Massachusetts spy and Worcester advertiser. [volume] ([Worcester, Mass.]) 1823-1825, 1825-01-26
THE BLUE STOCKING CLUB.
"Life is but a walking shadow, a poor
player,
That frets his hour upon tie stage -"
No. Z.

"Life is but walking shadow, poor
player,
That frets his hour upon tie stage -"
There is dreary solitude in the mind Of
man. There are exigencies which things
sublunary cannot satisfy. There are painting
aspirations which nought but the fruition Of
the wide dark ocean Of futurity.can satiate.
Hence the deep-going murmurings Of short
sighted man. Hence the complaints of all
classes CT mankind, from the school-boy who
whirls his ball, to the monarch who guides
under the tancied gales of adversely. The
Agriculturalist, the allodial proprietor of the
farm he cultivates, though his heldsare groan-
ing under the heavy harvest, still murmurs
that the products of his farm and his stall do
not command more of glitteling wealth, reck-
less of the incontrovertable proposition, adj
vanced by political economists, " that the
q.antum of actual profits are taken from the
purse of the consumer" The Manufacturer,
though he beholds countless spindles and mer-
.ry shuttles dancing to the music Of the water
falls, complains that government does not pat
ronize domestic fabrics, unmindtul of the eff
feet which such patronage would produce on
the other interests of the community. The
Merchant, though his canvass swells to the
breeze in every sea and ocean, in every firth
and estuary, and conveys to him the products
Of all chimes and nations, yet repines under
the heavy revenue he pays the government,
not remembering that whatever he pays in
this way to the finances of our nation are ul-
timately refunded to him from the pocket OF
the consumer.
The Lawyer, though sojourning on the
highway to deathless renown, signs that dame
Fortune consisns to him professional business
with such a sEaring, frugal hand, while, if the
demon Of discard would make his pilgrimage
through our land, riding upon the whirlwind
of discredit, sowing the seeds Of strife and
contention, separating husband from wife,
setting ne;ghbos by the ears, calling on debt
ors to pay the 1uttermost farthing" without
delay then, tlen he would reap rich har-
vest of lawsuits his green bag would abound
with demands fo' collection whilst a great
portion of the common people would be redu-
ced to penury by paying debt and COSTS.
The Physician groans too, because others
do not groan, and sicken, and become diseas-
ed : but let epidemic maladies prevail, scatter
ing the shafts Of disease in the vitals of great
portion of those who live within the sphere Of
his practice, and he will soon gather 'loaves
and fshes' enough to I" fare sImptuously ere
ry day - not once recollecting that he ha:
taken them from those on whom Providence.
in its mysterious windinss, has laid its heavy,
ifs affecting hand.
The radiant Queen of the village, though
she has thrown an arrow which riots in the
bosom of him who is worthy of her, though
she ''has lOOking-gIass and sugar plInbs,'
still she is not content, till her culver is ex
hausted, till more are rendered unhappy
nay miserable, by her skilful and designing
archery-til her happiness is perfected by thu
misery of other victims.
Withou! speaking of the querulousness o
the divine, the never-ending discontents o
the man Of letters, the acute and exguisitely
agonizing complaints of thorough-going meta
physicians, the bicker gs Of politicians ant
statesmen, and of the almost innumerabl'
classes in human society, we refer our reader
to an excellent dissertation on the gloriou
philosophy of contentment, written by tn
celebrated German, friedrich =. NJ. Schmidt.