The daily dispatch. [volume] (Richmond [Va.]) 1850-1884, 1854-03-18
saturOap alor,,ins Ktaoina.
SOONER HURT THAN HEALED
OR, HINTS FOR HINTERS.

| >'f h<4s 4 " FOH HINIEkS.
A few years ag0-no matter how many or
how few they might be, for the circumstance
winch am gong to narrate might have been
equally likely to occur at any time or in any
place.belng deprived of the beloved home
in which had passed my earlier years. I re.
tired into a neighborhood with which wes
wholly unacquainted, and the inhabitants OF
which were to me entire strangers. am
somewhat of social turn, and also of a san
guine temperament and, as is natural to a
mind of that stamp had formed many very
pleasant schemes for my future life and ha-
wing heard that there was circle of very
agreeable society in the place, to which had
several satisfactory letters of ltroduction.
not few of those schemes were based ON the
valuable friendships and pleasant acquaint-
ances | expected to form. My comfortable
cottage home was situated in the outskirts of
apopulous town; and. pending the delivery of
the aforesaid letters, | was very much inter
ested in specializing on the habits and cha
racters of the people met with i'll my walks,
and who hoped would in time be among
those friends, concerning whom had been
| building SO many castles in the air. ! am no
gossip indeed, j shrink from the whole sys-
TEN of busy b0dying and scandal mongering
and feel it to be a very Just remark, that for
every tale of scandal that is told at least three
people are injured-namely, the speaker, the
listener, and the person spoken of. But there
| is a difference between watching one S neigh
bors with view to find out their private
concerns for purposes of tattle and that ma
tural interest with which we observe those
| who are to form our future associates, and
with whom our home and social comforts are
| to be closely interviewer. 1t was with this
latter feeling, and with cordial desire to
like and approve, that l was watching my fu-
ture friends and associates, and amusing INV
rather speculative mind by imagining great
deal about them, especially about some few
individuals whose appearance was particu-
larly attractive, when, to my surprise and no
small pleasure, | one morning encountered
| an old schOolmate with whom in early days
had been closely intimate, although since
that time we had seen little or nothing of
each other. Our pleasure in meeting was mu.
| tual: each lady gave the other most affec-
| tiOnate greeting, and in the course of our
| walk-tor we instantly joined company, as in
days OF yore, and gave ourselves up to chat
each communicated to the other the out
| Hue of her history since we last met MY
| friend, Mrs. Frazer, had married an officer in
| the army, and during the time of her married
life had lived chiefly abroad. She was now
q widow, and with a son and two grown-up
daughters, had been for some years resident
at Morton, and was in fact, one of my nearest
neighbOrs. A cordial invitation to join her
| and her girls at their tea table was given, and
| most willingly accepted; dear young niece,
who had just arrived on visit to me, and had
shared our ramble, being of course included
| in the invitation.
The lovely morning had turned off into a
pouring wet afternoon, but Lizzie and were
not the least daunted and with clogs, cloaks
| and umbrellas, sailed forth just before dusk
on our expedition. The bright sea-coal fire,
with fine cracking log of wood on its
nd ba r,1a and oh
of everything about the abode of my friend.
We're most exhilarating after our dripping
walk, and, coupled with the warm and affec-
| tionate welcome of Mrs. Frazer and her
| daughters, made me rejoice that had not al
lowed the rain to prevent our visit The two
| girls-Agnes, who had been our companion in
our morning. walk, a fine and intelligent girl
of about twenty; and Grace, whom had not
before seen, graceful and lovely girl, a year
or SO younger-were so attractive in their
| appearance, and so warm in the reception of
my Lizzie, that fell quite in love with them;
| and when placed in luxurious easy chair by
| the ireside, and in close proximity to tea
| table well spread with ali those pleasant ac-
compartments which belong to that meal in
| houses where the inmates dine early, speed
| lily began to feel myself quite at home, and
| fell into state of high enjoyment, no doubt
i greatly enhanced by the circumstance of my
| having for some previous weeks spent every
| evening in solitude. AS usual, took the first
| opportunity afforded me by lively talk
| which was being carried on by the young
ones, of noticing those around me. Mrs. Fra
zer was at once saw, clever and shrewd
woman, with strong sense of the ludicrous,
and considerable quickness in detecting alb
surdity or inconsistency in others, with little
| disposition to reserve i'll exposing them Ag-
ness fine high forehead, and the thoughtful
expression of her clear dark eyes, Indicated
mind of high intellectual stamp; and in
| sweet Grace, there seemed combination of
| the characters of her mother and sister, her
| lively blue eye catching and rejecting
with singular rapidity everything of a
mirthful character whilst at times, when
other subjects arose, l could detect in her
| changeful countenance a ready appreciation
of the more weighty points in them. Agnes's
mind seemed full of thought, Grace's full of
| feeling and sympathy; Agnes was reflective
| Grace demonstrative-at least such were the
theories formed from the first hours of our
acquaintance. Our meal progressed, and the
hot buttered cakes, and fresh cream, and
bread, vanished with celebrity, our appetites
no doubt stimulated by the flavor of the fla
grant tea, which the elder of the young ladies
most gracefully dispensed.
Come, said /, acting under the inebria-
ing influence of the lively society, and with
have been long resident here, do tell nae a
little about my neighbors, who they all are,
and whom shall best like
| have since learned three excellent rules,
which all who enter a new neighborhood
would do well to learn and practise, but
which then, alas! l had not myself discover
ed:-lst, Remember that every character
has its strong and its weak points, its good
and its bad qualities, and that it is your wis
dom to try and discover the former. and be
as blind as you can to the latter. I'd, Never
ask any one to tell you anything about your
neighbors, as you will be sure to hear more
of the bad than of the good. Sd, If you
wish to love and be loved, to live in peace
and be useful, never tell to one neighbor any
thing you may have observed or been told
that is Objectionable in another. The least
said is soonest mended.' would that j had
held by these rules, but, as / have said, such
was not the case.
'Well,' replied Mrs. Frazer, it is always
good thing to know little of the people one
| Is with and to be sure who one may trust