The Iowa transcript. (Toledo, Tama County, Iowa) 1858-1866, 1866-01-31

intervals. We don't suppose that the oc-
casional facctiousness Of the American
people was the consequence of any such me-
cessity for relief, but it was certainly as
compatible with the deepest sentiment The
general tone of thought though not the me-
thod of expression, may be fairly imagined
by taking one OF the average Englishmsn,
who, as an Englishman, condemned the war
heartily thought it was nonsense to fght
to force men into brotherly kindness; con-
sideral the Abolitionists to be humbugs,
and the United States to be running into
hopeless bankruptcy. Such man, trans
planted for sufficient time, would absorb
the popular prejudices of his new soil. He
would adopt as blinlly different set Of ma
tional commonplace. He would insensiby
substitute q fanatical belief in an idol called
\ the Union for belief in old England he
would hate humbugs and agitators and cor
rupt jobs heartily, and unreasonable phil
an,rophy more heartily still. The hatred
which Englshman felt for cred tape" in
the Crimean war, and the contempt which
they (some Of them ut least) have expressed
| for nigger-worshipper during the Jamaica
troubles, may represent the feelings of the
genuine Yankee population towards green
backs and shoddy missionaries on the one
hand, and the irrepressible negro on the
other. We who wished honestly to see the
niger free, hated him as the cause of the
troubles, and as our English or anglo
Saxon" breed always hates an inferior race.
The battery Of the humorists is generally
directed to play upon these obnoxious OBJ
jects. The prevalent view of the niger is
excellcntly put by Artemus Ward Teller
sitterzens, the Afrikan may be our brother
hnf ho A fri Ion ottr iofn
and our wife and our uncle. He isn't Sc
veral Of our brothers, and all our first wife's
relations. He isn't our grandfather aud
our great grandfather, and our aunt in the
country. Scarcely; and yet numefis per-
sons would have US think SO :.
But we've got the Afrikan or ruther he's
got us, and now what air we going to do
about it? He's O orful noosance. P'raps
he isn't to blame for it. P'raps he was Gre
ated for sum wise purpuss, like the measles
and New Englan' rum: but it's nifty bard to
sec it," The reckless Government expendi-
ture is toerably satirized in the "Orpheus
c. Kerr Papers; which, however, are, as a
rule, very poor. The author goes TO see
the trial Of gun, similar to those used at
the Revolution, only that it was painted
green instead Of blue, and had larger
toleh-hole. Being pointed at a target 90
yards off, the target is not hit, and no ball
can be found. After great surprise, some
body looks into the mouth and observes that
the ball has not gone out at all. "The in
yentor said this would happen sometimes,
especially if you didn't pat a brick over the
touch hole when you fired the gun" The
Government orders forty guns on the spot,
at POO, 0o0 dollars piece. This is rather n
pondcrous attempt at witticism, but is
enough TO indicate the nature Of good deal
of popular Righteousness. Another side of
the negro question is touched upon in Wards
visit to Richmond after the siege.
My, brother, sed to cullerd purson,
air you aware that you've bin 'mancipated
Do you realize how glorious it is to be free !?
tell me, my dear brother, does it not seem
like some dream, or do you realize the great
fact in all it's lovin' and holy magnitood !"
@ He said he would take some GIN
Another bit in the same vein illustrates
the feeling towards the Southern whites
Artemus remarks -" There is rally great
deal of Union sentiment in this city, see
it on ev'ry hand. met a man today who
said, "Why, we've been fightin' agin the old
flag! Lor' bless me, how singular He
then borrowed five dollars of me and bust
into flood of tears" And the general YER
dict OH the war is summed up as follows, at
the end Of a conversation with "prowd
and hawty Suthener."
"Young man, adoo. You Southern fell
lows is probably my brothers, though you've
occasionally had a cussed queer way of
shown it It's over now. Let's all give
in and make country on this continent
that shall give all Europa the cramp in the
stummack every time they look at us.
Adoo, adoo And as I'm through I'll like
wise say adoo to you, gentle reader, merely
remarking, that the star-spanglcd banner is
wavin' round loose agin, and that there
don't seem to be anything the matter with
the Goddess Of Liberty beyond a slight
cold"
With which characteristic touch of Mr..
Wards we must leave him. Though not
very brilliant, he fairly represents the aver
age popular sentiment. A much higher re-
preventative of the political feeling Of the
country is to be found in Mr.. Lowell, author
Of the !" Biglow Papers" The first series
of those papers, which reflects the sensation
produced in the North by the Mexican war,
and the annexation of Texas, was TO many
people the first revelation of American hui
NOR. Although they would require COM
mentary to enable the English reader fully
to understand their illusions, their brilliant
hits, enclosed in language equally quaint
and caustic. impressed many unacquain.ed
with American politics. Such verse as
this fixes itself on the memory, although the
reader might have never heard Of General
Jacksons letter, in which the expression
about "area of freedom" occurs, nor even
have known who the famous General was,
and still less who were Cass and Calhoun
The mass ough' to labor and we lay. ON settles
That's the reason want to spread Freedoms aree:
1t puts all the cumn'est en- Us in office,
An reelises our Makers oris'na idse,
Seq John G. Calhoun, sez he:-
Thets ez plain says Cass
As that some ones ass.
It's e clear as the sun is at noon, seq he
Most of the humor Of which we have
quoted examples, is what may be called
"applied humor" It is the result of
shrewd, and for the most part half educated
minds. acting upon matters Of every day
interest, amongst which, of course, politics
occupy prominent part in America. We
should, in order TO complete the subject,
take notice of the pure humor: of humor,
that is, which exists only for its own sake,
and which scarcely arises until there has
grown up a class with taste for literary lei
sure, and which goes through intellectual
exercises for the love of them. Such, for
example, are Charles Lambs exquisite Es-
says, whose existence il sufficient to justify
themselves. We read them not to learn, but
for the pleasure of the exquisite style and
graceful play Of thought. OF this kind Of
humor, it may be supposed that we shall
meet with few examples in America, from
their love Of the practical, and from the