Newbern progress., 1863-02-04
az R.eIa0aa Erpmmer jan. 9.
From ...,.. of she sebel Cnpitnl.

III =. The habitable globe .hefe z ho plass p
,rbtfrll as the capital o. tne sousnefn oo.'I ,,
ledsraey .r;,htbe cities Of Arabian romance.
W empaIe ,,,aschid would become mad with JOY
Hsrouh "a hecotne citizen of Richmond. A
E IL be cou'a residence in one of our hotels or
Nh six mohsn1l lonses would afford Scheherazade
boarding : story that would keep the Sultan
material y. tbe remainder of his natural life
awake e.n,Onosiag NJ that life 20 DC prolonged Pc
NJ yond tne ears of the gods of Hindostan.
eIteDdeu .9yeople of rude tastes who talk elo-
There are ~ ,be great capitals Of Europe. There
gEenuy u,a love to live even in Paris. Human
III are me. W. ..rv strange. Bat persons ofrefne-
nature = * cnlture, the world over, could
men' aaiv s be apprized of its incomparable
they ,;ons Iny would fy with the speed Of raven
NJ. Al"asles 20 Richmond, as the most desirable
oas;dence perhaps 10 the wnole universe.
w speas tha. cannot be superabundantly
II anuc'ps''or ronsider the innumerable delections
reallIeu. ..onolis. II is the seat of the con
OF TINS NE sa.ernrnent So careful has the Pre-.
'E iedera.e q N the selection Of his associates
sldens Des "a not member of his cabinet who
lnns s. Darofoupdly versed in the sciences and IN
a,e;ent = languages, while many OF them speak
caniic familiarly. The lowest messenger in
~ most obscure department has history at
ssr.ct;oI, in the palm Of bis. hand Al purity
of life dignity of manner, an elegance in.
.onvsrsatior. q depth of thought, an nrbanity
If dgnostion. mark each and every member
Of the administration and all their subordi-.
mates. to degree which has never been,
approached in the annals of political society,
and which renders an acquaintance with them
a happiness almost unspeakable. Free and
cordial association with natures so lofty and SO
endowed cannot fail to enoble all who come
IN contact with them. 1t is enough to move
one to tears to think of the unapproachable
supremacy OF the morals and manners of Rich
mond in the great future which awaits us.
But it is not in high official circles only that
the delights of Richmond life and society are
to be found. The effete, vapid and conceited
race OF F. +. IS has been submerged under an
inudation of fresh adventurous spirits from all
parts of the confederacy and elsewhere. The.
fantastical days of the Wickhams, CANDLES,
Randolphs, Leighs and Wirts have passed
away forever. We rejoice in new era and a
miscellaneous population, troubled with none
of tie ridiculous airs of the so-called gentry,
The oldsn times have passed away,
And glorious are the new.
Here is the sweet Baltimore plug adorning
our principal thoroughfares. Here are the
useful and industrious ecuUia of the depart
ments at Washington. The new man, the
garroter, is here-though we see him not
save in the prints of his fingers on the throats
of unarmed citizens. In the palatial stores on
Main street, once inhabited by Yankees devoted
to the Union, we find brawny Italians vending
apples at halt dollar apiece, and nondescript
southerners selling minute plugs of wretched
tobacco at twenty five cents Stout Mary land
ers occupy rooms on the cross streets, and
there throw away blockade boots and shoes
with reckless lberality. Able bodied refugees,
from God knows where swarm in our cellars
and abandon themselves with a noble self
abnegation to the traffic in putrid oysters
mixed with mean whisky. Substitute agents
follow their unremunerative vocation in name~
less places; extortioners roll in the wealth
accumulated from everything that the earth
produces or the hand of man can fashion
dawds, arrayed in the silks of Tyre and Sidon
and IN the jewels of Samarcand, illumine and
perfume our sidewalks gamblers erect their
sumptuous towers on every hand whilst, as
If to crown this splendid concentration of
social ornaments the verminous deserter para
des his rags in ostentatious defiance alike of
civil and Of military authority.
The variety Of our people is not their only
charm We are told that the worn out race
which once Inhabited this city were distin-
guished for their gentle manners. No such
eteminacy cbaracterizcs the lusty and enter
prising population of the new era. The spirit
of freedom is broadly manifest in them. It is
beautifully exempIified in the italian fuiter,
who with difficulty refrains from kicking you
out of doors if you refuse to pay him dollar
an ounce for his peanuts. The small tailor
suddenly becomes rich, is speeches. with
indignation if you dare ask him to unbend his
dignity in the contemplate operation of mend
ing your clothes. The cobbler, once too happy
to halfsele your shoes, scowls at you furiously
II you approach him on any such mission,
now that leather is worth its weight IN gold.
The saddler, the gasftter, the grocer, the tall
low chandler, the merchants in coal and IN
wood-in fact, all who have aught to sell,
indulge the insoleace of pecuniary indepen
dence to degree which makes its intercourse
with them infinitely exhilarating. The entire
absence of obsequioasness on the part of our
modern shopkeepers is one of the most en-
couraging features of the new times IN this
Aniezceedingly low estimate Of the fascina-
hons of the life in Richmond would be formed it
The account should not include the nominal prices
ot Provisions the astounding hearthfulness OF the
air and the abundance of the precious metals.-
Space does not permit as TO y ell at length upo
these engaging features of Richmond existsnce
during the second war for Independence.
When poor man is compelled TO buy offal of
opulant millers at price which would stagger q
and when beef, at sixty Of eighty
cents the pound, removes every m0lar in the jaw
of mans head. and reduces bis bicuspisls TO the
circumference of cambric needle (n we have
the handihood to attempt to chew IT'D, every cam
did mind must confess that the Journalist, who is
generally presumed to be INDECENT, has little
scope f the exercise of his powers beyond the
mere recording of the markets and the latest
sales at auction. The eloquence of bare quotas
tions transcends the abilities of any editor how
ever gifted, and throws him at once into that
vast herd, whose empty stomachs are an ample
excuse for their gaping establishment at the un
precedented altitade in the charges for the com~s
Inonsst necessitier of life. And it were possible
for the half nourished body to withstand the en-
croachment of disease. It would be consolation
to she citizen OF Richmond to know that he
dweils in a perfect storehouse Of maladies. and
may take his pick At any hour Ct the dag or