Lewisburg chronicle, and West Branch farmer. [volume] (Lewisburg, Pa.) 1850-1850, 1850-03-27
Why I left the Anvil.

! see i,-you would ask me what hav
10 sny for myself for dropping the hamme
and taking up the quill, as q member 0
: your profession ! will be homes, now, ant
te'! you the whole story. | wss transposed
. from the anvil to the editer's chair by III.
genius Of machinery. Don't smile. friends
it was even So had stood and looked fol
hours on those though'less. iron in,ellects
those iron fingered. sober, supple au'oma
tons. as they caught Up a bale Of cotton
aud twired it in the twinkling Of an eye,
into q whrwind Of whizzing shreds. and
laid i, a! my feet ia folds Of snow-whiie
cloth, ready for the use Of our most volup-
: llou. an modes. They were wonderful
things. :hose looms and spindles; but they
could no, spin thoughts; there was no al
tribute Of Divinity in them. and admired
Them, nothing more. They were excess
lively curious, but I could estimate the
whole compass Of their doings and destiny
in finger power; so am away and left
them spinning--cot'on.
One day was tuning my anvil beneath
a hot iron. and busy with the thought, thai
there was as much intellectual philosophy
in my hammer as in any o! the enginery
a-going in modern times, when most un
earthly screaming pierced my ears; 4
stepped to the door, and there i. was, the
gfea, Iron Elorsei Yes, he had come, loo
king for al the world like the great Drag
on NO read OF in Scripture, harnessed to a
living world and just landed on the earth,
where he stood braying in surprise and In
disnstion a. the "base use" 10 which he
had been turned. saw the gigantic mex
| ibed move with a power that made the
earth 10 ,remble for miles. saw the ar.
my Of human beings gliding ~ilh the velo
city of the wind over the iron track. and
drovrs of cattle travelling in their stables a,
The rate Of twenty miles an hour toward
their city ,iuugh,er.h house. l, was wonder
fui. The little busy bee-wInged machinery
OF The cotton factory dwindled into insigni-
fcance before it. Monsirous beas. Of pas
sage nd burden il devoured the intsrsen
IiRs dis,spce. .and welded the cities together !!
l:for its furnace heart and iron sinews,
it was nothing but a beast, an enormous
aggregation of-hotse power. And went
back 10 the forge with unimpaired rever-
ence for The intellectual philosophy Of my
hammer.
Passing along the street one afternoon
heard noise in an old building. as Of
some one putting pair of bellows. So
'~''h"", more ado 1 .;epped in. and there.
in corner of q room, saw the chIe!-d'-
envre OF all lhe machinery that has ever
been invented since the days Of Tubal Cain.
In its construction it was as simple and un'
assuming as cheese press. Invent with
leyer-with lever, longer, stronger than
that with which Archimedes promisedlo l;tt
The world.
IL is printing press" said boy STAN
ding by the ink trough, with cus!ess Tor.
ban Of brown paper on his head. "A print
ins-rresst lque,,ed musing'y 10 my
self. "A prin;ing-press' what do you
pI.nt ~ asked. "Prin," said the boy. !
staring q. me. doubtfulIy, "why, We print
thoughts" "Prin, thoughts ~ | slowly |
repeated after him; and we Stood looking |
for moment At each other in mutual ad. !
mirs,on; he in the absence Of an idea,
and in pursui, Of one. Blu, | looked al
him the hardest. and he left another ink
mark on his forehead, from pathetic mo-
,icn Of hi. 'ei, hand. to quic ken his appre-
hens:on of my meaning. ""hy. yes ne
reiterated, in tone Of forced conf 1ence,
as Il passing an idea, which. though having
been current hundred years might still be
counterfeit. for all he could show on the
spot, 1--WE print thoughts to be sure '"Bu',
INV bow asked in honest soberness,
"whs, are thoughts. and how can you get
hold Of them to print them !" "Though's
are what come out Of the peoples minds.'
he replied. "Get hold Of them, indeed!
why minds arn't nothing you can get hold
OF. nor thoughts either. ALL the minds that
ever thought, and all the thoughts that minis
ever made. wouldn't make ball as big as
YOUR fist. Minds, they say, are just like
air: YOU cent see them they don't make
anv noise. nor have any color they don't
weigh any thing. Bill DeePcut, the SEXTON
saws, tina, man weighs just az much
when his mind has gone out OF as he did
beiore.-No, sir. all the minds that ever
lived would not weigh an ounce troy"
"Then how do you print Thoughts ~
asked. "lf minds are thin as sir, and thots
thinner still, and m,ke no noise, and have
no substance, shade, or color. and are'iike
The winds, and, more than the winds. are
anywhere in moment; sometimes Ii
heaven. and sometimes on earth and u