The Sun.
London, England, 1839-04-09 00:00:00

FECUNDITY.—Mr. Grey, of Old Heaton, has
nine Leicester ewes, which have this season produced 28
lambs, all of which arc living, and doing well.
THE POETRY OF LABOUR.—Labour is a sys-
tem of contracts, bargains, imposing mutual obligations.
Now the man who, in working, no matter in what way,
strives perpetually to fulfil his obligations thoroughly, to
do his whole work faithfully, to be honest, not because
honesty is the best policy, but for the sake of justic., and
that he may render to every man his due, such a labourer is
continually building up in himself one of the greatest prin-
ciples of morality and religion. Every blow on the anvil,
on the earth, or whatever material he works upon, contri-
butes something to the perfection of his nature.
He ought to think of the benefit of those he works for,
as welt as of his own ; and in so doing, in desiring,
amidst his sweat and toil, to serve others as well as himself,
he is exercising and growing in benevolence, as truly
as if he were distributing bounty with a large hand
to the poor. Such a motive hallows and dignifies
the commonest pursuit. It is strange that labouring
men do not think more of the vast usefulness of their
toils, and take a benevolent pleasure in them on this
account. This beautiful city, with its houses, furniture,
markets, public walks, and numberless accommodations,
has grown up under the hands of artisans and other
labourers; and ought they not to take a disinterested joy its
their work ? One would think that a carpenter or mason, on
passing a house which he had reared, would say to himself,
" This work of mine is giving comfort and enjoyment every
day and hour to a family, and will continue to be a kindly
shelter, a domestic gathering-place, an abode of affection,
for a century or more after 1 sleep in the dust ;" and ought
not a generous satisfaction to spring up at the thought? It
is by thus interweaving goodness with common labours,
that we give it strength and make it a habit of the soul.
—Changing on Self Culture.
A certiin King had a certain Jester, whom he
kept, according to the fashion of the time, to minister to
his amusement by witty repartees and ridiculous fooleries.
One day the King was stooping down to lave his face
with cool water from a golden ewer, While doing this
his Jester came softly behind him, and applying his foot
suddenly to the King's, tripped him up, so that his Ma-
jesty was prostrated flat upon the floor. The King rose
in great wrath, and execrating the poor fool, ordered
his instant execution. Whereupon the unhappy ob-
ject of his displeasure threw himself on his knees,
and beseeched to piteously for his life, that his illustrious
master consented to grant the paltry boon on one condition.
That condition was, that the jester should within a certain
period perform an act equally criminal, and instantaneously
make an apology more criminal than the act itself. But a
few hours elapsed before the King again stooped to lave Lis
face in cool water from the golden ewer. Again the jester
came up softly from behind, and precipitated his Majesty
headlong to the ground. Tempestuous was the King's
rage; but it instantly subsided into forgiveness and laug-
ter, when the jester promptly exclaimed—" Oh dear ! I
beg your Majesty's pardon I I thought it was your wife I"
INTELLECT DEVELOPED BY LABOUR.—Are
labour and self-culture irreconcileable to each other. In
the first place, we have seen that a man, in the midst of
labour, may and ought to give himself to the most im-
portant improvements, that he may cultivate his sense of
justice, his benevolence, and the desire of perfection.
Toil is the school for these high principles; and we have
here a strong presumption, that, in other respects, it does
not necessarily blight the soul. Next we have seen,
that the most fruitful sources of truth and wisdom
are not books, precious as they are, but experience
and observation ; and these belong to all conditions.
It is another important consideration, that almost all
labour demands intellectual activity, and is best carried
on by those who invigorate their minds ; so that the
two interests, toil and self-culture, are friends to each
other. It is mind, after all, which does the work of the
world ; so that the more there is of mind, the more work
will be accomplished. A man, in proportion as he is in
tclligent, makes a given force accomplish a greater task,
makes skill take the place of muscles, and, with less la
hour, gives a better products Make men intelligent and
they become inventive ; they find shorter processes. Their
knowledge of nature helps them to turn its laws to ac-
count, to understand the substances on which they work,
and to seize on useful hints, which experience continually
furnishes. It is among workmen that tome of the most
useful machines have been contrived. Spread education,
and, as the history of this country shows, there will be no
bounds to useful inventions.—Channing ott Self Culture.
LABOURERS SHOULD BE POLITICIANS.--
" I respectfully counsel those whom I address to take part
in the politics of their country. These are the true disci-
pline of a people, and do much for their education. I
counsel you to labour fora clear und4rstartditig of the
subjects which agitate the community, to make theta your
study, instead of wasting your leisure in vague, passsionatc
talk about them. The time thrown away by the mass
of the people on the rumours of the day, might, if
better spent, give them a good acquaintance with the
constitution, laws, history, and interests of their
country, and thus establish them in those great princi-
ples by which particular measures are to be deter-
mined, In proportion as the people thus improve
themselves, they will cease to be the tools of design-
ing politicians. Their intelligence, mot their passions
and jealousies, will be addressed by those who seek their
votes. They will exert, not a nominal, but a real influence
on the Government and the destinies of the country, and,
at the same time will forward their own growth in truth
and virtue. Let not class array itself against class, where
all have a common interest. One way of provoking men
to crime is to suspect them of criminal designs. We do
not secure our property against the poor, by accusing them
of schemes of universal robbery ; nor render the rich better
friends of the community, by fixing on them the brand of
hostility to the people. Of all parties, those founded on
different social conditions are the most pernicious."
THE SECOND SIGHT.—MELANCHOLY ACCI-
DENT.—We copy the following from a letter written by a
lady resident in the Hebrides :—" A very melancholy e,ent
happened at•Raasay on the 11th of January, attended with
a singular fact. William Macleod, gamekeeper to Raasay,
went with his only brother on the morning of that day to
Portree. As they were leaving Portree to return home,
the gamekeeper stayed behind, and his brother, dreading
no danger, came on without him. The other never ap-
peared. Day followed day without any tidings of the poor
gamekeeper, though every search was made for him
by the men of Raasay and those of that part of Skse.
After an interval of eight days, a man from Portree came
forward and stated that 14 years ago, while be was herding
cattle in the daylight, he had a vision of a man falling over
a certain rock (which he described), dressed in light clothes
and resembling in his general appearance the individual
who was missing. It was agreed to visit this spot, and ac-
cordingly a boat was procured, and the " gifted seer" pro-
ceeded with a party of men in the direction of the rock by
the sea-side. At the precise spot the body of the unfortu-
nate gamekeeper was discovered. It is supposed that after
he had left Portree he had gone on his journey as far AS
the cairn, opposite Raasay, and that mistaking his way at
this point (far the evening was dark and stormy) he had
fallen over the rock, and thus met his death. The body
was carried away amidst the tears and wonders of the
people, who were astonished at this marvellous diicovery."
We hope the remains of the deceased and the ciretiressanees
ci case l:1 "'n examieed by tilt') proper aesa---
inveritas Cuttrici.