Newspapers / Southern Weekly Post (Raleigh, … / Sept. 2, 1854, edition 1 / Page 1
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' ' ' '7 " 1 - 1 """" "l """ " "" u ii umuiitmmmmm """' '"-. i.iu.i.uimjiiw.uiiipi miu minim .iwt mm: i piii.i ion nHw . m m i 11 ' i .1. ..ii.i .i. t -n n. 11 1 .. 1:1 . :. '1 1.1 .11 ..,. ; 11 1 1 11 111 1.1 1. 11 11 . WILLIAM D.1 COOKE , EDITOR 1 PROPRIETOR A FAMILY NEWSPAPER IEUT1UL IN POLITICS. TERMS, two' dollars eer annum. r 1 : TT trial N 1 iuw VOL III NO. 39. SELECTED ' From f Hie National Magazine- BEHIND THE LOUVRE-TRICKS OF TRADE , j. iUH.p. wifix ro know wn I EOPf.b m" wLh to Himv whv-T ,, .,.,i; .This medall was given tome as the manufacturer : of these superlative pencils, !jy thy- promoters of ! the Great Exhibition in London j- With this' preliminary ad dress, a very fash- h ionable-loofdng gentleman, ! Lis carriage at the roadside is!) o has drawn up ehi nd the Louvre ;:in Paris, opens an address t. 1 a number of per- son' who Login to gather about hiin. His equipage is handsome ; and he means by this curious pvi i'ople wonder what jceod i ng. Presently they perceive -that in the bt ggy there is an or perched Jdiind the' gan,,,and that the individual 'gentleman fulfills the doub man and organ-grinder. ' functions of foot-xMh ley perceive also ' that the servant wears' a magnificent 11 very, part j I of it consisting of a huge bra-s lieJinct,'from the .- summit of which immense tricolor feathers fiut - ; ter conspicuously in the bjveze. Tiie gentle - man. suddenly -rings a beli;and forthwith the :. footman in the buggv grinds a livelv air. The V crowd rapidly increases. The gentleman is verv ' grave: he.loj'k quietly at the people about hiiii, and then addresses tltcin a second time, : having rung the little bell again to stop his foot- V man's organ : " Xow 1 dare sav von wonder -.J- what"! amoiugto do. Well, 1 will begin with the story which led me to this ehailatau life for I am a charlatan :there's no denying it. I was, as you all know,; an ordmary eucil-mer- ;. chant ; and although I. sold mv pencils in the j street from my carriage-seat, I was dressed like j a'ny of you. Weil, one day, when I was selling ; "- my'pencils at a rapid Tate, a low'.fellow set up I -his puppet show close by me and all my cus i tomers rushed away from mc. This occurred to me many times. .Wherever 1 vlrew up my carriage to sell my pencils in a quiet way some charlatan ,fcame, and drew all my customers from me. .1 found that my trade was tapering away "to; a point as fine as the finest point of my finest ' pencil ; and, as you may imagine, I was not vory well .leased..- But suddenly I thought that if the' public, taste eftcouvages charlatans, and if T ani to secure the patronage of that public, I I too must become a charlatan. And here I am ' n charlatan frOin the tips of my hair to the heci' of mji boot, selling exeell.-nt .encils for ' for Ty centimes eacJi, as you shall j.ieseiitly see." j?;": This seond speech, conel uded in the most vi(.i nmniier, the gentleman j.roduces from ;' th:' f.in'i-.iLe-seAt a splendid coat enibroidered with uvki . tins he puts on wnn me utmost grav-ity eifei.-t l! ii jtirlo tip ; hen turns to the ciowu to watch its i them. Thn lie takes his hat off, huge brass: helmet iVoni the bottom iot ili'- carriage,, and tries it. on. Again he looks igravdy ..at.1 the crowd,- suddenly removes, the hel met,. and places,. si ugly, three pluiiies represent ing the national tricolor, watching the effect, upon 1 be 'spectators, as he adds each feather. Having siirveved the general ele ct, of the hel- juet. fhus( decorated, he again puts it on ; and, , "turning now fullv upon the crowd, folds his amis atid looksjsteadfasiiy before him. After a pause,. he -rings his little bell, atid the plumed organist. behind hi'jm 'plays :i soft and soothing air. To this tune jhe again speaks : - ,u Well; here I. am : as you see, a'charlatan. I . have done this to please-you : you musn't blame Asd toldVou, I am the well-known man ufacturer .of -pencils. They are cheap and they re gool,Eas I shall presently show you. Look-; here1 I have a portfolio I" The jreiuleman then lifts a large portfolio or t.ookojfeus it, and exhibits to the crowd three or four rough caricatures. He presently pretends, to perceive doubts floating about as to the capa-. bility "off his pencils to produce such splendid pictures. ! Suddenly he snatches up one of them, brandishes it in . the air turns over the leaves ;of tin bol ik finds a blank page then places liiiuseif ii: an attitude to indicate intense thought, lie frowns ; he throws up his eves ; he taps the , - pencil impatiently against his chin ; he traces inta-'-inari- lines -in the air; he stands, for some ; seconds with upturned face, rapt waiting, in. i fict, to bp, inspired. Suddenly he is struck by '; an invsikible and overpowering thought, and Itivins t) draw the rouedi I i - . He proceeds with his w or Outlines of a sketch. k in the most earnest manner. .o spectaior can (icteet a smile upon. that serk.us face. .Now the 'holds the book faiL -away h marks li "oroudy uti him, to cafe! the general effect, there : then sets vif- tie errors here aiu; o work again At last the ori-eat con- t'eptioii s upon tiie pajiei; . lie turns it mist if a man doin a verv The picture produces j.i'iicii-manufactuier vies solemnly', to the buggv, to exhibit his mcver, he closes the of a man who is sa- serioudyj, and with the air "o-reat favor to-the crowd. a hurst' -of laughter. Tii does not; laugh, but. conti Routw ot ns orft-an m Hie production.. Fresehtly, h b.M.k with. the appearance tinted wjth the applauses j)f the world. A mo i'''-u't afterward he opens it a second time ; puts : the pimt of the pencil to eager! v nt the reople. Hie is selecting some in- di.vi'hiafj sufficiently eccelitric and sufficiently Piuiiu nt to be recognized by the general as " scrabiy jvheji sketched. He has caught sight of Arne at hpt.: He looks at him intensely, to the hresistible amusement of the spectators, who all follow hjs eyes with theirj. The individual se- lected generally smiles, and bears his public po sition very calmly. " For mercy's sake do not stir ! " the artist fervently ejaculates, as he sets vigorously to vo.rk. This proceeding in the open street, con ducted with the 5gW and with the most fiimhed actinrLitiblv ImK'' A.::i portrait aiuened ar" toward piuuucea, resembhrfgTnTn the Faint est manner' the Original yet sufficiently like him to be recognized, and to create amuse ment. As the artist holds up the portrait, to be sen by the crowd, he -again rings his little bell to silence his musical attendant in the bugy. And now lie dwells emphatically upon the virtues of his pencils. He declares that they are at once black and hard. He pretends, once more, to detect an air of incredulity in the crowd. He is indigiiant. He seizes a block of oak informs his imaginary detractors that it is" Jbardest known wood and, with a hammer. drives the poiit of one of his peucils through it. The split, the pencil is not injured and he tells his imaginary detractors that even if they are not in the habit of using pencils for art, they are at liberty to split wood with them rfor winter "firing. All they have to do is to buy them. This is. of course, a verv vonular noint. , , .ii i in the performances. The next is the display, to the melancholy grind of the organ in the buggy, of a huge box full of silver moiiev. The box is opened and exhibited to the crowd as the astonishing result of these wonderful pen cils. And then the charlatan goes thnnisrh all that pantomine which usually describes a man utterly tired of all the enjoyments wealth can give him. lie seizes a handful of the money, and then lazily drops it into the box. lie throws himself back and pushjes the box from him, to indicate that he is tired of riches. At last he jumps up, and seizing, a five-franc piece, raises his arm to throw it among the spectators : but he is prevented, apparently, by a suddeli impulse. " Once," he explains, " I threw a five-franc piece in .the midst of my customers, when it un fortunately struck a man in the eye. That accident gavB ine a lesson which I should do wrong to forget to-day." So he closes the box ; throws it to the bot tom of the carriage, and calls upon the crowd to become purchaser of pencils which will nev er break, and which are patronized by the most distinguished artists. The droll thing about this perf rma nee is, that the pencils sold really are' o-ood, and that they actually did obtain honorable mention from the English Exhibi tion Committee in eighteen hundred and fifty one;.' The crowd having decided to purchase or re ject the meichandise of this extraordinary pencil-manufacturer, are soon drawn away to the occjupant of another elegant carriage. Truly, this little licensed space at the back of the Lou vre1 presents odd pictures to strangers. ' This is a serious business. The crowd are .listening to a lecture on teeth, and on the virtue ,,of certain drugs for the teeth, the composition ofwlrich the lecturer alone knows the secret of-f a secret that has been rigidly handed down 'in his family from the time of the ancient Gauls. lie! is a well-known dentist in l'aris, and is in partnership with his father? The senior dentist remains at home to perforin operations of dental surgery, which are the result of the remarkable advertising system pursued by the young man in the carriage. The business, I am led to be lieve, is a most nourishing one in the.cite ; and, when the father was young, he himself was h's fathers advertiser. The scientific gentleman now haranguing the crowd, is certainly the worthy representative of his parent. It js reported, indeed, that the man is a skill till dentist. At the present moment he offers to prove his dexterity upon any individual present who may be troubled by a refractory tooth. He looks about eagerly for a patient. I'reseutlr a boy is thrust forward to be operated upotT. The poor little fellow is rapidly hoisted into the vehicle. To suffer the extraction of a tootn in an elegant drawing-room, or in the pri vacy of a fashionable dentist's apartment, is not a pleasant operation, even for a man with the strongest nerve; but. to have a singularly happy illustration of the ills to which 'teeth are subject, drawn from your head, and exhibited to a crowd of 'curious strangers, is an ordeal from which all people, save philosophers and small French boys, would shrink with horror. The little victim, however, does not seem to be ashamed of his public position. He seats himself in the pres ence of the crowd, and allows the operator to fasten a towel about his neck, without display ino- the least nervousness. The business-like mhnner of the operator is very amusing. He looks upon the boy only as a model. When the patient is fully prepared, he displays him to tne crowd with much the same 1 expression as that adopted by all parental exhibitors of wonderful little children. The operation is then perform ed, and the boy'4 head is rapidly buried in a convenient basin. This accomplished, the dent ist, with an air of triumph, begins to sell his tooth-powders, and other toilette necessaries, and to refer the crowd to his father's establish ment. We pass the conjuror to enjoy the perform ances of the sergeant of the old guard. This sergeant is represented by an old, care-worn looking poodle a poodle that appears to be utterly tired of the world to have, exhausted RALEIGH, XOPJH CAROLINA, SATURDAY, cui uie enjoyments of two ordinary poodles' lives and to take good and evil fortune now with equal calmness. This canine representation of the old guard is dressed-so far as his poodle's proportion can be adapted to those of the hu man form in the regimentals of the old'lmpe- nal soldiers, and his log gray mustaches" and shay beard give his W-a amnce ins musket with military precision ; his most conspicuous fault, which he seems to have aban doned as quite insurmountable, his tail. True it is a very little tail; but there it is, and he cannot help it. His master, or superior officer, is an old man, with silver hair, enjoying the ad vantages of a singularly, even pair of silver mus taches. The master and the subaltern appear to have a family likeness. The master is dress ed in a blue blouse, and wide trousers, and wears a low, half-military cap. In his hand he carries a little. drum and a whip. The poor old guard as he walks round the circle formed by 'the people, to the time of the drum, looks wistfully at his officer, and sadly at his officer's whip. To describe the military movements through which the old guard passes would be as tedious to the reader as they are certainlv tedious to the poodle: but the officer 1WL - . is really 'impressive. He is a serious old man, with a military seventy in his look, lie talks to the poodle in a voice of thunder, and com ments on the slightest laxity of discipline with tremendous earnestness. He reminds the old sergeant (who absolutely looks conscious of his disgrace) that he is an unworthy representative of the emperor's noble veterans. He tells him that he has twice been lined for drunkenness, and that he spends every sous he gets jiri gnac. The sergeant looks very much ashrtmed. And then the anger of his officer rises to a terrific pitch. The end of the matter is, that the ser geant goes through all the forms of a military trial, and is condemned to be shot. The severe old gentleman then solemnly beats his drum, and, with a mournful look, phtces the condemn ed soldier in the position he is to occupy while his sentence is carried out. The poodle, with a hang-dog look,thi suffers his master to fire a percussion cap at ljim, and falls dead. But the business does notf end here. The old matt pro ceeds with the utmost gravity to bury the- ser geant with military honors. "Aided by a little boy, he carries the defunct slowly round thecir- ch.and then sings a dirge over his graven " - After the funeral, the dog wakes to a lively air, and performs a country dance with his se rious old master. The animal is a character, but his master is a study, nis age, his dignified manner, the imperturbable seriousness with which he goes through the military forms, the well-acted pathos with which he pronounces the old sergeant's sentence, the severity with which he rebukes any levity in the people, and the in sensibility to ridicule with which he dances the country dance, are perfect in themselves. And, as he talks to the dog, his ingenuity in carrying round his discourse' to money matters, and to the duty which his spectators owe to themselves not to forget the little ceremony of throwing a few centimes into the arena, is a matter which gives zest to the performance. He never ap peals directly to the people he seldom recog nizes them in anv way ; he talks at them in an incidental way, to the old sergeant. Another public exhibitor claims popular at tention behind the Louvre, He is said to share a goodly portion of Parisian patronage, and to be rewarded with an infinite number of cen times. His performance is at once rapid and astonishing. All he does is to break a huge stone to crumble it up into small pieces. He begins by declaring to the crowd, that this process may be performed by a blow of the hand. He lets the crowd examine the stone he is about to crush with a blow of his mighty arm ; all are satisfied that it is a solid mass. He places it upon another stone, and, with one blow with his naked hand, shatters it to atoms. This per formance is, of course, both rapid and astonish ing ; and sagacious men have endeavored to ac count for it by explaining that the underneath stone is so arranged that the who'.e force of the blow falls upon one point,- and so acts like a sharp instrument, a pickax, for instance. This mav be the right or it may be a wrong inter pretation of the performance ; but that it is a legitimate thing that, there is no cheat about it I am well assured. This last exhibition behind the Louvre sent me away thinking seriously of the strange things to be seen in the byways of Paris, where few strangers - penetrate. Indeed, these licensed street performers form a class peculiar to the French capital. Their ingenuity is as extraor dinary, as their knowledge of French taste and sentiment is truthful. From the prosperous pencil-manufacturer down to the old man who carries a magic-lantern about the neighborhood of the Luxembourg every night, for hire, all the people who get their living in the streets of this giddy place are worth' loitering in a byway to see and to hear. Warm Work. An itinerant minister was preaching on a very sultry day, in a very small room, and annoyed by those who casually drop ped in after the sermon had commenced, invari ably shutting the door after them. His pa tience was at length exhausted by the extreme oppressiveness of heat, and he vociferated to an offender " Friend, I believe if I were preaching in a bottle, you would put the cork in." miscellaweDus. THE QUADRILLE JExAYER. A SKETCH OF LONDON LIFE. wan who will And you do not know &u come on more moderate termVk":. "J ably-dressed lady to & musuHsd P00 ls ex"1 &Al4f . ii2 irccrrenfc viohn play- er, and knows his business well. Quadrilles waltzes, and anything else you may require, he will execute perfectly to your satisfaction." "Mind, I may want him to remain rather late," said the lady. . "Any time you please," replied the music seller. " He is accustomed to late hours ; and we have never known him to grumble. He's a very industrious man, with a sick daughter to support entirely by his exertions." " Humph ! " said the lady. " Can he play Scotch reels ? " " Capitally," replied the music-seller. "And are you sure that he will bring a good harpist with him V said the hdy. ".You may depend upon it," said he. " Well, then, I think we may as well con clude with him," said the lady, taking a card t7 l from her visiting card case, and handing it over the counter. " There is my address. We may not want him before half-past eight o'clock, but you had better let him be with us by half-past seven, if you please. Good morning. Now, mind don't disappoint me." " You may rely upon his being punctual," said the music-seller. He politely held the door open, and the lady tripped out, apparently sat isfied with her bargain. In the attic of a lodging house, situated in a narrow turning leading from Drury Lane, was seated, that evening, an elderly man, by the side of an almost expiring tire. A small lamp glim mered on the table, casting sufficient light over the apartment to illumine the pallied face of a young girl, who was reclining on a mattrass, near the fire, supported by pillows. Everything ia the room betokened abject poverty. The countenance" of the man was ' ruled with lines which misery, and not age, had implanted there ; . and, as he glanced from time io tirao.t,tlie pa,.; tient near him, it might be seen that" his eyes 1 .were Ted, and that his grief, though subdued, was intense. Yet he held aviolin to his sholu der, and, i in the midst of this scene of misery," s playing lively quadrilles and some Scotch reels. The. invalid was his daughter. "Having re ceived a good education, she had for some time supported herself by teaching the piano-forte ; but ladies and gentlemen, somehow, will insist upon getting a thing done as cheaply as they, can ; and the spirit of competition being rather briskly kept up in this line, if happened that, oue by one, her pupils had dropped off. The daughter of a rich grocer in the neighborhood had clung to her to the last, but the feeling of the age was too strong to be fought against. She was taken away, and given to the reduced widow of an officer in the army, who undertook her education at five shillings a quarter less. Thus her only hope was gone, and she was about to seek a situation as governess when her health failed her, and-she was thrown on a bed of sick ness. Want of air, exercise and society, are bad aids to the recovery of an invalid, and the seeds of consumption having been too surely sown, the doctors could afford her but temporary re lief. The small clock on the mantle-shelf struck se ven, and the man arose, placed his violin in the case, took his hat from a peg, and approached the side of the patient. He feared to awaken her, lest the sudden shock should prove too much. He had that morning received a summons from the music seller, to whom the reader has been already introduced, and as it was the first en gagement he had been enabled to procure for the last month, he had accepted it joyfully, al though in his heart, he scarcely dared to leave his invalid daughter, even for an hour. Putting out the lamp, and stealing with noise less steps from the apartment, he tapped at his landlady's door, and urgently requested that she would go and sit with the patient during the time he was compelled to be absent. This she immediately consented to, and our poor musici an, with a heavy heart, left the house, and pro ceeded towards that of his patroness for the evening. The windows were one blaze of light carri ages were drawing up to the door and the street was in a continued state of excitement when the quadrille player, with his violin case in his hand, knocked modestly at the door, and passed almost unnoticed into the drawing room, where he was met by the harpist who had ar rived about three minutes before him. Many of the guests were already assembled, and the pretty daughter of the hostess, tripping up to the musicians, by the desire of her mother, request ed that they would instantly begin. The quad rille was arranged, and, the signal being given, the poor violinist mechanically drew his bow across the strings, -and, with a heavy heart.com mehced the " Danois" set. - Happiness beamed on every countenance near him. The little coquette, who had been the first to speak a kind word to him, was the observed of all observers, and in a few minutes was en tangled in a labyrinth of engagements. Almost unconsciously, the eve. of the violinest followed her steps throughout the evening; He fancied that in her he could recognise the features oi his daughter, and he felt that she might aleo SEPTEMBER 2, 1854. have been thus surrounded by friends and ad mirers had she not been -compelled to earn her subsistance bv her individual. exertions. "Whilst our talents are cultivated as4 "Sucre accomplish ments, the most lavish praise is bestowed on them: once rely upon them jasa means of iXever naa om rroiihTsi leiwr-ctnum as on this occasion. In his pwn room, mis erable as it was, he could at least enjoy a sense of independence. Here, surrounded by plea sure, yet debarred from the slightest participa tion in it, his misery was increased by the con trast. He felt that it would have been a relief to him could he even have spoken to some one ; but not one of the bright-eved beauties, who stood near him even deigned him a look. He was in the party, but not or' it solitary in the midst of society. He was to play, until he was told to stop, and then to stop until he was told to play again. He was let out for a guinea. Slowly did the hours pass away. Two three o'clock in the morying came; but still had our violinist the instrument in his hand, and still did he continue to play inspiring! dance tunes. The thought of his poor invalid daugh ter became now almost insuperable ; and when at four o'clock, the last waltz was called, a feel ing of joy took possession of him, which it is impossible to describe. At length all was over, and ho was allowed to depart. Having received his fee, he placed his violin in the case, and threading his way through the throng of departing guests, walked anxious ly towards his lodging. Arrived there, a tremor seized him which he knew not how to account for; and when he had ascended the stair case, and stood before the door of the room, he could scarcely summon sufficient courage to enter. At length he recovered himself, and slowly lifting the latch, cautiously stole into the room. A candle, placed upon a small table near the bedside, was flickering in the socket; and on a chair near the empty fireplace sat his landlady with her face buried in her hands. The noise occasioned by his entrance caused her to rise, and advancing to him, she motioned towards the bed. Mechanically, he followed the direction of her hand, and walked gently to ihe side of the patient. Her countenance was placid, and a smile almost played upon her features. Not a trace of suffering was discernible, even to his anxious gaze but she was dead. She had ex pired whilst the merry party was at the height of enjoyment; quietly, very quietly, said the good-hearted landlady, as if, indeed, she were merely falling asleep. The guinea earned by the father for eight hours' performance of lively music might, with strict economy, pay for his daughter's funeral. OPIUM SMOKING IN CHINA. Fayard Taylor says he made an experiment in opium smoking hile in China, and the ac count he gives of the mode of doing the thing, and its effects, is so interesting, that we give it to our readers entire: In spite of the penalties frtached to it by Chinese law, the smoking of opium is scarcely a concealed practice at present. I have -seen it carried on in open shops in Shanghai, where there are some streets which are never free from the sickening smell. It had always been my intention to make a trial of the practice, in or der to learn its effects by personal experience, and beitie- now on the eve of leaving China, I applied to a gentleman residing here to put me in the way of enjoying a pipe or two. He was well acquainted with a Chinaman who is addict ed to the practice, and by an agreement with him took me to his house last evening. We were ushered into a long room, with a divan, or platform, about three feet high, at the farther .end.. Several Chinamen were in the room, and one, stretched out on the platform, was prepar ing his pipe at a lamp. The host invited me to stretch mvself opposite to him, and place my head upon one of those cane head-stools which serve the Chinese in lieu o; pillows. The opium pipe is a bamboo stick, about two feet long, having a small drum inserted near the end, with an aperture in its centre. A piece of opium, about the size of a pin's head, is taken up on a slender wire and held in the flame of the lamp till it boils or bubbles up, when it is rolled into a cylindrical shape on the drum by the aid of the wire. It loses its dark color by the heating and becomes pale and soft. Hav ing been sufficiently rolled, it is placed over the aperture, and the wire, after being thrust through its centre to allow the air to pass into the pipe, is withdrawn. The pipe is then held to the flame, and as the opium burns, its fumes are drawn into the lungs by a strong and long-con tinned inspiration. In'about half a minute the notion is exhausted and the smcer is readv for i a second pipe. To my surprise, I found theste of the- drug as delicious as its smell is disagreeable. It leaves a 'sweet rich flavor, like the finest liquorice, upon the palate, and the gentle stimulus it communi cates to the blood in the lungs, fills the whole body with a sensation of warmth and strength. The fumes of the opium are no more irritating to the windpipe or bronchial tubes than com mon air, while they seem imbued with a rich ness of vitality far beyond our diluted oxygen. I have supposed that opium was smoked entire ly for the purpose of mental exhileration, and that to the smokers, as to many who intoxicate themselves with ardent spirits, there was no sensual gratification in the mote taste of the ar ticle. The reverse is undoubtedly the trulls, and the practice, therefore, is doubly dangerous. Its victim becomes hopelessly involved in its fascinating,riUusious, and an awful death, such as I witnessed not long since, is sure, sooner or la- w tn OYerlakftjiimjvfao indulges to excess. I make the experiment a second titne. ; Beyond the feeling of warmth, vigor and in creasing vitality, softened by a happy conscious ness o( repose, there .was no effect until after finishing the sixth pipe. My spirits then be came joyously excited, with a constant disposi tion to laugh : brilliant colors floated before my eyes, but in a confused and cloudy way, some times converging into spots like the eyes in a pea cock's tail, but oftenest melting in'o and through each other, like the hues of changeable silk. Had the physical excitement been greater, they would have taken form and substance ;hut after smoking nine pipes I desisted, for fear of sub jecting myself to some unpleasant after effect. Our Chinese host informed me that he was ol liged to take twenty pipes in order to elevate his mind to the pitch of perfect happiness. I went home feeling rather giddy and becimeso drowsv, with slight qualms of the stomach, that I went to bed at amearlv hour. I had j made an ar rangement to walk around the walls of Canton this morning with Mr. Honney, and felt some doubt as to whether I should be able to under take it; but, after a deep and refreshing sleep I arose at sunrise, feeling stronger and brighter than I had done for some weeks past. GRACE DARLING. The Faroe Islands are a rocky and desolate group off Northumberland on the English coast. A few stunted bushes, with tufts of grass, force a growth in the sheltered nooks while nothing lives there but sea-fowl in the clefts of the rocks, whose hoarse screams chime with the dashing of waters and the roaring of winds. Sometimes there are sounds louder than the wind and waves the minute gun of distress from a foundering vessel, and the shriek of agony from the shipwrecked mariner; for these islands are dangerousto.t coasters, ( and many a bark has gone to pieces upon their rock-bound shores. It was on one of these islands that a steamer, on her way from Hull to Dundee, the 7ch of September, 1838, struck a ledge, and speedily broke up. She had on board a valuable cargo, with forty passengers besides the crew. It was j four in the morning, dark, wild and stormy ; all j but nine found a watery grave. These clung to portions of the wreck exposed to the buffetings of the tempest, in the hope that daylight might succor, if succor could be had. When morning j me, tiie unfortunate men were descried from Uie IJeiJUIOUSe LHIlll OH J jl ) II e LOI 1 1.- rtOlHIL it llllie O fs distant, and kept by a weather-beaten tar by the name of Darling. So perilous was their situation, that it seem ed hopeless; no boat could stand the breakers, and the stout heart of the hardy keeper trem bled at the thought of braving the mad fury of the sea, as it beat against the rocks. The little solitary family in the lighthouse watched with.' painful anxiety the men struggling for life, yet i doomed to certain and speedy death if no aid they well knew could be given only by them selves. One of the daughters was deeply moved by the terrible spectacle. " Let us go to the rescue," she cried. The old man purveyed the stormy heavens and the angry sea, and shook his head ; beside it was madness for him to go alone. "I will go with you, father," saiJ the heroic girl; and urged on by her entreaties, the keep er launched his boat. The girl jumped in be side him, and each with au oar, they made the perilous passage. What cool heads, and steady hands, and brave hearts were needed to guide the fi ail boat over the boiling eddies, drenched with the spray ; but storm and wind and spray were all breasted. After almost incredible skill and bravery, the men were taken from the wreck and landed safe ly at the lighthouse ; and as they looked at the young girl, to whom under (rod they owed their deliverance, their hearts were filled with wonder and gratitude. Her name was Grace Darling; and when the rescued men reached once more their native Jand, and told the story of her hero ism, it filled ail hearts with admiration, and everywhere excited the liveliest interest in her behalf. Many a token of respect did she receive both from individuals and societies ; a handsome sub scription was raisedfor her in London, and visi tors flocked to her island home for the pleasure ! of seeing her. One of the theatres of London ottered to mate ner toriune, u sue wou.u con sent to appear on the stage in her little boat. But Grace was as modest as she was brave. She did not seek notoriety-for true nobleness always shuns parade. In doing what she had done, she followed the impulses of a brave and generous heart, which will dare and suffer all things to relieve the distress of a fellow-being. The admiration which this act everywhere called forth, shows us what deeds are truly great, and though she died only four years after wards of consumption, the name and memory of Grace Darling, the lighthouse girl, is likely ever to stand beside those who have rendered themselves illustrious by a generous devotion and noble daring for the good of others. WHOLE NO. 143. From the Southern Argus. REASONABLE ENOUGH. j The Portsmouth Globe of vesterday has a sen sible article on au interesting subject, especially to proprietors of newspapers. The editor seems to think printers should be paid for their labor as well as other people, and we are somewhat inchuedto the same opinion ; and .if .those. .who similar i iews, and readily assent to the reasona- Die suggestions ot our neighbor over the rjver. What he says about the price of printing paper, clothing, rents, gratuitous labor, &c, is all j too true, and we readily concur in the proposition to "meet together and adopt a system of prices and name chargeable matter." We copy j the remarks of the. Globe : j Facts for thk Norfolk and Portsmouth Pkks.s. Printing paper is now worth fifty per cent, more than, it was several years ago. Print er's labor stands at a much higher figure, and justly so. Clothing is higher and all kinds of provision have advanced to an alarming .high figure. Rents are higher and property of el'ery description has advanced in a much greater atio than the number of dollars has increased, notwithstanding these alarming and ruinous tacts staring us iuithe face, lower rates are now charg ed for advertising and printing of various lands than were charged rive vearsjago. This is not all ; the press f-Norfolk and Ports mouth do at least s.r thousand dollars ..worth of rru'tuittHis advertising per annum. If a pair are made happy in Hymen's bonds, the printer must advert ist? it without fee. If death overtakes an individual; the printer must inform the friiends of thg deceased without price.' If a divine is going to hold-forth on any extraordinary occa-" sion, the printer must advise the public of id, and still no money. If a public, meeting is to be held for the general good, the printer must ad vertise it and no pay. Public meetings adopt long resolutions, or give a vote of thanks, or what not, and, of course, the printer must! pay his compositors to " set it up " and his pressman to "pull it," and must expect no rtturn. It is this kind of printing that we of Norfolk and Portsmouth have to do gratuitously and which is done in no other place of this size on the face of the earth. Even in Petersburg, all this. class of printing is charged for. Communications, too, should always be "paid for. But no, we must, forsooth, print everything the dear public cjioose to send us, and make no mistakes, nor. gell any money for it. Still, we are expected to paly our debts! How preposterous, that we must llabor for nothing and board ourselves and then pay debts ! Now we propose, and ask our brethren of the " press to respond to this proposition, or make a more feasible one, that we meet together and adopt a system of prices and name chargeable matter. j We do not believe our patrons' will think any the less of ns for adopting living rates for our labor, and claiming justly what is our own, SINGULAR SCENE IN COURT, j AN EXCITEMENT. On Monday evening an amusing, though rath er pointed passage-at arms took place between Recorder Summers and Chancellor Field, when the ease of the fair but frail Jennie Giesson was on the tapis, and when the case was clsed, and the Recorder simply fined the accused, the Coun sellor protested against the act as an outrage on , public justice. Having slept over the matter, the Recorder took his seat on the following morning, (yesterday,) and the Counsellor took spiritual consolation. Eventually the Counsel lor took it into his head to go before the Re corder, and when there asked permission tomake a motion. Leave being granted, he launched j in a running commentary on what he was pleased to consider the Recorder's illegal act of Uie previous evening, whereupon the Recorder told him to "hold on." And so.he Counsellor did hold on, in a sense different, however from that intended by the Recorder. This brought the blood to the Recorder's ace, and the ire to his bile, and bringing his knuckles down hard on the desk before him, he ordered the Counsel lor to be committed to prison for 24 hours for contempt of court. The -Counsellor here observed that since the preseii U Recorder had been presiding, the Court had generally been considered a legitimate ob ject of contempt; and then, shaking life finger at the Reforder, he said, " while clothed in your little brief authority ycju may play after this fashion your fantastic tricks, but the tirrle will' come when I shall meet you on equal terms, and then I shall have my revenge, for I consider you to be nothing but a d d jackass. ! At this juncture the j Recorder abruptly ad journed the Court, and springing from his ma gisterial tripod, appeared determinedxto visit the portly counsellor wit'j a touch of the Lex Talio nis. ' The Counsellor, observing the rapid jmove ment, said, "I am ready for you, but if yu dare to lay a hand on me I'll kill you as dead as h 1J" drawing, at the same time, from under his vest as pretty a " bull dog" as ever drove a piece of cold lead through a fellow's bread bas ket, j -The police here interposed ; the Recorder re turned to his seat, and the Counsellor was con veyed to prison, to purge himself of his con tempt. X. O. True Delta, Aug.lQ. It is said that the common silk hat, wiich is so generally worn is one great cause of bald ness. l-v 4 I y ? I i
Southern Weekly Post (Raleigh, N.C.)
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Sept. 2, 1854, edition 1
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