Spirit of Jefferson. [volume] (Charles Town, Va. [W. Va.]) 1844-1948, 1872-10-01
Through Mesepotamia By Rail.

4bkt1ls
EngGsh excursIonists in Quest of first class
excitements during six weeks vacation will
no longer need to sacrfee their tympauums
in Boston jubilees, or follow Fictitious buffalo
hunts to3the merccnary precincts of Niagara
Falls. The tide of travel promises now 10 sst
Eastward, to the East par ereeiyeares and onY
London friends are to havo their hunt Of sem.
sations in the path of Alexander. aud nh.
pasture fields where Abraham tended his
tiocks. Connection between England and tha
East is about to be established hy railroad :.
and Turkey is about to bnili Eus6sh
money, and at a cast Of selN,060, ,OOO--a rails
road down the valley of the EnpIfates 10 run,
from the Mediterranean Sea To the Persian
Gull. and unite Antioch with Russerah This
project of threading the plains OF Al esophta ania
with modern conmereisl cnnyeuIenee and
of making Babylon and NineSah as acdsssible
tn the traveller as Vienna aud MoseaS are.
wakens thrills of association that vera not
provoked by the eaatse Elton cf ths sff;,,a
mendous teats OF eneIdeafieg ks whic}|5 -
Rocky Mountaips were svsmenrtsds -
OF railroad, tre,n Aintioehp ~ Rassnrsf
the tonntainso spfinitis 'isristispsts 4
centre of complorcisl l'lsnis,n Prom
cesspoplof sthesS 1Eoates to the centre of ~
arabesque visions nf Il e Ara'sien Niehss< =
In Antioch the aiscip ssere FIRST rated
CArfSttans ), and from Sipbad lshe
Sailor, embarked upon! .wonde 'yoy,t,es.
This road, commenelps tf sleSandrettI OF
the mouth of the 0robtss will cross stIle,s Snrs
of Lebanon aud the fringe 81 s9he ss;ssrian
desert, giving chance for excursions t,-9
--''Fair Damascus. on fha fsrfSle bSnls
OF Abbana and iPharph lucid stres ms \. -
to Bnalbec and Palmyra, 1t wtllcdme themes
to "the bordering food of old ,Euphrates -
and, like an iron BncerhaIus. follow in the
toot>teps of Alexander to Habylon. You NAV
easily cross from stations on its line To where
the great mOunds-p pf Nimrnd still stand ON tha
banks OF the TigriS II will fetch yoa nigh
to Ba9dat, where llaromn Al Raschii and All
Alamnn had their conrtiy seats, and bring up
hna'iy.at HasSan of Bpsnrah's palace gates.
perhaps. The plains Of Shnar will no lonyar
be mysteries tn the vulgar longer's curiosity ::
nor will ReiZhnzzlr's Handwriting any longer
appal. Tourist of all nations, kinds. ana
classes will penetrate now to l4ngd and Samar
cand and preachers on their holiday trips
will probably hold forth in the pulpit of
M"scllmn, the vciled prophet of khnrassan.
and IN the precincts once sacred othe Worship
of Jupiter Ammon ''rroeress''i.t /. the motto
of the day; and soon the iron horse wilLsnort
his way not only ncrnss the sacred soil nf Mes
opotamin, buttbrosgh,the wlds of tTiiii, down
to the very sources ofthc Nile '''sa'
II;IsA 2atrfot.
SToP THE LEAK The reople in Calves
ton Texas, are dependent up the clouds for
water. They have no gushing springs. and
the wells, wmch are dug. Yield nothing sbu.
bracksh water; hence pure water IN ulrhtst
I
c'stcrn, aud when the clouds withhold rain.
much anxiety is felt respecting the watdr
supply. 80
In u certain house there wss large cistarn
aud the family felt confident that they had a
supply for months. There was a slight leak
at the faucet, but no one paid attention to it !;
yet, during one OF our long druuttls, TO the
surprise OF every ONE, the cis'srn was found
dry. Drop by drop, ~ days aud mont rs
passed on, the water had been wasting, aud
weeks before they anticipated such state of'
affairs they were out Of water The loss was
not Slight one
There is II leak in nearly every life. 1t IL
hIied with opportunities ~ character is 10
be shaped, and good deeds ,erflrmed which
will live when the body mnulders; but we
tail to improve our time, and hours pass they
swell into days, months, years, that are wasted
and when the day Of need comes, we are
poorly prepared for the work assigned u.s.
Too MUcH FOR HIM-IpcoDos of the
personal gossip fl,atiu. through the press con
cerning the eqmestritu h"Lits OF Hon. George
bancroft. the historian. ii is said thst. no,>
whist ndiu" his venerable wears next to ~.
toudocss Tor nurse flesh is lis rencnau, Tor
harmless firtItion. a good story is t,ld Of
his weakness on this sulja,t lie was prom.
c"ading one evening on the vcranda Of tie
O;ean House, at Newport with a gay New
York belle, not yet DOT II her teens. In
course OF conversation the addressed her com
panion as "Mr. Bancroft"
"Now, really, my dear Miss c." taii
the ancient beau, you must not call ue that
call me George"
A few minutes afterward thev returned to
the drawing room and mingled with the throny,
when to the amazement and horror of our I. IN.
bassador, the mischevious girl exclaimed loud
enough for the whole company to hesr :
George, have dropped my glove please 20
aud look for it :"
Bancroft went. bnt did no, return.
- We learu that the Literal Republican
Executive. Committee Of this State, held a
meeting at Parkersburp, on Thursday, to