The star of the north. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1849-1866, 1858-01-13
THB TIMES.
CoGfTATIoNs OF AN OLD FARMER,

Hard times! So, everybody says; and SO
say we--for the Chimes" do bother us, as
everybody else is bothered, Possibly we may
not be so badly damaged as some others,
but we know enough about the hard dscratch-
ing which they inflct upon us to wish they
were otherwise. We have had "good''
times too, and quite a run of them for sew
eral years, until few months ago. So the
same Everybody, told us time and again.
Yes they were good times. We had free
trade, and free credit abroad; and we used
it freely too, with vengeance. We have
built long array of free rail roads, free to
the select coteries of speculators who got
! them up for their own especial benefit,
mind you on bonds which were gobbled up
by the usures with decided freedom. The
roads gave free passes to the Legislators,
and judges of the country, as well as to
various editors, for which, the little share
that we had in riding we shall never cease
to thank them. We imported millions
of free goods that we did not need, but
which we made out 10 wear, and eat, and
dispose of in one way and another, and the
beauty of it is, those which arenot paid for,
or used up-and they are many-,he ow-
ners are free 10 send back 10 where they
came from, as many of them probably will,
or let the goods lie long while in the
bounded warehouses, awaiting better times
for sale and consumption.
The truth is, for the last eightor Ten years
we have built extravagantly, dressed nom
sensicaIly, lived lavishly, speculated wildly,
trusted everybody about US, as we got trust.
ed abroad, and "laid loosen around, gener-
ally. Our farmers got great prices for their
produce TO feed the fools and tyrants who
were doing up their own fighting in Europe;
and they got such prices SO long that they
supposed they were always TO have them.
ourItowns were so prosperous, and people
in them got rich so rapidly that astmany
others, old and young who were doing well
enough on their farms and thought they
could do a great deal better in town, let them
to know little peace or quietude afterwards
Our women and girls quit spinning stock
ing yarn at home, and took 10 spinning
street-yarn, and wearing crinoline abroad.
Instead of humping the eclothesi in the pound
ing barrel in the kitchen, they took 10
humping the piano, and the melodean in
the parlnr : whiIe the boys, and sYanns
America," took 10 "fast horses" 'qong
nines," "cock tails" and general ''cut
up" all round the board, and SO went the
world. -
These be homely truths, bluntly spoken,
we admit. But are they not true? We
opine 10 be SO, for we have seen just such
times before-bating the railroad specula-
ting-twenty years ago-and which we
have the best reasons to remember so long
as we live.
Our lives are amixed commodity of good
and evil. The old patriach Jacob, who, af-
ter many days of prosperity, clouded occa-
sionally with triAe of adversely, being
brought in deep affliction, and questioned
by Pharoh of his life, answered: t'few and
evil have been the days of my pilgrimage"
So a great many Of us may say now; yet,
with all the warnings of wise men for some
time past, like Jeshuran, of old, we "waxed
fat and kickedn at the shadow of calamity
afar off; and with the homely proverb, hay
ing danced, we now must pay the fiddler.
In short, we have to square accounts-those
who can--and for those who can not, they
must do the best they can, and get "clear
of the ropes" somehow. In sober truth,
we must "settle up,p and again go to work.
We must cease importing goods we do not
want; we must stick 10 our farms, our
workshops, and our trades, whatever they
may he--if we can get living by them
and if we can not do that, take TO those at
which we can. Instead of earningone, five,
or ten hundred dollars year, and spending
more, we must earn all we can and spend
less. That is the only true and honest way
to fortune. A great master of human life
has said:
"Sweet are the uses of adversely,
Which like toad ugly and venomous
Hath yet precious jewel in its head.o
He did not know much about toads, how
ever, for they are decidedly good things in
a garden. sSa6
Woxprprur MrMoav --IV;lliam m Ivon