The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1883-08-04
AT THE SEASHORE.

From Our Washington Correspondent
AsBURY PARK, June "a, 1883.
Your correspondent has taken a
run down here for little sea air and
will indite a few lines as an echo
from 1.-THE sad sea waves" IT'S good
to lay off the harness-shift the load
fro m weary shouIders-and walk
over new pathways. Editors, cor
respondents, saints, sinners, and the
Beecher family, all need the abandon,
the letting off the pressure, the rest
fulness that new scenes and associa-
tions bring to tired humanity during
the summer solstice, in the noun
tains or by the murmuring sea. In
this age of telephones, telegraphs,
cheap postage, rapid transit and
lightning trains, Americans are un-
der a business pressure, in ten
months of the year, ten.fold greater
than that of our fathers fifty years
ago. In these days the thoughts of
yesterday are forged into grand i'm
provements tomorrow, and the work
of human hands is superseded by the
accelerated energies of machinery.
With this condition of thingsand the
growing accumulation of wealth it is
not strange that business in all the
great centres should absolutely be
suspended during the heated term.
The growth Of this American idea
has converted the barren sands of the
Jersey coast for its entire length into
seaside resorts, where tens of thous-
ands of the gay and wealthy are
domiciled in tents, cottages and
hotels.
Asbury Park in 1869 was a sandy
desert with not solitary home or in
habitant. The property was assessed
at about $4,000. Thirteen years has
wrought marvellous change. There
are nearly one thousand elegant cot
tages and many large and conyen-
lent summer hotels. Its present as
sessed valuation is oyer $1,000,000.
Ocean Grove, near by and separated
from Asbury Park by a beautiful
lake. is the great gathering place of
the Methodist denomination. The
fourth reunion of the Sanitary and
Christian commission and the chap
lains of the Confederate and Union
armies has been in session for four
days in the great auditorium at
Ocean Grove. A very large number
of the old guard still living were
present and the rehearsal of scenes
and incidents of the battlefield, the
hospital and the camp, ELECTED the
deepest interest on the part of the
great crowd of listeners. Many of
the living never can know how
much is due to the noble band of
men and women who, under the
lead of that great-hearted philanthro-
pist and Chistian, George HI. Stuart,
Esq, of Philadelphia, were banded
together under the name of the
Christian commission, which sent
$500 delages to the battle-fields to be
distributors to the sick, wounded,
and dying of the delicacies and nee
essaries given in such marvellous
quantities by the warm-h hearted peo-
pie of the north. This commission
secured over 100000 in value that
was given to the soldiers to supple
ment the work the Government was
trying as best it could to do. Let US
long remember and honor the noble
men and women who came to the
Governments relief, as ministers of
mercy to her sick, wounded. and dy-
ing soldiers.
The student of human nature can
have no more fertile field for study
than the seaside. Here are found
specimens Of all classes, from the
highest culture to the most unintelli-
gent. The man of shoddy, the "too
utterly dude" and the thoughtless
pleasure seeker jostle each other in
the great throng that promenade the
beach at twilight to the music of the
rolling surf, or if he seeks to come in
to closer contact with humanity the
bathing hour will give him an oppor-
tunity to discover how diversified
the anatomy ofthe human race really
! is. A wonderful chance is effected