Abbeville press. (Abbeville, S.C.) 1860-1869, August 16, 1867, Image 1
i.
&. 4
BY W. A. LEE AND HUGH WILSON. ABBEVILLE
LIFE AT THE POLE.
Tho bears, wandering continually
through the night, must ncodH have a
1 1 .1 t_ 1 A i: T v il. .
uuru sirugtjio tw iivo. j/unng mc
summer, tbo sculp, which furnish their
only subsistence, crawl upon the ice
and aro easily caught; but in tbo
winter they only resort to the cracks
10 ureatne, ana in uoing bo, uareiy
put thoir noses above tho water, ho
that thoy are taken with difficult}*.
Driven to desperation by hunger,
tbe bears often will invade the haunts
?.r it,.. i.
vi iui?uj tti ouaibu wi iuu iwvvt
their quick some has dotcelcd.
I had an adventure,about this lime,
which shows that the Polar bear is
not ho ferocious as is generally sup
posed; indeed, they huvo never been
known to attack man cxcept when
hotly pursued and driven to close
quarters. Strolling, ono d:iy, along
^ 1 -I t _ - * - ?
iiiu huuro, j. w:iM ouHurvuig, wiui mucu
interest, tho effect of the reccnt spring
tides upon the ice loot-, when rounding
a point of land, 1 suddenly found myself
confronted iu tho Jaint inounliirht
by an onormo s In-ar. Jle had just
sprung down from the land ioo, nnd
was meeting mo at a full trot. We
caught sight of each oilier at the same
instant. Being without, a rifle or
other means of def < bo, 1 wheeled
euddouly to the ship, with, I fancy,
much the same reflections about discretion
and valor as those which
crossed the mind of old Jack FnlsiufV
vrhen the Douglass Bet upon him ;
but finding, after a fow lengthy strid cfl,
that I was not gobbled up, 1 looked
back over my shoulder, when, as
tnuch to my surprise as gratification,
i hiw iuo uear tearing away to Kurd
?tho open water with a eeloril3* Mhich
Jell uo douhl as to tlie elate of liis
1 suppose it would bo <1 Hiculi
to determine which wjs tiio Jir?Kt
brightened?the hear or I.
TIlO trOODS of fuxus alinnl in wi>rt>
? __ '
at first quite tamo; but I hey b:.u brcn
cured of their familiarity by the lis?ons
lcarucd from tho hunters, ni.d
,hud to be approached with a-iivmneis.
(Of both tho blue and while varieties
,1 had living spcciiuenH in my cabin.
These two varieties of the fox. not
xWitbslauding their many points of
.resemblance, are evidcutally distinct
species. I bavc known thorn to mix,
the coat of each preserving its distinctive
hue, that of tho bliio fox varying
merely iu distinctive bhudc, while
<tho white changes only from the pure
white to a slightly yellowish tinge.
Thftir Kk'iim nv? mucli ur.iw.lit l.?r
* e>"*" "J
fa the trappers of South Greenland,
avhcro tho animal is rare, for tho fur
command# a fabuluuB prieo in the Copenhagen
market.
Tho touffli. nearlv hfiirlosn <->f
the Great Sea Lions, which aro about
41 u inch thick, had a bingularly iron?
?>l^tod look about thorn, particularly
euggcstivo ol dufensoj while their
liug? ,busks, which they brandished
within ajjpoaranoo of strength that
their awkwardness did not diminish,
looked like very formidable weapons
.of offense if applied to a boat' splanking
or to tlio human ribrf, if one
should happen to find himself floundering
in tho Boa among tko thick
ekinned brutes. To complete tho
^jidoousncss of a facial expression
which the tusks render formidable
enough in appearance, nature had
An/)AiitA<l 4 1?/*??? ?* !?!- I- - - -1/*
jeiiuvneu inoui ?? ILIJ Ul'UtlU llill HOSC8,
vJbieh a*e covered all over wilh stiff
whiskers, looking very much liko
porcupine quills, and extending up to
tfco edge of a pair of gaping ivostrils.
The use oi these whiskers is as ob.
eonro as that oi tho tusks ; though -it
is probable thatlho latter may bo as
iweli weapons of oflfanso and deffenso
ab for the most use." il purpose
of grapping up from tlio bottom of
tboBca tbo mollusks which constitute
, their principal food. Thero were
two old bulls io tbo hord, who appeared
to bo dividing their time botween
sleeping and jamming ti^eir
tuaks in eaoh other's faces, although
they appeared ,to treat tho matter
mth.perfeot indifference, as tbey did
not appear to cnuke any impression
An aonk nfKait'a 41*It:A
v_.vayu K?UW? o VUIVK U1UCB. AH WO
approached, thcso old follows?neither
of which could havo been loss than
ixteen foot long, nor smaller in girlh
* than a hogsheud?raised up their
heads, and, after taking a loisaroly
arvoy of us, seemed to think us un
j worthy of furthor noticc; and then
punching each oilier again in the face,
fell onco moro to sloop.
As wo jog on toward spring, cacl*
hour of tho nix months' darkness
grows a little longer, and soaks a lit 11o
1 _ ? / il . 1.1 1 ? i
uiuru cuiur nuiu iiiu uiuuu, uuu laiCOB
ulitllo moro (foin tho elasticity of the
step, and ds a littlo moro to the
lengthened lace, and checks, littlo by
little, tho cheerful laugh and merry
jest that came from tho hold and cab!
in; and, without boing willing to con|
fess it openly, yet wo aro all forced to
j acknowledge) to ouraolvoa that tl?o
j enemy doea now ami then got the
I hotter ot us, and that we have often
' to renew the resolution. The Jmoon
. light comos and goes again, and the
j nightglistens clear and cold over the
j wbito landscape; and memory returns
unbidden, to other days that
arc lied and gone; wo miss, in the
sparkling air and the Ktill hour of the
winter night, the jingling bells, and
tho sleigh which will always hold one
: more, and the wayside inn, and the
| smoking supper that "mino host"
| serves up, and the crackling blazo of
vt'uimy ; wm men, wiicii wo iur'
got llio moon and tho Know, and tho
frost, and recal the suminor and tho
.sunshine, wo remember that "tho seat
in the shade of tho hawthorn hush" is
I far away.?Dr. Hayes* Open J'olar
j Sea.
HOW OLD WE ABE 1
The Ihoor}', or discovery, as tbo
claim now stands, is being vigorously
1 pushed that man is a veritable "antique."
llo lived not only thousands,
| but hundrcd.s of thousands tf years
' ago, and 6o of course, tbo Bible nar
1 ?alive crumbles in utter ruin*; in fact,
everything built upon a Scriptural
i underpinning toilers and lulls. A
j Kt'l stale of tilings truly. To be uurc
} we might Mipposo tliut the ^rc:it geolo?ril!;il
Otmclis. kiu-Ii ;i>s tl.n <rhi?.iol
O "I* J
' perioJ, the timed when sundry uncouth
aniin: Is of iiiconvcniont wizo
might lmvo rendered human lifo rather
problematical, when vcgotalion
was a little too raiik for easy or
i healthful digestion, when mud and
: water were too deep even for long
lopped bools, (and Goodyear did not
live at that early date), when heat
put matters generally into a molting
mood, when all things mundano were
cooking in a i?rologicnl porridge, that
i tin.-jo would sadly ii.toileio with liui
....... i;r-? -i .i.~ i...* -
I ?.iw VII 1(1 o i;|*'UU ? UUb UUl lill ?
I . ...
! lliiisiiislic anliquuries hkip Kuoh lili
tlo items as of no consequoneo.
Tim fumnilQ Su'iuu lnl?n_il
have furnished excellent cnpilal for
thoso theorists. Tho dwellings ore
i truly remarkable, and from their poj
silion, character, and surrouudingB,
it is doubtless corrcet to ascribe to
j them great antiquity, but tliu groat
: question is, do they belong to what
' ??.?<*
til u vuuvu V'liinbWIIU tlKUUO ^ UWUW
! their existenco prove conclusively
j that man lived long holbre tho coinI
in only received record? Very plaim:
ible arguments were early brought
' forward in support of this theory,
i and for a tinio tho advocates had it
; all their own way. But the tido of
I ovidoneo is turning, and tno latost
j and most accurato investigation tend
in othor directions.
The London Quarterly, in a recent
' number, sums up tho main issues pre
; Henfed bjf tho facts contained in the
; most rocent and rcliablo works on
this interesting subjcct. Tho conclusions
reached aro briefly these. Who*
evor these Jako-dwollers were, they
continued to occupy their settlements
j in times which aro strlckly historical,
I and Uiobo settlomonts wore permaj
rnont. ' Thoy aro not all of tho same
I flrfl. AAfl fJiA orhl ifn n ? /! ?
I theory of a Btono, a bronzo and an
iron ago, following oach other in the
construction of thoso buildings, and
in the knowledge and attainments of
the inhabitants, is clearly refutod.
But the most important conclusion
reucfiod is that therp is no scientific
compulsion which insists upon a very
enormous antiquity lor the lake>4wollings.
Man and mammals. may have
co-oxisted, but if tbey did. thore is
another explanation of the phenomenon
tban that which carries man back
into the dim past a hundred thousand
years. A more scientific solution is
that the mammals are of raoro recont
[ dato than has been supposed, that
] their day and generation must be
I brought lower down, and not that tiio
human poriod inunt bo pushed further
back. Tro3*on pays in hia work,
-jjuu ii no wen unuoih'.ocki, mon, iliat
tho stone ago, tho relics of which aro
discovered in tho lakes and in tho
graven is recognizcd in this work an
huusuquuiiL 10 mo :uosaic uciugo."
It is gratifying to find tho indcpencnt
rcHcarclics of eciontificmcn reachI
ingsuch conclusions, and \vc can well
' .'lfVnfd In \i-nil fiif cr>ii>iili(!n !>.? </> l.U...
, ?. W .T ?. V .W. .IVIVO VIWV * 'fS lV W'VVV
i away. Wo liavo no sympathy with
j ihosu who fear that modern tricnco
! will overthrow tho teachings of the
j liible. The iiiblc can Bland tho tc.st
i una win not lull. lid investigation
; bo pressed in every conccivable direcj
tion, tho nioro tbo better; truth will
j ultimately triumph,
"The eternal years of (?o<l nrc here
| seicnce will be found to harmonize
i with (jod'K written word, and hken
! lies and fal.su theorists will ho ullcily
! confounded in tho result of their own
; studies, for they will find that after
| all, they have been unconsciously and
| unintentionally working for his glory
i f.>r the establishment of his truth,
' the progress of his cause. It is eon
j Htn.iitly hnpprning that wo arc a.stoni
ibheii by j-omc discovery, some theory
i by which tlic Bible and man's rclai
lion* to his Creator arc to ho set
: aside as absurdities, but thus far thoy
j have all omc to nought, and God's
I word still stands. NVo welcome,
j therefore, every investigation into the
! IiiihllMI tllillf'M ?f illlwiii.rh ??-n
I rr> ? "v
| fi-cl thut ibcre in u limit, to buman
i study and curiosity, und thai ollen- .
i tivnes il will be found tbat "Ilia ways
j are past titiding out."?Cony and Jicc.
_
| AfANAUKMKNV Of Cr.AI'K VlNES.?
I Wc would here remind thoso who are !
! growinj.' grapes, llmt this is the proper i
; season u? lay down long branches fjr !
: producing future plants, as has been !
; ho often u-commcndcd in this paper. J
i I taUud a number of tfwoso hist season, t
1 and was surprised al the vig^r of the
plants thus grown, and the closo mat
i of fibrous loots. Without any desire
I to spoil the trade, 1 must say that 3*011
j seldom get such plants out of a nurI
scry as you can raise yourself. Pin a
' 1 - 1 1- -1
| ivMig Uium.il uuwil 1DIO U HUUilOW |
i trench, und when till the buds have I
1 in ado a growth of several inches, j
; gradually Jill the trench up wilh earili, |
! checking, by pinching, any disposition
| of some shoots to outgrow the others.
; 1 agree with B. F. J. in thinking
: that we imitate European practice too
j closely in cultivating the grape. Ea?
I pecially do we plant too near, and thin
i and prune altogether too much. Wo
j don't make allowance enough lor the
difference in tlic climate. liere we
; tjiubl have shade and a plenty oi loli|
ago to maintain a heaithy equilibrium
I with the root ; there it. may not be of
i ho much importance. 1 always leave
three times as much wood as the
books direct, and ii' the crop of fruit
tflll 'llMPU il /lilt 'I1"" ? -
j j t.uii? if wu w. X U111J
yoars ngo wo could easily grow grapes
by plan ling at the foot <>1" large trecH,
and allowing the vines to ran all over
them. A friend grow greatquanthier
of Catawba and Isabellas in this way
and yearly got two barrels to tho \int
of what 1 then thought was tho finca!
anu cuojcest, iruit I evor miw. TIicho
vines are long since dead, winter-killod.
Now wo are obliged to cover our
plants every winter with earth, ovon
ua tar fcoutb us St.- Louis, and are
luclcy if wo get seven or eight poundB
of fruit whoro wo onco got fully ono
hundred pouDds with much greater
i cnso. .J?von with tboso drawbacks,
growing the. grapo is the most profitable
branch of Agriculture that wo
tywo, and lor more than a hundred
miles on tho Mississippi rivor bunks.
* * -f
it is tho most certain crop that is
raised.?li. T.f Country Gent.
In the midst of a stormy disensBion
a gentleman rose to settlo tbo
matter in dispute. Waving his hand
majestically over tho excited disputants,
ho began : "Gentleman, all I
want is common eenso." "Exactly,"
Jorrold interrupted, that is precisely
what yon waotl" Tho discussion'
was lost in tho burst of laughter.