VOL. Ill
OXFORD, N. C., WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 5, 1877.
NO. 36.
LIGHT.
BY WiliLIAM PITT PALilER.
[This cOlhposition has been pro-
iiouiiccd, by the most eminent critics
of BuropCj to. be one ot the hnest pro-
iliictions of the same length in oui’ Ian-
giiag-e.]
From tlio quiokeued of the pri
mal gloom
The sim rolled bleak and bare, .
Till I wove hun a vest for his Ethiop
breast
Of the threads of my golden hair;
And when the broad tent of the firma
ment
Arose on its airy bars,
i penciled the hue of the matchless
blue
And spangled it round with stars.
I painted the flowers of Eden bo-wers,
And their leaves of living green,
And mine wmre the dyes in the sinless
eyes
Of Eden’s virgin queen ;
And when the fiend’s art on the trust
ful heart
Had fastened its mortal spell,
In the silvery sphere of the first-born
tear
To the trembling earth I fell.
When the waves that burst o’er a
world accursed,
Their work of wrath had sped,
And the ark’s lone few, the tried and
true,
Came forth among the dead.
AVith the wondrous gleams of my bri
dal beams,
I bade their terrors cease,
As 1 wrote on the roll of the storm’s
dark scroll,
God’s covenant of peace.
Like a pall at rest on a senseless breast,
night’s funereal shadow slept—
AVheu shepherd swains on Bethlehem’s
plains
Their lowly vigils kept—
Then I lashed on their sight the her
alds blight
Of Heaven’s redeeming iilan.
And they chanted the morn of a Savior
born—
Joy, joy to the outcast man!
Equal favor I show to the lofty and
low;
On. the ju.st and unjust I descend;
E’en the blind, whose vain spheres roll
in darkness and tears.
Feel my smile, the best smile of a friend.
Fay, the flower of the waste by my
love is embraced
As the rose in the g.arden of kings;
At the chrysalis bier of the worm I
appear.
And lo! the gay butterfly wings.
The desolate morn, like a mourner for-
lorn,
Conceals all the pride of her charms.
Till I bid the bright hours chase the
night from her bowers
And lead her young day to her arms.
And when the gay lover seeks eve lor
his lover.
And sinks to her balmy repose',
I wrap the sort rest by the'zephj-xTan-
nedAVest,
In curtains of amber and rose.
From my sentmel sleep by the night-
dreaded deep
I gaze with imslumbering eye,
AVhen the cynosure star of the mariner
Is blotted from out the sky!
And guided by me through the merci
less sea,
Though sped by the hurricane’s wings,
His compasslcss, dark, lone, weltering
bark
To the haven-home safely he brings.
I waken the flowers in their dew'-span-
glcd bowers.
The birds in their chambers of green.
And mountain and plain glow with
beauty again,:
As they biisk in the matinal sheen.
Oh, if such the glad worth of my iires-
ence on earth.
Though fretful and fleeting the while,
AA’hat glories must rest on the home of
the blest,
Ever bright with the Deity’s smile!
An aged man said:- “I£ Ims-
bands only had any sense _ the)'’d
never have any trouble ivith dis
obedient wives. I never did, an’
I have been married nigh onto
fifty years.”—“What is your se
cret?” asked a friend. “Why, I
always tell my wife to do just as
she pleases, an’ she never fails to
do it.”
UlSTOllir AKD USES OF GUl\-
POWEK.
Who invented gunpowder ?
No one knows. All agree that
its composition and properties
were understood in remote anti
quity. Authentic history extends
but a short way into the past, and
it is always difficult to draw the
line separating the authentic from
the fabulous. Like some other
things, gunpowder, as ages rolled
on, may have been invented, for
gotten, and reinvented. Certainly
in some form it was known, and
used for fire-works and incendiary
material long before any one
dreamed of a gun, or of using it
to do more than create terror in
warfare. And yet it is said that
some of tlie ancients had means
of using it to throw destructive
missiles among their enemies—
probably a species of rocket or
bomb. Nor does it seem, in its
infancy, to have been applied to
industrial purposes, such as blast
ing and quarrying rock, for there
is evidence that the people who
used it for fireworks at their feasts,
quarried immense blocks of stone
by splitting them out of the quar
ries with hammers and wedges.
Its first uses probably were
connected with the religious cer
emonies of tile Pagan ancients.
An old tradition taught that those
were the most powerful gods who
answered their worshippers by
fire. TJie priests, therefore, who
practiced upon the credulity of
the people, exercised their ingen
uity inventing ways of producing
spontaneous fire, which they told
the people was sent by the gods
from heaven in answers to their
prayers. The accounts of old
writers still preserved and dating
back to three hundred years be
fore Christ, describe a “ sulphu
rous and inflammable substance
unmistakably like our gunpowder.
There was a certain place called
the “Oracle of Delphi,” once
great, where this kind of fire was
produced by the priests, and it is
said that the Druids, the ancient
priests of Briton also used some
thing of this sort in their sacrifi
ces, for they not only produced
sudden fire, but they also imitated
thunder and lightning, to terrifiy
the people with their power.—
Tills must have been more than
two thousand years ago. It is
known tliat the Chinese, on the
other side of the world, had gun
powder about the same time, but
they used it chiefly for fireworks,
which, then, as now, formed the
main features of all their lestivals
and ceremonies. In India it was
early used in war, for a writer
who lived about A. D. 244, says;
“ When the towns of India are
attacked by their enemies, the
people do not rush into battle,
but put them to flight by thunder
and lightning.”
It is said, too, that one of the
Roman Emperors, who lived just
after the crucifixion of Christ,
“had machines which imitated
thunder and lightning, and at the
same time emitted stones.” Then,
about A. D. 220, there was writ
ten a recipe “for an ingenious
composition to be thrown on an
enemy,” whicli nearly corresponds
to our gunpo^yder. During the
many hundred years that follow,
little is recorded until about the
ninth century, Avheu there ap
pears in an old book, now in a
Paris library, an exact recipe for
gunpowder, and a description of
a rocket. It is said that in 1099
the Saracens, in defending Jeru
salem, “ threw abundance of pots
of fire and shot fire darts ”—no
doubt some kind of bombs .and
war rockets. History aftbrds ac
counts of other wars about this
time, in which gunpowder was
undoubtedly used in some form.
But in 1216 a monk, Eriar Roger
Bacon, made gunpowder, and it
is asserted he discovered it inde
pendently, knowing nothing of
its existence elsewhere. It is not
unreasonable to believe this, for
in those days people kept their
inventions to themselves, if they
could, and news traveled slowly.
Some authors say a German,
named Schwartz discovered it in
1.320, and perhaps he did, too,
and as honestly and independent-
Iv as did Friar Bacon, or tlie
East Indians, or the Chinese.
Others insist that it was originally
invented in India, and brought
by the Saracens from Africa to
the Europeans, who improved it.
At any rate, an English gentle
man who has made a translation
of some of the laws of India, sup
posed to have been established
1,500 years before the Christian
era, or over 3,300 years ago,
makes one of them read thus:
“ The magistrates shall not make
war with any deceitful machine,
or with poisoned weapons, or
with cannon and guns, or any
kind of firearms.”—St. Nicholas.
thoughtless, seeming not unlike
the track of a retreating and van
quished army! Surmises and
suppositions cannot fill tlie place
of opinions formed by penetra
tion and discernment. A man of
penetration is as slow to decide
as ho is quick to apprehend,
calmly and deliberately weighing
every opposite reason that is of
fered, and tracing it witli a most
judicious penetration. All these
one must possess to have that
judgement of Plutarcli, to dis-
criminate betwen right and wrong;
while to have the clear percep
tion of Goethe, one must be wil
ling to breathe a foreign atmos
phere, and, freed from prejudice,
feel the inspiration of other scenes
and conditions. If, in fact, we
wish our life structure to be per
fect , we must give it our person
al care, lest, while we sit with
folded Jiands and placid minds,
the tottering structure over us falls
with crushing violence to the
earth, burying us amid the ruins.
Waverlcy Magazine.
BBIEUIAMT AS1'K®l«OMICAE
DISUOVEKY.
—“The general, when requested
to lav down his arms——replied
‘Gome" and fake themT’” “The
—■—^^co'nduct of the dnmkert soB
diery dlieriated tlie natives
And why? We say “and why?”
because the naming of the proper
word without giving some' clue
to the reason for' the' choice' of
that word will riot set the pripil
to thinking for himself; In the
same way, take the wo'rd feintous
and write on the blackboard a
sentence in 'which it is correctly
used; put also the synonyms' “no
torious,” “illustrious,” “renown
ed,” “well-known,” and '“nota-
ble.” Require your class to give
sentences in 'which each of these
words will be used—^and used tO
the exclusion of any of the others.
A series of lessons carried thus
progressively forward will fix
clearly in the minds of the pupils
distinction between the meaning
and force of votds.—JUxchang^.
TAKEN FOK GKANTED.
One of the surest ways of pro
ducing confusion and annoi’ance,
is to allow one’s self to form the
habit of taking things for gran
ted. The liabit is easily acquired,
and is such a n.atural result of tlie
lack of thoughtfulness, that many,
while suffering from its conse
quences, are unconscious of the
habit. There are several reasons
why it sliould be overcome. It is
self-evident that one who suppo
ses the case, nine times out of
ten cannot be relied upon in any
enterprise of importance, and
thus becomes so inefficient as to
be unable to fulfil his obligations
acceptably t mothers or with cred
it to himself, being constant sour
ces of annoyance to others and
inconvenience to liimself. A fair
share of enemies are made by
supposed slights or misinterpre
tation of careless remarks, which,
it carefully considei'ed, would
save much disquietude and ill-will
Not only in social life, but in
business, is this habit damaging,
causing ruin and the downfall of
otherwise promising enterprise,
Even into everyday life tliis
habit intrudes itself. A lack of
energy, and too great a reliance
on others’ forethought, causes
many scenes of domestic confu
sion and petty vexations, not on
ly to the delinquents, but to the
whole household. Is it surprising
that this habit, formed at home,
should be found amid the scenes
of active life? Opinions being
formed from conjecture and sur
mises instead of being founded
on rational inference, is it surpri
sing that energies are misdirected,
and so many life-failm*es are
seen? See the evidences of disas
ter strewn tdong the path of the
GOETHE.
Prof. Hall, with the great tele
scope of the Naval Observatory
at Washington, has made one of
the most interesting astronomical
discoveries of the century. About
11 o’clock on Thursday night
before last he noticed a small star
following Mars a few seconds,
and made an estimate of its dis
tance from the planet. Two hours
later he looked again, and was sur
prised to find that the star seemed
to be still following the planet.
He renewed his observations
on Friday and Saturday nights,
and was rewarded with the evi
dence that it was a satellite of
Mars, a planet which has hitherto
been regarded as, without an at
tendant. In the course of his
observations Prof. Hall found
another satellite of tlie same
planet
The observations of the first
showed its time of revolution to
be about thirty hours, but several
Aveeks will be required to settle
exactly. The distance of the first
satellite from the planet is be
tween fourteen and fifteen thou
sand miles, which is loss than that
of any other known satellite from
its primal-}', and only about one-
sixteenth the distance of the moon
from the earth. The inner one,
as to the existence of which the
astronomers are not yet absolute
ly certain, is still closer. The
diameter of the new satellite is
very small, probably not more
than 80 or 100 miles.
THE PKOPEB USE OF WORDS.
To be able to select the right
word for the right place is an art
that can only be acquired by a long
and laborious process. It does
not come natural to any one.
The efforts should be early made
to acquire readiness in the art.
Take this example for advanced
class—to illustrate the use of the
word “proud.” The synonyms
are 2}resimpUon, insolent, haughty,
vain. Wliat term shall Ave use in
“He was enough to ask for
the chief command I” And Avhy ?
And in this sentence—“The poet
Avas enougli to take every op
portunity to recite Ids Avorks?”
And AA'hy? And in this sentence
It has been fbe habit of cerfalitl
persons in uninformed circles,- to
class Goethe, who is to moderil
German litei'ature, Avhat S’hake-^
spear is to Eriglish, with relation-'
alists, and skeptics. The ■verdict;
is unjust. A man whose colossal
genius stands preeminenf in the'
ages, and Avhose influence has
had, and still exercises, a mighty
motilding power upon the intel
lectual life of a great people,’
ought to be dealt with justly,’ at
least, if not generously.
We can riot co'nceive ttat a
skeptic, or a rationalist,- corild
have Avritten Such a SWri’timent aS
this, for instance r “ Religion does
what philosophy could never do;
it shows the equal dealings of
Heaven to the happy and un
happy, and levels all human en-^
joyraents to nearly the same
standard. It gives to both rich
and poor the same happiness
hereafter,' and equal hopes to' as
pire after it.”
Roaming at will in the' en-
anted gardens of romance rind
fiction ;■ allured by the Worship
of the Muses, Avhose favorite child
he Avas; with his sensitive, rind
beauty-loving spirit cohtinriq'risly
wrought upon by the mysticism
prevalent in his time, arid bj'' the
genius of classic antiquity, his
clear mind rises above the infec
tious atmosphere,- to' the pure
ether of religionhe feels and
expresses its divine charms, and,
turning a'pfay from the'bewitching
ideal of philosophy, he prefers to
describe the diviner' rrie'ritS of the
“ daughter of the skie'S.”
We think it rriust require a
Very illiberal mind, or a very ig-
norant one, to see in such senti-
rrients aught else than’ a clear and
beautiful conception of religion,
and of its peerless power to con
fer immortal happiness.—Chris
tian index.
The every-day cares and du
ties Avliioh men call drudgery are
the weights and counterpoises of
the clock of time, giving its pen
dulum a true vibration, and its
hands a regular motion, and when
they cease to hang upon the
wheels the pendulum no longer
swings, the hands no longer
move, the clock stands still.—
Longfellow.