i plied my shovel and filled my pail again and again1 bearing it aloft with joyful labor1 eager to be through before ,halicarnassus should reappear2 but he got on the trail just as ,i was whisking up-stairs for the last time1 and shouted1 astonished1-- ,what are you doing8 ,nothing1 ,i answered1 with that well-known accent which says1 ,everything6 and ,i mean to keep doing it4 ,i have observed1 that1 in managing parents1 husbands1 lovers1 brothers1 and indeed all classes of inferiors1 nothing is so efficacious as to let them know at the outset that you are going to have your own way4 ,they may fret a little at first1 and interpose a few puny obstacles1 but it will be only a temporary obstruction2 whereas1 if you parley and hesitate and suggest1 they will but gather courage and strength for a formidable resistance4 ,it is the first step that costs4 ,halicarnassus understood at once from my one small shot that ,i was in a mood to be let alone1 and he let me alone accordingly4 ,i remembered he had said that the soil was not mellow enough1 and ,i determined that my soil should be mellow1 to which end ,i took it up by handfuls and squeezed it through my fingers1 completely pulverizing it4 ,it was not disagreeable work4 ,things in their right places are very seldom disagreeable4 ,a spider on your dress is a horror1 but a spider outdoors is rather interesting4 ,besides1 the loam had a fine1 soft feel that was absolutely pleasant2 but a hideous black and yellow reptile with horns and hoofs1 that winked up at me from it1 was decidedly unpleasant and out of place1 and ,i at once concluded that the soil was sufficiently mellow for my purposes1 and smoothed it off directly4 ,then1 with delighted fingers1 in sweeping circles1 and fantastic whirls1 and exact triangles1 ,i planted my seeds in generous profusion1 determined1 that1 if my wilderness did not blossom1 it should not be from niggardliness of seed4 ,but even then my box was full before my basket was emptied1 and ,i was very reluctantly compelled to bring down from the garret another box1 which had been the property of my great-grandfather4 ,my great-grandfather was1 ,i regret to say1 a barber4 ,i would rather never have had any4 ,if there is anything in the world besides worth that ,i reverence1 it is ancestry4 ,my whole life long have ,i been in search of a pedigree1 and though ,i ran well at the beginning1 ,i invariably stop short at the third remove by running my head into a barber's shop4 ,if he had only been a farmer1 now1 ,i should not have minded4 ,there is something dignified and antique in land1 and no one need trouble himself to ascertain whether farmer stood for a close-fisted1 narrow-souled clodhopper1 or the smiling1 benevolent master of broad acres4 ,farmer means both these1 ,i could have chosen the meaning ,i liked1 and it is not probable that any troublesome facts would have floated down the years to intercept any theory ,i might have launched4 ,i would rather he had been a shoemaker2 it would have been so easy to transform him1 after his lamented decease1 into a shoe-manufacturer1--and shoe-manufacturers1 we all know1 are highly respectable people1 often become great men1 and get sent to ,congress4 ,an apothecary might have figured as an ,m4,d4 ,a greengrocer might have been apotheosized into a merchant4 ,a dancing-master would flourish on the family-records as a professor of the ,terpsichorean art4 ,a taker of daguerreotype portraits would never be recognized in my great-grandfather the artist4 ,but a barber is unmitigated and immitigable4 ,it cannot be shaded off nor toned down nor brushed up4 ,besides1 was greatness ever allied to barbarity8 ,shakspeare's father was a wool-driver1 ,tillotson's a clothier1 ,barrow's a linen-draper1 ,defoe's a butcher1 ,milton's a scrivener1 ,richardson's a joiner1 ,burns's a farmer2 but did any one ever hear of a barber's having remarkable children8 ,i must say1 with all deference to my great-grandfather1 that ,i do wish he would have been considerate enough of his descendants' feelings to have been born in the old days when barbers and doctors were one1 or else have chosen some other occupation than barbering4 ,barber he did1 however2 in this very box he kept his wigs1 and1 painful as it was to have continually before my eyes this perpetual reminder of plebeian great-grand-paternity1 ,i consented to it rather than lose my seeds4 ,then ,i folded my hands in sweet1 though calm satisfaction4 ,i had proved myself equal to the emergency1 and that always diffuses a glow of genial complacency through the soul4 ,i had outwitted ,halicarnassus4 ,exultation number two4 ,he had designed to cheat me out of my garden by a story about land1 and here was my garden ready to burst forth into blossom under my eyes4 ,he said little1 but ,i knew he felt deeply4 ,i caught him one day looking out at my window with corroding envy in every lineament4 ,you might have got some dust out of the road2 it would have been nearer4 ,that was all he said4 ,even that little ,i did not fully understand4 ,i watched1 and waited1 and watered1 in silent expectancy1 for several days1 but nothing came up1 and ,i began to be anxious4 ,suddenly ,i thought of my vegetable-seeds1 and determined to try those4 ,of course a hanging kitchen-garden was not to be thought of1 and as ,halicarnassus was fortunately absent for a few days1 ,i prospected on the farm4 ,a sunny little corner on a southern slope smiled up at me1 and seemed to offer itself as a delightful situation for the diminutive garden which mine must be4 ,the soil1 too1 seemed as fine and mellow as could be desired4 ,i at once captured an ,englishman from a neighboring plantation1 hurried him into my corner1 and bade him dig me and hoe me and plant me a garden as soon as possible4 ,he looked blankly at me for a moment1 and ,i looked blankly at him1--wondering what lion he saw in the way4 ,them is planted with potatoes now1 he gasped1 at length4 ,no matter1 ,i returned1 with sudden relief to find that nothing but potatoes interfered4 ,i want it to be unplanted1 and planted with vegetables1--lettuce and--asparagus--and such4 ,he stood hesitating4 ,will the master like it8 ,yes1 said ,diplomacy1 he will be delighted4 ,no matter whether he likes it or not1 codiciled ,conscience4 ,you do it4 ,i--don't exactly like--to--take the responsibility1 wavered this modern ,faint-,heart4 ,i don't want you to take the responsibility1 ,i ejaculated1 with volcanic vehemence4 ,i'll take the responsibility4 ,you take the hoe4 ,these duty-people do infuriate me4 ,they are so afraid to do anything that isn't laid out in a right-angled triangle4 ,every path must be graded and turfed before they dare set their scrupulous feet in it4 ,i like conscience1 but1 like corn and potatoes1 carried too far1 it becomes a vice4 ,i think ,i could commit a murder with less hesitation than some people buy a ninepenny calico4 ,and to see that man stand there1 balancing probabilities over a piece of ground no bigger than a bed-quilt1 as if a nation's fate were at stake1 was enough to ruffle a calmer temper than mine4 ,my impetuosity impressed him1 however1 and he began to lay about him vigorously with hoe and rake and lines1 and1 in an incredibly short space of time1 had a bit of square flatness laid out with wonderful precision4 ,meanwhile ,i had ransacked my vegetable-bag1 and though lettuce and asparagus were not there1 plenty of beets and parsnips and squashes1 etc41 were4 ,i let him take his choice4 ,he took the first two4 ,the rest were left on my hands4 ,but ,i had gone too far to recede4 ,they burned in my pocket for a few days1 and ,i saw that ,i must get them into the ground somewhere4 ,i could not sleep with them in the room4 ,they were wandering shades craving at my hands a burial1 and ,i determined to put them where ,banquo's ghost would not go1--down4 ,down accordingly they went1 but not symmetrically nor simultaneously4 ,i faced ,halicarnassus on the subject of the beet-bed1 and though ,i cannot say that either of us gained a brilliant victory1 yet ,i can say that ,i kept possession of the ground2 still1 ,i did not care to risk a second encounter4 ,so ,i kept my seeds about me continually1 and dropped them surreptitiously as occasion offered4 ,consequently1 my garden1 taken as a whole1 was located where the ,penobscot ,indian was born1--all along shore4 ,the squashes were scattered among the corn4 ,the beans were tucked under the brushwood1 in the fond hope that they would climb up it4 ,two tomato-plants were lodged in the potato-field1 under the protection of some broken apple-branches dragged thither for the purpose4 ,the cucumbers went down on the sheltered side of a wood-pile4 ,the peas took their chances of life under the sink-nose4 ,the sweet-corn was marked off from the rest by a broomstick1--and all took root alike in my heart4 ,may ,i ask you now1 ,o ,friend1 who1 ,i would fain believe1 have followed me thus far with no hostile eyes1 to glide in tranced forgetfulness through the white blooms of ,may and the roses of ,june1 into the warm breath of ,july afternoons and the languid pulse of ,august1 perhaps even into the mild haze of ,september and the flying gold of brown ,october8 ,in narrating to you the fruition of my hopes1 ,i shall endeavor to preserve that calm equanimity which is the birthright of royal minds4 ,i shall endeavor not to be unduly elated by success nor unduly depressed by failure1 but to state in simple language the result of my experiments1 both for an encouragement and a warning4 ,i shall give the history of the several ventures separately1 as nearly as ,i can recollect in the order in which they grew1 beginning with the humbler ministers to our appetites1 and soaring gradually into the region of the poetical and the beautiful4 ,,beets4--,the beets came up1 little red-veined leaves1 struggling for breath among a tangle of ,roman wormwood and garlic2 and though they exhibited great tenacity of life1 they also exhibited great irregularity of purpose4 ,in one spot there would be nothing1 in an adjacent spot a whorl of beets1 big and little1 crowding and jostling and elbowing each other1 like school-boys round the red-hot stove on a winter's morning4 ,i knew they had been planted in a right line1 and ,i don't1 even now1 comprehend why they should not come up in a right line4 ,i weeded them1 and though freedom from foreign growth discovered an intention1 of straightness1 the most casual observer could not but see that skewiness had usurped its place4 ,i repaired to my friend the gardener4 ,he said they must be thinned out and transplanted4 ,it went to my heart to pull up the dear things1 but ,i did it1 and set them down again tenderly in the vacant spots4 ,it was evening4 ,the next morning ,i went to them4 ,flatness has a new meaning to me since that morning4 ,you can hardly conceive that anything could look so utterly forlorn1 disconsolate1 disheartened1 and collapsed4 ,in fact1 they exhibited a degree of depression so entirely beyond what the circumstances demanded1 that ,i was enraged4 ,if they had shown any symptoms of trying to live1 ,i could have sighed and forgiven them2 but1 on the contrary1 they had flopped and died without a struggle1 and ,i pulled them up without a pang1 comforting myself with the remaining ones1 which throve on their companions' graves1 and waxed fat and full and crimson-hearted1 in their soft1 brown beds4 ,so delighted was ,i with their luxuriant rotundity1 that ,i made an internal resolve that henceforth ,i would always plant beets4 ,true1 ,i cannot abide beets4 ,their fragrance and their flavor are alike nauseating2 but they come up1 and a beet that will come up is better than a cedar of ,lebanon that won't4 ,in all the vegetable kingdom ,i know of no quality better than this1 growth1--nor any quality that will atone for its absence4 ,,parsnips4--,they ran the race with an indescribable vehemence that fairly threw the beets into the shade4 ,they trod so delicately at first that ,i was quite unprepared for such enthusiasm4 ,lacking the red veining1 ,i could not distinguish them even from the weeds with any certainty1 and was forced to let both grow together till the harvest4 ,so both grew together1 a perfect jungle4 ,but the parsnips got ahead1 and rushed up gloriously1 magnificently1 bacchanalianly1--as the winds come when forests are rended1--as the waves come when navies are stranded4 ,i am1 indeed1 troubled with a suspicion that their vitality has all run to leaves1 and that1 when ,i go down into the depths of the earth for the parsnips1 ,i shall find only bread of emptiness4 ,it is a pleasing reflection that parsnips cannot be eaten till the second year4 ,i am told that they must lie in the ground during the winter4 ,consequently it cannot be decided whether there are any or not till next spring4 ,i shall in the mean time assume and assert without hesitation or qualification that there are as many tubers below the surface as there are leaves above it4 ,i shall thereby enjoy a pleasant consciousness1 and the respect of all1 for the winter2 and if disappointment awaits me in the spring1 time will have blunted its keenness for me1 and other people will have forgotten the whole subject4 ,you may be sure ,i shall not remind them of it4 ,,cucumbers4--,the cucumbers came up so far and stuck4 ,it must have been innate depravity1 for there was no shadow of reason why they should not keep on as they began4 ,they did not4 ,they stopped growing in the prime of life4 ,only three cucumbers developed1 and they hid under the vines so that ,i did not see them till they were become ripe1 yellow1 soft1 and worthless4 ,they are an unwholesome fruit at best1 and ,i bore their loss with great fortitude4 ,,tomatoes4--,both dead4 ,i had been instructed to protect them from the frost by night and from the sun by day4 ,i intended to do so ultimately1 but ,i did not suppose there was any emergency4 ,a frost came the first night and killed them1 and a hot sun the next day burned up all there was left4 ,when they were both thoroughly dead1 ,i took great pains to cover them every night and noon4 ,no symptoms of revival appearing to reward my efforts1 ,i left them to shift for themselves4 ,i did not think there was any need of their dying1 in the first place2 and if they would be so absurd as to die without provocation1 ,i did not see the necessity of going into a decline about it4 ,besides1 ,i never did value plants or animals that have to be nursed1 and petted1 and coaxed to live4 ,if things want to die1 ,i think they'd better die4 ,provoked by my indifference1 one of the tomatoes flared up and took a new start1--put forth leaves1 shot out vines1 and covered himself with fruit and glory4 ,the chickens picked out the heart of all the tomatoes as soon as they ripened1 which was of no consequence1 however1 as they had wasted so much time in the beginning that the autumn frosts came upon them unawares1 and there wouldn't have been fruit enough ripe to be of any account1 if no chicken had ever broken a shell4 ,,squashes4--,they appeared above-ground1 large-lobed and vigorous4 ,large and vigorous appeared the bugs1 all gleaming in green and gold1 like the wolf on the fold1 and stopped up all the stomata and ate up all the parenchyma1 till my squash-leaves looked as if they had grown for the sole purpose of illustrating net-veined organizations4 ,in consternation ,i sought again my neighbor the ,englishman4 ,he assured me he had 'em on his1 too1--lots of 'em4 ,this reconciled me to mine4 ,bugs are not inherently desirable1 but a universal bug does not indicate special want of skill in any one4 ,so ,i was comforted4 ,but the ,englishman said they must be killed4 ,he had killed his4 ,then ,i said ,i would kill mine1 too4 ,how should it be done8 ,oh6 put a shingle near the vine at night and they would crawl upon it to keep dry1 and go out early in the morning and kill 'em4 ,but how to kill them8 ,why1 take 'em right between your thumb and finger and crush 'em6 ,as soon as ,i could recover breath1 ,i informed him confidentially1 that1 if the world were one great squash1 ,i wouldn't undertake to save it in that way4 ,he smiled a little1 but ,i think he was not overmuch pleased4 ,i asked him why ,i couldn't take a bucket of water and dip the shingle in it and drown them4 ,he said1 well1 ,i could try it4 ,i did try it1--first wrapping my hand in a cloth to prevent contact with any stray bug4 ,to my amazement1 the moment they touched the water they all spread unseen wings and flew away1 safe and sound4 ,i should not have been much more surprised to see ,halicarnassus soaring over the ridge-pole4 ,i had not the slightest idea that they could fly4 ,of course ,i gave up the design of drowning them4 ,i called a council of war4 ,one said ,i must put a newspaper over them and fasten it down at the edges2 then they couldn't get in4 ,i timidly suggested that the squashes couldn't get out4 ,yes1 they could1 he said1--they'd grow right through the paper4 ,another said ,i must surround them with round boxes with the bottoms broken out2 for1 though they could fly1 they couldn't steer1 and when they flew up1 they just dropped down anywhere1 and as there was on the whole a good deal more land on the outside of the boxes than on the inside1 the chances were in favor of their dropping on the outside4 ,another said that ashes must be sprinkled on them4 ,a fourth said lime was an infallible remedy4 ,i began with the paper1 which ,i secured with no little difficulty2 for the wind--the same wind1 strange to say--kept blowing the dirt at me and the paper away from me2 but ,i consoled myself by remembering the numberless rows of squash-pies that should crown my labors1 and ,may took heart from ,thanksgiving4 ,the next day ,i peeped under the paper and the bugs were a solid phalanx4 ,i reported at head-quarters1 and they asked me if ,i killed the bugs before ,i put the paper down4 ,i said no1 ,i supposed it would stifle them1--in fact1 ,i didn't think anything about it1 but if ,i thought anything1 that was what ,i thought4 ,i wasn't pleased to find ,i had been cultivating the bugs and furnishing them with free lodgings4 ,i went home and tried all the remedies in succession4 ,i could hardly decide which agreed best with the structure and habits of the bugs1 but they throve on all4 ,then ,i tried them all at once and all o'er with a mighty uproar4 ,presently the bugs went away4 ,i am not sure that they wouldn't have gone just as soon1 if ,i had let them alone4 ,after they were gone1 the vines scrambled out and put forth some beautiful1 deep golden blossoms4 ,when they fell off1 that was the end of them4 ,not a squash1--not one1--not a single squash1--not even a pumpkin4 ,they were all false blossoms4 ,,apples4--,the trees swelled into masses of pink and white fragrance4 ,nothing could exceed their fluttering loveliness or their luxuriant promise4 ,a few days of fairy beauty1 and showers of soft petals floated noiselessly down1 covering the earth with delicate snow2 but ,i knew1 that1 though the first blush of beauty was gone1 a mighty work was going on in a million little laboratories1 and that the real glory was yet to come4 ,i was surprised to observe1 one day1 that the trees seemed to be turning red4 ,i remarked to ,halicarnassus that that was one of ,nature's processes which ,i did not remember to have seen noticed in any botanical treatise4 ,i thought such a change did not occur till autumn4 ,halicarnassus curved the thumb and forefinger of his right hand into an arch1 the ends of which rested on the wrist of his left coat-sleeve4 ,he then lifted the forefinger high and brought it forward4 ,then he lifted the thumb and brought it up behind the forefinger1 and so made them travel up to his elbow4 ,it seemed to require considerable exertion in the thumb and forefinger1 and ,i watched the progress with interest4 ,then ,i asked him what he meant by it4 ,that's the way they walk1 he replied4 ,who walk8 ,the little fellows that have squatted on our trees4 ,what little fellows do you mean8 ,the canker-worms4 ,how many are there8 ,about twenty-five decillions1 ,i should think1 as near as ,i can count4 ,why6 what are they for8 ,what good do they do8 ,oh6 no end4 ,keep the children from eating green apples and getting sick4 ,how do they do that8 ,eat 'em themselves4 ,a frightful idea dawned upon me4 ,i believe ,i turned a kind of ghastly blue4 ,halicarnassus1 do you mean to tell me that the canker-worms are eating up our apples and that we shan't have any8 ,it looks like that exceedingly4 ,that was months ago1 and it looks a great deal more like it now4 ,i watched those trees with sadness at my heart4 ,millions of brown1 ugly1 villanous worms gnawed1 gnawed1 gnawed1 at the poor little tender leaves and buds1--held them in foul embrace1--polluted their sweetness with hateful breath4 ,i could almost feel the shudder of the trees in that slimy clasp1--could almost hear the shrieking and moaning of the young fruit that saw its hope of happy life thus slowly consuming2 but ,i was powerless to save4 ,for weeks that loathsome army preyed upon the unhappy1 helpless trees1 and then spun loathsomely to the ground1 and buried itself in the reluctant1 shuddering soil4 ,a few dismal little apples escaped the common fate1 but when they rounded into greenness and a suspicion of pulp1 a boring worm came and bored them1 and they1 too1 died4 ,no apple-pies at ,thanksgiving4 ,no apple-roasting in winter evenings4 ,no pan-pie with hot brown bread on ,sunday mornings4 ,,cherries4--,they rivalled the apple-blooms in snowy profusion1 and the branches were covered with tiny balls4 ,the sun mounted warm and high in the heavens and they blushed under his ardent gaze4 ,i felt an increasing conviction that here there would be no disappointment2 but it soon became palpable that another class of depredators had marked our trees for their own4 ,little brown toes could occasionally be seen peeping from the foliage1 and little bare feet left their print on the garden-soil4 ,humanity had evidently deposited its larva in the vicinity4 ,there was a schoolhouse not very far away1 and the children used to draw water from an old well in a distant part of the garden4 ,it was surprising to see how thirsty they all became as the cherries ripened4 ,it was as if the village had simultaneously agreed to breakfast on salt fish4 ,their wooden bucket might have been the urn of the ,danades1 judging from the time it took to fill it4 ,the boys were as fleet of foot as young zebras1 and presented upon discovery no apology or justification but their heels1--which was a wise stroke in them4 ,a troop of rosy-cheeked1 bright-eyed little snips in white pantalets1 caught in the act1 reasoned with in a semi-circle1 and cajoled with candy1 were as sweet as distilled honey1 and promised with all their innocent hearts and hands not to do so any more4 ,but the real pice de rsistance was a mass of pretty well developed crinoline which an informal walk in the infested district brought to light1 engaged in a systematic raid upon the tempting fruit4 ,now1 in my country1 the presence of unknown individuals in your own garden1 plucking your fruit from your trees1 without your knowledge and against your will1 is universally considered as affording presumptive evidence of--something4 ,in this part of the world1 however1 ,i find they do things differently4 ,it doesn't furnish presumptive evidence of anything4 ,if you think it does1 you do so at your own risk4 ,i thought it did1 and escaped by the skin of my teeth4 ,i hinted my views1 and found myself in a den of lions1 and was thankful to come out second-best4 ,second8 nay1 third-best1 fourth-best1 no best at all1 not even good1--very bad4 ,in short1 ,i was glad to get out with my life4 ,nor was my repulse confined to the passing hour4 ,the injured innocents come no more for water4 ,i am consumed with inward remorse as ,i see them daily file majestically past my house to my neighbor's well4 ,i have resolved to plant a strawberry-bed next year1 and offer them the fruit of it by way of atonement1 and never1 under any provocation1 hereafter1 to assert or insinuate that ,i have any claim whatever to anything under the sun4 ,if this course1 perseveringly persisted in1 does not restore the state of quo1 ,i am hopeless4 ,i have no further resources4 ,the one drop of sweetness in the bitter cup was1 that the cherries1 being thus let severely alone1 were allowed to hang on the trees and ripen4 ,it took them a great while4 ,if they had been as big as hogsheads1 ,i should think the sun might have got through them sooner than he did4 ,they looked ripe long before they were so2 and as they were very plenty1 the trees presented a beautiful appearance4 ,i bought a stack of fantastic little baskets from a travelling ,indian tribe1 at a fabulous price1 for the sake of fulfilling my long-cherished design of sending fruit to my city friends4 ,after long waiting1 ,halicarnassus came in one morning with a tin pail full1 and said that they were ripe at last1 for they were turning purple and falling off2 and he was going to have them gathered at once4 ,he had brought in the first-fruits for breakfast4 ,i put them in the best preserve-dish1 twined it with myrtle1 and set it in the centre of the table4 ,it looked charming1--so ruddy and rural and ,arcadian4 ,i wished we could breakfast out-doors2 but the summer was one of unusual severity1 and it was hardly prudent thus to brave its rigor4 ,we had cup-custards at the close of our breakfast that morning1--very vulgar1 but very delicious4 ,we reached the cherries at the same moment1 and swallowed the first one simultaneously4 ,the effect was instantaneous and electric4 ,halicarnassus puckered his face into a perfect wheel1 with his mouth for the hub4 ,i don't know how ,i looked1 but ,i felt badly enough4 ,it was unfortunate that we had custards this morning1 ,i remarked4 ,they are so sweet that the cherries seem sour by contrast4 ,we shall soon get the sweet taste out of our mouths1 however4 ,that's so6 said ,halicarnassus1 who will be coarse4 ,we tried another4 ,he exhibited a similar pantomime1 with improvements4 ,my feelings were also the same1 intensified4 ,i am not in luck to-day1 ,i said1 attempting to smile4 ,i got hold of a sour cherry this time4 ,i got hold of a bitter one1 said ,halicarnassus4 ,mine was a little bitter1 too1 ,i added4 ,mine was a little sour1 too1 said ,halicarnassus4 ,we shall have to try again1 said ,i4 ,we did try again4 ,mine was a good deal of both this time1 said ,halicarnassus4 ,but we will give them a fair trial4 ,yes1 said ,i1 sepulchrally4 ,we sat there sacrificing ourselves to abstract right for five minutes4 ,then ,i leaned back in my chair1 and looked at ,halicarnassus4 ,he rested his right elbow on the table1 and looked at me4 ,well1 said he1 at last1 how are cherries and things8 ,halicarnassus1 said ,i1 solemnly1 it is my firm conviction that farming is not a lucrative occupation4 ,you have no certain assurance of return1 either for labor or capital invested4 ,look at it4 ,the bugs eat up the squashes4 ,the worms eat up the apples4 ,the cucumbers won't grow at all4 ,the peas have got lost4 ,the cherries are bitter as wormwood and sour as you in your worst moods4 ,everything that is good for anything won't grow1 and everything that grows isn't good for anything4 ,my ,indian corn1 though1 began ,halicarnassus2 but ,i snapped him up before he was fairly under way4 ,i had no idea of travelling in that direction4 ,what am ,i to do with all those baskets that ,i bought1 ,i should like to know8 ,i asked1 sharply4 ,what did you buy them for8 he asked in return4 ,to send cherries to the ,hudsons and the ,mavericks and ,fred ,ashley1 ,i replied promptly4 ,why don't you send 'em1 then8 ,there's plenty of them1--more than we shall want4 ,because1 ,i answered1 ,i have not exhausted the pleasures of friendship4 ,nor do ,i perceive the benefit that would accrue from turning life-long friends into life-long enemies4 ,i'll tell you what we can do1 said ,halicarnassus4 ,we can give a party and treat them to cherries4 ,they'll have to eat 'em out of politeness4 ,halicarnassus1 said ,i1 we should be mobbed4 ,we should fall victims to the fury of a disappointed and enraged populace4 ,at any rate1 said he1 we can offer them to chance visitors4 ,the suggestion seemed to me a good one1--at any rate1 the only one that held out any prospect of relief4 ,thereafter1 whenever friends called singly or in squads1--if the squads were not large enough to be formidable1--we invariably set cherries before them1 and with generous hospitality pressed them to partake4 ,the varying phases of emotion which they exhibited were painful to me at first1 but ,i at length came to take a morbid pleasure in noting them4 ,it was a study for a sculptor4 ,by long practice ,i learned to detect the shadow of each coming change1 where a casual observer would see only a serene expanse of placid politeness4 ,i knew just where the radiance1 awakened by the luscious1 swelling1 crimson globes1 faded into doubt1 settled into certainty1 glared into perplexity1 fired into rage4 ,i saw the grimace1 suppressed as soon as begun1 but not less patent to my preternaturally keen eyes4 ,no one deceived me by being suddenly seized with admiration of a view4 ,i knew it was only to relieve his nerves by making faces behind the window-curtains4 ,i grew to take a fiendish delight in watching the conflict1 and the fierce desperation which marked its violence4 ,on the one side were the forces of fusion1 a reluctant stomach1 an unwilling oesophagus1 a loathing palate2 on the other1 the stern1 unconquerable will4 ,a natural philosopher would have gathered new proofs of the unlimited capacity of the human race to adapt itself to circumstances1 from the dbris that strewed our premises after each fresh departure4 ,cherries were chucked under the sofa1 into the table-drawers1 behind the books1 under the lamp-mats1 into the vases1 in any and every place where a dexterous hand could dispose of them without detection4 ,yet their number seemed to suffer no abatement4 ,like ,tityus's liver1 they were constantly renewed1 though constantly consumed4 ,the small boys seemed to be suffering from a fit of conscience4 ,in vain we closed the blinds and shut ourselves up in the house to give them a fair field4 ,not a cherry was taken4 ,in vain we went ostentatiously to church all day on ,sunday4 ,not a twig was touched4 ,finally ,i dropped all the curtains on that side of the house1 and avoided that part of the garden in my walks4 ,the cherries may be hanging there to this day1 for aught ,i know4 ,but why do ,i thus linger over the sad recital8 ,ab uno disce omnes4 7,a quotation from ,virgil3 means1 ,all of a piece47 ,there may have been1 there probably was1 an abundance of sweet-corn1 but the broomstick that had marked the spot was lost1 and ,i could in no wise recall either spot or stick4 ,nor did ,i ever see or hear of the peas1--or the beans4 ,if our chickens could be brought to the witness-box1 they might throw light on the subject4 ,as it is1 ,i drop a natural tear1 and pass on to ,,the ,,flower-,,garden4--,it appeared very much behind time1--chiefly ,roman wormwood4 ,i was grateful even for that4 ,then two rows of four-o'clocks became visible to the naked eye4 ,they are cryptogamous1 it seems4 ,botanists have hitherto classed them among the ,phaenogamia4 ,a sweet-pea and a china-aster dawdled up just in time to get frost-bitten4 ,et praeterea nihil4 7,virgil3 means1 ,that's all47 ,i am sure it was no fault of mine4 ,i tended my seeds with assiduous care4 ,my devotion was unwearied4 ,i was a very slave to their caprices4 ,i planted them just beneath the surface in the first place1 so that they might have an easy passage4 ,in two or three days they all seemed to be lying round loose on the top1 and ,i planted them an inch deep4 ,then ,i didn't see them at all for so long that ,i took them up again1 and planted them half-way between4 ,it was of no use4 ,you cannot suit people or plants that are determined not to be suited4 ,yet1 sad as my story is1 ,i cannot regret that ,i came into the country and attempted a garden4 ,it has been fruitful in lessons1 if in nothing else4 ,i have seen how every evil has its compensating good4 ,when ,i am tempted to repine that my squashes did not grow1 ,i reflect1 that1 if they had grown1 they would probably have all turned into pumpkins1 or if they had stayed squashes1 they would have been stolen4 ,when it seems a mysterious ,providence that kept all my young hopes underground1 ,i reflect how fine an illustration ,i should otherwise have lost of what ,kossuth calls the solidarity of the human race1--what ,paul alludes to1 when he says1 if one member suffer1 all the members suffer with it4 ,i recall with grateful tears the sympathy of my neighbors on the right hand and on the left1--expressed not only by words1 but by deeds4 ,in my mind's eye1 ,horatio1 ,i see again the baskets of apples1 and pears1 and tomatoes1 and strawberries1--squashes too heavy to lift1--and corn sweet as the dews of ,hymettus1 that bore daily witness of human brotherhood4 ,i remember1 too1 the victory which ,i gained over my own depraved nature4 ,i saw my neighbor prosper in everything he undertook4 ,nihil tetigit quod non crevit4 ,fertility found in his soil its congenial home1 and spanned it with rainbow hues4 ,every day ,i walked by his garden and saw it putting on its strength1 its beautiful garments4 ,i had not even the small satisfaction of reflecting that amid all his splendid success his life was cold and cheerless1 while mine1 amid all its failures1 was full of warmth1--a reflection which1 ,i have often observed1 seems to go a great way towards making a person contented with his lot1--for he had a lovely wife1 promising children1 and the whole village for his friends4 ,yet1 notwithstanding all these obstacles1 ,i learned to look over his garden-wall with sincere joy4 ,there is one provocation1 however1 which ,i cannot yet bear with equanimity1 and which ,i do not believe ,i shall ever meet without at least a spasm of wrath1 even if my ,christian character shall ever become strong enough to preclude absolute tetanus2 and ,i do hereby beseech all persons who would not be guilty of the sin of ,jeroboam who made ,israel to sin1 who do not wish to have on their hands the burden of my ruined temper1 to let me go quietly down into the valley of humiliation and oblivion1 and not pester me1 as they have hitherto done from all parts of the ,north-,american continent1 with the infuriating question1 ,how did you get on with your garden8 99 99 99 99 99 ,,lyrics ,,of ,,the ,,street4 ,i4 ,,the ,,telegrams4 ,bring the hearse to the station1 ,when one shall demand it1 late2 ,for that dark consummation ,the traveller must not wait4 ,men say not by what connivance ,he slid from his weight of woe1 ,whether sickness or weak contrivance1 ,but we know him glad to go4 ,on1 and on1 and ever on6 ,what next8 ,nor let the priest be wanting ,with his hollow eyes of prayer1 ,while the sexton wrenches1 panting1 ,the stone from the dismal stair4 ,but call not the friends who left him1 ,when ,fortune and ,pleasure fled2 ,mortality hath not bereft him1 ,that they should confront him1 dead4 ,on1 and on1 and ever on6 ,what next8 ,bid my mother be ready3 ,we are coming home to-night3 ,let my chamber be still and shady1 ,with the softened nuptial light4 ,we have travelled so gayly1 madly1 ,no shadow hath crossed our way2 ,yet we come back like children1 gladly1 ,joy-spent with our holiday4 ,on1 and on1 and ever on6 ,what next8 ,stop the train at the landing1 ,and search every carriage through2 ,let no one escape your handing1 ,none shiver or shrink from view4 ,three blood-stained guests expect him1 ,three murders oppress his soul2 ,be strained every nerve to detect him ,who feasted1 and killed1 and stole4 ,on1 and on1 and ever on6 ,what next8 ,be rid of the notes they scattered2 ,the great house is down at last2 ,the image of gold is shattered1 ,and never can be recast4 ,the bankrupts show leaden features1 ,and weary1 distracted looks1 ,while harpy-eyed1 wolf-souled creatures ,pry through their dishonored books4 ,on1 and on1 and ever on6 ,what next8 ,let him hasten1 lest worse befall him1 ,to look on me1 ere ,i die3 ,i will whisper one curse to appall him1 ,ere the black flood carry me by4 ,his bridal8 the friends forbid it2 ,i have shown them his proofs of guilt3 ,let him hear1 with my laugh1 who did it2 ,then hurry1 ,death1 as thou wilt6 ,on1 and on1 and ever on6 ,what next8 ,thus the living and dying daily ,flash forward their wants and words1 ,while still on ,thought's slender railway ,sit scathless the little birds3 ,they heed not the sentence dire ,by magical hands exprest1 ,and only the sun's warm fire ,stirs softly their happy breast4 ,on1 and on1 and ever on6 ,god next6 ,,the ,,south ,,breaker4 ,,in ,,two ,,parts4 ,,part ,i4 ,just a cap-full of wind1 and ,dan shook loose the linen1 and a straight shining streak with specks of foam shot after us4 ,the mast bent like eel-grass1 and our keel was half out of the water4 ,faith belied her name1 and clung to the sides with her ten finger-nails2 but as for me1 ,i liked it4 ,take the stick1 ,georgie1 said ,dan1 suddenly1 his cheeks white4 ,head her up the wind4 ,steady4 ,sight the figurehead on ,pearson's loft4 ,here's too much sail for a frigate4 ,but before the words were well uttered1 the mast doubled up and coiled like a whip-lash1 there was a report like the crack of doom1 and half of the thing crashed short over the bows1 dragging the heavy sail in the waves4 ,then there came a great laugh of thunder close above1 and the black cloud dropped like a curtain round us3 the squall had broken4 ,cut it off1 ,dan6 quick6 ,i cried4 ,let it alone1 said he1 snapping together his jack-knife2 it's as good as a best bower-anchor4 ,now ,i'll take the tiller1 ,georgie4 ,strong little hand1 said he1 bending so that ,i didn't see his face4 ,and lucky it's good as strong4 ,it's saved us all4--,my ,god1 ,georgie6 where's ,faith8 ,i turned4 ,there was no ,faith in the boat4 ,we both sprang to our feet1 and so the tiller swung round and threw us broadside to the wind1 and between the dragging mast and the centre-board drowning seemed too good for us4 ,you'll have to cut it off1 ,i cried again2 but he had already ripped half through the canvas and was casting it loose4 ,at length he gave his arm a toss4 ,with the next moment1 ,i never shall forget the look of horror that froze ,dan's face4 ,i've thrown her off6 he exclaimed4 ,i've thrown her off6 ,he reached his whole length over the boat1 ,i ran to his side1 and perhaps our motion impelled it1 or perhaps some unseen hand2 for he caught at an end of rope1 drew it in a second1 let go and clutched at a handful of the sail1 and then ,i saw how it had twisted round and swept poor little ,faith over1 and she had swung there in it like a dead butterfly in a chrysalis4 ,the lightnings were slipping down into the water like blades of fire everywhere around us1 with short1 sharp volleys of thunder1 and the waves were more than ,i ever rode this side of the bar before or since1 and we took in water every time our hearts beat2 but we never once thought of our own danger while we bent to pull dear little ,faith out of hers2 and that done1 ,dan broke into a great hearty fit of crying that ,i'm sure he'd no need to be ashamed of4 ,but it didn't last long2 he just up and dashed off the tears and set himself at work again1 while ,i was down on the floor rubbing ,faith4 ,there she lay like a broken lily1 with no life in her little white face1 and no breath1 and maybe a pulse and maybe not4 ,i couldn't hear a word ,dan said1 for the wind2 and the rain was pouring through us4 ,i saw him take out the oars1 but ,i knew they'd do no good in such a chop1 even if they didn't break2 and pretty soon he found it so1 for he drew them in and began to untie the anchor-rope and wind it round his waist4 ,i sprang to him4 ,what are you doing1 ,dan8 ,i exclaimed4 ,i can swim1 at least1 he answered4 ,and tow us8--a mile8 ,you know you can't6 ,it's madness6 ,i must try4 ,little ,faith will die1 if we don't get ashore4 ,she's dead now1 ,dan4 ,what6 ,no1 no1 she isn't4 ,faith isn't dead4 ,but we must get ashore4 ,dan1 ,i cried1 clinging to his arm1 ,faith's only one4 ,but if you die so1--and you will6--,i shall die too4 ,you8 ,yes2 because1 if it hadn't been for me1 you wouldn't have been here at all4 ,and is that all the reason8 he asked1 still at work4 ,reason enough1 said ,i4 ,not quite1 said he4 ,dan1--for my sake---- ,i can't1 ,georgie4 ,don't ask me4 ,i mustn't--and here he stopped short1 with the coil of rope in his hand1 and fixed me with his eye1 and his look was terrible--we mustn't let ,faith die4 ,well1 ,i said1 try it1 if you dare1--and as true as there's a ,lord in heaven1 ,i'll cut the rope6 ,he hesitated1 for he saw ,i was resolute2 and ,i would1 ,i declare ,i would have done it2 for1 do you know1 at the moment ,i hated the little dead thing in the bottom of the boat there4 ,just then there came a streak of sunshine through the gloom where we'd been plunging between wind and water1 and then a patch of blue sky1 and the great cloud went blowing down river4 ,dan threw away the rope and took out the oars again4 ,give me one1 ,dan1 said ,i2 but he shook his head4 ,oh1 ,dan1 because ,i'm so sorry6 ,see to her1 then1--fetch ,faith to1 he replied1 not looking at me1 and making up with great sturdy pulls4 ,so ,i busied myself1 though ,i couldn't do a bit of good4 ,the instant we touched bottom1 ,dan snatched her1 sprang through the water and up the landing4 ,i stayed behind2 as the boat recoiled1 pushed in a little1 fastened the anchor and threw it over1 and then followed4 ,our house was next the landing1 and there ,dan had carried ,faith2 and when ,i reached it1 a great fire was roaring up the chimney1 and the tea-kettle hung over it1 and he was rubbing ,faith's feet hard enough to strike sparks4 ,i couldn't understand exactly what made ,dan so fiercely earnest1 for ,i thought ,i knew just how he felt about ,faith2 but suddenly1 when nothing seemed to answer1 and he stood up and our eyes met1 ,i saw such a haggard1 conscience-stricken face that it all rushed over me4 ,but now we had done what we could1 and then ,i felt all at once as if every moment that ,i effected nothing was drawing out murder4 ,something flashed by the window1 ,i tore out of the house and threw up my arms1 ,i don't know whether ,i screamed or not1 but ,i caught the doctor's eye1 and he jumped from his gig and followed me in4 ,we had a siege of it4 ,but at length1 with hot blankets1 and hot water1 and hot brandy dribbled down her throat1 a little pulse began to play upon ,faith's temple and a little pink to beat up and down her cheek1 and she opened her pretty dark eyes and lifted herself and wrung the water out of her braids2 then she sank back4 ,faith6 ,faith6 speak to me6 said ,dan1 close in her ear4 ,don't you know me8 ,go away1 she said1 hoarsely1 pushing his face with her flat wet palm4 ,you let the sail take me over and drown me1 while you kissed ,georgie's hand4 ,i flung my hand before her eyes4 ,is there a kiss on those fingers8 ,i cried1 in a blaze4 ,he never kissed my hands or my lips4 ,dan is your husband1 ,faith6 ,for all answer ,faith hid her head and gave a little moan4 ,somehow ,i couldn't stand that2 so ,i ran and put my arms round her neck and lifted her face and kissed it1 and then we cried together4 ,and ,dan1 walking the floor1 took up his hat and went out1 while she never cast a look after him4 ,to think of such a great strong nature and such a powerful depth of feeling being wasted on such a little limp rag6 ,i cried as much for that as anything4 ,then ,i helped ,faith into my bedroom1 and running home1 ,i got her some dry clothes1--after rummaging enough1 dear knows6 for you'd be more like to find her nightcap in the tea-caddy than elsewhere1--and ,i made her a corner on the settle1 for she was afraid to stay in the bedroom1 and when she was comfortably covered there she fell asleep4 ,dan came in soon and sat down beside her1 his eyes on the floor1 never glancing aside nor smiling1 but gloomier than the grave4 ,as for me1 ,i felt at ease now1 so ,i went and laid my hand on the back of his chair and made him look up4 ,i wanted he should know the same rest that ,i had1 and perhaps he did1--for1 still looking up1 the quiet smile came floating round his lips1 and his eyes grew steady and sweet as they used to be before he married ,faith4 ,then ,i went bustling lightly about the kitchen again4 ,dan1 ,i said1 if you'd just bring me in a couple of those chickens stalking out there like two gentlemen from ,spain4 ,while he was gone ,i flew round and got a cake into the bake-kettle1 and a pan of biscuit down before the fire2 and ,i set the tea to steep on the coals1 because father always likes his tea strong enough to bear up an egg1 after a hard day's work1 and he'd had that to-day2 and ,i put on the coffee to boil1 for ,i knew ,dan never had it at home1 because ,faith liked it and it didn't agree with her4 ,and then he brought me in the chickens all ready for the pot1 and so at last ,i sat down1 but at the opposite side of the chimney4 ,then he rose1 and1 without exactly touching me1 swept me back to the other side1 where lay the great net ,i was making for father2 and ,i took the little stool by the settle1 and not far from him1 and went to work4 ,georgie1 said ,dan1 at length1 after he'd watched me a considerable time1 if any word ,i may have said to-day disturbed you a moment1 ,i want you to know that it hurt me first1 and just as much4 ,yes1 ,dan1 said ,i4 ,i've always thought there was something real noble between ,dan and me then4 ,there was ,i1--well1 ,i don't mind telling you4 ,and he1--yes1 ,i'm sure he loved me perfectly1--you mustn't be startled1 ,i'll tell you how it was1--and always had1 only maybe he hadn't known it2 but it was deep down in his heart just the same1 and by-and-by it stirred4 ,there we were1 both of us thoroughly conscious1 yet neither of us expressing it by a word1 and trying not to by a look1--both of us content to wait for the next life1 when we could belong to one another4 ,in those days ,i contrived to have it always pleasure enough for me just to know that ,dan was in the room2 and though that wasn't often1 ,i never grudged ,faith her right in him1 perhaps because ,i knew she didn't care anything about it4 ,you see1 this is how it was4 ,when ,dan was a lad of sixteen1 and took care of his mother1 a ship went to pieces down there on the island4 ,it was one of the worst storms that ever whistled1 and though crowds were on the shore1 it was impossible to reach her4 ,they could see the poor wretches hanging in the rigging1 and dropping one by one1 and they could only stay and sicken1 for the surf stove the boats1 and they didn't know then how to send out ropes on rockets or on cannon-balls1 and so the night fell1 and the people wrung their hands and left the sea to its prey1 and felt as if blue sky could never come again4 ,and with the bright1 keen morning not a vestige of the ship1 but here a spar and there a door1 and on the side of a sand-hill a great dog watching over a little child that he'd kept warm all night4 ,dan1 he'd got up at turn of tide1 and walked down1--the sea running over the road knee-deep1--for there was too much swell for boats2 and when day broke1 he found the little girl1 and carried her up to town4 ,he didn't take her home1 for he saw that what clothes she had were the very finest1--made as delicately1--with seams like the hair-strokes on that heart's-ease there2 and he concluded that he couldn't bring her up as she ought to be4 ,so he took her round to the rich men1 and represented that she was the child of a lady1 and that a poor fellow like himself--for ,dan was older than his years1 you see--couldn't do her justice3 she was a slight little thing1 and needed dainty training and fancy food1 maybe a matter of seven years old1 and she spoke some foreign language1 and perhaps she didn't speak it plain1 for nobody knew what it was4 ,however1 everybody was very much interested1 and everybody was willing to give and to help1 but nobody wanted to take her1 and the upshot of it was that ,dan refused all their offers and took her himself4 ,his mother'd been in to our house all the afternoon before1 and she'd kept taking her pipe out of her mouth1--she had the asthma1 and smoked1--and kept sighing4 ,this storm's going to bring me something1 says she1 in a mighty miserable tone4 ,i'm sure of it6 ,no harm1 ,i hope1 ,miss ,devereux1 said mother4 ,well1 ,rhody1--mother's father1 he was a queer kind1--called his girls all after the thirteen ,states1 and there being none left for ,uncle ,mat1 he called him after the state of matrimony1--,well1 ,rhody1 she replied1 rather dismally1 and knocking the ashes out of the bowl1 ,i don't know2 but ,i'll have faith to believe that the ,lord won't send me no ill without distincter warning4 ,and that it's good ,i have faith to believe4 ,and so when the child appeared1 and had no name1 and couldn't answer for herself1 ,mrs4 ,devereux called her ,faith4 ,we're a people of presentiments down here on the ,flats1 and well we may be4 ,you'd own up yourself1 maybe1 if in the dark of the night1 you locked in sleep1 there's a knock on the door enough to wake the dead1 and you start up and listen and nothing follows2 and falling back1 you're just dozing off1 and there it is once more1 so that the lad in the next room cries out1 ,who's that1 mother8 ,no one answering1 you're half lost again1 when rap comes the hand again1 the loudest of the three1 and you spring to the door and open it1 and there's nought there but a wind from the graves blowing in your face2 and after a while you learn that in that hour of that same night your husband was lost at sea4 ,well1 that happened to ,mrs4 ,devereux4 ,and ,i haven't time to tell you the warnings ,i've known of4 ,as for ,faith1 ,i mind that she said herself1 as we were in the boat for that clear midnight sail1 that the sea had a spite against her1 but third time was trying time4 ,so ,faith grew up1 and ,dan sent her to school what he could1 for he set store by her4 ,she was always ailing1--a little1 wilful1 pettish thing1 but pretty as a flower2 and folks put things into her head1 and she began to think she was some great shakes2 and she may have been a matter of seventeen years old when ,mrs4 ,devereux died4 ,dan1 as simple at twenty-six as he had been ten years before1 thought to go on just in the old way1 but the neighbors were one too many for him2 and they all represented that it would never do1 and so on1 till the poor fellow got perplexed and vexed and half beside himself4 ,there wasn't the first thing she could do for herself1 and he couldn't afford to board her out1 for ,dan was only a laboring-man1 mackerelling all summer and shoemaking all winter1 less the dreadful times when he stayed out on the ,georges2 and then he couldn't afford1 either1 to keep her there and ruin the poor girl's reputation2--and what did ,dan do but come to me with it all8 ,now for a number of years ,i'd been up in the other part of the town with ,aunt ,netty1 who kept a shop that ,i tended between schools and before and after1 and ,i'd almost forgotten there was such a soul on earth as ,dan ,devereux1--though he'd not forgotten me4 ,i'd got through the ,grammar and had a year in the ,high1 and suppose ,i should have finished with an education and gone off teaching somewhere1 instead of being here now1 cheerful as heart could wish1 with a little black-haired hussy tiltering on the back of my chair4--,rolly1 get down6 ,her name's ,laura1--for his mother4--,i mean ,i might have done all this1 if at that time mother hadn't been thrown on her back1 and been bedridden ever since4 ,i haven't said much about mother yet1 but there all the time she was1 just as she is to-day1 in her little tidy bed in one corner of the great kitchen1 sweet as a saint1 and as patient2 and ,i had to come and keep house for father4 ,he never meant that ,i should lose by it1 father didn't2 begged1 borrowed1 or stolen1 bought or hired1 ,i should have my books1 he said3 he's mighty proud of my learning1 though between you and me it's little enough to be proud of2 but the neighbors think ,i know 'most as much as the minister1--and ,i let 'em think4 ,well1 while ,mrs4 ,devereux was sick ,i was over there a good deal1--for if ,faith had one talent1 it was total incapacity1--and there had a chance of knowing the stuff that ,dan was made of2 and ,i declare to man 'twould have touched a heart of stone to see the love between the two4 ,she thought ,dan held up the sky1 and ,dan thought she was the sky4 ,it's no wonder1--the risks our men lead can't make common-sized women out of their wives and mothers4 ,but ,i hadn't been coming in and out1 busying about where ,dan was1 all that time1 without making any mark2 though he was so lost in grief about his mother that he didn't take notice of his other feelings1 or think of himself at all4 ,and who could care the less about him for that8 ,it always brings down a woman to see a man wrapt in some sorrow that's lawful1 and tender as it is large4 ,and when he came and told me what the neighbors said he must do with ,faith1 the blood stood still in my heart4 ,ask mother1 ,dan1 says ,i1--for ,i couldn't have advised him4 ,she knows best about everything4 ,so he asked her4 ,i think--,i'm sorry to think1 for ,i fear she'll not make you a good wife1 said mother1 but that perhaps her love for you will teach her to be--you'd best marry ,faith4 ,but ,i can't marry her6 said ,dan1 half choking2 ,i don't want to marry her1--it--it makes me uncomfortable-like to think of such a thing4 ,i care for the child plenty----,besides1 said ,dan1 catching at a bright hope1 ,i'm not sure that she'd have me4 ,have you1 poor boy6 ,what else can she do8 ,dan groaned4 ,poor little ,faith6 said mother4 ,she's so pretty1 ,dan1 and she's so young1 and she's pliant4 ,and then how can we tell what may turn up about her some day8 ,she may be a duke's daughter yet1--who knows8 ,think of the stroke of good-fortune she may give you6 ,but ,i don't love her1 said ,dan1 as a finality4 ,perhaps----,it isn't----,you don't love any one else8 ,no1 said ,dan1 as a matter of course1 and not at all with reflection4 ,and then1 as his eyes went wandering1 there came over them a misty look1 just as the haze creeps between you and some object away out at sea1 and he seemed to be searching his very soul4 ,suddenly the look swept off them1 and his eyes struck mine1 and he turned1 not having meant to1 and faced me entirely1 and there came such a light into his countenance1 such a smile round his lips1 such a red stamped his cheek1 and he bent a little1--and it was just as if the angel of the ,lord had shaken his wings over us in passing1 and we both of us knew that here was a man and here was a woman1 each for the other1 in life and death2 and ,i just hid my head in my apron1 and mother turned on her pillow with a little moan4 ,how long that lasted ,i can't say1 but by-and-by ,i heard mother's voice1 clear and sweet as a tolling bell far away on some fair ,sunday morning1-- ,the ,lord is in his holy temple1 the ,lord's throne is in heaven3 his eyes behold1 his eyelids try the children of men4 ,and nobody spoke4 ,thou art my ,father1 my ,god1 and the rock of my salvation4 ,thou wilt light my candle3 the ,lord my ,god will enlighten my darkness4 ,for with thee is the fountain of life3 in thy light shall we see light4 ,then came the hush again1 and ,dan started to his feet1 and began to walk up and down the room as if something drove him2 but wearying1 he stood and leaned his head on the chimney there4 ,and mother's voice broke the stillness anew1 and she said1-- ,hath ,god forgotten to be gracious8 ,his mercy endureth forever4 ,and none of them that trust in him shall be desolate4 ,there was something in mother's tone that made me forget myself and my sorrow1 and look2 and there she was1 as she hadn't been before for six months1 half risen from the bed1 one hand up1 and her whole face white and shining with confident faith4 ,well1 when ,i see all that such trust has buoyed mother over1 ,i wish to goodness ,i had it3 ,i take more after ,martha4 ,but never mind1 do well here and you'll do well there1 say ,i4 ,perhaps you think it wasn't much1 the quiet and the few texts breathed through it2 but sometimes when one's soul's at a white heat1 it may be moulded like wax with a finger4 ,as for me1 maybe ,god hardened ,pharaoh's heart1--though how that was ,pharaoh's fault ,i never could see4 ,but ,dan1--he felt what it was to have a refuge in trouble1 to have a great love always extending over him like a wing2 he longed for it2 he couldn't believe it was his now1 he was so suddenly convicted of all sin and wickedness2 and something sprang up in his heart1 a kind of holy passion that he felt to be possible for this great and tender ,divine ,being2 and he came and fell on his knees by the side of the bed1 crying out for mother to show him the way2 and mother1 she put her hand on his head and prayed1--prayed1 oh1 so beautifully1 that it makes the water stand in my eyes now to remember what she said4 ,but ,i didn't feel so then1 my heart and my soul were rebellious1 and love for ,dan alone kept me under1 not love for ,god4 ,and in fact1 if ever ,i'd got to heaven then1 love for ,dan'd have been my only saving grace2 for ,i was mighty high-spirited1 as a girl4 ,well1 ,dan he never made open profession2 but when he left the house1 he went and asked ,faith to marry him4 ,now ,faith didn't care anything about ,dan1--except the quiet attachment that she couldn't help1 from living in the house with him1 and he'd always petted and made much of her1 and dressed her like a doll1--he wasn't the kind of man to take her fancy3 she'd have maybe liked some slender1 smooth-faced chap2 but ,dan was a black1 shaggy fellow1 with shoulders like the cross-tree1 and a length of limb like ,saul's1 and eyes set deep1 like lamps in caverns4 ,and he had a great1 powerful heart1--and1 oh1 how it was lost6 for she might have won it1 she might have made him love her1 since ,i would have stood wide away and aside for the sake of seeing him happy4 ,but ,faith was one of those that1 if they can't get what they want1 haven't any idea of putting up with what they have1--,god forgive me1 if ,i'm hard on the child6 ,and she couldn't give ,dan an answer right off1 but was loath to think of it1 and went flirting about among the other boys2 and ,dan1 when he saw she wasn't so easily gotten1 perhaps set more value on her4 ,for ,faith1 she grew prettier every day2 her great brown eyes were so soft and clear1 and had a wide1 sorrowful way of looking at you2 and her cheeks1 that were usually pale1 blossomed to roses when you spoke to her1 her hair drooping over them dark and silky2 and though she was slack and untidy and at loose ends about her dress1 she somehow always seemed like a princess in disguise2 and when she had on any thing new1--a sprigged calico1 and her little straw bonnet with the pink ribbons1 and ,mrs4 ,devereux's black scarf1 for instance1--you'd have allowed that she might have been daughter to the ,queen of ,sheba4 ,i don't know1 but ,i rather think ,dan wouldn't have said any more to ,faith1 from various motives1 you see1 notwithstanding the neighbors were still remonstrating with him1 if it hadn't been that ,miss ,brown--she that lived round the corner there2 the town's well quit of her now1 poor thing6--went to saying the same stuff to ,faith1 and telling her all that other folks said4 ,and ,faith went home in a passion1--some of your timid kind nothing ever abashes1 and nobody gets to the windward of them1--and1 being perfectly furious1 fell to accusing ,dan of having brought her to this1 so that ,dan actually believed he had1 and was cut to the quick with contrition1 and told her that all the reparation he could make he was waiting and wishing to make1 and then there came floods of tears4 ,some women seem to have set out with the idea that life's a desert for them to cross1 and they've laid in a supply of water-bags accordingly1--but it's the meanest weapon6 ,and then again1 there's men that are iron1 and not to be bent under calamities1 that these tears can twist round your little finger4 ,well1 ,i suppose ,faith concluded 'twas no use to go hungry because her bread wasn't buttered on both sides1 but she always acted as if she'd condescended ninety degrees in marrying ,dan1 and ,dan always seemed to feel that he'd done her a great injury2 and there it was4 ,i kept in the house for a time2 mother was worse4--and ,i thought the less ,dan saw of me the better2 ,i kind of hoped he'd forget1 and find his happiness where it ought to be4 ,but the first time ,i saw him1 when ,faith had been his wife all the spring1 there was the look in his eyes that told of the ache in his heart4 ,faith wasn't very happy herself1 of course1 though she was careless2 and she gave him trouble1--keeping company with the young men just as before2 and she got into a way of flying straight to me1 if ,dan ventured to reprove her ever so lightly2 and stormy nights1 when he was gone1 and in his long trips1 she always locked up her doors and came over and got into my bed2 and she was one of those that never listened to reason1 and it was none so easy for me1 you may suppose4 ,things had gone on now for some three years1 and ,i'd about lived in my books1--,i'd tried to teach ,faith some1 but she wouldn't go any farther than newspaper stories1--when one day ,dan took her and me to sail1 and we were to have had a clam-chowder on the ,point1 if the squall hadn't come4 ,as it was1 we'd got to put up with chicken-broth1 and it couldn't have been better1 considering who made it4 ,it was getting on toward the cool of the ,may evening1 the sunset was round on the other side of the house1 but all the east looked as if the sky had been stirred up with currant-juice1 till it grew purple and dark1 and then the two light-houses flared out and showed us the lip of froth lapping the shadowy shore beyond1 and ,i--heard father's voice1 and he came in4 ,there was nothing but the fire-light in the room1 and it threw about great shadows1 so that at first entering all was indistinct2 but ,i heard a foot behind father's1 and then a form appeared1 and something1 ,i never could tell what1 made a great shiver rush down my back1 just as when a creature is frightened in the dark at what you don't see1 and so1 though my soul was unconscious1 my body felt that there was danger in the air4 ,dan had risen and lighted the lamp that swings in the chimney1 and father first of all had gone up and kissed mother1 and left the stranger standing2 then he turned round1 saying1-- ,a tough day1--it's been a tough day2 and here's some un to prove it4 ,georgie1 hope that pot's steam don't belie it1 for ,mr4 ,gabriel ,verelay and ,i want a good supper and a good bed4 ,at this1 the stranger1 still standing1 bowed4 ,here's the one1 father1 said ,i4 ,but about the bed1--,faith'll have to stay here1--and ,i don't see--unless ,dan takes him over---- ,that ,i'll do1 said ,dan4 ,all right1 said the stranger1 in a voice that you didn't seem to notice while he was speaking1 but that you remembered afterwards like the ring of any silver thing that has been thrown down2 and he dropped his hat on the floor and drew near the fireplace1 warming hands that were slender and brown1 but shapely as a woman's4 ,i was taking up the supper2 so ,i only gave him a glance or two1 and saw him standing there1 his left hand extended to the blaze1 and his eye resting lightly and then earnestly on ,faith in her pretty sleep1 and turning away much as one turns from a picture4 ,at length ,i came to ask him to sit by1 and at that moment ,faith's eyes opened4 ,faith always woke up just as a baby does1 wide and bewildered1 and the fire had flushed her cheeks1 and her hair was disordered1 and she fixed her gaze on him as if he had stepped out of her dream1 her lips half parted and then curling in a smile1--but in a second he moved off with me1 and ,faith slipped down and into the little bedroom4 ,well1 we didn't waste many words until father'd lost the edge of his appetite1 and then ,i told about ,faith4 ',f that don't beat the ,dutch6 said father4 ,here's ,mr4--,mr4------ ,gabriel1 said the stranger4 ,yes1--,mr4 ,gabriel ,verelay been served the same trick by the same squall1 only worse and more of it1--knocked off the yacht--,what's that you call her8 ,la belle ,louise4 ,and left for drowned1--if they see him go at all4 ,but he couldn't 'a' sinked in that sea1 if he'd tried4 ,he kep' afloat2 we blundered into him2 and here he is4 ,dan and ,i looked round ,in considerable surprise1 for he was dry as an ,august leaf4 ,oh1 said the stranger1 coloring1 and with the least little turn of his words1 as if he didn't always speak ,english1 the good captain reached shore1 and1 finding sticks1 he kindled a fire1 and we did dry our clothes until it made fine weather once more4 ,yes1 said father2 but 't wouldn't been quite such fine weather1 ,i reckon1 if this 'd gone to the fishes6 ,and he pushed something across the table4 ,it was a pouch with steel snaps1 and well stuffed4 ,the stranger colored again1 and held his hand for it1 and the snap burst1 and great gold pieces1 ,english coin and very old ,french ones1 rolled about the table1 and father shut his eyes tight2 and just then ,faith came back and slipped into her chair4 ,i saw her eyes sparkle as we all reached1 laughing and joking1 to gather them2 and ,mr4 ,gabriel--we got into the way of calling him so1--he liked it best--hurried to get them out of sight as if he'd committed some act of ostentation4 ,and then1 to make amends1 he threw off what constraint he had worn in this new atmosphere of ours1 and was so gay1 so full of questions and quips and conceits1 all spoken in his strange way1 his voice was so sweet1 and he laughed so much and so like a boy1 and his words had so much point and brightness1 that ,i could think of nothing but the showers of colored stars in fireworks4 ,dan felt it like a play1 sat quiet1 but enjoying1 and ,i saw he liked it2--the fellow had a way of attaching every one4 ,father was uproarious1 and kept calling out1 ,mother1 do you hear8--d' you hear that1 mother8 ,and ,faith1 she was near1 taking it all in as a flower does sunshine1 only smiling a little1 and looking utterly happy4 ,then ,i hurried to clear up1 and ,faith sat in the great arm-chair1 and father got out the pipes1 and you could hardly see across the room for the wide tobacco-wreaths2 and then it was father's turn1 and he told story after story of the hardships and the dangers and the charms of our way of living4 ,and ,i could see ,mr4 ,gabriel's cheek blanch1 and he would bend forward1 forgetting to smoke1 and his breath coming short1 and then right himself like a boat after lurching1--he had such natural ways1 and except that he'd maybe been a spoiled child1 he would have had a good heart1 as hearts go4 ,and nothing would do at last but he must stay and live the same scenes for a little2 and father told him 't wouldn't pay2--they weren't so much to go through with as to tell of1--there was too much prose in the daily life1 and too much dirt1 and 't wa'n't fit for gentlemen4 ,oh1 he said1 he'd been used to roughing it1--woodsing1 camping and gunning and yachting1 ever since he'd been a free man4 ,he was ,canadian1 and had been cruising from the ,st4 ,lawrence to ,florida1 --and now1 as his companions would go on without him1 he had a mind to try a bit of coast-life4 ,and could he board here8 or was there any handy place8 ,and father said1 there was ,dan1--,dan ,devereux1 a man that hadn't his match at oar or helm4 ,and ,mr4 ,gabriel turned his keen eye and bowed again1--and couldn't ,dan take ,mr4 ,gabriel8 ,and before ,dan could answer1 for he'd referred it to ,faith1 ,mr4 ,gabriel had forgotten all about it1 and was humming a little ,french song and stirring the coals with the tongs4 ,and that put father off in a fresh remembrance2 and as the hours lengthened1 the stories grew fearful1 and he told them deep into the midnight1 till at last ,mr4 ,gabriel stood up4 ,no more1 good friend1 said he4 ,but ,i will have a taste of this life perilous4 ,and now where is it that ,i go8 ,dan also stood up4 ,my little woman1 said he1 glancing at ,faith1 thinks there's a corner for you1 ,sir4 ,i beg your pardon--,and ,mr4 ,gabriel paused1 with a shadow skimming over his clear dark face4 ,dan wondered what he was begging pardon for1 but thought perhaps he hadn't heard him1 so he repeated1-- ,my wife--nodding over his shoulder at ,faith1 she's my wife--thinks there's a---- ,she's your wife8 said ,mr4 ,gabriel1 his eyes opening and brightening the way an aurora runs up the sky1 and looking first at one and then at the other1 as if he couldn't understand how so delicate a flower grew on so thorny a stem4 ,the red flushed up ,dan's face1--and up mine too1 for the matter of that1--but in a minute the stranger had dropped his glance4 ,and why did you not tell me1 he said1 that ,i might have found her less beautiful8 ,then he raised his shoulders1 gave her a saucy bow1 with his hand on ,dan's arm1--,dan1 who was now too well pleased at having ,faith made happy by a compliment to sift it1--and they went out4 ,but ,i was angry enough2 and you may imagine ,i wasn't much soothed by seeing ,faith1 who'd been so die-away all the evening1 sitting up before my scrap of looking-glass1 trying in my old coral earrings1 bowing up my ribbons1 and plaiting and prinking till the clock frightened her into bed4 ,the next morning1 mother1 who wasn't used to such disturbance1 was ill1 and ,i was kept pretty busy tending on her for two or three days4 ,faith had insisted on going home the first thing after breakfast1 and in that time ,i heard no more of anybody1--for father was out with the night-tides1 and1 except to ask how mother did1 and if ,i'd seen the stray from the ,lobblelyese again1 was too tired for talking when he came back4 ,that had been--let me see--on a ,monday1 ,i think1--yes1 on a ,monday2 and ,thursday evening1 as in-doors had begun to tell on me1 and mother was so much improved1 ,i thought ,i'd run out for a walk along the seawall4 ,the sunset was creeping round everything1 and lying in great sheets on the broad1 still river1 the children were frolicking in the water1 and all was so gay1 and the air was so sweet1 that ,i went lingering along farther than ,i'd meant1 and by-and-by who should ,i see but a couple sauntering toward me at my own gait1 and one of them was ,faith4 ,she had on a muslin with little roses blushing all over it1 and she floated along in it as if she were in a pink cloud1 and she'd snatched a vine of the tender young woodbine as she went1 and1 throwing it round her shoulders1 held the two ends in one hand like a ribbon1 while with the other she swung her white sun-bonnet4 ,she laughed1 and shook her head at me1 and there1 large as life1 under the dark braids dangled my coral ear-rings1 that she'd adopted without leave or license4 ,she'd been down to the lower landing to meet ,dan1--a thing she'd done before ,i don't know when1--and was walking up with ,mr4 ,gabriel while ,dan stayed behind to see to things4 ,i kept them talking1 and ,mr4 ,gabriel was sparkling with fun1 for he'd got to feeling acquainted1 and it had put him in high spirits to get ashore at this hour1 though he liked the sea1 and we were all laughing1 when ,dan came up4 ,now ,i must confess ,i hadn't fancied ,mr4 ,gabriel over and above2 ,i suppose my first impression had hardened into a prejudice2 and after ,i'd fathomed the meaning of ,faith's fine feathers ,i liked him less than ever4 ,but when ,dan came up1 he joined right in1 gay and hearty1 and liking his new acquaintance so much1 that1 thinks ,i1 he must know best1 and ,i'll let him look out for his interests himself4 ,it would 'a' been no use1 though1 for ,dan to pretend to beat the ,frenchman at his own weapons1--and ,i don't know that ,i should have cared to have him4 ,the older ,i grow1 the less ,i think of your mere intellect2 throw learning out of the scales1 and give me a great1 warm heart1--like ,dan's4 ,well1 it was getting on in the evening1 when the latch lifted1 and in ran ,faith4 ,she twisted my ear-rings out of her hair1 exclaiming1-- ,oh1 ,georgie1 are you busy8 ,can't you perse my ears now8 ,pierce them yourself1 ,faith4 ,well1 pierce1 then4 ,but ,i can't1--you know ,i can't4 ,won't you now1 ,georgie8 and she tossed the ear-rings into my lap4 ,why1 ,faith1 said ,i1 how'd you contrive to wear these1 if your ears aren't-- ,oh1 ,i tied them on4 ,come now1 ,georgie6 ,so ,i got the ball of yarn and the darning-needle4 ,oh1 not such a big one6 cried she4 ,perhaps you'd like a cambric needle1 said ,i4 ,i don't want a winch1 she pouted4 ,well1 here's a smaller one4 ,now kneel down4 ,yes1 but you wait a moment1 till ,i screw up my courage4 ,no need4 ,you can talk1 and ,i'll take you at unawares4 ,so ,faith knelt down1 and ,i got all ready4 ,and what shall ,i talk about8 said she4 ,about ,aunt ,rhody1 or ,mr4 ,gabriel1 or--,i'll tell you the queerest thing1 ,georgie6 ,going to now8 ,do be quiet1 ,faith1 and not keep your head flirting about so6--for she'd started up to speak4 ,then she composed herself once more4 ,what was ,i saying8 ,oh1 about that4 ,yes1 ,georgie1 the queerest thing6 ,you see1 this evening1 when ,dan was out1 ,i was sitting talkin' with ,mr4 ,gabriel1 and he was wondering how ,i came to be dropped down here1 so ,i told him all about it4 ,and he was so interested that ,i went and showed him the things ,i had on when ,dan found me1--you know they've been kept real nice4 ,and he took them1 and looked them over1 close1 admiring them1 and--and--admiring me1--and finally he started1 and then held the frock to the light1 and then lifted a little plait1 and in the under side of the belt-lining there was a name very finely wrought1--,virginie des ,violets2 and he looked at all the others1 and in some hidden corner of every one was the initials of the same name1--,v4 des ,v4 ',that should be your name1 ,mrs4 ,devereux1' says he4 ',oh1 no6' says ,i4 ',my name's ,faith4' ,well1 and on that he asked1 was there no more2 and so ,i took off the little chain that ,i've always worn and showed him that1 and he asked if there was a face in it1 in what we thought was a coin1 you know2 and ,i said1 oh1 it didn't open2 and he turned it over and over1 and finally something snapped1 and there was a face1--here1 you shall see it1 ,georgie4 ,and ,faith drew it from her bosom1 and opened and held it before me2 for ,i'd sat with my needle poised1 and forgetting to strike4 ,and there was the face indeed1 a sad1 serious face1 dark and sweet1 yet the image of ,faith1 and with the same mouth1--that so lovely in a woman becomes weak in a man1--and on the other side there were a few threads of hair1 with the same darkness and fineness as ,faith's hair1 and under them a little picture chased in the gold and enamelled1 which1 from what ,i've read since1 ,i suppose must have been the crest of the ,des ,violets4 ,and what did ,mr4 ,gabriel say then8 ,i asked1 giving it back to ,faith1 who put her head into the old position again4 ,oh1 he acted real queer4 ',the very man6' he cried out4 ',the man himself6 ,his portrait1--,i have seen it a hundred times6' ,and then he told me that about a dozen years ago or more1 a ship sailed from--from--,i forget the place exactly1 somewhere up there where he came from1--,mr4 ,gabriel1 ,i mean1--and among the passengers was this man and his wife1 and his little daughter1 whose name was ,virginie des ,violets1 and the ship was never heard from again4 ,but he says that without a doubt ,i'm the little daughter and my name is ,virginie1 though ,i suppose every one'll call me ,faith4 ,oh1 and that isn't the queerest4 ,the queerest is1 this gentleman1 and ,faith lifted her head1 was very rich4 ,i can't tell you how much he owned4 ,lands that you can walk on a whole day and not come to the end1 and ships1 and gold4 ,and the whole of it's lying idle and waiting for an heir1--and ,i1 ,georgie1 am the heir4 ,and ,faith told it with cheeks burning and eyes shining1 but yet quite as if she'd been born and brought up in the knowledge4 ,it don't seem to move you much1 ,faith1 said ,i1 perfectly amazed1 although ,i'd frequently expected something of the kind4 ,well1 ,i may never get it1 and so on4 ,if ,i do1 ,i'll give you a silk dress and set you up in a book-store4 ,but here's a queerer thing yet4 ,des ,violets is the way ,mr4 ,gabriel's own name is spelt1 and his father and mine--his mother and--,well1 some way or other we're sort of cousins4 ,only think1 ,georgie6 isn't that--,i thought1 to be sure1 when he quartered at our house1 ,dan'd begin to take me to do1 if ,i looked at him sideways1--make the same fuss that he does1 if ,i nod to any of the other young men4 ,i don't think ,dan speaks before he should1 ,faith4 ,why don't you say ,virginie8 says she1 laughing4 ,because ,faith you've always been1 and ,faith you'll have to remain1 with us1 to the end of the chapter4 ,well1 that's as it may be4 ,but ,dan can't object now to my going where ,i'm a mind to with my own cousin6 ,and here ,faith laid her ear on the ball of yarn again4 ,hasten1 headsman6 said she1 out of a novel1 or they'll wonder where ,i am4 ,well1 ,i answered1 just let me run the needle through the emery4 ,yes1 ,georgie1 said ,faith1 going back with her memories while ,i sharpened my steel1 ,mr4 ,gabriel and ,i are kin4 ,and he said that the moment he laid eyes on me he knew ,i was of different blood from the rest of the people--4 ,what people8 asked ,i4 ,why1 you1 and ,dan1 and all these4 ,and he said he was struck to stone when he heard ,i was married to ,dan1--,i must have been entrapped1--the courts would annul it1--any one could see the difference between us-- ,here was my moment1 and ,i didn't spare it1 but jabbed the needle into the ball of yarn1 if her ear did lie between them4 ,yes6 says ,i1 anybody with half an eye can see the difference between you1 and that's a fact6 ,nobody'd ever imagine for a breath that you were deserving of ,dan1--,dan1 who's so noble he'd die for what he thought was right1--you1 who are so selfish and idle and fickle and-- ,and at that ,faith burst out crying4 ,oh1 ,i never expected you'd talk about me so1 ,georgie6 said she between her sobs4 ,how could ,i tell you were such a mighty friend of ,dan's8 ,and besides1 if ever ,i was ,virginie des ,violets1 ,i'm ,faith ,devereux now1 and ,dan'll resent any one's speaking so about his wife6 ,and she stood up1 the tears sparkling like diamonds in her flashing dark eyes1 her cheeks red1 and her little fist clenched4 ,that's the right spirit1 ,faith1 says ,i1 and ,i'm glad to see you show it4 ,and as for this young ,canadian1 the best thing to do with him is to send him packing4 ,i don't believe a word he says2 it's more than likely nothing but to get into your good graces4 ,but there's the names1 said she1 so astonished that she didn't remember she was angry4 ,happened so4 ,oh1 yes6 ',happened so' ,a likely story6 ,it's nothing but your envy1 and that's all6 ,faith6 says ,i1 for ,i forgot she didn't know how close she struck4 ,well1--,i mean----,there1 don't let's talk about it any more6 ,how under the sun am ,i going to get these ends tied8 ,come here4 ,there6 ,now for the other one4 ,no1 ,i sha'n't let you do that2 you hurt me dreadfully1 and you got angry and took the big needle4 ,i thought you expected to be hurt4 ,i didn't expect to be stabbed4 ,well1 just as you please4 ,i suppose you'll go round with one ear-ring4 ,like a little pig with his ear cropped8 ,no1 ,i shall do it myself4 ,see there1 ,georgie6 and she threw a bit of a box into my hands4 ,i opened it1 and there lay inside1 on their velvet cushion1 a pair of the prettiest things you ever saw1--a tiny bunch of white grapes1 and every grape a round pearl1 and all hung so that they would tinkle together on their golden stems every time ,faith shook her head1--and she had a cunning little way of shaking it often enough4 ,these must have cost a penny1 ,faith1 said ,i4 ,where'd you get them8 ,mr4 ,gabriel gave them to me1 just now4 ,he went up-town and bought them4 ,and ,i don't want him to know that my ears weren't bored4 ,mr4 ,gabriel8 ,and you took them8 ,of course ,i took them1 and mighty glad to get them4 ,faith1 dear1 said ,i1 don't you know that you shouldn't accept presents from gentlemen1 and especially now you're a married woman1 and especially from those of higher station8 ,but he isn't higher4 ,you know what ,i mean4 ,and then1 too1 he is2 for one always takes rank from one's husband4 ,faith looked rather downcast at this4 ,yes1 said ,i1--and pearls and calico---- ,just because you haven't got a pair yourself6 ,there1 be still6 ,i don't want any of your instructions in duty6 ,you ought to put up with a word from a friend1 ,faith1 said ,i4 ,you always come to me with your grievances4 ,and ,i'll tell you what ,i'll do4 ,you used to like these coral branches of mine2 and if you'll give those back to ,mr4 ,gabriel1 you shall have the coral4 ,well1 ,faith she hesitated1 standing there trying to muster her mind to the needle1 and it ended by her taking the coral1 though ,i don't believe she returned the pearls1--but we none of us ever saw them afterwards4 ,we'd been talking in a pretty low tone1 because mother was asleep2 and just as she'd finished the other ear1 and a little drop of blood stood up on it like a live ruby1 the door opened and ,dan and ,mr4 ,gabriel came in4 ,there never was a prettier picture than ,faith at that moment1 and so the young stranger thought1 for he stared at her1 smiling and at ease1 just as if she'd been hung in a gallery and he'd bought a ticket4 ,so then he sat down and repeated to ,dan and mother what she'd told me1 and he promised to send for the papers to prove it all4 ,but he never did send for them1--delaying and delaying1 till the summer wore away2 and perhaps there were such papers and perhaps there weren't4 ,i've always thought he didn't want his own friends to know where he was4 ,dan might be a rich man to-day1 if he chose to look them up2 but he'd scorch at a slow fire before he'd touch a copper of it4 ,father never believed a word about it1 when we recited it again to him4 ,so ,faith 'a come into her fortune1 has she8 said he4 ,pretty child6 ,she 'a'n't had so much before sence she fell heir to old ,miss ,devereux's best chany1 her six silver spoons1 and her surname4 ,so the days passed1 and the greater part of every one ,mr4 ,gabriel was dabbling in the water somewhere4 ,there wasn't a brook within ten miles that he didn't empty of trout1 for ,dan knew the woods as well as the shores1 and he knew the clear nights when the insects can keep free from the water so that next day the fish rise hungry to the surface2 and so sometimes in the brightest of ,may noons they'd bring home a string of those beauties1 speckled with little tongues of flame2 and ,mr4 ,gabriel would have them cooked1 and make us all taste them1--for we don't care much for that sort1 down here on the ,flats2 we should think we were famished1 if we had to eat fish4 ,and then they'd lie in wait all day for the darting pickerel in the little ,stream of ,shadows above2 and when it came ,june1 up the river he went trolling for bass1 and he used a different sort of bait from the rest1--bass won't bite much at clams1--and he hauled in great forty-pounders4 ,and sometimes in the afternoons he took out ,faith and me1--for1 as ,faith would go1 whether or no1 ,i always made it a point to put by everything and go too2 and ,i used to try and get some of the other girls in1 but ,mr4 ,gabriel never would take them1 though he was hail-fellow-well-met with everybody1 and was everybody's favorite1 and it was known all round how he found out ,faith1 and that alone made him so popular1 that ,i do believe1 if he'd only taken out naturalization-papers1 we'd have sent him to ,general ,court4 ,and then it grew time for the river-mackerel1 and they used to bring in at sunset two or three hundred in a shining heap1 together with great lobsters that looked as if they'd been carved out of heliotrope-stone1 and so old that they were barnacled4 ,and it was so novel to ,mr4 ,gabriel1 that he used to act as if he'd fallen in fairy-land4 ,after all1 ,i don't know what we should have done without him that summer3 he always paid ,dan or father a dollar a day and the hire of the boat2 and the times were so hard1 and there was so little doing1 that1 but for this1 and packing the barrels of clam-bait1 they'd have been idle and fared sorely4 ,but we'd rather have starved3 though1 as for that1 ,i've heard father say there never was a time when he couldn't go out and catch some sort of fish and sell it for enough to get us something to eat4 ,and then this ,mr4 ,gabriel1 he had such a winning way with him1 he was as quick at wit as a bird on the wing1 he had a story or a song for every point1 he seemed to take to our simple life as if he'd been born to it1 and he was as much interested in all our trifles as we were ourselves4 ,then he was so sympathetic1 he felt everybody's troubles1 he went to the city and brought down a wonderful doctor to see mother1 and he got her queer things that helped her more than you'd have thought anything could1 and he went himself and set honeysuckles out all round ,dan's house1 so that before summer was over it was a bower of great sweet blows1 and he had an alms for every beggar1 and a kind word for every urchin1 and he followed ,dan about as a child would follow some big shaggy dog4 ,he introduced1 too1 a lot of new-fangled games2 he was what they called a gymnast1 and in feats of rassling there wasn't a man among them all but he could stretch as flat as a flounder4 ,and then he always treated4 ,everybody had a place for him soon1--even ,i did2 and as for ,dan1 he'd have cut his own heart out of his body1 if ,mr4 ,gabriel 'd had occasion to use it4 ,he was a different man from any ,dan 'd ever met before1 something finer1 and he might have been better1 and ,dan's loyal soul was glad to acknowledge him master1 and ,i declare ,i believe he felt just as the ,jacobites in the old songs used to feel for royal ,charlie4 ,there are some men born to rule with a haughty1 careless sweetness1 and others born to die for them with stern and dogged devotion4 ,well1 and all this while ,faith wasn't standing still2 she was changing steadily1 as much as ever the moon changed in the sky4 ,i noticed it first one day when ,mr4 ,gabriel'd caught every child in the region and given them a picnic in the woods of the ,stack-,yard-,gate1 and ,faith was nowhere to be seen tiptoeing round every one as she used to do1 but ,i found her at last standing at the head of the table1--,mr4 ,gabriel dancing here and there1 seeing to it that all should be as gay as he seemed to be1--quiet and dignified as you please1 and feeling every one of her inches4 ,but it wasn't dignity really that was the matter with ,faith1--it was just gloom4 ,she'd brighten up for a moment or two and then down would fall the cloud again1 she took to long fits of dreaming1 and sometimes she'd burst out crying at any careless word1 so that my heart fairly bled for the poor child1--for one couldn't help seeing that she'd some secret unhappiness or other2 and ,i was as gentle and soothing to her as it's in my nature to be4 ,she was in to our house a good deal2 she kept it pretty well out of ,dan's way1 and ,i hoped she'd get over it sooner or later1 and make up her mind to circumstances4 ,and ,i talked to her a sight about ,dan1 praising him constantly before her1 though ,i couldn't hear to do it2 and finally1 one very confidential evening1 ,i told her that ,i'd been in love with ,dan myself once a little1 but ,i'd seen that he would marry her1 and so had left off thinking about it2 for1 do you know1 ,i thought it might make her set more price on him now1 if she knew somebody else had ever cared for him4 ,well1 that did answer awhile3 whether she thought she ought to make it up to ,dan1 or whether he really did grow more in her eyes1 ,faith got to being very neat and domestic and praiseworthy4 ,but still there was the change1 and it didn't make her any the less lovely4 ,indeed1 if ,i'd been a man1 ,i should have cared for her more than ever3 it was like turning a child into a woman3 and ,i really think1 as ,dan saw her going about with such a pleasant gravity1 her pretty figure moving so quietly1 her pretty face so still and fair1 as if she had thoughts and feelings now1 he began to wonder what had come over ,faith1 and1 if she were really as charming as this1 why he hadn't felt it before2 and then1 you know1 whether you love a woman or not1 the mere fact that she's your wife1 that her life is sunk in yours1 that she's something for you to protect and that your honor lies in doing so1 gives you a certain kindly feeling that might ripen into love any day under sunshine and a south wall4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,methods ,,of ,,study ,,in ,,natural ,,history ,,xi4 ,among the astounding discoveries of modern science is that of the immense periods which have passed in the gradual formation of our earth4 ,so vast were the cycles of time preceding even the appearance of man on the surface of our globe1 that our own period seems as yesterday when compared with the epochs that have gone before it4 ,had we only the evidence of the deposits of rock heaped above each other in regular strata by the slow accumulation of materials1 they alone would convince us of the long and slow maturing of ,god's work on the earth but when we add to these the successive populations of whose life this world has been the theatre1 and whose remains are hidden in the rocks into which the mud or sand or soil of whatever kind on which they lived has hardened in the course of time1--or the enormous chains of mountains whose upheaval divided these periods of quiet accumulation by great convulsions1--or the changes of a different nature in the configuration of our globe1 as the sinking of lands beneath the ocean1 or the gradual rising of continents and islands above it1--or the wearing of great river-beds1 or the filling of extensive water-basins1 till marshes first and then dry land succeeded to inland seas1--or the slow growth of coral reefs1 those wonderful sea-walls raised by the little ocean-architects whose own bodies furnish both the building-stones and the cement that binds them together1 and who have worked so busily during the long centuries1 that there are extensive countries1 mountain-chains1 islands1 and long lines of coast consisting solely of their remains1--or the countless forests that must have grown up1 flourished1 died1 and decayed1 to fill the storehouses of coal that feed the fires of the human race to-day1--if we consider all these records of the past1 the intellect fails to grasp a chronology for which our experience furnishes no data1 and the time that lies behind us seems as much an eternity to our conception as the future that stretches indefinitely before us4 ,the physical as well as the human history of the world has its mythical age1 lying dim and vague in the morning mists of creation1 like that of the heroes and demigods in the early traditions of man1 defying all our ordinary dates and measures4 ,but if the succession of periods that prepared the earth for the coming of man1 and the animals and plants that accompany him on earth1 baffles our finite attempts to estimate its duration1 have we any means of determining even approximately the length of the period to which we ourselves belong8 ,if so1 it may furnish us with some data for the further solution of these wonderful mysteries of time1 and it is besides of especial importance with reference to the question of permanence of ,species4 ,those who maintain the mutability of ,species1 and account for all the variety of life on earth by the gradual changes wrought by time and circumstances1 do not accept historical evidence as affecting the question at all4 ,the monuments of those oldest nations1 all whose history is preserved in monumental records1 do not indicate the slightest variation of organic types from that day to this4 ,the animals that were preserved within their tombs or carved upon their walls by the ancient ,egyptians were the same as those that have their home in the valley of the ,nile today2 the negro1 whose peculiar features are unmistakable even in their rude artistic attempts to represent them1 was the same woolly-haired1 thick-lipped1 flat-nosed1 dark-skinned being in the days of the ,rameses that he is now4 ,the ,apis1 the ,ibis1 the ,crocodiles1 the sacred ,beetles1 have brought down to us unchanged all the characters that superstition hallowed in those early days4 ,the stony face of the ,sphinx is not more true to its past1 nor the massive architecture of the ,pyramids more unchanged1 than they are4 ,but the advocates of the mutability of ,species say truly enough that the most ancient traditions are but as yesterday in the world's history1 and that what six thousand years could not do sixty thousand years might effect4 ,leaving aside1 then1 all historical chronology1 how far back can we trace our own geological period1 and the ,species belonging to it8 ,by what means can we determine its duration8 ,within what limits1 by what standard1 may it be measured8 ,shall hundreds1 or thousands1 or hundreds of thousands1 or millions of years be the unit from which we start8 ,i will begin this inquiry with a series of facts which ,i myself have had an opportunity of investigating with especial care respecting the formation and growth of the ,coral ,reefs of ,florida4 ,but first a few words on ,coral ,reefs in general4 ,they are living limestone walls that are built up from certain depths in the ocean by the natural growth of a variety of animals1 but limited by the level of high-water1 beyond which they cannot rise1 since the little beings that compose them die as soon as they are removed from the vitalizing influence of the pure sea-water4 ,these walls have a variety of outlines3 they may be straight1 circular1 semicircular1 oblong1 according to the form of the coast along which the little ,reef-,builders establish themselves2 and their height is1 of course1 determined by the depth of the bottom on which they rest4 ,if they settle about an island on all sides of which the conditions for their growth are equally favorable1 they will raise a wall all around it1 thus encircling it with a ring of ,coral growth4 ,the ,athols in the ,pacific ,ocean1 those circular islands inclosing sometimes a fresh-water lake in mid-ocean1 are ,coral walls of this kind1 that have formed a ring around a central island4 ,this is easily understood1 if we remember that the bottom of the ,pacific ,ocean is by no means a stable foundation for such a structure4 ,on the contrary1 over a certain area1 which has already been surveyed with some accuracy by ,professor ,dana1 during the ,united ,states ,exploring ,expedition1 it is subsiding2 and if an island upon which the ,reef-,builders have established themselves be situated in that area of subsidence1 it will1 of course1 sink with the floor on which it rests1 carrying down also the ,coral wall to a greater depth in the sea4 ,in such instances1 if the rate of subsidence be more rapid than the rate of growth in the ,corals1 the island and the wall itself will disappear beneath the ocean4 ,but whenever1 on the contrary1 the rate of increase in the wall is greater than that of subsidence in the island1 while the latter gradually sinks below the surface1 the former rises in proportion1 and by the time it has completed its growth the central island has vanished1 and there remains only a ring of ,coral ,reef1 with here and there a break1 perhaps1 at some spot where the more prosperous growth of the ,corals has been checked4 ,if1 however1 as sometimes happens1 there is no such break1 and the wall is perfectly uninterrupted1 the sheet of sea-water so inclosed may be changed to fresh water by the rains that are poured into it4 ,such a water-basin will remain salt1 it is true1 in its lower part1 and the fact that it is affected by the rise and fall of the tides shows that it is not entirely secluded from communication with the ocean outside2 but the salt water1 being heavier1 sinks1 while the lighter rain-water remains above1 and it is to all appearance actually changed into a fresh-water lake4 ,i need not dwell here on the further history of such a ,coral island1 or follow it through the changes by which the summit of its circular wall becomes covered with a fertile soil1 a tropical vegetation springs up on it1 and it is at last perhaps inhabited by man4 ,there is something very attractive in the idea of these green rings inclosing sheltered harbors and quiet lakes in mid-ocean1 and the subject has lost none of its fascination since the mystery of their existence has been solved by the investigations of several contemporary naturalists who have enabled us to trace the whole story of their structure4 ,i would refer all who wish for a more detailed account of them to ,charles ,darwin's charming little volume on ,coral ,reefs1 where their mode of formation is fully described1 and also to ,james ,d4 ,dana's ,geological ,report of the ,united ,states ,exploring ,expedition4 ,coral ,reefs are found only in tropical regions3 although ,polyps1 animals of the same class as those chiefly instrumental in their formation1 are found in all parts of the globe1 yet the ,reef-,building ,polyps are limited to the ,tropics4 ,we are too apt to forget that the homes of animals are as definitely limited in the water as on the land4 ,indeed1 the subject of the geographical distribution of animals according to laws that are established by altitude1 by latitude and longitude1 by pressure of atmosphere or pressure of water1 already alluded to in a previous article1 is exceedingly interesting1 and presents a most important field of investigation4 ,the climatic effect of different degrees of altitude upon the growth of animals and plants is the same as that of different degrees of latitude2 and the slope of a high mountain in the ,tropics1 from base to summit1 presents1 in a condensed form1 an epitome1 as it were1 of the same kind of gradation in vegetable growth that may be observed from the ,tropics to the ,arctics4 ,at the base of such a mountain we have all the luxuriance of growth characteristic of the tropical forest1--the ,palms1 the ,bananas1 the ,bread-trees1 the ,mimosas2 higher up1 these give way to a different kind of growth1 corresponding to our ,oaks1 ,chestnuts1 ,maples1 etc42 as these wane1 on the loftier slopes comes in the ,pine forest1 fading gradually1 as it ascends1 into a dwarfish growth of the same kind2 and this at last gives way to the low creeping ,mosses and ,lichens of the greater heights1 till even these find a foothold no longer1 and the summit of the mountain is clothed in perpetual snow and ice4 ,what have we here but the same series of changes through which we pass1 if1 travelling northward from the ,tropics1 we leave ,palms and ,pomegranates and ,bananas behind1 where the ,live-,oaks and ,cypresses1 the ,orange-trees and ,myrtles of the warmer ,temperate ,zone come in1 and these die out as we reach the ,oaks1 ,chestnuts1 ,maples1 ,elms1 ,nut-trees1 ,beeches1 and ,birches of the colder ,temperate ,zone1 these again waning as we enter the ,pine forests of the ,arctic borders1 till1 passing out of these1 nothing but a dwarf vegetation1 a carpet of ,moss and ,lichen1 fit food for the ,reindeer and the ,esquimaux1 greets us1 and beyond that lies the region of the snow and ice fields1 impenetrable to all but the daring ,arctic voyager8 ,i have thus far spoken of the changes in the vegetable growth alone as influenced by altitude and latitude1 but the same is equally true of animals4 ,every zone of the earth's surface has its own animals1 suited to the conditions under which they are meant to live2 and with the exception of those that accompany man in all his pilgrimages1 and are subject to the same modifying influences by which he adapts his home and himself to all climates1 animals are absolutely bound by the laws of their nature within the range assigned to them4 ,nor is this the case only on land1 where river-banks1 lake-shores1 and mountain-ranges might be supposed to form the impassable boundaries that keep animals within certain limits2 but the ocean as well as the land has its faunae and florae bound within their respective zological and botanical provinces2 and a wall of granite is not more impassable to a marine animal than that ocean-line1 fluid and flowing and ever-changing though it be1 on which is written for him1 ,hitherto shalt thou come1 but no farther4 ,one word as to the effect of pressure on animals will explain this4 ,we all live under the pressure of the atmosphere4 ,now thirty-two feet under the sea doubles that pressure1 since a column of water of that height is equal in weight to the pressure of one atmosphere4 ,at the depth of thirty-two feet1 then1 any marine animal is under the pressure of two atmospheres1--that of the air which surrounds our globe1 and of a weight of water equal to it2 at sixty-four feet he is under the pressure of three atmospheres1 and so on1--the weight of one atmosphere being always added for every thirty-two feet of depth4 ,there is a great difference in the sensitiveness of animals to this pressure4 ,some fishes live at a great depth and find the weight of water genial to them1 while others would be killed at once by the same pressure1 and the latter naturally seek the shallow waters4 ,every fisherman knows that he must throw a long line for a ,halibut1 while with a common fishing-rod he will catch plenty of ,perch from the rocks near the shore2 and the differently colored bands of sea-weed revealed by low tide1 from the green line of the ,ulvas through the brown zone of the common ,fucas to the rosy and purple hued sea-weeds of the deeper water show that the florae as well as the faunae of the ocean have their precise boundaries4 ,this wider or narrower range of marine animals is in direct relation to their structure1 which enables them to bear a greater or less pressure of water4 ,all fishes1 and1 indeed1 all animals having a wide range of distribution in ocean-depths1 have a special apparatus of water-pores1 so that the surrounding element penetrates their structure1 thus equalizing the pressure of the weight1 which is diminished from without in proportion to the quantity of water they can admit into their bodies4 ,marine animals differ in their ability to sustain this pressure1 just as land animals differ in their power of enduring great variations of climate and of atmospheric pressure4 ,of all air-breathing animals1 none exhibits a more surprising power of adapting itself to great and rapid changes of external influences than the ,condor4 ,it may be seen feeding on the sea-shore under a burning tropical sun1 and then1 rising from its repast1 it floats up among the highest summits of the ,andes and is lost to sight beyond them1 miles above the line of perpetual snow1 where the temperature must be lower than that of the ,arctics4 ,but even the ,condor1 sweeping at one flight from tropic heat to arctic cold1 although it passes through greater changes of temperature1 does not undergo such changes of pressure as a fish that rises from a depth of sixty-four feet to the surface of the sea2 for the former remains within the air that surrounds our globe1 and therefore the increase or diminution of pressure to which it is subjected must be confined within the limits of one atmosphere1 while the latter1 at a depth of sixty-four feet1 is under a weight equal to that of three such atmospheres1 which is reduced to one when it reaches the sea-level4 ,the change is even much greater for those fishes that come from a depth of several hundred feet4 ,these laws of limitation in space explain many facts in the growth of ,coral ,reefs that would be otherwise inexplicable1 and which ,i will endeavor to make clear to my readers4 ,for a long time it was supposed that the ,coral animals inhabited very deep waters1 for they were sometimes brought up on sounding-lines from a depth of many hundreds or even thousands of feet1 and it was taken for granted that they must have had their home where they were found2 but the facts recently ascertained respecting the subsidence of ocean-bottoms have shown that the foundation of a ,coral wall may have sunk far below the place where it was laid1 and it is now proved beyond a doubt that no ,reef-,building ,coral can thrive at a depth of more than fifteen fathoms1 though ,corals of other kinds occur far lower1 and that the dead ,reef-,corals sometimes brought to the surface from much greater depths are only broken fragments of some ,reef that has subsided with the bottom on which it was growing4 ,but though fifteen fathoms is the maximum depth at which any ,reef-,builder can prosper1 there are many which will not sustain even that degree of pressure1 and this fact has1 as we shall see1 an important influence on the structure of the ,reef4 ,imagine now a sloping shore on some tropical coast descending gradually below the surface of the sea4 ,upon that slope1 at a depth of from ten to twelve or fifteen fathoms1 and two or three or more miles from the main-land1 according to the shelving of the shore1 we will suppose that one of those little ,coral animals to whom a home in such deep waters is genial has established itself4 ,how it happens that such a being1 which we know is immovably attached to the ground and forms the foundation of a solid wall1 was ever able to swim freely about in the water till it found a suitable resting-place1 ,i shall explain hereafter1 when ,i say something of the mode of reproduction of these animals4 ,accept1 for the moment1 my unsustained assertion1 and plant our little ,coral on this sloping shore some twelve or fifteen fathoms below the surface of the sea4 ,the internal structure of such a ,coral corresponds to that of the ,sea-,anemone3 the body is divided by vertical partitions from top to bottom1 leaving open chambers between1 while in the centre hangs the digestive cavity connecting by an opening in the bottom with all these chambers2 at the top is an aperture which serves as a mouth1 surrounded by a wreath of hollow tentacles1 each one connecting at its base with one of the chambers1 so that all parts of the animal communicate freely with each other4 ,but though the structure of the ,coral is identical in all its parts with that of the ,sea-,anemone1 it nevertheless presents one important difference4 ,the body of the ,sea-,anemone is soft1 while that of the ,coral is hard4 ,it is well known that all animals and plants have the power of appropriating to themselves and assimilating the materials they need1 each selecting from the surrounding elements whatever contributes to its well-being4 ,the plant takes carbon1 the animal takes oxygen1 each rejecting what the other requires4 ,we ourselves build our bones with the lime that we find unconsciously in the world around us2 much of our nourishment supplies us with it1 and the very vegetables we eat have1 perhaps1 themselves been fed from some old lime strata deposited centuries ago4 ,we all represent materials that have contributed to construct our bodies4 ,now ,corals possess1 in an extraordinary degree1 the power of assimilating to themselves the lime contained in the salt water around them2 and as soon as our little ,coral is established on a firm foundation1 a lime deposit begins to form in all the walls of its body1 so that its base1 its partitions1 and its outer wall1 which in the ,sea-,anemone remain always soft1 become perfectly solid in the ,polyp ,coral and form a frame as hard as bone4 ,it may naturally be asked where the lime comes from in the sea which the ,corals absorb in such quantities4 ,as far as the living ,corals are concerned the answer is easy1 for an immense deal of lime is brought down to the ocean by rivers that wear away the lime deposits through which they pass4 ,the ,mississippi1 whose course lies through extensive lime regions1 brings down yearly lime enough to supply all the animals living in the ,gulf of ,mexico4 ,but behind this lies a question not so easily settled1 as to the origin of the extensive deposits of limestone found at the very beginning of life upon earth4 ,this problem brings us to the threshold of astronomy1 for limestone is metallic in character1 susceptible therefore of fusion1 and may have formed a part of the materials of our earth1 even in an incandescent state1 when the worlds were forming4 ,but though this investigation as to the origin of lime does not belong either to the naturalist or the geologist1 its suggestion reminds us that the time has come when all the sciences and their results are so intimately connected that no one can be carried on independently of the others4 ,since the study of the rocks has revealed a crowded life whose records are hoarded within them1 the work of the geologist and the naturalist has become one and the same1 and at that border-land where the first crust of the earth condensed out of the igneous mass of materials which formed its earliest condition their investigation mingles with that of the astronomer1 and we cannot trace the limestone in a little ,coral without going back to the creation of our solar system1 when the worlds that compose it were thrown off from a central mass in a gaseous condition4 ,when the ,coral has become in this way permeated with lime1 all parts of the body are rigid1 with the exception of the upper margin1 the stomach1 and the tentacles4 ,the tentacles are soft and waving1 projected or drawn in at will1 and they retain their flexible character through life1 and decompose when the animal dies4 ,for this reason the dried specimens of ,corals preserved in museums do not give us the least idea of the living ,corals1 in which every one of the millions of beings composing such a community is crowned by a waving wreath of white or green or rose-colored tentacles4 ,as soon as the little ,coral is fairly established and solidly attached to the ground1 it begins to bud4 ,this may take place in a variety of ways1 dividing at the top or budding from the base or from the sides1 till the primitive animal is surrounded by a number of individuals like itself1 of which it forms the nucleus1 and which now begin to bud in their turn1 each one surrounding itself with a numerous progeny1 all remaining1 however1 attached to the parent4 ,such a community increases till its individuals are numbered by millions2 and ,i have myself counted no less than fourteen millions of individuals in a ,coral mass measuring not more than twelve feet in diameter4 ,these are the so-called ,coral heads which form the foundation of a ,coral wall1 and their massive character and regular form seem to be especially adapted to give a strong1 solid base to the whole structure4 ,they are known in our classifications as the ,astraeans1 so named on account of the star-shaped form of the little pits that are crowded upon the surface1 each one marking the place of a single individual in such a community4 ,thus firmly and strongly is the foundation of the reef laid by the ,astraeans2 but we have seen that for their prosperous growth they require a certain depth and pressure of water1 and when they have brought the wall so high that they have not more than six fathoms of water above them1 this kind of ,coral ceases to grow4 ,they have1 however1 prepared a fitting surface for different kinds of ,corals that could not live in the depths from which the ,astraeans have come1 but find their genial home nearer the surface2 such a home being made ready for them by their predecessors1 they now establish themselves on the top of the ,coral wall and continue its growth for a certain time4 ,these are the ,mandrinas1 or the so-called ,brain-,corals1 and the ,porites4 ,the ,mandrinas differ from the ,astraeans by their less compact and definite pits4 ,in the ,astraeans the place occupied by the animal in the community is marked by a little star-shaped spot1 in the centre of which all the partition-walls meet4 ,but in the ,mandrinas1 although all the partitions converge toward the central opening1 as in the ,astraeans1 these central openings elongate1 run into each other1 and form waving furrows all over the surface1 instead of the small round pits so characteristic of the ,astraeans4 ,the ,porites resemble the ,astraeans1 but the pits are smaller1 with fewer partitions and fewer tentacles1 and their whole substance is more porous4 ,but these also have their bounds within the sea3 they in their turn reach the limit beyond which they are forbidden by the laws of their nature to pass1 and there they also pause4 ,but the ,coral wall continues its steady progress2 for here the lighter kinds set in1--the ,madrepores1 the ,millepores1 and a great variety of ,sea-,fans and ,corallines1 and the reef is crowned at last with a many-colored shrubbery of low feathery growth4 ,these are all branching in form1 and many of them are simple calciferous plants1 though most of them are true animals1 resembling1 however1 delicate ,algae more than any marine animals2 but1 on examination of the latter1 one finds them to be covered with myriads of minute dots1 each representing one of the little beings out of which the whole is built4 ,i would add here one word on the true nature of the ,millepores1 long misunderstood by naturalists1 because it throws light not only on some interesting facts respecting ,coral ,reefs1 especially the ancient ones1 but also because it tells us something of the early inhabitants of the globe1 and shows us that a class of ,radiates supposed to be missing in that primitive creation had its representatives then as now4 ,in the diagram of the geological periods introduced in a previous article1 ,i have represented all the three classes of ,radiates1 ,polyps1 ,acalephs1 and ,echinoderms1 as present on the first floor of our globe that was inhabited at all4 ,but it is only recently that positive proofs have been found of the existence of ,acalephs or ,jelly-,fishes1 as they are called1 at that early period4 ,their very name indicates their delicate structure2 and were there no remains preserved in the rocks of these soft1 transparent creatures1 it would yet be no evidence that they did not exist4 ,fragile as they are1 however1 they have left here and there some faint record of themselves1 and in the ,museum at ,carlsruhe1 on a slab from ,solenhofen1 ,i have seen a very perfect outline of one which remains undescribed to this day4 ,this1 however1 does not carry them farther back than the ,jurassic period1 and it is only lately that ,i have satisfied myself that they not only existed1 but were among the most numerous animals in the first representation of organic life4 ,the earliest ,corals correspond in certain features of their structure to the ,millepores4 ,they differ from them as all early animals differ from the succeeding ones1 every geological period having its special set of representatives4 ,but still they are always true to their class1 and have a certain general correspondence with animals of like kind that follow them in later periods4 ,in this sense the ,millepores are in our epoch the representatives of those early ,corals called by naturalists ,tabulata and ,rugosa1--distinguished from the ,polyp ,corals by the horizontal floors1 waving in some1 straight in others1 which divide the body transversely at successive heights through its whole length1 and also by the absence of the vertical partitions1 extending from top to bottom of each animal1 so characteristic of the true ,polyps4 ,as ,i have said1 they were for a long time supposed1 notwithstanding these differences1 to be ,polyps1 and ,i had shared in this opinion1 till1 during the winter of #aheg1 while pursuing my investigations on the ,coral ,reefs of ,florida1 one of these ,millepores revealed itself to me in its true character of ,acaleph4 ,it is by its soft parts alone--those parts which are seen only in its living state1 and when the animal is fully open--that its ,acalephian character can be perceived1 and this accounts for its being so long accepted as a ,polyp1 when studied in the dry ,coral stock4 ,nothing could exceed my astonishment when for the first time ,i saw such an animal fully expanded1 and found it to be a true ,acaleph4 ,it is exceedingly difficult to obtain a view of them in this state1 for1 at any approach1 they draw themselves in1 and remain closed to all investigation4 ,only once1 for a short hour1 ,i had this opportunity2 during that time one of these little creatures revealed to me its whole structure1 as if to tell me1 once for all1 the story of its existence through all the successive epochs from the dawn of ,creation till now1 and then withdrew4 ,with my most patient watching1 ,i have never been able to see one of them open again4 ,but to establish the fact that one of the ,corals represented from the earliest period till now1 and indeed far more numerous in the beginning than any other1 was in truth no ,polyp1 but an ,acaleph1 the glimpse ,i had was all-sufficient4 ,it came out as if to bear witness of its class1--as if to say1 ,we1 too1 were among the hosts of living beings with which ,god first peopled ,his earth4 ,with these branching ,corals the reef reaches the level of high-water1 beyond which1 as ,i have said1 there can be no further growth1 for want of the action of the fresh sea-water4 ,this dependence upon the vivifying influence of the sea accounts for one unfailing feature in the ,coral walls4 ,they are always abrupt and steep on the seaward side1 but have a gentle slope towards the land4 ,this is accounted for by the circumstance that the ,corals on the outer side of the reef are in immediate contact with the pure ocean-water1 while by their growth they partially exclude the inner ones from the same influence1--the rapid growth of the latter being also impeded by any impurity or foreign material washed away from the neighboring shore and mingling with the water that fills the channel between the main-land and the reef4 ,thus the ,coral ,reefs1 whether built around an island1 or concentric to a rounding shore1 or along a straight line of coast1 are always shelving toward the land1 while they are comparatively abrupt and steep toward the sea4 ,this should be remembered1 for1 as we shall see hereafter1 it has an important bearing on the question of time as illustrated by ,coral ,reefs4 ,i have spoken of the budding of ,corals1 by which each one becomes the centre of a cluster2 but this is not the only way in which they multiply their kind4 ,they give birth to eggs also1 which are carried on the inner edge of their partition-walls1 till they drop into the sea1 where they float about1 little1 soft1 transparent1 pear-shaped bodies1 as unlike as possible to the rigid stony structure they are to assume hereafter4 ,in this condition they are covered with vibratile cilia or fringes1 that are always in rapid1 uninterrupted motion1 and keep them swimming about in the water4 ,it is by means of these little germs of the ,corals1 swimming freely about during their earliest stages of growth1 that the reef is continued1 at the various heights where special kinds die out1 by those that prosper at shallower depths2 otherwise it would be impossible to understand how this variety of building material1 as it were1 is introduced wherever it is needed4 ,this point1 formerly a puzzle to naturalists1 has become quite clear since it has been found that myriads of these little germs are poured into the water surrounding a reef4 ,there they swim about till they find a genial spot on which to establish themselves1 when they become attached to the ground by one end1 while a depression takes place at the opposite end1 which gradually deepens to form the mouth and inner cavity1 while the edges expand to form the tentacles1 and the productive life of the little ,coral begins3 it buds from every side1 and becomes the foundation of a new community4 ,i should add1 that1 beside the ,polyps and the ,acalephs1 ,mollusks also have their representatives among the ,corals4 ,there is a group of small ,mollusks called ,bryozoa1 allied to the ,clams by their structure1 but excessively minute when compared to the other members of their class1 which1 like the other ,corals1 harden in consequence of an absorption of solid materials1 and contribute to the formation of the reef4 ,besides these1 there are certain plants1 limestone ,algae1--,corallines1 as they are called1--which have their share also in the work4 ,i had intended to give some account of the ,coral ,reefs of ,florida1 and to show what bearing they have upon the question of time and the permanence of ,species2 but this cursory sketch of ,coral ,reefs in general has grown to such dimensions that ,i must reserve a more particular account of the ,florida ,reefs and ,keys for a future article4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,spirits4 ,did you ever see a ghost8 said a gentleman to his friend4 ,no1 but ,i once came very nigh seeing one1 was the facetious reply4 ,the writer of this article has had still better luck1--having twice come very nigh seeing a ghost4 ,in other words1 two friends1 in whose veracity and healthy clearness of vision ,i have perfect confidence1 have assured me that they have distinctly seen a disembodied spirit4 ,if ,i had permission to do so1 ,i would record the street in ,boston1 and the number of the house1 where the first of these two apparitions was seen2 but that would be unpleasant to parties concerned4 ,years ago1 the lady who witnessed it told me the particulars1 and ,i have recently heard her repeat them4 ,a cousin1 with whom her relations were as intimate as with a brother1 was in the last stages of consumption4 ,one morning1 when she carried him her customary offering of fruit or flowers1 she found him unusually bright1 his cheeks flushed1 his eyes brilliant1 and his state of mind exceedingly cheerful4 ,he talked of his recovery and future plans in life with hopefulness almost amounting to certainty4 ,this made her somewhat sad1 for she regarded it as a delusion of his flattering disease1 a flaring up of the life-candle before it sank in the socket4 ,she thus reported the case1 when she returned home4 ,in the afternoon she was sewing as usual1 surrounded by her mother and sisters1 and listening to one who was reading aloud4 ,while thus occupied1 she chanced to raise her eyes from her work and glance to the opposite corner of the room4 ,her mother1 seeing her give a sudden start1 exclaimed1 ,what is the matter8 ,she pointed to the corner of the room and replied1 ,there is ,cousin ------6 ,they all told her she had been dreaming1 and was only half wakened4 ,she assured them she had not even been drowsy2 and she repeated with great earnestness1 ,there is ,cousin ------1 just as ,i saw him this morning4 ,don't you see him8 ,she could not measure the time that the vision remained2 but it was long enough for several questions and answers to pass rapidly between herself and other members of the family4 ,in reply to their persistent incredulity1 she said1 ,it is very strange that you don't see him2 for ,i see him as plainly as ,i do any of you4 ,she was so obviously awake and in her right mind1 that the incident naturally made an impression on those who listened to her4 ,her mother looked at her watch1 and despatched a messenger to inquire how ,cousin ------ did4 ,word was soon brought that he died at the same moment he had appeared in the house of his relatives4 ,the lady who had this singular experience is too sensible and well-informed to be superstitious4 ,she was not afflicted with any disorder of the nerves1 and was in good health at the time4 ,to my other story ,i can give a local habitation and a name well known4 ,when ,harriet ,hosmer1 the sculptor1 visited her native country a few years ago1 ,i had an interview with her1 during which our conversation happened to turn upon dreams and visions4 ,i have had some experience in that way1 said she4 ,let me tell you a singular circumstance that happened to me in ,rome4 ,an ,italian girl named ,rosa was in my employ for a long time1 but was finally obliged to return to her mother1 on account of confirmed ill-health4 ,we were mutually sorry to part1 for we liked each other4 ,when ,i took my customary exercise on horseback1 ,i frequently called to see her4 ,on one of these occasions1 ,i found her brighter than ,i had seen her for some time past4 ,i had long relinquished hopes of her recovery1 but there was nothing in her appearance that gave me the impression of immediate danger4 ,i left her with the expectation of calling to see her again many times4 ,during the remainder of the day ,i was busy in my studio1 and ,i do not recollect that ,rosa was in my thoughts after ,i parted from her4 ,i retired to rest in good health and in a quiet frame of mind4 ,but ,i woke from a sound sleep with an oppressive feeling that some one was in the room4 ,i wondered at the sensation1 for it was entirely new to me2 but in vain ,i tried to dispel it4 ,i peered beyond the curtain of my bed1 but could distinguish no objects in the darkness4 ,trying to gather up my thoughts1 ,i soon reflected that the door was locked1 and that ,i had put the key under my bolster4 ,i felt for it1 and found it where ,i had placed it4 ,i said to myself that ,i had probably had some ugly dream1 and had waked with a vague impression of it still on my mind4 ,reasoning thus1 ,i arranged myself comfortably for another nap4 ,i am habitually a good sleeper1 and a stranger to fear2 but1 do what ,i would1 the idea still haunted me that some one was in the room4 ,finding it impossible to sleep1 ,i longed for daylight to dawn1 that ,i might rise and pursue my customary avocations4 ,it was not long before ,i was able dimly to distinguish the furniture in my room1 and soon after ,i heard1 in the apartments below1 familiar noises of servants opening windows and doors4 ,an old clock1 with ringing vibrations1 proclaimed the hour4 ,i counted one1 two1 three1 four1 five1 and resolved to rise immediately4 ,my bed was partially screened by a long curtain looped up at one side4 ,as ,i raised my head from the pillow1 ,rosa looked inside the curtain1 and smiled at me4 ,the idea of anything supernatural did not occur to me4 ,i was simply surprised1 and exclaimed1 ',why1 ,rosa6 ,how came you here1 when you are so ill8' ,in the old familiar tones1 to which ,i was so much accustomed1 a voice replied1 ',i am well1 now4' ,with no other thought than that of greeting her joyfully1 ,i sprang out of bed4 ,there was no ,rosa there6 ,i moved the curtain1 thinking she might perhaps have playfully hidden herself behind its folds4 ,the same feeling induced me to look into the closet4 ,the sight of her had come so suddenly1 that1 in the first moment of surprise and bewilderment1 ,i did not reflect that the door was locked4 ,when ,i became convinced there was no one in the room but myself1 ,i recollected that fact1 and thought ,i must have seen a vision4 ,at the breakfast-table1 ,i said to the old lady with whom ,i boarded1 ',rosa is dead4' ',what do you mean by that8' she inquired4 ',you told me she seemed better than common when you called to see her yesterday4' ,i related the occurrences of the morning1 and told her ,i had a strong impression ,rosa was dead4 ,she laughed1 and said ,i had dreamed it all4 ,i assured her ,i was thoroughly awake1 and in proof thereof told her ,i had heard all the customary household noises1 and had counted the clock when it struck five4 ,she replied1 ',all that is very possible1 my dear4 ,the clock struck into your dream4 ,real sounds often mix with the illusions of sleep4 ,i am surprised that a dream should make such an impression on a young lady so free from superstition as you are4' ,she continued to jest on the subject1 and slightly annoyed me by her persistence in believing it a dream1 when ,i was perfectly sure of having been wide awake4 ,to settle the question1 ,i summoned a messenger and sent him to inquire how ,rosa did4 ,he returned with the answer that she died that morning at five o'clock4 ,i wrote the story as ,miss ,hosmer told it to me1 and after ,i had shown it to her1 ,i asked if she had any objection1 to its being published1 without suppression of names4 ,she replied1 ,you have reported the story of ,rosa correctly4 ,make what use you please of it4 ,you cannot think it more interesting1 or unaccountable1 than ,i do myself4 ,a remarkable instance of communication between spirits at the moment of death is recorded in the ,life of the ,rev4 ,joseph ,s4 ,buckminster1 written by his sister4 ,when he was dying in ,boston1 their father was dying in ,vermont1 ignorant of his son's illness4 ,early in the morning1 he said to his wife1 ,my son ,joseph is dead4 ,she told him he had been dreaming4 ,he calmly replied1 ,i have not slept1 nor dreamed4 ,he is dead4 ,when letters arrived from ,boston1 they announced that the spirit of the son had departed from his body the same night that the father received an impression of it4 ,such incidents suggest curious psychological inquiries1 which ,i think have attracted less attention than they deserve4 ,it is common to explain all such phenomena as optical illusions produced by disordered nerves4 ,but is that any explanation8 ,how do certain states of the nerves produce visions as distinct as material forms8 ,in the two cases ,i have mentioned1 there was no disorder of the nerves1 no derangement of health1 no disquietude of mind4 ,similar accounts come to us from all nations1 and from the remotest periods of time2 and ,i doubt whether there ever was a universal superstition that had not some great1 unchangeable truth for its basis4 ,some secret laws of our being are wrapt up in these occasional mysteries1 and in the course of the world's progress we may perhaps become familiar with the explanation1 and find genuine philosophy under the mask of superstition4 ,when any well-authenticated incidents of this kind are related1 it is a very common inquiry1 ,what are such visions sent for8 ,the question implies a supposition of miraculous power1 exerted for a temporary and special purpose4 ,but would it not be more rational to believe that all appearances1 whether spiritual or material1 are caused by the operation of universal laws1 manifested under varying circumstances8 ,in the infancy of the world1 it was the general tendency of the human mind to consider all occasional phenomena as direct interventions of the gods1 for some special purpose at the time4 ,thus1 the rainbow was supposed to be a celestial road1 made to accommodate the swift messenger of the gods1 when she was sent on an errand1 and withdrawn as soon as she had done with it4 ,we now know that the laws of the refraction and reflection of light produce the radiant iris1 and that it will always appear whenever drops of water in the air present themselves to the sun's rays in a suitable position4 ,knowing this1 we have ceased to ask what the rainbow appears for4 ,that a spiritual form is contained within the material body is a very ancient and almost universal belief4 ,hindoo books of the remotest antiquity describe man as a triune being1 consisting of the soul1 the spiritual body1 and the material body4 ,this form within the outer body was variously named by ,grecian poets and philosophers4 ,they called it the soul's image1 the invisible body1 the arial body1 the shade4 ,sometimes they called it the sensuous soul1 and described it as all eye and all ear1--expressions which cannot fail to suggest the phenomena of clairvoyance4 ,the shade of ,hercules is described by poets as dwelling in the ,elysian ,fields1 while his body was converted to ashes on the earth1 and his soul was dwelling on ,olympus with the gods4 ,swedenborg speaks of himself as having been a visible form to angels in the spiritual world2 and members of his household1 observing him at such times1 describe the eyes of his body on earth as having the expression of one walking in his sleep4 ,he tells us1 that1 when his thoughts turned toward earthly things1 the angels would say to him1 ,now we are losing sight of you3 and he himself felt that he was returning to his material body4 ,for several years of his life1 he was in the habit of seeing and conversing familiarly with visitors unseen by those around him4 ,the deceased brother of the ,queen of ,sweden repeated to him a secret conversation1 known only to himself and his sister4 ,the ,queen had asked for this1 as a test of ,swedenborg's veracity2 and she became pale with astonishment when every minute particular of her interview with her brother was reported to her4 ,swedenborg was a sedate man1 apparently devoid of any wish to excite a sensation1 engrossed in scientific pursuits1 and remarkable for the orderly habits of his mind4 ,the intelligent and enlightened ,german1 ,nicolai1 in the later years of his life1 was accustomed to find himself in the midst of persons whom he knew perfectly well1 but who were invisible to others4 ,he reasoned very calmly about it1 but arrived at no solution more satisfactory than the old one of optical illusion1 which is certainly a very inadequate explanation4 ,instances are recorded1 and some of them apparently well authenticated1 of persons still living in this world1 and unconscious of disease1 who have seen themselves in a distinct visible form1 without the aid of a mirror4 ,it would seem as if such experiences had not been confined to any particular part of the world2 for they have given birth to a general superstition that such apparitions are a forerunner of death1--or1 in other words1 of the complete separation of the spiritual body from the natural body4 ,a friend related to me the particulars of a fainting-fit1 during which her body remained senseless an unusually long time4 ,when she was restored to consciousness1 she told her attendant friends that she had been standing near the sofa all the time1 watching her own lifeless body1 and seeing what they did to resuscitate it4 ,in proof thereof she correctly repeated to them all they had said and done while her body remained insensible4 ,those present at the time corroborated her statement1 so far as her accurate knowledge of all their words1 looks1 and proceedings was concerned4 ,the most numerous class of phenomena concerning the spiritual body relate to its visible appearance to others at the moment of dissolution4 ,there is so much testimony on this subject1 from widely separated witnesses1 that an unprejudiced mind1 equally removed from superstition and skepticism1 inclines to believe that they must be manifestations of some hidden law of our mysterious being4 ,plato says that everything in this world is merely the material form of some model previously existing in a higher world of ethereal spiritual forms2 and ,swedenborg's beautiful doctrine of ,correspondences is a reappearance of the same idea4 ,if their theory be true1 may not the antecedent type of that strange force which in the material world we call electricity be a spiritual magnetism4 ,as yet1 we know extremely little of the laws of electricity1 and we know nothing of those laws of spiritual attraction and repulsion which are perhaps the cause of electricity4 ,there may be subtile and as yet unexplained causes1 connected with the state of the nervous system1 the state of the mind1 the accord of two souls under peculiar circumstances1 etc41 which may sometimes enable a person who is in a material body to see another who is in a spiritual body4 ,that such visions are not of daily occurrence may be owing to the fact that it requires an unusual combination of many favorable circumstances to produce them2 and when they do occur1 they seem to us miraculous simply because we are ignorant of the laws of which they are transient manifestations4 ,lord ,bacon says1--,the relations touching the force of imagination and the secret instincts of ,nature are so uncertain1 as they require a great deal of examination ere we conclude upon them4 ,i would have it first thoroughly inquired whether there be any secret passages of sympathy between persons of near blood1--as parents1 children1 brothers1 sisters1 nurse-children1 husbands1 wives1 etc4 ,there be many reports in history1 that1 upon the death of persons of such nearness1 men have had an inward feeling of it4 ,i myself remember1 that1 being in ,paris1 and my father dying in ,london1 two or three days before my father's death ,i had a dream1 which ,i told to divers ,english gentlemen1 that my father's house in the country was plastered all over with black mortar4 ,next to those that are near in blood1 there may be the like passage and instincts of ,nature between great friends and great enemies4 ,some trial also would be made whether pact or agreement do anything3 as1 if two friends should agree1 that1 such a day in every week1 they1 being in far distant places1 should pray one for another1 or should put on a ring or tablet one for another's sake1 whether1 if one of them should break their vow and promise1 the other should have any feeling of it in absence4 ,this query of ,lord ,bacon1 whether an agreement between two distant persons to think of each other at a particular time may not produce an actual nearness between their spirits1 is suggestive4 ,people partially drowned and resuscitated have often described their last moments of consciousness as flooded with memories1 so that they seemed to be surrounded by the voices and countenances of those they loved4 ,if this is common when soul and body are approaching dissolution1 may not such concentration of loving thoughts produce an actual nearness1 filling the person thought of with a feeling as if somebody were in the room8 ,and if the feeling thus induced is very powerful1 may not the presence thus felt become objective1 or1 in other words1 a vision8 ,the feeling of the nearness of spirits to when the thoughts are busily occupied with them may have led to the almost universal belief among ancient nations that the souls of the dead came back on the anniversary of their death to the places where their bodies were deposited4 ,this belief invested their tombs with peculiar sacredness1 and led the wealthy to great expense in their construction4 ,egyptians1 ,greeks1 and ,romans built them with upper apartments1 more or less spacious4 ,these chambers were adorned with vases1 sculptures1 and paintings on the walls1 varying in costliness and style according to the means or taste of the builder4 ,the tomb of ,cestius in ,rome contained a chamber much ornamented with paintings4 ,ancient ,egyptian tombs abound with sculptures and paintings1 probably representative of the character of the deceased4 ,thus1 on the walls of one a man is pictured throwing seed into the ground1 followed by a troop of laborers2 farther on1 the same individual is represented as gathering in the harvest2 then he is seen in procession with wife1 children1 friends1 and followers1 carrying sheaves to the temple1 a thank-offering to the gods4 ,this seems to be a painted epitaph1 signifying that the deceased was industrious1 prosperous1 and pious4 ,it was common to deposit in these tombs various articles of use or ornament1 such as the departed ones had been familiar with and attached to1 while on earth4 ,many things in the ancient sculptures indicate that ,egyptian women were very fond of flowers4 ,it is a curious fact1 that little china boxes with ,chinese letters on them1 like those in which the ,chinese now sell flower-seeds1 have been discovered in some of these tombs4 ,probably the ladies buried there were partial to exotics from ,china2 and perhaps friends placed them there with the tender thought that the spirit of the deceased would be pleased to see them1 when it came on its annual visit4 ,sometimes these paintings and sculptures embodied ideas reaching beyond the earthly existence1 and the arial body was represented floating among stars1 escorted by what we should call angels1 but which they named ,spirits of the ,sun4 ,families and friends visited these consecrated chambers on the anniversary of the death of those whose bodies were placed in the room below4 ,they carried with them music and flowers1 cakes and wine4 ,religious ceremonies were performed1 with the idea that the invisible body was present with them and took part in the prayers and offerings4 ,the visitors talked together of past scenes1 and doubtless their conversation abounded with touching allusions to the character and habits of the unseen friend supposed to be listening4 ,it was1 in fact1 an annual family-gathering1 scarcely sadder in its memories than is our ,thanksgiving festival to those who have travelled far on the pilgrimage of life4 ,st4 ,paul teaches that there is a natural body1 and there is a spiritual body4 ,the early ,christians had a very vivid faith1 that1 when the soul dropped its outer envelope of flesh1 it continued to exist in a spiritual form4 ,when any of their number died1 they observed the anniversary of his departure by placing on the altar an offering to the church1 in his name4 ,on such occasions1 they partook of the sacrament1 with the full belief that his unseen form was present with them1 and shared in the sacred rite1 as he had done while in the material body4 ,on the anniversary of the death of martyrs1 there were such commemorations in all the churches2 and that their spirits were believed to be present is evident from the fact that numerous petitions were addressed to them4 ,in the ,roman ,catacombs1 where many of the early ,christians were buried1 are apartments containing sculptures and paintings of apostles and martyrs4 ,they are few and rude1 because the ,christians of that period were poor1 and used such worldly goods as they had more for benevolence than for show4 ,but these memorials1 in such a place1 indicate the same feeling that adorned the magnificent tombs of ,egypt1 ,greece1 and ,rome4 ,these subterranean apartments were used for religious meetings in the first centuries of our era1 and it is generally supposed that they were chosen as safe hiding-places from persecution4 ,very likely it was so2 but it is not improbable that the spot had peculiar attractions to worshippers1 from the feeling that they were in the midst of an unseen congregation1 whose bodies were buried there4 ,if it was so1 it would be but one of many proofs that the early ,christians mixed with their new religion many of the traditions and ceremonies of their forefathers1 who had been educated in other forms of faith4 ,even in our own time1 threads of these ancient traditions are more or less visible through the whole warp and woof of our literature and our customs4 ,many of the tombs in the ,cemetery of ,pre la ,chaise have pretty upper apartments4 ,on the anniversary of the death of those buried beneath1 friends and relatives carry thither flowers and garlands4 ,women often spend the entire day there1 and parties of friends assemble to partake of a picnic repast4 ,most of the ancient nations annually observed a day in honor of the ,souls of ,ancestors4 ,this naturally grew out of the custom of meeting in tombs to commemorate the death of relatives4 ,as generations passed away1 it was unavoidable that many of the very old sepulchres should be seldom or never visited4 ,still it was believed that the shades even of remote ancestors hovered about their descendants and were cognizant of their doings4 ,it was impossible to observe separately the anniversaries of departed millions1 and therefore a day was set apart for religious ceremonies in honor of all ancestors4 ,hindoo and ,chinese families have from time immemorial consecrated such days2 and the ,romans observed a similar anniversary under the name of ,parentalia4 ,christians retained this ancient custom1 but it took a new coloring from their peculiar circumstances4 ,the ties of the church were substituted for ties of kindred4 ,its members were considered spiritual fathers and brothers1 and there was an annual festival in honor of spiritual ancestors4 ,the forms greatly resembled those of the ,roman ,parentalia4 ,the gathering-place was usually at the tomb of some celebrated martyr1 or in some chapel consecrated to his memory4 ,crowds of people came from all quarters to implore the spirits of the martyrs to send them favorable seasons1 good crops1 healthy children1 etc41 just as the old ,romans had been accustomed to invoke the names of their ancestors for similar blessings4 ,prayers were repeated1 hymns sung1 and offerings presented to the church1 as aforetime to the gods4 ,a great banquet was prepared1 and wine was drunk to the souls of the martyrs so freely that complete intoxication was common4 ,in view of this and other excesses1 the pious among the bishops exerted their influence to abolish the custom4 ,but it was so intertwined with the traditional faith of the populace1 and so gratifying to their social propensities1 that it was a long time before it could be suppressed4 ,a vestige of the old anniversaries in honor of the ,souls of ,ancestors remains in the ,catholic ,church under the name of ,all-,souls' ,day4 ,in ,france1 the ,parentalia of the ancient ,romans is annually observed under the name of ,le ,jour des ,morts4 ,all ,paris flock to the cemeteries1 bearing bouquets1 crosses1 and garlands to decorate the tombs of departed ancestors1 relatives1 and friends4 ,the gay population is1 for that day1 sobered by tender and solemn memories4 ,many a tear glistens on the wreaths1 and the passing traveller notices many a one whose trembling lips and swollen eyelids indicate that the soul is immersed in recollections of departed loved ones4 ,the cities of the dead bloom with fresh flowers1 in multifarious forms of crosses1 crowns1 and hearts4 ,from all the churches prayers ascend for those who have dropped their earthly garment of flesh1 and who live henceforth in the spiritual body1 which becomes more and more beautiful with the progress of the soul1--it being1 as the ancients called it1 the soul's image4 ,,the ,,titmouse4 ,you shall not be over-bold ,when you deal with arctic cold1 ,as late ,i found my lukewarm blood ,chilled wading in the snow-choked wood4 ,how should ,i fight8 my foeman fine ,has million arms to one of mine4 ,east1 west1 for aid ,i looked in vain2 ,east1 west1 north1 south1 are his domain4 ,miles off1 three dangerous miles1 is home2 ,must borrow his winds who there would come4 ,up and away for life6 be fleet6 ,the frost-king ties my fumbling feet1 ,sings in my ears1 my hands are stones1 ,curdles the blood to the marble bones1 ,tugs at the heartstrings1 numbs the sense1 ,hems in the life with narrowing fence4 ,well1 in this broad bed lie and sleep1 ,the punctual stars will vigil keep1 ,embalmed by purifying cold1 ,the winds shall sing their dead-march old1 ,the snow is no ignoble shroud1 ,the moon thy mourner1 and the cloud4 ,softly1--but this way fate was pointing1 ',twas coming fast to such anointing1 ,when piped a tiny voice hard by1 ,gay and polite1 a cheerful cry1 ,chic-chic-a-dee-dee6 saucy note1 ,out of sound heart and merry throat1 ,as if it said1 ,good day1 good ,sir6 ,fine afternoon1 old passenger6 ,happy to meet you in these places1 ,where ,january brings few men's faces4 ,this poet1 though he live apart1 ,moved by a hospitable heart1 ,sped1 when ,i passed his sylvan fort1 ,to do the honors of his court1 ,as fits a feathered lord of land1 ,flew near1 with soft wing grazed my hand1 ,hopped on the bough1 then1 darting low1 ,prints his small impress on the snow1 ,shows feats of his gymnastic play1 ,head downward1 clinging to the spray4 ,here was this atom in full breath ,hurling defiance at vast death1 ,this scrap of valor just for play ,fronts the north-wind in waistcoat gray1 ,as if to shame my weak behavior4 ,i greeted loud my little saviour3 ,thou pet6 what dost here8 and what for8 ,in these woods1 thy small ,labrador1 ,at this pinch1 wee ,san ,salvador6 ,what fire burns in that little chest1 ,so frolic1 stout1 and self-possest8 ,didst steal the glow that lights the ,west8 ,henceforth ,i wear no stripe but thine3 ,ashes and black all hues outshine4 ,why are not diamonds black and gray1 ,to ape thy dare-devil array8 ,and ,i affirm the spacious ,north ,exists to draw thy virtue forth4 ,i think no virtue goes with size3 ,the reason of all cowardice ,is1 that men are overgrown1 ,and1 to be valiant1 must come down ,to the titmouse dimension4 ',tis good-will makes intelligence1 ,and ,i began to catch the sense ,of my bird's song3 ,live out of doors1 ,in the great woods1 and prairie floors4 ,i dine in the sun2 when he sinks in the sea1 ,i1 too1 have a hole in a hollow tree4 ,and ,i like less when summer beats ,with stifling beams on these retreats ,than noontide twilights which snow makes ,with tempest of the blinding flakes3 ,for well the soul1 if stout within1 ,can arm impregnably the skin2 ,and polar frost my frame defied1 ,made of the air that blows outside4 ,with glad remembrance of my debt1 ,i homeward turn4 ,farewell1 my pet6 ,when here again thy pilgrim comes1 ,he shall bring store of seeds and crumbs4 ,henceforth ,i prize thy wiry chant ,o'er all that mass and minster vaunt3 ,for men mishear thy call in spring1 ,as 'twould accost some frivolous wing1 ,crying out of the hazel copse1 ,phe--be6 ,and in winter1 ,chic-a-dee-dee6 ,i think old ,caesar must have heard ,in ,northern ,gaul my dauntless bird1 ,and1 echoed in some frosty wold1 ,borrowed thy battle-numbers bold4 ,and ,i shall write our annals new1 ,and thank thee for a better clew3 ,i1 who dreamed not1 when ,i came here1 ,to find the antidote of fear1 ,now hear thee say in ,roman key1 ,paean6 ,ve-ni1 ,vi-di1 ,vi-ci4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,saltpetre ,,as ,a ,,source ,,of ,,power4 ,every element of strength in a civilized community demands special notice4 ,the present material progress of nations brings us every day in contact with the application of power under various conditions1 and the most thoughtless person is to some extent influenced mentally by the improvements1 taking the places of older means and ways of adaptation1 in the arts of life4 ,we travel by the aid of steam-power1 and we think and speak of a locomotive or a steamboat as we once thought and spoke of a horse or a man2 and no little feeling of self-sufficiency is engendered by the conclusion that this new source of power has been brought under control and put to work in our day4 ,it is also true that we do not always entertain the most correct view of what we term the new power of locomotive and steamboat2 and as it may aid us in some further steps connected with the subject of my remarks1 a familiar object1 such as a steamboat1 may be taken as illustrative of the application of power1 and we may thus obtain some simple ideas of what power truly is1 in ,nature4 ,my travelled friend considers a steamboat as a ship propelled by wheels1 the shaft to which they are attached being moved by the machinery4 ,he follows back to the piston of the engine and finds the motor there1--satisfied that he has discovered in the transference of rectilinear to rotatory motion the reason for the progress of the boat4 ,a more inquisitive friend does not rest here1 but assumes that the power of the steam flowing through the machine sets in action its parts2 and he rests from farther pursuit of the power1 where the larger number of those who give any observation to the application of steam are found1--gratified with the knowledge accumulated1 and the readiness with which an explanation of the motion of the boat can be traced to the power of steam as its source4 ,we must proceed a little farther on our backward course from the point where the power is applied1 and in our analysis consider the steam as only the vehicle or carrier of the power2 and examining the conditions1 we find that water acted on by fire1 while contained in a suitable vessel1 after some time takes up certain properties which enable it to go forward and move the ponderous machinery of the boat4 ,the water evidently here derives its new character of steam from the fire1 and we have now reached the source of the movement of steam1 and traced it to the fire4 ,in fact1 we have found the source of power1 in this most mechanical of all mechanical machines1 to be removed from the department of knowledge which treats of machines6 ,but we need not pause here1 although we must now enter a little way into chemical1 instead of mechanical science4 ,the fire prepares the water to act as a carrier of power2 it must contain power1 therefore2 and what is it which we call fire8 ,in placing on the grate coal or wood1 and providing for the contact of a continuous current of air1 we intend to bring about certain chemical actions as consequent on a disposition which we know coal and wood to possess4 ,when we apply fire1 the chemical actions commence and the usual effects follow4 ,now1 if we for a moment dismiss the consideration of the means adopted1 it becomes apparent to every one1 that1 as the fire will continue to increase with successive additions of fuel1 or as it will continue indefinitely with a regular supply1 there must be something else than mere motor action here4 ,we cannot call it chemical action1 and dismiss the thought1 and neglect further inquiry1 unless we would place ourselves with those who regard the movement of the steamboat as being due to the machinery4 ,our farther progress in this analysis will soon open a wide field of knowledge and inquiry2 but it is sufficient for our present purpose1 if1 by a careful study of the composition and chemical disposition of the proximate compounds of the coal and the wood fuel1 we arrive at the conclusion that both are the result of forces which1 very slight in themselves at any moment1 yet when acting through long periods of time become laid up in the form of coal and wood4 ,all that effort which the tree has exhibited during its growth from the germ of the seed to its state of maturity1 when taken as fuel1 is pent up in its substance1 ready1 when fire is applied1 to escape slowly and continuously4 ,in the case of the coal1 after the growth of the plant from which it was formed1 the material underwent changes which enabled it to conserve more forces1 and to exhibit more energy when fire is applied to its mass2 and hence the distinction between wood and coal4 ,our analysis thus far has developed the source of the power moving the steamboat as existing in the gradual action of forces influencing vegetation1 concentrated and locked up in the fuel4 ,for the purpose of illustrating the subject of this essay1 we require no farther progress in this direction4 ,a moment of thought at this point and we shall cease to consider steam-power as new2 for1 long before man appeared on this earth1 the vegetation was collecting and condensing those ordinary natural powers which we find in fuel4 ,in our time1 too1 the rains and dews1 heat1 motion1 and gaseous food1 are being stored up in a wondrous manner1 to serve as elements of power which may be used and applied now or hereafter4 ,in this view1 too1 we may include the winds1 the falling of rain1 the ascent and descent of sap1 the condensation of gases1--in short1 the natural powers1 exerted before1--as the cause of motion in the steamboat4 ,passing from these considerations not unconnected with the subject1 let us inquire what saltpetre is1 and how it is formed4 ,the term ,saltpetre is applied to a variety of bodies1 distinguished1 however1 by their bases1 as potash saltpetre1 soda saltpetre1 lime saltpetre1 etc41 which occur naturally4 ,they are all compounds of nitric acid and bases1 or the gases nitrogen and oxygen united to bases1 and are found in all soils which have not been recently washed by rains1 and which are protected from excessive moisture4 ,the decomposition of animal and of some vegetable bodies in the soil causes the production of one constituent of saltpetre1 while the earth and the animal remains supply the other4 ,evaporation of pure water from the surface of the earth causes the moisture which rises from below to bring to the surface the salt dissolved in it2 and as this salt is not volatile1 the escape of the moisture leaves it at or near the surface4 ,hence1 under buildings1 especially habitations of men and animals1 the salt accumulates1 and in times of scarcity it may be collected4 ,in all cases of its extraction from the earth several kinds of saltpetre are obtained1 and the usual course is to decompose these by the addition of salts of potash1 so as to form from them potash saltpetre1 the kind most generally consumed4 ,in this decomposition of animal remains and the formation of saltpetre the air performs an important part1 and the changes it effects are worthy of our attention4 ,let us consider the arial ocean surrounding our earth and resting upon it1 greatly larger in mass and extent than the more familiar aqueous ocean below it1 and more closely and momentarily affecting our well-being4 ,the pure air1 consisting of #bj4if volumes of oxygen gas and #gi4jd volumes of nitrogen gas1 preserves1 under all the variations of climate and height above the surface of the earth1 a remarkable constancy of composition1--the variation of one one-hundredth part never having been observed4 ,but additions and subtractions are being constantly made1 and the atmosphere1 as distinguished from the pure air1 is mixed with exhalations from countless sources on the land and the sea4 ,wherever man moves1 his fire1 his food1 the materials of his dwellings1 the soil he disturbs1 all add their volatile parts to the atmosphere4 ,vegetation1 death1 and decay pour into it copiously substances foreign to the composition of pure air4 ,the combustion of one ton of coal adds at least sixteen tons of impurity to the atmosphere2 and when we estimate on the daily consumption of coal the addition from this source alone1 the amount becomes enormous4 ,experiments have been made for the purpose of estimating these additions1 and the results of those most carefully conducted show how very slightly the combined causes affect the general composition of our atmosphere2 and although the present refined methods of chemists enable them to detect the presence of an abnormal amount of some substances1 no research has yet been successful in determining how far this varies from the natural quantity at all times necessarily present in the atmosphere4 ,it is1 however1 the comparatively minute portions of nitrogenous matter in the atmosphere that we are to consider as the source of the nitrous acids formed there1 and of part of that found in the earth4 ,from some experiments made during the day and night it has been found1 that1 under the most favorable circumstances1 six millions six hundred and seventy thousand parts of air afford one part of nitrogenous bodies1 if the whole quantity be abstracted6 ,a portion only of this quantity can be withdrawn in natural operations1 such as the falling of rain and the deposition of dew1--the larger part always remaining behind4 ,when the oxygen of our atmosphere is exposed1 while in its usual hygrometric state1 to the influence of bodies attracting a portion of it1 such as decomposing substances1 or when it forms the medium of electrical discharges1 it suddenly assumes new powers1 acquires a greatly increased activity1 affects our organs of smell1 dissolves in fluids1 and has been mistaken for a new substance1 and even named ozone4 ,among the new characters thus conferred on it is the power of uniting with or burning many substances4 ,this ozonized oxygen1 when brought into mixture with many nitrogenized bodies1 forms with them nitrous acids1 completely destroying their former condition and composition2 hence1 in the atmosphere1 this part of the oxygen becomes a purifier of the whole mass1 from which it removes putrescent exhalations1 miasmatic vapors1 and the effluvia from every source of sea or land4 ,very curious are the effects of this active oxygen1 which is ever present in some portion of the atmosphere4 ,moved by the wind1 mixed with the impure upward currents rising from cities1 it seizes on and changes rapidly all foulness1 and if the currents are not too voluminous1 the impure air becomes changed to pure4 ,as ozonized oxygen can be easily detected1 we may pass from the city1 where 7overpowered by the exhalations7 it does not exist1 and find it in the air of the vicinity2 and moving away several miles1 ascertain that a normal amount there prevails1 and that step by step1 on our return to abodes of a dense population1 the quantity diminishes and finally all disappears4 ,we are now prepared to answer the second part of the question which was suggested1 and to find that nitrous acids formed in the atmosphere by direct oxidation of nitrogenous matter may unite with the ammonia present to produce one kind of saltpetre2 and when the rains or the dews carry this to the earth1 the salts of lime1 potash1 and soda there found will decompose this ammoniacal saltpetre1 and set the ammonia free1 to act over again its part4 ,so in regard to decomposing organic matters in the soil3 ozonized oxygen changes them in the same way4 ,the earth and calcareous rocks of caves1 penetrated by the air1 slowly produce saltpetre1 and before the theory of the action was understood1 artificial imitation of natural conditions enabled us to manufacture saltpetre4 ,animal remains1 stratified with porous earth or the sweepings of cities1 and disposed in long heaps or walls1 protected from rain1 but exposed to the prevailing winds1 soon form nitrous salts1 and a large space covered with these deposits carefully tended forms a saltpetre plantation4 ,france1 ,prussia1 ,sweden1 ,switzerland1 and other countries1 have been supplied with saltpetre from similar artificial arrangements4 ,but the atmosphere is washed most thoroughly by the rains falling in and near tropical countries1 and the changes there are most rapid1 so that the production of saltpetre1 favored by moisture and hot winds1 attains its highest limit in parts of ,india and the bordering countries4 ,during the prevalence of dry winds1 the earth in many districts of ,india becomes frosted over with nitrous efflorescences1 and the great quantity shipped from the commercial ports1 and that consumed in ,china1 is thus a natural production of that region4 ,the increased amount due to tropical influences will be seen in the instances here given of the produce from the rich earths of different countries3-- ,natural4 ,france1 ,church of ,mousseau1 #e-c_/h per cent4 ,cavern of ,fouquires1 #c-a_/b ,u4 ,states1 ,tennessee1 dirt of caves1 #j4hf ,ceylon1 ,cave of ,memoora1 #c-a_/aj ,upper ,bengal1 ,tirhoot1 earth simply1 #a-f_/aj ,patree in ,guzerat1 best sweepings1 #h-g_/aj ,in each case the salt is mixed saltpetres4 ,artificial4 ,france1 #ajj lbs4 earth from plantations afford #h to #i oz4 ,hungary and ,sweden1 from the same1 #a_/b to #b-c_/aj per cent4 ,it may be calculated that the flesh of animals1 free from bone1 carefully decomposed1 will afford ninety-five pounds of saltpetre for one thousand pounds thus consumed4 ,in the manufacture of saltpetre1 the earths1 whether naturally or artificially impregnated1 are mixed with the ashes from burnt wood1 or salts of potash1 so that this base may take the place of all others1 and produce long prisms of potash saltpetre4 ,in this country there are numerous caves of great extent in ,kentucky1 ,tennessee1 and ,missouri1 from which saltpetre has been manufactured4 ,under the most favorable conditions of abundance of labor1 obtainable at a low price1 potash saltpetre can be made at a cost about one-fourth greater than the average price of ,india saltpetre1 and those sources of supply are the best natural deposits known on this side of the ,rocky ,mountains4 ,where there is an insufficient supply of manure in a country1 resort to the artificial production of saltpetre is simply a robbery committed on the resources of the agriculturists1 and it is only during the pressure of a great struggle like that of the wars of ,napoleon1 that the conversion into saltpetre of materials which can become food for the community would be permitted4 ,hitherto1 in peaceful times1 our supply of saltpetre has come from ,india through commercial channels2 but twice within a few years this course of trade has been interrupted by the ,british ,government1 and the price of a necessary article has been greatly enhanced1--leading reflecting minds to the inquiry after other sources whence to draw the quantity required for an increasing consumption4 ,on the boundary between ,peru and ,chili1 in ,south ,peru1 about forty miles from the ports of ,conception and ,iquique1 is a depression in the general surface of a saline desert1 where a bed of soda saltpetre1 about two and a half feet thick and one hundred and fifty miles long1 exists4 ,the salt is massive1 and1 occurring in a rainless climate1 it is dry1 and contains about sixty per cent4 of pure soda saltpetre4 ,in ,brazil1 on the ,san ,francisco1 the same salt is found extending sixty or seventy miles1--and again near the town of ,pilao ,arcado1 the beds being about two hundred and forty miles from ,bahia1 but at present inaccessible for want of roads4 ,the ,peruvian native saltpetre is rudely refined in the desert1 and then transported on the backs of mules to the shipping-port4 ,as found in commerce1 it is less impure than ,india saltpetre2 and it might be usefully substituted for the latter in the manufacture of gunpowder1 were it less deliquescent in damp atmospheres4 ,for chemical purposes it now replaces ,india saltpetre1 but the larger consumption is perhaps as a fertilizer of land1 in the cool and humid climate of ,england1 the low price it bears in the market permitting this consumption4 ,we have found that the various saltpetres of natural production1 or those obtained in artificial arrangements1 are converted by the use of potash salts into potash saltpetre1 and among the products so changed is natural soda saltpetre4 ,now to us in this country1 so near the sources of abundant supply of soda saltpetre1 this substitution becomes a matter of great interest4 ,we possess and can produce the alkaline salt of potash in almost unlimited quantity1 and1 excepting for some special purposes1 it is consumed for its alkaline energy alone4 ,when soda saltpetre in proper proportion is dissolved and thus mixed with potash salt1 an exchange of bases takes place1 and no loss of alkaline energy follows4 ,the soda in a quite pure state is eliminated from the soda saltpetre1 and will serve for the manufactures of glass and soap2 while the potash1 taking the oxygen compound of the soda saltpetre1 produces1 as a final result1 a pure and beautiful prismatic saltpetre1 most economically and abundantly4 ,instead of working on a hundred pounds of earth to obtain at most eight or nine pounds of saltpetre1 a hundred pounds of soda saltpetre will afford more than one hundred and nine pounds of potash saltpetre1 when skilfully treated4 ,here1 then1 we have1 by simple chemical treatment of an imported1 but very cheap salt1 a result constituting a source of abundant supply of potash saltpetre1 without the loss of the agent concerned in the transformation4 ,we have traced slightly in outline the formation of saltpetre to the action of ozonized oxygen on nitrogen compounds1 in the atmosphere1 or in the earth1--the conditions being the same in both cases4 ,if we pursue the study of this action of ozonized oxygen farther1 we shall not restrict its combining disposition to these compounds1 but prove that it has the power of uniting directly with the nitrogen naturally forming part of the pure air4 ,while nitrogenized bodies are present1 however1 in the atmosphere1 or in the humid artificial heaps of saltpetre plantations1 the action of ozonized oxygen is on these1 and the nitrous compounds formed unite with the bases lime1 soda1 and potash1 also present1 to form saltpetre4 ,under all the conditions necessary1 we see the permanent gases1 oxygen and nitrogen1 leaving the atmosphere and changing from their gaseous to a solid dry state1 when they become chemically combined with potash1 and there are #ec-df_/ajj parts of the gaseous matter and #df-ed_/ajj parts of the potash in #ajj parts of the saltpetre by weight4 ,having now found what saltpetre is and how it is formed1 let us advance to the consideration of it as a source of power4 ,through the exertion of chemical attraction the gaseous elements of the atmosphere have become solid in the saltpetre2 and as we know the weight of this part in a cubic inch of saltpetre1 the volume of the gases combined is easily ascertained to be about eight hundred times that of the saltpetre4 ,hence1 as every cubic inch of condensation represents an atmosphere as large as the cubic inch of saltpetre formed1 we may roughly estimate that the condensing force arising from chemical attraction in this case is #hjj times #ae lbs41 or #ab1jjj lbs46 ,strictly speaking1 only about four-tenths of a cubic inch of potash holds this enormous power in connection with it so as to form a cubic inch of saltpetre1 which we may handle and bruise1 may melt and cool1 dissolve and crystallize1 without explosion or change4 ,it contains conserved a force which represents the aggregate result of innumerable minute actions1 taking place among portions of matter which escape our senses from their minuteness and excite our wonder by their transformation4 ,closely similar are these actions to the agencies in vegetation which build up the wood of the tree or the material of the coal destined to serve for the production of fire in all the applications of steam which we have briefly noticed in illustration4 ,in availing ourselves of the concentrated power accumulated in saltpetre1 we resort to bodies which easily kindle when fire is applied1 such as sulphur and finely powdered charcoal3 these substances are most intimately mixed with the saltpetre in a powdered state1 and the dampened mass subjected to great pressure is afterwards broken into grains of varied size1 constituting gunpowder4 ,the substances thus added to the saltpetre have both the disposition and the power of burning with and decomposing the nitrous element of the saltpetre1 and in so doing they do not simply open the way for the energetic action of the gases escaping1 but1 owing to the high temperature produced1 a new force is added4 ,if the gases escaped from combination simply1 they would exert for every cubic inch of saltpetre1 as we have here considered it1 the direct power of #ab1jjj lbs42 but under the new conditions1 the volume of escaping gas has a temperature above #b1jjj ,fahrenheit1 and consequently its force in overcoming resistance is more than four times as great1 or at least #dh1jjj lbs4 ,such1 then1 is the power which can be obtained from a cubic inch of saltpetre1 when it is so compounded as to form some of the kinds of gunpowder2 and the fact of greatest importance in this connection is the control we have over the amount of the force exerted and the time in which the energy can be expended1 by variations in the proportions of the eliminating agents employed4 ,we have used the well-known term ,gunpowder to express the compound by which we easily obtain the power latent in saltpetre2 and the use of the term suggests the employment of guns1 which is secondary to the main point we are illustrating4 ,as the enormous consumption of power takes place during peaceful times1 so the consumption of saltpetre during a state of war is much lessened1 because the prosecution of public and private works is then nearly suspended4 ,the value and importance of saltpetre as a source of power is seen in the adaptation of its explosive force to special purposes4 ,it performs that work well which we cannot carry on so perfectly by means of any other agent1 and the great mining and engineering works of a country are dependent on this source for their success1 and for overcoming obstacles where other forces fail4 ,with positive certainty the engineer can remove a portion of a cliff or rock without breaking it into many parts1 and can displace masses to convenient distances1 under all the varying demands which arise in the process of mining1 tunnelling1 or cutting into the earth4 ,in all these cases of application we see that the powder contains within itself both the material for producing force and the means by which that force is applied1 no other motor being necessary in its application4 ,modern warfare has become in its simplest expression the intelligent application of force1 and that side will successfully overcome or resist the other which can in the shortest time so direct the greater force4 ,in artillery as well as infantry practice1 the control over the time necessary in the decomposition of the powder has been obtained through the refinements already made in the manufacture1 and the best results of the latest trials confirm in full the conclusion that saltpetre is a source of great and easily controlled power1 which can act through short or extended space4 ,under the view here presented1 it is evident that saltpetre is indispensable to progress in the arts of civilization and peace1 as well as in military operations1 and that no nation can advance in material interests1 or even maintain strict independence1 without possessing within its boundaries either saltpetre or the sources from which it can be drawn at all times4 ,in its use for protecting the property of a nation from the attacks of an enemy1 and as the means of insuring respect1 we may consider saltpetre as an element of strength in a ,state1 and as such deserving a high place in the consideration of those who direct the counsels or form the policy of a country4 ,has the subject of having an exhaustless supply of this important product or the means of producing it been duly considered8 99 99 99 99 99 ,,weather ,,in ,,war4 ,it is not very flattering to that glory-loving1 battle-seeking creature1 ,man1 that his best-arranged schemes for the destruction of his fellows should often be made to fail by the condition of the weather4 ,more or less have the greatest of generals been servile to all the skyey influences4 ,upon the state of the atmosphere frequently depends the ability of men to fight1 and military hopes rise and fall with the rising and falling of the metal in the thermometer's tube4 ,mercury governs ,mars4 ,a hero is stripped of his plumes by a tempest1 and his laurels fly away on the invisible wings of the wind1 and are seen no more forever4 ,empires fall because of a heavy fall of snow4 ,storms of rain have more than once caused monarchs to cease to reign4 ,a hard frost1 a sudden thaw1 a hot spell1 a cold snap1 a contrary wind1 a long drought1 a storm of sand1--all these things have had their part in deciding the destinies of dynasties1 the fortunes of races1 and the fate of nations4 ,leave the weather out of history1 and it is as if night were left out of the day1 and winter out of the year4 ,americans have fretted a little because their ,grand ,army could not advance through mud that came up to the horses' shoulders1 and in which even the seven-league boots would have stuck1 though they had been worn as deftly as ,ariel could have worn them4 ,they talked as if no such thing had ever before been known to stay the march of armies2 whereas all military operations have1 to a greater or a lesser extent1 depended for their issue upon the softening or the hardening of the earth1 or upon the clearing or the clouding of the sky4 ,the elements have fought against this or that conqueror1 or would-be conqueror1 as the stars in their courses fought against ,sisera2 and the ,kishon is not the only river that has through its rise put an end to the hopes of a tyrant4 ,the condition of rivers1 which must be owing to the condition of the weather1 has often colored events for ages1 perhaps forever4 ,the melting of the snows of the ,pyrenees1 causing a great rise of the rivers of ,northern ,spain1 came nigh bringing ruin upon ,julius ,caesar himself2 and nothing but the feeble character of the opposing general saved him from destruction4 ,the preservation of ,greece1 with all its incalculable consequences1 must be credited to the weather4 ,the first attempt to conquer that country1 made by the ,persians1 failed because of a storm that disabled their fleet4 ,mardonius crossed the ,hellespont twelve or thirteen years before that feat was accomplished by ,xerxes1 and he purposed marching as far as ,athens4 ,his army was not unsuccessful1 but off ,mount ,athos the ,persian fleet was overtaken by a storm1 which destroyed three hundred ships and twenty thousand men4 ,this compelled him to retreat1 and the ,greeks gained time to prepare for the coming of their enemy4 ,but for that storm1 ,athens would have been taken and destroyed1 the ,persians having an especial grudge against the ,athenians because of their part in the taking and burning of ,sardis2 and ,athens was destined to become ,greece for all after-time1 so that her as yet dim light could not have been quenched without darkening the whole world4 ,when ,xerxes himself entered ,europe1 and was apparently about to convert ,hellas into a satrapy1 it was a storm1 or a brace of storms1 that saved that country from so sad a fate1 and preserved it for the welfare of all after generations of men4 ,the ,great ,king1 in the hope of escaping the unseen atmospheric enemies which howl around that formidable promontory1 had caused ,mount ,athos to be cut through1 but1 as the historian observes1 the work of destruction to his fleet was only transferred to the opposite side of the intervening ,thracian sea4 ,that fleet was anchored on the ,magnesian coast1 when a hurricane came upon it1 known to the people of the country as the ,hellespontias1 and which blew right upon the shore4 ,for three days this wind continued to blow1 and the ,persians lost four hundred warships1 many transports and provision craft1 myriads of men1 and an enormous amount of matriel4 ,the ,grecian fleet1 which had fled before that of ,persia1 now retraced its course1 believing that the latter was destroyed1 and would have fled again but for the arts and influence of ,themistocles4 ,the sea-fights of ,artemisium followed1 in which the advantage was1 though not decisively1 with the ,greeks2 and that they finally retreated was owing to the success of the ,persians at ,thermopylae4 ,between the first and second battle of ,artemisium the ,persians suffered from another storm1 which inflicted great losses upon them4 ,these disasters to the enemy greatly encouraged the ,greeks1 who believed that they came directly from the gods2 and they made it possible for them to fight the naval battle of ,salamis1 and to win it4 ,so great was the alarm of ,xerxes1 who thought that the victors would sail to the ,hellespont1 and destroy the bridge he had thrown over that strait1 that he ordered his still powerful fleet to hasten to its protection4 ,he himself fled by land1 but on his arrival at the ,hellespont he found that the bridge had been destroyed by a storm2 and he must have been impressed as deeply as ,napoleon was in this century1 that the elements had leagued themselves with his mortal enemies4 ,after his flight1 and the withdrawal of his fleet from the war1 the ,persians had not a chance left1 and the defeat of his lieutenant ,mardonius1 at ,plataea1 was of the nature of a foregone conclusion4 ,it is not possible to exaggerate the importance of the assistance which the ,greeks received from the storms mentioned1 and it is not strange that they were lavish in their thanks and offerings to ,poseidon the ,saviour1 or that they continued piously to express their gratitude in later days4 ,mankind at large have reason to be thankful for the occurrence of those storms2 for if they had not happened1 ,greece must have been conquered1 and all that she has been to the world would have been that world's loss4 ,it was not until after the overthrow of the ,persians that ,athens became the home of science1 literature1 art1 and commerce2 and if ,athens had been removed from ,greece1 there would have been little of ,hellenic genius left for the delight of future days4 ,not only was most of that which is known as ,greek literature the production of the years that followed the failure of ,xerxes1 but the success of the ,greeks was the means of preserving all of their earlier literature4 ,the ,persians were not barbarians1 and1 had they achieved their purpose1 they might have promoted civilisation in ,europe2 but that civilization would have been ,asiatic in its character1 and it might have been as fleeting as the labors of the ,carthaginians in ,europe and ,africa4 ,nor would they have felt any interest in the preservation of the works of those ,greeks who wrote before the ,marathonian time1 which they would have regarded with that contempt with which most conquerors look upon the labors of those whom they have enslaved4 ,that most brilliant of ages1 the age of ,pericles1 could never have come to pass under the dominion of ,persia2 and the ,greeks of ,europe1 when ruled by satraps from ,susa1 would have been of as little weight in the ancient world as1 under that kind of rule1 were the ,greeks of ,ionia4 ,all future history was involved in the decision of the ,persian contest1 and we may well feel grateful that the event was not left for the hands of men to decide1 but that the winds and the waves of the ,grecian seas so far equalized the power of the combatants as to enable the ,greeks1 who fought for us as well as for themselves1 to roll back the tide of ,oriental conquest4 ,we might not have had even the ,secession ,war1 if there had been no storms in the ,thracian seas in a summer the roses of which perished more than two thousand three hundred years ago4,a ,footnote ,a3 ,when the ,athenian patriots under ,thrasybulus occupied ,phyle1 they would have been destroyed by the forces of the ,thirty ,tyrants1 had not a violent snow-storm happened1 which compelled the besiegers to retreat4 ,the patriots characterized this storm as ,providential4 ,had the weather remained fair1 the patriots would have been beaten1 the democracy would not have been restored1 and we should never have had the orations of ,demosthenes2 and perhaps even ,plato might not have written and thought for all after time4 ,the modern contest which most resembles that which was waged between the ,greeks and the ,persians is that war between ,england and ,spain which came to a crisis in #aehh1 when the ,spanish ,armada was destroyed by the tempests of the ,northern seas1 after having been well mauled by the ,english fleet4 ,the ,english seamen behaved well1 as they always do2 but the ,spanish loss would not have been irreparable1 if the weather had remained mild4 ,what men had begun so well storms completed4 ,a contrary wind prevented the ,spanish ,admiral from pursuing his course in a direction that would have proved favorable to his second object1 which was the preservation of his fleet4 ,he was forced to stand to the ,north1 so that he rushed right into the jaws of destruction4 ,he encountered in those remote and almost unknown waters tempests that were even more merciless than the fighting ships and fireships of the island heretics4 ,philip ,,ii4 bore his loss with the same calmness that he bore the victory of ,lepanto4 ,as1 on hearing of the latter1 he merely said1 ,don ,john risked a great deal1 so1 when tidings came to him that the ,invincible ,armada had been found vincible1 he quietly remarked1 ,i sent it out against men1 and not against the billows4 ,down to the very last year1 it had been the common1 and all but universal opinion1 that1 if the ,spaniards had succeeded in landing in ,england1 they would have been beaten1 so resolute were the ,english in their determination to oppose them1 and so extensive were their preparations for resistance4 ,elizabeth at ,tilbury had been one of the stock pieces of history1 and her words of defiance to ,parma and to ,spain have been ringing through the world ever since they were uttered after the ,armada had ceased to threaten her throne4 ,we now know that the common opinion on this subject1 like the common opinion respecting some other crises1 was all wrong1 a delusion and a sham1 and based on nothing but plausible lies4 ,mr4 ,motley has put men right on this point1 as on some others2 and it is impossible to read his brilliant and accurate narrative of the events of #aehh without coming to the conclusion that ,elizabeth was in the summer of that year in the way to receive punishment for the cowardly butchery which had been perpetrated1 in her name1 if not by her direct orders1 in the great hall of ,fotheringay4 ,she was saved by those winds which helped the ,dutch to blockade ,parma's army1 in the first instance1 and then by those ,orcadian tempests which smote the ,armada1 and converted its haughty pride into a by-word and a scoffing4 ,the military preparations of ,england were of the feeblest character2 and it is not too much to say1 that the only parallel case of ,governmental weakness is that which is afforded by the ,american history of last spring1 when we had not an efficient company or a seaworthy armed ship with which to fight the ,secessionists1 who had been openly making their preparations for war for months4 ,the late ,mr4 ,richard ,rush mentions1 in the second series of his ,residence at the ,court of ,london1 that at a dinner at the ,marquis of ,lansdowne's1 in #ahbj1 the conversation turned on the ,spanish ,armada2 and he was surprised to find that most of the company1 which was composed of members of ,parliament and other public men1 were of the opinion that the ,spaniards1 could they have been landed1 would have been victorious4 ,with genuine ,american faith in ,english invincibility1 he wondered what the company could mean1 and also what the ,english armies would have been about4 ,it was not possible for any one then to have said that there were no ,english armies at that time to be about anything2 but now we see that those armies were but imaginary bodies1 having not even a paper existence4 ,parma1 who was even an abler diplomatist than soldier1--that is1 he was the most accomplished liar in an age that was made up of falsehood1--had so completely gulled the astute ,elizabeth that she was living in the fools' paradise2 and so little did she and most of her counsellors expect invasion1 that a single ,spanish regiment of infantry might1 had it then been landed1 have driven the whole organized force of ,england from ,sheerness to ,bristol4 ,those ,englishmen who sneer so bitterly at the conduct of our ,government but a year ago would do well to study closely the history of their own country in #aehh1 in which they will find much matter calculated to lessen their conceit1 and to teach them charity4 ,the ,lincoln ,government of the ,united ,states had been in existence but little more than thirty days when it found itself involved in war with the ,rebels2 the ,elizabethan ,government had been in existence for thirty years when the ,armada came to the shores of ,england1 to the astonishment and dismay of those barons bold and statesmen old in bearded majesty whom we have been content to regard as the bravest and the wisest men that have lived since ,david and ,solomon4 ,elizabeth1 who had a beard that vied with ,burleigh's1--the evidence of her virgin innocence1--felt every hair of her head curling from terror when she learned how she had been done by ,philip's lieutenant2 and old ,burleigh must have thought that his mistress was in the condition of ,jockey of ,norfolk's master at ,bosworth1--bought and sold4 ,fortunately for both old women1 and for us all1 the summer gales of #aehh were adverse to the ,spaniards1 and protected ,old ,england4 ,we know not whence the wind cometh nor whither it goeth1 but we know that its blows have often been given with effect on human affairs2 and it never blew with more usefulness1 since the time when it used up the ships of ,xerxes1 than when it sent the ships of ,philip to join the treasures that old ,ocean hoards4 ,had ,england then been conquered by ,spain1 though but temporarily1 ,protestant ,england would have ceased to exist1 and the current of history would have been as emphatically changed as was the current of the ,euphrates under the labors of the soldiers of ,cyrus4 ,we should have had no ,shakspeare1 or a very different ,shakspeare from the one that we have2 and the ,elizabethan age would have presented to after centuries an appearance altogether unlike that which now so impressively strikes the mind4 ,as that was the time out of which all that is great and good in ,england and ,america has proceeded1 in letters and in arms1 in religion and in politics1 we can easily understand how vast must have been the change1 had not the winds of the ,north been so unpropitious to the purposes of the ,king of the ,south4 ,the ,english are very proud of the victories of ,crcy and ,agincourt1 as well they may be2 for1 though gained in the course of as unjust and unprovoked and cruel wars as ever were waged even by ,englishmen1 they are as splendid specimens of slaughter-work as can be found in the history of the ,devil's code of honor4 ,but they owe them both to the weather1 which favored their ancestors1 and was as unfavorable to the ancestors of the ,french4 ,at ,crcy the ,italian cross-bow men in the ,french army not only came into the field worn down by a long march on a hot day in ,august1 but immediately after their arrival they were exposed to a terrible thunder-storm1 in which the rain fell in absolute torrents1 wetting the strings of their bows1 and rendering them unserviceable4 ,the ,english archers1 who carried the far more useful long-bow1 kept their bows in their cases until the rain ceased1 and then took them out dry1 and in perfect condition2 besides which1 even if the strings of the long-bows had been wetted1 they could not have been materially injured1 as they were thin and pliable1 while those of the cross-bows were so thick and unpliable that they could not be tightened or slackened at pleasure4 ,in after-days this defect in the cross-bow was removed1 but it existed in full force in #acdf4 ,when the battle began1 the ,italian quarrel was found to be worthless1 because of the strings of the arbalists having absorbed so much moisture1 while the ,english arrows came upon the poor ,genoese in frightful showers1 throwing them into a panic1 and inaugurating disaster to the ,french at the very beginning of the action4 ,the day was lost from that moment1 and there was not a leader among the ,french capable of restoring it4 ,at ,agincourt the circumstances were very different1 but quite as fatal to the ,french4 ,that battle was fought on the #beth of ,october1 #adae1 and the ,french should have won it according to all the rules of war1--but they did not win it1 because they had too much valor and too little sense4 ,a cautious coward makes a better soldier than a valiant fool1 and the boiling bravery of the ,french has lost them more battles than any other people have lost through timidity4 ,henry ,v4's invasion of ,france was the most wicked attack that ever was made even by ,england on a neighboring nation1 and it was meeting with its proper reward1 when ,french folly ruined everything4 ,the ,french overtook the ,english on the #bdth of ,october1 and by judicious action might have destroyed them1 for they were by far the more numerous1--though most ,english authorities1 with characteristic unveracity1 grossly exaggerate the inequality of numbers that really did exist between the two armies4 ,on the night of the #bdth the rain fell heavily1 making the ground quite unfit for the operations of heavy cavalry1 in which the strength of the ,french consisted1 while the ,english had their incomparable archers1 the worthy predecessors of the ,english infantry of to-day1 one of whom was calculated to do more efficient service than could have been expected1 as the circumstances of the field were1 from ten knights cumbered with bulky mail4 ,sir ,harris ,nicolas1 the most candid ,english historian of the battle1 and who prepared a very useful1 but unreadable volume concerning it1 after speaking of the bad arrangements adopted by the ,french1 proceeds to say1--,the inconveniences under which the ,french labored were much increased by the state of the ground1 which was not only soft from heavy rains1 but was broken up by their horses during the preceding night1 the weather having obliged the valets and pages to keep them in motion4 ,thus the statement of ,french historians may readily be credited1 that1 from the ponderous armor with which the men-at-arms were enveloped1 and the softness of the ground1 it was with the utmost difficulty they could either move or lift their weapons1 notwithstanding their lances had been shortened to enable them to fight closely1--that the horses at every step sunk so deeply into the mud1 that it required great exertion to extricate them1--and that the narrowness of the place caused their archers to be so crowded as to prevent them from drawing their bows4 ,michelet's description of the day is the best that can be read1 and he tells us1 that1 when the signal of battle was given by ,sir ,thomas ,erpingham1 the ,english shouted1 but the ,french army1 to their great astonishment1 remained motionless4 ,horses and knights appeared to be enchanted1 or struck dead in their armor4 ,the fact was1 that their large battle-steeds1 weighed down with their heavy riders and lumbering caparisons of iron1 had all their feet completely sunk in the deep wet clay2 they were fixed there1 and could only struggle out to crawl on a few steps at a walk1 ,upon this mass of chivalry1 all stuck in the mud1 the cloth-yard shafts of the ,english yeomen fell like hailstones upon the summer corn4 ,some few of the ,french made mad efforts to charge1 but were annihilated before they could reach the ,english line4 ,the ,english advanced upon the mountain of men and horses mixed together1 and butchered their immovable enemies at their leisure4 ,plebeian hands that day poured out patrician blood in torrents4 ,the ,french fell into a panic1 and those of their number who could run away did so4 ,it was the story of ,poitiers over again1 in one respect2 for the ,black ,prince owed his victory to a panic that befell a body of sixteen thousand ,french1 who scattered and fled without having struck a blow4 ,agincourt was fought on ,st4 ,crispin's day1 and a precious strapping the ,french got4 ,the ,english found that there was nothing like leather4 ,it was the last battle in which the oriflamme was displayed2 and well it might be2 for1 red as it was1 it must have blushed a deeper red over the folly of the ,french commanders4 ,the greatest battle ever fought on ,british ground1 with the exceptions of ,hastings and ,bannockburn1--and greater even than ,hastings1 if numbers are allowed to count1--was that of ,towton1 the chief action in the ,wars of the ,roses2 and its decision was due to the effect of the weather on the defeated army4 ,it was fought on the #bith of ,march1 #adfa1 which was the ,palm-,sunday of that year4 ,edward1 ,earl of ,march1 eldest son of the ,duke of ,york1 having made himself ,king of ,england1 advanced to the ,north to meet the ,lancastrian army4 ,that army was sixty thousand strong1 while ,edward ,,iv4 was at the head of less than forty-nine thousand4 ,after some preliminary fighting1 battle was joined on a plain between the villages of ,saxton and ,towton1 in ,yorkshire1 and raged for ten hours4 ,palm-,sunday was a dark and tempestuous day1 with the snow falling heavily4 ,at first the wind was favorable to the ,lancastrians1 but it suddenly changed1 and blew the snow right into their faces4 ,this was bad enough1 but it was not the worst1 for the snow slackened their bow-strings1 causing their arrows to fall short of the ,yorkists1 who took them from the ground1 and sent them back with fatal effect4 ,the ,lancastrian leaders then sought closer conflict1 but the ,yorkists had already achieved those advantages which1 under a good general1 are sure to prepare the way to victory4 ,it was as if the snow had resolved to give success to the pale rose4 ,that which ,edward had won he was resolved to increase1 and his dispositions were of the highest military excellence2 but it is asserted that he would have been beaten1 because of the superiority of the enemy in men1 but for the coming up1 at the eleventh hour1 of the ,duke of ,norfolk1 who was the ,joseph ,johnston of #adfa1 doing for ,edward what the ,secessionist ,johnston did for ,beauregard in #ahfa4 ,the ,lancastrians then gave way1 and retreated1 at first in orderly fashion1 but finally falling into a panic1 when they were cut down by thousands4 ,they lost twenty-eight thousand men1 and the ,yorkists eight thousand4 ,this was a fine piece of work for the beginning of ,passion-,week1 bloody laurels gained in civil conflict being substituted for palm-branches6 ,no such battle was ever fought by ,englishmen in foreign lands4 ,this was the day when ,wharfe ran red with slaughter1 ,gathering in its guilty flood ,the carnage1 and the ill-spilt blood ,that forty thousand lives could yield4 ,crcy was to this but sport1 ,poitiers but a pageant vain1 ,and the work of ,agincourt ,only like a tournament4 ,half the blood which there was spent ,had sufficed to win again ,anjou and ill-yielded ,maine1 ,normandy and ,aquitaine4 ,edward ,,iv41 it should seem1 was especially favored by the powers of the air2 for1 if he owed victory at ,towton to wind and snow1 he owed it to a mist at ,barnet4 ,this last action was fought on the #adth of ,april1 #adga1 and the prevalence of the mist1 which was very thick1 enabled ,edward so to order his military work as to counterbalance the enemy's superiority in numbers4 ,the mist was attributed to the arts of ,friar ,bungay1 a famous and most rascally nigromancer4 ,the mistake made by ,warwick's men1 when they thought ,oxford's cognizance1 a star paled with rays1 was that of ,edward1 which was a sun in full glory1 7the ,white ,rose en soleil17 and so assailed their own friends1 and created a panic1 was in part attributable to the mist1 which prevented them from seeing clearly2 and this mistake was the immediate occasion of the overthrow of the army of the ,red ,rose4 ,that ,edward was enabled to fight the ,battle of ,barnet with any hope of success was also owing to the weather4 ,margaret of ,anjou had assembled a force in ,france1 ,louis ,,xi4 supporting her cause1 and this force was ready to sail in ,february1 and by its presence in ,england victory would unquestionably have been secured for the ,lancastrians4 ,but the elements opposed themselves to her purpose with so much pertinacity and consistency that it is not strange that men should have seen therein the visible hand of ,providence4 ,three times did she embark1 but only to be driven back by the wind1 and to suffer loss4 ,some of her party sought to persuade her to abandon the enterprise1 as ,heaven seemed to oppose it2 but ,margaret was a strong-minded woman1 and would not listen to the suggestions of superstitious cowards4 ,she sailed a fourth time1 and held on in the face of bad weather4 ,half a day of good weather was all that was necessary to reach ,england1 but it was not until the end of almost the third week that she was able to effect a landing1 and then at a point distant from ,warwick4 ,had the ,king-maker been the statesman-soldier that he has had the credit of being1 he never would have fought ,edward until he had been joined by ,margaret2 and he must have known that her non-arrival was owing to contrary winds1 he having been himself a naval commander4 ,but he acted like a knight-errant1 not like a general1 gave battle1 and was defeated and slain1 ,the ,last of the ,barons4 ,having triumphed at ,barnet1 ,edward marched to meet ,margaret's army1 which was led by ,somerset1 and defeated it on the #dth of ,may1 after a hardly-contested action at ,tewkesbury4 ,it was on that field that ,prince ,edward of ,lancaster perished2 and as his father1 ,henry ,,vi41 died a few days later1 of pure displeasure and melancholy1 the line of ,lancaster became extinct4 ,in justice to the memory of a monarch1 to whom justice has never been done1 it should be remarked1 in passing1 that ,edward ,,iv4 deserved the favors of ,fortune1 if talent for war insures success in war4 ,he was1 so far as success goes1 one of the greatest soldiers that ever lived4 ,he never fought a battle that he did not win1 and he never won a battle without annihilating his foe4 ,he was not yet nineteen when he commanded at ,towton1 at the head of almost fifty thousand men2 and two months before he had gained the ,battle of ,mortimer's ,cross1 under circumstances that showed skillful generalship4 ,no similar instance of precocity is to be found in the military history of mankind4 ,his victories have been attributed to ,warwick1 but it is noticeable that he was as successful over ,warwick as he had been over the ,lancastrians1 against whom ,warwick originally fought4 ,barnet was1 with fewer combatants1 as remarkable an action as ,towton2 and at ,mortimer's ,cross ,warwick was not present1 while he fought and lost the second battle of ,st4 ,alban's seventeen days after ,edward had won his first victory4 ,warwick was not a general1 but a magnificent paladin1 resembling much ,coeur de ,lion1 and most decidedly out of place in the ,england of the last half of the fifteenth century4 ,what is peculiarly remarkable in ,edward's case is this3 he had received no military training beyond that which was common to all high-born youths in that age4 ,the ,french wars had long been over1 and what had happened in the early years of the ,roses' quarrel was certainly not calculated to make generals out of children4 ,in this respect ,edward stands quite alone in the list of great commanders4 ,alexander1 ,hannibal1 the first ,scipio ,africanus1 ,pompeius1 ,don ,john of ,austria1 ,cond1 ,charles ,,xii41 ,napoleon1 and some other young soldiers of the highest eminence1 were either all regularly instructed in the military art1 or succeeded to the command of veteran armies1 or were advised and assisted by old and skilful generals4 ,besides1 they were all older than ,edward when they first had independent command4 ,gaston de ,foix approaches nearest to the ,yorkist king1 but he gained only one battle1 was older at ,ravenna than ,edward was at ,towton1 and perished in the hour of victory4 ,clive1 perhaps1 may be considered as equalling the ,plantagenet king in original genius for war1 but the scene of his actions1 and the materials with which he wrought1 were so very different from those of other youthful commanders1 that no just comparison can be made between him and any one of their number4 ,the ,english have asserted that they lost the ,battle of ,falkirk1 in #agdf1 because of the severity of a snow-storm that took place when they went into action1 a strong wind blowing the snow straight into their faces2 and one of the causes of the defeat of the ,highlanders at ,culloden1 three months later1 was another fall of snow1 which was accompanied by wind that then blew into their faces4 ,fortune was impartial1 and made the one storm to balance the other4 ,that the ,american army was not destroyed soon after the ,battle of ,long ,island must be attributed to the foggy weather of the #bith of ,august1 #aggf4 ,but for the successful retreat of ,washington's army from ,long ,island1 on the night of the #bith-#cjth1 the ,declaration of ,independence would have been made waste paper in sixty days after its adoption2 and that retreat could not have been made1 had there not been a dense fog under cover of which to make it1 and to deter the enemy from action4 ,washington and his whole army would have been slain or captured1 could the ,british forces have had clear weather in which to operate4 ,the fog which prevailed all this time1 says ,irving1 seemed almost ,providential4 ,while it hung over ,long ,island1 and concealed the movements of the ,americans1 the atmosphere was clear on the ,new ,york side of the river4 ,the adverse wind1 too1 died away1 the river became so smooth that the rowboats could be laden almost to the gunwale2 and a favoring breeze sprang up for the sail-boats4 ,the whole embarkation of troops1 ammunition1 provisions1 cattle1 horses1 and carts1 was happily effected1 and by daybreak the greater part had safely reached the city1 thanks to the aid of ,glover's ,marblehead men4 ,scarce anything was abandoned to the enemy1 excepting a few heavy pieces of artillery4 ,at a proper time1 ,mifflin with his covering party left the lines1 and effected a silent retreat to the ferry4 ,washington1 though repeatedly entreated1 refused to enter a boat until all the troops were embarked1 and crossed the river with the last4 ,americans should ever regard a fog with a certain reverence1 for a fog saved their country in #aggf4 ,that ,poland was not restored to national rank by ,napoleon ,i4 was in some measure owing to the weather of the latter days of #ahjf4 ,those of the ,french officers who marched through the better portions of that country were for its restoration1 but others who waded through its terrible mud took different ground in every sense4 ,hence there was a serious difference of opinion in the ,french councils on this vitally important subject1 which had its influence on ,napoleon's mind4 ,the severe winter-weather of #ahjf-g1 by preventing the ,emperor from destroying the ,russians1 which he was on the point of doing1 was prejudicial to the interests of ,poland2 for the ultimate effect was1 to compel ,france to treat with ,russia as equal with equal1 notwithstanding the crowning victory of ,friedland4 ,this done1 there was no present hope of ,polish restoration1 as ,alexander frankly told the ,french ,emperor that the world would not be large enough for them both1 if he should seek to renew ,poland's rank as a nation4 ,so far as the failure of the ,french in #ahab is chargeable upon the weather1 the weather must be considered as having been again the enemy of ,poland2 for ,napoleon would have restored that country1 had he succeeded in his ,russian campaign4 ,such restoration would then have been a necessity of his position4 ,but it was not the weather of ,russia that caused the ,french failure of #ahab4 ,that failure was all but complete before the invaders of ,russia had experienced any very severe weather4 ,the two powers that conquered ,napoleon were those which ,general ,von ,knesebeck had pointed out to ,alexander as sure to be too much for him1--,space and ,time4 ,the cold1 frosts1 and snows of ,russia simply completed what those powers had so well begun1 and so well done4 ,in the grand campaign of #ahac1 the weather had an extraordinary influence on ,napoleon's fortunes1 the rains of ,germany really doing him far more mischief than he had experienced from the snows of ,russia2 and1 oddly enough1 a portion of this mischief came to him through the gate of victory4 ,the war between the ,french and the ,allies was renewed the middle of ,august1 and ,napoleon purposed crushing the ,army of ,silesia1 under old ,blcher1 and marched upon it2 but he was recalled by the advance of the ,grand ,army of the ,allies upon ,dresden2 for1 if that city had fallen into their hands1 his communications with the ,rhine would have been lost4 ,returning to ,dresden1 he restored affairs there on the #bfth of ,august2 and on the #bgth1 the ,battle of ,dresden was fought1 the last of his great victories4 ,it was a day of mist and rain1 the mist being thick1 and the rain heavy4 ,under cover of the mist1 ,murat surprised a portion of the ,austrian infantry1 and1 as their muskets were rendered unserviceable by the rain1 they fell a prey to his horse1 who were assisted by infantry and artillery1 more than sixteen thousand men being killed1 wounded1 or captured4 ,the left wing of the ,allies was annihilated4 ,so far all was well for the ,child of ,destiny2 but ,nemesis was preparing to exact her dues very swiftly4 ,a victory can scarcely be so called1 unless it be well followed up2 and whether ,dresden should be another ,austerlitz depended upon what might be done during the next two or three days4 ,napoleon did not act with his usual energy on that critical occasion1 and in seven months he had ceased to reign4 ,why did he refrain from reaping the fruits of victory8 ,because the weather1 which had been so favorable to his fortunes on the #bgth1 was quite as unfavorable to his person4 ,on that day he was exposed to the rain for twelve hours1 and when he returned to ,dresden1 at night1 he was wet to the skin1 and covered with mud1 while the water was streaming from his chapeau1 which the storm had knocked out of a cocked hat4 ,it was a peculiarity of ,napoleon's constitution1 that he could not expose himself to damp without bringing on a pain in the stomach2 and this pain seized him at noon on the #bhth1 when he had partaken of a repast at ,pirna1 whither he had gone in the course of his operations against the beaten enemy4 ,this illness caused him to cease his personal exertions1 but not from giving such orders as the work before him required him to issue4 ,perhaps it would have had no evil effect1 had it not been1 that1 while halting at ,pirna1 news came to him of two great failures of distant armies1 which led him to order the ,young ,guard to halt at that place1--an order that cost him his empire4 ,one more march in advance1 and ,napoleon would have become greater than ever he had been2 but that march was not made1 and so the flying foe was converted into a victorious army4 ,for ,general ,vandamme1 who was at the head of the chief force of the pursuing ,french1 pressed the ,allies with energy1 relying on the support of the ,emperor1 whose orders he was carrying out in the best manner4 ,this led to the ,battle of ,kulm1 in which ,vandamme was defeated1 and his army destroyed for the time1 because of the overwhelming superiority of the enemy2 whereas that action would have been one of the completest ,french victories1 had the ,young ,guard been ordered to march from ,pirna1 according to the original intention4 ,the roads were in a most frightful state1 in consequence of the wet weather2 but1 as a victorious army always finds food1 so it always finds roads over which to advance to the completion of its task1 unless its chief has no head4 ,vandamme had a head1 and thought he was winning the ,marshal's staff which ,napoleon had said was awaiting him in the midst of the enemy's retiring masses4 ,so confident was he that the ,emperor would support him1 that he would not retreat while yet it was in his power to do so2 and the consequence was that his corps d'arme was torn to pieces1 and himself captured4 ,napoleon had the meanness to charge ,vandamme with going too far and seeking to do too much1 as he supposed he was slain1 and therefore could not prove that he was simply obeying orders1 as well as acting in exact accordance with sound military principles4 ,that ,vandamme was right is established by the fact that an order came from ,napoleon to ,marshal ,mortier1 who commanded at ,pirna1 to reinforce him with two divisions2 but the order did not reach ,mortier until after ,vandamme had been defeated4 ,marshal ,saint-,cyr1 who was bound to aid ,vandamme1 was grossly negligent1 and failed of his duty2 but even he would have acted well1 had he been acting under the eye of the ,emperor1 as would have been the case1 had not the weather of the #bgth broken down the health of ,napoleon1 and had not other disasters to the ,french1 all caused by the same storm that had raged around ,dresden1 induced ,napoleon to direct his personal attention to points remote from the scene of his last triumph4,b ,footnote ,b3 ,there was a story current that ,napoleon's indisposition on the #bhth of ,august was caused by his eating heartily of a shoulder of mutton stuffed with garlic1 not the wholesomest food in the world2 and the digestive powers having been reduced by long exposure to damp1 this dish may have been too much for them4 ,thiers says that the ,imperial illness at ,pirna was a malady invented by flatterers1 and yet only a few pages before he says that ,napoleon proceeded to ,pirna1 where he arrived about noon1 and where1 after having partaken of a slight repast1 he was seized with a pain in the stomach1 to which he was subject after exposure to damp4 ,napoleon suffered from stomach complaints from an early period of his career1 and one of their effects is greatly to lessen the powers of the sufferer's mind4 ,his want of energy at ,borodino was attributed to a disordered stomach1 and the ,russians were simply beaten1 not destroyed1 on that field4 ,when he beard of ,vandamme's defeat1 ,napoleon said1 ,one should make a bridge of gold for a flying enemy1 where it is impossible1 as in ,vandamme's case1 to oppose to him a bulwark of steel4 ,he forgot that his own plan was to have opposed to the enemy a bulwark of steel1 and that the non-existence of that bulwark on the #cjth of ,august was owing to his own negligence4 ,still1 the reverse at ,kulm might not have proved so terribly fatal1 had it not been preceded by the reverses on the ,katzbach1 which also were owing to the heavy rains1 and news of which was the cause of the halting of so large a portion of his pursuing force at ,pirna1 and the march of many of his best men back to ,dresden1 his intention being to attempt the restoration of affairs in that quarter1 where they had been so sadly compromised under ,macdonald's direction4 ,he was as much overworked by the necessity of attending to so many theatres of action as his armies were overmatched in the field by the superior numbers of the ,allies4 ,he is said to have repeated the following lines1 after musing for a while on the news from ,kulm3-- ,j'ai servi1 command1 vaincu quarante annes2 ,du monde entre mes mains j'ai tu les destines1 ,et j'ai toujours connu qu'en chaque vnement ,le destin des tats dpendait d'un moment4 ,but he had hours1 we might say days1 to settle his destiny1 and was not tied down to a moment4 ,afterward he had the fairness to admit that he had lost a great opportunity to regain the ascendency in not supporting ,vandamme with the whole of the ,young ,guard4 ,when ,napoleon was called from the pursuit of ,blcher by ,schwarzenberg's advance upon ,dresden1 he confided the command of the army that was to act against that of ,silesia to ,marshal ,macdonald1 a brave and honest man1 but a very inferior soldier1 yet who might have managed to hold his own against so unscientific a leader as the fighting old hussar1 had it not been for the terrible rainstorm that began on the night of the #beth of ,august4 ,the swelling of the rivers1 some of them deep and rapid1 led to the isolation of the ,french divisions1 while the rain was so severe as to prevent them from using their muskets4 ,animated by the most ardent hatred1 the new ,prussian levies1 few of whom had been in service half as long as our volunteers1 and many of whom were but mere boys1 rushed upon their enemies1 butchering them with butt and bayonet1 and forcing them into the boiling torrent of the ,katzbach4 ,puthod's division was prevented from rejoining its comrades by the height of the waters1 and was destroyed1 though one of the best bodies in the ,french army4 ,the state of the country drove the ,french divisions together on the same lines of retreat1 creating immense confusion1 and leading to the most serious losses of men and matriel4 ,macdonald's blunder was in advancing after the storm began1 and had lasted for a whole night4 ,his officers pointed out the danger of his course1 but he was one of those men who think1 that1 because they are not knaves1 they can accomplish everything2 but the laws of ,nature no more yield to honest stupidity than to clever roguery4 ,the ,baron ,von ,mffling1 who was present in ,blcher's army1 says1 that1 when the ,french attempted to protect their retreat at the ,katzbach with artillery1 the guns stuck in the mud2 and he adds1--,the field of battle was so saturated by the incessant rain1 that a great portion of our infantry left their shoes sticking in the mud1 and followed the enemy barefoot4 ,even a brook1 called the ,deichsel1 was so swollen by the rain that the ,french could cross it at only one place1 and there they lost wagons and guns4 ,old ,blcher issued a thundering proclamation for the encouragement of his troops4 ,in the battle on the ,katzbach1 he said to them1 the enemy came to meet you with defiance4 ,courageously1 and with the rapidity of lightning1 you issued from behind your heights4 ,you scorned to attack them with musketry-fire3 you advanced without a halt2 your bayonets drove them down the steep ridge of the valley of the raging ,neisse and ,katzbach4 ,afterwards you waded through rivers and brooks swollen with rain4 ,you passed nights in mud4 ,you suffered for want of provisions1 as the impassable roads and want of conveyance hindered the baggage from following4 ,you struggled with cold1 wet1 privations1 and want of clothing2 nevertheless you did not murmur1--with great exertions you pursued your routed foe4 ,receive my thanks for such laudable conduct4 ,the man alone who unites such qualities is a true soldier4 ,one hundred and three cannons1 two hundred and fifty ammunition-wagons1 the enemy's field-hospitals1 their field-forges1 their flour-wagons1 one general of division1 two generals of brigade1 a great number of colonels1 staff and other officers1 eighteen thousand prisoners1 two eagles1 and other trophies1 are in your hands4 ,the terror of your arms has so seized upon the rest of your opponents1 that they will no longer bear the sight of your bayonets4 ,you have seen the roads and fields between the ,katzbach and the ,bober3 they bear the signs of the terror and confusion of your enemy4 ,the bluff old ,general1 who at seventy had more dash than all the rest of the leaders of the ,allies combined1 and who did most of the real fighting business of those who wished and worked ,napoleon's fall1 knew how to talk to soldiers1 which is a quality not always possessed by even eminent commanders4 ,soldiers love a leader who can take them to victory1 and then talk to them about it4 ,such a man is one of them4 ,napoleon never recovered from the effects of the losses he experienced at ,kulm and on the ,katzbach1--losses due entirely to the wetness of the weather4 ,he went downward from that time with terrible velocity1 and was in ,elba the next spring1 seven months after having been on the ,elbe4 ,the winter campaign of #ahad1 of which so much is said1 ought to furnish some matter for a paper on weather in war2 but the truth is1 that that campaign was conducted politically by the ,allies4 ,there was never a time1 after the first of ,february1 when1 if they had conducted the war solely on military principles1 they could not have been in ,paris in a fortnight4 ,napoleon's last campaign owed its lamentable decision to the peculiar character of the weather on its last two days1 though one would not look for such a thing as severe weather in ,june1 in ,flanders4 ,but so it was1 and ,waterloo would have been a ,french victory1 and ,wellington where ,henry was when he ran against ,eclipse1--nowhere1--if the rain that fell so heavily on the #agth of ,june had been postponed only twenty-four hours4 ,up to the afternoon of the #agth1 the weather1 though very warm1 was dry1 and the ,french were engaged in following their enemies4 ,the ,anglo-,dutch infantry had retreated from ,quatre-,bras1 and the cavalry was following1 and was itself followed by the ,french cavalry1 who pressed it with great audacity4 ,the weather1 says ,captain ,siborne1 during the morning1 had become oppressively hot2 it was now a dead calm2 not a leaf was stirring2 and the atmosphere was close to an intolerable degree2 while a dark1 heavy1 dense cloud impended over the combatants4 ,the #ahth ,english ,hussars were fully prepared1 and awaited but the command to charge1 when the brigade guns on the right commenced firing1 for the purpose of previously disturbing and breaking the order of the enemy's advance4 ,the concussion seemed instantly to rebound through the still atmosphere1 and communicate1 as an electric spark1 with the heavily charged mass above4 ,a most awfully loud thunder-clap burst forth1 immediately succeeded by a rain which has never1 probably1 been exceeded in violence even within the tropics4 ,in a very few minutes the ground became perfectly saturated1--so much so1 that it was quite impracticable for any rapid movement of the cavalry4 ,this storm prevented the ,french from pressing with due force upon their retiring foes2 but that would have been but a small evil1 if the storm had not settled into a steady and heavy rain1 which converted the fat ,flemish soil into a mud that would have done discredit even to the sacred soil of ,virginia1 and the latter has the discredit of being the nastiest earth in ,america4 ,all through the night the windows of heaven were open1 as if weeping over the spectacle of two hundred thousand men preparing to butcher each other4 ,occasionally the rain fell in torrents1 greatly distressing the soldiers1 who had no tents4 ,on the morning of the #ahth the rain ceased1 but the day continued cloudy1 and the sun did not show himself until the moment before setting1 when for an instant he blazed forth in full glory upon the forward movement of the ,allies4 ,one may wonder if ,napoleon then thought of that morning ,sun of ,austerlitz1 which he had so often apostrophized in the days of his meridian triumphs4 ,the evening sun of ,waterloo was the practical antithesis to the rising sun of ,austerlitz4 ,the ,battle of ,waterloo was not begun until about twelve o'clock1 because of the state of the ground1 which did not admit of the action of cavalry and artillery until several hours had been allowed for its hardening4 ,that inevitable delay was the occasion of the victory of the ,allies2 for1 if the battle had been opened at seven o'clock1 the ,french would have defeated ,wellington's army before a ,prussian regiment could have arrived on the field4 ,it has been said that the rain was as baneful to the ,allies as to the ,french1 as it prevented the early arrival of the ,prussians2 but the remark comes only from persons who are not familiar with the details of the most momentous of modern pitched battles4 ,blow's ,prussian corps1 which was the first to reach the field1 marched through ,wavre in the forenoon of the #ahth2 but no sooner had its advanced guard--an infantry brigade1 a cavalry regiment1 and one battery--cleared that town1 than a fire broke out there1 which greatly delayed the march of the remainder of the corps4 ,there were many ammunition-wagons in the streets1 and1 fearful of losing them1 and of being deprived of the means of fighting1 the ,prussians halted1 and turned firemen for the occasion4 ,this not only prevented most of the corps from arriving early on the right flank of the ,french1 but it prevented the advanced guard from acting1 ,blow being too good a soldier to risk so small a force as that immediately at his command in an attack on the ,french army4 ,it was not until about half-past one that the ,prussians were first seen by the ,emperor1 and then at so great a distance that even with glasses it was difficult to say whether the objects looked at were men or trees4 ,but for the bad weather1 it is possible that ,blow's whole corps1 supposing there had been no fire at ,wavre1 might have arrived within striking distance of the ,french army by two o'clock1 ,p4,m42 but by that hour the battle between ,napoleon and ,wellington would have been decided1 and the ,prussians would have come up only to augment the slaughter1 had the ground been hard enough for operations at an early hour of the day4 ,as the battle was necessarily fought in the afternoon1 because of the softness of the soil consequent on the heavy rains of the preceding day and night1 there was time gained for the arrival of ,blow's corps by four o'clock of the afternoon of the #ahth4 ,against that corps ,napoleon had to send almost twenty thousand of his men1 and sixty-six pieces of cannon1 all of which might have been employed against ,wellington's army1 had the battle been fought in the forenoon4 ,as it was1 that large force never fired a shot at the ,english4 ,the other ,prussian corps that reached the field toward the close of the day1 ,zieten's and ,pirch's1 did not leave ,wavre until about noon4 ,the coming up of the advanced guard of ,zieten1 but a short time before the close of the battle1 enabled ,wellington to employ the fresh cavalry of ,vivian and ,vandeleur at another part of his line1 where they did eminent service for him at a time which is known as the crisis of the day4 ,taking all these facts into consideration1 it must be admitted that there never was a more important rain-storm than that which happened on the #agth of ,june1 #ahae4 ,had it occurred twenty-four hours later1 the destinies of the world might1 and most probably would1 have been completely changed2 for ,waterloo was one of those decisive battles which dominate the ages through their results1 belonging to the same class of combats as do ,marathon1 ,pharsalia1 ,lepanto1 ,blenheim1 ,yorktown1 and ,trafalgar4 ,it was decided by water1 and not by fire1 though the latter was hot enough on that fatal field to satisfy the most determined lover of courage and glory4 ,if space permitted1 we could bring forward many other facts to show the influence of weather on the operations of war4 ,we could show that it was owing to changes of wind that the ,spaniards failed to take ,leyden1 the fall of which into their hands would probably have proved fatal to the ,dutch cause2 that a sudden thaw prevented the ,french from seizing the ,hague in #afgb1 and compelling the ,dutch to acknowledge themselves subjects of ,louis ,,xiv42 that a change of wind enabled ,william of ,orange to land in ,england1 in #afhh1 without fighting a battle1 when even victory might have been fatal to his purpose2 that ,continental expeditions fitted out for the purpose of restoring the ,stuarts to the ,british throne were more than once ruined by the occurrence of tempests2 that the defeat of our army at ,germantown was in part due to the existence of a fog2 that a severe storm prevented ,general ,howe from assailing the ,american position on ,dorchester ,heights1 and so enabled ,washington to make that position too strong to be attacked with hope of success1 whereby ,boston was freed from the enemy's presence2 that a heavy fall of rain1 by rendering the ,river ,catawba unfordable1 put a stop1 for a few days1 to those movements by which ,lord ,cornwallis intended to destroy the army of ,general ,morgan1 and obtain compensation for ,tarleton's defeat at the ,cowpens2 that an autumnal tempest compelled the same ,british commander to abandon a project of retreat from ,yorktown1 which good military critics have thought well conceived1 and promising success2 that the severity of the winter of #ahac interfered effectively with the measures which ,napoleon had formed with the view of restoring his affairs1 so sadly compromised by his failure in ,russia2 that the misty1 chilly1 and insalubrious weather of ,louisiana1 and its mud1 had a marked effect on ,sir ,edward ,pakenham's army1 and helped us to victory over one of the finest forces ever sent by ,europe to the ,west2 that in #ahbh the ,russians lost myriads of men and horses1 in the ,danubian country and its vicinity1 through heavy rains and hard frosts2 that the ,november hurricane of #ahed all but paralyzed the allied forces in the ,crimea2--and many similar things that establish the helplessness of men in arms when the weather is adverse to them4 ,but enough has been said to convince even the most skeptical that our ,potomac ,army did not stand alone in being forced to stand still before the dictation of the elements4 ,our armies1 indeed1 have suffered less from the weather than it might reasonably have been expected they would suffer1 having simply been delayed at some points by the occurrence of winds and thaws2 and over all such obstacles they are destined ultimately to triumph1 as the ,union itself will bid defiance to what ,bacon calls the waves and weathers of time4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,lines ,,written ,,under ,a ,,portrait ,,of ,,theodore ,,winthrop4 ,o ,knightly soldier bravely dead6 ,o poet-soul too early sped6 ,o life so pure6 ,o life so brief6 ,our hearts are moved with deeper grief1 ,as1 dwelling on thy gentle face1 ,its twilight smile1 its tender grace1 ,we fill the shadowy years to be ,with what had been thy destiny4 ,and still1 amid our sorrow's pain1 ,we feel the loss is yet our gain2 ,for through the death we know the life1 ,its gold in thought1 its steel in strife1-- ,and so with reverent kiss we say ,adieu6 ,o ,bayard of our day6 ,,hindrance4 ,much that is in itself undesirable occurs in obedience to a general law which is not only desirable1 but of infinite necessity and benefit4 ,it is not desirable that ,topper and ,macaulay should be read by tens of thousands1 and ,wilkinson only by tens4 ,it is not desirable that a narrow1 selfish1 envious ,cecil1 who could never forgive his noblest contemporaries for failing to be hunchbacks like himself1 should steer ,england all his life as it were with supreme hand1 and himself sail on the topmost tide of fortune2 while the royal head of ,raleigh goes to the block1 and while ,bacon1 with his broad and bountiful nature1--,bacon1 one of the two or three greatest and humanest statesmen ever born to ,england1 and one of the friendliest men toward mankind ever born into the world1--dies in privacy and poverty1 bequeathing his memory to foreign nations and the next ages4 ,but it is wholly desirable that he who would consecrate himself to excellence in art or life should sometimes be compelled to make it very clear to himself whether it be indeed excellence that he covets1 or only plaudits and pounds sterling4 ,so when we find our purest wishes perpetually hindered1 not only in the world around us1 but even in our own bosoms1 many of the particular facts may indeed merit reproach1 but the general fact merits1 on the contrary1 gratitude and gratulation4 ,for were our best wishes not1 nor ever1 hindered1 sure it is that the still better wishes of destiny in our behalf would be hindered yet worse4 ,sure it is1 ,i say1 that ,hindrance1 both outward and inward1 comes to us not through any improvidence or defect of benignity in ,nature1 but in answer to our need1 and as part of the best bounty which enriches our days4 ,and to make this indubitably clear1 let us hasten to meditate that simple and central law which governs this matter and at the same time many others4 ,and the law is1 that every definite action is conditioned upon a definite resistance1 and is impossible without it4 ,we walk in virtue of the earth's resistance to the foot1 and are unable to tread the elements of air and water only because they are too complaisant1 and deny the foot that opposition which it requires4 ,precisely that1 accordingly1 which makes the difficulty of an action may at the same time make its possibility4 ,why is flight difficult8 ,because the weight of every creature draws it toward the earth4 ,but without this downward proclivity1 the wing of the bird would have no power upon the air4 ,why is it difficult for a solid body to make rapid progress in water8 ,because the water presses powerfully upon it1 and at every inch of progress must be overcome and displaced4 ,yet the ship is able to float only in virtue of this same hindering pressure1 and without it would not sail1 but sink4 ,the bird and the steamer1 moreover1--the one with its wings and the other with its paddles1--apply themselves to this hindrance to progression as their only means of making progress2 so that1 were not their motion obstructed1 it would be impossible4 ,the law governs not actions only1 but all definite effects whatsoever4 ,if the luminiferous ether did not resist the sun's influence1 it could not be wrought into those undulations wherein light consists2 if the air did not resist the vibrations of a resonant object1 and strive to preserve its own form1 the sound-waves could not be created and propagated3 if the tympanum did not resist these waves1 it would not transmit their suggestion to the brain2 if any given object does not resist the sun's rays1--in other words1 reflect them1--it will not be visible2 neither can the eye mediate between any object and the brain save by a like opposing of rays on the part of the retina4 ,these instances might be multiplied ad libitum1 since there is literally no exception to the law4 ,observe1 however1 what the law is1 namely1 that some resistance is indispensable1--by no means that this alone is so1 or that all modes and kinds of resistance are of equal service4 ,resistance and ,affinity concur for all right effects2 but it is the former that1 in some of its aspects1 is much accused as a calamity to man and a contumely to the universe2 and of this1 therefore1 we consider here4 ,not all kinds of resistance are alike serviceable2 yet that which is required may not always consist with pleasure1 nor even with safety4 ,our most customary actions are rendered possible by forces and conditions that inflict weariness at times upon all1 and cost the lives of many4 ,gravitation1 forcing all men against the earth's surface with an energy measured by their weight avoirdupois1 makes locomotion feasible2 but by the same attraction it may draw one into the pit1 over the precipice1 to the bottom of the sea4 ,what multitudes of lives does it yearly destroy6 ,why has it never occurred to some ingenious victim of a sluggish liver to represent ,gravitation as a murderous monster revelling in blood8 ,surely there are woful considerations here that might be used with the happiest effect to enhance the sense of man's misery1 and have been too much neglected6 ,probably there are few children to whom the fancy has not occurred1 ,how convenient1 how fine were it to weigh nothing6 ,we smile at the little wiseacres2 we know better4 ,how much better do we know8 ,that ancient lament1 that ever iterated accusation of the world because it opposes a certain hindrance to freedom1 love1 reason1 and every excellence which the imagination of man can portray and his heart pursue1--what is it1 in the final analysis1 but a complaint that we cannot walk without weight1 and that therefore climbing is climbing8 ,instead1 however1 of turning aside to applications1 let us push forward the central statement in the interest of applications to be made by every reader for himself1--since he says too much who does not leave much more unsaid4 ,observe1 then1 that objects which so utterly submit themselves to man as to become testimonies and publications of his inward conceptions serve even these most exacting and monarchical purposes only by opposition to them1 and1 to a certain extent1 in the very measure of that opposition4 ,the stone which the sculptor carves becomes a fit vehicle for his thought through its resistance to his chisel2 it sustains the impress of his imagination solely through its unwillingness to receive the same4 ,not chalk1 not any loose and friable material1 does ,phidias or ,michel ,angelo choose1 but ivory1 bronze1 basalt1 marble4 ,it is quite the same whether we seek expression or uses4 ,the stream must be dammed before it will drive wheels2 the steam compressed ere it will compel the piston4 ,in fine1 ,potentiality combines with ,hindrance to constitute active ,power4 ,man1 in order to obtain instrumentalities and uses1 blends his will and intelligence with a force that vigorously seeks to pursue its own separate free course2 and while this resists him1 it becomes his servant4 ,but why not look at this fact in its largest light8 ,for do we not here touch upon the probable reason why ,god must1 as it were1 be offset by ,world1 ,spirit by ,matter1 ,soul by ,body8 ,the ,maker must needs1 if it be lawful so to speak1 heap up in the balance against ,his own pure1 eternal freedom these numberless globes of cold1 inert matter4 ,matter is1 indeed1 movable by no fine persuasions3 brutely faithful to its own law1 it cares no more for ,a,eschylus than for the tortoise that breaks his crown2 the purpose of a cross for the sweetest saint it serves no less willingly than any other purpose1--stiffly holding out its arms there1 about its own wooden business1 neither more nor less1 centred utterly upon itself4 ,but is it not this stolid self-centration which makes it needful to ,divinity8 ,an infinite energy required a resisting or doggedly indifferent material1 itself quasi infinite1 to take the impression of its life1 and render potentiality into power4 ,so by the encountering of body with soul is the product1 man1 evolved4 ,philosophers and saints have perceived that the spiritual element of man is hampered and hindered by his physical part3 have they also perceived that it is the very collision between these which strikes out the spark of thought and kindles the sense of law8 ,as the tables of stone to the finger of ,jehovah on ,sinai1 so is the firm marble of man's material nature to the recording soul4 ,but even ,plato1 when he arrives at these provinces of thought1 begins to limp a little1 and to go upon ,egyptian crutches4 ,in the incomparable apologues of the ,phaedrus he represents our inward charioteer as driving toward the empyrean two steeds1 of which the one is virtuously attracted toward heaven1 while the other is viciously drawn to the earth2 but he countenances the inference that the earthward proclivity of the latter is to be accounted pure misfortune4 ,but to the universe there is neither fortune nor misfortune2 there is only the reaper1 ,destiny1 and his perpetual harvest4 ,all that occurs on a universal scale lies in the line of a pure success4 ,nor can the universe attain any success by pushing past man and leaving him aside4 ,that were like the prosperity of a father who should enrich himself by disinheriting his only son4 ,principles necessary to all action must of course appear in moral action4 ,the moral imagination1 which pioneers and produces inward advancement1 works under the same conditions with the imagination of the artist1 and must needs have somewhat to work upon4 ,man is both sculptor and quarry1--and a great noise and dust of chiselling is there sometimes in his bosom4 ,if1 therefore1 we find in him somewhat which does not immediately and actively sympathize with his moral nature1 let us not fancy this element equally out of sympathy with his pure destiny4 ,the impulsion and the resistance are alike included in the design of our being4 ,hunger--to illustrate--respects food1 food only4 ,it asks leave to be hunger neither of your conscience1 your sense of personal dignity1 nor indeed of your humanity in any form2 but exists by its own permission1 and pushes with brute directness toward its own ends4 ,true1 the soul may at last so far prevail as to make itself felt even in the stomach2 and the true gentleman could as soon relish a lunch of porcupines' quills as a dinner basely obtained1 though it were of nightingales' tongues4 ,but this is sheer conquest on the part of the soul1 not any properly gastric inspiration at all2 and it is in furnishing opportunity for precisely such conquest that the lower nature becomes a stairway of ascent for the soul4 ,and now1 if in the relations between every manly spirit and the world around him we discover the same fact1 are we not by this time prepared to contemplate it altogether with dry eyes8 ,what if it be true1 that in trade1 in politics1 in society1 all tends to low levels8 ,what if disadvantages are to be suffered by the grocer who will not sell adulterated food1 by the politician who will not palter1 by the diplomatist who is ashamed to lie8 ,for this means only that no one can be honest otherwise than by a productive energy of honesty in his own bosom4 ,in other words1--a man reaches the true welfare of a human soul only when his bosom is a generative centre and source of noble principles2 and therefore1 in pure1 wise kindness to man1 the world is so arranged that there shall be perpetual need of this access and reinforcement of principle4 ,society1 the ,state1 and every institution1 grow lean the moment there is a falling off in this divine fruitfulness of man's heart1 because only in virtue of bearing such fruit is man worthy of his name4 ,honor and honesty are constantly consumed between men1 that they may be forever newly demanded in them4 ,we cannot too often remind ourselves that the aim of the universe is a personality4 ,as the terrestrial globe through so many patient aeons climbed toward the production of a human body1 that by this all-comprehending1 perfect symbol it might enter into final union with ,spirit1 so do the uses of the world still forever ascend toward man1 and seek a continual realization of that ancient wish4 ,when1 therefore1 ,time shall come to his great audit with ,eternity1 persons alone will be passed to his credit4 ,so many wise and wealthy souls1--that is what the sun and his household will have come to4 ,the use of the world is not found in societies faultlessly mechanized2 for societies are themselves but uses and means4 ,they are the soil in which persons grow2 and ,i no more undervalue them than the husbandman despises his fertile acres because it is not earth1 but the wheat that grows from it1 which comes to his table4 ,society is the culmination of all uses and delights2 persons1 of all results4 ,and societies answer their ends when they afford two things3 first1 a need for energy of eye and heart1 of noble human vigor2 and secondly1 a generous appreciation of high qualities1 when these may appear4 ,the latter is1 indeed1 indispensable2 and whenever noble manhood ceases to be recognized in a nation1 the days of that nation are numbered4 ,but the need is also necessary4 ,society must be a consumer of virtue1 if individual souls are to be producers of it4 ,the law of demand and supply has its applications here also4 ,new waters must forever flow from the fountain-heads of our true life1 if the millwheel of the world is to continue turning2 and this not because the supernal powers so greatly cared to get corn ground1 but because the ,highest would have rivers of ,his influence forever flowing1 and would call them men4 ,therefore it is that satirists who paint in high colors the resistances1 but have no perception of the law of conversion into opposites1 which is the grand trick of ,nature1--these pleasant gentlemen are themselves a part of the folly at which they mock4 ,as a man among men1 so is a nation among nations4 ,very freely ,i acknowledge that any nation1 by proposing to itself large and liberal aims1 plucks itself innumerable envies and hatreds from without1 and confers new power for mischief upon all blindness and savagery that exist within it4 ,but what does this signify8 ,simply that no nation can be free longer than it nobly loves freedom2 that none can be great in its national purposes when it has ceased to be so in the hearts of its citizens4 ,freedom must be perpetually won1 or it must be lost2 and this because the sagacious ,manager of the world will not let us off from the disciplines that should make us men4 ,the material of the artist is passive1 and may be either awakened from its ancient rest or suffered to sleep on2 but that marble from which the perfections of manhood and womanhood are wrought quits the quarry to meet us1 and converts us to stone1 if we do not rather transform that to life and beauty4 ,hostile1 predatory1 it rushes upon us2 and we1 cutting at it in brave self-defence1 hew it above our hope into shapes of celestial and immortal comeliness4 ,so that angels are born1 as it were1 from the noble fears of man1--from an heroic fear in man's heart that he shall fall away from the privilege of humanity1 and falsify the divine vaticination of his soul4 ,hence follows the fine result1 that in life to hold your own is to make advance4 ,destiny comes to us1 like the children in their play1 saying1 ,hold fast all ,i give you2 and while we nobly detain it1 the penny changes between our palms to the wealth of cities and kingdoms4 ,the barge of blessing1 freighted for us by unspeakable hands1 comes floating down from the head-waters of that stream whereon we also are afloat2 and to meet it we have only to wait for it1 not ourselves ebbing away1 but loyally stemming the tide4 ,it may be1 as ,mr4 ,carlyle alleges1 that the ,constitution of the ,united ,states is no supreme effort of genius2 but events now passing are teaching us that every day of fidelity to the spirit of it lends it new preciousness2 and that an adherence to it1 not petty and literal1 but at once large and indomitable1 might almost make it a charter of new sanctities both of law and liberty for the human race4 ,,the ,,statesmanship ,,of ,,richelieu4 ,thus far1 the struggles of the world have developed its statesmanship after three leading types4 ,first of these is that based on faith in some great militant principle4 ,strong among statesmen of this type1 in this time1 stand ,cavour1 with his faith in constitutional liberty1--,cobden1 with his faith in freedom of trade1--the third ,napoleon1 with his faith that the world moves1 and that a successful policy must keep the world's pace4 ,the second style of statesmanship is seen in the reorganization of old ,states to fit new times4 ,in this the chiefs are such men as ,cranmer and ,turgot4 ,but there is a third class of statesmen sometimes doing more brilliant work than either of the others4 ,these are they who serve a ,state in times of dire chaos1--in times when a nation is by no means ripe for revolution1 but only stung by desperate revolt3 these are they who are quick enough and firm enough to bind all the good forces of the ,state into one cosmic force1 therewith to compress or crush all chaotic forces3 these are they who throttle treason and stab rebellion1--who fear not1 when defeat must send down misery through ages1 to insure victory by using weapons of the hottest and sharpest4 ,theirs1 then1 is a statesmanship which it may be well for the leading men of this land and time to be looking at and thinking of1 and its representative man shall be ,richelieu4 ,never1 perhaps1 did a nation plunge more suddenly from the height of prosperity into the depth of misery than did ,france on that fourteenth of ,may1 #afaj1 when ,henry ,,iv4 fell dead by the dagger of ,ravaillac4 ,all earnest men1 in a moment1 saw the abyss yawning1--felt the ,state sinking1--felt themselves sinking with it4 ,and they did what1 in such a time1 men always do3 first all shrieked1 then every man clutched at the means of safety nearest him4 ,sully rode through the streets of ,paris with big tears streaming down his face1--strong men whose hearts had been toughened and crusted in the dreadful religious wars sobbed like children1--all the populace swarmed abroad bewildered1--many swooned1--some went mad4 ,this was the first phase of feeling4 ,then came a second phase yet more terrible4 ,for now burst forth that old whirlwind of anarchy and bigotry and selfishness and terror which ,henry had curbed during twenty years4 ,all earnest men felt bound to protect themselves1 and seized the nearest means of defence4 ,sully shut himself up in the ,bastille1 and sent orders to his son-in-law1 the ,duke of ,rohan1 to bring in six thousand soldiers to protect the ,protestants4 ,all un-earnest men1 especially the great nobles1 rushed to the ,court1 determined1 now that the only guardians of the ,state were a weak-minded woman and a weak-bodied child1 to dip deep into the treasury which ,henry had filled to develop the nation1 and to wrench away the power which he had built to guard the nation4 ,in order to make ready for this grasp at the ,state treasure and power by the nobles1 the ,duke of ,epernon1 from the corpse of the ,king1 by whose side he was sitting when ,ravaillac struck him1 strides into the ,parliament of ,paris1 and orders it to declare the late ,queen1 ,mary of ,medici1 ,regent2 and when this ,parisian court1 knowing full well that it had no right to confer the regency1 hesitated1 he laid his hand on his sword1 and declared1 that1 unless they did his bidding at once1 his sword should be drawn from its scabbard4 ,this threat did its work4 ,within three hours after the ,king's death1 the ,paris ,parliament1 which had no right to give it1 bestowed the regency on a woman who had no capacity to take it4 ,at first things seemed to brighten a little4 ,the ,queen-,regent sent such urgent messages to ,sully that he left his stronghold of the ,bastille and went to the palace4 ,she declared to him1 before the assembled ,court1 that he must govern ,france still4 ,with tears she gave the young ,king into his arms1 telling ,louis that ,sully was his father's best friend1 and bidding him pray the old statesman to serve the ,state yet longer4 ,but soon this good scene changed4 ,mary had a foster-sister1 ,leonora ,galligai1 and ,leonora was married to an ,italian adventurer1 ,concini4 ,these seemed a poor couple1 worthless and shiftless1 their only stock in trade ,leonora's ,italian cunning2 but this stock soon came to be of vast account1 for thereby she soon managed to bind and rule the ,queen-,regent1--managed to drive ,sully into retirement in less than a year1--managed to make herself and her husband the great dispensers at ,court of place and pelf4 ,penniless though ,concini had been1 he was in a few months able to buy the ,marquisate of ,ancre1 which cost him nearly half a million livres1--and1 soon after1 the post of ,first ,gentleman of the ,bedchamber1 and that cost him nearly a quarter of a million1--and1 soon after that1 a multitude of broad estates and high offices at immense prices4 ,leonora1 also1 was not idle1 and among her many gains was a bribe of three hundred thousand livres to screen certain financiers under trial for fraud4 ,next came the turn of the great nobles4 ,for ages the nobility of ,france had been the worst among her many afflictions4 ,from age to age attempts had been made to curb them4 ,in the fifteenth century ,charles ,,vii4 had done much to undermine their power1 and ,louis ,,xi4 had done much to crush it4 ,but strong as was the policy of ,charles1 and cunning as was the policy of ,louis1 they had made one omission1 and that omission left ,france1 though advanced1 miserable4 ,for these monarchs had not cut the root of the evil4 ,the ,french nobility continued practically a serf-holding nobility4 ,despite1 then1 the curb put upon many old pretensions of the nobles1 the serf-owning spirit continued to spread a net-work of curses over every arm of the ,french government1 over every acre of the ,french soil1 and1 worst of all1 over the hearts and minds of the ,french people4 ,enterprise was deadened2 invention crippled4 ,honesty was nothing2 honor everything4 ,life was of little value4 ,labor was the badge of servility2 laziness the very badge and passport of gentility4 ,the serf-owning spirit was an iron wall between noble and not-noble1--the only unyielding wall between ,france and prosperous peace4 ,but the serf-owning spirit begat another evil far more terrible3 it begat a substitute for patriotism1--a substitute which crushed out patriotism just at the very emergencies when patriotism was most needed4 ,for the first question which in any ,state emergency sprang into the mind of a ,french noble was not1--,how does this affect the welfare of the nation8 but1--,how does this affect the position of my order8 ,the serf-owning spirit developed in the ,french aristocracy an instinct which led them in national troubles to guard the serf-owning class first and the nation afterward1 and to acknowledge fealty to the serf-owning interest first and to the national interest afterward4 ,so it proved in that emergency at the death of ,henry4 ,instead of planting themselves as a firm bulwark between the ,state and harm1 the ,duke of pernon1 the ,prince of ,cond1 the ,count of ,soissons1 the ,duke of ,guise1 the ,duke of ,bouillon1 and many others1 wheedled or threatened the ,queen into granting pensions of such immense amount that the great treasury filled by ,henry and ,sully with such noble sacrifices1 and to such noble ends1 was soon nearly empty4 ,but as soon as the treasury began to run low the nobles began a worse work1 ,mary had thought to buy their loyalty2 but when they had gained such treasures1 their ideas mounted higher4 ,a saying of one among them became their formula1 and became noted3--,the day of ,kings is past2 now is come the day of the ,grandees4 ,every great noble now tried to grasp some strong fortress or rich city4 ,one fact will show the spirit of many4 ,the ,duke of pernon had served ,henry as ,governor of ,metz1 and ,metz was the most important fortified town in ,france2 therefore ,henry1 while allowing ,d'pernon the honor of the ,governorship1 had always kept a ,royal ,lieutenant in the citadel1 who corresponded directly with the ,ministry4 ,but1 on the very day of the ,king's death1 ,d'pernon despatched commands to his own creatures at ,metz to seize the citadel1 and to hold it for him against all other orders4 ,but at last even ,mary had to refuse to lavish more of the national treasure and to shred more of the national territory among these magnates4 ,then came their rebellion4 ,immediately ,cond and several great nobles issued a proclamation denouncing the tyranny and extravagance of the ,court1--calling on the ,catholics to rise against the ,regent in behalf of their religion1--calling on the ,protestants to rise in behalf of theirs1--summoning the whole people to rise against the waste of their ,state treasure4 ,it was all a glorious joke4 ,to call on the ,protestants was wondrous impudence1 for ,cond had left their faith1 and had persecuted them2 to call on the ,catholics was not less impudent1 for he had betrayed their cause scores of times2 but to call on the whole people to rise in defence of their treasury was impudence sublime1 for no man had besieged the treasury more persistently1 no man had dipped into it more deeply1 than ,cond himself4 ,the people saw this and would not stir4 ,cond could rally only a few great nobles and their retainers1 and therefore1 as a last tremendous blow at the ,court1 he and his followers raised the cry that the ,regent must convoke the ,states-,general4 ,any who have read much in the history of ,france1 and especially in the history of the ,french ,revolution1 know1 in part1 how terrible this cry was4 ,by the ,court1 and by the great privileged classes of ,france1 this great assembly of the three estates of the realm was looked upon as the last resort amid direst calamities4 ,for at its summons came stalking forth from the foul past the long train of ,titanic abuses and ,satanic wrongs2 then came surging up from the seething present the great hoarse cry of the people2 then loomed up1 dim in the distance1 vast shadowy ideas of new truth and new right2 and at the bare hint of these1 all that was proud in ,france trembled4 ,this cry for the ,states-,general1 then1 brought the ,regent to terms at once1 and1 instead of acting vigorously1 she betook herself to her old vicious fashion of compromising1--buying off the rebels at prices more enormous than ever4 ,by her treaty of ,sainte-,mnehould1 ,cond received half a million of livres1 and his followers received payments proportionate to the evil they had done4 ,but this compromise succeeded no better than previous compromises4 ,even if the nobles had wished to remain quiet1 they could not4 ,their lordship over a servile class made them independent of all ordinary labor and of all care arising from labor2 some exercise of mind and body they must have2 ,cond soon took this needed exercise by attempting to seize the city of ,poitiers1 and1 when the burgesses were too strong for him1 by ravaging the neighboring country4 ,the other nobles broke the compromise in ways wonderfully numerous and ingenious4 ,france was again filled with misery4 ,dull as ,regent ,mary was1 she now saw that she must call that dreaded ,states-,general1 or lose not only the nobles1 but the people3 undecided as she was1 she soon saw that she must do it at once1--that1 if she delayed it1 her great nobles would raise the cry for it1 again and again1 just as often as they wished to extort office or money4 ,accordingly1 on the fourteenth of ,october1 #afad1 she summoned the deputies of the three estates to ,paris1 and then the storm set in4 ,each of the three orders presented its portfolio of grievances and its programme of reforms4 ,it might seem1 to one who has not noted closely the spirit which serf-mastering thrusts into a man1 that the nobles would appear in the ,states-,general not to make complaints1 but to answer complaints4 ,so it was not4 ,the noble order1 with due form1 entered complaint that theirs was the injured order4 ,they asked relief from familiarities and assumptions of equality on the part of the people4 ,said the ,baron de ,snec1 ,it is a great piece of insolence to pretend to establish any sort of equality between the people and the nobility3 other nobles declared1 ,there is between them and us as much difference as between master and lackey4 ,to match these complaints and theories1 the nobles made demands1--demands that commoners should not be allowed to keep fire-arms1--nor to possess dogs1 unless the dogs were hamstrung1--nor to clothe themselves like the nobles1--nor to clothe their wives like the wives of nobles1--nor to wear velvet or satin under a penalty of five thousand livres4 ,and1 preposterous as such claims may seem to us1 they carried them into practice4 ,a deputy of the ,third ,estate having been severely beaten by a noble1 his demands for redress were treated as absurd4 ,one of the orators of the lower order having spoken of the ,french as forming one great family in which the nobles were the elder brothers and the commoners the younger1 the nobles made a formal complaint to the ,king1 charging the ,third ,estate with insolence insufferable4 ,next came the complaints and demands of the clergy4 ,they insisted on the adoption in ,france of the ,decrees of the ,council of ,trent1 and the destruction of the liberties of the ,gallican ,church4 ,but far stronger than these came the voice of the people4 ,first spoke ,montaigne1 denouncing the grasping spirit of the nobles4 ,then spoke ,savaron1 stinging them with sarcasm1 torturing them with rhetoric1 crushing them with statements of facts4 ,but chief among the speakers was the ,president of the ,third ,estate1 ,robert ,miron1 ,provost of the ,merchants of ,paris4 ,his speech1 though spoken across the great abyss of time and space and thought and custom which separates him from us1 warms a true man's heart even now4 ,with touching fidelity he pictured the sad life of the lower orders1--their thankless toil1 their constant misery2 then1 with a sturdiness which awes us1 he arraigned1 first1 royalty for its crushing taxation1--next1 the whole upper class for its oppressions1--and then1 daring death1 he thus launched into popular thought an idea3-- ,it is nothing less than a miracle that the people are able to answer so many demands4 ,on the labor of their hands depends the maintenance of ,your ,majesty1 of the clergy1 of the nobility1 of the commons4 ,what without their exertions would be the value of the tithes and great possessions of the ,church1 of the splendid estates of the nobility1 or of our own house-rents and inheritances8 ,with their bones scarcely skinned over1 your wretched people present themselves before you1 beaten down and helpless1 with the aspect rather of death itself than of living men1 imploring your succor in the name of ,him who has appointed you to reign over them1--who made you a man1 that you might be merciful to other men1--and who made you the father of your subjects1 that you might be compassionate to these your helpless children4 ,if ,your ,majesty shall not take means for that end1 ,i fear lest despair should teach the sufferers that a soldier is1 after all1 nothing more than a peasant bearing arms2 and lest1 when the vine-dresser shall have taken up his arquebuse1 he should cease to become an anvil only that he may become a hammer4 ,after this the ,third ,estate demanded the convocation of a general assembly every ten years1 a more just distribution of taxes1 equality of all before the law1 the suppression of interior custom-houses1 the abolition of sundry sinecures held by nobles1 the forbidding to leading nobles of unauthorized levies of soldiery1 some stipulations regarding the working clergy and the non-residence of bishops2 and in the midst of all these demands1 as a golden grain amid husks1 they placed a demand for the emancipation of the serfs4 ,but these demands were sneered at4 ,the idea of the natural equality in rights of all men1--the idea of the personal worth of every man1--the idea that rough-clad workers have prerogatives which can be whipped out by no smooth-clad idlers1--these ideas were as far beyond serf-owners of those days as they are beyond slave-owners of these days4 ,nothing was done4 ,augustin ,thierry is authority for the statement that the clergy were willing to yield something4 ,the nobles would yield nothing4 ,the different orders quarrelled until one ,march morning in #afae1 when1 on going to their hall1 they were barred out and told that the workmen were fitting the place for a ,court ball4 ,and so the deputies separated1--to all appearance no new work done1 no new ideas enforced1 no strong men set loose4 ,so it was in seeming1--so it was not in reality4 ,something had been done4 ,that assembly planted ideas in the ,french mind which struck more and more deeply1 and spread more and more widely1 until1 after a century and a half1 the ,third ,estate met again and refused to present petitions kneeling1--and when king and nobles put on their hats1 the commons put on theirs1--and when that old brilliant stroke was again made1 and the hall was closed and filled with busy carpenters and upholsterers1 the deputies of the people swore that great tennis-court oath which blasted ,french tyranny4 ,but something great was done immediately2 to that suffering nation a great man was revealed4 ,for1 when the clergy pressed their requests1 they chose as their orator a young man only twenty-nine years of age1 the ,bishop of ,lucon1 ,,armand ,,jean ,,du ,,plessis ,,de ,,richelieu4 ,he spoke well4 ,his thoughts were clear1 his words pointed1 his bearing firm4 ,he had been bred a soldier1 and so had strengthened his will2 afterwards he had been made a scholar1 and so had strengthened his mind4 ,he grappled with the problems given him in that stormy assembly with such force that he seemed about to do something2 but just then came that day of the ,court ball1 and ,richelieu turned away like the rest4 ,but men had seen him and heard him4 ,forget him they could not4 ,from that tremendous farce1 then1 ,france had gained directly one thing at least1 and that was a sight at ,richelieu4 ,the year after the ,states-,general wore away in the old vile fashion4 ,cond revolted again1 and this time he managed to scare the ,protestants into revolt with him4 ,the daring of the nobles was greater than ever4 ,they even attacked the young ,king's train as he journeyed to ,bordeaux1 and another compromise had to be wearily built in the ,treaty of ,loudun4 ,by this ,cond was again bought off1--but this time only by a bribe of a million and a half of livres4 ,the other nobles were also paid enormously1 and1 on making a reckoning1 it was found that this compromise had cost the ,king four millions1 and the country twenty millions4 ,the nation had also to give into the hands of the nobles some of its richest cities and strongest fortresses4 ,immediately after this compromise1 ,cond returned to ,paris1 loud1 strong1 jubilant1 defiant1 bearing himself like a king4 ,soon he and his revolted again2 but just at that moment ,concini happened to remember ,richelieu4 ,the young bishop was called and set at work4 ,richelieu grasped the rebellion at once4 ,in broad daylight he seized ,cond and shut him up in the ,bastille2 other noble leaders he declared guilty of treason1 and degraded them2 he set forth the crimes and follies of the nobles in a manifesto which stung their cause to death in a moment2 he published his policy in a proclamation which ran through ,france like fire1 warming all hearts of patriots1 withering all hearts of rebels2 he sent out three great armies3 one northward to grasp ,picardy1 one eastward to grasp ,champagne1 one southward to grasp ,berri4 ,there is a man who can do something6 ,the nobles yield in a moment3 they must yield4 ,but1 just at this moment1 when a better day seemed to dawn1 came an event which threw ,france back into anarchy1 and ,richelieu out into the world again4 ,the young ,king1 ,louis ,,xiii41 was now sixteen years old4 ,his mother the ,regent and her favorite ,concini had carefully kept him down4 ,under their treatment he had grown morose and seemingly stupid2 but he had wit enough to understand the policy of his mother and ,concini1 and strength enough to hate them for it4 ,the only human being to whom ,louis showed any love was a young falconer1 ,albert de ,luynes1--and with ,de ,luynes he conspired against his mother's power and her favorite's life4 ,on an ,april morning1 #afag1 the ,king and ,de ,luynes sent a party of chosen men to seize ,concini4 ,they met him at the gate of the ,louvre4 ,as usual1 he is bird-like in his utterance1 snake-like in his bearing4 ,they order him to surrender2 he chirps forth his surprise1--and they blow out his brains4 ,louis1 understanding the noise1 puts on his sword1 appears on the balcony of the palace1 is saluted with hurrahs1 and becomes master of his kingdom4 ,straightway measures are taken against all supposed to be attached to the ,regency4 ,concini's wife1 the favorite ,leonora1 is burned as a witch1--,regent ,mary is sent to ,blois1--,richelieu is banished to his bishopric4 ,and now matters went from bad to worse4 ,king ,louis was no stronger than ,regent ,mary had been1--,king's favorite ,luynes was no better than ,regent's favorite ,concini had been4 ,the nobles rebelled against the new rule1 as they had rebelled against the old4 ,the ,king went through the same old extortions and humiliations4 ,then came also to full development yet another vast evil4 ,as far back as the year after ,henry's assassination1 the ,protestants1 in terror of their enemies1 now that ,henry was gone and the ,spaniards seemed to grow in favor1 formed themselves into a great republican league1--a ,state within the ,state1--regularly organised in peace for political effort1 and in war for military effort1--with a ,protestant clerical caste which ruled always with pride1 and often with menace4 ,against such a theocratic republic war must come sooner or later1 and in #afag the struggle began4 ,army was pitted against army1--,protestant ,duke of ,rohan against ,catholic ,duke of ,luynes4 ,meanwhile ,austria and the foreign enemies of ,france1 ,cond and the domestic enemies of ,france1 fished in the troubled waters1 and made rich gains every day4 ,so ,france plunged into sorrows ever deeper and blacker4 ,but in #afbd1 ,mary de ,medici1 having been reconciled to her son1 urged him to recall ,richelieu4 ,the dislike which ,louis bore ,richelieu was strong1 but the dislike he bore toward compromises had become stronger4 ,into his poor brain1 at last1 began to gleam the truth1 that a serf-mastering caste1 after a compromise1 only whines more steadily and snarls more loudly1--that1 at last1 compromising becomes worse than fighting4 ,richelieu was called and set at work4 ,fortunately for our studies of the great statesman's policy1 he left at his death a ,political ,testament which floods with light his steadiest aims and boldest acts4 ,in that ,testament he wrote this message3-- ,when ,your ,majesty resolved to give me entrance into your councils and a great share of your confidence1 ,i can declare with truth that the ,huguenots divided the authority with ,your ,majesty1 that the great nobles acted not at all as subjects1 that the governors of provinces took on themselves the airs of sovereigns1 and that the foreign alliances of ,france were despised4 ,i promised ,your ,majesty to use all my industry1 and all the authority you gave me1 to ruin the ,huguenot party1 to abase the pride of the high nobles1 and to raise your name among foreign nations to the place where it ought to be4 ,such were the plans of ,richelieu at the outset4 ,let us see how he wrought out their fulfilment4 ,first of all1 he performed daring surgery and cautery about the very heart of the ,court4 ,in a short time he had cut out from that living centre of ,french power a number of unworthy ministers and favorites1 and replaced them by men1 on whom he could rely4 ,then he began his vast work4 ,his policy embraced three great objects3 ,first1 the overthrow of the ,huguenot power2 secondly1 the subjugation of the great nobles2 thirdly1 the destruction of the undue might of ,austria4 ,first1 then1 after some preliminary negotiations with foreign powers1--to be studied hereafter1--he attacked the great politico-religious party of the ,huguenots4 ,these held1 as their great centre and stronghold1 the famous seaport of ,la ,rochelle4 ,he who but glances at the map shall see how strong was this position3 he shall see two islands lying just off the west coast at that point1 controlled by ,la ,rochelle1 yet affording to any foreign allies whom the ,huguenots might admit there facilities for stinging ,france during centuries4 ,the position of the ,huguenots seemed impregnable4 ,the city was well fortressed1--garrisoned by the bravest of men1--mistress of a noble harbor open at all times to supplies from foreign ports1--and in that harbor rode a fleet1 belonging to the city1 greater than the navy of ,france4 ,richelieu saw well that here was the head of the rebellion4 ,here1 then1 he must strike it4 ,strange as it may seem1 his diplomacy was so skillful that he obtained ships to attack ,protestants in ,la ,rochelle from the two great ,protestant powers1--,england and ,holland4 ,with these he was successful4 ,he attacked the city fleet1 ruined it1 and cleared the harbor4 ,but now came a terrible check4 ,richelieu had aroused the hate of that incarnation of all that was and ,is offensive in ,english politics1--the ,duke of ,buckingham4 ,scandal-mongers were wont to say that both were in love with the ,queen1--and that the ,cardinal1 though unsuccessful in his suit1 outwitted the ,duke and sent him out of the kingdom1--and that the ,duke swore a great oath1 that1 if he could not enter ,france in one way1 he would enter in another1--and that he brought about a war1 and came himself as a commander3 of this scandal believe what you will4 ,but1 be the causes what they may1 the ,english policy changed1 and ,charles ,i4 sent ,buckingham with ninety ships to aid ,la ,rochelle4 ,but ,buckingham was flippant and careless2 ,richelieu1 careful when there was need1 and daring when there was need4 ,buckingham's heavy blows were foiled by ,richelieu's keen thrusts1 and then1 in his confusion1 ,buckingham blundered so foolishly1 and ,richelieu profited by his blunders so shrewdly1 that the fleet returned to ,england without any accomplishment of its purpose4 ,the ,english were also driven from that vexing position in the ,isle of ,rh4 ,having thus sent the ,english home1 for a time at least1 he led king and nobles and armies to ,la ,rochelle1 and commenced the siege in full force4 ,difficulties met him at every turn2 but the worst difficulty of all was that arising from the spirit of the nobility4 ,no one could charge the nobles of ,france with lack of bravery4 ,the only charge was1 that their bravery was almost sure to shun every useful form1 and to take every noxious form4 ,the bravery which finds outlet in duels they showed constantly2 the bravery which finds outlet in street-fights they had shown from the days when the ,duke of ,orleans perished in a brawl to the days when the ,mignons of ,henry ,,iii4 fought at sight every noble whose beard was not cut to suit them4 ,the pride fostered by lording it over serfs1 in the country1 and by lording it over men who did not own serfs1 in the capital1 aroused bravery of this sort and plenty of it4 ,but that bravery which serves a great1 good cause1 which must be backed by steadiness and watchfulness1 was not so plentiful4 ,so ,richelieu found that the nobles who had conducted the siege before he took command had1 through their brawling propensities and lazy propensities1 allowed the besieged to garner in the crops from the surrounding country1 and to master all the best points of attack4 ,but ,richelieu pressed on4 ,first he built an immense wall and earthwork1 nine miles long1 surrounding the city1 and1 to protect this1 he raised eleven great forts and eighteen redoubts4 ,still the harbor was open1 and into this the ,english fleet might return and succor the city at any time4 ,his plan was soon made4 ,in the midst of that great harbor of ,la ,rochelle he sank sixty hulks of vessels filled with stone2 then1 across the harbor1--nearly a mile wide1 and1 in places1 more than eight hundred feet deep1--he began building over these sunken ships a great dike and wall1--thoroughly fortified1 carefully engineered1 faced with sloping layers of hewn stone4 ,his own men scolded at the magnitude of the work1--the men in ,la ,rochelle laughed at it4 ,worse than that1 the ,ocean sometimes laughed and scolded at it4 ,sometimes the waves sweeping in from that fierce ,bay of ,biscay destroyed in an hour the work of a week4 ,the carelessness of a subordinate once destroyed in a moment the work of three months4 ,yet it is but fair to admit that there was one storm which did not beat against ,richelieu's dike4 ,there set in against it no storm of hypocrisy from neighboring nations4 ,keen works for and against ,richelieu were put forth in his day1--works calm and strong for and against him have been issuing from the presses of ,france and ,england and ,germany ever since2 but not one of the old school of keen writers or of the new school of calm writers is known to have ever hinted that this complete sealing of the only entrance to a leading ,european harbor was unjust to the world at large or unfair to the besieged themselves4 ,but all other obstacles ,richelieu had to break through or cut through constantly4 ,he was his own engineer1 general1 admiral1 prime-minister4 ,while he urged on the army to work upon the dike1 he organized a ,french navy1 and in due time brought it around to that coast and anchored it so as to guard the dike and to be guarded by it4 ,yet1 daring as all this work was1 it was but the smallest part of his work4 ,richelieu found that his officers were cheating his soldiers in their pay and disheartening them2 in face of the enemy he had to reorganize the army and to create a new military system4 ,he made the army twice as effective and supported it at two-thirds less cost than before4 ,it was his boast in his ,testament1 that1 from a mob1 the army became like a well-ordered convent4 ,he found also that his subordinates were plundering the surrounding country1 and thus rendering it disaffected2 he at once ordered that what had been taken should be paid for1 and that persons trespassing thereafter should be severely punished4 ,he found also the great nobles who commanded in the army half-hearted and almost traitorous from sympathy with those of their own caste on the other side of the walls of ,la ,rochelle1 and from their fear of his increased power1 should he gain a victory4 ,it was their common saying1 that they were fools to help him do it4 ,but he saw the true point at once--,he placed in the most responsible positions of his army men who felt for his cause1 whose hearts and souls were in it1--men not of the ,dalgetty stamp1 but of the ,cromwell stamp4 ,he found also1 as he afterward said1 that he had to conquer not only the ,kings of ,england and ,spain1 but also the ,king of ,france4 ,at the most critical moment of the siege ,louis deserted him1--went back to ,paris1--allowed courtiers to fill him with suspicions4 ,not only ,richelieu's place1 but his life1 was in danger1 and he well knew it2 yet he never left his dike and siege-works1 but wrought on steadily until they were done2 and then the ,king1 of his own will1 in very shame1 broke away from his courtiers1 and went back to his master4 ,and now a ,royal ,herald summoned the people of ,la ,rochelle to surrender4 ,but they were not yet half conquered4 ,even when they had seen two ,english fleets1 sent to aid them1 driven back from ,richelieu's dike1 they still held out manfully4 ,the ,duchess of ,rohan1 the ,mayor ,guiton1 and the ,minister ,salbert1 by noble sacrifices and burning words1 kept the will of the besieged firm as steel4 ,they were reduced to feed on their horses1--then on bits of filthy shell-fish1--then on stewed leather4 ,they died in multitudes4 ,guiton the ,mayor kept a dagger on the city council-table to stab any man who should speak of surrender2 some who spoke of yielding he ordered to execution as seditious4 ,when a friend showed him a person dying of hunger1 be said1 ,does that astonish you8 ,both you and ,i must come to that4 ,when another told him that multitudes were perishing1 he said1 ,provided one remains to hold the city-gate1 ,i ask nothing more4 ,but at last even ,guiton had to yield4 ,after the siege had lasted more than a year1 after five thousand were found remaining out of fifteen thousand1 after a mother had been seen to feed her child with her own blood1 the ,cardinal's policy became too strong for him4 ,the people yielded1 and ,richelieu entered the city as master4 ,and now the victorious statesman showed a greatness of soul to which all the rest of his life was as nothing4 ,he was a ,catholic cardinal1--the ,rochellois were ,protestants2 he was a stern ruler1--they were rebellious subjects who had long worried and almost impoverished him2--all ,europe1 therefore1 looked for a retribution more terrible than any in history4 ,richelieu allowed nothing of the sort4 ,he destroyed the old franchises of the city1 for they were incompatible with that royal authority which he so earnestly strove to build4 ,but this was all4 ,he took no vengeance1--he allowed the ,protestants to worship as before1--he took many of them into the public service1--and to ,guiton he showed marks of respect4 ,he stretched forth that strong arm of his over the city1 and warded off all harm4 ,he kept back greedy soldiers from pillage1--he kept back bigot priests from persecution4 ,years before this he had said1 ,the diversity of religions may indeed create a division in the other world1 but not in this2 at another time he wrote1 ,violent remedies only aggravate spiritual diseases4 ,and he was now so tested1 that these expressions were found to embody not merely an idea1 but a belief4 ,for1 when the ,protestants in ,la ,rochelle1 though thug owing tolerance and even existence to a ,catholic1 vexed ,catholics in a spirit most intolerant1 even that could not force him to abridge the religious liberties he had given4 ,he saw beyond his time1--not only beyond ,catholics1 but beyond ,protestants4 ,two years after that great example of toleration in ,la ,rochelle1 ,nicholas ,antoine w as executed for apostasy from ,calvinism at ,geneva4 ,and for his leniency ,richelieu received the titles of ,pope of the ,protestants and ,patriarch of the ,atheists4 ,but he had gained the first great object of his policy1 and he would not abuse it3 he had crushed the political power of the ,huguenots forever4 ,let us turn now to the second great object of his policy4 ,he must break the power of the nobility3 on that condition alone could ,france have strength and order1 and here he showed his daring at the outset4 ,it is iniquitous1 he was wont to tell the ,king1 to try to make an example by punishing the lesser offenders3 they are but trees which cast no shade3 it is the great nobles who must be disciplined4 ,it was not long before he had to begin this work1--and with the highest1--with no less a personage than ,gaston1 ,duke of ,orleans1--favorite son of ,mary1--brother of the ,king4 ,he who thinks shall come to a higher idea of ,richelieu's boldness1 when he remembers that for many years after this ,louis was childless and sickly1 and that during all those years ,richelieu might awake any morning to find ,gaston--,king4 ,in #afbf1 ,gaston1 with the ,duke of ,vendme1 half-brother of the ,king1 the ,duchess of ,chevreuse1 confidential friend of the ,queen1 the ,count of ,soissons1 the ,count of ,chalais1 and the ,marshal ,ornano1 formed a conspiracy after the old fashion4 ,richelieu had his hand at their lofty throats in a moment4 ,gaston1 who was used only as a makeweight1 he forced into the most humble apologies and the most binding pledges2 ,ornano he sent to die in the ,bastille2 the ,duke of ,vendme and the ,duchess of ,chevreuse he banished2 ,chalais he sent to the scaffold4 ,the next year he gave the grandees another lesson4 ,the serf-owning spirit had fostered in ,france1 through many years1 a rage for duelling4 ,richelieu determined that this should stop4 ,he gave notice that the law against duelling was revived1 and that he would enforce it4 ,it was soon broken by two of the loftiest nobles in ,france1--by the ,count of ,bouteville-,montmorency and the ,count des ,chapelles4 ,they laughed at the law3 they fought defiantly in broad daylight4 ,nobody dreamed that the law would be carried out against them4 ,the ,cardinal would1 they thought1 deal with them as rulers have dealt with serf-mastering law-breakers from those days to these1--invent some quibble and screen them with it4 ,but his method was sharper and shorter4 ,he seized both1 and executed both on the ,place de ,greve1--the place of execution for the vilest malefactors4 ,no doubt1 that1 under the present domineering of the pettifogger caste1 there are hosts of men whose minds run in such small old grooves that they hold legal forms not a means1 but an end3 these will cry out against this proceeding as tyrannical4 ,no doubt1 too1 that1 under the present palaver of the sensationist caste1 the old ladies of both sexes have come to regard crime as mere misfortune3 these will lament this proceeding as cruel4 ,but1 for this act1 if for no other1 an earnest man's heart ought in these times to warm toward the great statesman4 ,the man had a spine4 ,to his mind crime was cot mere misfortune3 crime was ,,crime4 ,crime was strong2 it would pay him well to screen it2 it might cost him dear to fight it4 ,but he was not a modern smart lawyer1 to seek popularity by screening criminals1--nor a modern soft juryman1 to suffer his eyes to be blinded by quirks and quibbles to the great purposes of law1--nor a modern bland governor1 who lets a murderer loose out of politeness to the murderer's mistress4 ,he hated crime2 he whipped the criminal2 no petty forms and no petty men of forms could stand between him and a rascal4 ,he had the sense to see that this course was not cruel1 but merciful4 ,see that for yourselves4 ,in the eighteen years before ,richelieu's administration1 four thousand men perished in duels2 in the ten years after ,richelieu's death1 nearly a thousand thus perished2 but during his whole administration1 duelling was checked completely4 ,which policy was tyrannical8 which policy was cruel8 ,the hatred of the serf-mastering caste toward their new ruler grew blacker and blacker2 but he never flinched4 ,the two brothers ,marillac1 proud of birth1 high in office1 endeavored to stir revolt as in their good days of old4 ,the first1 who was ,keeper of the ,seals1 ,richelieu threw into prison2 with the second1 who was a ,marshal of ,france1 ,richelieu took another course4 ,for this ,marshal had added to revolt things more vile and more insidiously hurtful3 he had defrauded the ,government in army-contracts4 ,richelieu tore him from his army and put him on trial4 ,the ,queen-,mother1 whose pet he was1 insisted on his liberation4 ,marillac himself blubbered1 that it was all about a little straw and hay1 a matter for which a master would not whip a lackey4 ,marshal ,marillac was executed4 ,so1 when statesmen rule1 fare all who take advantage of the agonies of a nation to pilfer a nation's treasure4 ,to crown all1 the ,queen-,mother began now to plot against ,richelieu1 because he would not be her puppet1--and he banished her from ,france forever4 ,the high nobles were now exasperate4 ,gaston tied the country1 first issuing against ,richelieu a threatening manifesto4 ,now awoke the ,duke of ,montmorency4 ,by birth he stood next the ,king's family3 by office1 as ,constable of ,france1 he stood next the ,king himself4 ,montmorency was defeated and taken4 ,the nobles supplicated for him lustily3 they looked on crimes of nobles resulting in deaths of plebeians as lightly as the ,english ,house of ,lords afterward looked on ,lord ,mohun's murder of ,will ,mountfort1 or as another body of lords looked on ,matt ,ward's murder of ,professor ,butler3 but ,montmorency was executed4 ,says ,richelieu1 in his ,memoirs1 ,many murmured at this act1 and called it severe2 but others1 more wise1 praised the justice of the ,king1 who preferred the good of the ,state to the vain reputation of a hurtful clemency4 ,nor did the great minister grow indolent as he grew old4 ,the ,duke of ,epernon1 who seems to have had more direct power of the old feudal sort than any other man in ,france1 and who had been so turbulent under the ,regency1--him ,richelieu humbled completely4 ,the ,duke of ,la ,valette disobeyed orders in the army1 and he was executed as a common soldier would have been for the same offence4 ,the ,count of ,soissons tried to see if he could not revive the good old turbulent times1 and raised a rebel army2 but ,richelieu hunted him down like a wild beast4 ,then certain ,court nobles1--pets of the ,king1--,cinq-,mars and ,de ,thou1 wove a new plot1 and1 to strengthen it1 made a secret treaty with ,spain2 but the ,cardinal1 though dying1 obtained a copy of the treaty1 through his agent1 and the traitors expiated their treason with their blood4 ,but this was not all4 ,the ,parliament of ,paris1--a court of justice1--filled with the idea that law is not a means1 but an end1 tried to interpose forms between the ,master of ,france and the vermin he was exterminating4 ,that ,parisian court might1 years before1 have done something4 ,they might have insisted that petty quibbles set forth by the lawyers of ,paris should not defeat the eternal laws of retribution set forth by the ,lawgiver of the ,universe4 ,that they had not done1 and the time for legal forms had gone by4 ,the ,paris ,parliament would not see this1 and ,richelieu crushed the ,parliament4 ,then the ,court of ,aids refused to grant supplies1 and he crushed that court4 ,in all this the nation braced him4 ,woe to the courts of a nation1 when they have forced the great body of plain men to regard legality as injustice6--woe to the councils of a nation1 when they have forced the great body of plain men to regard legislation as traffic6--woe1 thrice repeated1 to gentlemen of the small pettifogger sort1 when they have brought such times1 and ,god has brought a man to fit them6 ,there was now in ,france no man who could stand against the statesman's purpose4 ,and so1 having hewn1 through all that anarchy and bigotry and selfishness1 a way for the people1 he called them to the work4 ,in #afbf he summoned an assembly to carry out reforms4 ,it was essentially a people's assembly4 ,that anarchical ,states-,general1 domineered by great nobles1 he would not call2 but he called an ,assembly of ,notables4 ,in this was not one prince or duke1 and two-thirds of the members came directly from the people4 ,into this body he thrust some of his own energy4 ,measures were taken for the creation of a navy4 ,an idea was now carried into effect which many suppose to have sprung from the ,french ,revolution2 for the army was made more effective by opening its high grades to the commons4,a ,a reform was also made in taxation1 and shrewd measures were taken to spread commerce and industry by calling the nobility into them4 ,footnote ,a3 ,see the ordonnances in ,thierry1 ,histoire du ,tiers ,etat4 ,thus did ,france1 under his guidance1 secure order and progress4 ,calmly he destroyed all useless feudal castles which had so long overawed the people and defied the monarchy4 ,he abolished also the military titles of ,grand ,admiral and ,high ,constable1 which had hitherto given the army and navy into the hands of leading noble families4 ,he destroyed some troublesome remnants of feudal courts1 and created royal courts3 in one year that of ,poitiers alone punished for exactions and violence against the people more than two hundred nobles4 ,greatest step of all1 he deposed the hereditary noble governors1 and placed in their stead governors taken from the people1--,intendants1--responsible to the central authority alone4,b ,footnote ,b3 ,for the best sketch of this see ,caillet1 ,l',administration sous ,richelieu4 ,we are brought now to the third great object of ,richelieu's policy4 ,he saw from the beginning that ,austria and her satellite ,spain must be humbled1 if ,france was to take her rightful place in ,europe4 ,hardly1 then1 had he entered the council1 when he negotiated a marriage of the ,king's sister with the son of ,james ,i4 of ,england2 next he signed an alliance with ,holland2 next he sent ten thousand soldiers to drive the troops of the ,pope and ,spain out of the ,valtelline district of the ,alps1 and thus secured an alliance with the ,swiss4 ,we are to note here the fact which ,buckle wields so well1 that1 though ,richelieu was a ,cardinal of the ,roman ,church1 all these alliances were with ,protestant powers against ,catholic4,c ,austria and ,spain intrigued against him1--sowing money in the mountain-districts of ,south ,france which brought forth those crops of armed men who defended ,la ,rochelle4 ,but he beat them at their own game4 ,he set loose ,count ,mansfyld1 who revived the ,thirty ,tears' ,war by raising a rebellion in ,bohemia2 and when one great man1 ,wallenstein1 stood between ,austria and ruin1 ,richelieu sent his monkish diplomatist1 ,father ,joseph1 to the ,german ,assembly of ,electors1 and persuaded them to dismiss ,wallenstein and to disgrace him4 ,footnote ,c3 ,history of ,civilisation in ,england1 ,vol4 ,i4 ,chap4 ,,viii4 ,but the great ,frenchman's master-stroke was his treaty with ,gustavus ,adolphus4 ,with that keen glance of his1 he saw and knew ,gustavus while yet the world knew him not1--while he was battling afar off in the wilds of ,poland4 ,richelieu's plan was formed at once4 ,he brought about a treaty between ,gustavus and ,poland2 then he filled ,gustavus's mind with pictures of the wrongs inflicted by ,austria on ,german ,protestants1 hinted to him probably of a new realm1 filled his treasury1 and finally hurled against ,austria the man who destroyed ,tilly1 who conquered ,wallenstein1 who annihilated ,austrian supremacy at the ,battle of ,lizen1 who1 though in his grave1 wrenched ,protestant rights from ,austria at the ,treaty of ,westphalia1 who pierced the ,austrian monarchy with the most terrible sorrows it ever saw before the time of ,napoleon4 ,to the main objects of ,richelieu's policy already given might be added two subordinate objects4 ,the first of these was a healthful extension of ,french territory4 ,in this ,richelieu planned better than the first ,napoleon2 for1 while he did much to carry ,france out to her natural boundaries1 he kept her always within them4 ,on the ,south he added ,roussillon1 on the ,east1 ,alsace1 on the ,northeast1 ,artois4 ,the second subordinate object of his policy sometimes flashed forth brilliantly4 ,he was determined that ,england should never again interfere on ,french soil4 ,we have seen him driving the ,english from ,la ,rochelle and from the ,isle of ,rh2 but he went farther4 ,in #afbh1 on making some proposals to ,england1 he was repulsed with ,english haughtiness4 ,they shall know1 said the ,cardinal1 that they cannot despise me4 ,straightway one sees protests and revolts of the ,presbyterians of ,scotland1 and ,richelieu's agents in the thickest of them4 ,and now what was ,richelieu's statesmanship in its sum8 ,i4 ,in the ,political ,progress of ,france1 his work has already been sketched as building monarchy and breaking anarchy4 ,therefore have men said that he swept away old ,french liberties4 ,what old liberties8 ,richelieu but tore away the decaying1 poisonous husks and rinds which hindered ,french liberties from their chance at life and growth4 ,therefore1 also1 have men said that ,richelieu built up absolutism4 ,the charge is true and welcome4 ,for1 evidently1 absolutism was the only force1 in that age1 which could destroy the serf-mastering caste4 ,many a ,polish patriot1 as he to-day wanders through the ,polish villages1 groans that absolutism was not built to crush that serf-owning aristocracy which has been the real architect of ,poland's ruin4 ,any one who reads to much purpose in ,de ,mably1 or ,guizot1 or ,henri ,martin1 knows that this part of ,richelieu's statesmanship was but a masterful continuation of all great ,french statesmanship since the twelfth-century league of king and commons against nobles1 and that ,richelieu stood in the heirship of all great ,french statesmen since ,suger4 ,that part of ,richelieu's work1 then1 was evidently bedded in the great line of ,divine ,purpose running through that age and through all ages4 ,,ii4 ,in the ,internal ,development of ,france1 ,richelieu proved himself a true builder4 ,the founding of the ,french ,academy and of the ,jardin des ,plantes1 the building of the ,college of ,plessis1 and the rebuilding of the ,college of the ,sorbonne1 are among the monuments of this part of his statesmanship4 ,his1 also1 is much of that praise usually lavished on ,louis ,,xiv4 for the career opened in the seventeenth century to science1 literature1 and art4 ,he was also a reformer1 and his zeal was proved1 when1 in the fiercest of the ,la ,rochelle struggle1 he found time to institute great reforms not only in the army and navy1 but even in the monasteries4 ,,iii4 ,on the ,general ,progress of ,europe1 his work must be judged as mainly for good4 ,austria was the chief barrier to ,european progress1 and that barrier he broke4 ,but a far greater impulse to the general progress of ,europe was given by the idea of ,toleration which he thrust into the methods of ,european statesmen4 ,he1 first of all statesmen in ,france1 saw1 that1 in ,french policy1 to use his own words1 ,a ,protestant ,frenchman is better than a ,catholic ,spaniard2 and he1 first of all statesmen in ,europe1 saw1 that1 in ,european policy1 patriotism1 must outweigh bigotry4 ,,iv4 ,his ,faults in ,method were many4 ,his under-estimate of the sacredness of human life was one2 but that was the fault of his age4 ,his frequent working by intrigue was another2 but that also was a vile method accepted by his age4 ,the fair questions1 then1 are1--,did he not commit the fewest and smallest wrongs possible in beating back those many and great wrongs8 ,wrong has often a quick1 spasmodic force2 but was there not in his arm a steady growing force1 which could only be a force of right8 ,v4 ,his ,faults in ,policy crystallized about one3 for1 while he subdued the serf-mastering nobility1 he struck no final blow at the serf-system itself4 ,our running readers of ,french history need here a word of caution4 ,they follow ,de ,tocqueville1 and ,de ,tocqueville follows ,biot in speaking of the serf-system as abolished in most of ,france hundreds of years before this4 ,but ,biot and ,de ,tocqueville take for granted a knowledge in their readers that the essential vileness of the system1 and even many of its most shocking outward features1 remained4 ,richelieu might have crushed the serf-system1 really1 as easily as ,louis ,x4 and ,philip the ,long had crushed it nominally4 ,this ,richelieu did not4 ,and the consequences of this great man's great fault were terrible4 ,hardly was he in his grave1 when the nobles perverted the effort of the ,paris ,parliament for advance in liberty1 and took the lead in the fearful revolts and massacres of the ,fronde4 ,then came ,richelieu's pupil1 ,mazarin1 who tricked the nobles into order1 and ,mazarin's pupil1 ,louis ,,xiv41 who bribed them into order4 ,but a nobility borne on high by the labor of a servile class must despise labor2 so there came those weary years of indolent gambling and debauchery and serf-eating at ,versailles4 ,then came ,louis ,,xv41 who was too feeble to maintain even the poor decent restraints imposed by ,louis ,,xiv42 so the serf-mastering caste became active in a new way1 and their leaders in vileness unutterable became at last ,fronsac and ,de ,sade4 ,then came the deluge4 ,the spirit of the serf-mastering caste1 as left by ,richelieu1 was a main cause of the miseries which brought on the ,french ,revolution4 ,when the ,third ,estate brought up their portfolio of grievances1 for one complaint against the exactions of the monarchy there were fifty complaints against the exactions of the nobility4,d ,footnote ,d3 ,see any ,rsum des ,cahiers1--even the meagre ones in ,buchez and ,roux1 or ,le ,bas1 or ,chruel4 ,then came the failure of the ,revolution in its direct purpose2 and of this failure the serf-mastering caste was a main cause4 ,for this caste1 hardened by ages of domineering over a servile class1 despite fourth of ,august renunciations1 would not1 could not1 accept a position compatible with freedom and order3 so earnest men were maddened1 and sought to tear out this cancerous mass1 with all its burning roots4 ,but for ,richelieu's great fault there is an excuse4 ,his mind was saturated with ideas of the impossibility of inducing freed peasants to work1--the impossibility of making them citizens1--the impossibility1 in short1 of making them men4 ,to his view was not unrolled the rich newer world-history1 to show that a working class is most dangerous when restricted1--that oppression is more dangerous to the oppressor than to the oppressed1--that1 if man will hew out paths to liberty1 ,god will hew out paths to prosperity4 ,but ,richelieu's fault teaches the world not less than his virtues4 ,at last1 on the third of ,december1 #afdb1 the great statesman lay upon his death-bed4 ,the death-hour is a great revealer of motives1 and as with weaker men1 so with ,richelieu4 ,light then shot over the secret of his whole life's plan and work4 ,he was told that he must die3 he received the words with calmness4 ,as the ,host1 which he believed the veritable body of the ,crucified1 was brought him1 he said1 ,behold my ,judge before whom ,i must shortly appear6 ,i pray ,him to condemn me1 if ,i have ever had any other motive than the cause of religion and my country4 ,the confessor asked him if he pardoned his enemies3 he answered1 ,i have none but those of the ,state4 ,so passed from earth this strong man4 ,keen he was in sight1 steady in aim1 strong in act4 ,a true man1--not non-committal1 but wedded to a great policy in the sight of all men3 seen by earnest men of all times to have marshalled against riot and bigotry and unreason divine forces and purposes2 seen by earnest men of these times to have taught the true method of grasping desperate revolt1 and of strangling that worst foe of liberty and order in every age1--a serf-owning aristocracy4 ,,under ,,the ,,snow4 ,the spring had tripped and lost her flowers1 ,the summer sauntered through the glades1 ,the wounded feet of autumn hours ,left ruddy footprints on the blades4 ,and all the glories of the woods ,had flung their shadowy silence down1-- ,when1 wilder than the storm it broods1 ,she fled before the winter's frown4 ,for her sweet spring had lost its flowers1 ,she fell1 and passion's tongues of flame ,ran reddening through the blushing bowers1 ,now haggard as her naked shame4 ,one secret thought her soul had screened1 ,when prying matrons sought her wrong1 ,and ,blame stalked on1 a mouthing fiend1 ,and mocked her as she fled along4 ,and now she bore its weight aloof1 ,to hide it where one ghastly birch ,held up the rafters of the roof1 ,and grim old pine-trees formed a church4 ',twas there her spring-time vows were sworn1 ,and there upon its frozen sod1 ,while wintry midnight reigned forlorn1 ,she knelt1 and held her hands to ,god4 ,the cautious creatures of the air ,looked out from many a secret place1 ,to see the embers of despair ,flush the gray ashes of her face4 ,and where the last week's snow had caught ,the gray beard of a cypress limb1 ,she heard the music of a thought ,more sweet than her own childhood's hymn4 ,for rising in that cadence low1 ,with ,now ,i lay me down to sleep1 ,her mother rocked her to and fro1 ,and prayed the ,lord her soul to keep4 ,and still her prayer was humbly raised1 ,held up in two cold hands to ,god1 ,that1 white as some old pine-tree blazed1 ,gleamed far o'er that dark frozen sod4 ,the storm stole out beyond the wood1 ,she grew the vision of a cloud1 ,her dark hair was a misty hood1 ,her stark face shone as from a shroud4 ,still sped the wild storm's rustling feet ,to martial music of the pines1 ,and to her cold heart's muffled beat ,wheeled grandly into solemn lines4 ,and still1 as if her secret's woe ,no mortal words had ever found1 ,this dying sinner draped in snow ,held up her prayer without a sound4 ,but when the holy angel bands ,saw this lone vigil1 lowly kept1 ,they gathered from her frozen hands ,the prayer thus folded1 and they wept4 ,some snow-flakes--wiser than the rest-- ,soon faltered o'er a thing of clay1 ,first read this secret of her breast1 ,then gently robed her where she lay4 ,the dead dark hair1 made white with snow1 ,a still stark face1 two folded palms1 ,and 7mothers1 breathe her secret low67 ,an unborn infant--asking alms4 ,god kept her counsel2 cold and mute ,his steadfast mourners closed her eyes1 ,her head-stone was an old tree's root1 ,be mine to utter1--,here she lies4 ,,slavery1 ,,in ,,its ,,principles1 ,,development1 ,,and ,,expedients4 ,within the memory of men still in the vigor of life1 ,american ,slavery was considered by a vast majority of the ,north1 and by a large minority of the ,south1 as an evil which should1 at best1 be tolerated1 and not a good which deserved to be extended and protected4 ,a kind of lazy acquiescence in it as a local matter1 to be managed by local legislation1 was the feeling of the ,free ,states4 ,in both the ,slave and the ,free ,states1 the discussion of the essential principles on which ,slavery rests was confined to a few disappointed ,nullifiers and a few uncompromising ,abolitionists1 and we can recollect the time when ,calhoun and ,garrison were both classed by practical statesmen of the ,south and ,north in one category of pestilent abstractionists4 ,negro ,slavery was considered simply as a fact2 and general irritation among most politicians of all sections was sure to follow any attempt to explore the principles on which the fact reposed4 ,that these principles had the mischievous vitality which events have proved them to possess1 few of our wisest statesmen then dreamed1 and we have drifted by degrees into the present war without any clear perception of its animating causes4 ,the future historian will trace the steps by which the subject of ,slavery was forced on the reluctant attention of the citizens of the ,free ,states1 so that at last the most cautious conservative could not ignore its intrusive presence1 could not banish its reality from his eyes1 or its image from his mind4 ,he will show why ,slavery1 disdaining its old argument from expediency1 challenged discussion on its principles4 ,he will explain the process by which it became discontented with toleration within its old limits1 and demanded the championship or connivance of the ,national ,government in a plan for its limitless extension4 ,he will indicate the means by which it corrupted the ,southern heart and ,southern brain1 so that at last the elemental principles of morals and religion were boldly denied1 and the people came to believe a lie4 ,he will1 not unnaturally1 indulge in a little sarcasm1 when he comes to consider the occupation of ,southern professors of ethics1 compelled by their position to scoff at the rights of man1 and ,southern professors of theology1 compelled by their position to teach that ,christ came into the world1 not so much to save sinners1 as to enslave negroes4 ,he will be forced to class these among the meanest and most abject slaves that the planters owned4 ,in treating of the subserviency of the ,north1 he will be constrained to write many a page which will flush the cheeks of our descendants with indignation and shame4 ,he will show the method by which ,slavery1 after vitiating the conscience and intelligence of the ,south1 contrived to vitiate in part1 and for a time1 the conscience and intelligence of the ,north4 ,it will be his ungrateful task to point to many instances of compliance and concession on the part of able ,northern statesmen which will deeply affect their fame with posterity1 though he will doubtless refuse to adopt to the full the contemporary clamor against their motives4 ,he will understand1 better than we1 the amount of patriotism which entered into their concessions1 and the amount of fraternal good-will which prompted their fatal compromises4 ,but he will also declare that the object of the ,slave ,power was not attained4 ,vacillating statesmen and corrupt politicians it might address1 the first through their fears1 the second through their interests2 but the intrepid and incorruptible people were but superficially affected4 ,a few elections were gained1 but the victories were barren of results4 ,from political defeat the free people of the ,north came forth more earnest and more united than ever4 ,the insolent pretensions of the ,slavocracy were repudiated2 its political and ethical maxims were disowned2 and after having stirred the noblest impulses of the human heart by the spectacle of its tyranny1 its attempt to extend that tyranny only roused an insurrection of the human understanding against the impudence of its logic4 ,the historian can then only say1 that the ,slave ,power seceded1 being determined to form a part of no government which it could not control4 ,the present war is to decide whether its real force corresponds to the political force it has exerted heretofore in our affairs4 ,that this war has been forced upon the ,free ,states by the aggressions of the ,slave ,power is so plain that no argument is necessary to sustain the proposition4 ,it is not so universally understood that the ,slave ,power is aggressive by the necessities of the wretched system of labor on which its existence is based4 ,by a short exposition of the principles of ,slavery1 and the expedients it has practised during the last twenty or thirty years1 we think that this proposition can be established4 ,and first it must be always borne in mind1 that ,slavery1 as a system1 is based on the most audacious1 inhuman1 and self-evident of lies1--the assertion1 namely1 that property can be held in men4 ,property applies to things4 ,there is a meta-physical impossibility implied in the attempt to extend its application to persons4 ,it is possible1 we admit1 to ordain by local law that four and four make ten1 but such an exercise of legislative wisdom could not overcome certain arithmetical prejudices innate in our minds1 or dethrone the stubborn eight from its accustomed position in our thoughts4 ,but you might as well ordain that four and four make ten as ordain that a man has no right to himself1 but can properly be held as the chattel of another4 ,yet this arrogant falsehood of property in men has been organized into a colossal institution4 ,the ,south calls it a peculiar institution2 and herein perhaps consists its peculiarity1 that it is an absurdity which has lied itself into a substantial form1 and now argues its right to exist from the fact of its existence4 ,doubtless1 the fact that a thing exists proves that it has its roots in human nature2 but before we accept this as decisive of its right to exist1 it may be well to explore those qualities in human nature1 peculiar and perverse as itself1 from which it derives its poisonous vitality and strength4 ,it is plain1 we think1 that an institution embodying an essential falsity1 which equally affronts the common sense and the moral sense of mankind1 and which1 as respects chronology1 was as repugnant to the instincts of ,homer as it is to the instincts of ,whittier1 must have sprung from the unblessed union of wilfulness and avarice1 of avarice which knows no conscience1 and of wilfulness that tramples on reason2 and the marks of this parentage1 the signs of these its boasted roots in human nature1 are1 we are constrained to concede1 visible in every stage of its growth1 in every argument for its existence1 in every motive for its extension4 ,it is not1 perhaps1 surprising that some of the advocates of ,slavery do not relish the analysis which reveals the origin of their institution in those dispositions which connect man with the tiger and the wolf4 ,accordingly they discourage1 with true democratic humility1 all genealogical inquiries into the ancestry of their system1 substitute generalization for analysis1 and1 twisting the maxims of religion into a philosophy of servitude1 bear down all arguments with the sounding proposition1 that ,slavery is included in the plan of ,god's providence1 and therefore cannot be wrong4 ,certain thinkers of our day have asserted the universality of the religious element in human nature3 and it must be admitted that men become very pious when their minds are illuminated by the discernment of a ,providential sanction for their darling sins1 and by the discovery that ,god is on the side of their interests and passions4 ,napoleon's religious perceptions were somewhat obtuse1 as tried by the standards of the ,church1 yet nothing could exceed the depth of his belief that ,god was with the heaviest column2 and the most obdurate jobber in human flesh may well glow with apostolic fervor1 as1 from the height of philosophic contemplation to which this principle lifts him1 he discerns the sublime import of his ,providential mission4 ,it is true1 he is now willing to concede1 that a man's right to himself1 being given by ,god1 can only by ,god be taken away4 ,but1 he exultingly exclaims1 it has been taken away by ,god4 ,the negro1 having always been a slave1 must have been so by divine appointment2 and ,i1 the mark of obloquy to a few fanatical enthusiasts1 am really an humble agent in carrying out the designs of a higher law even than that of the ,state1 of a higher will even than my own4 ,this mode of baptizing man's sin and calling it ,god's providence has not altogether lacked the aid of certain ,southern clergymen1 who ostentatiously profess to preach ,christ and ,him crucified1 and by such arguments1 we may fear1 crucified by them4 ,here is ,slavery's abhorred riot of vices and crimes1 from whose soul-sickening details the human imagination shrinks aghast1--and over all1 to complete the picture1 these theologians bring in the seraphic countenance of the ,saviour of mankind1 smiling celestial approval of the multitudinous miseries and infamies it serenely beholds6 ,it may be presumptuous to proffer counsel to such authorized expositors of religion1 but one can hardly help insinuating the humble suggestion1 that it would be as well1 if they must give up the principles of liberty1 not to throw ,christianity in4 ,we may be permitted to doubt the theory of ,providence which teaches that a man never so much serves ,god as when he serves the ,devil4 ,doubtless1 ,slavery1 though opposed to ,god's laws1 is included in the plan of ,god's providence1 but1 in the long run1 the providence most terribly confirms the laws4 ,the stream of events1 having its fountains in iniquity1 has its end in retribution4 ,it is because ,god's laws are immutable that ,god's providence can be foreseen as well as seen4 ,the mere fact that a thing exists1 and persists in existing1 is of little importance in determining its right to exist1 or its eventual destiny4 ,these must be found in an inspection of the principles by which it exists2 and from the nature of its principles1 we can predict its future history4 ,the confidence of bad men and the despair of good men proceed equally from a too fixed attention to the facts and events before their eyes1 to the exclusion of the principles which underlie and animate them2 for no insight of principles1 and of the moral laws which govern human events1 could ever cause tyrants to exult or philanthropists to despond4 ,if we go farther into this question1 we shall commonly find that the facts and events to which we give the name of ,providence are the acts of human wills divinely overruled4 ,there is iniquity and wrong in these facts and events1 because they are the work of free human wills4 ,but when these free human wills organize falsehood1 institute injustice1 and establish oppression1 they have passed into that mental state where will has been perverted into wilfulness1 and self-direction has been exaggerated into self-worship4 ,it is the essence of wilfulness that it exalts the impulses of its pride above the intuitions of conscience and intelligence1 and puts force in the place of reason and right4 ,the person has thus emancipated himself from all restraints of a law higher than his personality1 and acts from self1 for self1 and in sole obedience to self4 ,but this is personality in its ,satanic form2 yet it is just here that some of our theologians have discovered in a person's actions the purposes of ,providence1 and discerned the ,divine intention in the fact of guilt instead of in the certainty of retribution4 ,the tyrant element in man is found in this ,satanic form of his individuality4 ,his will1 self-released from restraint1 preys upon and crushes other wills4 ,he asserts himself by enslaving others1 and mimics ,divinity on the stilts of diabolism4 ,like the barbarian who thought himself enriched by the powers and gifts of the enemy he slew1 he aggrandizes his own personality1 and heightens his own sense of freedom1 through the subjection of feebler natures4 ,ruthless1 rapacious1 greedy of power1 greedy of gain1 it is in ,slavery that he wantons in all the luxury of injustice1 for it is here that he tastes the exquisite pleasure of depriving others of that which he most values in himself4 ,thus1 whether we examine this system in the light of conscience and intelligence1 or in the light of history and experience1 we come to but one result1--that it has its source and sustenance in ,satanic energy1 in ,satanic pride1 and in ,satanic greed4 ,this is ,slavery in itself1 detached from the ameliorations it may receive from individual slaveholders4 ,now a bad system is not continued or extended by the virtues of any individuals who are but partially corrupted by it1 but by those who work in the spirit and with the implements of its originators4 ,every amelioration is a confession of the essential injustice of the thing ameliorated1 and a step towards its abolition2 and the humane and ,christian slaveholders owe their safety1 and the security of what they are pleased to call their property1 to the vices of the hard and stern spirits whom they profess to abhor4 ,if they invest in stock of the ,devil's corporation1 they ought not to be severe on those who look out that they punctually receive their dividends4 ,the true slaveholder feels that he is encamped among his slaves1 that he holds them by the right of conquest1 that the relation is one of war1 and that there is no crime he may not be compelled to commit in self-defence4 ,disdaining all cant1 he clearly perceives that the system1 in its practical working1 must conform to the principles on which it is based4 ,he accordingly believes in the lash and the fear of the lash4 ,if he is cruel and brutal1 it may as often be from policy as from disposition1 for brutality and cruelty are the means by which weaker races are best kept subordinated to stronger races2 and the influence of his brutality and cruelty is felt as restraint and terror on the plantation of his less resolute neighbor4 ,and when we speak of brutality and cruelty1 we do not limit the application of the words to those who scourge1 but extend it to some of those who preach1--who hold up heaven as the reward of those slaves who are sufficiently abject on earth1 and threaten damnation in the next world to all who dare to assert their manhood in this4 ,if1 however1 any one still doubts that this system develops itself logically and naturally1 and tramples down the resistance offered by the better sentiments of human nature1 let him look at the legislation which defines and protects it1--a legislation which1 as expressing the average sense and purpose of the community1 is to be quoted as conclusive against the testimony of any of its individual members4 ,this legislation evinces the dominion of a malignant principle4 ,you can hear the crack of the whip and the clank of the chain in all its enactments4 ,yet these laws1 which cannot be read in any civilized country without mingled horror and derision1 indicate a mastery of the whole theory and practice of oppression1 are admirably adapted to the end they have in view1 and bear the unmistakable marks of being the work of practical men1--of men who know their sin1 and knowing1 dare maintain4 ,they do not1 it is true1 enrich the science of jurisprudence with any large or wise additions1 but we do not look for such luxuries as justice1 reason1 and beneficence in ordinances devised to prop up iniquity1 falsehood1 and tyranny4 ,ghastly caricatures of justice as these offshoots of ,slavery are1 they are still dictated by the nature and necessities of the system4 ,they have the flavor of the rank soil whence they spring4 ,if we desire any stronger evidence that slaveholders constitute a general ,slave ,power1 that this ,slave ,power acts as a unit1 the unity of a great interest impelled by powerful passions1 and that the virtues of individual slaveholders have little effect in checking the vices of the system1 we can find that evidence in the zeal and audacity with which this power engaged in extending its dominion4 ,seemingly aggressive in this1 it was really acting on the defensive1--on the defensive1 however1 not against the assaults of men1 but against the immutable decrees of ,god4 ,the world is so constituted1 that wrong and oppression are not1 in a large view1 politic4 ,they heavily mortgage the future1 when they glut the avarice of the present4 ,the avenging ,providence1 which the slaveholder cannot find in the ,new ,testament1 or in the teachings of conscience1 he is at last compelled to find in political economy2 and however indifferent to the ,gospel according to ,saint ,john1 he must give heed to the gospel according to ,adam ,smith and ,malthus4 ,he discovers1 no doubt to his surprise1 and somewhat to his indignation1 that there is an intimate relation between industrial success and justice2 and however much1 as a practical man1 he may despise the abstract principles which declare ,slavery a nonsensical enormity1 he cannot fail to read its nature1 when it slowly1 but legibly1 writes itself out in curses on the land4 ,he finds how true is the old proverb1 that1 if ,god moves with leaden feet1 ,he strikes with iron hands4 ,the law of ,slavery is1 that1 to be lucrative1 it must have a scanty population diffused over large areas4 ,to limit it is therefore to doom it to come to an end by the laws of population4 ,to limit it is to force the planters1 in the end1 to free their slaves1 from an inability to support them1 and to force the slaves into more energy and intelligence in labor1 in order that they may subsist as freemen4 ,people prattle about the necessity of compulsory labor2 but the true compulsory labor1 the labor which has produced the miracles of modern industry1 is the labor to which a man is compelled by the necessity of saving himself1 and those who are dearer to him than self1 from ignominy and want4 ,it was by this policy of territorial limitation1 that ,henry ,clay1 before the annexation of ,texas1 declared that ,slavery must eventually expire4 ,the way was gradual1 it was prudent1 it was safe1 it was distant1 it was sure1 it was according to the nature of things4 ,it would have been accepted1 had there been any general truth in the assertion that the slaveholders were honestly desirous of reconverting1 at any time1 and on any practicable plan1 their chattels into men4 ,but true to the malignant principles of their system1 they accepted the law of its existence1 but determined to evade the law of its extinction4 ,as ,slavery required large areas and scanty population1 large areas and scanty population it should at all times have4 ,new markets should be opened for the surplus slave-population2 to open new markets was to acquire new territory2 and to acquire new territory was to gain additional political strength4 ,the expansive tendencies of freedom would thus be checked by the tendencies no less expansive of bondage4 ,to acquire ,texas was not merely to acquire an additional ,slave ,state1 but it was to keep up a demand for slaves which would prevent ,virginia1 ,north ,carolina1 ,maryland1 and ,kentucky from becoming ,free ,states4 ,as soon as old soils were worn out1 new soils were to be ready to receive the curse2 and where slave-labor ceased to be profitable1 slave-breeding was to take its place4 ,this purpose was so diabolical1 that1 when first announced1 it was treated as a caprice of certain hot spirits1 irritated by the declamations of the ,abolitionists4 ,but it is idle to refer to transient heat thoughts which bear all the signs of cool atrocity2 and needless to seek for the causes of actions in extraneous sources1 when they are plainly but steps in the development of principles already known4 ,slave-breeding and ,slavery-extension are necessities of the system4 ,like ,romulus and ,remus1 they are both suckled from one wolf4 ,but it was just here that the question became to the ,free ,states a practical question4 ,there could be no fanaticism in meeting it at this stage4 ,what usually goes under the name of fanaticism is the habit of uncompromising assault on a thing because its principles are absurd or wicked2 what usually goes under the name of common sense is the disposition to assail it at that point where1 in the development of its principles1 it has become immediately and pressingly dangerous4 ,now by no sophistry could we of the ,free ,states evade the responsibility of being the extenders of ,slavery1 if we allowed ,slavery to be extended4 ,if we did not oppose it from a sense of right1 we were bound to oppose it from a sense of decency4 ,it may be said that we had nothing to do with ,slavery at the ,south2 but we had something to do with rescuing the national character from infamy1 and unhappily we could not have anything to do with rescuing the national character from infamy without having something to do with ,slavery at the ,south4 ,the question with us was1 whether we would allow the whole force of the ,national ,government to be employed in upholding1 extending1 and perpetuating this detestable and nonsensical enormity8--especially1 whether we would be guilty of that last and foulest atheism to free principles1 the deliberate planting of slave institutions on virgin soil8 ,if this question had been put to any despot of ,europe1--we had almost said1 to any despot of ,asia1--his answer would undoubtedly have been an indignant negative4 ,yet the ,south confidently expected so to wheedle or bully us into dragging our common sense through the mud and mire of momentary expedients1 that we should connive at the commission of this execrable crime6 ,there can be no doubt1 that1 if the question had been fairly put to the inhabitants of the ,free ,states1 their answer would have been at once decisive for freedom4 ,even the strongest conservatives would have been ,free-,soilers1--not only those who are conservatives in virtue of their prudence1 moderation1 sagacity1 and temper1 but prejudiced conservatives1 conservatives who are tolerant of all iniquity which is decorous1 inert1 long-established1 and disposed to die when its time comes1 conservatives as thorough in their hatred of change as ,lamennais himself4 ,what a noise1 says ,paul ,louis ,courier1 ,lamennais would have made on the day of creation1 could he have witnessed it4 ,his first cry to the ,divinity would have been to respect that ancient chaos4 ,but even to conservatives of this class1 the attempt to extend ,slavery1 though really in the order of its natural development1 must still have appeared a monstrous innovation1 and they were bound to oppose the ,marats and ,robespierres of despotism who were busy in the bad work4 ,indeed1 in our country1 conservatism1 through the presence of ,slavery1 has inverted its usual order4 ,in other countries1 the radical of one century is the conservative of the next2 in ours1 the conservative of one generation is the radical of the next4 ,the ,american conservative of #agij is the so-called fanatic of #ahbj2 the conservative of #ahbj is the fanatic of #ahef4 ,the ,american conservative1 indeed1 descended the stairs of compromise until his descent into utter abnegation of all that civilized humanity holds dear was arrested by the ,rebellion4 ,and the reason of this strange inversion of conservative principles was1 that the movement of ,slavery is towards barbarism1 while the movement of all countries in which labor is not positively chattellized is towards freedom and civilization4 ,true conservatism1 it must never be forgotten1 is the refusal to give up a positive1 though imperfect good1 for a possible1 but uncertain improvement3 in the ,united ,states it has been misused to denote the cowardly surrender of a positive good from a fear to resist the innovations of an advancing evil and wrong4 ,there was1 therefore1 little danger that ,slavery would be extended through the conscious thought and will of the people1 but there was danger that its extension might1 somehow or other1 occur4 ,misconception of the question1 devotion to party or the memory of party1 prejudice against the men who more immediately represented the ,anti-,slavery principle1 might make the people unconsciously slide into this crime4 ,and it must be said that for the divisions in the ,free ,states as to the mode in which the free sentiment of the people should operate the strictly ,anti-,slavery men were to some extent responsible4 ,it is difficult to convince an ardent reformer that the principle for which he contends1 being impersonal1 should be purified from the passions and whims of his own personality4 ,the more fervid he is1 the more he is identified in the public mind with his cause2 and1 in a large view1 he is bound not merely to defend his cause1 but to see that the cause1 through him1 does not become offensive4 ,men are ever ready to dodge disagreeable duties by converting questions of principles into criticisms on the men who represent principles2 and the men who represent principles should therefore look to it that they make no needless enemies and give no needless shock to public opinion for the purpose of pushing pet opinions1 wreaking personal grudges1 or gratifying individual antipathies4 ,the artillery of the ,north has heretofore played altogether too much on ,northerners4 ,but to return4 ,the ,south expected to fool the ,north into a compliance with its designs1 by availing itself of the divisions among its professed opponents1 and by dazzling away the attention of the people from the real nature of the wickedness to be perpetrated4 ,slavery was to be extended1 and the ,north was to be an accomplice in the business2 but the ,slave ,power did not expect that we should be active and enthusiastic in this work of self-degradation4 ,it did not ask us to extend ,slavery1 but simply to allow its extension to occur2 and in this appeal to our moral timidity and moral laziness1 it contemptuously tossed us a few fig-leaves of fallacy and false statement to save appearances4 ,we were informed1 for instance1 that by the equality of men is meant the equality of those whom ,providence has made equal4 ,but this is exactly the sense in which no sane man ever understood the doctrine of equality2 for ,providence has palpably made men unequal1 white men as well as black4 ,then we were told that the white and black races could dwell together only in the relation of masters and slaves1--and1 in the same breath1 that in this relation the slaves were steadily advancing in civilization and ,christianity4 ,but1 if steadily advancing in civilization and ,christianity1 the time must inevitably come when they would not submit to be slaves2 and then what becomes of the statement that the white and black races cannot dwell together as freemen8 ,why boast of their improvement1 when you are improving them only that you may exterminate them1 or they you8 ,then1 with a composure of face which touches the exquisite in effrontery1 we were assured that this antithesis of master and slave1 of tyrant and abject natures1 is really a perfect harmony4 ,slavery--so said these logicians of liberticide--has solved the great social problem of the working-classes1 comfortably for capital1 happily for labor2 and has effected this by an ingenious expedient which could have occurred only to minds of the greatest depth and comprehension1 the expedient1 namely1 of enslaving labor4 ,now doubtless there has always been a struggle between employers and employed1 and this struggle will probably continue until the relations between the two are more humane and ,christian4 ,but ,slavery exhibits this struggle in its earliest and most savage stage1 a stage answering to the rude energies and still ruder conceptions of barbarians4 ,the issue of the struggle1 it is plain1 will not be that capital will own labor1 but that labor will own capital1 and no man be owned4 ,still we were vehemently told1 that1 though the slaves1 for their own good1 were deprived of their rights as men1 they were in a fine state of physical comfort4 ,this was not and could not be true2 but even if it were1 it only represented the slaveholder as addressing his slave in some such words of derisive scorn as ,byron hurls at ,duke ,alphonso1-- ,thou6 born to eat1 and be despised1 and die1 ,even as the brutes that perish1-- though we doubt if he could truly add1-- save that thou ,hast a more splendid trough and wider sty4 ,then we were solemnly warned of our patriotic duty to know no ,north and no ,south4 ,this was the very impudence of ingratitude2 for we had long known no ,north1 and unhappily had known altogether too much ,south4 ,then we were most plaintively adjured to to comply with the demands of the ,slave ,power1 in order to save the ,union4 ,but how save the ,union8 ,why1 by violating the principles on which the ,union was formed1 and scouting the objects it was intended to serve4 ,but lastly came the question1 on which the ,south confidently relied as a decisive argument1 ,what could we do with our slaves1 provided we emancipated them8 ,the peculiarity which distinguished this question from all other interrogatories ever addressed to human beings was this1 that it was asked for the purpose of not being answered4 ,the moment a reply was begun1 the ground was swiftly shifted1 and we were overwhelmed with a torrent of words about ,state ,rights and the duty of minding our own business4 ,but it is needless to continue the examination of these substitutes and apologies for fact and reason1 especially as their chief characteristic consisted in their having nothing to do with the practical question before the people4 ,they were thrown out by the interested defenders of ,slavery1 ,north and ,south1 to divert attention from the main issue4 ,in the fine felicity of their in appropriateness to the actual condition of the struggle between the ,free and ,slave ,states1 they were almost a match for that renowned sermon1 preached by a metropolitan bishop before an asylum for the blind1 the halt1 and the legless1 on ,the ,moral ,dangers of ,foreign ,travel4 ,but still they were infinitely mischievous1 considered as pretences under which ,northern men could skulk from their duties1 and as sophistries to lull into a sleepy acquiescence the consciences of those political adventurers who are always seeking occasions for being tempted and reasons for being rogues4 ,they were all the more influential from the circumstance that their show of argument was backed by the solid substance of patronage4 ,these false facts and bad reasons were the keys to many fat offices4 ,the ,south had succeeded in instituting a new political test1 namely1 that no man is qualified serve the ,united ,states unless he is the champion or the sycophant of the ,slave ,power4 ,proscription to the friends of ,american freedom1 honors and emoluments to the friends of ,american slavery1--adopt that creed1 or you did not belong to any healthy political organization6 ,now we have heard of civil disabilities for opinion's sake before4 ,in some countries no ,catholics are allowed to hold office1 in others no ,protestants1 in others no ,jews4 ,but it is not1 we believe1 in ,protestant countries that ,protestants are proscribed2 it is not in ,catholic countries that ,catholics are incompetent to serve the ,state4 ,it was left for a free country to establish1 practically1 civil disabilities against freemen1--for ,republican ,america to proscribe ,republicans6 ,think of it1--that no ,american1 whatever his worth1 talents1 or patriotism1--could two years ago serve his country in any branch of its executive administration1 unless he was unfortunate enough to agree with the slaveholders1 or base enough to sham an agreement with them6 ,the test1 at ,washington1 of political orthodoxy was modelled on the pattern of the test of religious orthodoxy established by ,napoleon's minister of police4 ,you are not orthodox1 he said to a priest ,in what1 inquired the astonished ecclesiastic1 have ,i sinned against orthodoxy8 ,you have not pronounced the eulogium of the ,emperor1 or proved the righteousness of the conscription4 ,now we had been often warned of the danger of sectional parties1 on account of their tendency to break up the ,government4 ,the people gave heed to this warning2 for here was a sectional party in possession of the ,government4 ,we had been often advised not to form political combinations on one idea4 ,the people gave heed to this advice2 for here was a triumphant political combination1 formed not only on one idea1 but that the worst idea that ever animated any political combination4 ,here was an association of three hundred and fifty thousand persons1 spread over some nine hundred and fifty thousand square miles of territory1 and wielding its whole political power1 engaged in the work of turning the ,united ,states into a sort of slave plantation1 of which they were to be overseers4 ,we opposed them by argument1 passion1 and numerical power2 and they read us long homilies on the beauty of law and order1--order sustained by ,border ,ruffians1 law which was but the legalizing of criminal instincts1--law and order which1 judged by the code established for ,kansas1 seemed based on legislative ideas imported from the ,fegee ,islands4 ,we opposed them again1 and they talked to us about the necessity of preserving the ,union2--as if1 in the ,free ,states1 the love of the ,union had not been a principle and a passion1 proof against many losses1 and insensible to many humiliations2 as if1 with our teachers1 disunion had not been for half a century a stereotyped menace to scare us into compliance with their rascalities2 as if it were not known that only so long as they could wield the powers of the ,national ,government to accomplish their designs1 were they loyal to the ,union6 ,we opposed them again1 and they clamored about their ,constitutional rights and our ,constitutional obligations2 but they adopted for themselves a theory of the ,constitution which made each ,state the judge of the ,constitution in the last resort1 while they held us to that view of it which made the ,supreme ,court the judge in the last resort4 ,written constitutions1 by a process of interpretation1 are always made to follow the drift of great forces2 they are twisted and tortured into conformity with the views of the power dominant in the ,state2 and our ,constitution1 originally a charter of freedom1 was converted into an instrument which the slaveholders seemed to possess by right of squatter sovereignty and eminent domain4 ,did any one suppose that we could retard the ever-onward movement of their unscrupulous force and defiant wills by timely compromises and concessions8 ,every compromise we made with them only stimulated their rapacity1 heightened their arrogance1 increased their demands4 ,every concession we made to their insolent threats was only a step downwards to a deeper abasement2 and we parted with our most cherished convictions of duty to purchase1 not their gratitude1 but their contempt4 ,every concession1 too1 weakened us and strengthened them for the inevitable struggle1 into which the ,free ,states were eventually goaded1 to preserve what remained of their dignity1 their honor1 and their self-respect4 ,in #ahej we conceded the application of the ,wilmot ,proviso2 in #ahef we were compelled to concede the principle of the ,wilmot ,proviso4 ,in #ahej we had no fears that slaves would enter ,new ,mexico2 in #ahfa we were threatened with a view of the flag of the rattlesnake floating over ,faneuil ,hall4 ,if any principle has been established by events1 with the certainty of mathematical demonstration1 it is this1 that concession to the ,slave ,power is the suicide of ,freedom4 ,we are purchasing this fact at the expense of arming five hundred thousand men and spending a thousand millions of dollars4 ,more than this1 if any concessions were to be made1 they ought1 on all principles of concession1 to have been made to the ,north4 ,concessions1 historically1 are not made by freedom to privilege1 but by privilege to freedom4 ,thus ,king ,john conceded ,magna ,charta2 thus ,king ,charles conceded the ,petition of ,right2 thus ,protestant ,england conceded ,catholic ,emancipation to ,ireland2 thus aristocratic ,england conceded the ,reform ,bill to the ,english middle class4 ,and had not we1 the misgoverned many1 a right to demand from the slaveholders1 the governing few1 some concessions to our sense of justice and our prejudices for freedom8 ,concession indeed6 ,if any class of men hold in their grasp one of the dear-bought chartered rights of man1 it is infamous to concede it4 ,make it the darling of your precious eye6 ,to lose or give 't away were such perdition ,as nothing else could match4 ,considerations so obvious as these could not1 by any ingenuity of party-contrivance1 be prevented from forcing themselves by degrees into the minds of the great body of the voters of the ,free ,states4 ,the common sense1 the large roundabout common sense of the people1 slowly1 and somewhat reluctantly1 came up to the demands of the occasion4 ,the sophistries and fallacies of the ,northern defenders of the pretensions of the slave-holding sectional minority were gradually exposed1 and were repudiated in the lump4 ,the conviction was implanted in the minds of the people of the ,free ,states1 that the ,slave ,power1 representing only a thirtieth part of the population of the ,slave ,states1 and a ninth part of the property of the country1 was bent on governing the nation1 and on subordinating all principles and all interests to its own4 ,not being ambitious of having the ,united ,states converted into a ,western ,congo1 with the traffic in niggers as its fundamental idea1 the people elected ,abraham ,lincoln1 in a perfectly ,constitutional way1 ,president4 ,as the majority of the ,house of ,representatives1 of the ,senate1 and of the ,supreme ,court was still left1 by this election1 on the side of the rights of the ,south1 7humorously so styled17 and as the ,president could do little to advance ,republican principles with all the other branches of the ,government opposed to him1 the people naturally imagined that the slaveholders would acquiesce in their decision4 ,but such was not the result4 ,the election was in ,november4 ,the new ,president could not assume office until ,march4 ,the triumphs of the ,slave ,power had been heretofore owing to its willingness and readiness to peril everything on each question as it arose1 and each event as it occurred4 ,south ,carolina1 perhaps the only one of the ,slave ,states that was thoroughly in earnest1 at once seceded4 ,the ,gulf ,states and others followed its example1 not so much from any fixed intention of forming a ,southern ,confederacy as for the purpose of intimidating the ,free ,states into compliance with the extreme demands of the ,south4 ,the ,border ,slave ,states were avowedly neutral between the belligerents1 but indicated their purpose to stand by their ,southern brethren1 in case the ,government of the ,united ,states attempted to carry out the ,constitution and the laws in the seceded ,states by the process of coercion4 ,the combination was perfect4 ,the heart of the ,rebellion was in ,south ,carolina1 a ,state whose free population was about equal to that of the city of ,brooklyn1 and whose annual productions were exceeded by those of ,essex ,county1 in the ,state of ,massachusetts4 ,around this centre was congregated as base a set of politicians as ever disgraced human nature4 ,a conspiracy was formed to compel a first-class power1 representing thirty millions of people1 to submit to the dictation of about three hundred thousand of its citizens4 ,the conspirators did not dream of failure4 ,they were sure1 as they thought1 of the ,gulf ,states and of the ,border ,states1 of the whole ,slave ,power1 in fact4 ,they also felt sure of that large minority in the ,free ,states which had formerly acted with them1 and obeyed their most humiliating behests4 ,they therefore entered the ,congress of the nation with a confident front1 knowing that ,president ,buchanan and the majority of his ,cabinet were practically on their side4 ,before ,mr4 ,lincoln could be inaugurated they imagined they could accomplish all their designs1 and make the ,government of the ,united ,states a ,pro-,slavery power in the eyes of all the nations of the world4 ,mr4 ,calhoun's paradoxes had heretofore been indorsed only by majorities in the national legislature and by the ,supreme ,court4 ,what a victory it would be1 if1 by threatening rebellion1 they could induce the people of the ,united ,states to incorporate those paradoxes into the fundamental law of the nation1 dominant over both ,congress and the ,court6 ,all their previous compromises had been merely legislative compromises1 which1 as their cause advanced1 they had themselves annulled4 ,they now seized the occasion1 when the people had risen against them1 to compel the people to sanction their most extreme demands4 ,they determined to convert defeat1 sustained at the polls1 into a victory which would have far transcended any victory they might have gained by electing their candidate1 ,breckinridge1 as ,president4 ,a portion of the ,republicans1 seeing clearly the force arrayed against them1 and disbelieving that the population of the ,free ,states would be willing1 en masse1 to sustain the cause of free labor by force of arms1 tried to avert the blow by proposing a new compromise4 ,mr4 ,seward1 the calmest1 most moderate1 and most obnoxious statesman of the ,republican party1 offered to divide the existing territories of the ,united ,states by the ,missouri line1 all south of which should be open to slave labor4 ,as he at the same time stated that by natural laws the ,south could obtain no material advantage by his seeming concession1 the concession only made him enemies among the uncompromising champions of the ,wilmot ,proviso4 ,the conspirators demanded that the ,missouri line should be the boundary1 not only between the territories which the ,united ,states then possessed1 but between the territories they might hereafter acquire4 ,as the country north of the ,missouri line was held by powerful ,european ,states which it would be madness to offend1 and as the country south of that line was held by feeble ,states which it would be easy to conquer1 no ,northern or ,western statesman could vote for such a measure without proving himself a rogue or a simpleton4 ,hence all measures of compromise necessarily failed during the last days of the administration of ,james ,buchanan4 ,it is plain1 that1 when ,mr4 ,lincoln--after having escaped assassination from the ,chivalry of ,maryland1 and after having been subjected to a virulence of invective such as no other ,president had incurred--arrived at ,washington1 his mind was utterly unaffected by the illusions of passion4 ,his ,inaugural ,message was eminently moderate4 ,the ,slave ,power1 having failed to delude or bully ,congress1 or to intimidate the people1--having failed to murder the elected ,president on his way to the capital1--was at wits' end4 ,it thought it could still rely on its ,northern supporters1 as ,james ,,ii4 of ,england thought he could rely on the ,church of ,england4 ,while the nation1 therefore1 was busy in expedients to call back the seceded ,states to their allegiance1 the latter suddenly bombarded ,fort ,sumter1 trampled on the ,american flag1 threatened to wave the rattlesnake rag over ,faneuil ,hall1 and to make the ,yankees smell ,southern powder and feel ,southern steel4 ,all this was done with the idea that the ,northern ,democracy would rally to the support of their ,southern brethren4 ,the result proved that the ,south was1 in the words of ,mr4 ,davis's last and most melancholy ,message1 the victim of misplaced confidence in its ,northern associates4 ,the moment a gun was fired1 the honest ,democratic voters of the ,north were even more furious than the ,republican voters2 the leaders1 including those who had been the obedient servants of ,slavery1 were ravenous for commands in the great army which was to coerce and subjugate the ,south2 and the whole organization of the ,democratic party of the ,north melted away at once in the fierce fires of a reawakened patriotism4 ,the slaveholders ventured everything on their last stake1 and lost4 ,a ,north1 for the first time1 sprang into being2 and it issued1 like ,minerva from the brain of ,jove1 full-armed4 ,the much-vaunted engineer1 ,beauregard1 was hoist with his own petard4 ,now that the slaveholders have been so foolish as to appeal to physical force1 abandoning their vantage-ground of political influence1 they must be not only politically overthrown1 but physically humiliated4 ,their arrogant sense of superiority must be beaten out of them by main force4 ,the feeling with which every ,texan and ,arkansas bully and assassin regarded a ,northern mechanic--a feeling akin to that with which the old ,norman robber looked on the sturdy ,saxon laborer--must be changed1 by showing the bully that his bowie-knife is dangerous only to peaceful1 and is imbecile before armed citizens4 ,the ,southerner has appealed to force1 and force he should have1 until1 by the laws of force1 he is not only beaten1 but compelled to admit the humiliating fact4 ,that he is not disposed to die in the last ditch1 that he has none of the practical heroism of desperation1 is proved by the actual results of battles4 ,when defeated1 and his means of escape are such as only desperation can surmount1 he quickly surrenders1 and is even disposed to take the oath of allegiance4 ,the martial virtues of the common ,european soldier he has displayed in exceedingly scanty measure in the present conflict4 ,he has relied on engineers2 and the moment his fortresses are turned or stormed1 he retreats or becomes a prisoner of war4 ,let ,mr4 ,davis's ,message to the ,confederate ,congress1 and his order suspending ,pillow and ,floyd1 testify to this unquestionable statement4 ,even if we grant martial intrepidity to the members of the ,slavocracy1 the present war proves that the system of ,slavery is not one which develops martial virtues among the free whites it has cajoled or forced into its hateful service4 ,indeed1 the armies of ,jefferson ,davis are weak on the same principle on which the slave-system is weak4 ,everything depends on the intelligence and courage of the commanders1 and the moment these fail the soldiers become a mere mob4 ,american ,slavery1 by the laws which control its existence1 first rose from a local power1 dominant in certain ,states1 to a national power1 assuming to dominate over the ,united ,states4 ,at the first faint fact which indicated the intention of the ,free ,states to check its progress and overturn its insolent dominion1 it rebelled4 ,the rebellion now promises to be a failure2 but it will cost the ,free ,states the arming of half a million of men and the spending of a thousand millions of dollars to make it a failure4 ,can we afford to trifle with the cause which produced it8 ,we note that some of the representatives of the loyal ,slave ,states in ,congress are furious to hang individual ,rebels1 but at the same time are anxious to surround the system those ,rebels represent with new guaranties4 ,when they speak of ,jeff ,davis and his crew1 their feeling is as fierce as that of ,tilly and ,pappenheim towards the ,protestants of ,germany4 ,they would burn1 destroy1 confiscate1 and kill without any mercy1 and without any regard to the laws of civilized war2 but when they come to speak of ,slavery1 their whole tone is changed4 ,they wish us to do everything barbarous and inhuman1 provided we do not go to the last extent of barbarity and inhumanity1 which1 according to their notions1 is1 to inaugurate a system of freedom1 equality1 and justice4 ,provided the negro is held in bondage and denied the rights of human nature1 they are willing that any severity should be exercised towards his rebellious master4 ,now we have no revengeful feeling towards the master at all4 ,we think that he is a victim as well as an oppressor4 ,we wish to emancipate the master as well as the slave1 and we think that thousands of masters are persons who merely submit to the conditions of labor established in their respective localities4 ,our opposition is directed1 not against ,jefferson ,davis1 but against the system whose cumulative corruptions and enormities ,jefferson ,davis very fairly represents4 ,as an individual1 ,jefferson ,davis is not worse than many people whom a general amnesty would preserve in their persons and property4 ,to hang him1 and at the same time guaranty ,slavery1 would be like destroying a plant by a vain attempt to kill its most poisonous blossom4 ,our opposition is not to the blossom1 but to the root4 ,we admit that to strike at the root is a very difficult operation4 ,in the present condition of the country it may present obstacles which will practically prove insuperable4 ,but it is plain that we can strike lower than the blossom2 and it is also plain that we must1 as practical men1 devise some method by which the existence of the ,slavocracy as a political power may be annihilated4 ,the ,president of the ,united ,states has lately recommended that ,congress offer the cooperation and financial aid of the whole nation in a peaceful effort to abolish ,slavery1--with a significant hint1 that1 unless the loyal ,slave ,states accept the proposition1 the necessities of the war may dictate severer measures4 ,emancipation is the policy of the ,government1 and will soon be the determination of the people4 ,whether it shall be gradual or immediate depends altogether on the slaveholders themselves4 ,the prolongation of the war for a year1 and the operation of the internal tax bill1 will convert all the voters of the ,free ,states1 whether ,republicans or ,democrats1 into practical ,emancipationists4 ,the tax bill alone will teach the people important lessons which no politicians can gainsay4 ,every person who buys a piece of broadcloth or calico1--every person who takes a cup of tea or coffee1--every person who lives from day to day on the energy he thinks he derives from patent medicines1 or beer1 or whiskey1--every person who signs a note1 or draws a bill of exchange1 or sends a telegraphic despatch1 or advertises in a newspaper1 or makes a will1 or raises anything1 or manufactures anything1 will naturally inquire why he or she is compelled to submit to an irritating as well as an onerous tax4 ,the only answer that can possibly be returned is this1-- that all these vexatious burdens are necessary because a comparatively few persons out of an immense population have chosen to get up a civil war in order to protect and foster their slave-property1 and the political power it confers4 ,as this property is but a small fraction of the whole property of the country1 and as its owners are not a hundredth part of the population of the country1 does any sane man doubt that the slave-property will be relentlessly confiscated in order that the ,slave ,power may be forever crushed8 ,there are1 we know1 persons in the ,free ,states who pretend to believe that the war will leave ,slavery where the war found it1--that our half a million of soldiers have gone ,south on a sort of military picnic1 and will return in a cordial mood towards their ,southern brethren in arms1--and that there is no real depth and earnestness of purpose in the ,free ,states4 ,though one year has done the ordinary work of a century in effecting or confirming changes in the ideas and sentiments of the people1 these persons still sagely rely on the party-phrases current some eighteen months ago to reconstruct the ,union on the old basis of the domination of the ,slave ,power1 through the combination of a divided ,north with a united ,south4 ,by the theory of these persons1 there is something peculiarly sacred in property in men1 distinguishing it from the more vulgar form of property in things2 and though the cost of putting down the ,rebellion will nearly equal the value of the ,southern slaves1 considered as chattels1 they suppose that the owners of property in things will cheerfully submit to be taxed for a thousand millions1--a fourth of the almost fabulous debt of ,england1--without any irritation against the chivalric owners of property in men1 whose pride1 caprice1 and insubordination have made the taxation necessary4 ,such may possibly be the fact1 but as sane men we cannot but disbelieve it4 ,our conviction is1 that1 whether the war is ended in three months or in twelve months1 the ,slave ,power is sure to be undermined or overthrown4 ,the sooner the war is ended1 the more favorable will be the terms granted to the ,slavocracy2 but no terms will be granted which do not look to its extinction4 ,the slaveholders are impelled by their system to complete victory or utter ruin4 ,if they obey the laws of their system1 they have1 from present appearances1 nothing but defeat1 beggary1 and despair to expect4 ,if they violate the laws of their system1 they must take their place in some one of the numerous degrees1 orders1 and ranks of the ,abolitionists4 ,it will be well for them1 if the wilfulness developed by their miserable system gives way to the plain reason and logic of facts and events4 ,it will be well for them1 if they submit to a necessity1 not only inherent in the inevitable operation of divine laws1 but propelled by half a million of men in arms4 ,be it that ,god is on the side of the heaviest column1--there can be no doubt that the heaviest column is now the column of ,freedom4 99 99 99 99 99 ,,the ,,volunteer4 ,at dawn1 he said1 ,i bid them all farewell1 ,to go where bugles call and rifles gleam4 ,and with the restless thought asleep he fell1 ,and glided into dream4 ,a great hot plain from sea to mountain spread1-- ,through it a level river slowly drawn4 ,he moved with a vast crowd1 and at its head ,streamed banners like the dawn4 ,there came a blinding flash1 a deafening roar1 ,and dissonant cries of triumph and dismay2 ,blood trickled down the river's reedy shore1 ,and with the dead he lay4 ,the morn broke in upon his solemn dream2 ,and still1 with steady pulse and deepening eye1 ,where bugles call1 he said1 and rifles gleam1 ,i follow1 though ,i die6 ,wise youth6 ,by few is glory's wreath attained2 ,but death or late or soon awaiteth all4 ,to fight in ,freedom's cause is something gained1-- ,and nothing lost1 to fall4 ,,speech ,,of ,,hon',,ble ,,preserved ,,doe ,,in ,,secret ,,caucus4 ,to the ,editors of the ,,atlantic ,,monthly4 ,jaalam1 #abth ,april1 #ahfb4 ,,gentlemen1--,as ,i cannot but hope that the ultimate1 if not speedy1 success of the national arms is now sufficiently ascertained1 sure as ,i am of the righteousness of our cause and its consequent claim on the blessing of ,god1 7for ,i would not show a faith inferiour to that of the pagan historian with his ,facile evenit quod ,dis cordi est17 it seems to me a suitable occasion to withdraw our minds a moment from the confusing din of battle to objects of peaceful and permanent interest4 ,let us not neglect the monuments of preterite history because what shall be history is so diligently making under our eyes4 ,cras ingens iterabimus aequor2 to-morrow will be time enough for that stormy sea2 to-day let me engage the attention of your readers with the ,runick inscription to whose fortunate discovery ,i have heretofore alluded4 ,well may we say with the poet1 ,multa renascuntur quae jam cecidere4 ,and ,i would premise1 that1 although ,i can no longer resist the evidence of my own senses from the stone before me to the ante-,columbian discovery of this continent by the ,northmen1 gens inclytissima1 as they are called in ,palermitan inscription1 written fortunately in a less debatable character than that which ,i am about to decypher1 yet ,i would by no means be understood as wishing to vilipend the merits of the great ,genoese1 whose name will never be forgotten so long as the inspiring strains of ,hail ,columbia shall continue to be heard4 ,though he must be stripped also of whatever praise may belong to the experiment of the egg1 which ,i find proverbially attributed by ,castilian authours to a certain ,juanito or ,jack1 7perhaps an offshoot of our giant-killing my thus17 his name will still remain one of the most illustrious of modern times4 ,but the impartial historian owes a duty likewise to obscure merit1 and my solicitude to render a tardy justice is perhaps quickened by my having known those who1 had their own field of labour been less secluded1 might have found a readier acceptance with the reading publick4 ,i could give an example1 but ,i forbear3 forsitan nostris ex ossibus oritur ultor4 ,touching ,runick inscriptions1 ,i find that they may be classed under three general heads3 #a4 ,those which are understood by the ,danish ,royal ,society of ,northern ,antiquaries1 and ,professor ,rafn1 their ,secretary2 #b4 ,those which are comprehensible only by ,mr ,rafn2 and #c4 ,those which neither the ,society1 ,mr ,rafn1 nor anybody else can be said in any definite sense to understand1 and which accordingly offer peculiar temptations to enucleating sagacity4 ,these last are naturally deemed the most valuable by intelligent antiquaries1 and to this class the stone now in my possession fortunately belongs4 ,such give a picturesque variety to ancient events1 because susceptible oftentimes of as many interpretations as there are individual archaeologists2 and since facts are only the pulp in which the ,idea or event-seed is softly imbedded till it ripen1 it is of little consequence what colour or flavour we attribute to them1 provided it be agreeable4 ,availing myself of the obliging assistance of ,mr4 ,arphaxad ,bowers1 an ingenious photographick artist1 whose house-on-wheels has now stood for three years on our ,meeting-,house ,green1 with the somewhat contradictory inscription1--,our motto is onward1--,i have sent accurate copies of my treasure to many learned men and societies1 both native and ,european4 ,i may hereafter communicate their different and 7me judice7 equally erroneous solutions4 ,i solicit also1 ,messrs4 ,editors1 your own acceptance of the copy herewith inclosed4 ,i need only premise further1 that the stone itself is a goodly block of metamorphick sandstone1 and that the ,runes resemble very nearly the ornithichnites or fossil bird-tracks of ,dr4 ,hitchcock1 but with less regularity or apparent design than is displayed by those remarkable geological monuments4 ,these are rather the non bene junctarum discordia semina rerum4 ,resolved to leave no door open to cavil1 ,i first of all attempted the elucidation of this remarkable example of lithick literature by the ordinary modes1 but with no adequate return for my labour4 ,i then considered myself amply justified in resorting to that heroick treatment the felicity of which1 as applied by the great ,bentley to ,milton1 had long ago enlisted my admiration4 ,indeed1 ,i had already made up my mind1 that1 in case good-fortune should throw any such invaluable record in my way1 ,i would proceed with it in the following simple and satisfactory method4 ,after a cursory examination1 merely sufficing for an approximative estimate of its length1 ,i would write down a hypothetical inscription based upon antecedent probabilities1 and then proceed to extract from the characters engraven on the stone a meaning as nearly as possible conformed to this a priori product of my own ingenuity4 ,the result more than justified my hopes1 inasmuch as the two inscriptions were made without any great violence to tally in all essential particulars4 ,i then proceeded1 not without some anxiety1 to my second test1 which was1 to read the ,runick letters diagonally1 and again with the same success4 ,with an excitement pardonable under the circumstances1 yet tempered with thankful humility1 ,i now applied my last and severest trial1 my experimentum crucis4 ,i turned the stone1 now doubly precious in my eyes1 with scrupulous exactness upside down4 ,the physical exertion so far displaced my spectacles as to derange for a moment the focus of vision4 ,i confess that it was with some tremulousness that ,i readjusted them upon my nose1 and prepared my mind to bear with calmness any disappointment that might ensue4 ,but1 ,o albo dies notanda lapillo6 what was my delight to find that the change of position had effected none in the sense of the writing1 even by so much as a single letter6 ,i was now1 and justly1 as ,i think1 satisfied of the conscientious exactness of my interpretation4 ,it is as follows3-- ,,here ,,bjarna ,,gr,m,,lfsson ,,first ,,drank ,,cloud-,,brother ,,through ,,child-,,of-,,land-,,and-,,water3 that is1 drew smoke through a reed stem4 ,in other words1 we have here a record of the first smoking of the herb ,nicotiana ,tabacum by a ,european on this continent4 ,the probable results of this discovery are so vast as to baffle conjecture4 ,if it be objected1 that the smoking of a pipe would hardly justify the setting up of a memorial stone1 ,i answer1 that even now the ,moquis ,indian1 ere he takes his first whiff1 bows reverently toward the four quarters of the sky in succession1 and that the loftiest monuments have been reared to perpetuate fame1 which is the dream of the shadow of smoke4 ,the ,saga1 it will be remembered1 leaves this ,bjarna to a fate something like that of ,sir ,humphrey ,gilbert1 on board a sinking ship in the wormy sea1 having generously given up his place in the boat to a certain ,icelander4 ,it is doubly pleasant1 therefore1 to meet with this proof that the brave old man arrived safely in ,vinland1 and that his declining years were cheered by the respectful attentions of the dusky denizens of our then uninvaded forests4 ,most of all was ,i gratified1 however1 in thus linking forever the name of my native town with one of the most momentous occurrences of modern times4 ,hitherto ,jaalam1 though in soil1 climate1 and geographical position as highly qualified to be the theatre of remarkable historical incidents as any spot on the earth's surface1 has been1 if ,i may say it without seeming to question the wisdom of ,providence1 almost maliciously neglected1 as it might appear1 by occurrences of world-wide interest in want of a situation4 ,and in matters of this nature it must be confessed that adequate events are as necessary as the vates sacer to record them4 ,jaalam stood always modestly ready1 but circumstances made no fitting response to her generous intentions4 ,now1 however1 she assumes her place on the historick roll4 ,i have hitherto been a zealous opponent of the ,circean herb1 but ,i shall now reexamine the question without bias4 ,i am aware that the ,rev'd ,jonas ,tutchel1 in a recent communication to the ,bogus ,four ,corners ,weekly ,meridian1 has endeavoured to show that this is the sepulchral inscription of ,thorwald ,eriksson1 who1 as is well known1 was slain in ,vinland by the natives4 ,but ,i think he has been misled by a preconceived theory1 and cannot but feel that he has thus made an ungracious return for my allowing him to inspect the stone with the aid of my own glasses 7he having by accident left his at home7 and in my own study4 ,the heathen ancients might have instructed this ,christian minister in the rites of hospitality2 but much is to be pardoned to the spirit of self-love4 ,he must indeed be ingenious who can make out the words hr hrilir from any characters in the inscription in question1 which1 whatever else it may be1 is certainly not mortuary4 ,and even should the reverend gentleman succeed in persuading some fantastical wits of the soundness of his views1 ,i do not see what useful end he will have gained4 ,for if the ,english ,courts of ,law hold the testimony of grave-stones from the burial-grounds of ,protestant dissenters to be questionable1 even where it is essential in proving a descent1 ,i cannot conceive that the epitaphial assertions of heathens should be esteemed of more authority by any man of orthodox sentiments4 ,at this moment1 happening to cast my eyes upon the stone1 on which a transverse light from my southern window brings out the characters with singular distinctness1 another interpretation has occurred to me1 promising even more interesting results4 ,i hasten to close my letter in order to follow at once the clue thus providentially suggested4 ,i inclose1 as usual1 a contribution from ,mr4 ,biglow1 and remain1 ,gentlemen1 with esteem and respect1 ,your ,ob't ,humble ,servant1 ,,homer ,,wilbur4 ,a4,m4 ,i thank ye1 my friens1 for the warmth o' your greetin'3 ,ther' 's few airthly blessins but wut's vain an' fleetin'2 ,but ef ther' is one thet hain't no cracks an' flaws1 ,an' is wuth goin' in for1 it's pop'lar applause2 ,it sends up the sperits ez lively ez rockets1 ,an' ,i feel it--wal1 down to the eend o' my pockets4 ,jes' lovin' the people is ,canaan in view1 ,but it's ,canaan paid quarterly t' hev 'em love you2 ,it's a blessin' thet's breakin' out ollus in fresh spots2 ,it's a-follerin' ,moses 'thout losin' the flesh-pots4 ,but1 ,gennlemen1'scuse me1 ,i ain't sech a raw cus ,ez to go luggin' ellerkence into a caucus1-- ,thet is1 into one where the call comprehens ,nut the ,people in person1 but on'y their friens2 ,i'm so kin' o' used to convincin' the masses ,of th' edvantage o' bein' self-governin' asses1 ,i forgut thet we 're all o' the sort thet pull wires ,an' arrange for the public their wants an' desires1 ,an' thet wut we hed met for wuz jes' to agree ,wut the ,people's opinions in futur' should be4 ,but to come to the nuh1 we've ben all disappinted1 ,an' our leadin' idees are a kind o' disjinted1-- ,though1 fur ez the nateral man could discern1 ,things ough' to ha' took most an oppersite turn4 ,but ,the'ry is jes' like a train on the rail1 ,thet1 weather or no1 puts her thru without fail1 ,while ,fac's the ole stage thet gits sloughed in the ruts1 ,an' hez to allow for your darned efs an' buts1 ,an' so1 nut intendin' no pers'nal reflections1 ,they don't--don't nut allus1 thet is--make connections3 ,sometimes1 when it really doos seem thet they'd oughter ,combine jest ez kindly ez new rum an' water1 ,both 'll be jest ez sot in their ways ez a bagnet1 ,ez otherwise-minded ez th' eends of a magnet1 ,an' folks like you 'n me1 thet ain't ept to be sold1 ,git somehow or 'nother left out in the cold4 ,i expected 'fore this1 'thout no gret of a row1 ,jeff ,d4 would ha' ben where ,a4 ,lincoln is now1 ,with ,taney to say 't wuz all legle an' fair1 ,an' a jury o' ,deemocrats ready to swear ,thet the ingin o' ,state gut throwed into the ditch ,by the fault o' the ,north in misplacin' the switch4 ,things wuz ripenin' fust-rate with ,buchanan to nuss 'em2 ,but the ,people they wouldn't be ,mexicans1 cuss 'em6 ,ain't the safeguards o' freedom upsot1 'z you may say1 ,ef the right o' rev'lution is took clean away8 ,an' doosn't the right primy-fashy include ,the bein' entitled to nut be subdued8 ,the fact is1 we'd gone for the ,union so strong1 ,when ,union meant ,south ollus right an' ,north wrong1 ,thet the people gut fooled into thinkin' it might ,worry on middlin' wal with the ,north in the right4 ,we might ha' ben now jest ez prosp'rous ez ,france1 ,where politikle enterprise hez a fair chance1 ,an' the people is heppy an' proud et this hour1 ,long ez they hev the votes1 to let ,nap hev the power2 ,but our folks they went an' believed wut we'd told 'em1 ,an'1 the flag once insulted1 no mortle could hold 'em4 ',t wuz pervokin' jest when we wuz cert'in to win1-- ,an' ,i1 for one1 wunt trust the masses agin3 ,for a people thet knows much ain't fit to be free ,in the self-cockin'1 back-action style o' ,j4,d4 ,i can't believe now but wut half on't is lies2 ,for who'd thought the ,north wuz a-goin' to rise1 ,or take the pervokin'est kin' of a stump1 ',thout't wuz sunthin' ez pressin' ez ,gabr'el's las' trump8 ,or who'd ha' supposed1 arter sech swell an' bluster ',bout the lick-ary-ten-on-ye fighters they'd muster1 ,raised by hand on briled lightnin'1 ez op'lent 'z you please ,in a primitive furrest o' femmily-trees1 ,who'd ha' thought thet them ,southerners ever 'ud show ,starns with pedigrees to 'em like theirn to the foe1 ,or1 when the vamosin' come1 ever to find ,nat'ral masters in front an' mean white folks behind8 ,by ginger1 ef ,i'd ha' known half ,i know now1 ,when ,i wuz to ,congress1 ,i wouldn't1 ,i swow1 ,hev let 'em cair on so high-minded an' sarsy1 ',thout some show o' wut you may call vicy-varsy4 ,to be sure1 we wuz under a contrac' jes' then ,to be dreffle forbearin' towards ,southun men2 ,we hed to go sheers in preservin' the bellance3 ,an' ez they seemed to feel they wuz wastin' their tellents ',thout some un to kick1 't warn't more 'n proper1 you know1 ,each should funnish his part2 an' sence they found the toe1 ,an' we wuzn't cherubs--wal1 we found the buffer1 ,for fear thet the ,compromise ,system should suffer4 ,i wun't say the plan hed n't onpleasant featurs1-- ,for men are perverse an' onreasonin' creaturs1 ,an' forgit thet in this life 't ain't likely to heppen ,their own privit fancy should oltus be cappen1-- ,but it worked jest ez smooth ez the key of a safe1 ,an' the gret ,union bearins played free from all chafe4 ,they warn't hard to suit1 ef they hed their own way2 ,an' we 7thet is1 some on us7 made the thing pay3 ',t wuz a fair give-an'-take out of ,uncle ,sam's heap2 ,ef they took wut warn't theirn1 wut we give come ez cheap2 ,the elect gut the offices down to tidewaiter1 ,the people took skinnin' ez mild ez a tater1 ,seemed to choose who they wanted tu1 footed the bills1 ,an' felt kind o' 'z though they wuz havin' their wills1 ,which kep' 'em ez harmless an' clerfle ez crickets1 ,while all we invested wuz names on the tickets3 ,wal1 ther' 's nothin' for folks fond o' lib'ral consumption1 ,free o' charge1 like democ'acy tempered with gumption6 ,now warn't thet a system wuth pains in presarvin'1 ,where the people found jints an' their friens done the carvin'1-- ,where the many done all o' their thinkin' by proxy1 ,an' were proud on't ez long ez't wuz christened ,democ'cy1-- ,where the few let us sap all o' ,freedom's foundations1 ,ef you called it reformin' with prudence an' patience1 ,an' were willin' ,jeff's snake-egg should hetch with the rest1 ,ef you writ ,constitootional over the nest8 ,but it's all out o' kilter1 7't wuz too good to last17 ,an' all jes' by ,j4,d4's perceedin' too fast2 ,ef he'd on'y hung on for a month or two more1 ,we'd ha' gut things fixed nicer 'n they hed ben before3 ,afore he drawed off an' lef all in confusion1 ,we wuz safely intrenched in the ole ,constitootion1 ,with an outlyin'1 heavy-gun1 casemated fort ,to rake all assailants1--,i mean th' ,s4,j4 ,court4 ,now ,i never ',,ii acknowledge 7nut ef you should skin me7 ',t wuz wise to abandon sech works to the in'my1 ,an' let him fin' out thet wut scared him so long1 ,our whole line of argyments1 lookin' so strong1 ,all our ,scriptur' an' law1 every the'ry an' fac'1 ,wuz ,quaker-guns daubed with ,pro-slavery black4 ,why1 ef the ,republicans ever should git ,andy ,johnson or some one to lend 'em the wit ,an' the spunk jes' to mount ,constitootion an' ,court ,with ,columbiad guns1 your real ekle-rights sort1 ,or drill out the spike from the ole ,declaration ,thet can kerry a solid shot clearn roun' creation1 ,we'd better take maysures for shettin' up shop1 ,an' put off our stock by a vendoo or swop4 ,but they wun't never dare tu2 you 'll see 'em in ,edom ',fore they ventur' to go where their doctrines 'ud lead 'em3 ,they 've ben takin' our princerples up ez we dropt 'em1 ,an' thought it wuz terrible 'cute to adopt 'em2 ,but they'll fin' out 'fore long thet their hope 's ben deceivin' 'em1 ,an' thet princerples ain't o' no good1 ef you b'lieve in 'em2 ,it makes 'em tu stiff for a party to use1 ,where they'd ough' to be easy 'z an ole pair o' shoes4 ,ef we say 'n our pletform thet all men are brothers1 ,we don't mean thet some folks ain't more so 'n some others2 ,an' it's wal understood thet we make a selection1 ,an' thet brotherhood kin' o' subsides arter 'lection4 ,the fust thing for sound politicians to larn is1 ,thet ,truth1 to dror kindly in all sorts o' harness1 ,mus' be kep' in the abstract1--for1 'come to apply it1 ,you're ept to hurt some folks's interists by it4 ,wal1 these 'ere ,republicans 7some on 'em7 acs ,ez though gineral mexims 'ud suit speshle facs2 ,an' there's where we 'll nick 'em1 there 's where they 'll be lost3 ,for applyin' your princerple's wut makes it cost1 ,an' folks don't want ,fourth o' ,july t' interfere ,with the business-consarns o' the rest o' the year1 ,no more 'n they want ,sunday to pry an' to peek ,into wut they are doin' the rest o' the week4 ,a ginooine statesman should be on his guard1 ,ef he must hev beliefs1 nut to b'lieve 'em tu hard2 ,for1 ez sure ez he doos1 he'll be blartin' 'em out ',thout regardin' the natur' o' man more 'n a spout1 ,nor it don't ask much gumption to pick out a flaw ,in a party whose leaders are loose in the jaw3 ,an' so in our own case ,i ventur' to hint ,thet we'd better nut air our perceedins in print1 ,nor pass resserlootions ez long ez your arm ,thet may1 ez things heppen to turn1 do us harm2 ,for when you've done all your real meanin' to smother1 ,the darned things'll up an' mean sunthin' or 'nother4 ,jeff'son prob'ly meant wal with his born free an' ekle1 ,but it's turned out a real crooked stick in the sekle2 ,it's taken full eighty-odd year--don't you see8-- ,from the pop'lar belief to root out thet idee1 ,an'1 arter all1 sprouts on 't keep on buddin' forth ,in the nat'lly onprincipled mind o' the ,north4 ,no1 never say nothin' without you're compelled tu1 ,an' then don't say nothin' thet you can be held tu1 ,nor don't leave no friction-idees layin' loose ,for the ign'ant to put to incend'ary use4 ,you know ,i'm a feller thet keeps a skinned eye ,on the leetle events thet go skurryin' by1 ,coz it's of'ner by them than by gret ones you'll see ,wut the p'litickle weather is likely to be4 ,now ,i don't think the ,south's more 'n begun to be licked1 ,but ,i du think1 ez ,jeff says1 the wind-bag's gut pricked2 ,it'll blow for a spell an' keep puffin' an' wheezin'1 ,the tighter our army an' navy keep squeezin'1-- ,for they can't help spread-eaglein' long 'z ther's a mouth ,to blow ,enfield's ,speaker thru lef' at the ,south4 ,but it's high time for us to be settin' our faces ,towards reconstructin' the national basis1 ,with an eye to beginnin' agin on the jolly ticks ,we used to chalk up 'hind the back-door o' politics2 ,an' the fus' thing's to save wut of ,slav'ry ther's lef' ,arter this 7,i mus' call it7 imprudence o' ,jeff3 ,for a real good ,abuse1 with its roots fur an' wide1 ,is the kin' o' thing ,i like to hev on my side2 ,a ,scriptur' name makes it ez sweet ez a rose1 ,an' it's tougher the older an' uglier it grows-- 7,i ain't speakin' now o' the righteousness of it1 ,but the p'litickle purchase it gives1 an' the profit74 ,things looks pooty squally1 it must be allowed1 ,an' ,i don't see much signs of a bow in the cloud3 ,ther' 's too many ,decmocrats--leaders1 wut's wuss-- ,thet go for the ,union 'thout carin' a cuss ,ef it helps ary party thet ever wuz heard on1 ,so our eagle ain't made a split ,austrian bird on4 ,but ther' 's still some conservative signs to be found ,thet shows the gret heart o' the ,people is sound3 7,excuse me for usin' a stump-phrase agin1 ,but1 once in the way on 't1 they will stick like sin37 ,there's ,phillips1 for instance1 hez jes' ketched a ,tartar ,in the ,law-'n'-,order ,party of ole ,cincinnater2 ,an' the ,compromise ,system ain't gone out o' reach1 ,long 'z you keep the right limits on freedom o' speech2 ',t warn't none too late1 neither1 to put on the gag1 ,for he's dangerous now he goes in for the flag3 ,nut thet ,i altogether approve o' bad eggs1 ,they're mos' gin'lly argymunt on its las' legs1-- ,an' their logic is ept to be tu indiscriminate1 ,nor don't ollus wait the right objecs to 'liminate2 ,but there is a variety on 'em1 you 'll find1 ,jest ez usefie an' more1 besides bein' refined1-- ,i mean o' the sort thet are laid by the dictionary1 ,sech ez sophisms an' cant thet'll kerry conviction ary ,way thet you want to the right class o' men1 ,an' are staler than all't ever come from a hen3 ,disunion done wal till our resh ,soutlun friends ,took the savor all out on't for national ends2 ,but ,i guess ,abolition 'll work a spell yit1 ,when the war's done1 an' so will ,forgive-an'-forgit4 ,times mus' be pooty thoroughly out o' all jint1 ,ef we can't make a good constitootional pint2 ,an' the good time 'll come to be grindin' our exes1 ,when the war goes to seed in the nettle o' texes3 ,ef ,jon'than don't squirm1 with sech helps to assist him1 ,i give up my faith in the free-suffrage system2 ,democ'cy wun't be nut a mite interestin'1 ,nor p'litikle capital much wuth investin'2 ,an' my notion is1 to keep dark an' lay low ,till we see the right minute to put in our blow4-- ,but ,i've talked longer now 'n ,i hed any idee1 ,an' ther's others you want to hear more 'n you du me2 ,so ,i'll set down an' give thet 'ere bottle a skrimmage1 ,for ,i've spoke till ,i'm dry ez a real graven image4 ,,reviews ,,and ,,literary ,,notices4 ,record of an ,obscure ,man4 ,tragedy of ,errors1 ,parts ,i4 and ,,ii4 ,boston3 ,ticknor and ,fields4 #ahfa1 #ahfb4 ,among the marked literary productions long to be associated with our present struggle--among them1 yet not of them--are the volumes whose titles we have quoted4 ,they differ from the recent electric messages of ,holmes1 ,whittier1 and ,mrs4 ,howe1 in not being obvious results of vivid events4 ,bread and the ,newspaper1 ,the ,song of the ,negro ,boatmen1 and ,our ,orders will reproduce for another generation the fervid feelings of to-day4 ,but the pathetic warnings exquisitely breathed in the writings before us will then come to their place as a deep and tender prelude to the voices heard in this passing tragedy4 ,the ,record of an ,obscure ,man is the modest introduction to a dramatic poem of singular pathos and beauty4 ,a ,new-,englander of culture and sensibility1 naturalized at the ,south1 is supposed to communicate the results of his study and observation of that outcast race which has been the easy contempt of ignorance in both sections of the country4 ,our instructor has not only a clear judgment ,of the value of different testimonies1 and the scholarly instinct of arrangement and classification1 but also that divine gift of sympathy1 which alone1 in this world given for our observation1 can tell us what to observe4 ,the illustrations of the negro's character1 and the answers to vulgar depreciation of his tendencies and capacities1 are given with the simple directness of real comprehension4 ,it is the privilege of one acquainted in no common degree with languages and their history to expose that dreary joke of the dialect of the oppressed1 which superficial people have so long found funny or contemptible4 ,the simplicity and earnestness which give dignity to any phraseology come from the humanity behind it4 ,we are well reminded that divergences from the common use of language1 never held to degrade the meaning in ,milton or ,shakespeare1 need not render thought despicable when the negro uses identical forms4 ,if he calls a leopard a libbard1 he only imitates the most sublime of ,english poets2 and the first word of his petition1 ,gib us this day our daily bread1 is pronounced as it rose from the lips of ,luther4 ,the highest truths the faith of man may reach are symbolized more definitely1 and often more picturesquely1 by the warm imagination of the ,african than by the cultivated genius of the ,caucasian4 ,also it is shown how the laziness and ferocity with which the negro is sometimes charged may be more than matched in the history of his assumed superior4 ,yet1 while acknowledging how well-considered is the matter of this introductory volume1 we regret what seems to be an imperfection in the form in which it is presented4 ,there is too much story1 or too little1--too little to command the assistance of fiction1 too much to prevent a feeling of disappointment that romance is attempted at all4 ,the concluding autobiography of the friend of ,colvil is hardly consistent with his character as previously suggested2 it seems unnecessary to the author's purpose1 and is not drawn with the minuteness or power which might justify its introduction4 ,we notice this circumstance as explaining why this ,introduction may possibly fail of a popularity more extended than that which its tenderness of thought and style at once claimed from the best readers4 ,the ,tragedy of ,errors presents1 with the vivid idealization of art1 some of the results of ,american ,slavery4 ,travellers1 novelists1 ethnologists have spoken with various ability of the laborers of the ,south2 and now the poet breaks through the hard monotony of their external lives1 and lends the plasticity of a cultivated mind to take impress of feeling to which the gift of utterance is denied4 ,and it is often only through the imagination of another that the human bosom can be delivered of that perilous stuff which weighs upon the heart4 ,for it is a very common error to estimate mental activity by a command of the arts of expression2 whereas1 at its best estate1 speech is an imperfect sign of perception1 and one which without special cultivation must be wholly inadequate4 ,thus it will be seen that an employment of the dialect and limited vocabulary of the negro would be obviously unsuitable to the purpose of the poem2 and these have been wisely discarded4 ,in doing this1 however1 the common license of dramatists is not exceeded2 and the critical censure we have read about the extravagant idealization of the negro merely amounts to saying that the writer has been bold enough to stem the current of traditional opinion1 and find a poetic view of humanity at the present time and in its most despised portion4 ,the end of dramatic writing is not to reproduce ,nature1 but to idealize it2 a literal copying of the same1 as everybody knows1 is the merit of the photographer1 not of the artist4 ,again1 it should be remembered that the highly wrought characters among the slaves are whites1 or whites slightly tinged with ,african blood4 ,with the commonest allowance for the exigencies of poetic presentation1 we find no individual character unnatural or improbable2 though the particular grouping of these characters is necessarily improbable4 ,for grace of position and arrangement every dramatist must claim4 ,if the poet will but take observations from real persons1 however widely scattered1 discretion may be exercised in the conjunction of those persons1 and in the sequence of incidents by which they are affected4 ,an aesthetic invention may be as natural as a mechanical one1 although the materials for each are collected from a wide surface1 and placed in new relations4 ,thus much we say as expressing dissent from objections which have been hastily made to this poem4 ,of the plot of the ,tragedy of ,errors we have only space to say that the writer has cut a channel for very delicate verses through the heart of a ,southern plantation4 ,here1 at length1 seems to be one of those thoroughly national subjects for which critics have long been clamorous4 ,the deepest passion is expressed without touching the tawdry properties of the intense school of poetry4 ,the language passes from the ease of perfect simplicity to the conciseness of power1 while the relation of emotion to character is admirably preserved4 ,the moral--which1 let us observe in passing1 is decently covered with artistic beauty--relates1 not to the most obvious1 but to the most dangerous mischiefs of ,slavery4 ,indeed1 the story is only saved from being too painful by a fine appreciation of the medicinal quality of all wretchedness that the writer everywhere displays4 ,in the ,first ,part1 the nice intelligence shown in the rough contrast between ,hermann and ,stanley1 and in the finished contrast between ,alice and ,helen1 will claim the reader's attention4 ,the sketches of ,american life and tendencies1 both ,northern and ,southern1 are given with discrimination and truth4 ,the dying scene1 which closes the ,first ,part1 seems to us nobly wrought4 ,the death-bed hymn of the slaves sounds a pathetic wail over an abortive life shivering on the brink of the ,unknown4 ,in the ,second ,part we find less of the color and music of a poem1 and more of the rapid movement of a drama4 ,the doom of ,slavery upon the master now comes into full relief4 ,the characters of ,herbert and his father are favorable specimens of well-meaning1 even honorable1 ,southern gentlemen1--only not endowed with such exceptional moral heroism as to offer the pride of life to be crushed before hideous laws4 ,the connection between lyric and tragic power is shown in the ,tragedy of ,errors4 ,the songs and chants of the slaves mingle with the higher dialogue like the chorus of the ,greek stage2 they mediate with gentle authority between the worlds of natural feeling and barbarous usage4 ,let us also say that the sentiment throughout this drama is sound and sweet2 for it is that mature sentiment1 born again of discipline1 which is the pledge of fidelity to the highest business of life4 ,before concluding1 we take the liberty to remove a mask1 not impenetrable to the careful reader1 by saying that the writer is a woman4 ,and let us be thankful that a woman so representative of the best culture and instinct of ,new ,england cannot wholly conceal herself by the modesty of a pseudonyme4 ,in no way has the ,northern spirit roused to oppose the usurpations of ,slavery more truly vindicated its high quality than by giving development to that feminine element which has mingled with our national life an influence of genuine power4 ,and to-day there are few men justly claiming the much-abused title of thinkers who do not perceive that the opportunity of our regenerated republic cannot be fully realized1 until we cease to press into factitious conformity the faculties1 tastes1 and--let us not shrink from the odious word--missions of women4 ,the merely literary privilege accorded a generation or two ago is in itself of slight value4 ,since the success of ,evelina1 women have been freely permitted to jingle pretty verses for family newspapers1 and to novelize morbid sentiments of the feebler sort4 ,and we see one legitimate result in that flightiness of the feminine mind which1 in a lower stratum of current literature1 displays inaccurate opinions1 feeble prejudices1 and finally blossoms into pert vulgarity4 ,but instances of perverted license increase our obligation to ,mrs4 ,child1 ,mrs4 ,stowe and to others whose eloquence is only in deeds4 ,of such as these1 and of her whom we may now associate with them1 it is not impossible some unborn historian may write1 that in certain great perils of ,american liberty1 when the best men could only offer rhetoric1 women came forward with demonstration4 ,yet1 after all1 our deepest indebtedness to the present series of volumes seems to be this3 they bear gentle testimony to what the wise ever believed1 that the delicacy of spirit we love to characterize by the dear word womanly is not inconsistent with varied and exact information1 independent opinion1 and the insights of genius4 ,finally1 we venture to mention1 what has been in the minds of many ,new-,england readers1 that these books are indissolubly associated with a young life offered in the nation's great necessity4 ,at the time when the first of the series was made public1 a shudder ran through our homes1 as a regiment1 rich in historic names1 stood face to face with death4 ,among the fallen was the only son of her whose writings have been given us4 ,let us think without bitterness of the sacrifice of one influenced and formed by the rare nature we find in these poems4 ,what better result of culture than to dissipate intellectual mists and uncertainties1 and to fix the grasp firmly upon some great practical good8 ,there is nothing wasted in one who lived long enough to show that the refinement acquired and inherited was of the noble kind which could prefer the roughest action for humanity to elegant allurements of gratified taste4 ,the best gift of scholarship is the power it gives a man to descend with all the force of his acquired position1 and come into effective union with the world of facts4 ,for it is the crucial test of brave qualities that they are truer and more practical for being filtered through libraries4 ,in reading the ,theages of ,plato we feel a certain respect for the young seeker of wisdom whose only wish is to associate with ,socrates2 and there is a certain admiration for the father1 ,demodocus1 who joyfully resigns his son1 if the teacher will admit him to his friendship and impart all that he can4 ,but it is a higher result of a higher order of society1 when a young man with aptitude to follow science and assimilate knowledge sees in the most perilous service of civilization a rarer illumination of mind and heart4 ,in the great scheme of things1 where all grades of human worthiness are shown for the benefit of man1 this costly instruction shall not fail of fruit4 ,and so the deepest moral that comes to us from the ,tragedy of ,errors seems a prophetic memorial of the soldier for constitutional liberty with whom it will be long connected4 ,the wealth of life--so we read the final meaning of these verses--is in its discipline2 and the graceful dreams of the poet1 and the quickened intellect of the scholar1 are but humble instruments for the helping of mankind4 ,a ,discourse on the ,life1 ,character1 and ,policy of ,count ,cavour4 ,delivered in the ,hall of the ,new ,york ,historical ,society1 ,february #bj1 #ahfb4 ,by ,,vincenzo ,,botta1 ,ph4,d41 ,professor of ,italian ,literature in the ,new ,york ,university1 late ,member of the ,parliament1 and ,professor of ,philosophy in the ,colleges of ,sardinia4 ,new ,york3 ,g4,p4 ,putnam4 #hvo4 pp4 #ajh4 ,this is a most admirable tribute to one of the greatest men of our age1 by a writer singularly well qualified in all respects to do justice to his rich and comprehensive theme4 ,professor ,botta is a native of ,northern ,italy1 in the first place1 and thus by inheritance and natural transmission is heir to a great deal of knowledge as to the important movements of which ,cavour was the mainspring1 which a foreigner could acquire only by diligent study and inquiry4 ,in the next place1 he has not been exclusively a secluded student1 but he has taken part in the great political drama which he commemorates1 and has been brought into personal relations with the illustrious man whose worth he here sets forth with such ample knowledge1 such generous devotion1 such patriotic fervor4 ,and lastly1 he is a man of distinguished literary ability1 wielding the language of his adopted country with an ease and grace which hardly leave a suspicion that he was not writing his vernacular tongue4 ,a namesake of his--whether a relation or not1 we are not informed--has written in very choice ,italian a history of the ,american ,revolution2 and the work before us1 relating in such excellent ,english the leading events of a glorious ,italian revolution1 is a partial payment of the debt of gratitude contracted by the publication of that classical production4 ,but a writer of inferior opportunities and inferior capacity to ,professor ,botta could hardly have failed to produce an attractive and interesting work1 with such a subject4 ,there never was a life which stood less in need of the embellishments of rhetoric1 which could rest more confidently and securely upon its plain1 unvarnished truth1 than that of ,count ,cavour4 ,he was a man of the highest order of greatness2 and when we have said that1 we have also said that he was a man of simplicity1 directness1 and transparency4 ,a man of the first class is always easily interpreted and understood4 ,the biographer of ,cavour has nothing to do but to recount simply and consecutively what he said and what he did1 and his task is accomplished3 no great statesman has less need of apology or justification2 no one's name is less associated with doubtful acts or questionable policy4 ,his ends were not more noble than was the path in which he moved towards them direct4 ,professor ,botta has fully comprehended the advantages derived from the nature of his subject1 and has confined himself to the task of relating in simple and vigorous ,english the life and acts of ,cavour from his birth to his death4 ,he has given us a rapid and condensed summary1 but nothing of importance is omitted1 and surely enough is told to vindicate for ,cavour the highest rank which the enthusiastic admiration and gratitude of his countrymen have accorded to him4 ,where can we find a nobler life8 ,and1 take him all in all1 whom shall we pronounce to have been a greater statesman8 ,what variety of power he showed1 and what wealth of resources he had at command6 ,without the pride and coldness of ,pitt1 the private vices of ,fox1 the tempestuous and ill-regulated sensibility of ,burke1 he had the useful and commanding intellectual qualities of all the three1 except the splendid and imaginative eloquence of the last4 ,this life of ,cavour1 and the incidental sketches of his associates which it includes1 will have a tendency to correct some of the erroneous impressions current among us as to the intellectual qualities and temperament of the ,italian people4 ,the common1 or1 at least1 a very prevalent1 notion concerning them is that they are an impassioned1 imaginative1 excitable1 visionary race1 capable of brilliant individual efforts1 but deficient in the power of organization and combination1 and in patience and practical sagacity4 ,some of us go1 or have gone1 farther1 and have supposed that the ,austrian domination in ,italy was the necessary consequence of want of manliness and persistency in the people of ,italy1 and was perhaps as much for their good as the dangerous boon of independence would have been4 ,all such prejudices will be removed by a candid perusal of this memoir4 ,cavour himself1 as a statesman and a man1 was of exactly that stamp which we flatter ourselves to be the exclusive growth of ,america and ,england4 ,he was nothing of a visionary1 nothing of a political pedant1 nothing of a doctrinaire4 ,franklin himself had not a more practical understanding1 or more of large1 plain1 roundabout sense4 ,he had1 too1 ,franklin's shrewdness1 his love of humor1 and his relish for the natural pleasures of life4 ,he had a large amount of patience1 the least showy1 but perhaps the most important1 of the qualifications of a great statesman4 ,and in his glorious career he was warmly and generously sustained1 not merely by the king1 and by the favored classes1 but by the people1 whose efforts and sacrifices have shown how worthy they were of the freedom they have won4 ,we speak here more particularly of the people of the kingdom of ,sardinia2 but what we say in praise of them may be extended to the people of ,italy generally4 ,the history of ,italy for the last fifteen years is a glorious chapter in the history of the world4 ,whatever of active courage and passive endurance has in times past made the name of ,roman illustrious1 the events of these years have proved to belong equally to the name of ,italian4 ,but we are wandering from ,count ,cavour and ,professor ,botta4 ,we have to thank the latter for enriching the literature of his adopted country with a memoir which in the lucid beauty and transparent flow of its style reminds the ,italian scholar of the charm of ,boccaccio's limpid narrative1 and is besides animated with a patriot's enthusiasm and elevated by a statesman's comprehension4 ,a more cordial1 heart-warming book we have not for a long time read4 ,a ,treatise on ,some of the ,insects ,injurious to ,vegetation4 ,by ,,thaddeus ,,william ,,harris1 ,m4,d4 ,a ,new ,edition1 enlarged and improved1 with ,additions from the ,author's ,manuscripts1 and ,original ,notes4 ,illustrated by ,engravings drawn from ,nature under the ,supervision of ,professor ,agassiz4 ,edited by ,charles ,l4 ,flint1 ,secretary of the ,massachusetts ,state ,board of ,agriculture4 #hvo4 ,this handsome octavo1 prepared with such scientific care1 is for the special benefit of ,agriculture2 and the order1 method1 and comprehensiveness so evident throughout the ,treatise compel the admiration of all who study its beautifully illustrated pages4 ,the community is largely benefited by such an aid to the improvement of pursuits in which so many are concerned2 and no cultivator of the soil can safely be ignorant of what ,dr4 ,harris has studied and put on record for the use of those whose honorable occupation it is to till the earth4 ,as a work of ,art we cannot refrain from special praise of the book before us4 ,turning over its leaves is like a spring or summer ramble in the country4 ,all creeping and flying things seem harmlessly swarming in vivid beauty of color over its pages4 ,such gorgeous moths we never saw before out of the flower-beds1 and there are some butterflies and caterpillars reposing here and there between the leaves that must have slipped in and gone to sleep on a fine warm day in ,july4 ,the printing of the volume reaches the highest rank of excellence4 ,messrs4 ,welch1 ,bigelow1 ,company may take their place among the ,typographical ,masters of this or any other century4 ,pictures of ,old ,england4 ,by ,,dr4 ,,reinhold ,,pauli1 ,author of ,history of ,alfred the ,great1 etc4 ,translated1 with the ,author's ,sanction1 by ,e4,c4 ,,ott4 ,cambridge ,england3 ,macmillan ,co4 ,small #hvo4 pp4 xii41 #deg4 ,dr4 ,pauli is already known on both sides of the ,atlantic as the author of two works of acknowledged learning and ability1--a ,history of ,england during the ,middle ,ages1 and a ,history of ,alfred the ,great4 ,in his new volume he furnishes some further fruits of his profound researches into the social and political history of ,england in the ,middle ,ages2 and if the book will add little or nothing to his present reputation1 it affords at least new evidence of his large acquaintance with ,english literature4 ,it comprises twelve descriptive essays on as many different topics1 closely connected with his previous studies4 ,among the best of these are the papers entitled ,monks and ,mendicant ,friars1 which give a brief and interesting account of monastic institutions in ,england2 ,the ,hanseatic ,steel-,yard in ,london1 comprising a history of that famous company of merchant-adventurers1 with a description of the buildings occupied by them1 and a sketch of their domestic life2 and ,london in the ,middle ,ages1 which presents an excellent description of the topography and general condition of the city during that period1 and is illustrated by a small and carefully drawn plan4 ,there are also several elaborate essays on the early relations of ,england with the ,continent1 besides papers on ,the ,parliament in the ,fourteenth ,century1 ,two ,poets1 ,gower and ,chaucer1 ,john ,wiclif1 7as ,dr4 ,pauli spells the name17 and some other topics4 ,all the papers show an adequate familiarity with the original sources of information1 and are marked by the same candor and impartiality which have hitherto characterized ,dr4 ,pauli's labors4 ,the translation1 without being distinguished by any special graces of style1 is free from the admixture of foreign idioms1 and1 so far as one may judge from the internal evidence1 appears to be faithfully executed4 ,as a collection of popular essays1 the volume is worthy of much praise4 ,the ,correspondence of ,leigh ,hunt4 ,edited by his ,eldest ,son4 ,london3 ,smith1 ,elder1 ,co4 #ahfb4 #b vols4 #abmo4 ,in ,lamb's famous controversy with ,southey in #ahbc1 7the only controversy ,elia ever indulged in17 he says of the author of ,rimini1 ,he is one of the most cordial-minded men ,i ever knew1 and matchless as a fireside companion4 ,few authors have had warmer admirers of their writings1 or more sincere personal friends1 than ,leigh ,hunt4 ,he seemed always to inspire earnestly and lovingly every one who came into friendly relations with him4 ,when ,shelley inscribed his ,cenci to him in #ahai1 he expressed in this sentence of the ,dedication what all have felt who have known ,leigh ,hunt intimately3-- ,had ,i known a person more highly endowed than yourself with all that it becomes a man to possess1 ,i had solicited for this work the ornament of his name4 ,one more gentle1 honorable1 innocent1 and brave1--one of more exalted toleration for all who do and think evil1 and yet himself more free from evil1--one who knows better how to receive and how to confer a benefit1 though he must ever confer far more than he can receive1--one of simpler1 and1 in the highest sense of the word1 of purer life and manners1 ,i never knew2 and ,i had already been fortunate in friendship when your name was added to the list4 ,with this immortal record of his excellence made by ,shelley's hand1 ,leigh ,hunt cannot be forgotten4 ,counting among his friends the best men and women of his time1 his name and fame are embalmed in their books as they were in their hearts4 ,charles ,lamb1 ,keats1 ,shelley1 and ,mrs4 ,browning knew his worth1 and prized it far above praising him2 and there are those still living who held him very dear1 and loved the sound of his voice like the tones of a father or a son4 ,a man's letters betray his heart1--both those he sends and those he receives4 ,leigh ,hunt's correspondence1 as here collected by his son1 is full of the wine of life in the best sense of spirit4 ,the ,works of ,charles ,dickens4 ,household ,edition4 ,martin ,chuzzlewit4 ,new ,york3 ,sheldon ,company4 ,it is not our intention1 at the present writing1 to enter into any discussion concerning the characteristics or the value of the novels of ,charles ,dickens3 we have neither time nor space for it4 ,besides1 to few of our readers do these books need introduction or recommendation from us4 ,they have long been accepted by the world as worthy to rank among those works of genius which harmonize alike with the thoughtful mind of the cultivated and the simple feelings of the unlearned1--which discover in every class and condition of men some truth or beauty for all humanity4 ,they are1 in the full sense of the word1 household books1 as indispensable as ,shakspeare or ,milton1 ,scott or ,irving4 ,we may fairly say of the various editions of ,dickens's writings1 that their name is ,legion4 ,none of them all1 however1 is better adapted to common libraries than the new edition now publishing in ,new ,york4 ,it will be comprised in fifty volumes1 to be published in instalments at intervals of six or eight weeks4 ,the mechanical execution is most commendable in every respect3 clear1 pleasantly tinted paper2 typography in the best style of the ,riverside ,press2 binding novel and tasteful4 ,a vignette1 designed either by ,darley or ,gilbert1 and engraved upon steel1 is prefixed to each volume4 ,we have to congratulate the publishers that they have so successfully fulfilled the promises of their prospectus1 and the public that an edition at once elegant and inexpensive is now provided4 ,,foreign ,,literature4 ,die ,schweizerische ,literatur des achzehnten ,jahrhunderts4 ,von ,t4,c4 ,m,,rikofer4 ,leipzig3 ,verlag von ,s4 ,hirzel4 #hvo4 pp4 #ecf4 ,in the early part of the ,middle ,ages ,switzerland contributed comparatively little to the literary glory of ,germany4 ,beyond ,conrad of ,wrzburg1 who is claimed as a native of ,basel1 no ,swiss name can be found among the poets of the ,hohenstaufen period4 ,in a later age it is rather the practical than the romantic character of the ,swiss that is manifested in their productions4 ,the ,reformation brought them in closer contact with ,german culture4 ,there was need of this2 for in no country was the gap wider between the language of the people and that of the learned4 ,scholars like ,zwinglius and ,bullinger were almost helpless1 when they sought to express themselves in ,german4 ,little appeal could1 therefore1 be made to the masses in their own tongue by such writers4 ,during the whole of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries the vernacular was even more neglected than before4 ,it was not until the beginning of the eighteenth that ,latin and ,french ceased to be the only languages deemed worthy of use in literary composition4 ,in #agae ,johannes ,muralt wrote his ,eidgnszischen ,lustgarten1 and later several other works1 mostly scientific1 in ,german4 ,political causes came in to help the reaction1 and from that time the ,protestant portion of the ,helvetic ,confederation may be said to have had a literature of its own4 ,it is the history of the literature of ,german ,switzerland during the eighteenth century that ,mrikofer has essayed to write4 ,he has chosen a subject hitherto but little studied1 and his work deserves to stand by the side of the best ,german literary histories of our time4 ,the author begins with the first signs of the reaction against the influence of ,france1 agreeably portraying the awakening of ,swiss consciousness1 and the gradual development of the enlightened patriotism that impelled ,swiss writers to lay aside mere courtly elegance of diction for their own more terse and vigorous idiom4 ,this awakening was not confined to letters4 ,formerly the ,swiss1 instead of appreciating the beauties of their own land1 rather considered them as impediments to the progress of civilization4 ,it seems incredible to us now that there ever could have been a time when mountain-scenery1 instead of being sought1 was shunned1--when princes possessing the most beautiful lands among the ,rhine hills should1 with great trouble and expense1 have transported their seats to some flat1 uninviting locality1--when1 for instance1 the dull1 flat1 prosy1 wearisome gardens of ,schwetzingen should have been deemed more beautiful than the immediate environs of ,heidelberg4 ,yet such were the sentiments that prevailed in ,switzerland until a comparatively late date4 ,it is only since the days of ,scheuchzer that ,swiss scenery has been appreciated1 and in this appreciation were the germs of a new culture4 ,as in ,germany societies had been established for the practice of ,german at ,leipsic and ,hamburg1 so in various ,swiss cities associations were formed with the avowed purpose of discouraging the imitation of ,french models4 ,thus1 at ,zrich several literary young men1 among them ,hagenbuch and ,lavater1 met at the house of the poet ,bodmer4 ,the example was followed in other cities4 ,though these clubs and their periodical organs soon fell into an unwarrantable admiration of all that was ,english1 the result was a gradual development of the national taste4 ,since then the literary efforts of the ,swiss have been characterized by an ardent love of country4 ,a direct popular influence may be felt in their best productions2 hence the nature of their many beauties1 as well as of their faults4 ,to the same influence also we owe that phalanx of reformers and philanthropists1 ,hirzel1 ,iselin1 ,lavater1 and ,pestalozzi4 ,a great portion of the work under consideration is devoted to the lives and labors of these benefactors of their people4 ,the book is1 therefore1 not a literary history in the strict sense of the term4 ,it gives a comprehensive view of the culture of ,german ,switzerland during the eighteenth century4 ,to ,bodmer alone one hundred and seventy-five pages are devoted4 ,in this essay1 as well as in that on the historian ,mller1 a vast amount of information is presented1 and many facts collated by the author are now given1 we believe1 for the first time4 ,literaturbilder4--,darstellungen deutscher ,literatur aus den ,werken der vorzglichsten ,literarhistoriker1 etc4 ,herausgegeben von ,j4,w4 ,,schaefer4 ,leipzig3 ,friedrich ,brandstetter4 #hvo4 pp4 #dji4 ,there is no lack of ,german literary histories4 ,while ,english letters have not yet found an historian1 there are scores of works upon every branch of ,german literature4 ,of these1 many possess rare merits1 and are characterized by a depth1 a comprehensiveness of criticism not to be found in the similar productions of any other nation4 ,whoever has once been guided by the master-minds of ,germany will bear witness that the guidance cannot be replaced by that of any other class of writers4 ,nowhere can such universality1 such freedom from national prejudice1 be found1--and this united to a love of truth1 earnestness of labor1 and perseverance of research that may be looked for in vain elsewhere4 ,the difficulty for the student of ,german literary history lies1 then1 in the selection4 ,a new work1 the ,literaturbilder of ,j4,w4 ,schaefer1 will greatly tend to facilitate the choice4 ,this is a representation of the chief points of the literature of ,germany by means of well-chosen selections from the principal historians of letters4 ,the editor introduces these by an essay upon the ,epochs of ,german ,literature4 ,then follow1 with due regard to chronological order1 extracts from the works of ,vilmar1 ,gervinus1 ,wackernagel1 ,schlosser1 ,julian ,schmidt1 and others4 ,these extracts are of such length as to give a fair idea of the writers1 and so arranged as to form a connected history4 ,thus1 under the third division1 comprising the eighteenth century until ,herder and ,goethe1 we find the following articles following each other3 ,state of ,literature in the ,eighteenth ,century2 ,johann ,christian ,gottsched1 by ,f4,c4 ,schlosser2 ,gottsched's ,attempts at ,dramatic ,reform1 by ,r4 ,prutz2 ,hagedorn and ,haller1 by ,j4,w4 ,schaefer2 ,bodmer and ,breitinger1 by ,a4 ,koberstein2 ,the ,leipsic ,association of ,poets and the ,bremen ,contributions1 by ,chr4 ,f4 ,weisse2 ,german ,literature in the ,middle of the ,eighteenth ,century1 by ,goethe2 ,gottlieb ,wilhelm ,rabener1 by ,h4 ,gelzer2 ,gellert's ,fables1 by ,h4 ,prutz4 ,those who do not possess the comprehensive works of ,gervinus1 ,cholerius1 ,wackernagel1 etc41 may thus in one volume find enough to be able to form a fair opinion of the nature of their labors4 ,the ,literaturbilder1 though perhaps lacking in unity1 is one of the most attractive of literary histories4 ,a few important names are missed1 as that of ,menzel1 from whom nothing is quoted4 ,the omission seems the more unwarrantable1 as this writer1 whatever we may think of his views1 still enjoys the highest consideration among a numerous class of ,german readers4 ,the contributions of the editor himself form no inconsiderable part of the volume4 ,those quoted from his ,life of ,goethe deserve special mention4 ,the work does not extend beyond the first years of the present century1 and closes with ,jean ,paul4 ,,recent ,,american ,,publications ,,received ,,by ,,the ,,editors ,,of ,,the ,,atlantic ,,monthly4 ,the ,works of ,charles ,dickens4 ,household ,edition4 ,illustrated from ,drawings by ,f4,o4,c4 ,darley and ,john ,gilbert4 ,martin ,chuzzlewit4 ,in ,four ,volumes4 ,new ,york4 ,sheldon ,co4 #afmo4 pp4 #cbb1 #bii1 #bib1 #cbb4 #c4jj4 ,the ,earl's ,heirs4 ,a ,tale of ,domestic ,life4 ,by the ,author of ,east ,lynne1 etc4 ,philadelphia4 ,t4,b4 ,peterson ,brothers4 #hvo4 paper1 pp4 #bjj4 #ej cts4 ,the ,spirit of ,military ,institutions2 or1 ,essential ,principles of the ,art of ,war4 ,by ,marshal ,marmont1 ,duke of ,ragusa4 ,translated from the ,latest ,edition1 revised and corrected by the ,author2 with ,illustrative ,notes by ,henry ,coppe1 ,professor of ,english ,literature in the ,university of ,pennsylvania1 late an ,officer of ,artillery in the ,service of the ,united ,states4 ,philadelphia4 ,lippincott ,co4 #abmo4 pp4 #bgb4 #a4jj4 ,maxims1 ,advice1 and ,instructions on the ,art of ,war2 or1 ,a ,practical ,military ,guide for the ,use of ,soldiers of all ,arms and of all ,countries4 ,translated from the ,french by ,captain ,lendy1 ,director of the ,practical ,military ,college1 late of the ,french ,staff1 etc4 ,new ,york4 ,d4 ,van ,nostrand4 #ahmo4 pp4 #bab4 #ge cts4 ,rhymed ,tactics4 ,by ,gov4 ,new ,york4 ,d4 ,van ,nostrand4 #ahmo4 paper1 pp4 #add4 #be cts4 ,official ,army ,register1 for #ahfb4 ,from the ,copy issued by the ,adjutant-,general ,u4,s4 ,army4 ,new ,york4 ,d4 ,van ,nostrand4 #hvo4 paper1 pp4 #ajh4 #ej cts4 ,water3 ,its ,history1 ,characteristics1 ,hygienic and ,therapeutic ,uses4 ,by ,samuel ,w4 ,francis1 ,a4,m41 ,m4,d41 ,physician to the ,northern ,dispensary1 ,new ,york4 ,new ,york4 ,s4,s4 ,w4 ,wood4 #hvo4 paper1 pp4 #dg4 #be cts4 ,an ,exposition of ,modern ,spiritualism1 showing its ,tendency to a ,total ,annihilation of ,christianity4 ,with other ,miscellaneous ,remarks and ,criticisms1 in ,support of the ,fundamental ,principles of the ,christian ,religion4 ,by ,samuel ,post4 ,new ,york4 ,printed by ,james ,egbert4 #hvo4 paper1 pp4 #hf4 #be cts4 ,sybelle1 and other ,poems4 ,by ,l4 ,new ,york4 ,g4,w4 ,carleton4 #abmo4 pp4 #aib4 #ej cts4 ,aids to ,faith3 ,a ,series of ,theological ,essays4 ,by ,several ,writers4 ,being a ,reply to ,essays and ,reviews4 ,edited by ,william ,thomson1 ,d4,d41 ,lord ,bishop of ,gloucester and ,bristol4 ,new ,york4 ,appleton ,co4 #abmo4 pp4 #ech4 #a4ej4 ,a ,popular ,treatise on ,deafness3 ,its ,causes and ,prevention1 by ,drs4 ,lighthill4 ,edited by ,e4 ,bunford ,lighthill1 ,m4,d4 ,with ,illustrations4 ,new ,york4 ,g4,w4 ,carleton4 #abmo4 pp4 #acc4 #ej cts4 ,cadet ,life at ,west ,point4 ,by an ,officer of the ,united ,states ,army4 ,with a ,descriptive ,sketch of ,west ,point1 by ,benson ,j4 ,lossing4 ,boston4 ,t4,o4,h4,p4 ,burnham4 #abmo4 pp4 xviii41 #cfg4 #a4jj4 ,can ,wrong be ,right8 ,by ,mrs4 ,s4,c4 ,hall ,boston4 ,t4,o4,h4,p4 ,burnham4 #hvo4 paper4 pp4 #adc4 #ch cts4 ,the ,old ,lieutenant and his ,son4 ,by ,norman ,macleod4 ,boston4 ,t4,o4,h4,p4 ,burnham1 #hvo4 paper1 pp4 #acj4 #cj cts4 ,eighth ,annual ,report of the ,superintendent of ,public ,instruction of the ,state of ,new ,york4 ,transmitted to the ,legislature ,january #h1ahhb4 ,albany4 ,c4 ,van ,benthuysen1 ,printer4 #hvo4 pp4 #acc4 ,nolan's ,system for ,training ,cavalry ,horses4 ,by ,kenner ,garrard1 ,captain ,fifth ,cavalry1 ,u4,s4,a4 ,with ,twenty-,four ,lithographed ,illustrations4 ,new ,york4 ,d4 ,van ,nostrand4 #abmo4 pp4 #aad4 #a4ej4 ,the ,koran2 commonly called the ,alcoran of ,mohammed4 ,translated into ,english immediately from the ,original ,arabic4 ,by ,george ,sale1 ,gent4 ,to which is prefixed ,the ,life of ,mohammed2 or1 ,the ,history of that ,doctrine which was begun1 carried on1 and finally established by him in ,arabia1 and which has subjugated a ,larger ,portion of the ,globe than the ,religion of ,jesus has set at ,liberty4 ,boston4 ,t4,o4,h4,p4 ,burnham4 #abmo4 pp4 #dgb4 #a1jj4 ,a ,strange ,story4 ,by ,sir ,e4 ,bulwer ,lytton4 ,with ,engravings on ,steel by ,f4,o4 ,freeman1 after ,drawings by ,j4,n4 ,hyde1 from ,designs by ,gardner ,a4 ,fuller4 ,boston4 ,gardner ,a4 ,fuller4 #abmo4 pp4 #chg4 paper1 #be cts4 muslin1 #a4jj4