Southern shield., 1855-08-25
LETTER FR(M HOT SPRINGS.
HOT SPRINGS. Aug. 7th.


 developments of travels among the knobs in Arkansas.
 Well, sir, to begin at home, let us, by way of contrast say something of our noble old Philips, not in the way of vaunting or bnggadocio, but in all candor and honesy. To say that Phil lips is the banne- county in the State for wealth, intelligence and high social position, is only saying what every one will admit who has had an opportuni- ty of seeing and making comparisons. Much of this superiority is owing no doubt to her highly favored geograph- ical position; lying and fronting for 100 miles on the great Father of Wa ters. That her public journals have aided greatly in the advancement of general intelligence and improvement, no one will doubt.
 We'll, sir, the next county, coming west, is Monroe. It is one among the best counties in. the State; next to Phil lips, perhaps, the very best, for soil and easy egress and ingress; the beau tiful White river trayersing t from north to south. Monros is rapidly i'm proving in wealth and intelligence. Upon crossing White river, the mo- ment you set your foot on the west bank, you see at once that you are in another region. Ispeak of the appear ance of the country at and near Aber- deen, place which, if one would be- Iieve all the pufs of some of the Mem phis papers, surpasses, for wealth and greatness Gin perspective) all other places on earth, except Grand Glaze and few other places, where the Mem phis and Little Rock R. R. crosses White river.
 It seems as if nature had mantled herself in mourning. The little village of Aberdeen is stuck up on a high bluff. There is only some half dozen build ing in the place, and they of the com monest order. The only mark of i'm provement to be seen near the place is a large steam mill about half a mile above the town, which was pufing away as we passed.
 We dined at the hotel. The land lord is postmaster, merchant, and gen. eral mail agent, l believe, and also a very gentlemanly, clever fellow, which l is an oasis in the wilderness of Pierce its. He apologhed for having no veg etables on his table, and said they could not raise any. We advised him to plant a garden on the east side of , White river.
 On leaving the river nature puts or deary garb. The timber is princi- pally post and scrub oak growing here and there, with occasionally pine tree rearing its tall and graceful column high above his more humble neighbors like some tall giant amidst an army of pigmies. While speaking of pine trees suffer me, dear Quincy, to indulge a little in the sentimental. Who does not know and feel that a sound, voice, striking a chord of music, the odor of of flower, calls back the memory to other and perhaps happeir days, have an undefned and pleasant sensa- tion, that, in days long gone by, we have felt the same sensations, we have heard the same sounds, butwhen and where we cannot tell. There is mel ancholy pleasure in these things. So in the signing of the tall pines in the lonely forest. The notes seem familiar to our ears, and recalls the scenes of of other days, sort of delicious, dreamy feeling pervades the soul. Is it the communings of departed spirits? Is it the long forgotten scenes and voices that made their impression on the soul in days long, long gone, and are only recalled to the mind by some once ia miliar sound striking on some sympa- thetic chord. It is the last record of the soul, only found to be again lost, and again resurrected.
 Two miles from the river sets in the grand prairie. It was about two o. clock in the evening when we entered this mighty clearing. To one who has never seen large prairie, the first impressions are a mixture of awe, sub limity and grandeur. The mind is overpowered and awed by the vast and boundIess view before him. I pity the man who can for the first time look upon these mighty plains unmoved but no doubt there are such. For my part when standing alone on this vast plain, I felt that I was in presence ol the mighty Architect, who, by voli- tion of mind, could make and unmake worlds. I felt a choking sensation when trying to measure the vastnesS with the eye. If man (so puhfed uE with importance) would feel and have for once proper appreciation of hi; utter littleness let him stand in the mids of one of our great western prairies. We arrived at the first stand in the prairie, eleven miles from the river | n bo,,L o = o,,, Ix- c,x, o e+orop oJroy,