Edwardsville spectator. [volume] (Edwardsville, Ill.) 1819-1826, 1819-12-18

Thou art the nurse of virtue in thine arms
She Smiles, appearing, as in truth she is,
Heaycn-born, and destin'd to the skies again"
COwPER.
There are many men in my own isolated
situation, who have adopted the opinion
that the married state is so full of anxiety
and care, that however cherries are their
solitary evenings, and however cold and
inanimatc their hearts, bound in the fri
gid bands of determined celibacy, they
dare not encounter the difficulties that
busy fancy has raised in the way of ma
trimonial felicity.
Some years since, little knot of
bachelors, among whom were my friend
Iedly and myself, used to meet at some
one of our halls in a city of the sea-board,
the principal business of which was to
contrive means of passing the leisure
hours in some agreeable manner, with
out having recourse to individual asso-
citation with the ladies' not that we would
entirely abjure their society, but con-
slant care to mix with large circles only,
and then in such varied manner as to
avoid meeting the same females too fire.
quently, was studiously inculcated. In
this gay but heartless round of fashion,
able pleasure we continued for some
time. AT length Ledly was called by
the course of his business to reside at
some considerable distance in the coun-
try, and we saw him no more for about
two years. One evening, as I sat list
leSsly waiting for some plan of spending
the evening pleasantly, to be presented to
my mind, l was most agreeably sur
priced by the entrance of my friend
His animated counsenance struck me;
instead of the gay but rather light ex-
preston that had been wont to see,
there seemed to be refinement, sub
Unity of feeling, far, very far, beyond the
former appearance. Our congratula-
tons were mutual and sincere, for we
had contracted a friendship of no ordi-
nary degree. But my surprize was great
indeed when in the course of our recip-
rocal inquiries he incidentally mentioned
that he was-married Married."
exclaimed |, after pause of silent asto-
nishment-" is it possible then that you
have suffered yourself to be inveipled
into the trammels of matrimony, after
the noble resolution with which you left
the city (! What mountain nymph has en-
ticed you' Was it the bashful timid
blush OF rustic ignorance that shrunk
from your bold gaze with such sweet
simplicity that you, forsooth, " Albeit
unused to the blushing mood" was
melted at once into romantic love? Was
it some hoyden Diana, springing from
rock to rock in chase of the nimble fawn,
that struck you with the dart of the blind
deity? Did you fall in love with some
rudy damsel raking hay? Orwere your
head and heart whirled from their wonted
repose by the velocity of spinning
wheel? Say, in the name of all the ties
which bind together the Cnlebs of our
society, inform me who and what manner
of woman is she who has thus broken
our firm phalanx-that has persuaded
Ledly to run the hazard of the matrimo-
NAL lottery %
My friend listened to my rant with
smile of pity and of triumph. When
had fairly concluded, he coolly replied,
"Come and see'-and not word fur
ther would he urge in excuse or iustih-
cation of his marriage-but at our part
ing repeated the words " Come and see"
had an opportunity not long after of
accepting his laconic invitation. When
had come within about twenty miles of
his habitation, was obliged to leave the
smooth turnpike, and pursue my lonely
course through wild uncultivated
country. Sometimes l found myself
completely shaded by the almost imper-
yious foliage of beech and hemlock-
at others, exalted as it were to the sky,
pursued my course upon a barren
rocky desert-anon lake would spread
its limpid waters before me; and, again,
a bare black grove of tall pines, scorch-
ed by the raging fire, would cast gloomy
shade over my path. At length wound
down the steep and rugged hills into
deep glen, in which the lofty pines, and
still more towering hemlocks, seemed
striving to gain the level of the noun
tain summit. Over a wild and roaring
stream was thrown rude bridge, by
which gained the road that was cut out
along the side of the steep ACTIVITY. At
the bottom, directly under my feet, the
waves of Tenmile rushed over their crag-
gy bed, and dashed down many a preci-
pice, until far behind me they were en-
bosomed in the pure water of the Della
ware.
Such thought I, as emerging from the
Iocl- nm, Iraoa of tho ovarrraa,, fora,x I