The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1870-10-21

Correspondence
LETTERS FROM VIRGINIA.
NOTHING IN PARTICULAR,
N O. 80.

No.. 80.
feel, Messrs Editors, as if had written
you everything know or ever have known,
and have so completely exhausted my lit
tie stock of knowledge and observation,
that am at loss to know how to frame
another communication, till / shall have
wandered out again among new scenes and
listened to new traditions. In the first of
the series, ransacked the store-house of
memory, and exposed its contents to the
readers of the ABgis, which, like the pock-
cts in the breeches of school-boy, consis-
ted OF all sorts of commodities. Among
these, reference was had to the men and in
cidents of my boyhood days. and not on
ly these, but even the names of some of
the ladies | had known were irreverently
paraded in thoughtless moment and made
to contribute to my sum total of early rem
iniscences. I then fell back for subject
matter among the mountains of the Old
Dominion, and such has been the cratic
range my wanton pen, without form,
fashion, connection or arrangement, that
memory staggers at the recapitulation. In
some of these | can but hope I may have
catered in some sort to- the pleasure or
pastime of those of your readers who may
have had nothing more profitable at the
moment with which to while away an idle
hour.
l have no particular object at present to
write about, nor do know any more than
the man in the moon where thought may
run to or what after, but l will venture
to say that never see paper from Har-
ford without finding something to awaken
memories of the past, and to throw me
back again among the familiar scenes of
my childhood. can scarcely call to mind
the time when have been more deeply in
terested than was in the perusal of an ex-
tract published in the Democrat of the 18th
ult., from discourse delivered by Rev.
VIM. Finney, in the old sanctuary at
Churchville on the 10th ult The name of
the venerable pastor, as we'll as that of the
church, stirred up almost forgotten Incl
dents, some of them pleasant and some of
them sad. How well remember that good
man in the long ago, when he was young,
before a thread of silver had stolen in
among his locks or time had plowed fur
row upon his cheek. How strangely mys-
terious are the dispensations of Providence
Mr.. Finney, at that day, which is about as
far back as | can remember with accuracy,
was of slight frame and of apparently deli
cate constitution, yet he has weathered the
storms of greater number of years than
the Lord has promised any of us, while
scores around him, more robust and bid
ding fairer for greater length of days have
long since gone the way of all the earth,
and many of them, doubtless, very nearly if
not quite forgotten. Where now are his
early contemporaries in the ministrya Per-
haps not one remains The Rev. John
Bond, who, as an itinerant, literally event
about doing good" has long since laid
down the weapons of his warfare and rests
where the wicked cease to trouble. Rev.
Isaac Webster many years ago exchanged
the rocky heath that gave him home
here for city whose streets are paved with
gold. The Rev. John r. Keech, who so
long and so faithfully ministered to the
flock at Rock Spring, is now enjoying
the full fruition of life of usefulness and
humble devotion. The Rev. Timothy
O'Brien, who led the flock at st. Ignatius
into green pastures and by the still waters,
exchanged, many years ago, the infirmities