Year: 1860

At the entrance of one of those gor-
ges or gaps in the great Appalachian chain
of mountains in their passage across the
Northern portion Of Georgia a black
smith had erected his forge in the early
settlement of that region by the Amer
lean race and drove a thrifty trade IN the
way of facing axes and pointing pIows
for the settlers, and shoeing horses for
the wayfaring people in their transit
through the country to examine lands and
gold mines.


As he was no ordinary parsonage in
the affairs Of his neighbOrs and viii make
a conspicuous figure in this narrative,
some account of his pecuiarities viii not
be uninteresting. Having acted through
life on a homely maxim of his own
pay up as you 60 up, he had acquired
some money and was out Of debt, and
consequently enjoyed the glorious priv
ilege of being independent, in a degree
unknown to many who occupy a larger
portion of the worlds attention than him
self He was burIy well-looking man
of thirty-fve. Just young enough to
feel that all his faculties. mental and ply
sicaI, had reached their greatest develop
ment, and just old enough to have
amassed sufficient experience of men and
things to make the past seem as
future going through life. With shrewd
but open. bold, and honest look there was
a gleefuI expression IN the corners Of his
eyes, that spoke of fun. The laughing
devil in his eye was not a malicious
spirit, however. His physical conforma-
ton was that which combined great
strength with agility, and ic he had been
fated TO have been a cotempory Of his
great prototype Vulcan there can be no
doubt but the Seminar blacksmith would
have allotted % him q front forge
in his establishment to act as a sort of
pattern card, and to divert the public
gaze from his own game leg to the fair
proportions Of his foreman.


Now, although Ned Forgeron, for such
was the name he had inherited from
some GaIlic ancestor, was a good-natured
man, yet the possession of great muscu-
lar strength and courage and the admira-
ton which the successful exercise of this
power never fails to command had some
what spoiled him. Without meaning to
iniure any mortal he had managed never
theless to try his prowess on suudry Of
his neighbors and from the success which
always crowned his honest efforts, in that
way had acquired the character Of a
bully.


With few early advantages Of elemen-
tary education, he had nevertheless at
different periods collected a mass of
heterogeneous information, which he was
fond Of displaying on occasions. He
was sort of political antiqury, and could
tell the opinion Of Mr.. Jefferson or Mr.
Madison on any subject, and was referred
to on all disputed points of the theory
and history of government, that arose
among the candidates for the Legislature
and country politicians. This he studied
on account Of the consequence with
which it invested him. But why had he
treasured Up an old and we'll thumbec
copy Of Pains Age of Reason" an6
affected skepticism as to the veracity o
the story of Jonah and the whale anC
Baalam and his ass, would be hard ac
counting for unless It proceeded from th'
desire of a character for singularity an,
erudition. When Vanity once gets th'
mastery Of a mans reason, there is NJ
telling the absurdities It will lead into
He was fond of speaking Of Volney, an
being found with a copy of Taylor
DIgesis in his hand, although few of hi
neighbors had ever heard of the ruins,
or knew what Digesis meant.


This peculiarity, together with tn
pertinacity of the missionaries, WOrees
ter and Butler, which carried them t
the peniteniary, may account for th
great aversion of Mr.. Edward Forgeron
to all preachers Of the gospel. His dis
like Of them was so excessive that h
could scarcely speak Of the "hypocritica
scoundrels," as he called them, withou
flying into a passion using indecorous Ian
guage.


But a circumstance occurred whic
gave his zeal distinct and sectarian d
rection. A Methodist preacher out i
Tennessee who was fond Of spicing hi
discourses with anecdotes once made th
blacksmith the principal character Of


long sermon. His peeuliarities wer
dilated on, his heresies dealt with becon