The examiner. [volume] (Louisville, Ky.) 1847-1849, 1847-06-26
From Howitt's Journal.
The Wedding Bonncs; A vIsion.
BY ANDREW WINTER.

~ as lamplighters. and as important as the
for that great event in female
liie-a wedding-could make them. The
brides bonnet had just come home, and
had the satisfaction Of seeing dozen lily
white hands all in one tumultuous group,
and shaping il to the face Of the
fair maid herself. 1t was pronounced on
all hands quite the thing-a love of a bon
net, in fact; and after having deposited it
in the centre of the table, and hunted un-
der the sofa and all quarters Of the room to
make sure that the cat was not there, they
left me with an especial charge not TO
touch it for the world. | promised accor-
dinghy, as sat doing before the fire, and
they left me alone, to pursue their welcome
task. Presently, knock, knock, came
to the door; it speedily opened, and strange
gentleman in respectable black entered,
with.a magic lantern under his ARM
Some how or other was not bit astonished
a. his entrance. but took it quite as matter
Of course. 80 you have bonnet there, u
said he, looking at me with his keen, gray
eyes, "all smiles and happiness. | suppose.
Yes" said |, as if he had been the oldest
friend in the world, little Annie"
"Ah = said he, stopping me, "people must
marry, l suppose but ! have word or two
to say to you about this gimcrack." And
stepping up to the bonnet, he turned up his
cuffs like am expert chemical lecturer, took it
in his hands, blew upon it, and as quickly as
a child's card.house rattles to the ground, the
bonnet lay in pieces before him. Satin,
blush-rose, feathers, framework, and the
very cotton with which it was sOwn lay
grouped under MS hands. He then DELHI
erately wiped the illuminated lens Of his
magic lantern. Let us begin" said he,
from the beginning taking in his grizzly
fingers the blushrose, and stripping its stem
until the iron wire OF which ii was com.
posed was laid bare. Before even this
thread OF metal can be produced, men must
dive into the bowels Of the earth 10 procure
the ore and the fuel with which to smell,
it. Il Will show You the true history Of
the making of this bonnet" With tina,
he turned the focus OF the lantern up
on the well, and saw the picture of deep
pit into which men continually kept enter.
ing, and as continually emerging from, like
so many emmets, black and filthy 10 the
last degree and further in the mine, toiling
up steep accents, women on their hands
and knees, with chains round their boies,
dragged up the heavy corves Of coal.
But this, said |, surely is not fit en-
ploymen, for women
well, said he, with shrug, as il nim-
icking a general expression, whats 20 be
done? Somebody must do it.
With that he changed the slides, and
saw child. not more than five years old,
sitting in narrow little passage in the re-
mo,est darkness of the mine. saw him
pull something he held in his hand, little
door opened, and the woman harnessed to
the corve passed on; the door shut TOO, and
the child was again in the darkness, bud
died up in the corner TO protect himself
from the cold and damp. Noticing my
surprise, my strange yisi,ant shrugged his
shoulders again in his expressive manner.
We'll. 'tisn't pleasant business, Ger.
iainly,' he said, but the thing must be
done, YOU know But stop, We have only
got as far as the coal in Our lecture.
With that he again changed the slides,
and the next picture be showed ME roar
ing furnace, out of which leaped and spar
killed. into the moulds the molten metal, like
a gnome escaping into the earth from which
il had been abducted. Workmen stood
by, lit up in the glare, the sweat running
from them in great drops; with the courage
Of heroes they seemed to defy the blistering
heat,
"How," said I, "can these poor fellows
stand such lile?'
They don't" said he, with his sly
sheer, ''it soon uses them up; bur there are
plenty more in the labor market What
so cheap as flesh and blood But we have
forged the tough iron and spun the fine wire.
Now for the artists touch
As he spoke, fresh slide ratified through
the lantern; and in mean room, saw a
poor girl, winding delicate ga,ze round the
non wire, and with wan fingers, hooking
nature in one of her most beautiful moods
AS she added petal after petal of the rose
she was making, she stole hour after hour
from the night. "Nou see" said he. "she
tints the flower from The color Of her own
poor cheek. Alas that the human rose
should decay thai this artificial thing might
flourish - He said this sadly, but immedi-
ately added. in his usual tone. '.but there
what's to he done? The pay is slow star
walton, admit; but these women crowd
the labor market so. that they IRE glad
enough TO slave even at this work--if not, q
,rorse fate amaits them -
"But we have only got as far as the flow
err in our lecture" he said, and held out the
blush.rose he had taken from the bonnet;
he then put it aside, with the triumphant
air Of one who has Just made a successful
demonstration.
"Here," said he, holding up the glazed
colico lidining. 81 will show you something
interesting about this and Immediately
threw out upon the wall picture that d f
fered from all that had gone before it.
Tall palms, and all the luxuriant vegeta
ton Of the East, shot up. Then village
was seen upon the banks Of the Gauges
In the open air, workmen sat at their loom:
weaving cloth, and singing as they wove.
"Have you noted this scene enough?
said he. | nodded, the picture dissolved
and instead OF the former scene OF beauty
and industry, | saw a village in ruins
through which the wild dog alone roamed
and the jungle grew to its very foot.
"You see, said he, anticipating my eagc1
nnnrv "a 10 the cause Of this CHANGE SC xheI