Green-Mountain freeman. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1844-1884, 1855-02-22
Che Mus G!eaner
NOTES AND COMMENTS.

rate and careful in bestowing names On
their Towns. Rivers, and Mountains.
this, it has ever appeared to us, they gener
exhibited great lack of both taste and ink.
nuity. Nine out of ten of these names o1e
borrowed, and have not even the merit of ak.
liability. The Indians, with all their pono;.,
OF language and ideas, did far batter in t,,E.
respect, than the English settlers, even Win
all their advantages. The Indian name, Il.
deed, besides their euphony, show renarkobh
ao4ptedness. For instance, what is mora .o,l
0rous than Memphremagog, and what more SID
nlhcant and better adapted in meaning. nj
panse OF Waters" So of Ticonderaga, which
the Indians pronounced T-io-kon.to roka and
wnch means separation of Watsrs-bs;na
situated between the parallel lakes of Gsoroa
and Champlain. Our taste would have led II. -
adopt the milan names Of every locality =. 6.
as they could be asoertained, and where thew
could not, we would at least have bestowed
those showing some adaptation, or supoest;pr
in themselves some reason for their bestowuort
GRNIus.-What is genius-that. stumbling
block of the old, and that MYSTERIOUS sort If
halo SO worshiped, yet SO misunderstood. by the
young! 1t seems generally to be viewed as
some lntnitive power, natural gift, and one
which cannot be acquired by study or applica-
ton however intense. But VIC believe the ideas
attached to this term, are generally wholly mis-
taken and erroneous. Nine tenths of the litera-
ry works, probably, that pass FOR monuments of
genius, are merely the result of patient and
perssvereing application Of ordinary faculties
turned on one subject. We have had familiar
conversation on the subject with most of our
American authors, and they all tell the same
story, and that is, that their works have been
produced only by hard study, care and labor.
We recollect once of rallying John Pierpoint,
the author of some of the most smooth easy
and brilliant lyrics Of American production,
and saying to him, that his poetry seemed to
flow 50 naturally and smoothly, that bis verses
must have come from some national gift, and
cost him little effort
"Pshaw! y was his reply" what 1 write,
can tell you, sir, comes by the HARDEST"
So they all say. They say all the genius they
have, is the genius of hard study and hard Ia
bor We believe, nevertheless, that there is a
faculty possessed by some persons of intellect
which ia not possessed by others, and which
may perhaps be termed peculiar gift-and that
is the faculty of communicating ideas with the
greatest effect. One man writes book full
of good ideas and sound arguments, and it makeSl
no impression, and is soon wholly forgotteny
Another puts the same ideas into a work, and,
by his different manner, at once arrests and
holds the attention and sympathy of his readers,
and his thoughts are remembered and quoted.
30 with speakers. One, with the wisdom of
Bacon will be pronounced dry stick, another
with less valuable thoughts, will command eve
ry ear and stir every heart to action If, then,
there is any peculiar gift or faculty among men
answering to the popular idea of genius, it
must be this. And were we called on for a def
inition we would term Genius the faculty of
communicating ideas in manner to produce
the greatest possible results. - -
The New MAYOR OF NBw YoRK.-Amonr the
many wonders of the present year, the course
OF Fernando Wood, the new Mayor of the city
of New York, is not the least remarkable At
the time of his election, he was charged with
crimes enough to send him to the State Prison,
besides the moral recklessness, perfdy and ha-
bitual vice, which caused him to be shunred and
regarded with loathing and adherence by all
the best and most conservative portion of the
city. To so great an extent was this SO, indeed.
that his election, which was carried BY the COM
bined effort of all the knaves, rowdies and
drunkards of that American Babylon, was
mourned as a public calamity, and an event that
was regarded as certain signal of an ora of
righteousness and anarchy never before Witness
ed. But "man proposes and God disposes.'
The lswless and demoralized multitude who
had combined to elevate him under the i'm.
preston that his rule would Introduce sort of
Devils Millennium among them, in which all
their depraved tastes and wicked designs would
be INDUCED unmolested, soon found that thew
had placed king serpent on the THRONE while
the lovers Of law, temperance and good order,
to their great and agreeable surprise, have
found in him an ally more active and untiripe
in the work of reform, than the best among
themselves, and ruler more energetic and fear
less in the discharge of his duties for the pro.
motion of the public veal, than they would
have dared to hope from the success of their
own candidate.
" What crooked stick God will sometimes
take to whip the Devil with )" once exclaimed
the eccentric Burehard in discourse on a kin.
dred subject. We have never seen the remark
better cxenplifed, than in the course of Mavor
W God who has SO unexpectedly become the ter
ror OF evil doors in that corrupt and lawless
city. f.f.....
A BEAR AND WOLF HuNr OF THE EARLY TINES
Among the most exciting scenes of the earlv
times in this State, were the Bear and Wolf
hunts, got up by the ssstlers, with the double
object OF capturing the wild depredators on their
crops and aocks and indulging in the pleasure
and excitement of the chase We do not al.
ude to the ordinary hunting of these animals
BY prolessed hunters in single chase with doy
Ind rifle, but what was called 'the Ring Hunt
where tho whole male population big enough
% Jump over log, participated, and where
'he rallied men and boys were made to form an
extended ring round the piece of forest sun.
posed to contain the wild animals, and then.