The Sun.
London, England, 1854-09-18 00:00:00

LITZ.RATURB.

Mathew Paxton. Edited by the author of " John
Drayton," "Ailieford," drc. 3 vole. Hurst and
Blackett.

To those who appreciate a simple, truthful style
this work will be welcome. It shows the calm
even tenour of life in a humble way. It is the
autobiography of a man whose course was run half
a century ago. He was born and brought up in
the Highlands of Scotland, a shepherd's son. But
in his case, as in that of many others who are
weak and afflicted in childhood, nature made corn.
sensation in intellectual gifts for what was deficient
in personal and physical attributes. Mathew Pax.
ton was instructed by the c:ergyman of the district,
in common with his neighbours' sons. These lat-
ter, however, he soon surpassed, and at last his
instructor confessed he was equalled, if not excelled,
by his promising young scholar. The next step
was for Mathew to go to college at Glasgow, which
he was enabled to do in virtue of a charity to
which the more efficient youths were entitled. He
set out. His parents, simple, primitive people,
were much affected at his leaving their solitude
among the mountains for the snares and perils of a
great city. Ho remarks that, though more than
forty years had gone by since that evening, he still
could hear his mother's voice singing the Psalm
they had chosen out for that night's devotion, as
being suitable for the occasion, commencing thus;-..,
"Jehovah hear thee in the day
• When trouble he loth send,
Theay the name of Jacob's God
trom all ills defend."
The adventures of the ignorant and unskilled
toy are sufficiently ludicrous to account for the
derision be met with in Glasgow. However, he
met with the triumph his talents and industry de-
served, and some of the scoffing youths of the
and ill-favoured wanderer from the bills put at
town looked annoyed when they found this uncouth
once into the first classes. As may be imagine&
came home with prizes in
the delight of his parents was very great when he
everyved_e
studies ; but the crowning tribute of admiration
was that accorded by his p-artment of his
quondam teacher on see-
ing- Mathew a master of arts, :degree
which he had neve. 3 attained himself Th • next
portion of the story is not so l - .
P easing. Mathew
went to London, where he met no pleasant
friends
p easant
friends or companions as he had done in Scotland.
The institution at which he was placed was a
branch society, and limited in scale and narrow in
its undertakings. After two years the hero
turned to his own country, and took his last
year at Edinburgh. This was a bright epoch
in his career. He was enabled to form many
agreeable acquaintances, which were a pleasure and
profit to him in after years, and to renew his friend.
ship with John Walkinshaw, the son of his Glass
gow master, who had always been a very congenial
spirit. This young man was studying for the law, and
an interesting sketch is given of his course. Mathew'
Paxton himself was in training for a Presbyterian.
minister. After his collegiate career had satis-
factorily and honourably terminated, he went back
home once more to await his final trial for the
office to which he had devoted himself. In await•
ing this period a great misfortune befel him,
which clouded his hopes at that early point of life,
and cast a shade over the rest of his existence. A
neighbouring clergyman was a great friend of
theirs. With his family, Mathew had been on inti-
mate terms singe childhood. He was sincerely at-
Itached to Jane Wood, the eldest daughter, but a rival
stepped in between him and success. John Ogle, a
young farmer in the vicinity, was a handsome,
dashing, high-spirited young man, possessed of all
those outward attractions and attributes that
Mathew was deficient in. After a painful strug-
gle he gave up hope, and departed to a distant
sphere of action ; he was ordained with-
t out difficulty, and set out with faith and zeal
to labour in the holy and sacred work he had.
undertaken. He did not, however, succeed ac-
cording to the measure of his wishes, and
soon gladly changed his abode for another.
The new people he took charge of were cele-
brated for a very ungracious and quarrelsome
race, but Mathew Paxton was pleased to have
difficulties to overcome and dangers to surmount,
and so he persevered. Some very interesting
cases are narrated, in which he took an energetic
part in serving and benefitting his people. Dur- •
mg this time his rival, John Ogle, had
married Jane Wood, and they lived near
to him. John Ogle was a firm and true
friend, however, to Mathew Paxton. He was
unconscious of being any hindrance to his hopes,
and soon Mathew became more reconciled to his
fate, and constant intercourse with Ogle increased
his admiration for his good and honest conduct.
After an interval of calm boththe parents of Paxton
died suddenly. This completely unnerved him ; they.
were his only ties to life, and he felt alone and use-
less. An awful awakening was given to rouse him
from his lethargic despondency ; his dear friend,
John Ogle, whose kindness and attention had
been like that of a brother, at the time
of his trouble, was killed in a frightful
and sudden manner. In his will he had ap-
pointed Mathew Paxton the guardian of his chil-
dren, and besought him to train them up in a way
befitting their temporal and eternal interests.
The sight of Jane, a widow forlorn and help-
less, of the innocent orphans committed to
his charge, raised the dormant spirit and
awoke the vacillating will. He found he had
slumbered at his post ; in his dreams of earth and
its sorrows he had neglected his work in the
heavenly vineyard he had undertaken, and he bad
deserted the plough to which he had put. his
hand in the sight of God and man. In
the concluding page he declares that forty
years have passed away, but he had never
fallen back again. He felt no more a waif
or a stray on the ocean of life, as he had once
imagined himself, but he 'Was assured of
having much to do with the well-doing of others
in private and in public. With this bright
sunset to his day, which had been cloudy and
stormy many times, he takes his leave of the
reader, and concludes an interesting epitome of the
chances and changes that sometimes befal the
simplest in the most retired walks of life.

THE ENTENTE CORDIALE.—A few days since two
parties, one French and the other English, pitched their
camps on the Pyrenees, within a couple of gun-shots
from each other. The scene of perfect courtesy which
occurred is thus narrated by a correspondent of the
Siecle :—" A guide came to tell us that our neighbours
had no salt, and begged us to give them what we could
spare. `They want salt,' we cried, and English too 1
Ah ! we will realise the Anglo-French alliance ; here is
ours. Pray tell them that we are dreadfully hungry,
and short of bread.' Back came the guide with fa loaf
from the English. We sent a ham ; the English replied
with a notable portion of terrine de Nerac, truffled to
the crust. We rejoined by the despatch of a basket
of beautiful Toulouse peaches ; the English again by a,
bottle of Malvoisie. We gave up, perhaps with a little
regret, a half bottle of liqueur de chartreuse ; they.
returned a magnificent nougat. At last we decided upon
despatching the best-dressed and most elegant of our
party to exchange compliments with our neighbours.
Monsieur le Baron M—D—, a man of charming man-
ners and tact, was appointed our envoy. He advanced ;
but at the same moment an Englishman came forward
half way. The two ambassadors saluted one another,
shook hands cordially, and exchanged mutual compli-
ments in either languge. At length we got on our horses,
and prepared to say adieu ; they had already reached
the top of the mountain, and were waving hats and.
handkerchiefs, and crying 'Harrah !' I need scarcely say
how warmly we returned the cheers."

A DESPERATE FIGHT IN MISSISSIPI. —A correspondent
of the Mobile Advertiser, writing from Kempen county,
Aississippi, relates the following :—I stopped at Mr. J.
Rupert's plantation on Saturday night, and found Mrs.
Hall, the wife of the overseer, in great distress about her
husband, who had gone to De Kalb. She said that a
Nfr. 'Bias had rented a part of Mr. Rupert's land from.
Mr. Hall, and not long since some of the gentlemen ie.
the neighbourhood, suspecting Bias of trading with their
negroes, set a trap for him, and caught him. Hall, see-,
ing that Bias must leave the place, bought the crop that
was growing on the
Rupert, because he, as Mr.f Rupert's agent, had rented
it to him. Some words passed between a Dr. Bown.
accused of being accessory to Bias's
place, to secure the rent for Mr.
and Hall upon Hall's purchase of the crop, and Hall was
ing at it, which exasperated Hall, and Zapeau
against Dr. Brown's breast„ and snapped
where-
upon & warrant was issued
lie would not be taken. I
Shan an hour when Hall's to
but with saddle and bridleio .
arrest Hall, whopelid that
rascality otr
aconinstia
in the house more
had net returned without hire,
haorniirs. Hall exclaimed that
then sent out a boy to look
.ler husband was killed.
that the latter was killed. It
with Hall, and reporter
sheriff, Mr. Gully, and four men were
appears that the
and met him and his father-in-law
in pursuit of him~_.
fromsrC.alb—about a mile and a half from De
or him. He retursedwith Mrs. Hall's father, who was
Kalb. ci him to surrender, telling hires
summoned
and su
rode up, enough to take him, and did not want to
coming
liall rpushed past him. Gully then wheeled and
that he
Ha
swore
Gully, which had two balls in it ; one
meallwore that he would not be taken, and
• d his knife, and the other took effect in the
ball shivered
' Gully then rode up to him again, and pre-
right groin.
d his pistol, intending to shootsfirst, but (as Gully
sente pistol at
himself) Hall was ready to fire again, and both
d at once. He is not sure that he shot Hall, but
fire
Hail's
shot took effect in Gully's left arm, shivering the
elbow, and one shot lodged in the arm. Gully, finding
his bridle-arm useless, dropped his pistol and caught the
told me hmhimies.
bridle•rein with his right hand, and then pursued and
lode a-head of Hall. Hall then seized Gully, and they
both fell to the ground. Gully called on his friends to
shoot him, as had been nearly killed. Hall, seeing one
in the act of shooting rushed at him. It appears the
man shot Hall through the hand, and finding himself
disabled, he leaped a fence about 10 feet off, at lyhich.
time the man (I do not recollect his second barrel (a
shot-gun) into Hall's back, just below the neck. He
fell, and by the time that he could be snug*" 14 ws,
dead.