Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1857-02-24
STAR.
JOHN PHGNIx IN BOSTON.

1t is Sunday in Boston. | have been sittin.
| In my room, No. 78 fremont House, by the
| window, which commands cheerful view Of
| grave yard, musing on various matters and
things In solemn state Of mind we'll betting
| the place and the occasion. Seventeen inches
of snow fell last night, and Boston looks white
| like the Island Of Ichabod, 70 the full as des.
olate. Through the hollow and reverbeIatipg
passages Of this ancient building; around the
corners OF the sinuous streets; from each door
and window In every private and public
building, and from the houses Of God, re-
sounds the peculiar sharp hacking cough of
the population of Boston Every soul of them
has it 1t is the disease of the country
W hen meet an acquaintance in the street,
abstain from the usual greeting, and invarif :
| bly, say, '' How is your cough ?' and the re-
ply invariably is '' about the same" Cough
ing, and the ancient pastime Of hawking, fol
| lowed by expectoration,) are the principal
| amusements in this cold city. In the grave
yard beneath my window, on a slate tomb
| stone, may be found, am informed, the FOL-
lowing touching inscription:
Here l!s bereft Of breath,
Because cough carried me of in"
| which, doubt not, describes the case Of the
majority of the silent ineumbents of that place
| of rest
The fremont House is in many respects a
good institution; ii is perfectly clean and we'll
arranged, the attendance is good, and the
fodder excellent; but there is an indesoriba-
bic air Of gloom and solemnity pervading the
entire establishment we'll suited to Boston, but
chilling to a stranger to the last degree. The
walters, dressed in black with white neck
cloths, move silently and sadly about the ia
ples, looking like So many ministers with thir-
teen children, four hundred a year and two
donation parties the man in the cfiice never
smiles-ln any point Of view; large Bible,
with the name of the house stamped upon il
IN Slit letters, 90 prevent religious strangers
from bottling if,) lies on every table, and the
chambermalds attend family prayer in the
basement. All is grand, gloomy" and, il
must be confessed, exceedingly peculiar |
have attempted hut two Jokes in this solemn
place, and they fell like tie fakes of snow.
silent and unnoticed An unfortunate indi-
Vldaal In the reading room, last evening, was
seized with an unusually violent ft Of cough
ing, which, IT man could by any possibility
have been turned inside out would have done
1t; and as partial cessation OF il occurred
with bis hair standing on end, (he had coughed
his hat ofD his face glowing with exertion,
and the tears standing in his unhappy eyes,
he very naturally gave vent to a profane exc
Grafton Every bOdy looked shocked. l re-
marked in an audible tone to my companion,
that the exclamation was a Golfer dam; an
admirable contrlvance for raising obstructions
from the bottom of streams, and probably
adopted by the gentleman to clear his throat:
but no one laughed, and 1 incOntinentiy went
20 bed.
This morning On arising discovered that ~
boots, left outside the door to bo embellishei
with blacking, had, like those Of Bom bastes,i o:
been displaced; so said TO the porter, a man f
grave and solemn aspect: I" You have a very
honest set ofpeOple about this house" ""Why?'
SAID the porter, with q somewhat startled
expression because l rejoined, 81 left
bot 81 H..
this morning no one has touched them" That
man walked off slow and stately, and never
knew that L had been humorous Disappoint-
ments have been my lot in life. | remember
in early childhood going to the theatre to see
Mrs. w. II. Smith appear in two pieces the
bills said she would do it, and she came upon
the stage perfectly whole and entire, like any
other lady. Upon the whole, it is my impress
sion that Boston is a dull, gloomy, precise and
solemn city, which take to be owing entirely
TO the intense cold that prevails there in the
winter, which chills and freezesup the warmer
nature of the inhabitants, who don't have
time to get thawed out before the cold comes
back again. l have met many Bostonians in
more genial climates, who appeared to be very
hearty and agreeable fellows. took short
ride yesterday in the Metropolitan railroad
cars, which are dragged by horse power from
the fremont House to Koxbury.
The only other occupant Of my car was a
yound and lovely female in deep mourning
she wore heavy black veil, and her thick
and beautiful auburn hair was gathered up
on each side of her face, beneath a spotless
cap, widow cap of snowy muslin. L had
always feeling for widows young and pref
ty widows particularly, always excite my
deepest interest and sympathy. / gazed with
moistened eye On the sweet specimen before
me. so young, so beautiful, l thought, and
alas what suffering she has experienced.
pictured to myself her devotion 10 her hus.
band during his last illness, the untiring
watchfuIness with which she hung over his
pillow, the unwsarying and selfsacrifcing
spirit with which she hoped on, hoped ever,
till in despite Of her care, her love, he sank
forever, and her agOnized shrek rang in my
ear, as with hands clasped and upturned eve
she felt that he was dead-her dream of life
was Over-her strength was gone-her heart
was broken.
The young widow had been regarding me
earnestly during this time, and probably i'm
agined whatI was passing in my mind, for
throwing her veil over her hat, she turned
partly around towards me, and looking stead
fastly in my face-she winked her eyei Yes,
sir, she Wlnked her eye at ms-the moral
Phoenix, and rose from my ashes and left
the Metropolitan car and returned to the Tre-
mont House. And is it possible, thought I, as
L gazed from my window up fremont street
long, black overcoat, looking hastily up and
down the street, and then dodge up small
alley in great haste; is it possible that this
little widow in the car is at all typical Of the
great city to which she belongs
A most respectable. staid, and solemn out
ward appearance-coveringa very strong dis
position to that deviltry which is defined by
the Bible as " the lust of the flesh, the lust Of
the eye. and the pride Of life" But Boston,
clothed in its robe of snow looked too pure.
too bride.like, and L dismissed the supposition
from my mind.
They don't have theatrical performances in
Boston on Saturday evenings; the theatre
opens at o'clock, p m, and the performance
is over at 6. Thalberg was allowed to give
concert here last evening, however lie was
practicing little this morning also on tie
piano, when message came from a serious
family In the next room begging him not to
play dancing tunes. He did Mt.
had intended to have written to you more
at length, but am off to New Orleans directly,