Staunton spectator, and general advertiser. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 183?-1849, 1844-02-15
HUMAN EXISTENCE.

we ind ourselves in this world, il, this
country, IN this age, without any agency or
vohtion oil our own; we find within us certain
powers and passions, differing in every man
from ius neighbor, and differing, too, in the
opportunities Tor their improvement, and the
occasion Tor theiy right and wrong employ
ment; and all this seems to be the work of
accident. But no rightly judging mind can be-
lieve 1t 10 be so. The feeling of this truth
gave rise to belief in the dark and inevitable
fate, winch, according to the Greeks, governed
the deslinies of gods and men. They at
tempted, by this melancholy abstraction, to
| solve the enigma of existence They found
themselves, they knew not now, in "a varied
and inexpl;cable scene. Some found crowns
ON .xe,r crows, some the philosophc gown
upo: neir ..ouldcrs, some welded the trun.
cheon OF victorious armies and some swavad
the tickle populace with their breath; aud all
these various fortunes growing from a COM
binatlon OF circumstances and events, over
which they exercised little or no control.
Surrounded by these impenetrable shadows,
men IN later age, attempted TO derive some
light from the stars, To illuminate the darkness
Which was about them; and so astroogy
arose. They made the blessed consultations
an alphabet, by which they endeavorcd to
spell out the DEGREES of fate. And this was
natural enough, before the invention of the
telescope had revealed the immenstv of the
universe; for men could not believe that the
glorious appar,ions which looked down upon
then from The heavens every night, were made
only to delight the eye; and there was some
thing soothing to the bewildcred mind of man.
in thus connecting his unaccouniablc destiny
with those beautiful and iadeless orbs of light
# n,tn <>c
misunderstanding Paris Journal DIES
Debats for several days published proposals
IN behalf OF lady, young and well bred for
an opulent and suitably educated protector
In pursuance of this arrangement, numerous
missives were addressed, by return of most.
TO the proteSe Of the Journal, the authors off
which each received an invitation to repair at
midday, on the 9TH of December, to a GER
tain par, of the garden of the Palais Rova:.
with bouquet Of violets in hand there to
meet the mysterious lady.
Accordingly, between noon and one O'Clock,
there assembled at the appointed spot, up !
wards of fifty individuals, belonging to the |
different classes of society; fops in vanished
boots, men Of letters, annuitants, bachelors. |
officers in both services, young men from the |
counting houses and the schools, advocates
AUDITORS oil The council of state, artists, Sc, |
the gray-hared, the beardless, and men of !
middle age, all wearing. in the bu,ton-hole or !
the hand, beautiful bouquet of violeis, SYM
boiical OF the most pcrfec; love.
AT one O'Clock the lady had not appeared !
at hali-past one the lovers still fingered, but
the embers of their hopes were fast expiring
and at Two they had all disappeared.
The rivals kept themselves carefully apart
from each other; but some Of them were OBJ +!
served, previously to their departure, to cast
angry glances towards the windows of :,
neighborlng cafe, where, through cauze
curtain, one could sec bevy of young wo. |
men, actresses and dancing girls, minplno
with their Joyous liba,ions, smothered peaIs !
OF mcrrimemi, which seemed 10 be addressed
TO The amorous eXpectants in the garden.