Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

?' ? POETRY. /Vow the rhUudetfihia American Daily M Advertiser* Mr. Poui^oir?>bservibg last evening the brilliancy of the Phenomenon in the Heavens, and callingto mind the vat iety of conjectures which such an appearance occasions, the following thoughts occurred which are at your disposal. ^S. TO THE COMET. * gticatrwiger ! blaze of light! Messeuger of .-.ood or ill ; Fortent iathe wondering sight, What behest dost thou fulfil ? Dost thou tell of blight afar, Or shall health'*, fcipd blessing cease, Dost thou oipen direful war, Or confirm the notes of peace ? Art thou missioned from above. Oh, celestial herald say, Dost thou bring the torch of love, Wakening the MILLEN1AL DAY ! Gould wethtf* with rapture meat thee, - Emanation ?Jf fre skies. How would son^Jvf triumph greet thee, How would mingling praises rise! But though wisdoql has denied, Finite skill thy course to tell; Though, thy errand's undescribed, Yer we know that aU it well! * . ? ? * HE who speaks 'n dreadful thunder, ?. vThron^d in power abov? the sky ; He, before whose viewless splendor* . All thy radiant glories die? ?. ' r- At "J' 5 rV- ?' ? He who holds the bolt of heaven, Systems, which their course fulfil, He whose glance through time bath riven, Ood?win'ever guard us still ! * ? a a 4- vJ * t FT * i . .(* ? Mystic Orb! then urjje thy flight, , ; :&bon ihj meteor-r^gn is o'er, Whilst thou burnest the gem of night, We, admiring, GOD adore. Miscellaneous* *ROM ihving's sketch book. I HE WIFE. The treasures of the deep are not so pre ^ous As are the conceated comforts of a man Lock *d up in woman's love. I scent the air Of biestine, when I come but near the . .House. What a delicious breath marriage sends ^ *fortli~ The violet bed's not tweeter! Afiddlettn. 1 have often had occasion to re ibftrit the fortitude with which wo ifteb itytetain the most overwhelming inverses ,of fortune., Those disas ters which break clown the spirit of * man, and prostrate him in tbo dust, feein id call forth ill the energies of "ex, and give audi intre pidity apd elevation to their charac ter, that at times it approaches to ?ablimity? Nothing can be more touching than to behold a soft and lender female, who had been all weaknes* and dependence, ami alive 10 every trivial roughness w bile tread life tiro prosperous paths of life, suddenly rising in mental force, to be tne comforter and supporter of her husband, under misfortune, and abiding, with unshrinking firmness, the bitterest blasts of Adversity, i As the vine which has long twined Ids graceful foliage around the oak, and been lifted by it into sunshine, will, when the Hardy plant is rifted by the thunderbolt, cling round it with its caressing tendrils, and hind np its shattered hough*; so is it beautiftilly ordered by Providence, that woman, who is the mere depen dant and ornameut of man in bis happier hours, should be his stay and solace when smitten with sud den calamity, winding herself into the rugged recesses of his nature, tenderly supporting the drooping| bead, and biuding up the broken heart. I was once con&atulating a friend, who had arouncl him a blooming family, knit together in the strongest affection. " 1 can wish you no bet ter lot," said lie, with enthusiasm, " than to have a wife and childreu? | if you are prosperous, there they arc to share your prosperity; if other wise, there they a re to comfort you." And, indeed, I have observed that married men falling into misfortune, ar* mora apt in retrieve their sana tion in the world than single men; partly because they are more stimu lated to exertion by the necessities of the helpless and lieloved beings who depend upon them for subsistence; but chiefly because their spirits are soothed and relieved by domestic en dearments, and their self respect kept alive by finding, that though all abroad is darkness and humiliation, yet there is still a little world of love, of which they are mouarchs. Whereas* a single roan is apt to run to waste and self neglect; to fancy himself loftely and abandoned, and his heart to fall to ruin like some deserted mansion, for want of an in habitant. x ^ These observations call to mind a little domestic story, of which f was once a witness. My intimate friend, Leslie, had married a beautiful and Accomplished girl, who had been brought up in the mid*tof fashiona ble lire. She had, it is true no for tune, hut that of mj friend was am ptoj *?d he delighted in the antici pation of indulging her in every ele-i gant pursuit, and administering to those delicate tastes and fancies, that spread a kind of witchery about the ?px.??* Her life," said he, " shall be like a fairy tale." I Th* difference iw their cha racters produced an harmonious com bination; he was of a romantic, and somewhat serious cast; she was all life^ and gladness. I have often noticed the mute rapture with which he would gaze upon her in company, of which her sprightly powers made her the delight; and how* in the midst of applause, her eye would still turn to him, as if there alone she sought favor and acceptance. When leaning on his arm, her slen der form contrasted finely with his tall, manly person. The fond, con fiding air with which she looked up to him, seemed to call forth a flush of triumphant pride and cherishing tenderness* as if he doated on his lovely burthen for its very helpless ness. Never did a couple set for ward on the flowery path of early iind well suited marriage with a fairer prospect of felicity. qfiwas the mishap of my friend, however, to have embarkecUhis for bun* In large speculations;l?id he had not been married many months, when, by a succession of sudden disasters, it was swept from him, and he found himself almost reduced to penuiy. For a time lie kept his situation to himself, and went about with a haggard countenance, and a breaking heart. His life was but a protracU^agimy; and what render ed it more insupportable, wis the necessity of keepiug up a tfftile in jthe presence of his wife; for he could not bring himself to overwhelm her with the news. 8he saw, how ever, with the quick eyea of affec tion, thai all was not well with him. Hhe marked his altered looks and stilled sighs, and was not to be de ceived by his sickly and vapid at tempts of cheerfulness. She tasked Alt her sprightly powers and tender blandishments to win him back to liappiness; but she only drove the arrow dee pet into his ran I. The more lie saw cause to love her, the more torturing was the thought tlmt he was mh.ii *MBgke her wretched. A little w hile, thought he, snd the smile will vanish from that cheek? the song will die away from those lipe?(he lustre of Hum eyes will he quenched with sorrow; anil the happy heart which now heats lightly in that bosom, will he. weighed down, like mine, hy the cares and miseries of this world. At to me, one day, and relatedlrcs \s liole situation, in a (one of (lie deepest despair. VV hen 1 hnd heard him through, I enquir ed, 44 doe* your wife know all this?" At the question he burst into tears. 44 For (iod's sake cried he, 44 it you have any pity on me, don't men ilion my wile; it is the thought oi her that drives mo almost to mad ness !" j " And why not?" said 1. " She must know it sooner or later; you cannot keep it long from tier, and the Intelligence may break upon her in a more starling manuev than it imparted by yourself; for the accents of those we lote soften the harshest tidings. Besides, you are depriving yourself of the comforts of her sym pathy : and not merely that, but al so endangering the only bond tlmt can keep hearts together, an uureser* ved community of thought and feel* ing. She will soon perceive that something is secretly preying upon your mind; and true love will not i?rook reserve, but feels undervalued and outraged, when even the sor rows of those it loves are concealed from it. "OhI but my friend! to think what a blow I am to give to all her future prospects?how I am to strike her very soul to the earth, by telling her that her husbaud is a beggar! that she is to forego all the elegancies of life?all tlie pleasures of society ?to shrink with me into indigence; and olfctcurity! To tell her that 1 have dragged her down from the sphere in which she might have con tinued to move in constant brightness ?the light of every eye?the admi ration of eveiy heart! How can she hear poverty? she has been brought up in all refiafement e.f opulence.? How can she bear neglect ? she has l>een the idol of society. Oh, it will break her heart, it will break her heart??99 I saw his grief was eloquent, and I let it have its flow ; for sorrow re lieves itself by words. When his paroxysm had subsided, and he had related into moody silence, 1 re sumed the subject gently, and urged hint to break his situation at once to his wife. He shook his head mourn fully, but positively. " But how are you to keep it from her? It is necessary she should know it, that you may take the steps pro per to the alteration of your circum stances. You must change, your style of living?nay," observing a pang to pass across his countenance, " donl let that afflict you. 1 am snre you have never placed pure hap pines* in outward show?you have yet friends, who will not think the worse of you for being less splen didly lodged; and rarely it does not require, a palace to be happy with Mary?99 "1 could be happy with her,,? cried lie convulsively, " in a hovel! I could go down with her into pover ty and the dust! I could?1 could?> Oou bless her! Gobbles* her!" cried he, bursting into a transport of grief and tenderness. "And believe me, my friend," said 1, stepping up, and grasping him warmly by the hand, "Relieve me, she can be the same with you. Aye more; it will be a source of pride and triumph to her; it will call forth all the latent energies and fervent sympathies of her nature; for she will rejoice to prove that she loves you for yourself. There rain every true woman's heart a spark of heavenly fire, which lies dormant in the broad daylight of prosperity ; but which kindles up, and beams and blazes ia the dark hou^ of ad versity. No man knows what the wife of his bosom is?no man knows what a ministering an?el site is? until he has gone with her through the fiery trials of this world." There was something in the ear nestness of manner, and the figura live style of my language, that caught (he excited imagination of Leslie.? I knew the auditor I had to deal with; and following up the impres sion I had made, I finished by per suading him to go home and uubur den his sad heart to his wife. 1 must confess, notw ithstanding all I had said, 1 felt some solicitude for the result. Who can calculate on the fortitude of one whose life has :tt'cn ft round of pleasures? Her gay spirits might revolt at the dark, Jow n w a I'd path of low humility, si d lenly pointed out before her, ami aught cling lo the sunny regions in whicli they had hitherto re veiled.? Besides, ruin in fashionable life is accompanied by so many galling mor tifications,*0 which in other ranks, it is a stranger. In short 1 could uot meet Leslie, the next morning* with out trepidation, lie had made the disclosure. " And how did she hear it? " Like an angel! It seemed rather to he relief to her mind, for she threw her arms around my neck, and asked if this was alt that had lately made me unhappy?hut, poor girl," added he, she cannot realize the change we must undergo.?She has no idea of poverty hut in the abstract; she has only read it in poetry, where it is allied to love. She feels as yet no privation; she experiences no want of accustomed conveniences or. ele gancies. When we come practical ly to experience its sordid cares, its paltry wants, its petty humiliations? then will bo the real trial." " But," said I, "jiow thai you have got over the severest task, that of breaking it to her, the sooner you let the world into the secret the bet ter. The disclosure may he morti fying; but then it is a single misery, and soon over; whereas ymx other wise sutler it, in anticipation, every hour in the day. It is not pov so much as pretence, that imrrasses a ruined man?the struggle between a proud mind and an empty .purse?the keeping up a hollow show that must soon come to an eud.?Have the cour age to appear poor, and you disarvrfj poveity of its shar|>est sting." On this point 1 found Leslie perfectly prepared. He had no false pride himself, and as to his wife, she was only anxious to cooforHi to their al tered fortunes* Home days afterwards he called upon me in the evening, He had disposed of Iris dwelling house, and taken a small cottage in the country,] a few miles from town. He hadi been, busied all day hi sending out furniture. The new establishment required few articles, and those of the simplest kind. All the splendid fur uilure of lus late residence had been sold, excepting bis wife's liarp. That, he said, was too closetjhpsso ciated with the idea of bersel^Ht be longed to the little atory of their loves; for some of the sweetest moments of theircourtship were those when he had leaned over that instrument, and listened to the tflelting tones of her voice, 1 could not but smile at this instance of romantic gallantry in a floating husband. j He was now going out to the cot tage, where his wife bad been all day, superintending its arrangement. My feeliugs bad become strongly in terested in the progress of this family story, and as it was a fine evening, 1 offered to accompany him. lie was wearied with the fatigues of the day, and as we walked out, fell into a lit of gloomy musing. " Poor Mary ! at length broke, witb a heavy sigh, from his lips. " And what erf her," asked 1, " has any thing happened to her ?" 44 What," said lie, darting an im patient glance, " is it uothihg to be reduced to this paltry situation?to be caged in a miserable cottage?\6 be ibliged to toil almost in the menial concerns of her wretched habitation?" " Has she then repined at the change?" " Repined! she has been nothing bnt sweetness and g4|d humor. In deed, she seems in better spirits than I have ever ktiown her ; she has been to me alt love, and tenderness, and comfort Vy "Admirable girl," exclaimed I, "You call yourself poor, my friend; y^u never was so rich?you never knew the boundless treasures of ex cellence in that woman." " Oh, hut my friend, if tbia drat meeting at the cottage were over, think I could then be, comfortable. Hut this is her first day of real expe rience: She has been introduced into a humble dwelling?she has been em ,;lo\ed all day in arranging its miser able equipments?she has for the first time ktiown the fatigues of do mestic employment?she has for thr first lime looked around her on a home destitute of everV thing elegant, and almost convenient; and may now 1k> sitting down, exhausted and spirit less brooding over a prospect of fu ture poverty. There was a degree of proliability in this picture that I could r.oi S8'" say, so we walked on in silence. After turning from the main road, up a narrow lane, so thickly shaded by forest trees, as to give it u com plete air of seclusion, we came.in ~sT2jtrt~ of tl e cottage; ^ luiffl* hie enough in iis appear*nee for the most pastoral poet; and yet it had a pleasing rural look. A wild vine liad overrun one end with a pro fusion of foliage ; a tew trees threw tlieii branches gracefully over it: and I observed several pots of flowers tastefully disposed about the door, and on the grass plot in front. A small wicket gate opened upon a foot path that wound through somo shrubbery to the door. ^ Just as we approached, we heard the sound of music?Leslie grasped my arm; we paused and listened. It was Alan 's voice in a style of the. most touching simplicity, singing a little air of which her husband was peculiary fond. I felt Leslie's hand tremble on mv arm. He stepped forwaid, to hear more distinctly. His step made a noise on the gravel walk. A bright beautiful face pl?ncefl out of . the window, and vanished?a light foot ?fej> wMj^^rd?and Mary came (filing fomi to meet us. She was in a pretty ruval dress of whiffe t a few wild powers were twisted in tiff fine hair; a fresh bloom AWas ou het cheek; her whole countenance beam ed with srailes-vl had never seen her look so loveR. "My dear Grorge," cridd slip, <1 am so glad you are come; Pve been watching and watthing for yooi and running down the lnne, ana looking out for you. I've set out * table under a beautiful tree behind the cottageand I've been gathering some of the most delicious straw berries, for I know you are fond of them?and every thing is so sweet and still here?Oh!" said she, put ting Iter Arms within his, and look ing up brightly in his face, " Oh, we shall lie so snug \}} : ?^r " Poor Leslie was overcome.?He caught her to his bosom?he folded his arms around her?he kissed her again and again?he could not s|>eak, but the tears gushed into his eyes. And he has often assured me, that though the world #harf since gone prosperous with him, and bis life has been a happy one, yet never has be experienced a moment of such unutterable felicity, ","v < On Wednesday last, about the commencement of the storm, a Her ring, weighing nine ounces, and measuring thirteen inches in length, fell from the clouds and landed in Main-Htreet, in this village, near the Phoenix Coffee-House. At the moment, it was supposed to have drooped from the talons of some Bird of prey; but, a close survey of the heavens, made with a particular view of ascertaining the fact, satis fied the spectators that no such Bird was in sight, nor did the Fish bear any indications of having been gras fied in the taloos of a Bird. It wan seen more thai} twenty feet liefore it struck the ground, and lived for some minutes after its fall. If the incredulous should doubt the aliove statement, it can be corroborated by several highly respectable eye-wit nesses*?Buffalo Journal. Economy!?The Editor of the Baltimore American Farmer say*, that " a gentleman mentioned a fact to him the other day, to Convey nn idea of the habits of a certain neigh borhood.?He said, he met on the road, going to a nejghl>oring village, in 'old fashioned, imported coach, drown by two half starved horses, driven by a naked ntgro slave, con veying a live hog to buy a jug of rum." At Havana, 030 foreigners died of fever from the first of May to the middle of June.