Year: 1862

ceursed of forest lore right tunefully. But, :
alas, they are weighed in the balance Of for
eign criticism and found wanting


But let us not despair. We think we be-.
gin to catch the lineaments of the Coming |
Man." If we are not mistaken, the "Divine
stflatus" has descended in copious shower
upon our native soil atlast. ToPeoria County,
Illinois, belongs the glory Of producing the
poet of our land and century. Our face
crimsons with modest bushes as we present
the long. expected AVatar to greedy public.
Our Poet-we may say the poet--fo! the
lesser lights grow dim before this rising |
sun-does US the inexpressible honor TO send /
us the first fruits Of his genius The "Pome,' |
like the Bucolics of Virgil and the lyrics of |
Theocrotus-is pastoral. 1t is partly q tri-
butte to Ceres, partly lament over the low
price of corn, and partly a miscellaneous de-
nunciation of "hard times" 1t commences
by complaining Of the scarcity of wood "in
Illinois:


If wood was plenty in Illinois,
And buckwhest, lumber, fax and wool
We'dsell them to the village boys
And fill our empty pockets full.


The Bard proceeds to expatiate upon the |
wet season and the disgustingly depressed |
condition of the corn market:
Now corns the most we have to sell
For twas to wet in spring to SOW
How can we then be doing well
When corn is very, very low.
Full thirty miles we drew our corn
To get five dollars for the load
1t takes two days to go and come
Der q wet and muddy road.


The Bard deplores the want of cribs
It costs more here to crib our corn
To keep it from the beating storms
Than in the Eastern woodey land
Where timbers plenty near at hand


The Bard proceeds oindite dolorous,plaint
over the futility of hoping to get rich by rails
ing oats:


Full thirty miles we drew our oats
To get three dollars for the load
To buy our pants hats caps and coats
And that the farmers cant afford.


The Bard complains of the high price of
dry goods tout West" and protests that the
people have Nothing to wear except what
they get from the East:


We all depend upon the East


For all our wooden goods at least


And hats caps boots and shoes we get from


there


And many other things to ware
Eighteen pence we give yard
For coarse and cheapest cotton cloth
think the times are very hard


When nothing can be sold or bought.
The Bard gives his Tyre an extra twang,
''hales the glorious West" and bewails the
| death of apple-trees:
| Come let US hale the glorious West
| For growth Of fruit the very best
| One bdshel of apples at forty-fVe cents
| But who will come and bring the pence
| Our country here is very new
Therafore onr annie trees are few
| Although the fruit was good last fall
| Still the richest has it all
The Bard discourses of the food-of "ta.
ters and apples to decay" but consoles him.
| self with the reflection that there is 'tre-
mendious site of corn;
If Illinois was flooded o'er


With taters and apples to decay


For money then we'd run ashore


For they can not be shipt away.


We have tremendous site of corn
And that is sound as powderhorn
Some men have more than could eat
In thousand years without any meat.


The Bard informs us that corn is used not
only to make whisky but to make fuel:


We're burning corn instead of wood


And the fire it makes is pretty good
The farmers now begin TO learn
That corns the cheapest wood to burn.
| Its lust as true as you are born
The farmers have to sell their corn
For that's the most they have to sell


To pay their debts up.very well.


The Bard discourseth of "bogus money"
the 'ugly little rat" and the blockade of
the Mississippi:
| Ten cents bushel for our corn
| And bogus money too at that


We can not keep it from the storm


And from the ugly little rat.


Down the Mississippi was our trade


Until we had the late Blockade


Now trade is stopped to the South you know


What course then has our corn to goP


The Bard then winds up with sketch OF


hard times:


The wheat might OF been of some little &C.
| count


If ons half had been sown of usual amount


But the farmers could not sow much grain


For every day twas sure to rain.


The waves rolled Ger the mighty deep


In Peoria County of which speak


For right through April will mention


Our great foods would draw your attention.


Down went the Banks within this State
| 10 REthL ueRE6o huu boHIlblo hhto


Big loss ii was on what we had


A case for us most awful sad.


We hope the reader is satisfied after what


we have given him that we shave Poet


among usn We hope he is satisfied that the


long looked for musical Messiah has come al


last. In his own ferVid words we sxclaim


"Hale Glorious Bard p


The author, in private note, generously


informs us that we can have these (meanini


the poem) "free,p as "he has not got hi


name up as poet" He also informs US tina


he will permit the New York Tribune, "ant


all other Editors az wants TO publish them,


to copy them without charge. But wha


transports us is the promise that there i


''more Of the same sort eoming-nay al


ready ground out, and that he viii soon ia


vor US with q poem upon the new an'


hitherto untouched subject Of Slavery LIE
the public hold its breath.
The editor of the CarbondAle Times fur


nishes in his paper blank column in orde


that bis friends may write "leAder" to sui
themselves. He says fault has been foun,
} with his previous productions, and he hope
! his patrons will fill up the space with what
; ever matter they see proper.