The Portland daily press., 1868-12-03

M. L. A.-City Hall was crowded (as ital-
ways is when Mr.. Cough lectures) last night
to hear the great temperance orator discourse
upon Circumstances" The lecturer Gem
meGced by saying that his subject was the topic
common On mems lips every day of their lives.
That their condition, be it the highest or low
est, the most honest or the most criminal;wa
attributed to circumstances That facts never
stand alone but are SO tened to us by cluster
of'circumstances. An old colored woman who
had been suffering on bed of sickness over 26
years looked forward to death as a rest with
the Saviour At Sebastopol shell fell near a
group of wounded soldiers scattering deathin
every direction, but where it burst fountain
sprang up, the water from which cooled The
parched lips of the sufferers. Were there no
alleyiating circumstances we could hardly bear
the ills of life; the volcano and the earthquake
rage, but they throw up beautiful islands from
the depths of ocean. Circumstances sometimes
make the man; Napoleon, at the bridge of
Lodi, when the 10000 Austrians were almost
400 much for his forces, seized the flag at the
important crisis and led his troops in person.
A trifing circumstance sometimes alters the
course of life. Coming from the City Hall,
Glasgow, one drizzly night, with merchant
prince, the carriage was surrounded with
drunken beggars. Among them one terrible,
old, gray haired, filthy man came up and ask
ed him to shake hands, and he Immediately re-
membered him as fellow workman in Wor-
cester and he might have been like him If it
hadn't been for the traing circumstance that
he took the pledge 26 years before. Circum-
stances may alter relations towards others. An
old oo1nr so.I he so;, ~. IL,
subscribe literally the first year, so they call
ed him Mr.. Dixon. The next year his family
were sick and he couldn't subscribe anything,
so they called bim old niger Dixon. His pious
relations were altered by circumstances. It's
a good thing when man can make the most of
bad circumstances. A man was pursued by
enemies and took refuge in house. and when
the pursuers came up Threatened to shoot ole
OF them. Now it happened that he squinted
dreadfully, and none of them could tell which
one he was aiming at. All left, and SO his life
was spared by the circumstance of squint.
How slight circumstances may produce serious
results is exemplified in the little fre-cracker
that laid Portland in ruins A piece of gossip
or scandal may sometimes ruin life; an un-
kind word thoroughly crush ambition. Mr..
Cough here stated how the speaking kind
word in 1S42 saved him from drunkard's
grave, and drew a most thrilling pic
ture of the agony he suffered in keeping
the pledge A change of circumstances some
times induces change of conduct; for instance
bride couple on wedding trip across the
water. While the water is smooth 1t is ''love
this" and ''love that" But when the big
waves begin to roll, the terms OF endearment
are quickly changed for harsher ones. How
circumstances will develop man men who
but for this war might have plodded on as car
penters, and at other manual pursuits, sud-
denly became famous. Circumstances should |
all be well known before we express our opin- |
ions about other people. A niggard at Mar
seilles lett large fortune, and during his life |
he was hooted at and called by every op TO |
brious name. When his will was opened he J
had left the whole Of that great property to |
supply the poor of the city with pure water. |
Then there is the power of circumstances-l |
There is is no merit in some religious peo- |
ple's people being religious. They never
had any inclination, from their home |
discipline and their peculiar temperament. |
to sin; it is the power to subdue the propen-
sity to sin that gives credit. Certain circum-
stances are links of evidence to the lawyer,
physician and musician. A doctor knew his |
patient had eaten oysters because he saw the
shells under the bed, and the musician who
had lost his flute, which was minus a partcu-
lar key, knew it was in house where he was
visiting, because a bird in the house could
whistle certain airs in which the KEY was
wanting. Little circumstances, or little annoy-
ances are often more important than great
ones. And here the lecturer made strong
point. Speaking of attending a concert where
the music was very fine he was annoyed by
the chattering of some misses on dress, beaux
and the Greeian Bend. Ahl how many have
not suffered at almost every concert in this
city in this way. Some people have strange
ideas about comfortable circumstances; boy
could not once make up his mind which he
would prefer to be-a bishop or to drive a coal
cart with bell to it. There are some circum-
stances over which we have no control, but
there are some man may conquer by force of
will, and as an example he told the story of
how his father escaped death in the retreat of
the British army on the Peninsular, and was
now liz ing an old man of 81 to tell of it,
No combination of circumstances can relieve
us from responsibility, and here was given
with fine effect the story of the manner in
which the old property in New York was
bought. -
Mr. Cough then closed by saying the secret
of life is love. Love may not take away the
scars of friend but love can hide them. Love
binds more closely by a single thread than
cable He painted startling picture of the |
life-boat going to the rescue of the wrecked
seamen, and then said-"the wrecks of human |
souls are all around you. Up and doing. Man
the life boat save the poor struggling souls
and bring them into the haven of peace and
rest and the souls you have saved shall be
stars in the crown of your rejoicing forever"
SKATING-We were told night before last bv
man who came in from the Basin, that the
skating was never better there. But as we
afterwards learned that the ice was but three
inches thick, we thought it might not bear the
crowd who would go over from the city, The
very cold weather Tuesday night, we should
think, must have made it strong enough. and
we cannot understand why the horse cars
haven't got their flags up.
AccIDENT.-Yesterday afternoon as Mr..
Fenley, the proprietor of the livery stable on
Green street, was driving up Congress street.
the axletree of his buggy gave way. Luckily
he stopped the horse before any personal iniu-
ry resulted and led the team off to the stable
WE were told by the Committee Yesterday |