The new North-west. [volume] (Deer Lodge, Mont.) 1869-1897, 1877-03-30

Egyptan-The Spanish, Chinese and Ara
hian. 81.
Dr. R. shelton Mackenzie in the philadelphia .tnr-
day Night
It is some time since we had any gossip
IN these columns about proverbs, yet they
are by no means unimportant. Francis
Bacon, "wisest, greatest, meanest of man.
kind." wrote that the genius, spirit and
wit of nation are discovered in it's
proverbs.
! Cervantes, whose "Don Quixote" is
said to have fairly laughed chivalry out of
Europe, has made the compensation of
shrewd and practical Sancho Panza little
more than a mere string of proverbs.
Alexander Pope Pithily wrote
I True wit is to advan tage dressed.
That oft was thought but ne'er so well expressed.
/ The saying that q nations wit is discov-
cred in its proverbs is true-with the re-
serve that. almost every proverb worth re-
peating may be found in many languages,
indicating "a common origin, perhaps, but
showing that all men are of one kin. There
ought to be that touch of nature in it
which, will make all feel alike and all &C
cept it.
| Beyond the sprinkling of popular adages
through Sancho Panza's talk, not much is
popularity known Of Spanish proverbs.
Yet some Of them are racy and amusing.
Let me mention few of these
"Have bill to pay at Easter, and you'll
find Lent very Short" is a bit of practical
truth. "The smiths dog sleeps at the
noise of the hammer on the anvil, but
wakes at the grinding of teeth" is evil
IDENTIFY of village growth.
GAS useless as a monkeys fat,' is all
| old saying of the times of Indian discoy-
cry.
"The tired OK treads hard,'' is evidently
of Roman origin. sin thinking of love
you begiu when you like and leave off
when you can." is shrewdly put.
Essentially Spanish is the proud saying,
GA true hidalgo would rather have his
clothes torn than mended ;" and, "Under
a bad cloak there's often good tippler,"
reminds one of the days of Cervantes, when
gasconading old scapegraces hung about
every wine shop.
There's rap at hypocrisy in You steal
the pig and then give away the pettitoes
for Gods sake.'' 'S
The declaration, in Punch, that " Lend
ing money is an unostentious way of
making present" is terser, but not truer
than the Spanish saying, stepped in the
moreseness Of experience, against borrow
ing, He who lends, RECEIVERS not or if he
RECEIVERS, reeovers not all or if all not the
same or if the same, mortal enemy IN
addition
Our own "Lend money, and you will
lose money and friend" is not unlike this:
and much in the same truthful spirit is our
own "He VINO goes uorrowIng, svvs Us.
sorroving."
The motto to one of Washington Irving's
works-"Tales of a Traveller" think is
a proverb in rhyme, thus
Thisis the very best we live in,
To spend, to lend, or to give in;
But It's the very worst world that was ever
known
To beg, or to borrow, or get ones own
Good home Spanish selfshness can often
find refuge in proverb such as My
life and soul are at your service, but not
my pack-saddle." ANY one who has been
in Spain will doubtless remember how he
was greeted with the words, s'You are
master in this house order up what you
please host and guest alike knowing
this is the shalowest and most unreal of
compliments.
Characteristic, too, are '' Better be the
head of rat than the tail of lion;"
"Pound the garlic, Pedro, while CRATE
the cheese" and 81 don't want it-I don't
want it-but put it in my hood"
prosperity forgets even father and
mother" is cosmopolitan, rather than
Spanish. A proverb against res!lessness
runs thus: The glass-dealer's horses fell
out, and he looked up to see who kicked
the hardest" We can smile at '' The un-
fortunate tailor of Campillo, who worked
for nothing and found thread"
There is lack of religious feeling in the
Spanish proverbs, some of which are
'The friar who begs for God begs for
two;" "a turn of the key is better than
freer's promise" and From praying
young man and fasting old one, God
preserve my cloak f E
Again: IA church-stone drops goid,"
and "Don't take a good friar for friend,
or a bad one for an enemy" are the re-
verse of respectful to the cloth.
Turning from the Spanish field, let us
deal with proverbs indigenous to different
countries. and to the growth of different
times. @
A French wit had said, With time and
patience a mulberry leaf becomes satin,"
long before Douglas Jerrold said, with true
poetic feeling, "Patience wanted night
ingale; Patience waited, and the egg
sang"
Our "a bird in the hand is worth two in
the bush y calls in alliteratiun's aptful aid
to aid us to remember that g Promised
happiness is uncertain. -
! A French writer said, Patience and |
Faith alone can conquer Time.o From
another Frenchman, Longfellow borrowed |
the idea which he put into the popular and
beautiful line, All things come round to
him who will but watt
6 It were better to hear the lark sing |
than the mouse oheep'-the motto Of the |
great Scottish family of Douglas-was
adopted by every border chief, TO express
that the woods and hills of their country,
and not fortified castles, were their safest |
bulwarks.
To express q state Of perfect repose, the
Arabian proyerb is, 81 throw the rein over
my back alluding to the loosening of |
the cords Of the canels, which ara thrown
nxyo,. 3,.nf~r hes, NO ~, 4