VOlAIilK I.
OXKOIII), X. C., WEDXKSDAV, Jl’XK 'iO, IXTo.
NXMISKK 2G.
Ftir flio l)rj)li(in.s’ Kri('iul.
THE WISDOM OF COMMON
Tliere is a Weli-ktio‘,yii stol'y of
tlio ^reati‘st I’f hontheu ])lii}oso-
j)]iers which ouglit not to lose its
n})plication in this present gener
ation. He clahned rtuperioritv to
tlie remainder of luankind oji the
})re«iun})tion tliat lie was con
scious that he knew nothing,
wiiiie all other mortals wore de
luded into the belief that they
Wore [lossossed. with some degree
of knowledge^ i\nd from liie
meager fragments of his history
we are led to infer that he spent
tlje greater' portion of liis life in
convincing inOii of tlie vanity of
a jiretension to knowledge.
d'lie philosophy of living is re-
jileto with far more thaii Can
readily be dednc.ted from logical
premises, or referred to estalilish-
ed fornmlasv The manifold ]ter-
mutations of events in our every
day life continually surround us
with uew coudnnatiovis of circum
stances, retpiiring- speedy action
where no analogical reasoning itr
method of induction seems equa.l
to the emergency; h'o do the
ju'oper thing at the proper time
recpiires a certain ^ptnitaneity of
actitm not provided for by any
sjiecial mode of reas^oning from
the categoricPr l^oadiness of ac
tion is an essential clement of
snccess, “Ileadiness is a natural
factor.intuitkm j a species of pres
ence of ndnd which enables one
to meet a crisis, strike a blow or
«av the right word hi the ‘very
nick of fhne.’^ ddie conclusions
fire reached and acted u})on while
the logical ^tepsf if there be any,
aie appareittfr cliMrcgardcd.-
'^J’he science of ilathetnafic?t,
dealing w?fb fbc hmnutable v'ela-
tions r f quantity, beiisg based up-
on a feu' unequi^'oCal amt univer-
sallv adopted axioms, i.s capalile
of being devoloped, step by stej),
with jfUci'ring precision and jicr-
fect dependence, ddic Katural
Bcionco?^? though hirgcly depend
ent iqiori absefv^ttiorf rmd ox-peri-
Jnent for verliication^ and thus af
fording the broadest gfound lor
speculative' conjecture as to the
probable results, yet, when the
taws have been oiwa as'certaine'd,
are found to l:te iiivariably obedi
ent fo thos'e laws; but when the
careful anah'st enters the field of
8ociolog^^ he is be\^■iktel'e'd; by
fhe cmnple'xSty of the various re
lations. And our anrdyst, iiidess
he be a mere theoivzer, soon des-
]tairs of producing a perfect sys
tem.
Lot all due honor and ci-edit
he accorded to the roeent dcvel-
0})mentS' of Herbert Sjiencor and
to the host of sf.udents of Social
Science who- liavc contributed
niucli toward ehmidath?g:th’?Bt vast
organi-sin,’ whielr is- ever evolving
and' changing,, and • yet remains
substantially the same in its ele
ments,. and of which each hidivid-
mal man forms' a part. liowe\AT,
■we iiind as many tlieoioes' as wri
ters who have dealt with tlvesaine
subject. Their iogi-c may Im
faultless', bat their' bases are cer-.
tnhiiy 'Variable.. Bpencer avows
to the farthest ramifications of our
Kocinl activitiijs, and that no the-’
ory of life is jiorfect without them,
thus Avitli other systems,
Ti>
a belief in a certain religious
priuciple,. yet in \\h philoso})hy
lie Gutirely ignores the existence
of the inaar ('hrist. Glirlstian
people claiin' that tlio priiu-iplos
sonietliiiig is crowded out or
something fnlHo is assumed,
iilauy of ihe most beautiful
tlieories, c.ompletely adapted and
harmoniously adjusted inalltlieir
parts, fail, when applied jitacti-
cally, to satisfy tlie assigned rea
sons. The diversity of human
character, juesent insiqierable
obstades to the jiath of him who
would seek to analy/.e, formulate
and demonstrate the truths of the
science of human societv, a)id es
tablish the department Of Sociol
ogy upon a })ermanent liasis.
.Failing, tlien, to ascertain any
specitic and invariable rule for a
course of coiidiud, ^yo ask liow are
vee to be actuated ? We find it
exceedingly convenient to refer
an extensive dopartinciit of crea-
tiirely activity to a species of iu-
.stinct, not lirute iiistint, but hu
man instinct, or, popularly, Com
mon Sense. Our definitions of
this article are necessarily vauge
and obscure. Jt is tlie redeem
ing feature, the jireserver of
equclibrium, tlie complement of
the acquired powers in a well
formed character, It saves a
man, however learned, from be
ing a fool, and a woman, howev
er accoiiipTislied, from mticli in
convenience.
It may be cultivated, but, alas!
generally is not. Is there i-o
some shade ofdruth in that senti
ment of ])Opular disapproval
wliich says of a person, tiiat lie
may be carrying out his jirincl-
[)le, but coniinon sense ought to
teach liim better ^ Charity teach
es to judge a mail according to
his motive, but motive is too of
ten advanced as a sjiecious })re-
text to jialliate inconsistency of
various gi'ades. dbo often is a
man so blinded by a niotive or an
impulse in one certain direction,
as to exclude the consideration of
modifying circumstances. Tliese
men genora.lly succeed in attain
ing their object and in losing the
respect of their fellows at tlie
same time. The diversity of hu
man employment requires a man
ifold variety of dispositions, lienee
the foily oi’ setting' up any stand
ard by wliicli to measure all men
indiscrinduately, Somctime.stlus
pTinciple is carried to excess? by
[lersous of most worthy inten
tions. For instance, a man be
comes’ a (.diristiau ; he imdergoes
a certain experience should he
' make no allowance for" diversity
of mental f^tructure, he may very
natm*al1y conclude tliat ev'eiy one
must pass’ through the same ex-
perieivc-e. >Some- excellent Chris
tians are able to state very -deb-
nitefy the precise time of the dif
ferent steps,, and exact method to
pursii-e at each sta.gCy and they
urge the iiivportanco of noting
these facts in their consecutive
order.. And,, earnest seekers, by
attempting to follow too literally
the m-inutine of directions fail to
attain what they wish.
ddio experience of otliers in any
pursuit of life is always valuable
to the searcher for truth,-just so
far as ho makes it liis own, not
by any servile ])rocess of C(,>p}’-
ing,. but b}'a jiulicioUvS- assiiniliv
lion, Common Sense teaching
of
priatc for the peculiar tissue
eacli iiidividufil soul.
The exercise of Common Sense
makes broad the understanding
and gives direction to the rcasom
ing faculties, yet aids in defining
the boundaries of human knowl-
ecjg’o and in confining our inves-
tiga.tions withiii linito limits. It
is not a rave .thing to find a man
whose reasoning powers a])poar
to ‘idniit of iiulehiii'.e expandiil
and universal apjilication. Ar
guments-are poured forth with a
voluliility that ilelies competition.
Slioi.ldyou ii.t i’jose s- me siniph-
truth, some oliservc'd fact, iiivali
dating his train of argument, lu-
will proceed at oiicc to slnft lii.-
base and Iniild another s ipcr-
structure. Detect another fallacy,
and lie rone■\^'S the programme.
It is our humble opinion tliat
the various departments of human
knowledge, are not ’or wore not
cfinstructed with the same facility
of being grasped by tlie human
mind, Dlillosojuiy has, so far,
fa.iled to designate all the classes
to wliicli the objects of knowledge-
may be reduced. Our investiga
tions are restrmned within limits.
Beyond the barrier which separ
ates the finite from the infinite,-
the known from the unknown,
the puny intellect of man dare
not roam, The mind would fain
go further than it can or ought.
To do this has been irs constam
tenqitatioii. 'Fo refuse to go a**
far as it may or ought, is weak
and unphilosojihical, hut to at-
tenqit to go further is abwiys ir
rational and, it might be, iuipiou.s.
We would rank liim a ferfect
specimen of the genu.? homo wlio
ould trace the cause of every ae-
t'on 1o its tinde: lying pFiiciple.,
nd who could readily apply the
doctrines of the categories to the
soln ion of the infinite variety of
psychical] Voblems. Butifwewi'te
able to picture a man, who per
forming his duties Avithout in
quiring tlie causes, 3'et lives his
lite to the satisfaction of himself
and liuinanit}'. Avhy should xve
not cla.ss him in an equally bigb
order of created existences 1 To
liim tlio qu( .^tion “why?” Avhicli is
oftenest asked and seldoniest an
swered, is not a source of care,
and his soul is not vexed Avitli the
drudgery of logic. It is true wo
cin form no concejitlon of the
miiukof Deity, but is'it not equal
ly true that our highest coucg])-
tion of tlic power of knowing is
that winch (lisccnis what is abso
lutely right Avitliout recourse to
premises and intuition, a God-giv
en attribute ? Those who accept
the truths of the Christian reli
gion as fraught with the decjiest
moment in the present life and in
the life ,to comG,r mus-t concede
that some of the oldest and most
highly cultivated intellects have
failed and are failing to embrace'
Cliristismity through any method'
of reasoning }"et discovered, how
ever syllogi.s^tic or complicated.
Faithy the poAver of belief, tlie es
sential condition of saDation,- is
not the offspring of man’s Avis-
dom, not the result of investiga
tion and is not demonstrable.
We Avould.n-ot wish to be inter
preted as condemning the study’
guish man from llie brute, is th'
noblest of human scimices. Cur
])ur])ose is to shoAv Iioav the no-
ok-st of human sciences may 1 e
perverted. A man . nni}- be on-
t'roly le'isonablc dud yet be rad
ically Avrong. Reason is alike
the refuge of the iniidol and the
Christian. Logic has nothing to
do Avitli the dise-overy of trutli or
i;i asooit lining its fundamental
princi] Ifes. ( cf nmon Ben.so and
t litli supjily the basis upon Avliicli
it is the part of Logic to con
struct aiuf elaborate those Avon-
dertiil and inti’icate fabrics ot
■thought Avliich serve as tomple.s
for humanity; But you may as
well undertake contend against
Omnipotence its-elf as to attempt,
by any process, of deriving con
clusions from pi'cmises, to fathom
the infinite,, or explain tl e unex
plainable; Again, reasc>i.ing bas
ed upon false couceptit ns, has
brought untold sorroAv iq on the
sons of men.
He Avho sets forth in life, act-
ing' on the premise that the chiif
end of existence is the gratifica
tions of tlie appetites and passions,
Avill eventually exhaust the source
of his ha])])iiuss and eternally
lose power to atone for his mis
take. That man of a philoso] hie
cast of mind^ who claiin.s to be-
heA*e only AA'iiat is demonstrable,
will finally end in sheer des|yera-
tion by believing nothing.
Hajipy arc they whose mental
tructure is not shalvCn by Avliat
rliey can not explain and Avhom
faith in an onini])otent hand
teaches to bide tlie Consummation
of tliaf glorious epoch Avlieii all
knowledge shall lie categorical
and-all truth axiomatic.
A Iteautifiil iS^Tis.s C'lD^toiti.
The Iiivelftor oi fhe Wheelbar
row.
It takes a great man to do a
little tfHiirf sometimes.
Who io }’oii tliiiik iiiTonted
tliat simple thing called aMheel-
barroiv 1 Why, no less a man
tliau Loonanlo da Vinci.
And wlio was lief
lie was a mnsician, poet, pain
ter, architect, scnlftor, physiolog
ist, engineer, natural historian,
botanist and inventor, all in one.
lie wasn’t a “Jack at all trades
and master of none,” either, lie
was a real nia.ster of many arts,
and a practical worker besides.
Wlien did lie live ?
Somewhere about the time that
Columbus discovered America.
And where wa.s lie bom!
In the beautiful city of Flor
ence, in Italy.
Perhaps some of yon may feel
a little better asquainted with
him when I tell yoii that it was
Leonardo da Vinci rVho painted
one' of the g'randest , pictures in
the world,—“The Last Supper,”
—a picture that has been copied
many times, and engra'tied in sev
eral styles, so tliat almost every
one lias an idea of the arrange-
sient andipiog'tion at tife table and
tile figures of our Lord and liis
deeipleis;. though 1 am told that,
without seeing’, the painting itself,
no one can form a notion of how
grand and beautiful it is.
And only to tliiiik of the f-hon-
sands ot poor, Iiard-working'
Anicrioans’ who- really own', in
i'lfoi'b lias ednto td bd sdiie-
t ling stirring and siTSet in tliS
l ery Paine of “Alpine born;” its
associations a-te all sd mu.sical and
full ot the hills. What must it
be to actually hinr it~and hear
it too, on occasions such as are
described here below, when tl.d
s'oice of the finest instruments
takes its finest nieaiiing;
Among tlie lofty mountain,s aiill
elevated vallej'sof iSwitzerlaiidtho
■Vlpiii III rn lias another nSe bb‘-
sides that of sounding' the far-fa
in-.d “Hans des Vaches,” or “(Jow
.SongK,” and this is' of a tery sdL'
emu and impressive nature;
When the sitn has .set in the val
ley, and only the snowy .snmmits
of the' niduntains gleam with gol
den light,’ the lie'rtlsrnan who ■
dwells upon the liighest habita
ble spot take.s his horn and pro
nounces audibly and londlv
tlirough it as tlirough a speaking'
trumpet, “Praise the Lord God !”
As soon as the sound is heard
by the neighboring huntsinen
they haste froiii their huts, take
the Alpine liorns and repeat the
same words. This frequently lasts
a quarter of an hour, and llid
naiiio of the Creator resounds
from all the mountains and rocky
cliffs around. Silence at length
.settles Over fhe scene. All the
iiuntsmen kneel and pray with
uncovered heads. In the' mean-"
time it has become quite dark.
“Goodniglit !” calls the highest '
he d man again f'liofigb Ids horn,
“Good night” agjiin resounds frrtif
all the nitfunfains tlifottgh the
horns of the huntsmen, and the
rocky cliffs. The mountaineers
tile'll fetite to thei#' homes and to
rest;
of tlie doctrines of Christ esteml j what to reject and ivliat is appro-^
of Logic or as underrating its real their wheelbarrows, an original
value.- Logie, the ssieuce of the ! “work” of Leonardo da Viue-i-!—
reasoning faculties—Itliose facul- ] _Fi om ‘' Jai-k in the I’ulpit;,’ SLhhfich-
ties which preeminently ^olasfor Jtd^.
Mr. Greeir Hotts, the' owner of^
a farm ail PeelefI Oak, on Slate'
Crock, a noted section of liatli
conrity, Ky,,. in ploughing if])'
about siitty acres of level lairiii
this spring, discovered the ruinif
of a e'i-ty of re'gu-lat' streets,’ cufb'v
ed with stone,' and O'vincing. a
higher ordet of architeefuraf
knowledge aiVd' a greater civilizaf-
tion than any other prehistofic'
remains yet found i'n this c'ounfrjv
.Many 5-ears ago a faint trace of at
similar eify Was noticed- in Mont-
g.imeiy County-, near Mount Sfel’-'
ling ; but the owners o( fhe' lain'd*,-
having littlo ta-sfe for baOlcwarcf-
researches, almost or entirely- ob
literated the evidences, to ra-akc
room for corn-growing. Tbis'fre'-
ing a fresh discovery, we ha-ve ho
doubt it will be 'f>isi-te'd by I’ro-’
fessor Shaler and {lie .-sr'c'htc'ol'o’-'
g-ists and tlie' jirehisforians' of tlio'
country at large. Tlie land ad-'
joii-18 a large' tract belonging to'
General William Pi'cSto-ig’ofljeX’-
iiigton.—Fratthfort (Ky\) Yeoman.
Evil Repokt.s.^—^Tlie longer I
live, the more I feel tire iinpor-'
tance of,-'-^'lsf,- bearing as little-'
as possible of wha-tovor is to the'
prejudioo of ofhers'; 21'*]-;- be
lieving nothing of the kind till
ab.sofutoly- forced to ifS-rd,- never-'
drinki-iTg'in the spirit of one' ivlio'-
circulates an ill report; 4t-h, al-'
w'ays'n-ioderathvg'as far ns I c.a.n,,
the u-nkindness expressed to wai'i’s-
others-;- f),’ always believing iliiit
if tlicotlier side were heard-.ia'ven-
difereiit account will Ise given- rf
f-lte ihaf-ter.—Simeon-