The telescope. (Columbia, S.C.) 1815-1818, April 09, 1816, Image 1
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H'lUMMI WIIKMT
BY THOMAS W>liORHA!N,
TWO DOOM IHLOW rn% ?A*K, am *k*t Aaoraeaavax'a,
. mutT.
7Vrm? if SubtrrJptim.?Tktt* Dollars per annum, pay.
able in advance,.,.No paper to be discontinued, but At
the option o^O* Editor, until ?U arrearages are paid.
A<h*tit?cmnu not exceeding- fourteen line#, inserted
. theArsttitno Ibr ierenty-five cents, and f*ty oamufcr
**ch subsequent insertion? and in the at. ?:* proportion
fbr a larger nurolter oT lines. <
magasaa^ms^a^sssBSBB^aamssssBttaamgBm^i
ReligioiiH Intelligence. .
IXTKRR8TIN(; JOUII.VKY i llltOUGlt ICP.LAND.
, We have before mentioned (says the Connec
ticut Courant) tlut the Rev. Bbeneser Henilor
Ron wad employed Iff the British and Foreign
Bible Society in the summer of 1814t to diatn*
but? 10,000Bibles and Testaments among tlte
destitute inhabitants of Iceland. The following
interesting* account which he givea of his jout ney,
we know will bo gratifying to our readers.?It
is dated' ?
Icebmd, Bcpt. 25, .1814.
I proceeded oh my voyage to tliip place where
I arrived on the 13th July. The prospects be.
fore mo were of the most cxhilirating nature.?*
Our vessel, instead of proceeding on any preda
tory or murderous expedition, was freighted
with a cargo of provisions for the necessitous in
habitants of Iceland?grain, and other articles
for the sunport of temporal life, and the glorious
Gospel of the blessed God, which is the germ
and stall* of spiritual existence. I could not
help appropriating to the situation in which I was
placed, and the object I had in view, the follow
ing beautiful lines of Cowper:
"Soft ah* and gentle heaving* of tlte waro
Impel the fleet, whose errand la to save,
lo succour wasted regions, and replaco
I Ik; smile ofopulcncc in sorrow's face ?
l*t nothing adrerae, nothing unforeseen,
!mpc<lc lhe b<uk thn ptogft, the <|?en serene,
Charged with a freight transcending in its worth
The gems of India, nature's rigbct birth?
i liawlirs Uke Oahriel on his Lord's commands,
A herald of (tod's love to Pagan lands/*
The conclydln* epithet, however, doea not
apply, for fropialf that I have vet been able to
learn, there are more marks oi religious disposi
tion, directed towards the proper object of wor
ship, among the Icelanders, token as a body,
than among any other people.in Europe.
Immediately on my arrival, I waited on His
hop Vidilan, and delivered the letter of intro
duction with which I was favored from Bishop
Muciiter. lie received mo in the most affecti
onate manner, expressed his warm approbation
of the object of iny visit, and assured me of his
readiness to render me every assistance in his
power, in the adoption of the most eligible
means for the-mM* andproportionate distribu
tlon af the Scriptures/ fie confirmed the ac
count wo had already Weived, respecting the
Extreme want of that treasure on the Island, and
the ardent desire which the Icelanders have to
read tho Bible.
Mr. Magnussen, tho Dean of Iceland, inform
ed me, that so ardent was the desire of the peo
ple among whom he had distributed and sold co
pies of the New Testament, which were sent
over from Copenhagen two years ago, that they
would have paid double the price, had it only
been possible to obtain them.- When at his
house, ho shewed mo a Bible, which at oncc
Sroved ilie scarcity of tlie Holy Scriptures and
le estimation in which thev arc held uy the Ice
landers t it was one of tho iTolio editions, a great
part of which had been devoured by the tooth of
time, but the defective pages had all been neat
ly pasted in, and the text supplied in tho most
accurate manner. The hand was such ns would
have done honor to any writing master in Eu
rope. I asked the Bean if it had been written
by a Clergyman or a Schoolmaster ? You
may jwdgo of my surprise, when I was informed
it wax dune by u common peasant, and such in
stances are by no means unfrenuent among them.
I left this plarn, t>n the 06th of July, in com
panv v Ith a Danish officer, who has been seve
r"'. Jr,ar? employed in surveying tho Island.?
Alter passing through two parishes, each of
which contained only three or four Bibles, we
came to a desert, through which we travelled
five successive day* no we were ngain gratified
with a view of the habitations of men. The road
was cheerless and gloomy ; scarcely a pile of
grn-s to relieve the eye, or the note of a Wrd to
please the ear. However, I wan rendered in a
great measure unconscious of the tediousness
?"? fatigues of the journey, by the agreeable
conversation ?f lny fellow-traveller, and especi
ally bv meditating on the sublime and interest,
ing tenths contained In the Dihle, and anticipa
tiiin the delight I should feel in the distribution
of such copies of that Messed book as it had been
in in%y power to enrry with me. Nor was I dls
ap|H*inted in my cxnertafion*. On descending
Iroin the mountains into the tx-aiitiftil Valley of
oIKvaflord, which licsdirectly in tho heart of
the North Country, w? pitcheil our tent* close
by the first farm-town that lay in the way. No
ver shall I forget tlit pleasure* that evening af.
lorded, * ho news of my having coming to the
"d w'*h Jlibles was no sooner spread than I
w?s surrounded by cronds, who manifested the
s rongest desire oi receiving an immediate sop
/r ? I hail with mo were design*
f,|0r ,ftn?ples rather than siipplviug tho want*
1 ii lT?P i net lmrf w,tl' ?"'?re than
'? IJible and two New 'I extaniciits, the latter
f T' 1?*)* two poor families in the
nif. ' ?l , the receivers wn? a youn#
J' . ,' * ratted to tvad the third chapter of
John to the people, who sat on tho grass before
XL;TJ'r!"? npy *w? n.e
nfiat- I end on my remarking,
u!.!I .V ? , ^nportant the subjects
?? i reid, thev were unaiii
?Pf>Mcnt, and related their wish to
a Bible or Ncn- Testament cnch.
fwm fteriftovd,, .
coast to,this place,^i*itir
Mid spreading the iotelli^
the Scriptures. The want
lame is, on the whole lamehtably
inertia the North told me. he hauc
r dollar* for * cop/, but the indi
It would on no eccopnt pert wltl
it I fell in with a clergyman, wl
been seeking In vain to obtain a
long period of Mwnteft yeere I '
ai^al was inexpressible. I pes
a perish, lately in which there a_,
bles I and another'considerably more,
in which there are none at m. In w
there are not above fire or Six in any'
which t hate visited, except such accent
twcen 300 and 400 souls, and in them there aire
not more than ten or twelve copies* % i
From the above, you will be able to
how very opportunely the present supply cam
to the Islanu. How opportunely did I say P?1
should rather have said how InU * for it is no*
more tl^an fifty years since the last supply Of
Bible* enme to Iceland. It gives me pU'asuif
to add, that the desire of the Icelanders is eqt
to their great and urgent necessity. Where*
I have come, 1 have been welcomed as an aity,.
fVom heaven, and 1 have scarcely left a sinal*
cottage without being followed by the bcneutcjr
lions of its inhabitants. Many are the inquiries
tliat have been put to me by the common pcopU
respecting the good people in tingiamf, whi
have thus furnished tliein with the beat of books,
'11 ley have also oftau asked me, whether " old
King George,V and Sir Joseph lt&nks, be still a*
live r and whether it were the King that sent
them the Bibta ? To prevent all political mis?
conceptions, A told them, that were King George
in full poe^ ision of his health, I was certain
every otner in wnten u was .
that its publication originated solely in love to
man. UHKhti.iieh.Ar It was not confined to1
England, but was every
quarter of the world, " ltis the word of God,"
was the reply they frequently gave i and their
acquaintance with the general contents of Scrip
ture,-notwithstanding its scarcity,. ;#! often
manifested by their quoting or alluding to eome
passage relative to the generali/ationpijif
the knowledge of the Lord in the latter days
upon the eartli. The Intelligence quite electrto
fled such as were waiting for the kingdom of God.
It was peculiarly gratifying to me to behold!
the anxiety tliey discovered for their children i
one peasant to whom I Hold a Bible, requested
also to have a copy of the New Tc?tamcnt for
each of his six children i and being obliged to
be put off till next year, when a supply may be
expected <br that qunrtwr, it was with illfllculfy
i could escape takiug the price then, that lie
mi;*ht bo sure of them on then* nrrlvni.
I arrived hero on the 20th instant. Many
were the ncriU to which I was exposed, but out
of them ail the Lord delivered me. I had to
I miss upward* of sixty rivers oh horseback, some
of which especially tlioso in the vicinity of Yo
kuls, or tho snow and ico mountains, are reckon
ed very dangerous | my confidence was in the
Lord, who caused me to experience the fulfil
ment o? that promise: " yVIioii thou paaseat
through- the waters. I will be with thee, and
through tKo rivers, they ahajl not overflow thee."
During the two ntonthsl was on tlie journey, it
wasbutaeldom tliat I slept in any House. My
tent was my home', which like the Patriarchs of
old, 1 removed from place to place ; and 1 have
conceived such a liking to that oriental modi of
life, that I cannot half feeling somewhat out of
my element, now I am again confined to ft. room, j
SPREAD OF ClilUSTIANITY. |
Rome. Jan. IB.-?The congregation of Foreign
Miwsions, labours witli the greatest real to re
establish its relations with the various parts of
the world. One of the must happy results un
doubtedly is the spocial protection which it*
members have obtained from China and Abyssi
nia, They writo from Pekin, that the Emperor,
having obtained a report from tho tribnnal of
worship of the sentences passed against tho Je
suits, wrote at the bottom of the report, with his
red, or indelible pencil, " Let the Edict of the |
II th January, 17*24, cease to be a law of the Em
pire. There is only one Ood and thisOod can
not lie offended with the diversity of names
which are given to him." Any tiling written
with the red pencil can never lie recalled : lie-1
creew in other colours may l>e altered.
According to thiH Imperial decision, the Edict
OfTolcrntion of the Oreat Emperor Kang-Ili of
\77ii and that of 1711, have been again tran
scribed from the tribunal of Kites, and transmit*
ted. sealed with the great seal, covered with
{'ellowMitin, to Don Oat|>aed delta Cruce, a
'ortugucrfe. It is remarkable that it was a Do
minican of thiH name and of the same nation,
who, in 1.1.10, was the first to introduce the
Christian IMigion into China.
Nothing can bo more agreeable to the Court
of Home than to see the (.ntistiau religion intro
duced into so extensive an Empire ns that of
China, at a period in |mrticulur when most of
tho Princes of Europe, by proclaiming the tole
ration of religion in countries cMHcntinlly Catho
lic, seem to slacken the ties which united them
to tliw Holy See.
Hi* llolineM received with the most lively
joy, this pleading intelligence. Father dells
Critce had the honor to be presented to his Emi
nence the Cardinal Secretary of State, along
with tho four novice Chinese Jesuits, who were
conducted to tho Audience Chamber by M.
Coticellieu. Director of the Propaganda. We
are a?sured that tin* Edicts of thu Chinese Em
peror reached our Court through the Portuguese
Ambassador. Twelve Jesuits will be rent to
China in Spring. His Holiness has addressed
j?f felicitation to the fcroperor of China to,
W?? iAVe art even aNurtd that a Bull
^ disoiplinu of the
j ?*
Y'i' % riiOM tnk l6?son ?u>ii or >am. IV.
muona^ute. a w
A most intelligent correspondent Km favored
us with, the subjoined letter from St. Helena,
describing the behaviour of Buonaparte since his
arrivaljthere with a minuteness and accuracy
which tenders hi* communication unqueatlona
Irfjr tlie best which we have seen on this interest*
ing subject. We make no apology* therefore,
for laying it before our readers s many of whom
will doubtless be delighted to learn, that Bona*
parte has at length began to feel a small i>ortion
of those privations and sufferings which, in the
course of his famous and wicked life, he has
wantonly heaped upon millions!
? 8t lletcru, Nov. 20, 1815.
My last letter apprized you of our arrival
here with Napoleon^-his being safely housed on
shore, amongst a raco of people whose suqn-tse
and consternstjon at the arrival of such a visitor,
could only be c(|uslled by their desire tosrehim.
" The topography of St. Helena must be m et
ty well known in England by this time, i liavfc
only to remark that the imagination of man could
not picture a hiore n.Jious aspect titan it* ex
ternal front. It is accessible towards the south
from a perpendicular face and an eternal trade
wind, which.nine mouths of the year would de
ny a shelter for a skiff in the only rocky little
bay in that direction. On the north side, where
ships anchor, there are several ravjueB or cliffs,
with the marginal rocks rising perpendicularly
one thousand feet. With the exception of a
rippling rill of water, and a few water cresses
(uie only inhabitant of theso dreary defiles) the
surface is mouldering lava. Ono of these ra*
vines, inconsequence of its having become the
| habitation of a man. has assumed Hie name of
James's Valley. From the beach onwards as far
as th6 gully will admit, a row <>f tolerable hou
ses have bccu built, principally for lite accom
modation of passengers on their way to India.
The>ock4 which form the Inlet are equally s\u
jicmlous ns the others. The labor of age's Has
'"isned a path on each side to reach the
The interest excited on approaching
tful Island may be better imagined than
' 1 Watched with eager curiosity the
; Individual whose days were con
signed to dwindle here. Made iiertrond, with
streaming eyes, begged roe to look at it and pity
htr > she cast her eyes on her husband, then on
* 6r child ton.who were innocently playing on
ta quarter ueck?-seemed to say, am I at last
?vtlned tb this P Napoleon eyed it with forti
tude, his look, his manner spoke it a place more
damuable than lie bargained for. Anxious a?
he was to get on shore, he did not quit uh for a
couple of daysj and when ho did, 1 positively
saw regret Pictured in his faco. The last word
he uttered happened (from my being near him)
to be addressed to me i the Admiral and Cap
tain were at the jtanxwaV<?-Uarffe in waiting;
Iluonaparte hurried along"the <juartcr-<Jcck from
the cabi n, wrapped up in a white great coat. Ah
he passed he bowea. JMy eye, I do think.
?p?ke pity, fur it met hit, and he hastily asked
irl continued on board ? It was night before
he reached his house in the village. Still there
were many spectators whom lie was particular
ly anxious to avoid. At dawn the follov
he rodo out with 8ir (Jeot-ge Cockburn to exa
mine tlie situation of his future residence.?
Longwood Is distant five miles from tho village
and elevated above it 2000 feet, exactly ten de
grees difference of tempcraturo from that at the
surface of'die ocean. The interior of the island |
is certainty lep? offensive to the eye than what I
its exterior would promise. Perhaps if one j
would draw * comparison hot ween what tho is
land promises On approaching from the sea, and
what is found on taxing a ride through the coun-1
try, one would be tempted to say many spots
me beautiful. *H has been in this way that the
people who have written of Ht. Helena have
judged of it. Napoleon* on his first day's ride
(for he has nottaken a second) apoke in very un
favorable terms of the place ana said, every de
scription we had given nim to read of this island
was exaggerated. On descending the mountain,
on his return to the village, he stowed at n smal'
house called the Briars, situated ffn a projecting
rock, midway from tho summit^ Hero lie re
quested permission to stop, and front which he
lias not strayed one hundred yards since the
hour no took possession. Nature and art have
done something for this spot. The lava has be
come soil, and the eyo is relieved by a snot of
venture exceeding two acres. There Is there a
garden with fruit trees?a rill of water gurgling
by i and lluonuparte and his friend Las Cassiu,
here contrive to pass their solitary time. He is
perfectly excluded from the ga/.e of the nublic,
which was |>crhups a principal reason for his se
lecting this spot until the repairs of Longwood
were fmihhcd.
441 must now introduce you to the inhabitants
of this an me Briars?this half aerial habitation of
the fallen Napoleon. Mr. Ralcom, a native of
Kngland, long resident in the island of 8t. He
lena, n merchant of the place, and contractor
for the navy, is tho proprietor of tho Hriars.??
lie has resided there for many years with his
family, consisting of his wife, an intelligent wo
man, and two dauuhters, both extremely welf
educated, anil under the age of seventeen.
Ilalcom's house in mo extremely small that there
are scarcely apartment** capable of accommoda
ting his family. He has an out .house, fanciful
ly constructed, on a little eminence overlook
ing the valley. This Huonaparte chose for
breakfast room, dining room and parlour. Hi*
camp bed lia<* been conveyed there from Mie
Northumberland, and there is he contented y>
ruminate the live long day, on the awlul occur*
rences 6f hi* unexampled career. This apart*
meat of the miahty Napoleon terminates in it*
top in a li^le Uothick garret (whero I declsre
to you 1 cannot turn rouud.) There renideatlio
Counsellor of State, Co into La? Cassas accom
panied by hi* son, a page of,the Ex-Emperor's,
sgedobout sixteen, snaring the lone couch of
his father. I have repeatedly thought it my du
ty to pay my respects to tne fallen Emperor
since n* took up his residence at the Briars,
more especially as the visits of strangers aradis*
approved of by him, and demi-ofRcislly forbid
den by his Excellency Sir George. From the
facility with which 1 gain admittance to his pre
sence* I am disposed to 4hlnk the attention not
unacceptable. From the variety of paters I see
scattered about on Kb toliet, and tlie .hours
which he Is closetted with Las Cassas (a man of
uhcommon talent) 1 am inclined to think ho is
busied either in drawing up a remonstrance to
the British government, or writing a history of
his own life. Ilis hours of recreation are gene
rally from twelve till two o'clock. He peram
bulates the little garden, mid is invariably join
ed by the young ladies, daughters of thu proprie
tor. Both sneak French, and 1 am satisfied
they afford him very givat consolation. When
1 last saw him he was reclining on a sofa, and I
thought him moro than usually slovenly. How
ever, lie had just left the girls, when I learnt ho
had been very spruce j and when 1 entered his
apartment, he was, without ceremony, clad in
his morning gown, without shirt, neckcloth, or
breaches.
44 Marshal Bertrand, the Countess, General
Montholon nud Couycr, inhabit a house in the
town where 1 daily visit. They are full of
trouble. From the nabits of lifo they have been
accustomed to, all are inclined to launch out in
to extravagance?however, the Admiral is an e*
conomist, and this system of retrenchment ap
pears to give great dissatisfaction. Napoleon
takes every thing as ho finds it j however, the
complaints of his followers have met his ears,
and lie has solicited permission to provide for
them himself. Ho is unwilling that either the
one or the other should in any aliape be a burden
to the British government, and he is equally
hurt that their comforts should be in any shape
abridged. The best tiling Napoleon can do is to
acta wife. Unless influenced by some fair
damsel of the Island, 1 fear he will become care
j less of his jrerson. lie asked me one day if 1
did not think a wife necessary for a man's
I health? 1 presume he meant to say, the so
ciety of a lady would much contribute to the
happiness of man. He has a little abrasion on
the fore arm, which is attended with contiderar
bio Inflammation | his application is a liaWsatt
dissolved In water, with which he continues to
bathe the place. He has his little dinner sent
into his bed-room, where lie partakes of it with
covered (by the arch youngest lass) he laujrhs
immoderately.
44 The rigor with which it is now deemed ne*
cessary to treat this pest to civil society, must ill
suit his former elevation. The probability of
escane is ao absurd, that you would.imagine a
small degree of relaxation fair. Ho, no.?Na
poleon hM a csptain and two orderly serjeants
residing #ith him, who never permit him to pass
the threshbld of nit hut without accompanying
his steps, THie ha thinks severe, and Iiok, at
last, solicited a favor, to have tho two soldiers
removed, as their presence had a tendency to
remind him of his misfortunes t or if they wet o
tho't indispensable, to clothe them differently.
Although 1 Imvo this from unquestionable au
thority, 1 can scarce think Buonaparte would
condescend so far as to supplicate or complain.*'
SUMMARY OF FRENCH NKW8.
There had been somo commotions at Lyon*
and other towns in the interior) many arrest*
hail taken ulace, and depots of ariUsdfscovcrnd.
'Hi? Abbe Sieves, according to the law of am
iictity, had left France* Oon. Lavalette was
supposed to Ims in Kngland. A Hen. Lavallo
was arrested neat* Lyons and lent to Paris, be
ing mistaken from his name for Lavalette. The
King had ventured to the opera, the first tliea
tro m which he has shewn himself sincu his ie
turn. The royal family of Portugal^ was ex
pected to return to Kurope, and the troops they
left in America to join the Spaniards in suppres
sing the revolutionists. The emperor Alexan
der, banished by an Ukase, duted 3d January,
all the Jesuits from his two capitals, tliey having
proved ungrateful and unfaitliful subjects, and
attempted to mske convert* from the Ureek re
ligion, " tJie foundation stone of tlio Russian
empire/' Considerable irritation is experienc
ed uy those | :?wers exposed to the inroads of tho
Algerittes and other barbarians at the ?' non-chit
lance1'of tho Euglish on that subject. Admi
ral Kxmouth, commanding tho British forces in
the Mediterranean, lately fell in witli an Alge
rine cruiser, who demanded of him provision*
for two hundred christian sluves, taken from tho
coast of Naples And Ancona, threatening to
throw them into tho sea if they were not ??ip?
plied,-?The provisions were furnished. K?..Ve
bue died lately at Koningsberg. The Chamber
of Deputies is occupied in hearing petitions from
manufacturers | from individual* who have been
insulted before the return of the king in conse
quence of their adherence to his cause, praying
ledresM And from others who think the bur
dens of the times should lx< levied, on tlioio
whose attachment to the usur|i(r had caused thp
late troubles. M. Ilydo do Neuvllle is about
departing for the United States in quality of am
bassador j he has resided a long tim# in that
cotinlKy a? an exile, at the Mtiie titnt with Oqn.