The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1844-05-25

occupations of, and the time seemed to
81 ide away with more swillress.
i Already dark winter had succeeded to
the rich autumn; the trees despoiled of
their thick branches, the fields without
verdure,; the orchards deprived of their
fruits, the flowers wilhered, presenting no
more their perlumed chalice to the indus
trous bee; all announced the season Of
hoar frosts and SHOWS. Ernest and Julia
had discontinued their rural walks; the
: hocks no longer bounded in the meadow;
the Escant, covered with ice, was no more
ploughed by the light bark; the birds
were silent; the lonely woodman, insen-
slble to the mourning of nature, interrupted
this dealh.like like silence by the sound
of the strokes of his axe, or, by his crude
and wild songs, which placed at a great
distance the warm South winds. ALL
sainlsday was passed The evenings
were long; one chased away the ennni OF!
them by useful and agreeable vigils. There
reunited, turn ah ont, at the house OF some
lnhabiant of the village, seated around a
warm hearth, the mothers and daughters
occupied themselves in the labours of
their sex, whilst the young men endeav.
CURED to enliven them by the recital of
some histories.
Very soon the spindle aud the dstaf
were abandoned by our young Flemings,
whose lively but supcrstilious spirit de-
lighted in these accounts Of ghosts, Of
sorcerers, Of magicans, which excited
their imagina,ions.
OF ancient wilchcraft one relates his
tory; the haranguer who Believes, altests
and causes it to be believed A spectre,
said one of them, appeared about the great
wood; the day of the tempest, people heard
its voice; another in the beginning made
the frightluI picture,-the credulous audi
tory is seized with terror,-silence and
fear augment by degrees, and nearer the
hearth the circle is narrowed
Since philosophy has enlightened
France, the people no longer believe in
spectres, in magic, i'll sorceres, and in all
those other supersIltions OF the ages of
ignorance, that our mothers left of old to
grow with our reason. The belief in APP
partitions, in hob-goblins, exists no more,
except in the Imagination of some old
servants. The Vampires no lcngergo out
of their tombs to feed on the blood Of their
fellow creatures. A card has no more the
power to ioretell the future; a spark that
is seen in the wick ola candle, is no more
the forcrunner ofsome news, The barren
wife, the young maiden who is unable to
find IA husband, the artisan deprived of
work,-lhe loss that one makes of par
ent, of friend, Of Il lawsuit, of horse;
all that is no more regarded the effect of
a spell; and the woodman, who falls with
a branch which yields under his weight,
in rising up from it hurt, no longer accuses
the shepherd to whom his wife, without
knowing it, shall have refused a lagot to
warm him. All these popular folles have
been forgotten, and the correctional tri-
bunals have done justice to all these pre-"
tended sorcerers, of whom one healed
sprans by the touch another, having in
herlled some magic power OF our kings,
was able to cure the staggers, third al
layed fever, in cutting a pear in four, and
in causing half of ii to be eaten by Nlr-
gin; a last, IN fine, arrested hemorrhage
with five eggs of tomlit. which he cast
upon the pavement, But less then half "a
century ago, the people were still enslaved
to all these juggelies, and believed in all
these miserable supers,ilions. Banished
lille by little from the cities, it was in the
village that the faith in spells and in APP
partitions had taken refuge, as in an invio-
liable sanctuary was there that she
combined with religion, that she com
founded herself with her, and with her
formed but one body even. Wo to the
enlightened man who combatted then. with
the weapons of reason, the preIullces
which reigned in the countries, and which
knew so well TO serve clergy, who fear
ed hot to lay the foundations of The wor-
ship OF a God of truth and of tolerance
upon fanalicism and delusion. For having
been superior 20 these prejudices, for hav'
ing desired to combat them, the unhappy
Iulia-but let us not anticipate the events.
The term fixed for the union of Ernest
and Julia drew nigh; yet month, and
they would 60 to pronounce at the foot
of the affairs the oath SO sweet, to love
forever. 1t was at this epoch that a law
suit sufficiently important forced Ernest
to leave for Amiens. He informed Julia
of his departure. in making known to her,
that before six days, he would be return
ing to her, to quit her no more. At this
news palor displaced the lively carnalion
which colored the cheeks of Julia, hea-
Wy sigh escaped from her bosom; her long
eye-lashes endeavoured, but in vain, to
hide the tears which stole out from her
eyes.
ernest" said she to him, "can you not
put off this journey? If that is impossible,
at least return quickly; thy presence alone
shall be able to relieve my feeble heart Of
| tho weiUbt with which il is onpressed i'm