Newbern weekly progress., 1860-01-17
FROM OUR CORRESPONDENTS
SALISBURY. NC Ian 10Th 1ssa

1
ject to occasional fit of gloom Cor, as we have
it in the classics, blues,'') which in the absence
of prompt and energetic treatment, imperce ptibly
resolves itself into spleen. A bad SORE on nv
| right foot, has confined me to my ROOM for some
days past. Left to my own reflections they
naturally reverted to the uncertain tenure we
have life and health; and tire certain indfer-
ence which the loss of one, or both would cause
among ones friends and acquaintances. don't
believe if / should die this evening, that such a
momentous circumstance Gas l view IT'D would
rude the surface of their thoughts, FIVE minutes
from the instant they heard of it. My gloom in
creases as cogitate that some might even sing
more gleefully, and chat more facetlouslv in the
face of such an uIitoward event, Il mean to me. }
Now should 10 reaction take place at this stage
of the blues" stagnaton would ensue; msera-
| BILE snicide inducing apathy: for, with every
throb of social sympathy gOne begin to feel
like mere card in the pack, that might be shuf-
fed about eternay with the set, and yet remain
passive and senseless. l care no more for my
neighbor than the king of Diamonds does for
him of Spades. Ha now comes the healtbful
reaction; the friendly fit of spleen; feel it per-
vading my whole heing; burning and tingling
my cheeks, and thrilling all my extremities with
resentment against the (imaginary) delinquent,
Society. feel like fighting innumerable duels,
were it not for the puppysm of punctilio, and the
BOBBY legislation OF seconds which attend them
to say nothing of the fear of getting ''ioingcd my
self l don't care a ground-Pea tor any lv-
| ing. There, see you making demi- pathet-
ic, demi-choleric appeal for exception in your
| favor. We'll, Johnnie, my honest fellow, L do
about you so decant "a =" snfter,' and after draw
ing your left sleeve under your facial knob"
drink your health and mine Well now, feel
better already; don't care if do live and en-
dure society little longer. l don't believe, after
all, that any desires my death. No, no, it
can't be- I've got nothing to leave any body, and
that's proof positive IIuirah my case amt so
decidedly bad after all; rire Ia pOrerti! Thou. at
least, art my friend. Wherefore have prima
tdcio evidence of the fact, seeing you (poverty)
| ctic tn mi a brOthor I'm he
recuperation of my spirits, the fact is insensbiy
disclosing itself to my mind that | am becoming
unconscionably lazy, by virtue of my present
constrained, inactive and monotonous state;
feel that | merely vegetating. I'm nothing
but hot house exotic and am convinced, that
| | will soon become a confirmed idler, and contin-
lie the balance of my days. In fact, am be-
coming quite enamored with idleness Here l
sit all day, yawning and gazing at my horizontal
leg, with foot attached, varied with an occa-
sional "pull at a pipe" giving my mental facul-
ties listess sort of e1ctatlon, in specializing on
the probable destiny Of the feecy clouds, which
then and there" "gracefuly curl" about
my head. really could not take the trouble to
acrite my sensations. were it not that wish to
communicate the delicious delights of my luxu-
rious Incidence. to those dear creatures IL mean
those % female ladies' who don't make ther own
dresses nor nothing, and live in small towns, en-
tirey devoid of public amusement. l know they
can appreciate my enviable condition. / do not
include your regular, operative, scandal monger
but such (well take for example) as
rises late in the morning. and regrets the necessi-
ty which compels her to rise at all; looks on
dressing bore; eats breakfast an hour; then
dawdles about the room half an hour and Plays
with the Cat till she gets both hands scratched {;
then coils down lounge with novel, and
reads the same page, till she falls asleep; af-
ter her nap, gets up and walks-to a chair, when
little Sis remarks, she has hole in one of her
stockings; young lady wonders why her maid
has not mended it after while, concludes to
open the piano; plays half lesson; wonders
" hat Wallace & Co. can mean by writing such
difficult music; thinks she will sew little; takes
up needle and thread and-looks out of the win
dow at the cattle feeding three quarters of an
hour; envys the cows the happy life they lead,
and wishes she could ruminate like them dinner
comes on; eats over an hour; forced to walk out
but hates exercise: getting late in the afternoons
very tired and very hungry; plays with the cat
again after which, makes her poodle fetch
stick out of the water, a few times; has to dress
again; thinks the maid ought to do it for her;
gets scoded by Ma. for throwing her hair papers
about the room; feels aggrieved thereat: what
has the house maid to do, but gather them up -
after tea, sits still doing nothing till bed time;
thinks half past ten will never come; does thought
goes to bed very tired and very sleepy.
Such, with few triAing variations, is the daily
life of this young female lady; and infatuated,
l now am, with love of idleness. l should ad-
mire her mode of killing time amazingly were it
not for occasional fits of industry which sezes her
when ball parties and the like are ahoat. At such
times she undergoes great fatigues and hardships
without repining stays up all night and will
dance you three or four miles of Quaddrilles with
out tainting away however, this is defect of
which time will cure her. When once she is mar
red and has the of family on her hands,
her conduct will become perfectly consistent
throughout and she will relapse into an Incidence
as genuine and perfect heart could desire.
Some old foggies may not see the point" of ex
ceence Many may even be Scepttcat as TO the
superiority of Incidence over industry! Of such
benighted wights, | would merely query, "do
you believe your Bible 7" you do; very good.
Well then, from that source as you are aware, we
| learn that the curse which fell upon man, that
| he should live by the sweat of his brow" was a
punishment denounced after grievous offence ;
from which it may be logically inferred, that to do
nothing is the sunlmum 6omum, and idleness the
| supreme pleasure of Paradise. The privileged
classes as they are called, have pretty well alb
solved themselves from the consequences of this
denuncation, which sufficiently proves them to be
| the peculiar favorts of heaven; and when, eoen
| l. am inclined to think ireverenty of some
churches, the Incidence of the 'cloth," at once
recalls me from the and bows me in sub
mission before the "chosen vessels" DO not
misunderstood to consider, with most men,
that every employment which makes no return in
money is to be held as idle. No such thing The
school boy w ho negects his task is called, by
them, an idle boy, though he may have passed
the whole day at cricket, shiny, or climbing
trees, rowing the river, any other violent
exercise, and goes to bed as fatigued day
labores! A mans activity may be expended on
the most hici0L Objects but still it is labor; and
the world does but justice to the active minded
spreading scandal and interfering all things.
when it calls him busy body; although, to all
good intents and purposes he would be much bet
ter occupied, in splitting over a bridge into the
water. No, sir none of your Gctire idleness for
me. Sleeping in the sun, watching the move
eafc,r of-oo ha tra of hr,1,h in