Grand River times. [volume] (Grand Haven, Mich.) 1851-18??, 1851-10-22

Was all the sound heard.
A COOP NAME" A good name is rather to
be chosen than great riches, and loving favor
rather than silver" So said the inspired pen
man, and surely we must acknowledge that he
was capable of judging correctly. And in what
does good name consist. Is it in leaving
wealth and worldly honors behind us when we
sink into the grave? Is it in the funeral eulo-
gy that is spoken above the dust of the rich
and the powerful of the earth, or in the splen-
did mausoleum that is reared above their heads
to perpetuate their imaginary virtues! A good
name consists not in these. The great Of the
earth are seldom the good, while the good rare
ly stand upon flames of dizzy eminence. They
choose the humble walks of life, blessing the
poor and needy, and carrying joy to many a
lonely heart and when, at length, they rest in
the quiet graveyard, the poor come and drop a
tear of sympathy for them.
A good name will never die. 1t will live
long after i" ife's ftful fever shall have ended
and when its possessor lies Wondering beneath
the clods of the valley; death cannot destroy
it, neither can the grave annihilate it. 1t will
rise triumphant DER decay and the tomb, and
soar above the narrow confines of the grave,
and stand q beacon light forever
- Let us scan the past history Of the world,
and see who are the great and who are the good.
First in rank of worldly heroes stands Alexan-
der He was great. He trod the bloody bat
tle-feld, victorious copquerer, and the sack
cloth that covered the land but freely portrayed
the bitter lamentations of the heart. He sub
dued the world; the poor peasant who earned
his daily bread by the sweat of his brow, and
the naughty Emperor, alike paid his homage.
But his was worldly greatness, and it gave no
lasting satisfaction, and when he had conquer
ed the world he sat down and wept that there
were no more worlds. The martyrs to the
Christian faith who suffers so much, found more
real enjoyment than all the Aexanders or Ma
poleons that the world ever produced. They
possessed the richest of heavens blessings, a
good name. And it still lives, and it will live
till earth shall be chaos, and the elements shall
melt with fervid heat Were to choose one
gift from the thousands that are proffered to
us, it would be q good name-one that would
live long after my heart had ceased to beat, and
the worms had crowded into my silent abode.
New PRINTING FOR FIRE ARMs.-It would
seem by a statement in the National Intelligent
Ger that the use of percussion caps for fire arms
is about to be superseded by 4 new and far
more efficient printing, which is reported as be-
ing safer than the cap; easily understood, and
when once applied to the gun, lasts, without
the necessity of being touched by the hand, for
the duration of the longest battle. This new
invention has been tested for four months in
practical field service by the u. S. troops in
Texas, and the result was highly satisfactory,
so much so that the Board of Examination,
consisting of distinguished officers of the army
and navy, reported in favor of the purchase of
the patent right for the use of the government,
which was done. The invention is said to be
extremely simple; it changes neither the mod
ell, weight, nor action of the gun, and is appi-
cable to any kind Of firearms.
The very slight increased cost of the arm up
on this system is so inconceivable as to be COW
cred by the saving of five hundred primers these
costing less than one-fourth as much as caps. |
BY this invention, the gun is made to prime it.
self, and the immense rapidity of firing is re-
ported to be from twenty-five to thirty per cent,
and under some circumstances which |
the soldier tho increase would be |
some hundreds per cent. This invention has
in several instances been applied to sporting
guns, and has met an unanimous approval from |
those sportsmen who have used it.
The FIRST LOCOMOTIVE IN AMER1cA.-The |
first locomotive ever used in the United States |
IS still in good running order, on the Little
Schuylkill Railroad. 1t was built in Liverpool,
BY Edward Bury. AT that time it was necessa-
y to send man from England, to put the en-
zine in running order on the road 1t was but
twenty years ago that Edward Bury's engine
vas first paoed upon our road. Since then
he iron track has been extended throughout
'ur land the fierce breathing of the iron horse
$ heard in almost every valley; the ingenuity
If our mechanics enable them to supply our
,wn engines, and furnish them to nations across
he ocean. We're progressive people.
Scientific American.
What singular medley newspaper must
'e : In one column you will find labored and
welling eulogy of departed greatness. anna