The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1866-02-21
-; oTSTIf1T q rTnega IN Il = q III A 4 81 WHEEL
Che heQntelti91eistrrer I

1 The Sunshine and shadow of Life---
4 Views OF Inner Life.
We gave yesterday some interesting
extracts from the correspondence col
umn OF. Noah's New York Times and
Messenger. Ithas been our custom for
years to Gull these extracts, almost
weekly, from the Times Dc Messenger
We should perhaps long since have in
formed our, readers that the old relia
BILE journal from which we quote is no.
ted all over the e+country for the cores
pondence feature in its readable col
umns. 1t was the first paper to, intro
duce such Il feature, and the e'column has
always been ably edited from the days
of old Major Noah down to this time.
Many of the questions sent to the
editors are curious end Suggestive.
From the number before us of the
18th inst. we Gull the following speci-
mems:
QUEsTIoN-"I am in a very unhappy
situation and really require the advice
of a dfsinterested party like yourself.
Some time since IIwas easily captiva-
| ted by fascinating creature. Being
| of a cautious nature before, before the
final step was taken, L wisely, though
unfortupately, when almost too late,
induced an intelligent lady friend to
| make the acquaintance of this fascina-
| ting creature in order to procure for me
some little information as to the actual
amount of amiability, etc., in her COM
position. The report returned was sat
| isfactoryi enough on SOME points, but
annexed to it was the following start
ling analysis of the physical structure
of the fascinating creature. You VIII
doubtless comprehend it, and believe
me when assure you that derive no
comfort from the positive assertion OF
my Intelligent lady friend that it is no
worse than the average. learned that
the fascinating creature was composed
as follows:-Rattan, six parts; rattus ct
mousus, five; capill, chignon waterfall y
twenty; capill, naturallis crisPi (frize a
la negro,) one; pulv. rouge ct poudre
toilette, three; sprinage ferri (crinoline,)
twenty; os. whalorum, ten; cottonus ct
woollus, fifteen; other parts, 20. Now,
| YOU will readily understand this nbom-
| Unable. compound being by no means
what bargained for, L obstinately re-
fused to take it. AS lam obliged to de-
fend the position 1 have assumed, 1
would respectfully inquire whether, in
sell. defence, may not advance some
thing about triflingwith my affections
false gpretences,'Ia all that sort of
thing, you know-and give It some
weight by substantiating the above re-
suit OF Observation-Disclosures
| ASswER.-Strictly speaking, if man
marry a lady. whom he subsequently
discovers TO be a composition resem-
bling your Hfaseinating creature" he
oup6t to be entitled to n divorce, and if
| lie bought a wife as he would anyiother
species of merchandise, no doubt he
would be released from his contract on
showing that the goods delivered were
not, in fact, OF the equality represented.
But marriage is contract of differ
ent kind. It is commonly based upon
a series OF strategic performances call
ed courtship, in which each party en-,
acts a part somewhat foreign to Its real
nature. and in which the effort to de-
ceive is generally mutual and some
times extraordinary. "Hour eyes nre
your market" in SUCH q case, You
and you take the responsibility OF
stcatching a tartar" Still, if the "fas-
ci creature" had subjected you to
| a nice analysis, which composition do
YOU 'imaGihe would have proved the
less desirable; yours or her own If
you are physically more perfect than
| herself, (no thanks to anybody perhaps
but your parents, J how about your NOR
al nature? She may be gentle, loving,
| faithful. ;linselfish, modest and domes-
| tic. You may be conceited, inconsis-
| tent, splenetic, ,conyival, iimproYident
| and reckless. If only ten, per cent. OF
| good wife be perfection, (and you
have given, the ,"fnscinatingL Lcreaturep
p, she is much nearer angelhood than
any of our own sex that we have ever
vet been made acquainted with, our
| selves inclndedF - - ~ sis -,siS
QuEsTIoN-My daughter. who has
| lust graduated from one of the uptown
boarding schools, contends with me
| that the adjective. ."beautiful" is suscep-
| tible OF regular comparison, and that
or neeessity 1t must be grammatical TO
saw beautifnller.i % IF IfsInunderstand the
meaning of grammar to be the art of
speaking and writing the English Ian
| gpage correctly, can,tiappreclate me
\ to be in accordance with harmony and
euphony. Her preeeptor is a thorough
i grammatical (so=calledA and classical
genC Cerhau, who adheres to the diotion:
| ary pronunciation of often as "ohen."
| Give me your opinion.
| ASswER.-Your definition of gram
/ mar is the accepted one, but euphony
| has, in point Of fact, very little to do
1 with grammatical rules. To tell the
I honastntruth;u 70 literary custom really
constitutes what are called the rules OF
English grammar, and If the literary
men off Great Britain, werefto uniform
| ly violate one of those rules they wo uld
| soon create new one by thatviolation.
As forthe adjective "beautifuf,n htera-
| ry custom does not sanction its regular
compariSon, n and your, daughters pre-
| 4eptof is simply an experimentalists on
the subject. Now and then an intel
lectual writer may be found who ven
lures TO indulge in such an innovation;
but he is regarded as, eccentric in that
respect; he does not influence the. cur
rent usage of men of letters As for
Woffau" /" as the pronunciation of often,
Webster sanctions il, though good taste
does not. Webster Is sustained, how
ever. r.bV)eomnon IN this matter,
and hence we 81 bmit., II! Neither be-
IoIies to tie city and neither can be aGri
cnrateIT termed, anpriEate institution,
In point of fact both partake, ito a cer-!
tain extent, Of q public and 9. private H,ah
stailtiany sustain them, and yet has e.
rSeculiar interest. In I; the control and
Inanagement of them. Hence they are.
private institutions modified, as 1t were,
by puhIiciretatinhSI & I'd 9i4S 1on
QUEsT1oN.-Do you think it adyisa-
ibIe fora young man who has say e, 900
or $500, and, is now working on J, q
inoderatss salary, toinyest it in business.
at ne, present high price of merchants
disc. or to invest It in some paying se-l
cfTfty, and ,continueson a salary for a.
while longer until things becomes a little
more settled ? T, Do You think there will
be much decline in price or any great
change in financial affairs for some
time to come? Is there any prospect of
the present banking system being
specie payment with the enormous
amouDt of national banks now in ex-
istence?
ANswER.-we advise you to remain
as you are, and invest your small capi-
tai in State or United States stocks.