Weekly miners' express. (DuBuque, Iowa) 184?-1849, 1848-02-23
From tho Sunday Mercury

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SHORT PATENT SERMONS.
NEW sERIEs-No. 1878.
shall NEEDLE with the following, this
morning:
For man shadow only is,
And life is but dream. 2tz EsE
My hearers--did it ever occur to our
stagnent minds that you are nothing more
than mere INTERCHANGEABLE, without
substance. and might say without sub
sistence? Well, you are nothing eIse,' at
any rate. One thing is certain you
i Come like shadows, so dcpsrt;'
and whence you come. or whittier you GO,
| is known only TO that great Shadowof which
| you are buta feeble shade. Pretty looking
shadows, though, some of you are, must
say!-weigh two hundred and fifty, and an
initiate pound of.pork at each repast! IF
such are mere yisions--sairy nothings'--I
should like to know what you would think
Of cousin Abraham, who is so tall, slim and
/ feeble that he dare not stoop to pick up a
pin without first putting couple of brick
bats in his coat pockets to preserve an equi-
lihrium. He IS thin MS botting paper, and
never trusts himself to stand long outdoor
without putting one foot upon the other to
prevent the wind from blowing him away.
| But, my dear brethren, in metapGorical
sense, we are nothing but shadows, after all:
visible for a moment, and then invisible for
ever! sWhat shadows we are!' exclaimed
the wise Shadow sand what shadows we
pursue! '--meaning that women are also
shadows: and that we men are in the habit
Of running after them: and verify there be
much truth in the observation. 81
My friends--what is Life but drcam!--
an empty dream; as empty as contribution
box OF Saturday. We imagine we live,
and move, and have q being: but how is this
fact to be determined! There is no way of
ascertaining it to certainty. You 60 to
bed at night-you sleep--you dream. That
dream appears TO you to- be n reality; but
you awake in the morning and find it oil n
delusion: and so, onto the morh;of the Resur-
. rection, you will probably find out that yon
/ have been but dreaming all through this
sublunary existence. Well, friends, if you
ever thought of it, all our greatest delights
and principal pleasures lie wrapped in silk
en- dreams. Ii is the anticipation, and not
the possession, that yields us bliss. 1t is
the ideaity-not the reality. Some folks
tell me, however, that there is greater plea
sure in eating nice beef steak when you
are hungry, than in anticipating it; but | am
) inclined to doubt that fuel. Eating takes
away body's appetite, and makes him feel
dull-as dull rs Ratchet used for splitting
kindling-Woo upon q hearth stone but ia
dream about INDUCING in gastronomc plea
sures, is quite another thing. 1T makes
me feel good to think of it, says John; Il,
is better than partaking.' John is right
hope, that is not hopeless, is sweeter thar
honey. All is in the Imagination. Yor
acquire riches, and become possessed .
whatever the heart, head, or fancy may or
,, der; and yet such won't set broken limb
!, nor administer to 4 mind diseascd;' nor Dc
anything further than affording pleasau:
: and at the same time uneasy dreams
, There is no reality in riches: n comfortable
cot conduces to as much contentment as
stately mansion-and leetie more too. Al
!, for purchasing happiness, in this world, will
> the rhino-the chink-or the actual--yot
: might as soon think Of winning woman'
, affections at rattle. All ourjoys, pleasure:
and blisses, claim residence only in The
. dreamy mind. Ifthat be i'll at rest, no gold
silver, nor tickling under the ribs can make
, a man cheerful and happy. It is the Unrea
= mot the Real-that gives zest to exist
ence. a.-. s.....
My hearers-life is nothing more nor les
than an empty dream. We magine--wt
speculate-we fancy--we hope, and are ev
4 er dwelling in the ethereal atmosphere o
ideality. 'Man never is but always to b,
,, blest,' says my friend Pope; and have
pewter sixpence saved for him who first &c
bnowledges, with his hand upon the Book
that he is contented with the real. Now
:, all you married folks know that your happi
' est hours were those spent in courtship-
when you were allowed to take only q smell
at glorious fodder, without even nibbin!
> at spear. So it is with every earthly en-
$ ioyment; we price alta distance; but whe,
y once in or possession, it isn't half so fat a
. we thought it was. And 30 it is with thi
J Eastwood world. We dream through i
I there is better still to comc--onc made O
o pure mahogany, and so manufactured as t
. endure forever: which hope will be III,
y case. for Heaven knows that the one we liv
q in isn't fit for the abode Of half-cultivate
orang- outang. So motoit boz
Dow, JR.
v Selections for Vetospape Most person
}. think the selection Of suitable matter for
8 newspaper the easiest part Of the business
!. How great an error! ltis by all means tn
J. most difficult. To look over and over hun
i dreds Of exchange papers every week from
! which to select for one, especially when til
Il question is, not what shall, but what shal
i not be selected, is indeed, suo easy tash.-
y If every person who reads newspape,
> could have edited it. we should hear les
J. complaiuts.--N unfiequently is it tn
!, case that an editor looks over all his ey
q changes for something interesting, and ca
absolutely find nothing. Every paper
dryer than contribution box; and yet some
Of thing must be had.-his paper must hav
Of something in it, and he does the best h
e, can. Toan editor who has the least cur
Isl about what he selects, the writing that |,
=. docs Ia 10 liz La