Hawk-eye. [volume] (Burlington, Iowa) 1843-1845, 1845-02-13

ne temptation is almost irresistible
from the strong rivalry which is Gale
: INTO exercise, to make expenditure
:. which cannot I've afforded. And the
when the midnigh, scene eff gayetv i
at It's height, aud mnsic's volnp,uou
swell is loudes,, and the smile on eve
ry cheek is least clouded, how man,
secret sources Of chagrin are necessarl
iy i"stered, though siudiously conceal
ell. The spirit of the occasion has tn,
strongest tendency 10 call INTO exercis,
the passions of envy and rivalry Tn,
superior dress Of one lady, the supo
rlor beauty Of another, the comparative
neglect with which one Il treated, AMI
the excessive attention which anOihe,
receives. constitute the most fruitful
source of vanity. on the one side, ant.
OF heart burnIngs and notifications IN
the other. The very nature Of The en-.
Joymens. and the whole >piri, Of the
occasion, have the M - drec, ipnden.
cy to call these feeI,nge into active ex-
excise. There is no place in which
the uncomfortable feelings Of the hear,
are $" frequently and 81 painfully ex.
cited. as ~ the gay and gli,tering as
semhly. And when. long after mid
night. ievered with the heated room
and the exciting exercise. mother or
her daughter returns To her home. how
poorly is she prepared for the duties of
devotion. In how unsuitable frame
of mind is she. acrep,abIy TO commune
with God. and TO commend herself
anew, with an aff.cilonate and a hum.
BILE heart. to his service And when
another morning dawns, all the con-
Germs of the family in disorder A, a
late hour she rises unrefreshed from
her pillow. During the whole dav she
feels depressed in spirits. and unable
to engage. with any satisfaction in life $
ordinary duties. |, often requires one
or tw" days of languor and detection
for the system 10 recover it's tone, from
the exhaustion Of the few hours Of mid
night revelry. 10 use The language
of Franklin. we think that this is pay
ing altogether TOO dear for the whistle.
Even allowing the pleasurable emotions
Of the cornwall hour to be as great as
any one will venture to estimate them.
he considered the enjoymen, as vastly
coun,erbaanced by the physical and
intellectual reaction which necessarily
ensues.
And when we 90 a little further !;
when we consider the inevitable termi.
nation Of this life of pleasure: when we
con,e npla,e ,he viclim-for victim we
mus, consider her of gay and fash.
ionahle life. after having passed through
the period Of youth aud vigor. with her
snscep,ibililies to these excitemen,s
worn out. saliated even TO nausea with
those pursuits, and We, with no taste
formed for more solid and SATISFYING
joss we regard her with the deepes,
commlseraton. as an impressive warn
ing 10 avoid those quick sands upon
which her happiness has been so fatally
stranded
When we turn To the Bible. 10 the
character Ut our Savior and his Apos.
lies. we find these views confirmed
even by the weight of inspiration; so
much 50. indeed, that even The idea of
of our Savior, or the Apostle Paul, tax.
ing an active part a, the card-,ahle. or
in the co,illon, is so shocking to our
feelings, that the .snpposltion is almost
irreverant. And why is it that one
shrnks from even such an allnsion, but
because the spirit Of the Bible is so
Numerically opposed TO these amuse.
men,s, that the mind recoils from such
an idea in connection with sacred per-
sOnagese
Aud when we inquire Of human
testimony, we hear bui one voice.
which comes down from all past time,
and from every na'ipn. IN atteSiat,on OF
the folly Of HE ct pleasure. There
are thousands now In our churches who
were ouce the devnsees "f gayety; and
they viii tell ynn. without u cont; a,!ic-
ting vnlre. thai, since they have ahan-
donei their fnrmer pursuits aud sought
happiness in d'firren, nhjeet---iave
cultivated 4 different laSte.-ihev have
found peace and satisfaction. which
they never knew before: aud they have
no more dI>posiilnn 10 turn back /"
these gavpties tlran lhev have to resume
the ral,les Of hahv- hood. And because
they see that these gave.irs arr. III The
epd. pr,rnniive Of far more sorrow than
happiness. therefore they wish all
whom they love. 10 walk in ,hose ways
Of wisdom which are pleasaniness. and
in thn~e paths which are peace.
There are. IN this world many re-
gi'ns Of enjoyment. where one may
walk in safety. There are many JOYS
which are improving 10 the Heart, and