The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1859-04-14

ance, a cross, peevish old matron, who has sur
vived contemporaries health, good humor,
everything, in fact, except her money, (which |
do not want her wit, against which / can
sharpen mine, and her memory, which is stu
pendous, and for which / cultivate her, as she
helps me to become quite an aristocratc mon
itor She can tell me the pedigree of all our
mushroom gentility, and it is exceedingly
pleasant, my dear R, for one who has moth
ing to boast of in that line, to be able to tell
whose grandfather made shoes, whose mother
was a wet-nurse, and whose papa began life as
bar-keeper in a gin-shop. it gives one GER
tain power he could not otherwise attain to; and,
lift does not gain him friendsi certainly has the
effect of making people afraid to offend him, in
which condition most persons are more service
able to yon, find, than when bound to you by
even the closest ties. Such people are always
conscious of the hanging, and pay you well for
not naming ropes in their presence. And you
know l approve of the maxim Rdrla POGO, as
Gotta dssai, G non .faliirai, always limiting, of
course that i do know much. My ancient
friend has given me many lesson in world
wisdom. The other day, as | was there, lady
visiter wound up sentence with, And you
know, my dear Miss Sarah. we must do in
Rome as Romans do" as Saint Paul says ire
ferring to some crinolne extravaganza or other. }
beg your pardon, madam; Saint Paul says no
such thing. That's homemade Scripture, if
you please. But it's true enough added she,
blinking her cunning old eyes at me, you can't
find better way out to sea than by following
the river
"And / am trying to follow the river just
now, Claude, in literary matters. Sentiment is
the order of the day, and am cultivating a
sentimental turn, | don't know whether to
write sensational novel, which will pay, or
whether shall not get out religious memoir.
I'm thinking of Havelock, and have made some
notes thereupon. But not of his battles, lex
cept with nlein iebe Herr Urian, la mode
Luther y oh no his preaching, and his pray
| ing, and his doctrine. Phew! This is gay
world, at the present day. l like it. There
are so many original enthusiasts being cried
in the market-pla Here we have Brother
Brigham and his saints, like dunghill cock
among his pullets, whetting his spurs in readi-
| ness for the charge of Uncle Sans eagle, who
is rather sickly, just now, moulting, and know
| not whether the next growth of feathers will
reveal him TO be a vulture or goose. But we
want no more geese. There are plenty of them
| cackling at the Capitol now, and supposing
| themselves saving the country thereby "a
thing which has been in fashion ever since that
| memorable night attack of Brennus. Here, too,
| we have Brisbane and his crew-ha-ha-poor
devils they are more in earnest than any.
What pity they cannot have Miss Lucy to
lecture to them. Their harmonic doctrine is
grand. Fourier was magnificent dreamer,
and admire his rhapsodies about pivotals,
Distributive movement Attraction, Passional
and Social and Industrial, Seriism, Conjugal
Harmonies, etc., but - / once spent a
week at Brook farm. Here also are the Spirit
ualists, professors of Science have dabbled
in little myselEby ths way, I'd profess too,
if could turn it into as good accoRpt as Hume
dsss-a set of people who are divided, according
to the good old pagan standard, into priests and
laymep, deceived apd deceyers- they aid
the progress Of physiological knowledge, by
Nothing is honest and genuine now adays, ex-
! cept Science, bard, material Science. Even