Burlington free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1827-1865, 1845-06-13
POOR BEN n Y:
OR THE POWER OF AFFECTION.
BY JOS. r. CHANDLER,

Ifthe following anecdole Il cannot Call il
a story) should prove Of any benefit. by graft
living the lovers Of light reading, or lllustra-
ting the effects Of kindness and the influences
of the affection upon the mind, one object of
its composition will have been accomplished.
Since the article was prepared, it has been
announced that benevolent and scientific
men in Enrope have been successful IN their
attempts to educate idiats and elevate tneni
70 an enviable aud useful activity of mind
and body. The means are not mentioned,
but il is believed that they must be drpen-
dent almost entirely on affection, evnced IN
the teacher and awakened in the pupl-and
perhaps the subjoined narrative will illus
tratc the mode:
sWho was that whom the young folks
laughed at so rudey last cveningl' said
dear relative TO me one morning, as | was
undergoing The prescribed service Of towel,
comb, and devotion.
1T was nobody
'Nobodyl'
yes. ma am, nobody-nobody but Poor
Benny
And is Poor Benny nobodyl'
He is not much more, at any rate
n
as those who laughed at him. said the good
LADY but he is certainly very infrm Of
mind
well, is not that the standard by which
we are TO be measured? Did you not, last
Sunday, teach me the verse;
"Were SO tall as to reach the Pole
And grasp the Ocean with a span,
Iwould he mea ,ured by my soul
nd he 81 q le
There was a little symptom Of boyish
triumph in the question, as if the argumen.
tum ad hominem was wholly unanswrrable.
The one addressed had very little knoul.
edge of, or solicmude about one argument
more than another, excepting that in cases
of emergency she would apply, with much
JUNCTION, the argumentum ad bacutum.
In the presen, case, she looked mildly
down, and said That standard is one BY
which each is TO measure hlmself-the stan.
dard is one by which we should measure an
other IS cnm...." which hopelh all things and
ondn,e,b all things. You did not, hope
ION in the ridiculeF
The truth is, I was quite too young tt
h.va had mart in the wrong doing, and ,hougI
T d,d laugh with the older ones, my con
.c;snc. com(ortfd itself that had never. a
least never Of late, ridicnled Benny to IN
face. 1t would have been bad policy, 'os'
nothing Of ingra,irude; for Benny had, wit
h;s kuiIe. cut quite a handsome little ship Oh
ofa block. and after painting and rigging il
ha ,avs i, 10 me. The species of architec
,nrs I was not competent 10 perfnrm; an
Rsnnv added other evidences of his"par
nar,iali,y, as l thought, 'of the kindness c
his heart" as my mother said.
.Poor Benny added she, somewhat puz
clad Il do not know what to make of hin
He seems a perfect idiot in some things; an
ve, there are movements and languages {
hi, tina, strike one as the result of more oil
.ervation. more reflection, more mind tina
many young men exhibit
Benjamin had 'oiled lhrong h the cusloma
20 Tine IN a woman school, and emerge
fIom under the rod with An lmperfoc, kno"
.dg,sof his alphabet, and with the sobrlqnt
If Rsnny. He was sent 10 mans school
I'D after wearing Ounce cap about half I'll
time and becoming fixed object of ridcu
Co. The master, and regular butt for ii
hnv. he was withdrawn by his widowed m'
,hsr who found that her son had acquire
S.,h;n, a, the school hut the additional iii
"S.pcor .'-he was Poor Benny for o
md Young, ignoran, and learned. Benr
had The satisfaction of being the only perst
~ ,ba whole town who could neither re'
nor wri,e-a distinction Of which ne o'd u
snosar 10 be specially proud, nor did he r
card il as much of deprivation. he q
no, lament his deficiencies, nor cease 10 III
PLEASURE in certain scenery and position