Muscatine weekly journal. [volume] (Muscatine, Iowa) 185?-1890, 1859-06-03
TIE EMPTY CRADLE

In the fields OF light above"
The death of little child is to the
mothers heart like dew on plant from
which bud has persisted. The plant
lifts up its head in freshened greenness
to the morning light, so the mothers
soul gathers from the dark sorrow
through which she has passed, fresh
Frightening Of her heavenly hopes. As
she bends over the empty cradle, and
in fancy brings the sweet infant before
her, a ray Of divine light is on the
eherub's face. 1t is her son still, but
with the seal of Immortality on his
brow. She feels that Heaven was the
only atmosphere where her precious
flower could unfold without SPOT or
blemish, and she would not recall the
lost. But tho anniversary Of its de-
parturo seems to bring its spiritual
presence near her. She indul ges in
that tender grief which soothes like an
opiatc in pain all her passions and
cares of life. The world to her is no
longer filled with human love and hope
in the future, so glorious with heav
emily love and joy, she has such treas
ures as the worldly, unchastened heart
cannot conceive Of. The bright fresh
flowers with which she had decorated
her room, the apartment where her in
FAINT died, are emblems of the far
brighter hopes now dawning on her
day dream. She thinks Of the glory
and beauty Of the New Jerusalem,
where the little foot will never find a
thorn among the flowers. Nor will a
pillow be necessary for the dear head
reposing on the breast Of our kind
Savior. And she knows her infant is
there, in that world of eternal bliss
She has marked one passage in that
Book-to her cmphatically the Word
of life-now lying close by on the tot
let-table, which she reads daily: "Suf-
fer little children to come unto me !;
for Of such is the kingdom of Heaven.
TRAVELLING IN A CIRCLE-Ha6iks of
Be,cildered People.-A correspond
ent writes to the Scientific .7nserican
In a late number of your paper you
state, in answer to some correspondent,
that you have no confidence in the re-
port that "when man is lost he will
travel in circle" In this you are
entirely mistaken it is a fact well
known to all frontiersmen, that, when
persons are bewildered, they frequent
ly travel in perfect circle, sometimes
keeping the same track until they make
a dozen equal rounds at Other times
making the circle larger or smaller
each time. 1t is not by any means al
ways the case when a person is lost;
but it is in the experience Of every one
who has been much in the woods. In
calm and cloudy weather, and in a
country of much sameness Of appear
ance, the best woodsmen are apt to get
so bewildered as to stake circles"
Persons not accustomed to the woods
will sometimes do so when the sun is
shining and steady breeze blowing.
On the level or gulf prairies Of this
country, on calm, fcggy morning,
no man can travel without road. 1t
is an incident of everyday occurrence
in the Spring and Fall seasons, that
men are thus becalmed on the prairies
as effectually as ships at sea; nor will
a compass mend the matter, for it can
not be carried steadily enough to keep
its meridian, and the course it points
cannot be kept for fifty yards; if a
man attempts it, he will make a circle
and come back to where he started.
The circle will be large or small gen.
orally, in proportion to the density Of
the fog-sometimes only a hundred
yards in diameter at other times a
mile, but seldom. The circles thus
made are perfect. This kind of wan
dering seems to arise from an attempt
to 90 straight course when there is
nothing to guide the senses, or when
the usual guides of sun, wind, or the
general contour of the country are dis
regarded. 1t rarely befalls children,
who do not attempt to 60 on course,
but only run from one visible point to
another equally perceptible.
THE BEAUTIFUL WoRLD.-Ah this
beautiful world! Sometimes it is all
sunshine and gladness, and Heaven lies
not far off - and then it suddenly
changes, and is dark and sorrcwful,
and the clouds shut out the day. In
the lives Of the saddest of us there arc
bright days like this when we feel as if
we could take the great world in our
arms. Then come gloomy hours when
the fire will not burn on our hearts, and
all within is dismal, cold and dark.
Believe me, every heart has its secret
sorrows which the world knows not, and
oftentimes we call man cold when he
is only sad.-Longfellow.
INFLUENCE OF G LIMATE.-The inE alb
itants Of the regions of gusty winds
have rough, weather. beaten faces, with
lines as Of the tempests blown bowling
into their skins. Mountain races have
stony or granite features, as Of rocks
abandoned to the barren air. Those
Of moist and marshy places look watery
and Emphatic. Those where extremes
Of temperature prevail for long periods
are leathern and shriveled, as though
their skins had given up the contest
with Nature, and died upon their faces.
HINT TO HoUsEKEEpERs. "A few
drops Of carbonate Of ammonia, in
small quantity Of rain water will prove
safe and easy anti acid, &c., and
will change, if carefully applied, dis