Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1852-03-10
MISCE Ill A n Y.
From Chambers Journal
yvrIAL TO DOM Fac MEANTIME.

1t has been frequently remarked by a
philosopher Of our acquaintance, whose only
fault is impracticability, that in life there
is but one real difficulty this is simply.
what to DO in the meantime? The thesis
requires no demonstration. 1t comes home
TO the experience of every man who hears
i uttered. From the chimney-pots to the
cellars of society, great and small, scholars
and clowns, all classes Of struggling hu-
manity are painfully alive to its truth,
The men to whom the question is pre-
eminently embarrassing are those who have
either pecuniary expectancies OF possess
talents of some particular kind, on whose
recognition by others their materla! prosper
ity depends. 1t may be laid down as a gen
eral axiom, in such cases, that the worst
thing man can do is to acaii, and the best
thinG he can do is to ,rork; that is to say
that IN nine cases out of ten doing something
has a great advantage over doing moth
ing. -, ,,4
9Work man ~ said the philosopher; hast
thou not all eternity to rest in = And TO
cork, according to AlilPs Political Econo-
nv" is to mare therefore perpetual mo-
ton is the great ideal problem of mechan-
icians, ,g .......
The first case in our museum Is that oi
German officer. He was sent to the coast
ofAfrica on an exploring expedition, through
the agency of the part pretre, or jesuit
party in France, with whose Vaccinations
against Louis PhilipPe's government he had
become accidentally acquainted. The Jes-
uits, finding him opposed to their plans, de-
termined to remove him from the scene OF
action. In consequence Of this detrmina-
ton, 1t so happened that the captain OF the
vessel in which he went out set sail one
fine morning leaving our friend on shore to
the society and care of the native negro
nopulahon. His black acquantances Tor
some time treated him with marked civlll-
tv but as the return Of the ship became
more and more problenatical, familiarity
beqan to breed It's usual progeny, and the
unhappy German found himself in most
painful position. Hitherto he had not been
treated with actual disrespect but when
King Bocca-B Bocca one day cut him IN the
most uueouivocal manner, he found himself
so utterly neglected, that the sensation OF
being a nobody-a nobody too amongst liz
oers for the moment completely overcame
him. A feeble ray of hope was excited
shortly afterwards in his despondent heart
by hint gathered from the signs made by
the negro in whose hut he lived, that a
pro;ect was entertained in high quarters CT
giving him a coat of lamp-black, and sell
inc him as slave but this idea was "a
bandoned by its orginators, possibly Tor
want ofopportunrty to carry it out. Now our
adventurer had observed that so long as he
had a charge of gunpowder left to give a
wav. the black men had almost worshipped
him as an incarnation Of the Mumbo-Jum-
bo adored bv their fathers. Rejecting cn
this 1t occurred to him that if, by any pos
sibjlity, he could contrive TO manufacture a
fresh supply of the valued commodity, his
fortunes would be comparatively secure.
No sooner had this idea arisen in his brain,
than, with prodigiouS perseverance, he pro-
ceedcd to work towards its realization. The
worst of it was, that he knew the native
names neither Of charcoal, sulphur, nor nitre.
No matter: his stern voiition was proof "a
gainst all difficulties. Having once convey
cd his design to the negroes, he found them
eager to assist him, though, as difficulty af-
ter difficulty arose, it required all the con-
fdence of courage and hopeful energy to
control their savage impaticnce. The first
batch was failure, aud it was only by pre-
tending that 1t was yet unfinished he was
enabled to try a second, in which he tri-
umphed over all obstacles. When the ne
groes had really loaded their muskets with
his powder, and fred them off in celebra-
ton Of the event, they indeed revered the
stranger as a superior and marvellous being.
For nearly eighteen months the German re-
manned on the coast. 1t was a port rare
ly visited, and the negroes would not al
low him to make ANY attempt to travel to
a more irequented place Thus he contin-
ued to make gunpowder for his barbarous
friends, and to live, according to their no.
tions, like prince :" for to do King Boo
ca.Bocca Justice, when he learned our friends
value, he treated him like man and both
er. What might have been his fate had he
awaited in idle dependency the arrival OF
vessel As it was, the negroes crowded
the beach, and fred off repeated salvoes at
his departure. Doubtless his name will de-
sccnd through many dusEy generation as
the teacher of that art which they still prac-
tice, CARRYING on lucrative commerce in
gunpowder with the ncighboring tribes
A small square chest of goFd-duSt, which the
escaped yictim of Jesuit fraud brough back
10 Europe, was no inappropriate proot OF