The Ottawa free trader. [volume] (Ottawa, Ill.) 1843-1916, 1876-12-30
HOME MAT TERS.
NEW YEARS.
Reflections on the Situation.
Perhaps it Will and Perhaps it Won't.


by no mortal hands unseen by mortal eyes. us
frame Is carved from the wood of that tree OF
life which grows on the banks OF the ceiestla'
river; its pendulum is of that pure transcehueht
gold which paves the streets OF the oelesliai
City; its dial blazes with those heavenly gems
which glitter aloL the walls and gates OF rara'
disc: its foundation stone is hewn from that tenn
nile "whose builder and maker is God" This is
the Clock of Ares. whose allotted task it is to
mark the flight of time until time Itself shall be
no more, and merges IN the unendng cycles OF
eternity. An inuumerahe company OF angels,
cherutium and seIaphim, whose garments shave
never touched the soil OF EARTH whose souls
were never stained with sin or stung by sorrow,
surround and guard this clock for ever and ever
Day after day--"for there is no night there
N onth after month, century alter century, that
pedulum swings its ceaseless beat to the sound
of those mysterious harnonies which the an
clients called "the music of the spheres" No
whisper from the waiting throng, no echo from
out the vast void breaks the awful calm which
broods like silent prayer beneath that bound
less dome. But as the last moments of the dying
year are drawing to close, as the index finger
upon the dial nears the midnight hour of twelve,
the host of winged sentincls fall on Bonded knee
and chant solemn requiem to the departing
spirit-a requiem sad and yet so sweet that it
seems as if grief in Heaven we're almost posi-
ble And the clock tolls out funeral dirge
nging its silvery clangor with the strain, and
the blended chorus goes up in vocal incense
of expiation before "the great White Thornc and
Him that sitteth thereon" Suddenly dirge and
requiem cease the clock rings forth a peal Of
Joyous melody, angel, and aIchangel, cherubim
and seraphim arise, a triumphal anthem bursts
from ever lip, "the morning stars sing together
and all the sons of God shout for joy" For the
Old Year is dead and the New Year is born"
But the Persians were very poetic people, or
they would ever have written the above; nor
would they never have spoken Of that little
matter" in this WISE
"As the great enchanter sweeps
His hand across life's trembling Tyre,
Each touch some chord of feeling thrills
With notes Of ecstasy and tire."
We don't generally get poetic over the notes
we get. The thoughts born of such notes as
"Ofiice Of &c, Jan. LIST, 49,.
Enclosed find statement, &c, please call, &c.
Ia hope, &c, yours, &c. PAY Up
are not calculated to throw common man into
poetic raptures of a sublime sort. But perhaps
these Persian fellows did not trust till Jan.
oncet" Or perhaps the fellow who wrote the
s'pome" did trust" once, and did get his pay.
He couldn't in that case, have been running Il
country newspaper without IAN elegant chrome
itself worth double the subscription" Wonder
if the Persians had chromOs. How sad and dull
life must have been on New Years without chro-
mo.agents, and carpet-stretchers;- who would
be Persian when on New Years Day he couldn't
peek through the crack of a hgh-board fence,
shot gun in hand, laying for that man canyassing
for "Tupper's Proverbial Philosophy-a new and
offended edition." or the ILLUSTRATED Centennial,
in As numbers, delivered monthly" Yes, it's
evident that the Persians were only SORT 'er half
civilized anyhow-no duns, no chromos no book
agents-New Years must have been sad, lonely
day to them.
And speaking of angels, cherublum, &c, one
naturally comes to good resolutions" Angels,
let us hope, never make good resolutions" to
begin at IL mid, ''by the clock spoken OF. But
man from time immemorial-but the impression
strikes us that some one, previous to this present
had said something about resolutions.
HaDpy thought-What a stupid sort of fellow
man would be If he couldn't make good reso-
lutions. Happier hought-lIow fortunate that
he can break thcm-this by tobaccOnists and
nutmeg and trix vendors.
But if the Old Year is fruitful Of sober refcc.
tions,-New Years eve is on Sunday-groce:ies
closed,-the New Year will be source OF con-
graduation In the moment Of virtuous resolu-
ton some of us will pay our debts; in few days
the trade in cigars will reopen and the nutmeg
will cast its melancholy rays from the silverpep-
per box as of yore. Eighteen hundred and
seventy-seven, young, bright and happy, with nc
tears in its eyes, no wrinkles on its brow, bu'
all rosy fingered, beckons us on to the consum
nation Of our hopes. In 1877, perhaps, tue
election muddle will be settled; perhaps the
Jail mandamus will lie, and then again, perhaps
it won't perhaps, those who wear moustaches
"three out, all out" well wear them IN fourS
perhaps young ladies now in the thirtcs vii
only be inthe twenties-quitc likely perhaps We
will get dead-head tickets on the rail road-Quitc
unlikely; anyway We won't have the State Fair
we may have more Fox River bonds to pay
though; perhaps, the Pc Ne will get a new
editor to hunt up "ictiiious sean. mags,' an,
carry water Tor the engine in the intervals; per
haps they will now and then publish an item q
news-not likely, however; perhaps :. OttaW
will refora-hope so; perhaps some big talker
will show us how sweet they look with thei
mouths in repose,-perhaps good many oihe
even more astonishing things will happen t
give reporters a job at least once month-hrp
SC, How natural, how proper i is FOR rs t
hope,
But these are specula,!ous- charming Vision
Of a reporters day dreams in The armchair OF
musty ,anctum. long Gndis,Crbed by the Juror
Of iirst-class item. Let them pass--all pass
And We come now to something iaagiole-Ne'
Years calls. The prospect Tor large numbe
If "op,n houses this year Is not cncoura=in.
hut the galaxy Of ladies assembled in the ie'
homes open bids fair to encourage the Eenii'