The New Orleans bulletin. [volume] (New Orleans [La.]) 1874-1876, 1875-07-21
CARLYLE an GOLD.

| view Win LONDON correspondent OF the Sal
Francisco Chronicle with this characteristic
growl at California: "You are doing no good
there; you are harming the world. Cove
over your mines, leave your gold in the earth
and go to planting potatoes. Every mai
who gives potato to the world is the bene
factor of his race; but you with your gold are
overturning society, making the ignoblt
prominent, increasing everywhere the ex
penses Of living, and confusing all things"
One of those nine lines of Standard Bio
graphical Dictionary, in which the birth and
works of Thomas Carlyle are recorded, indi
cate that he was born Dec. 4, 1885, He is
therefore, on the last half of his eightietl
year. Certain privileges are accorded to oc
| togenarians. Such of them as have been in
dustrious farmers, laborers, or mechanics, are
by tacit consent permitted to sit by the door
way in summer, and by. the ingleside in win
ter, as much Of the aytime as they please
Such Of them as have been engaged in
active mental occupation through the mos
part of their fourscore years, are expected 10
take their ease in their saloons, their clubs or
their sitting rooms. They are never in the
way. Everybody is glad to see an old man
taking his comfort. When we have time we
love to listen to the variations of the old,
even when We may have heard the same
stories more than once. We must not be so
unkind as to judge Of the strength of their
youth by the actions of their age. The
"shrunk shank, world too wide"
for the well saved" youthful hose,
m oorfo I'D Iocl
feats during the ascending half of the
arch of life. The trembling limbs that now
measure short, uneven steps have trodden
many mazes in the dance. won many races on
the green, gone many leagues on errands of
love, or marched many hundreds Of miles in
the campaigns of the old wars of which they
are the survivors. The wrinkled hands that
shake out the tea and milk and wine from the
cup and glass once held the reins of strong
young. wild horses, or pointed the ruthless |
rife, or handled the flashing sword defantly,
or filed and emptied many musket on the |
battlefield. The grizzled chins that rest on |
cane heads may have vibrated to eloquent
ntterances in the courtrooms and legisla-
ion. Those dim and sunken eyes wherein
put little Speculation dwells once beamed
With love or flashed with passion, or talked
With and for the tongue in the unsyllabled
loquence of that magical organ. We love the
Id for what they have done and for what they
ave been. and even after the imbecility OF
emile second childhood supervenes we ten
erly guard and cherish the lives that have
eased to be useful.
Arewe to number the author Of Sartor Resar-
IS in the list Of men disabled by age, from
'hom no more good is to be expected? He is ,
My eighty years old, nor quite that His life
as been temperate. His constitution, good by
lheritance, has been fortified by labor, long
'urneys on foot, much life among retired
Genes and in the open air. He has suffered
ut little from anxieties Of any kind. His !
orks have made his income ample ever since
le publication of Sartor. He has been =
ard worker, but he was one of q
lose to whom hard work is no
ardship. one who loved work, one who be-
eyed in work as a needful obedience to
vine decree, methodical worker who did
It toll by spasms, philosophical worker 9
10 did not damage the compound and in U
parable machine of mind and body, man p
40 in compliance with the calls of his Deep "a
nature would dwell alone for months in ro
9 Orkneys, or Highlands, in order to Danish a
I'm his thoughts and memory the artificial, u
8 conventional and the commonplace. Are
to believe that such a man can be old at w
,hty? II
Yet, ii Carlyle uttered the remarks above M
puted to him, he must be on the verge of 1e
second childhood. 1t would require but III
small fraction of his gigantic ans lytical as as
wer to prove the absurdity of what he is al
e represented as saying The world needs DC
aments as we'll as food gold as well as po- ye
oes. The maker of cunning toy is a
lefactor The lockets and chains that sal
lg on snowy necks give pleasure and do 'in
ID as well as the fruits and vegetables that
cend those necks. If gold were dug ING
ornament alone, we should not TX
8 growl at the digger and send him to the oe
alto patch. If we give Mr. Carlyle gold al
his books he may hire with his gardener see
raise potatoes If we were Norwegian sl
RS like him encountered by Tuyvelsdrock SIG
should still need money. In Britain, the SUI
of bullion, it sounds strange from the lno
of a great philosopher and profound on
dent of political economy to denounce
digging, or to insinuate that the increase Ne
the money metal by the slow process Of oor
ing is cause of rapid increase of vice. oer
1e merely believe that Mr.. Carlyle never put
ended to be understood in the sense repre- ton
ted. Gold being useful production is Gus
essary to supply natural waste and loss.
supply may vary with reference to the En-
land, but no one knows better than Car. . q
that gold varies, and must vary less than
other metal or substance. He knows.
that if the increase of the proportion of ~
ed money to exchangeable property in. Sey
ses expenses it increases wages likewise. use
" and
q Ascension Day there was horrible row ; Hor
AIAy~~ 49,