The Republican journal. [volume] (Belfast, Me.) 1829-current, 1881-04-07
Literature.
REMINIsC ENCES OF A JOURNALIST.

ana the guardian or secrets TO an extent OF Wnlcn
those outside of journalism can have no idea. He
does not tell all he knows in the columns of the
daily newspaper, by any means and if he has r.
tentlve memory, or by means of diaries, letter files
and scrap books keeps record of his personal ex
periences, by the time he has grown gray in ser
vice he has the material for an interesting volume
and one that may possess an historical well as
personal interest Few journalists however have
seen tit to utilize their observations in this way
1t is fortunate for the reading public that OF
the exceptions should be Mr. Charles 7 Congdon
writer of conspicuous ability, whose field of OBJ
servation was wide, and who as a member OF the
New York Tribune staff in anti slavery days and
during the war of the rebellion, came in contact
with many persons Of note. In the Introduction
Mr. Congdon says of his book: POLITICALLY the
period which it covers has been one of great inter
est and Importance, and it has been necessary for
the writer constantly to watch public affairs and
public men. He has also witnessed many social
changes, most of them, as he is glad to believe,
for the better. During the half century which
these chapters cover there has been wonderful
progress, both moral and material Surely, it is
and to have been brought into intimate relation
with many OF the most important of their yicss
tudes. The journalist is compelled to vigilance
and to a constant estimate of men and measures
Interesting as Mr. Congdon's book must be to all
journalists, it does not interest them alone 1t
deals with the political phases of the past fifty
years, and gives "reminiscences of many distln
guished persons, of whom may be mentioned Daniel
Webster, Wendell Phillips, Henry Wilson. Edward
Everett Rufus Choate, Margaret Fuller, Henry
Giles, Charles Sumner, William b. Seward, George
S. billiard, Frederick Douglass Horace Greeley
Stephen A. Douglass, n. p Willis, and the stage
and concert room tavorites of many years ago
A chapter is devoted to ministers and meeting
houses another to pedagogues and politics, and
another to the birth Of the Republican party This
however, is a very incomplete resume of the con
tents of the book or even OF the topics treated of
inits pages OF its literary merits it is not neces-
sarv to speak As leader writer Mr. Congdon
possessed as marked AL individuality as his chief
Mr. Greeley. He wrote usually in an ronicaI vein.
and says himself that his irony was sometimes so
timely spun that nobody could see it as was the
case with an article he wrote for the Tribune on
Miscegenaton and which led to his retirement
from that paper But in writing the article IN
question, as In his present comments upon it, Mr.
Congdon only half in earnest 1t seems onl,
a little while since the initials H Il used to appear
beneath short and sharp long and vigorous
editoralin the Tribune and when Others. brilliant
and marked by high degree of literary finish,
though unsigned, were readily recognized by all
experienced journalists as "Congdon's" The char
acteristics which marked his editorials arc seen in
his "reminiscences we'll as that result of news
paper training the art of saying great deal in a
very few words J. X osgood 4 Co. Boston Pub
fishers
UNCLE REMUs. HIS SONGS AND HIS SAYINGS.
The quaint sayings OF Uncle Kemus typical
negro Of ante bellum days, went the rounds Of the
press with the contributions of other newspaper
writers TO the humor OF the day: but now that
they are collected into book form they are found to
possess more than transient interest and pos
tive chronological value. In the pages OF this vol
ume the old time negro Of the South, who is rap
idly becoming extinct and whose relations have
been radically changed under the new order of
things, is cleyerly portrayed. 1t is the first and
will probably be the only effort i'll this direction
and hence the value Of this contribution to Ameri-
can literature The author Mr. J Harris is
native OF Georgia and has been familiar all his
life with the sayings and peeuharties of the col
ored folks, and natural literary talent developed
BY his labors on the daily press, has enabled him
to make good Use of the material at his command
The poems of Uncle Remus@ are among the best
no o,t Oh, .lo
our "cullud' literature since the war The hymns
especially breathe the genuine air of devotion
which is characteristic OF the negro when lie gives
himself up to psalmody, as, for example:
Oh, whar shall we go " EN- de great day comes.
Wild de BLOWN er de trumpitS en- lie hangin' lie
drums
How many POI sinners II be kotched out late
En- fine no latch ter de golden gate
No use fer ter wait tWel ter mOrrti
De sun mustn't set on yo' sorrer:
SIMS eS sharp 4 bamboo brier-
o Lord! fetch de moners up higher.
The following specimens of Southern home
made philosophy exhibit Uncle Renus in tie
character of Sage, AMI show that he can be wise
as we'll as witty
Pigs dunno wat pens fer.
Dogs don't bite at de front gate
Colts III de barley patch kick high
Puet can't roost too high for de owl
"
Bne boss don't fall W en- he folders de bit
Don't fling away de empty wallet
Black snake know de way ter de hin nes
Looks wont do ter split rails wild
De pig dat runs off wild de year er corn gifts lit
tie mo dan de cob
Licker talks mighty loud when it gifts loose fun
de Jug
sleepin in de fence -corndcr don't fetch krismus
in de kitchen.
Tween de bug en- de bee-martin faint hard ter
tell who's gwlnter git ketched
] GU see mo er de mink ef he know'd whar de
yard dog sleeps
Hongry rooster don't caekle en- he find a yum
Trubbes is seasonin Simmons amt good twel
dey er fros bit.
Watch out wen youer gittu' all YOU want
Fattenin hogs amt in luck
Il. Appleton d Co. New York Publishers
NOTES
A new volume Of Littells Living ge began with
the number for April :. For ttty-two numbers Of
sixty four large pages each, tor more than 1890
pages year, the subscription price l$Sl is low
while for SO 30 the publishers offer to send any
one Of the American 81 monlhes or weeklies with
The Living Age for year, both postpaid I.ittell
4 Co., Boston, the publishers
American Magazines are gaining readers and
appreciation in England The London edition of
perior 70 any Of the English magazines. and the
North American Review is highly praised Serb
ners Magazine now has circulation of 90 900
copies in Great Britain
FISH AND FISHING There are already twenty
two Gloucester vessels in Southern waters, after
mackerel, with two from Portsmouth, two from
nd
Island and other ports Brook trout are now in
season, and sell at a quarter apiece, in Boston,
which would indicate glut in the market
Perry hopes TO have sardiue factory The Sen
tinel says Lubec clam dggers bring about Ninety
quarts week to PASSPORT, when the weather is
not too rough ..JudSon Tarr, Esq, is about TO
build factory for the canning of HOLSTERS and
mackerel at Pemaquid Harbor. Mr.. Frank Smith
superintendent of the Boothbay Canning Factory,
started three Smacks for Holsters on April Is