Phenix gazette. [volume] (Alexandria [D.C.]) 1825-1833, 1829-11-12


ed silrn man; he said but little, and. irdul-
ON, as he was. that little was law to Us. The
neiphborbood also treated him with great Dr.
ference; his opinion was consulted in all diff
cul, cases: he was made town clerk. aud then
sen, representative 10 The General Court; and
finally received a commission OF the peace.
NV father, as ! have already told you, was
originally a seafaring man; and his prof. ssi"n
had made HIM "a miliar with all the appearances
&c The heavep,. 10 his Knowledge of this
kind, acquired TN The ocean and The t"as oil
the Atlantic, he now added that gained by
daily observation Of the aspect oil 'hr heavens
in the Inferior. uniI he became celebrated il
those parts for his skill i" discerning me face
of the sky. He was looked upon as sort OF
oracle on the subject of the weather; and his
predictions were reverenced even more than
those OF The almanac. II VS. not always that
an opinion could be extracted from him. but
when obtained, it never failed Of being verified.
His hay never got wet chile lying gree" on
the ground, nor do believe that he was ever
overiaken by a shower in any Of ms excursions
from home He would pass whole hours IN
gazing al the sky, aud watching me courses OF
| the clouds An observation oil the weather was
hi, first business in the morning, and his las a
Night; aud if The manly placidt,y OF hi" tim
per was ever on any occasion dIs'urhrc, II was
only when the weather was mole caPricious
han ordinary; when IL refused /" c""tpr" ="
! fixed rules, and failed TO fulfil The promises II
held forth. In this hirk he was wrong, as
| Questioning he providence OF GoD exerird IN
the or, al courses Of nature: but who Is with
GU, bis errors
"The country in whi'h we lived was high
and hilly The streams by wifi it was inter
ec,ed, flowed in deem, narrow giens, unpea
SAINT from their chillness shade, and mis's al
mnrning and evening; md the farms and dwell
lings Law on the broad elevated country bet"e u
them Thus an ample sweep was "H"'ded Tor
The winds, which olew over the county win Is
| li,!e obs rue ion as on The SUBMITS III noun
tains. The snow was nfen pill q 10 The win'tr
% the roofs Of he houses, and you mign' see
orc ha,ds in whie every 'ree leans 10 the south
west. ben, aud made TO grow III that position
by the stropg and CONTINUED gates.
| 'In the lssI year of my residence in this
pleasant sbode, W. had, about the setting In OF
summer, several weeks 1T uncommon hea and
drought God &c lied up the fnu"'ains It he
| irmameni, nd made he hra> owl our heads
brass, and the nth undo our tsri ashes
Clouds noaled over the fiery sky, and brought
no rain the atmosphere was filled with dun.
dry hazr. as il III. finer dus Of the ground had
ris.n and mingled witn il. Our OF this haze
tie sur en- 'gsd a, morning, AVID again dipped
in'o il at evening, hiding mis- FAC long oeI'rr
he i. &C hec he horiznn. The < ass ut the held
co.'s d To grow, aDd became THIN aud white ard
dry before i, ripeneG, aud Kissed monrniuIly
whenever breath of air pas cd over j.: We
birds chir,ed {. ebss in Tue trees the cattle
lowed f,i,lv IN III. m.adows. and gathered
about the mois;p'e spots of soil All .his
Will tho winds scarcely blew, or but sofly
nor with strength enough to de'ach from the
cherry trees b. fore our door the loose leaves
that bu on The Welcomes Of September. and
! droppec of their own arcord, one by one, spin
mining round as hey descended o he earth.
! had never known my father so uneasy and Fl l.
getty as al that period Tie would stand Tor
hours considering The aspect of the heavens,
and even after the twilight was down. he was
oui bv The door, gang at that hazN canopy
through which the srs dimly Irrmbled: My
mother, in he mran,im,. called her children
abou, her. and laugh, US pray'r for rain.
III" gave singh look, the book Or pped
| from his hand, ond before ] had time 10 utter
a word he called oU in s'rong voice: Run
run CIR your lives-leave The house his IN
s'ant-.he whirIwind is upon u.s.
| Gas he spoke, the sound Of the gust was heard
bowling abou, the dwelling, and The imber>
crac ked and groaned in he mighv bla.. My
mo her hastily ga herrd the children, and was
putting US before her IL go out a, the door,
when all at once a terrible crash was h. ard over
our heads, The walls sho k, the windows were
| shivered in peces, tie a ,or hea,ed under our
feet, and the ceiling bursIed upwards in several
places, showed US the roof raised aud born IF
by the wind. The ais and partitions of the
house swayed 20 and fro like curtain. Ny
father was man Of grea, bodily strength, Of
the middle hrigh', but h'awny and muscular
beyond persons have known When last
saw him he bad put his strong arm against he
wall that threatened 20 overw helm US, and was
braoing himself agains' it to give US an oppor-
tuni'y to escape. saw also my mo'htr, who
had taken the 100 youngest chi dren by the
hand, her hair str. aiming upward, in disorder,
making f,r the door found myself know
no, how, without the house, and scarcely was
there when a rusr of air seemed to draw my
b. cath from my very lungs, and vas lifted
from the ground amids, a whIrl ofdus', and