The Placer herald., 1858-03-06
The Sailor Boys Last Dream.
B Y d I NJ O n D


In slumbers of midnight the Sailor boy lay,
His hammock swung loose at the sport of the wind
But watch-worn and weary his cares flew away,
And visions of happiness danced DER his mind.
Then Fancy her magical pinions spread wide,
And bid the young dreamer in ecstasy rise;
Now far, far behind him the green waters glide,
And the cot of his forefathers blesses his eyes
The jessamine Chambers in flowers DER the thatch
And the swallow sings sweet from her nest on the
wall,
All trembling with transport, he raises the latch
And the voices Of loved ones reply to his call
A father bends DER him, with looks of delight;
His cheek is impearled with mothers warm tear
And the lips of the boy, in the love kiss unite
With the lips of the maid whom his bosom holds
dear.
The heart of the sleeper beats high in his breast
Joy quckens his pulse: all his hardships seem DER,
And murmur of happiness steals through his
O God! Thou has blest me, ask for no more.
All! whence is that flame that now bursts in his eye
All! whence is that sound which now larums his ear!
Tis the lightnings red glare painting hell on the
sky;
'Tis the crashing of thunders; the groans of the
spheres!
lie springs from his hammock he flies to the deck;
Amazement confronts him with images dire
Wild winds and mad waves drive the vessel a
wreck
Like mountains the pillows tremendously swell
In vain the lost wretch calls on mercy to save;
Unseen hands of spirits are ringing his knell,
And the death angel flaps his broad wing DER the
Oh! Sailor boy wo to thy dream of delight!
In darkness dssolves the gay frost-work of bliss!
Where now is the picture that Fancy touched
bright.
Thy parents fond pressure, and loves honeyed
kiss?
O Sailor boy! Sailor boy! never again
Shall home. love or kindred thy wishes repay;
Unblessed and unhonored down deep in the main,
Full many a fathom thy frame shall decay.
Days. months, years and ages shall circle away
And still the vast waters above thee shall roll;
Earth loses thy pattern forever and aye
o! Sailor boy! Sailor boy! peace to thy soul!
The Beard.
The comparative advantages and propriety
of shaving, and of permitting the beard to
grow. it is perhaps not easy to determine.
On the side of boards it has been argued
that nature must have bestowed such an ap-
pendage for the purpose of being worn; and
that, as Tertullian affirmed, it is "blasphemv
against the face" to reject it atoget err. 1t
is certain, also, that a well-kept beard adds
greatly to dignity of appearance, and finally
sets off other parts Of the countenance, and
in particular gives great expression to the
eyes. A comparison of bearded and beard
less portraits is generally much to the ad-
vantage of the former. tits difficult to sup
pose that Leonardo de Vinci, or Cardinal
Bembo, or Cranmer, or the Shah of Persia,
would look so we'll without their boards; and
in Turkey it is impossible to compare the
men who have been shaven, and otherwise
Europeanized, with the bearded civilians in
their flowing robes, without feeling that the
former are, an oriental simile, "plucked
pigeons" in comparison. We have heard
much of the digniied and stately appearance
of the Turks but such comparison enables
us to perceive that most of their dignity is in
their boards and in their dresses. Then we
must also take into account the trouble of
shaving, which made Seume, German writ
er, say in his journal: "To-day threw my
powder apparatus out of the windew. When
will come the blessed day when | shall send
the shaving apparatus after it,"
On the other hand it may be alleged that
as the beard has always been shaven wher-
ever men become highly civilized, its growth
must have been found incompatible with the
convenience and refinement of such state
and would be serious encumbrance in many
delicate acts. Besides we find that, among
all bearded nations, the beard has always
been invested with peculiar sacredness, which
preserves it from any kind of violation, and
as it is the tendency of civilization to eradi-
cate prejudices, this would suffer among the
rest, and men would live in continual peril
of the practical jokes and rough handling
which so conspicuous an appendage would
seem almost to invite. Then it may be ques-
toned whether the care which the beard
would require to keep it in decent state
and to prevent it becoming receptacle for
dust and other impurities, is not fully equal
to any that shaving occasions. In point of
mere appearance, also, it may be stated that
what the eyes lose by the absence Of beard
obtains a full compensation, except in old
age, by the greater advantage with which
the mouth appears. Upon the whole, speak
ing from the experience of those Europeans
who have worn beard in other lands, it
may be said that the law of this matter
should be for every man to shave or not to
shave, as his age, circumstances, pursuits
and inclinations might render the most con-
venient to him.
The practice of shaving probably original
ed at first from its being found that the beard
afforded too good hold to an enemy in
battle. This is the cause assigned for the