Demoine courier., 1856-05-08
From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine.
THE AGE.

From Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine.
THE wONDROUS AGE.
'Oh Wondrous Mother Age.n
Wondrous!-such 10 the title this age
assumes. She wears il written broadly
on her phylac,sry ,rumoets IL loudly on
quay and bousss. on platforms and al
marke. places, blabs i, at clubs and read
ing rooms. placards j. in railway ca,riag-
~, pufs il in steamships; everything
she Guys or sells 10 docqueted. svery,h thing
she . y or DIES. engsavsn with the epi-
,he.-W ondrous! This is the Age Of
ages--so che ssyG The Golden. the sil-
YER. The Braxen, the Iron sges were as
thoughts il combines them aii, and 10
srsnder. richer, stronger in i.s fusion than
any Of these seperase stages. Men are
now only beginning 10 live. In for ner
times ihey merely dosed or dasndered,
,siisd or philsndered, brawled or rio,ed.
dssamed OF philosophical through life.
wasting i,s golden sands in writing love.
songs. ard calling ,ha,-2oe~y; 10 6ga,-
ing great battles. and calling ,has-hero
ism. chivalry; in sitting by the midnighs-
lamp. gathering knowledge, which ia after
years might ripen into wisdom. and CALI
ing 'ha,-s.udy; in sitting by hearth or
board. quaf6ng from the wine cup. drink
ice ioasss. telling old stories. singing old
soaes. and calling that c~onvivnli,y.
good Fellowship; in giving aims 10 beg
ga:s. in feeding the hunger Of the idle
and the ~yagabood, and calling ,ha,-char
ny; in u,,ering strong words, ia doing
strong deeds, sad calling lha,-manline.s
IN upholding na.ioualiiies. and calling
ha.--pairiosism Such are a few delu-
sions in which men were ever Wrapping
themselves, until the day Of enIighlmenl
d wned, and this Age burs, upon 10.
with i,s railways and is .ships.
lie doves Of peace and arks Of commerce
i's treaties ard TARIFF. iss Leagues and in
s~,ilstes, ils unions aud schools, is led
gers end invoices. its cotson-mills aid
neutrality-suspicious. 10 the world
that the true destiny 81 man. was 10
trade. 10 manufacture, 10 make money
and circulate il, and. through The medium
Of cotton bales. silken frsights cargoes or
coal. aud sacks Of corn, to fulfil the grea,
mission Of pence and good will. Knowi-
soge, learning. cousags. perseverance,.
mind. ihoosa', enterprise, strength, were
no, 10 be utterly r~epudiaied; they we're
only 10 be converted 10 the one purpose.
driven cot Of the old slow process Of de
velopmeus, touched with the impulses Of
the hme; and quickened to . more rapid
production and ciTculsn on. What boots
il that our locomotives 60 II the rate Of
iory. fifty. sixty miles a. hour! that our
ships cross the A,laasic ID eleven days!
that OCT electric wires carry messages
from one end Of tho land 10 tho o,her!
that our printing presses throw forth pa
pers by The hundred and books by the
taOusa"d! OF what use are our political
economies, = sialstics, our lectures,
our leagues. our steam power. our me
chanicsl inventi0ns, our iibesalism, IL
mcn are 10 move, alk. think, and lsg,s-
late no fas,er than in bygons daysi-I
This must Do, aud 10, the z Of fast.
ness,--of fast travelling, fast talking.
last thinking. fast reading. fast writing.
Of tsst-n0! not fast siasssmanshap--
not fas, law. These remain. like the old
vans aud coaches in the BY roads Of
Cornwall aud Wales, to show The world
what slowgoing vas. Men must moi,
nov aw sis The long results Of Ime.--
They are not to sow in youth that they
may reap in old age--so laboug and
conceive in patience that they may pro-
does in streag,h. The age will no, id.
mi. Of such ssagnssion. ln maxim is
that the greatest production ia shs shor,
eel time. and ~ tina lsasl cost, the best
markets, and the Quickest rsiusas. are
the only worthy slime Of labosr aad in
,sllecs--shs only 6, invsssmsn, Tor capi-
,sl nf shs brain OF The rocket
Thus the Age 10 70 70 on growing
stronger. busier. faster, dosbling tho
power Of maehiasry. multiplying is
mills, increasing it, sxporss and i'm ports,
sssd,sg 'orsh iss frsishss. naehiuery, am
psaduc,s - missionaries 10 eli lands, M.
I'll, by . loving in,ssehangs Of cotton and
corn, . sweet Intercourse with leceess
and bills of exchange. msn are kais to-
10 . bssssifsi unity Of eommsece.
and some GLORIOUS sonsumnasion b. at-
iained, such ~ the poet sses in bis vis-
iou--
"When the war-drum throhbed no longer, and
the battles fags were furled,
in the parliament Of man, The federation Of the
world
There The common cause Of most shall hold 1
fretful realm in awe,
And the kindly earth shall slunber, lapt in
universal law"
Col. Presentation Charles Ere
mont. whc u now . psomiasns candidate
With the people Of ths United S,ates for
the Psssidsai, Vas born in South
Careliaa. in 1911. In July lS2S. Al The
see Of IA, he WAS appointed second Lieu
tenant OF the ToPoStaphica; Eagineers;
vas bievesec IN January, l643. Captain
for .gallaasry and highly m~srisotious ser.
vice IN two e~xpsdiGons commsndsd By