New Orleans daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1851-1866, 1866-05-23

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- Of Fort Wood, on Chef Menteur Now, it
NV not be so with every visitor to these lake
nores. but to us, to our eyes, the margin VI the
water or sea expansions present Y, WI
spectacle. The scenery Is at oSeopte
cry much altered from the confined hoIsss h
shich in cur city borders everywhere, or ST q st
lie uniform cypress forests, that we enjoy at the
anne time the contrasts which human industry has
brought shout upon these desolate borders, whilst
it'll the uniform tenor of the watery scenery con
inues the same as for hundreds Of years previous I
% the arrival of the cigilizers' steps On the one
rand, we admire the many modern improvements, /
whilst yet, on the other the grand simplicity OF
natural beauty is still displayed in all its primeEal
,usticity. Let us endeavor to give our readers
Of our immediate Impressions for in
stance upon the locality above indicated-that is,
the shore margins Of Lake Borgne. At first sight
it would seem as if nothing very interesting could
attract our attention. but little closer observation
will furnish matter for deep reflection and con-
sheraton. e
Then.we must take for 8 means of locomotion
some of the small, slightly built pirogues that,
like snake, gides in the water, and may carry MS
out of these little canals or bitches, through the
real marshes towards the salt borders of the lake
We cannot walk on foot in the unsolid bottom,
not even the hunters perform there their sporting
except in these water conveyanees Dat in the
open lake, upon the firm, sandy, muscle-shel bot.
eoms, the case is different. There we may step
ont without any risk, but not so among the reeds
and rushes of the quicksand prairies- cattle,
by their animal instincts, avoid these dangerous
expanses that to the eye hold out seeming terra
frma face, whilst underneath there is nothing
rouua but a receding soil, without any foothold.
But if men and cattle will sink down in these
quagmires, see how the aquatic birds. the long
legged heron, marches along in these, his domains
or dominfons; see the sea-gulls the water fowls,
the serulles how they delight here in their watery
element, and among number of nourishing wild
herbs, of which we ignore the names as well as
botanic classihcatons. Here, in the proper sea
son, at early dawn, you viii meet with the profess
sional hunters, those that make a living there by
selling the game in the city market, and who man
age not to lose shot without profitable return.
These are not our oity amateurs, who, on
Sunday, try coup dc fttsil, for the mere plea
sure of the sport These men must earn their bread
with the sweat of their broWs- But again, let US
come to some other considerations you suppose
that the soiourn upon the borders Of these lake
shores has not a magnetic attraction; you are mis-
taken. There is something quite uudefnable in the
effect which the silence of these regions has upon
the nerves of the generality of people much aecus
toned to excited city life. The change, the alter
alton consists not So much in the change of air
as the quietness, the resigned submission, as il
were, of the outward nature Of our surroundings.
This calm, this universal acquiescence of all the
dumb objects Of vegetation around US, is in such
great contrast with the constant noise and tumult
to which, in the metropolis, our nerves and senses
are continually subjected that it seems to us as #
we were entering new mode of life, a new way
of existence, of which we had no conception Of
before Indeed, in our tumultuous streets and
thoroughfares we are so much accustomed to make
light of the continual disturbances in order to be
able to attend to our work in hand be it mental
labor or manual workmanship combined, that our
system gets Injured to this unnatural condition
hence, when this immense weight is taken from
US, when we find ourselves no longer under this
mass of commotional sensations, we seem tc
breathe anew and to inhale new existence indeed
Let not our readers imagine these sensations fancy
pictures, nothing is more true and practical than
tbs foregoing observations.
II we make prolonged stay at any of the lake
oH0tG Nc VIII dloO p6ICblbG LLdb
of tile waves or other agitation never exactly re-
semhles each other, one day upon another. There
is always some variety to be observed, and yet as
one roll of tbewaves follows the other in seem
ingy uniformity, yet still does the ear, as well as
the mind detect Gyariation Of sound-a change of
tune or melody, as itwere, Nay, we have often
listened to the chattering of the BIRDS when
perched in aocks upen tho deadened cypress
trunks, that stand out upon the margin shores of
these inland waters and stiIl even there we would
find variety of voices mingled with uniformity Of
sound, Hence we conclude that harmony OF
nature is that combination Of sensations which
agrees with certain inward sense of satisfaction.
Some will find this no doubt in the awful thunder.
storms-others, again in the soft lull of the tran.
qnil evening wave. This, then, is in accordance
with the condition of nervous sensations and as our
nerves in cities are at an extreme tension re,
Taxation from this state acts as the beneficial re.
storer Of exhausted or overtaxed nature. We
therefore recommend the. occasional visits and
sojonfns in these, our isolated city loealites and
should our summer excursions conduct us into
these solitary recesses, we shall try to make some
profitable use of them ourselves, and inform our
readers Of the results.
Whilst travelling through the forest wilds Of our
country, we have often regretted that our ayooa.
ton had never allowed us to devote any Of our lei
sure hours to the very interesting study of botany
There is such variety of trees-forest fluit-bear
ing ones-shrnbbery, vines, rushes, canes, and III
fact thousand valuable plants for all sorts of
and purposes, that we should even at this late day
consider our time well employed in making prac
teal study of these various productions of our
forests. We cannoa understand, however, whysr
little care has been taken in our surrounding forest
districts of the ruit-bearng trees, which nature
abundanty produces by its own spontaneous
efforts; there were persmmon and wild cherry
trees, or socos for instance, which have been eS,
terminated without any remoTse, just as the many
little birds in our woods have found no grace be.
fore the Sunday hunting fowlers. II is true az to
singing birds, we have no Great variety in the
woods near our city, if we except the hooking
bird priez diem, and few others, rather ehirping
shan singing ones; but we do not understand why
the beautiful little humming bird, or oolibrs, as
wen as the scarlet red cardinal, and the blue and
violet coIored pape, should not be allowed free
sport in all our rural domains. What harm do
these little creatures, either to our orchards or
gardens? and still they are pursued by our unmer-
ciful youngsters as if they were as de-
strnctiye as the mangeun de poule," or
the chicken hawks. Cannot parents and guar
dams instruct thsr youthful charges that this per
seentlon is public oflensei depriving our public