The River Falls journal. (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1857-1861, 1859-01-12

Personally appeared before me, Justice
| of the Peace in and for the town of Blank
Robert Cavalier de la Sale, in company
with a chief of the Algonquins, who de.
clare and set forth that he, the aforesaid
Robert Cavalier de la Salle," dc. In
either case, we have only bare state
ment of facts-a mere skeleton of life in
the wilderness. We want more than this.
Description of scenery should accord most
precisely with the object described. Let
us see the lofty, rugged, mountain side,
in the stately pace OF grand and majestic
numbers; and the silvery waterfall of the
brook, adorned with sentences that shall
remind us of tie bright flowers which
blossom at its banks.
We suppose, as a general rule, it is
well never to find fault with anything,
unless some better plan of action is pro-
posed. evertheless, there is, it appears
to us, one serious failure in the mode OF
writing biography as practised at the
present day. 1t consists in lacking to a
biography "His or Her character" This
practice seems to us simply ridiculous.
Can we not adduee persons character
from his actions as well as to have it un-
folded by another's imagination?
We read that certain persons COM
batiyeness made him very quarrelsome-
and so with every protuberance on the
head; each one having the power to send
its owner bobbing about like the " Babes
in the Woods" --s
Tho writer arrogates to himself the
power to expose every cause for action
which existed in the person whose biogra-
ply lie is writing. Now for some reason
we are all unwilling and unable to show
the contents of our own souls or minds.
mean the real valuables which are stored
up in each individuals own private men
tai granary or store-house for thought.
OF course do not think all the contents
oe q mans mind are valuable to his neigh
bors or the community IN which he re-
sides, save as being tho result of his own
reasoning powers, and this is of worth to
the biographer, provided he could get at
them. If some inventive genius would
produce a scrt of telescope with which
we could inspect persons mental nare-
house, would it not be fine thing? We
would Just bring one of them to bear on
man, and mark him as an Inspector and
euaeer of smoked bacon marks a cask.
| Such an invention would be invaluable to
many-particularly to bashful young men
who "neditate declaration of intentions; -
and until such an invention is made, we
are afraid we can never work out the great
problem of Nature-MAN!
I can think of but two ways in which
access can be gained to the soul life OF
mankind: One the way poetical,-as
| the eve has been called the window of the
soul, to 90 to the window and peep in
the other the way sclentific-or feeling OF
mans bumps according to certain rules
laid down by the principle co-eficients of
Phrenology at the present day. For
instance: There is Deacon Upright-a
very nico man, an open-hearted man
perfectly methodical in all lis business,
and square as brick, don't do anything
to be ashamed of, either socially, politi-
cally, or religiously; indeed, his name is
a fair exponent of his actions and life.
Now, suppose Mr. Fowler with few o.
his chronological disciples and | go over
to the deacon's, and find him digging
potatoes-holding sweet communion with
Nature. Suppose we have the temerity
to walk up and look into the window Of
his soul, 4. e. his big, clear, gray eye,
would we see packages of thoughts laying
around, neatly labelled, that they might
be ready for reference OF delivery; as to
furnish Widow Lonely load of wood
and some fl our this fall To go to church
and prayer meeting this week! To ad-
vocate free republican doctrine, aud vote
the straight republican ticket every time
Most certainly not. If we were in q pro
per position with regard to the rays o
light, we might see therein reflected ar
ass, or in other words the counterpart o
ourself. We are not prepared to say
that Mr.. Fowler would have any better
success. Mr.. Upright knows, and W.
know that his mental warehouse is al
invisible reality with its doors closed, win
dow shutters up, aud all locked and bolt
ed. That it would be impossible for u
to understand anything about his motive
for action, except as he explains fully
this he is unable to do, and we see Dea
con Upright dimly through a smoked
glass. How the historian can accomplish
anything more, or as much, is to US
mystery.
There may be apparent exceptions, 8
when e master passion takes possession