Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, August 28, 1856, Image 1
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siSi.^MELioN }Pr?Prietors' An Independent Journal: For the Promotion of the Political, Social, Agricultural and Commercial Interests of the South. Jiewism.grist,PnMiiher.
VOL. 2. YORKYILLE, S. C., THUESDAY, A.TJG-TJST 28, 1856. NO. 35.
t i,.,,,,.,.?? - i 11 ii ____
MM??LH1?L-?U-LimJL?*M?nm
Select licking.
A PEW SHORT YEARS?A\D THEY.
A few short years?and then
The dream of life will be
Like shadows of a morning cloud,
In its reality!
V.
A few short years?and then
The idols loured the best
Will pass in all their pride away,
As siuks the sun to rest!
A few short years?and then
Our young hearts may be rel't
Of every hope, and find no gleam
childhood's sunshine left!
A few short years?nn.l then
i- Impatient of its bliss,
The weary soul shall seek on hi^li
A better home than this!
WIPE USAGE AMONG TRAPPERS
AND INDIANS.
1 [From tho I<ife and adventures of J. P.
Beekwourth, Scout and Pioneer, recently
published by the Harpers :
' After a residence among them of a few
days, I had a slight difficulty in my family
affinra. A paity of Indians came into camp
one day, bringing with them three white
men's scalps. The sight of them made my
blood boil with rage; but there was no help
for it, so T determined to wait with patience
my day of revenge. In accordance with
their .custom, a scalp dance was held, at
which there was much additional rejoicing.
My wife came to me with the information
that her people were rejoicing, and that she
wished to join them in the dance.
I replied, "No, these scalps belonged to
my people; my heart is crying for their
death; you must not rejoice when my heart
cries?you must not dance wlieu I mourn."
She then went out, as I supposed, satisfied.
iMy two white friends, having a great
curiosity to witness the performance, were
looking out upon the scene. I reproved
them for wishing to witness the savage rejoicings
over the fall of white men who had
belonged to our own company.
One of them answered, "Well, your wife
is the best dancer of the whole party ; she
out-dances them all."
This was a sting which pierced ray very
heart.- Taking ray battle-as, and forcing
myself into the ring, watched ray opportunity,
and struck ray disobedient wife a heavy
blow in the head with the side of ray battleas,
which dropped her as if a ball had picrced
her heart,
' ^4 I dragged her through the crowd and
her, and went back to my tent.
This ^ret'-was performed in such a bold
manner, under the very noses of hundreds of
them, that they were thunderstruck, and for
a moment remained motionless. When I
entered the tent I said to my companions:
"There, now, you had better prepare to hold
on your own scalps, siuce you take so much
gry at the intrusion, I asked who was there.
"Me," answered a voice, which, although
" well-nigh stifled with sobs, I recognized as
that of my other wife, whom every one had
supposed dead. After lying outside the
lodge senseless for some, hours, she had recovered
and groped her way to my bed.
"Go away," I said, "you have no business
here; I have a new wife now, one who
has sense."
"I will not go away," she replied, "my
ears are open now. I was a fool not to hearken
to my husband's words when his heart
was crying, but now I have good sense, and
will always hearken to your words."
It did really seem as if her heart was broken,
and she kept her position until morning.
I thought myself now well supplied
k with wives, having two more than I cared tc
" have ; but I deemed it hardly worth while
to complain, as I should very soon leave the
camp, wives and all.
interest ir a celebration over tnose ot your
murdered brctheru." Their counteuances
turned ashy pale, expcctiug instant death.
By this time the whole Indian camp was
in a blaze* "Kill him ! kill him ! burn him !
burn bioi !" was shouted through the camp
in their own language, which I plainly understood.
I was collected for I kucw they
cou'd kill me but once.
Soon I heard the voice of my father-inlaw
crying, in a tone that sounded above all,
"Stop! hold ! hold ! warriors, listen to your
chief."
All was hushed in an instant, and he continued
: ""Warriors ! am the loser of a daughter,
and her brothers have lost a sister?
you have lost nothing. She was the wife of
the trader; I gave her to him. "When your
wives disobey your commands, you kill
them , that is your right. That thing disobeyed
her husband ; he told her not to
dance; she disobeyed hiiu ; she had no cars;
he killed her, and he did right." * * *
Ax-as-to next came to my camp and said,
"My son, you have doi. right; that woman
| I gave you had no sense; her ears were
stopped up; she would not hearken to you,
and you had a right to kill her. But I have
another daughter, who is younger than she
was. She is more beautiful, she has good
sense and good cars. You may have her in
the place of the bad one?she will hearken
to all you say to her."
"Well" thought I, "this is getting mar
ried again before I have had time to mourn."
But I replied, "Very well, my father, I
will accept of your kind offer," well knowing
that to refuse him would be to offend, as
he would suppose that I disdained his generosity.
My second wife was brought to inc. I
found her, as her father had represented,
fur more intelligent and far prettier than
her sister, and I was really proud of the
change. I now possessed one that many a
warrior had performed deeds of bloody valor
to obtain, for it a high honor to get the
daughter of a great chief to wife, and many
' a warrior has sacrificed his life in seeking to
attain such a prize.
During the night, while I and my wife
were quietly reposing, some person crawled
into our couch, sobbing most bitterly. An
From the Southwestern Baptist. t
- 1
THE FAMILY OF GTtUMBLlfS. f
The Grumbles are very numerous, and r
are scattered over the wide, wide world.?
You find them in every community. Go c
where you may, you are sure to come in 1
contact with them, whether you travel by \
railroad car, stage coach or private convey- fJ
auce. You find them alike iu the hotel and ^
in the saloon; in the lecture room and in i
the sanctuary of.God. You cannot avoid 'J
their society if you would; for they arc sure t
to be present on every occasion, and arc I
j always ready to press themselves into your t
company whether its suits you or not. Not g
i a crowd can cather without some one or 2
I more of them being present to give vent to f
I their pentup eomplaiuts, and they arc sure c
i not to retire so long as they can get persons a
j to listen to them. 1
Persons of both sexes, and of every gra- j
; dation in society, belong to the family of a
Crumbles. Hoary-headed men and women, c
middle-aged and young, youths and chil- s
dren, belong to it also. "What a pity they t
are so numerous ! It would be a good thing c
if the Lord would convert them from the v
! error of their ways; and lead them in the v
| better way of contentment and peace. v
j They find fault with everything, and r
with almost everybody. Nothing ever hap- a
! pens or can happen just as they wish it.? t
The ways of nieu cannot please them ; and v
j Divine Providence is insufficient to satisfy
| them. They murmur at everything and are
TPitli nntlil no 1? no/liir MVft VAll
j UVKICIIWU uviu.ug, ?.v >
j acquainted with any of them ? If you arc J
i not, allow me to introduce one household of l"
them to you. Old Peter Grumble lives in
a good neighborhood, and has a good farm. 1
! He has also a wife, several children and a 1
i number of servants. But he and his family c
! are such incessant grumblers that they are d
' an aunoyancc to all their neighbors. No ^
| one cares to associate with them, and when c
j persons are necessarily thrown into their c
i company time passes away very unpleasantly I
The old-gentlemen can never get the sea- ^
' sons to suit him. The weather is always too ^
! warm or too cold, too wet or too dry, too T
windy or too calm. Ilis crops never grow \
i to suit him, while grass aud weeds give 1
! him coutiuual cause of murmuring. His '
own stock and his neighbors stock torment T
him. Ilis neighbors will not aid him as v
much in time of need as he thinks they v
ought. And besides his own children and ^
servants vex him a great deal. These with ^
j other things keep him always out of temper, ^
| and keep him grumbling continually. Ilis r
wife is worse if possible thau he is. With a J
' womeu's passion and a woman's speech she v
! grumbles, and grumbles, aud grumbles.? a
l The children are all true to their training, 0
! arc every one of them naughty grumblers c
| too. Even the servants catch the same c
j spirit and with their characteristic impul- *
j siveuess, grumble at their lot in life, their 4
I labor, aud everything else. Thus there is c
kept up a perpetual grumbling among them, 1
! and . when others arc out of the way, be- 1
| cause the)- have not others to grumble at, 1
; they fall to aud gruuible at each other. * 1
Some of them, I am ashamed to say, arc !
j members of the Church. The preacher is i
i never able to preach so as to please them.? j
j lie is too doctrinal or too practical, too plaiu
| or not plain enough, too learned or too igi
norant. The business of the Church is nevj
er conducted so as to suit them ; and the
I acts of individual Christians fall far short
| of giving them satisfaction. To tell the
! plain truth, I think they arc a disgrace to
; the Church and I wish they were out it.
They have gone on indulging in their
j habit of grumbling until they actually seem i
, to do it just for the sake of doing it. They j
j have exercised that spirit so long it seems
i they will never loaru that good old uposto- j *
| lie lesson : "Do all things without nun-:
I murings and disputings. l'hil. ii: 11.
Put I have said enough. J. 31. W.
A PANIC STRICKEN ARMY. <
i Travellers iu the western wilds of our i
| country are well aware that it is no uncom- ?
: mon thing for horses, when confined together
j for the night, to take fright, at some imagin
ary object, aud gallop, at headlong speed, a i
1 great distance from the camp. But brute t
animals are not only the creatures that at | s
i times become so comply ts.v beside themselves j (
with fear as to refuse to be controlled by ! t
i reason. History records numerous instances I ^
j where men have been panic stricken aud , 1
have fled in confusion from the assaults of j;
I an enemy that existed only in the fancies of | 1
their own heated brains : One of the most i <
iii .. ,i i i i.ii
t rem ant ante cases oi tilts Kinu wnicu uas oc-; ]
| currcd in modern times, was the flight of; 1
| the Austrian army in I7NS, when retreating i t
j before the Turks through the Turkish pro- i i
vince of Wallaehia. Dr. Vchsc, in his mem-1
: oirs of the Court, Aristocracy and Diploma- j I
cy uf Austria, gives the following account j s
; of this-singular and disastrous affair: j .<
On the 7,th of August the Turks crossed j
; the Danube ucar Orsovo aud lvladowa, and ,
entered the Banat of Temeswar. The Iui- i
pcrial troops had to retreat incessantly; the J
: Turks sabred the whole squadrons of the ;'
j Austrian rear. Dor three months the Turk-j
i j ish troops overran that beautiful country, i
i , which they changed into a desert. The Im-j
! pcrial armies had to retreat as far as Tomes- j
I war. The most terrible night was that of j
| the 28th of September, 17*6, when 60,000 j
Imperialists retreated to the plain of Lugos. |
i Some hussars quarreled near a brandy cart >
1 with a party of soldiers of the Dree Crops,'
: and drove them from the spot. I licse men i
! returned, fired at the hussars, and called out! i
, in a loud voice,'Turks! Turks !' This false (
; j alarm caused incredible confusion. The ! (
; Austrian troops fired on their own rear, which |
i they mistook for the assailing Turks. Lascy ,
j had forgotten to call in the pickets on the ! i
| left wing. In order to wait for them, the 1
1 word of command, 'Halt!' was given. But
> the terrified troops mistook, in the fright, i
'Halt! Halt!' for the Turkish cry of'Allah! i
! Allah !' and instead of stopping, fled in a
panic. Joseph; who was with the van, tried ;
' v -
o stay the flight near a small bridge ; bul
lis opeucaleche was overturned in the collusion
and thrown from the bridge in the
iver.
Joseph now leaped on a horse, hut was
sarried away unknown by the flying crowd,
lie had lost his suite and knew not where lie
vas. Fortunately a groom recognized him,
L'his man saved liiiu, and Joseph arrived
vith -him alone at Karanscbcs. He had been
n danger of being taken prisoner by the
furks, who had faithless Wallachains foi
m.,, ?
nun J;uiucn. x iiv; unuj v?.io ubuiuiau^u
>y the noble officers; the disaffection towards
lie Emperor which the nobles and the clcrry
had excited against him, had now gained
;round among the military also. The train
ell into irremediable confusion. The drivers
if the artillery cut the traces of their horses
nd left the cannon behind on the road.?
L'he leaders of the sumptev horses threw the
lacks away, and rode off on the disburdened
nimals with wild cries of 'The Turks arc
oining ; all is lost; save yourselves!' The
oldiers who escorted the baggage, fired upon
heir own people among the train, and inreused
the hopeless disorder. The road
ras covered all over with baggage, arms, and
rnrlike stores of every description, between
rhicli men on foot, horseback, and in cariages,
were pushing on, shouting, swearing
nd overthrowing everything that came in
heir way. As many as 10,001) men were
rounded or killed in this false alarm.
-+?<???
MUSICAL AUTOMATON.
HcrrVon Occlclcs. ofBredia, in Holland,
ncf lirmirrhf fit Vnw Vnvlf nrul r-vliiliifnd
irivatcly, one of those envious and rare comlinations
of machinery which, without being
lositivcly useful, in the ordinary sense of
he term, tend to promote happiness by exiting
in a high degree the feelings of wonler
and admiration. Tt is a machine in the
onn of a man, the interior of which is. fully
xhibited to the audience, to satisfy the inrcdulous,
and which holds in its hands, apdies
at proper times to its mouth, and plays
ly lifelike motions the most difficult airs on
?oth the clarionet and cornet-apiston. The
rind is actually blown "through the mouth
>y the aid of bellows in the chest, and the
nstruments are fingered by a perfectly naural
motion through the aid of connections
rith levers placed in the cavity of the body,
rhich are touched by suitable cams on reviving,
cylinders. The figure is about six
eet high, and dressed like a troubadour.?
["he cylinders are changed for each tune, and
>y manufacturing new cylinders an indefiiitc
number of tunes may be performed.?
:'hc springs resemble clock springs, and arc
round up by a stout key. Three cylinders
re required for each tunc, one of which
iperatcs the fingers of the right hand, giving
inch finger a side motion as well as a vcrti:al,
so as to touch two keys; another courols
the fingering of the left hand, and a
bird gives corresponding motious to the holy,
bead and eyes. Although the androides
s said to have occupied six years of the inrenter's
time, and every part of the machiney
is most accurately fitted and beautifully
)olishcd. It plays best on the clarionet at
t hardly blows with sufficient force for the
'oviiet. lh.th the instruments are different
y constructed from the ordinary, although
lie difference is not perceptible on the excrior.
The execution of difficult pieces is
idniirablc, some staccato passages being renlercd
with extraordinary effect by the aid ol
ueehanism in the throat, which gives a fiutcriug
action to the air. The machine hat
)ecn taught Yankee Doodle since its arrival
n this country, but the most of the piece;
dayed are Herman, including a rondo ol
iYebcr, a fantasieeoncertante from the Fries
:lmtz, an introduction with the variations ol
LJcriot, a varied andantino of Dccthovcn
ke.?A". 1. -Tri.bitnr.
-PROCLAMATION.
The following is the Proclamation issued
jy the President on Monday last calling ar
;xtra session of Congress, because of tin
"ailurc to pass the Army Appropriation Rill
By the lWsiddtt of (hf. I n!ted States oj
America.
Whereas, whilst hostilities exist with va
ious Iudian trib \5 on the remote frontiers ol
he United States, -nd whilst in other re peets
the public peace is seriously threaten
id, Congress has adjourned without granting
he necessary supplies fo, the Army, depri
ring the Executive of the power to perform
lis duty in relation to the common defences
lud security, and an extraordinary occasion
ius thus arisen fur assembling the two House?
if Congress : I do therefore, Ly this my
proclamation, convene the said Houses ti
neet at the Capitol, in the city of Washing'
:on, on Thursday, the 21st day of August
nstantj hereby requiring the respective
Senators and Representatives llicu and then
:o assemble, to consult and determine 01
:nr.li iiumcitroc nc llio nf tlio I"ninn mm
seem to require,
in testimony whereof T have caused the
seal of the United States to b(
[j.. s.] hereunto affixed and signed the
same with my hand.
Done at the city of Washington, the lStl
day of August, in the year of our Lore
one thousand eight hundred and fifty-six
and the independence of the United State;
the eighty-first.
Khanklin Pierce.
]>y order :
W. L. Marey, Secretary of State.
? - ? ??
A Warnim; from the Scaffold.?Or
the ? 1st of May, Nicholas (irahani cxpiatcc
. i 1 /? T 1. 1> !_ CI "M
tnc muruer OI oosepu j>rooKs, in r>an rrun
cisco. The following is a part of his dyinj
confession, which is worthy of being read ani
pondered upon :
I acknowledge ray guilt, and the justici
of ray sentence of death. I am satisfied t<
die; I feel that I deserve to die. The fre<
use of spirituous liquors is the cause of nr
coming to this disgraceful end. For the pas
seven or eight years I have worked constant
ly; I have spent all the money that I earnet
for liquor, and have drunk deeply. I writ<
v v -' * - ?
.. N
/
t j this for publication after my death and ii
the notice of my execution and the cause of
s ' the crime for which I suffer, should deter
I but one of my fellow-citizens from following
;; in my footsteps, and induce him to refrain
I from the use of man's greatest curse, (rum)
!! I feel that I have not lived or died in vain.
! My fellow creatures, Jet the voice of a
I man on the brink of the grave be-heard in
i solemn warning against this detestable vice.
; j I know from my own experience, that the
! use of intoxicating drinks is tho cause of the
! arcatcst evils of life.
I _ _
INDIAN FESTIVAL AND FEAST.
U. C. Jone3, in his entertaining "History
of the Juniata V?*iey," gives the sub
. joined account of au unique festival and
: feast, as related by an old- trader, who had
the honor of being a guest of the Red Men
, on the interesting occasion:
Sonic time in the spring of 1850, the old
trader, whose name has escaped our memory,
received a pressing invitation to visit Standing
Stone a day or two before the first full
moon in September, as a grand feast was to
come off at that tinio, which would be attendi
ed by six or eight tribes. The trader, fore1
seeing the chance of brisk barter, brought a
i largo quantity of goods from Lancaster, on
.! pack-horses, and arrived a day or two before
the sports commenced. lie found preparations
made for a large company; and he accordingly
pitched his tent on the hill, while
the wigwams of the Indians stood upon the
flat near the mouth of Stone Greek. Od
the" day on which the feast was to commence,
: the trader was awakcuedatan early hour by
! the loud whoops of the savages nlrcudy ar;
riving to take part in the ceremonies. The
'j day wore on; and when the sun had reachj
cd his zenith, a thousand warriors and their
! squaws, in thier best attire, had gathered
j upon the green sward. At the hour of 12
; o'clock precisely, a chief, whom the trader
supposed to be at least a hundred years of
age, arose from the ground, while all the
vnof rnffiinnrl n nrncQ-lnrrrrr.fl cittmrr nn*fiirn
VOM f-s r r
The trader understood enough of the Delaware
language to ascertain that the feast was
one which took place every hundred moons,
: to render thanks to the Mrhtifon for preserving
them a great people. After congratu:!
lating the different tribes and welcoming
| them to this friendly re-union, an immense
i pipe was brought into the arena, which pasj
sed from month to mouth, each man taking
I but a slight whiff. Of course, the women
i formed the outer circle, and took no further
part in the proceedings than mctely looking
! on. Two half-grown Fads followed the big
pipe with a small bagof Kinnih!n!^nr) and
ever and anon replenished the bowl. This
consumed an hour, during which time there
was profound silence. The old sachem (hen
arose, and said that the balance of the day
would be given up to festivities. The assemblage
broke up into small parties, audas
each tribe had their medioinc-meu, musicians
and prophets along, the turn-turn of the
drum and the wild pliant were soon heard,
and the dusky sons and daughters of the
forest went into tho dance of the gay and
, light-hearted with a thousand times more
; vigor than do the beaux and belles of the
modern ball-room,
i Many of the Indians called upon the tra
der for him ; but notwithstanding that he
; had five kegs of rum, and the most friendly
feelings existed botwecu himself and the
F tribes, he refused to deal. In fact lie did
not consider it safe. The festivities of the
> day and part of the night were kept up with
I dancing, singing, and howling. The next
> day religious exercises followed ; and on the
third a very solemn and impressive ceremony
- , was to take place, to wind up the meeting,
FI at whiclf the trader was urgently invited tu
. : be present, and, in an evil moment he gave
| his consent to do so. Accordingly, he sold
j all of his barrels or kegs of rum, packed up
i the balance of bis goods, and started his
1 : pack-horse train to Aughwiek, himself and
i ! horse alone remaining behind.
; At the appointed time in the evening for
:! the feast, a large fire of ury wood was built,
f! and the savages commenced dancing around
: it, howling, and throwing their bodies into
-. the most violent contortions, first stepping
f three or four feet forward, with the body in
clined in the same direction j then, throwing
the body backward, moving on and keeping
; I time with the drum and the chant. As one
- party got tired or probably roasted out, the)
i danced awav, and another set took theii
;! places. Whey the fire burnt the fiercest,
i! and the lurid flame lit the surrounding hills,
5 j a wild chorus was sung in unison that might
i have been heard for miles. This, the tradei
>' was told, was the loud hymn of adoration.
-' He did not dispute the assertion. The rum
, | he had sold the Indians began to work, and
5' the old fox was enjoying some funny scenes
;; not set down in the bills of the day. Oecai
| sionally a chief, under the influence of the
i iir. irnirr would make a mis-sten aud tramn
i upon the burning coals. To see him quit;
; | ting in a hurry, afforded the trader an in?:
finite deal of amusement. At length the
} | pile was reduced to coals, when an Indian
I brought from a wigwam a live dog, and threw
i [ him upon the burning embers. Another
I ; and another followed, until ten dogs were
, thrown upon the fire. Of course the dogs
> I tried to escape, but the Indians hemmed
them in so completely that this was a matter
of impossibility. They set up a dreadful
howl; but the Iudians drowned the canine
| wail by another stave of the unearthly chorus.
| The odor of the roasting dogs did not 'agree'
i with the trader's stomach, and bidding adieu
I to his immediate acquaintances, he cxpres
sccl a determination to leave for Aughwick.
r! This his friends would not permit, insisting
1 most vehemently that he should see the end
of it. As he had seen considerable fun, he
j thought he might as well wait and see it out,
3 as the carcasses of the dogs would soon be
j consumed. In this, however, he was raiser
taken, for the medicine-men drew them from
t the fire, placed them upon wooden platters,
. and cut them into pieces. Five or six ol
1 them carried them around among the audito2
ry, offering each chief a piece; who not onlj
"v ' > ;
took the dainty morsel, but eagerly ate it.?
' The conclusion of this feast we give in the
trailer's own words :
"At last they came where I was sitting,
among the only sober chiefs of the party.?
The stench of the half-roasted dogs was awful.
One of them came with his trenchei
to me, and offered ir.e a piece?a choice
piece, too, as I was an invited guest, bein^
a piece of the most unclean part of the entrails.
?Thaukee' said I 'I never dine on
dog.' But this did not satisfy them. One
of the prophets, laboring under the effects
of about a quart of my rum, insisted upon
my eating what was offered to me. I again
declined, when one of the chiefs informed
i ii?j. :i 1 c i ._ J i
iiit; Mint 1 L wiiMa very suuruu ICHM, ana uuiettf
I partook of nry allotted portion I should
highly insult the Indians, and that some oi
those intoxicated might deprive me of my
3calp. The thing was no longer a joke. I
seized the piece of dog entrail and put it in
my ruouth, in the hope of spitting it out;
but they watched ine so closely that I was
obliged to screw my courage up to the sticking
point, and witli one mighty-'effort, I
managed to swallow the nasty tit-bit! I did
not wait to witness the end of the feast. I
had reluctantly partaken of iny portion, and
thought I might as well retire. T started in
the direction of Anghwick, and every half
mile I was forced to "cast up my accounts."
I was a much sicker man the next day than
l if I had drank a gallon of my own rum ;
and in all my subsequent dealings with the
Red Men, I took particular cave never again
to be present at any dog feast."
FREMONT'S WEALTH.
The New York Express says that.a note
I for 81,800, dated March, 185G, and drawn
payable to the order of John C. Fremont,
j payable twelve months after date, was offered
j in Wall-street on the 27th ult., to a firm of
; highly respectable brokers, at a discouut of
1 ] per cent, per month, or 18 per cent, per
annum,?that i3 to say, the note of ?1,800
was offered for ?1,467 cash. The holder of
the note was a broker in Wall-street, and is
said to be a Fremont man ! Another note
signed by J. C. Fremont, for ?1,800, payable
four months after date, was offered to
Mr. J. W. C., a highly respectable merchant
of South-street, at 5 per cent, per
month. The notes in both caseB was dej
elined. Yet the gentleman whose notes are
i thus refused and who could not get the money
i on his personal liability to take up sixty
| thousand dollars worth of California State
; bonds is claimed by his friends as a million]
are, has a house in New York, whose furni|
ture is worth several thousand dollars, to say
nothing of his authorized claim upon Mariposa.
There arc other indications, however
than the one above mentioned, that they arc
not very deep soundings in his pooket just
at present, and among these are his own oath,
which may possibly pass for somethihg.?
In the 17th Ward, in JSTcw York city, the
tax assessors have put dowu the value of his
personal estate at $100,000. But any one
so assessed, upou swearing that he is not
worth that amount, before the Tax Commissioner,
may be relieved of the entire assessment
or so much of the assessment levied as
he will swoar he is notworth over and above
bis liabilities. The time when then this
privilege might be exercised this year, expired
on the 25th of June. The day previous
to that, (the 24th,) and a few days after
he had tried his note for the California
bonds, Mr. Fremont appeared before the
j Tax Commissioners, and swore off' the whole
' amount taxed to liiin?8100,000. In othei
! words, he made affidavit that lie was not
worth one cent over and above his debts and
liabilities, and thus he .stands relieved of the
i j 8100,000 which, on the books, he was sd
i ! down as being worth. It would scciu thai
whether he is worth a cent, some of his rei'
cent operations are equally inexplicable, a:
i j consistent with the honor of a gentleman,
though they may be very shrewd and effective
as coming from a politician.
COL. BENTON ON FREMONT.
The Hon. Thos. II. Benton, in a letter
, dated the 10th inst., recommending the
! withdrawal of the Bc-nton election ticket in
. j Missouri, thus refers to Colonel Fremont.
I There is a desigu here, on the part of some,
! to put up an electoral ticket for Fremont,
, i about which no one speaks to me, as 1 have
. j character enough to keep at a distance all
| that class of persons who, dishonorable themi
selves, could approach a man with a dishonj
orable propositions. But my sentiments arc
j known, and that I should "consider such a
| step as injurious under every aspect?nrorti
j fying to Fremont himself from the small
, j vote which the ticket would receive?and
; injurious to the public, by aggravating the
; ! sectional feeling which now arrays each hall
, j of the Union against the other. I was op
, j posing the bringing out of Fremont foi
, nearly half a year before those who charge
. me with promoting it knew of any such de"
sign. There are cases in which public duty
, | rises above personal consideration, though
j there are a great many people who cannot
j conceive it possible. Thus, when I supported
Jackson (with whom I had becu on ill
- terms) thirty years ago, the sordid motive
! of office was assigned for it; now,, when I
; support Buchanan (with whom I am on ill
terms), and support him against a member
of my own family, the same class of persous
i J can sec nothing in it but falsehood and
j treachery. Incapable themselves of any
thing disinterested and patriot'e, they be.
licve others to be equally so, and attack, with
, these motives, all the actions which arc ahove
the comprehension of their political
; morality.
i Staunton, (Va.,) August 14.?A re.
markable occurence took place at the Blue
: Ridge Tunnel last night. The third set ol
. workmen were engaged in digging, as usual,
t when one of them, (Pat. Plagan,) noticed the
, texture of the rock before him changed sud.
f denly from hard to soft and that the soft, wa<
. wet. Shortly afterwards a strpam of watei
r issued from an orifice ho had made. Thif
1 ' ' ' ' * ' ~ ,%i.;
ft 'C; * ' ' f . C *
7
I
- was .succeeded by a heavy, rumbling sound
i 'dike the cars/' which so frightened the
hands that they all made for the open air.
, Well was it for them that, they did so 1?
The sound continued to grow louder and
louder for some minutes, till a crash was
heard, and immediately a vast stream of
water rolled out of the tunnel. An eye-witness
says that the head of the stream was at
least ten feet high, and that it swept carts
and barrows before it like chaff. The stream
continued to pour a perfect river till 12- o'i
i i . i ti 1 l 1 1
i ciock, wnen it graauaiiy suDsiaeu, ana was
luw enough at 3 P. M. to allow us to make
a hasty survey of its cause- It seems that
there is, in the middle of the mountain, an
i immense cavern or pocket, in which water
from the melting snow has been deposited
for years, and that the line of the tunnel taps
this cavern near its centre. The cavern is of
immense extent, and will save the State a
good deal of money since nature has opened a
road through near three hundred feet of solid
rock. This will expedite the completion
of the tunnel greatly; in fact I would not
be surprised if daylight shines through the
mouutain to-day. I do not know' precisely
how much remains to cut. but Colonel Groget
said last week that there remained only
318 feetj and this cavern is certainly 300
' feet wide?probably more. The Col. will*
be greately surprised when he returns. He
did not expect to get through before next
January.
Melancholy Occurrence.?About }
past three o'clock yesterday afternoon Wm.
Krocklebank, a bricklayer, and Stephen, a
fiilnrorl wnrl.-mnn trim wns nqsisfintt him
: fell from the top of an unfinished brick wall,
which was an extension of the Charleston
Bank building, some thirty-five feet, and injuring
themselves seriously, if not dangerously.
It appears that they were working
upon a projecting cornice, and stepping upon
it before the mortar was dry, it gave way,
precipitating them to the pavement below.?
Mr. Brocklebank fell upon the spearheads
of the iron railing which encloses the yard
on State-street, striking one of them with
his left arm, whioh, from the force of the
fall, was entirely severed between the elbow
and the shoulder, the arm falling on one side
of the railing while he fell on the other.
lie seemed perfectly cool and collected^
and with the utmost presence of mind instantly
arose, and after ascertaining the extent
of his injuries, walked immediately off
to Dr. Frost's office, some three squares distant,
where that gentlemau and Dr. J. F.
M. Geddings immediately examined his
wound, and rendered that medical assistance
which his situation required. After which
he was carried to the residence of a friend
in Society-street, where he passed a comparatively
quiet night, and was doing as well
this morning as could-bo expected under the
circumstauoes.? Charleston News.
The Cheat Comet of 1856.?This long
expected comet was seen in the South of
Ireland, on the 30th ult. The Dublin Observer
says:
It had then the appearance of a globe of
i fire as large as a good-sized orange, with, a
, | broad tail of light extending about 18 inch
. cs from the body. The two gentlemen
watched it for an hour, and the watchman
on the weir observed it also. On Thursday
night they all saw it again. It rose a few
moments later, presenting the same appoarmces,
and was high in the heavens at half
past 11 o'clock, when they went home. At
that hour one one of the gentlcmeu pointed
it out to his sister. Last night, from the
[ same place, the same persons again saw it
, rise about twenty minutes before 11 o'clock,
. and then it first occurred to one of them
. (our informant) that it miglit be a comet.?7
lie ceased to watch it about midnight, but
ihe watchman observed it up to half-past 1
o'clock this morning. It did not seem so
large as on the previous 'nights, but far exneeded
the most brilliant form in which the
planet Jupiter has ever been beheld.
Trial of Skill.?A trial of skill be>
twecn two "cracks shots" of our city, came
, off day before yesterday, at the ranch of T.
0. Selby, Esq., below the R. -street^ levee.
The shooting was between Dr. Downes and
| T. 0. Selby, with the Doctor's Wesson rifle
, ?distance two hundred yards, at a target
| of two and a half inches in diameter. They
lired ten shots each. Five <?f Selby's were
. centre shots, and could be covered with a
, dime; the other five ranged from a half to
t three-quarters of an inch from the ccutre.?
. Nine of Dr. Dowries' were centre shots, all
I broken in together, and could be covered
[ iv) tli halt a dollar; the whole ten show could
, he covered with a dollar.
[ This was such shooting as wc never saw
. before, and the marksmen may well be proud
of it. The Doctor has borne the palm for
years as beiDg the best rifle shot in the State,
but Selbv crowds him narrowly, and the fact
that the Rifle was the Doctor's favorite rifle
and new to Selby, gave the Doctor a slight
advantage. The Doctor is ready to challenge
any man or any two men in the State, to
shoot against Sclby and himself any distance
from 100 to 1,000 yards, for a thousand
dollars. We should iike to see the challenge
taken.? California American.
Franklin at the Court oe France.?
In the Memoircs Secrets de Marie Antoinette,
per Madame Campan, is the following
notice of this distinguished philosopher while
at the Court of France:
"Dr. Frauklin appeared at Court in the
1 costume of an American cultivator; his hair
plainly brushed, without powder; liiB round
hat and plain coat of brown cloth contrasted
strongly with the powdered couffures and
the bespangled and embroidered coats of the
f perfumed courtiers of Versailles. His sim,
pie and novel, yet dignified appearance,
i charmed the ladies of the Court, and many
were the fetes given him, not only for-his
3 fame as a philosopher, but in acknowle^gr
ment of his patriotic virtues, whioh led him
i to enroll himself among the noble supporters
* ** c
' \ X y- . '
i jyjWT. 'Art. t cr* -
of the cause of liberty. I assisted at one of
these entertainments, where the most beauti- :
ful from among three hundred ladies was
designated to place a crown of laurels on the
gray head, apd to salute with a kiss* each
cheek of the American philosopher." ,
An Abolition Trick.?It will be recollected
that on Sunday, several week# >
Henry Ward Beecher made an appeal to hs
congregation in favor of what he descnbed;y*.
as "a slave nearly white, named Sarah, who'
was about to be sold by her fatherj. a south-cm
planter, into infamy, for fclhOO." Thfe *"
girl was Bhown, the amount of money fisked
for by Beecfier, was subscribed, and a great -V*
ado over the occurrence was made by all theblack
Republican papers, who took occasion
therewith to denounce the democracy as'being
responsible for the position in yhichthe
or?'rl ttoq nlnoorl Thn (rath nf matter
ft r ; has
at last been brought to light. The New
York News says the whole scene wa'sa jiece
of acting from beginning to'end:,- Sarahi^-v.
a habitue of \v est Broadway or Duane street '
and was hired at ten dollars per week toplaj.>v'^
the vestal. The profits of the show at the
church were shared between the parson and^a
well known dry goods merchant, and par *' .
centage handed over to the 'yallar gal' who
got drunk on the proceeds. Whether Gree-?
Iy, Dana and their confreres shared the or-,
gies is a secret.?[Dct. Free Prrxt.
ScnooL Master Murdered.?an^ttro- ^*
cious murder has just been committed iu
Florence, Alabama. A correspondent of the
Mobile Morning Herald thus furnishes the "
particulars: ' ^V"A
school master had a tame sparrow,
which lie was very fond, and he warned hi* scholars
that if any of them killed it they
should die by his hands. By accident, or
intentionally, one of the boys stepped on"tbi *
bird and killed it. Alarmed at tto-threats. _*
of the master, the boy was afraid to return "
to school; but the master tranqujlized the' *
boy's mind and begged him to come baolr.^ He
did so, and after the lessons were finish-; '
ed, took him into a private room and strangled
him. On the boy's father hearing
had occurred, he loaded his gun, and WC?^
and shot the schoolmaster dead.
The Dead Child.?Few things appear.* -*
so beautiful as a youug child io its shroud.
The little innocent face looks so sobImfcljy-5i? *
simple and confiding amongst the old tei*arsv _ _ .
of de&th. Crimeless and fearless, that lit-;
tie mortal has passed, alone under 'the. shadow.
There is "death in its sublimest and t
purest image?ho hatred, no hypocrisy, no
suspicion, no care for the morrow, ever dar- ~ i
kened that little face. Death has come lovingly
upon it?there is nothing cruel or
harsh iu its victory. The yearnings of love,..
indeed, cannot be stifled ; for the prattle and ?
smile?all the little world of thoughts that
were so delightful?are gone forever. Awe,
two, will overcast us in its presence for the , '
lonely voyage: for the child has gone, sini- ?j
pie and trusting, into the presence of an a% V*
wise Father?and of such, we know, is the.
kingdom of Heaven. 'fi
-
Robbing the Mail.?We learn that a*
mail rider by the name of Currier or. Cajria^y
was arrested and imprisoned in Dallas on . *
Monday last, for robbing the mail'between
Jbiucolnton and Yorkville. He confessed*--.
the fact and told how he succeeded in get? . '
ting the letters out, and that he had purloined
drafts and half notes, which he burnt1?y.
the whole bills he had used. He states that
the mail rider from Lineolnton to .Morganton
had told him he had been robbing the
mail and suggested him to do so too.. The
plan adopted to get the letters?as they had
no key?was to pull the packages between.the
steeples. The other rider has also-been:'
arrested.? Charlotte Whig, Aug ltd 20. -
This Yeaii's Eclipses ?The Cincinnati
Eoquirer thus serves up politics and afctrononiy.
''There are to be six eclipses this-yeat-r-.
two of the sun, two of the moon, oneT&Cthe* g
know nothings, and one of the black repub-,
licans. The last two will be total. In fact
neither body will ever make its appearaneffagain.
The eclipse of the black republicans-will
only be visible in the northern states,
that body never having beeu seen in the *
south. It can be seen without the aid of '
smoked glass. This eclipse will commence
on the morning of November 4th, contihu;
ing during a greater nart of the "day,, reaching
the point of total obscurity about sunset, . . A*
at which time the democracy will shine ont >
in its fall^glory."
Singular if True.?The annexed paragragh
we fined in several of our exchanges.
It requires a slight stretch of ordinary credulity,
to appreciate it: . /
. "A farmer in Lincoln county, Tcnn., a
few days ago, while plowing, hisEorse and ^
plow sunk and dissappeared in the earth, aiid :
left a hole to which no bottom has yet been
found, "in which the farriier himself came
near falling. His neighbors were called" to
the place, who, by means of rops let him
down in search of the horse and plow, to
the depth of thirty or forty feet, but the
further he went the larger the hole appeared,
and he called to his friends to puli 'him.
un. which thev did." - .
Taking Care of Number one.:?The
members of the Thirty-Fourth Congress,
have voted themselves and saccessore^saja.; ?
ries instead of per diem pay. The .Senate
bill giving $2,500 per annum' was-aniMifded
on Friday night last in the HqpM7"hjp>oi:
creasing the sum to $3,000a year,^ducting
for voluntary absence* dwjpg The session,
and giving no. books except those printed by
Congress.sin this form it passed the House
by 101 to-07^and was at once sent to the
Senate, and there passed by a vote of 27 to
12; The bill applies to the present Congress,
the per ^dienikr of-which for this session, amounts
to. about $2,000 over and above the
fonper pay of $8 per day for each member.