The Carolina Spartan. (Spartanburg, S.C.) 1852-1896, April 23, 1857, Image 1
THE CAROLINA SPARTAN.
by cavis & trimmier. Dawtcfr to Southern ?iig!)ts, Politics, Clijncultnre, a nil iitisccllanij. 82 per annum.
VOL. XIV. SPARTANBURG, S. C., THURSDAY, APRIL 1857T ====== ? 9
?
mrrci nivnT TW A cst? * x?m i ? ? i. ? * '
JC XX ?4 UAUUli&UA OfOAJlAn,
BY CA.VIS &~TRIMMIEfi.
T. 0. P. VERNON, Associate Editor.
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CAROLINA SPARTAN
Krorn Black Wood's MugnZ'lie.
Recent Confession of an Opium-Eater,
TIiata la na nAi?A?cttu fn?* Inllttwr lliA rAO?l .
1 IIOIU (9 UV HVVVWIVJ iv/l IVIIIII- iliv I *.!?'? >
tor how I camu into the company with ;
which he will find mo associated in (ho en- j
totting narrative; and there are several rea- j
sons why ho need not be informed on that i
point. In tho first place, lie has no right
to inquire; for I hold, and always have
held, and maintained, both in argument and
Eractice, that a man is responsible only to
iinself for the company he chooses to
keep. 2dly, Supposing ho had the right
to ask (which, as already stated, I deny,)
till it would ' e inconvenient for me to tell
him. 3dly, Supposing ho had tho light,
and I wero willing to acknowledge it. it
would nevertheless bo useless to the purpose
of the story I am about to narrate, and
ihercture a crime against art. 4thly, lie
cause any consistency and completeness I
which the narrative might gain by tho rein- lion
of tho circumstances antecedent to the I
position,at once intensely horrible and highly
amusing, whither they conducted me, are 1
sufficiently attained by the mention of the
fact that, while enjoying with the full np- :
precialion of a refined and extremely sen-i- j
tive nature the appliances of luxury and
wealth, I have never shrunk fioin studying
the aspect of humanity in tho Keinbraiidllike
chiaroscura of vice and crime. In
search of the harmonies which slumber!
in the soul of man, I have sounded the 1
bass string of society. Leaving the splen- i
Jours and decencies of llie upper region of j
our social atmosphere, 1 have voluntarily i
descended into the depths tilled with fuitid ;
and noxious exhalations, and [ have evet
returned to the light of common day with
ntt intensified sense of the unfa: burnable
mysteries and the unutterable melodic*
hidden in the piofouudest abysses of our
nature.
Some of my readers will probably remember
that particular epoch in the ni-torv
of crime when minder became the handmaid
of medical and surgical science, whose
requiretneitts, at that time greatly extended
by the ardor of diseovery, were bv no
means satisfied either bv tlie legal offerings
of the bodies of criminals, or (lie more ad
venturous, though less legitimate, couli ibu
tions of surreptitious exhumation. The impulse
communicated to that branch of stud v
which deals with the mysteries of our phy
steal nature, by tlio great anatomists ami j
physicians who stand in conspicuous array :
on the lino which separates dusky tmtpiri
cism from luminous science, had awakened :
cravings in the minds of our students which :
could no longer he stilled by such eleemosynary
and desultory aid. To satisfy thu-e :
cravings, a race of inisereants arose, whose .
peculiar province in the Held of u*sas*iun- j
tion may be denominated enlightened I
Thuggism. Hut their atrocities, though
? serving a more practical purpose than those
of the Thug, had their origin in a far le s
elevated motive. There is ton much reason
to believe that a mercenary desire to obtain
the price of the body predominated, in most
instances, over the wish to advance the interests
of science; while even the better of
these influences is still far infeiior to the re
ligiotis fervor which prompted the tightening
of lite Oriental noose. He that as it mar,
it was at a time when the horrible trade
had gained the utmost extetA am) organization
it wns destined to attain, before the
revealment of its iniquities had caused that
Outburst of popular execration which extinguished
it utleily. instantaneously, ami for
ever, as with the blast of a hurricane, that '
the incidents occurred to which I am about
to draw the reader's attention.
The scene, then, is a squalid and dingy
chamber in the topmost flat of one of ihe
manv storied ami ancient ilwclliiiir^ wlii.-l.
still give individuality to the Old 1'own of
Edinburgh. The sole furniture of tho apartment
was a battered'and tiinn defaced table,
stained wilh grea<o and liquor, having a
bench of similar character on each side.
In a bottle on the table was stuck a long
car.dle of the commonest description, who>e
flaring and drooping wick shed a dull light
on the faces of the company. How 1 caine
to be in such a scene, and among such per*
sons as I am about to describe, is, as I have
already intimated, no business of the read- .
er's. Suffice it that I was there, the occupant
of one of the benches, while opposite
me sat three individuals, two men and a
woman. Long orated Dili, the central person
of the three, possessed a remarkably
villainous physiognomy, which, the index as
it was to menial features equally singular I
and truculent, rendered him a highly interosting
subject of philosophical contemplation,
ilis nose was, as his name indicated,
very long, and overhung so as almost to
conceal a month so small, thin, and compressed.
as to appear to have been made
with a knife after the rest of hiscounteuauco
was designed; while on each side of the
main feature, sparkled an eye, deep set,
small, gray, and inexorable, ilis bead,
phrenological!)' speaking, was not had, being
of sufficient height, though the forehead
was concealed by straight black locks; the
countenance, widest at the forehead and j
narrowing almost to a point at the chin, i
was of a pale clay-color; and the solo ex- j
praasioa w?s ono of truculent vigilance and
resolution. V/ll ?? IIIIHIIIH riglll WRB Seiltet
h more commonplace miscreant, wIiom
coarseness of appearance and convertatior
betokened atrocity unredeemed by refine
nient, and whoso name of Squabby (l>)
which his companions addressed him) was
not without a certain philological fitness
One of these external indications of clmrac
ter, which garments often convey, appeared
in the contrast afforded bv the dtees of these
| men; for while Bill's shabby, scanty, and
j close buttoned black coat, rather eXHggera
ted the unfavorable impression made by
his thin angular form and cadaverous countenance.
and seemed to show that he despised
those little ameliorations in costume
which are within reach of the humblest,
Squabby*s gaudy waistcoat, and gorgeous
jewelry of glass anil copper, showed all the
inclination, without the power to be what
in these latter days is denominated 'a
swell." The word dandy, which, at the
time I speak of, was the generic term for
all who cultivated ostentatiously, with
whatever degree of success, the art of costume,
fails to convey the idea of exuberance
and floridity ex| ressed in the newer appellation.
Squabby, theiefore, was a vulgar
swell.
Their female companion?faded, though
still young?possessed, nevertheless, a face
whose expression frequently drew my geze.
This was owing not so much to her beauty,
which could never have been of a sinking
character, as to the likeness sho bore to a
young girl with whom I had some years
before been curiously, intimately, and most
roinanticallv ponnpi-iml M, 11-,tl,?ri?n '
even now, when I summon from the dim
]>;ist thy angel face, with the mild imploring
look I last behold there?imploring a
speedy return, where fate was even then
writing, with iron pen, the stern decree
that for me to thee there should he no re
turn?even now, as those eyes so beseechingly
beam on mo through the distance of
many lustres, my heart owns that there are
sympathies over which timo has no control.
That likeness, faint as it was, perhaps alto
ge'.her fanciful, awoke feelings which, as
they arose, brought with them a crown of
inciU'-rics?and hence the charm which a
face, to others, pcihaps, commonplace, had
for me, though there was nothing in the
manner, appearance, or conversation of this
\oung woman which distinguished her as
if any way very superior to the scene and
the society in which the reader finds her.
It must not be imagined that we had
no other occupation in this dreary and illlighted
apartment than that of looking at
each other. Another Iroltle, besides that
which ollkiatcd as candlestick, stood ?>n the
tabic; or I should rather say, paced round
it, for it seldom halted much longer than
was necessary for the filling of the cracked
gla-s which stood l?efore each of us. Our
honor Was nhrt. a rlioi.-n mo.hi -it ??? o...
gestion, nnd Long nosed Hill had coincided
with ;i hourly cordiality which his appear
anco <!ii! not certainly promise, hut the motive
of which I afterwards divined. He
hid sent the girl out for a doze a bottles;
and though almost abstaining himself, and
restraining also the manifest inclination of
Squabby for the generous liquor, he pio?sed
it on me with a hospitality that seemed
incapable of being repressed or cbillcd.
Meanwhile the conversation did not flag.
Squabby, finding in me an interested and
Ituiilive auditor, talked much and Ion llv.
hut with a ceitain coarseness which would
have disgusted me had not his loquacity
perpetilallv started subjects which the saga
eiotis William treated with a masterIv
terseness, sueli as 1 have seldom heal.I
equalled. Hut the great charm of his con
vernation was its mystery. The numerous
adventures in which he appeared to have
heeti engaged had neither beginning nor
end. Ol secret expeditions, of hairbreadth
escapes, of rapid flights, there were sufficient
to set up a modern uovellist for several se.-?
sons?but the spring and motive of all these
Wire wanting. Why these expeditious were
planned, what pursuers lie had escaped from,
and why flight was necessary, weio questions
which I had to call in my imagina
lion and invention to respond to, and thus
to siring on theories of my own the broken
links of his narrative. Equally mysterious,
though more boisterous, was the conduct
of Squabby, who frequently made jesting
allusions to their peculiar vocation,
which, though to me ulleily devoid of
meaning, caused a cynical smile to flit
across the astute physiognomy of his friend
while the woman responded with a low and
musical latlirli trpm-r.ill V sin. il lmn>. 1 ! ? il.-?
? - ?V
the corner of her shawl. This mystery
veiling tlio subject of their conversation,
without concealing its main outlines, lent to
ii the iiitore-it which awakened and haflled
curiosity has always excited in my mind
ft out my earliest days. My part was not, however,
merely that of a listener or a guesser,
I hesitated not to exchange sentiments and
experiences with these humble friends, who
granted mo the sumo attention which I in
my turn gave to them; and I remember regarding
it as a stiiking proof that no elo
(piencu, if genuine, is beyond the Appreciation
of the rudest minds, when on one occasion,
I having doliveied a magnificent
quotation in a mannuer (as I flatter myself)
to do full justice to its sonorous flow, and
having told thein the words were those of
the great Hurke, they heard his name with
startled interest, and wero silent for Somo
moments after. However, I now conjecture
there might bo other reasons for the agitation
causoj by tbat glorious name.
I had drank probably about two bottles
of win? to my own share, Squabby neatly
as much, and the abstemious Hill perhaps
about a bottle, when 1 thought I perceived
a diminution in the cordiality of litis latter
entertainer. I am naturally extremely sensitive
in such matters?indeed so morbidly
alive to tho faintest indications of failing
hospitality, as sometimes to conceive suspicions
regarding tho sincerity of iny welcome,
which I am subsequently satisfied
are groundless. However, in the present
instance, there could be no doubt that
Long nosod Bill not only ceased to talk
himself, but listened to me with manifest
impatience, and sometimes exchanged glan
i | ce* wuii ins iwo companions, while those Bill
) | ho cast on mo bore rather the character intc
i of animosity than cordiality. Under these poti
- circumstances I comidered it due to myself, nev
r ; as well as to my hosts, to rise and bid them (liei
i good night. This sudden move of mine but
. produced an instantaneous cliango in the tny
- manner of Long-nosed liill, who pressed me cliei
I to stay w ith more than his former hospitali- I
! tv, while at tho wink from liirn, Squabby Bill
|j placed himself between mo and the door, mo,
i and, with boisterous but good humored re- blin
proach on my breach of good-fellowship, re- Usui
| fused to let me pas*. All this, however, ed I
, would have had small effect in inducing me inte
1 to remain after the change in Bill's man of a
1 nors towards me; but just then the woman laud
also joined her entreaties to his. Insodcing mill
she used a tone and gesture wliich at once vent
arrested me. They were such as recalled IIo\
vividly the tone and gesture which a young ' ty,
girl had unconsciously assumed some yeais ] thin
before when I was parting from her in an- j cute
gor. All, Emily! potent indeed was the thus
j charm of thy pleading over my otlended did
| and recusant spirit. Hard indeed would pud<
it have l?eer. to turn from those eyes?to tend
repel that offered embrace. Years had my
I parsed, Emily, since 1 had seen thee?many f"r i
feelings and many memories had crowded ing!
in between?but she voice ami look of a in e
stranger recalling thine, showed that even lean
the faint and distant echo of thy powerful he v
spell could still enchain me. I need scarce- | pa??
ly say I resumed my scat. N
Long nosed Bill now hflrnmn mum t<*. ft
agreeable and hospitable oven limn al first, ami
relating passages in his career still moro drin
marvellous, and passing the wine with in- and
! creased rapidity, insisting at each round of, time
i the bottle on tilling ray glass himself, and to o
calling out pleasantly, "No heeltaps," before pr??v
doing so. For a time ibis amused me; and and
I 1 was also interested in watching a little beco
j by play carried on by lull's companions, a ra
, The woman was no doubt united to hiin in I rabl
' bonds more or less hallowed, and Bill, with my i
| the watchful prudence which his counle- Bill'
| nance betokened, seemed perpetually on until
1 his guard to prevent the slightest familiari- won
j ly between her and Squabby. Nolhwith- ain't
, standing all his vigilance, I observed, how- a tin
ever, that, whenever his attention was dis- was
traded by the friendly office of tilling mv i |>era
glass, or whenever ho giew so interested in put
any of his narratives as to relax his watch- -ay
fulness for a moment, the woman,stealthily only
passing her hand behind him, clasped that i facn
of Squabby extended to meet it. To a phi to a
i losoplrer and student of human nature this j pres.
slight incident was amply sufficient to ro- I terly
: veal a tale of passion?a tale which it deal
saddened mo to road. I saw in uong-nnsed Bill
Bill an instance of the insufficiency of the 1 on ii
most astute and powerful intellect to res ( uies
train the erratic propensities of the female ' wan
heart. Here was this great man, who hud i l<? si
lavished perchance his whole beatt, slaked "*tw,
his w hole faith, on the woman beside him. j ere
while she, like the base Judtean, throwing takii
this pearl away richer than all her tribe, an ii
h.-slowed in secret her love upon one con- 1 by I
: spicuously Bill's inferior in every respect. - It
! except that his personal appealauce was . |ific<
| rather less revolting. Miserable mistake ! j intei
j accursed trror! yet one to which lire I'emi was
I nine nature is neculiarlv IiITin r... ... i
!, ; mux
metnbrancc of sucli an error, of which I was m,r
myself the victim, is still as a d igger to eloil
1 my heart. For thee, Augusta! for llieo my and
nights were nights of sleeplessness?iny man
days, days of reverie; to llieo I gave the ;ui,|
I thoughts of my philosophic soul. And mi ;k
, how dulst thoii^ requite ine? With tin ! mv
doubting faith and untiling constancy? ?No! ' fi.ro
On the night of that ever ineniorahlu ball uiii,
I ?a ball which still haunts my reinein- *11101
bianco as if peopled with spectie* and de- ,,f t
1 tnotis?thcio flitted before thine inconstant sure
eye that gaudy iiguie, rich indeed in ?it
scarlet and embroidery and clanking spurs, bodt
but poor, beyond all measure of poveitv, in ei>! !
that pbilusophic refinement which consti 1'
tales true wealtli. From that moment 1 pas?i
was forgotten, and since then a permanent mo I
shadow has settled on my soul. ic |?
This train of thought naturally made me cottr
j melancholy; and my spirits were further osop
depressed by a cause which I will now iutoi
-.talo. At this period I had resolved gradu to b
ally to wean myself from my opium, and, been
after terrible struggles and enormous sutler to ii
ings, had succeeded in limiting myself to a sciei
' pint and a half of laudanum per diem, earl!
Now, on lids particular day I had taken inosi
only a pint, for the following reason; the a> a
druiFtrisl with whom 1 ?reneiallv il.*;ilr li.nl idm
sent ine a batch uf 144 dozen,in which my ?1
experienced palate at once delected adulte- far I
ration. I bad lliercfoiu returned it, retain- leav
; ing only a bottle for the day's consumption. bodj
With tliis bottle in my hand 1 had gone para
down to the kitchen to speak to my cool: mitt
maid, when a family of beggars made their fur ;
appearance at the door, consisting of a ojiiu
father, mother, and two children. The oa-t
plaintive tones in which lliey entreated thin
charity went to my heart. Yo god*! said inev
I, liere are people hungry, cold, in.seruhlc, 1 rei
craving a morsel of food, while I hold in my hly hand
this bottle, the key of llie seventh total
heaven. Am I justified in withholding the halo
celestial panacea? Shall I not say, drink ineo
and be happy? In compliance with thi* pear
natural impulse, I at once gave each one o! and
lliein a glass of laudanum, which the) then
drank in solemn silence and went away, lion,
What became of tlietn I cannot say; but of a.
as I never heard of any family being poison- pled
ed about that time, 1 conclude they were turn
all confirmed opium eaters. However, this aeco
liberality on tny part roluced my doso for A
that day to about a pint, and I was now man
beginning to feel tiro effects of this unusual so o
abstinence; the chief of which elects was iheii
of course depression of spirits?gradually the
tny bea?l sank on my bosom. I ceased to turn
i respond to Bills call of "No heeltaps;'' the ( and
liquor I craved was not the growth of pleti
Oporto. It was then that Bill, seeing my laud
condition, but ascribing it to a w rong cause, ly o
used this remarkable expression' "lie's 1 men
pretty near done?let's finish him;" and sup|
the woman g9ing to a cupboard returned seat
with a bottle, which Bill uncorked, and fill thoi
ing my glass from it, pressed trie to drink. 1 exec
^ Half absently I complied; but the moment I liter
i I put my lips to it I started with joy. Could ' IT at
, then, read my heart??could he pry | to b
> my soul? Why, hero was the very I ever
on for which I had been thirsting as find*
er Arab thirsted in the desert, and now each
re 1 sipped again)?it was no mirage, asto
the divine nectar itself. Tossing oil' seal<
glass, I at once resumed my wonted addi
jrfulness. j sed i
noticed that, instead of talking as before, toasl
and tho woman now intently watched ; thou
(Squabby was by this time very neatly , did i
d drunk); and my intellect regaining its whil
il vigorous clearness, I at once perceiv ( Wei
hat lhll, with what design I knew not, whit
tided to "liocuss" int.*. The absurdity duo
a attempt to render mc insensible with peri;
lanitrn presented ils**lf so vididly to my bilirt
d, that 1 had much difficulty in pre- their
.ing myself Irom exploding in laughter. enod
vever, I managed t<? preserve mv gravi sid ci
and entering into the humor of the the
g, at one? resolved to drink against mv stagi
rtainer?Lnmlatiuin versus l'ort?and II
i astonish his dibile faculties, ns Jack \ mint
tho Giant's in the matter of the hasty- 1 I alb
iling, only that, instead of merely p>o- pecu
ling hy a mean subterfuge to consume mn ?
share, a? Jack <1 id. 1 would drink gla^s no d
flass. What a triumph of opium eat* j even
How would the gieal U-deridge scow I , held
iivious bitterness ol spirit, when he whic
led that 1 had achieved a feat which Sipui
vol I knew he never could hone to sur- throt
! | ?epai
ow then for it! ltill think*, nti<l offers of dt
II my glass. I till it myself, quaff it oil", tnun
continue to converse cliverfuliy. lull | Aftci
k* again? 1 imitate liim ? Ihil stare-, tliroi
looks astounded, but nevertheless con bier
es to tli ink: so do I. We each stick skelt
ur own bottles, the liquor in which jaws,
r? rapidly lower, lhll gets confuse I, m, "
is no longer master of bis utterance ?I echo
me calmer ami ealuier, and flow on in tor!"
pi strain of eloquence, which immense in th
y delights myself, 1'resell lly, however, in, ii
iittenlion is arrested by a change in surgi
s aspect; he has fixed mi me a gaze of ever
Iter able malignity. He mutters to the class
lun in a tli'ck huskv whisper, that "he crow
a goili' to stand tin* much lunger." In 11 ] (
>111 oi>l 1 became alive to the situation ! pkyin.
1 was in the presence of an ex o and I
ted rufllan, who saw in me one who temp
him to considerable expense in wine (to Colli
nothing >>f the laudanum,) and who not door:
obstinately refused to part with his silent
ities, but was rapidly reducing his host the x
state of intoxication. Affairs became bow?
pntly more serious when Squabby, ut Agai
' unable to sit upright anv longer, stnl- tlie *
v disappeared lunbr the table?vviieii hue
impatiently started up, glaring tiercelv emu
no. I instantly summoned mv rucr let!
to meet the ditHcu*./, and, f;?I!ri?ir for '|'|
I with my head on the lahle, nllootcd plus
lore heavily. I heard Ihll remaik that
as all right at last, hut ho believed that iheiv
cove was the devil;" when the woman, ,,| j,|
Hg up the candle, opened the door of ilieiu
titter apailment, an I entered, followe I cepti
till with uncertain steps. |,|?
may easily he imagined that I now throi
1 up my head, and watched thcltl with root;
iso interest. The room they ciiteied cd tl
small, and its only furniture woro a bod and
a sack. I he bed was peculiar, consist I pa
of two thick mattresses, without bed latio
ies, and a complication ol ropes, pulleys, gave
weights, i'leseiitlv 11.11 ami the wo- the
, each seizing a rope, began pul tug. forth
the upper limitless slowly rose. lleav to tl.
nd eailli! what a liioiiglil Hashed uoioss tinle
miti-l! I had heard of such tilings be ring!
?the unhappy being, stupefied by opi I
was placed between twotii itlresses, an ! but <
lliered so as to piodnee the appeaiai.ee low
latural death, ai d his body sold to the coiiij
eoiis! The n tck was irresistible evidence no si
must be so! I was in the company of lorot
f -Matchers, and was about to be uckk short
! go a
lie thiill of horror which now naturally to m
ed through mv heart did not pievent land
from seeing the case in all its philosoph- look
.'Hiings. My natuial impulse was, of stan
so, self preservation; but still, as a pliil I
Iter, 1 was bound t-? consider :? so the whet
rests of the public. I had every reason of tli
clievo that my organs and functions In.d wliic
no so vitiated I>v the use of opium, as I tin
isure, to linn w ho should lay h ire, w tli h >t11
111knife and anxious inquiry, this It in
ily tahernacle, the disclosure of th.* the <
I retnaikable phenomena. II id 1 then, inigl
citizen, the light to withhohl this pet s ,i<|
ble fiiime, which would iuevital. \ be >' m
>lved in a few years, and perhaps undei I mi
ess impoitant conditions, (for I might tapi.
u oil' opium, an I. llius icstoring mi dowi
; to a iiealthv condition, render it com lout I
lively valueless,) when 1 might, by -ub- \
ing to the fate designed for me. lemain sport
ig<s, in -puii^ <ii wine, .1 in >11 111h'*>i <>i iin>
in-eating? i'his vims duo view of the ' d<>wi
; bill presently, vviib that clear view ?>I al.iri
gs w hicli tlio |>> n-ti-?- 1 melaph VMi inii i
itablv nc<piire?, I percciveil an objection. who
ncinhured lli.it my I> ? Iy would proba floor
-nay certainly, bo sold to some surgeon surg<
: y unact|uainte I witli my person ami Ci.ui
its, ami who would iboio!Ho bo wlioliv cngi
llipeleiit to explain tlio remarkable ap- ilnm
anooi vvbicli tlisseciitii) wuiilil reveal; lnav
tlio theories broached to account fm this
n, being thus based on ineie siipposi see,
, miI'llt probably per|< ? x sr.once instead lligl
Ivancing it. Tills view of tlio case, coit rapii
with a desire to live inv appointed swal
>, decided me, and I took my measures gre^rdingly.
i mg I
II this time I have loft Hill and tlio wo- *tmu
i standing by the fatal bod, whom Death teria
ftou took his repose, with the ropes in geni
r hands. Fastening lliein so as to allow vain
upper mattress to remain upliUed. tliev bufot
ed towards me; but beloro they <1 i so, reael
while I was still left in almost coin nigh
a obscuiity, I tided from my bottlo ol art :
lanurn both their glasses, Die perplexi slecj
f tlio woman, and lliu drunken astonish- repo
t of Hill, when, oil returning for the g he
losed insensible victim, tlioy found me the
oil upright and cheeifully suiveying i shad
n, have probably never been equalled sliov
pt in ibat remarkable pa**nge ol the they
aturo of my childhood, when Mother j tanc
ibard, havitig gono to tho undertaker's j nose
Iy h Collin for her dog. (whom she lui
y reason to suppose dead,) return*, an
s tlie presumed corpse in a state <
inflation or laughter. They were f
nislied that, when I desired them to I
ed, they mechanically complied, am
easing them in a little speech, I prop<
the health of the lady as a convivii
t, nnd, tossing off my gla?s, invite
i to pledge me. Totally bewildered the
?o, and sal for a lime staring at im
e I watched lliem with calm certainl;
I did I know the traiti of symptoms h
:h they who dare to trespass, withot
initiation and necphytisin. on tho in
il domains of opium, approach insciis
y. Gradually their muscles relaxedheads
sank?their inspirations lenrrtl
and deepened ? till they sank side b
>n tl.c floor, not in the divine dream <
(pialiiieil practitioner, but in the du
lation of the presumptuous quack,
uving now the field to myself, and in
1 being relieved from the sudden straii
weil myself to lapse into one of tho*
liar and refreshing trances which op
roinmaiids. The vision I beheld wti
oubt suggested by the events of lli
ing. Metlinnght that I actually In
by body laid upon tlie hateful l>e
h, uplifted by countless myriads <
d'bies und Lung nosed i >i 11was born
igli the air, while I. seeming to have
rata existence fioin the body, (a specif
i ility I have often observe I in tlies
res.) w as compelled lofollow and obsei vi
r floating apparently to* centum
igh immeasurable region# of space, tli
was laid in a vast liall surrounded h
tons, who shouted from their fle?hle,
in full chorus, as my body was born
Uooiu for the ' >pium eater!-' and all lh
ea at sweied, "lioom for the Opitmi-e?
? like the people answering the priest
e service of a cathedral. Then llocke
i endless procession, all the might
tons and physicians whom the wor!.
saw, headed by the divine K- tilxpius i
ic robes, an I whose ample brows wer
tied by a chaplet. Galelt followed, an
?ocrates?at d Celstis and the wizard
ician Cornelius Agrippa, and Gartl
Harvey and Hunter, with ail their c >li
loraries, till Astlev Cooper headed tli
ge ol Surgeons of our day. Then tli
* were closed with a mighty sound ?
re was proclaimed by a liernld?am
vhole procession, filing past the hiei
id to it as an army to its warrior clue
n 1110 herald proclaimed silence, am
etierable Ksculapius, standing forth lit
all, said, in purest Attic Greek, in sol
tones, "Let us dis>ect the Opium en
and ail answered, "Let us dissect him.
ien the shadow of the great fuller r.
ic, approaching with reverence the bie
open tlie temple of the brain, when !
straightway issued lot ill such a swan
eas that the vast hall could not contai
i. Upwaid they lloated, bright cor
oils, melodious utterances, iinperislii
images, iinutterablo tlionghls, am
iged the atmospheie from pavement t
while still ftiuil that small skull flow
ie mien.ling stream, like the might
fertilizing Nile from its fountain sourer
ard still they pressed, till their nciuini
i. .? : : .:t i : : . r r.
it fi'v-" 11 n"?imii'ii* - j ?i~v aim raise
wav with a or ishing bound, (it wji
triumph of litiii< 1 over matter.) an
t'.oate I tin* joyous littoral?'<| thought
?-ir kii> 11? 1 sky. And nil tlio mult
ho w ed down itii>1 arkuowdedged lit
it itik 1 uinje*ty <>f genius,
know not luiw Itturr i!ie vision orcupie
i\ !ien I cci-i' l to ilrt'iun, tlii? e unlle t\ ;i
in the s ,ekct. t r rather the l?i?.''e. M
anions were still prosli ate, and showe
on of existenceexcept their hcnv\ suit
l>r?-.(tiling. They lit<i?l?l, howrcvv
LIv recover, an 1 I therefore lesolved t
t once, while they weio slid insensihl
t movement*. Hastily ti?ii-liin?r th
ilium which rem.lined in the hotlle,
up the CMIUllo uinl proceeded dow
lliink I had got down ahout ten stoiie
i, taking tlid wrong tiiiii at the f-n
0 stalls, | opened the ilooi of a root
h 1 I aind full of lumber and straw. A
neil to leave it, the candle fell from tli
e among the straw, which win install
a ll une. It I had raised an a! irn
piestiou of how I h-ipjtrnt'l to In' then
it have a i?eii, tvhieli I have ahead
it did not suit me to answer; nnd if
d to attempt to extinguish (lie tlaiii"
ght fail to escape, foi tliu tire sprea
IIv. II is 11 v (joining the scene, I ra
1 to the level of the street, and slipt s
y awav in the daiktiess.
> the wind, iisino hy degree*. 11??
s with the dead leave-, then rattles
casements, till tile and ronft'tfo g
i before the huri i--an-, so arose tli
n of I n;,.. First a watchman sh-uitc
chance p issenger joined Itim* th??*
lived on the basements and gnum
- next issueil forth, and the chort
I'll : 111 < 1 Srt elled into l 11?i i? 111 y ill IpUSOl
t*?iiilliri) igli llit- sliecis c.nne the tin
rie* mi their errand of salvation; l>e?n]
i run the flroinen. Gallant I'laeai
e Sun!?well ilone both hiigmies! I!i
111_?111 vonr efforts shall he in vain! I'\
the flatties leap forth at every wimlov
iit ti oy climh, story after ilorv, wit
1 step. They luk the walls ? the
low tli?? rafters?ami ever Mill tlieir iu<
? is lljtvv.ir.l, like blight thoughts latin
heavenward; while (lie ha?e inoitar an
ss ami clay, fading inward like low mi
I natures trying to smother the light i
us, riti^o for a tnotnenl a dint, wliic
slies, leaving tlm flames brighter ih.i
re. Still upward! till now they hav
ted the chamber where I passed *.Ii
I. lull, my pin posed destroyer, wliet
In>ii? where too is thy partner, *he vvli
? . in thy l??soin! shall she ever ngai
>e there? II,a, Stju ibby, not all th
s ami jewellery can avail thee now! Sfire
has encompassed them?see, tl
iow s, hurrv ing frantically on the ceil in;
r that the floor is in a Maze! And no
rush to the window. B\en at this di
e I recognise Hill by the length of h
he tears the woman from the windo
> 1 and look* down. Shall lie leap? No! t>ix>
id teen stories is a height to appal lite bravest,
uf Destruction in front, destruction in rear! to
io 1 be toasted or smashed!?dreadful the si- }'
re ^ te?native, William?vain the hope of es- "
J, cape! Ami now the problem, which he ^
0 : dare r.ot solve for himself, is solved for him. i 11
'd The woman from behind casts her arms '
id about his neck with frantic gesture. and ' "
y both Id I back into the room. Higher rush *(
r, the rejoicing and victorious flames, arching i !T
y. i their cie-ts and .ruckling joyously, till the "
y walls crumble and sink, burying >u their "
it i ruins the ashes of the Body-snatchers.
i-! De;tih ot the ili^h Priest of Japan, Hi
The Daiii, or High I'riest of Japan, in- j
i habits a splendid palace in the city of Mia ! Q
y ko, on the 1-land of Nipon. His couil is I ^
composed of 20,000 "prie?t?, who are in- '
" trusted with the charge of the 4,000 tein ' "
pies of this immense city. His costume is |
X a long tunic, over which he wears a large j
red dress; a white tran-paieiit veil, orria- j
? iliented with golden fringe, is worn upon j ^
1 his liead; falling about balf way down the
18 body. His couiituiiance remains always in- .
? visible. e
: On the 1st of July, 135G, the Dairi was *
taken ill. Immediately the ciiief priest, i '
^ with his ghostly colleagues, *200 priests of; p
llm first rank, who are endowed with the ,
11 religious power of the einpiie, were sum- R
'H moncd to tlie palace. By tlie next day the j
invalid's situation became more critical, and j
'* oil the 3d his death was pronounced to be
IS inevitable and close at band, l ite priests
e repaired at once to tlie temple, and inform}
ed the populace that the Dairi had entered ^
's , into a compact with the Seven (J??ds of ^
? Heaven, and was upon the eve of rejuvena*
e ting his mind in the embrace of Ted-syoI
dai sin, tlie piincipal of lln-se doilies, who
"* the Japanese believe to have created tlie Jj
wot id. She has heeti at the head of afy
fairs for ahout 25,000 year?, and from her (
' -piing all tlie royal families of Japan. To j
II her the inhabitants of the entire empire ad- w
'' dre-s their invocations as the protectress of |
'' j the land. I jf
At lire conclusion of the first prayers, tlie 1
'' piicsts declared that the inhabitants could
immediately enter ilia palace and regidc ' y|
c their eyes with the sight of their highly- j
* ' venerated lligli Priest. At once the crow<1 ^
streamed to tlie palace, where they beheld
' Dairi lying stretched upon A bed of state,
lie was dressed in a white tunic, and his
features, covered with a very thin mask, ' .
i . . 1 w
1 were dimly perceptible through a veil I
spread over them. The priests prayed loud j ^
' Iv, and wafted the sweet fverfumca from ' ^
' their centers around the dying man. At ,
0 o'clock in the morning of tire 5lh of Ju
?f !y he breathed his last. As the last breath
r. ; p.is-ed through his lips, the chief priest, w
! raising his arms as a token of the depart- ^
ii ing iilo. assured me bystanders tii.it the ; ((
ii soul of tliu High Priest had nseended to ^
i- the abode* of the Gtxls, but llnil it would
i- shortly return and resume its earthly liabi- ^
I 1 talion. I'poii this aunouticeinent a sol- ^
0 oiuo silence pervaded llic audience. After ' j
' the lapse of ten minutes the chief piiest. |j
y surrounded by a crowd of his religious ^
companions, threw over the still warm
1 c??rp?o of the Dairi a large white cloth, j
r which he instantly withdrew, and in the P
is place just before occupied by the body there j J'
1 appeared another similarly attired, but "
s alticatiii strong, who, raising l iiu-clf from 1
hi> recumbent position, went to an altar I'
e ?tandin^ near the bedside, and bestowed
upon the people present his blessing. The ''
I, ctowd iiisiaiitiy hioke out into exclamations P
is ?>f gladness and rejoicing. ( LH
v 1 >v a well coiicerte I stratageiil, the priests , I*
1 had abstracted the body of 'lie Dairi, sup- 1 ,s
r I'b "rt jdacc with bis son, who inherits !
r. Ins fither's station. The state bed being j
hung around with drapery, tendered it all *'
a* the easier to perform the liick without 11
uousiiig 11??? suspicions of the credulous in 51
I habitants. The corpse of the Dairi was'car- "
n lied in llie night time to the Ycie temple
l?i llie piiots, where it was laid upon a r?
s. pyre and luinied to ashes. This being done, ?
I the temple is clo-ed, and all persons are p
n forbidden to enter it. A violation of this "
.s law is t miishcd l?v burning to death. tl
The Ycie ten: pie, the handsomest one in '
' the city, contains several rows of earthen ^
' statues, of llie deity Icii-syo-dai-sin. These "
statues ate ah >ut one vard high, are hoi- '
! I
v low, and have each a large opening in the 1 J
' hack of the head. llie a?hes of each Dairi
* ;ne preserved in one of these statues, the "
'' same as hi an urn. l lie inhabitants are
; n -i per ill i lieu to enter the poitton n| the , '
temple wli. ro lhe*e ti^urcs si uul. On the P
il.iv after the ileath occurred, Ceremoniesof
a very .litierent r'liar.actor take place?the vv
inauguration of tlie new High Priest, who, "
" as the people suppose, has I uul his soul ro- j
'* nowfil ui the lo.si.lence of tlio grv.t go.lfl. , 11
()ii ilie 7lli of Jnlv. the new D.ur', sur- 1 "
louinle.l hv chosen priest*, issiie.l froin hi* ' "
' p rlace ami p.i' eh >l the different portion* : 01
^ of the city of Miako. i'lte people threw j R
' themselves to the eirth, an.l :ul*lit*s*ed 1
pincers to him a* a fpnl. Upon this day ; P
*' i all woik was forhi.hlen, all pii'oiiers were i
* set at lilienv, nn 1 nil criminal processc* ! e
11 a mm Ileal. M
,r | j V
i. A \ Of NO LaOY SlANDKIlKO.? At the <>
li recent Court of Common fleas for (risen- "
y vill l>i?trict, tl.eie was a ca*e of slan ler?a H
> foul slander, on a young, imiocent ami beau* "
I timl school girl, yn?t verging into woman "
d hoo?l. She brought her action, l?v her l"
i father, in vin.lication of her character, an<l J
of a Greenville jury awarded her the sum of
h four ilioi|.riu<l .lollars. We hope this vor
n dul wn| show the woild the estimate put s!
re | on character l?y a G cenville jury. The ?le- I
a- fondant was a in ill of property, ami he fletl ?"
re tlte country, with hi* faintly, out the ver- v
.. 1 ^i.?II ".... i : ... v . ? i -o I -
\i'vi viiiiii idNM nun. ?i uiifi doii.ir ; '
n however, i> the pl.iinutF lis|><?e<l to touch; : ?
v hut her counsel Imvo tint, the mhiu 1??Iioav*y 1 M
? . of feeling or repugnance to thetoiicli of the ; >
i?> defendant'* money. At' er the payment of! ?
tr. counsel foes, the renVftindwr can U? >tppro? *w
piinteU to vaiions patriotic ami charitable 8
? purposes, wilhom otFendtng tlie <l? hcrv y of ^
ir any one. The slanderer tnil?t bo pUlf ^
w | Tslte>!. ? Cfretnvifft Patriot. 2J
New Way of Detecting Counterfeits.
Mr. John S. Dye, of Now York, lias come
efore the public with a new plan for delect*
ig counterfeit, spurious and altered notes,
le presonts it in Dye's Wall street IJrokef,
nd lie pledges himself to take every counjrfoit,
new or old. at its full value, that is
ot thoroughly described in (lis publication
) nearly as to he detected; and it is to
take no difference whether the hill is now
i existence or should come into existence
tonllin or a year hence. The plan of deletion
is set forth in English, German aud
reach. The character of all genuine and
unions hills is minutely described. Seven
ties for detection ate given, as follows!
Ft rut. Examine the form r.nd feature*
F ail human figures on the note. If the
inns are graceful and features distinct, exmine
the drapery?see if the folds lay
atural; and the hair of the head should bo
b-erved, and see if the fine strands can be
!euSecond.
Examine the lettering, the title
f the bank, or the round handwriting on
ic face of the note. On the genuine bills
le work is done with great skill and per-'
ictnesa, and there hits never been a ccunnfeit
but was defective In the lettering.
Thrd. The imprint orengraver's names.
>y ohseiving the great perfection of the
ifferent company names?in the evenness
nd shape of the fine letters, counterfeiters
ever get the imprint perfect. This rnle
lone, if strictly observed, will detect every
junterfeit note in existence.
Fourth. The shading in the back ground
f the vignette, or over or around the letters
inniiig the name of the bank, on a good
ill, is even and perfect; oil n counteifeit ?*
gular and imperfect.
Fifth. Examine well the figures on other
arts of the note containing the dtnoininn*
on, also letters. Examine well the die woik
round the figures which stand for the deoiniuation,
to see if it is of the same char:ter
as that which fottns the ornamenta!
oik surrounding it.
Sixth. Never take a bill that is deficient
i any ol the above }>ointv, and if your :mression
is bad when you ftist see it, volt
ad belter be careful bow you l>eooine con*
meed, to chance Your mind?wlmriio*
o ,
pinion is nul altered as you become con*
iscd in looking into the texture of the
orkm?n?liip ot'flie bill.
Seventh. Examine the name of the State,
sine of the bank, ami name of the town
here the bank is locate.!. If it has been
lere'l from a btoken bank, the defects can
3 seen, as the alternation will show that it
ss been stamped on.
The New Use of Corrojr Seed.?In rf
!cent number of the New Orleans Creole,
e find a very interesting description of anf
itahlishment in that city for the manufac*
iro of oil from cotton seed. After deserting
the process, the Creole says:
Cotton seed has heretofore been regarded
? Useful only for the purpose of manure.
has added nothing to the value of South n
production; hut it is now shown to be
ulo inferior in intrinsic value to the silky
bro in which it is enclosed.
The establishment to which we allude
roduccs five hundred barrels of oil per day,
oin the diy cotton seed. A novel nnd
i-atiliful piece of machinery hulls it with
le utmost precision and the greatest raidity,
leaving the oily meat free from every
iieign substance. Exposed to a considern*
le heat, and subjected to pressure, oil is
reduced, which, by a new chemical pro*
*>s of clarification. becomes fit for everv
nrpose for which olive, lard, or sperm oil
adapted.
To day, it is used on the tables of many
f our citizen as olivo oil. It bums in the
ilar and astral lamps in our parlors. It is
*e.l oa machinery as n lubricator, and an.ver*
every other purpose for which fine
ativa or foreign oil is reeded.
The establishment is ?elf sustaining. Tlia
fuse hulls furni-h the fuel to drive the enines.
Not a Mngle stick of wood has been
.....l.-.?i .i- 1 =- -
............ ni.ic iiiv iiihciimery w.u nr?t put
i nrtjiioi), As an experiment, a portion of
10 accumulation of tlio waste has"b?en
ripped to tlie North to Ihj Worked up into
ookiiintlere' boards, fur which purpose this
taicrial is believed to ho admirably adaptI.
Six mouth* have not yet elapsed since
to machinery was set in motion, ami now
ie oil is finding its way into the country
t preference to lard or sperm oil, ami is for
tie in many establishments of this city,
he sale is quite equal to the possibility of
r? uluction.
The effect of tins favorable experiment
ilh cotton seed u|?on our domestic econo?V
is likely to be most favorable. For
cos the price of poik lias steadily ad vansi.
We are burning up so many bogs,
1 the shape of oil. that the price of meat,
nless a new source of oil bad oeen disco*red,
must have proved a serious unconveience.
Let, however, tlio OOtlon seed.
Inch now rots in trillions of tons on our
InttlMli ms, be pressed into oil, ami the
ouili will be independent of Northern fishimen,
and instead of being consumers, will
jon beco ::e exporters of oils that are suet
ior t?i and cheaper than any other now
?ed. The cotton fields will prove richer
litre* of wealth than the most pioductive
old hearing Slates of California. Fork,
o longer wasted for light, or manufactured
ito table oil, or into perfumery for the
lilct, can again bo furnished for live or ten
oilars i>er b.u i ? !
* ""
A Dutch j?r?p?r in the i.iterior of Pennv!vani?
uxpies-et its opinion of President
Mulian.iii's inaugural in the fallowing lu*
ill ami concise terms: "Uinl tier Dentchea
er tamelung wher iol?t met din gr?sen In*
11 r a I foon d?r Shames Ituchanau, soli isli
haney, der huiuincli iffli dor p. in??cr.?ti?y
icht* cum araus! Dei hl.ittl tin p>eizel!
/i>n tile! Swalsaccpe Itollminl sv.ei gla^ea
igor light iivav. Sveielary der Swoitcer
JlifMCH f*mil der Washington mil J*?k?on
Itii>ar?hm. Dor S.lunidtl ? N?! D*?r
*igl Nd Dor $eh*>.ttzen hover) Ni!
uiti hlate limnergei mit Mrrnigfogo! Kin
Ussen hror mit j?ret*ol| Soontitc! TahT
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