Juniata sentinel. [volume] (Mifflintown, Pa.) 1846-1873, 1865-01-11
"Birds of o Feather Rock together. ;,
BY vALERIA ZIMMERMAN.

+ That star Of American Litera,urs
Doctor Franklin, has given many wis
/ sayings to the world In his splepde
production, entitled ''poor Richards Al
manac," we can find more meaning, AM az;
a greater volume of common sens, tb,,
upon hundreds of pages Of the populal
authors of the day. Yet it is impossibt
to attend to all these different themes !
once, and to drink largely of the neva,
failing stream of knowledge flowing ther6
from. l will therefore confne myself 4
one which contains an important moral.s
Rough tn. simple maxim, .-DIrds OF
Feather flock together" may appear
nevertheless, within the unseemly exte
rior, you may ind such volume of mean
ing as may ct first surprise you. Polish
ed statues stand within the rough block O
marble, and glittering gems lie hidden be
meath the black crust of the earth. Ever
so pearls Of wisdom are hidden within
the roughest exterior. Many focks o.
birds daily pass through the bright heav
ems above us, without calling to our mind:
the all-important truth connected with the
circumstance. Yet the largest flock ol
birds you ever saw, bad only one kind in
it. On the other hand, did you ever see
a flock Of birds composed of motley col.
lection Of pigeons, black birds, wild ducks
crows ard others, all mixed up in hete-
rogeneous manner, each bird uttering its
own peculiar cry, making the air ring for
miles around with the harsh diseord p
Never since the days Of Noah did such
a collection exist. Nature would not al
low it. She would cry out against the
outrage upon her wonted symmetry and
would drive the commingled strangers
back to their respective homes But the
words of our maxim are here used igu.
ratcly, the word birds meaning men, and
the word Feather, character or disposition.
In this sense We would read it, men of the
same character associate with each other
II is exactly the same thing with men and
with birds We can find birds Of almos::
every color imaginable. The pigeon and
many other birds are white. Grows are
black. The parrot is green. The blue
bird derives It's name from its color. The
canary bird is yellow. And 50 VIC might
proceed od iafuitum Just so it is with
men Their characters differ as widely
as the plumage of different birds. It
may be made palmer to US, by a few tamilS
lar illustrations. The crow you are vs.
aware, is 6lack, has no pleasant song, anu
lives upon carrion 1t is the same with
some men. Select one from number,
and watch him for while No trick is
too mean for him to do; no den too low
for him to visit; no class Of society too
degraded for him to mingle with. lie
carefully avoids the pious and well-mean-
ing man, lest tie latter should by chance
take occasion to offer him slight reproof. |
His companions arc all Ike him, run
hing the same downward path, rushing
onward in their headlong course to ruin,
like the impetuous torrent Of mighty |
river, their velocity acceleratiag as they
advance. They associate with none but !
such whose characters are as black as their 4
own, or whom they intend to make such
They flock together, SO that IS a body, |
they may do the mere evil. They have
more enjoyment in each others society,
than they would have in a whole world OF
ministers and philosophers. Again be-
hold Il flock Of pigeons rising and soaring
away, seemingly as light as pleasant
thought, which wanders away amid the
stars. Its food is not the filthy carrion, bat
the wholesome grain and fruits of the
earth Just so with another class Of men
Follow for a moment one Of these, and
you will see him pressing his way onward
and upward toward the pinnacle of fame,
boldly cncountering all the innumerable
obstacles that beset his pathway, and care
fully avoiding all the lov-minded rable,
which he sees on every side. On the
contrary, while he so studicusly avoided
the compauionship Of that degraded crew,
he seeks the company of those, who like
himself are travelling on the road to hon
Or and distinction who are striving to
gain an immortal name, and to place
heir mark in such position that it maytf
be seen by men. By this, I.
men in taking advantage Of the maxim,
In union there is strength" are induce6I,
o unite themselves with such as are their
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