smithclay/nortonstories huggingface dataset:
Year: 1870

Lord Byron said: "The mechanics
and working men who can maintain
families are in my opinion the happi-
est body of men in life. Poverty is
wretchedness; but even poverty il
perhaps to be referred to the heart
less unmeaning dissipation Of the
high order" Another author says
II have no propensity to envy any
one, least Of all the rich and great;
but If disposed 70 this weakness thu
subject Of my envy would be a healthy
young man, in full possession Of his
strength and faculties, going forth in
morning u work for his wife anC
children, or bringing them home hi:
wages at night"
Year: 1870

By cHARL1s WARREN sfoDDAlD.
She charmed him With her charming eye;
To know its luster was to die,
Or feed forever on its light,


She bore him to her mountain hight;
With wine.sweet lips she kissed to rest
The thousand longings in his breast.
She ringed him with her GIT! ering col
Her f]attering words were soft a. oils,
All swain before his drunken sight;
He felt his beauty and his might,
And cursed the darkness as he hurled
Defiance at the crouching world.
He did not know her treachery;
But thought her tightened grasp to be
The clasp Of love. o, heavy fatel
She thrust him in tho face of hate
With all the venom in her born,
And slew him with her tongue discern.
Year: 1870

About one hundred miles to the south
east of Hamilton is a high plateau of
land containing an extensive deposit of
marine shells and the fossil remains of a


large variety of extinct species of fish,
But this curiosity which most challenges
the interest and investigation of anti
quaries is the petrified form of what was
evide ntly once an immense monster. 1t
lies on the high plateau in position Civ
ing rise to. the theory that it's locale was
once a great shoal and that this antedi-
luvian leviathan foundered and persisted
on the surface as the water receded. The
petritication is perfect, and is estimated
to weigh about ten tons. 1t presents a
dual appearance-the head and body that
of humpback whale, and the extremi-
ties extend into feelers and antenna like
the poypus or devil tish-the exception
that they were evidently during life lined
with hard and bony substance. The
eyes are set in each side of the head,
which is fiat and oblong. and are twenty
four inches apart. The mouth is armed
with triple rows of teeth, which are
sharp in front, but underneath and well
ihIo VIC Jaw thSS lui u iuIO SiiiIuSls,
capped by solid osseous formation, run
ming back from the widest portion ofthe
head. In this respect it resembles the
celebrated marsh COW of Central Ameii.
ca, amphibious in habit-graminiverous
on land and carniverous in water. The
length of this singular relic of an un-
known race has not as yet been deter
mined but as the body blends into the
tail, it tapers down to so small size that,
making due allowance, its entire weight
would not be far from that stated. This
inland country abounds in curious fossil
lac of a marine character We have seen
specimens of crustacea found in our i'm
mediate vicinity which puzzled scientists
and antiquaries. There is a pregnant
field in this region for savans, such as
Agassiz, who have made the piscal king
dom, both of this and past ages, a study
of love. There is some talk among the
parties who discovered the remains oi
the stranded monster described of ma


king an effort to remove them to the
railroad. We doubt whether it can be
removed in bulk, and, if an accident
should happen in the attempt, its value
would be greatly lessened and its use


tuluess as study would be materially
impaired. r..
Year: 1870

forward creatures, but they don't ask
them to 20 to the alter with them.


F6wthty, among the young men in
the matrimonial market, only a very
small number are independently
rich, and in America such rarely make
good husbands. But the number Of
those who are Just beginning in life, who
are filed with noble ambition, who
have a future, Is very large. These are
worth having. But such will not, they
dare not, ask you to join them, while
they see you SO idle, silly, and so gor-
geously attired. Let them see that you
are industrious, economical, with habits
that secure health and strength, that you
fife is earnest and real, that yon would
be willing to begin at the beginning in
life with the man you would consent to
marry, then marriage will become the
rule, and not as now, the exception.
Year: 1870

Old DR.. Strong, of Hartford, Conn,
was not often outwitted by his people.
On one occasion, he had invited young
minister to preach tor him, who proved
rather dull speaker, and whose sermon
was unusually long. The people became
wearied, and as DIR. Strong lived near
the bridge, about the commencement of
the afternoon service he saw his people
focking across the river to the other
church. He readily understood that
they feared they should have the same
young man in the afternoon. Gathering
up his wits, which generally came ct his
bidding, he said to the young minister


"My brother across the river is rather
feeble, and I know he will take it kindly
to have You preach to his people, and it
you will do so, will give you note to
him, and he will be as much obliged to
you rs / would to have You preach for
me and want to have You preach the
same sermon that you preached to my
people this morning" ....... ....


The young minister supposing this to
be commentator of his sermon, start
ed off in good spirits, delivered his note,
and was invited to preach most cordially.
He saw before him one-half Of DIR.
Strong's people, and they had to listen
one hour and a-half to the same dull,
humdrum sermon that they heard in the
morning They understood the joke,
however, and said they would never
undertake to run away from Strong
again.
Year: 1870

h these days Q member of Congress is in biz luck who can serve a term in either Con- gressionaI hall at Washington and escape being '5lack-maiIed This fact would suggest either astonishing shrewdness and penetration in our statesmen or prudence in the aphOrism which tellsus to "send 8 thief to catch athief' V The last victim whom we find recorded Is Congressman Fitch from Nevada, who has been charged by 8 Washington correspondent Of tbe New York Post with corruption in matter regarding Cuban bonds. There is no room to doubt that the article published in the Post and subsequently copied in the Washington EDcn- ing Star IS foul and malicious slauder of a good and worthy man. On the 8th ut. Mir. Fitch made speech in the Houae and stated that the accusation against him lis an unmit- gated falsehood ard that the author IS a wicked and cowardly liar" He then called upon Mir Butter from Mass, ,aschairman of the su5-com' mittee authorized to investigate charges of corruption, to state whether any evidence had been presented tending to impGcate him. Butler felt happy to say that there was noevi- dence whatever toimplicate the gentleman from Nevada. Fitch then concluded his remarks by polishing off the reporter and here is the manner in which he did it:

 At the cost ofa dinner or five doliar1 bill some scavenger who disgraces the rerortorial fraternity Is induced to sound the preliminary nOta of slRu0er 1 suppOse we shall have the whole pack yelping in chorus about Monday SO far as my action Is concernel, should deem myself recreaut to my obligations to lny con stituents and to my own manhood if allowed the cry of 8 few hungry coyotes to swerve me at any time from the utterance of words of en- couragement and cheer to any people who are struggling for civil and religious liberty
Year: 1870

Women may hold mcetings and talk
and pirate Of wrongs until the crack Of
doom but this matter will not bc helped
until they prove that they honor and rc-
spcct labor for labor's sake, and learn To
show no less respect at any rate. to tho
girl who scws for living than to tho iino
lady who rolls through tho street In her
carriage. Labor must be honored In tho
first place. and then women must bc
taught to ill places Of honor and labor.
Girls must DO taught that Il sM di'grncfal
and contemplate for them to loll and lazc
about the house as It would be for their
brothers to idle and lounge In the streets;
that woman loafer Is rs bad rs q man
loafer-thcn some reformation may be OK.
pcctcd, and not till then.
Year: 1870

y SMOOTH SuAvE.-I have met with u
gambling story which is worth transcrib-
ing. The Spaniards are very fond of q
game called monte, which is played thus
Some person, who acts rs banker, lays
down two cards taken ut hazard from the
pack, say n knave and an eight, and any
number of persons may stake on either OF
these. The banker then turns up the
pack. and takes the cards ono by one from
the bottom, and the first card that appears
similar to either of tho two, the knave or
the eight, causes the corresponding card
laid down to win, and the other to lose.
A young fellow in Cadiz was acting as
banker and had laid down king and u
ten; but, before the stalking was completed,
he was seized with n violent fit of sneez-
ing, during which ho dropped his hand
kerchief, and in STOPPING to pick 1t mp he
allowed the bottom card, king, to be
seen. When he had recovered himself, he
found the stakes much larger than before,
and all placed on the king. He express
cd some surprise, and asked for explana-
ton, but nobody gave it; he proceeded
with the game. when the first card shown
proved to be ten. Ho swept up the
stakes, made q low bow and retired; and
although, when the playersrccovered from
their shock, deadly vengeance was vowed
against him, the story does not say that 1t
was ever carried into execution.
Year: 1870

and get tho heavy burden OF my mind.
I did 50, and now, what will my old wom-
an sayl must get home TO tho Cape
and tell her this good news. She'll prob
ably say over tho very words she said
when she put her hands on my shoulder
rs we parted:-I have never seen the
righteous forsakcn. nor his seed begging
bread" With a hearty shake OF tho
hand, and blessing upon our fathers
memory. he went upon his way rejoicing.


Aacr short silence, scizing his pencil
and casting few figures, "Therc" ox-
claimed my brother. "your part Of the
sum would be 50 much; contrive plan
to convey to mo your share Of tho pleas
ure derived from this operation, and the
money Is ut your service"
Year: 1870

Agentleman who tells the truth, living not
thousand miles from our city, tells us the
following very remarkable story: He says
that when he was boy, about fifteen years of
age, while engaged at work in haying field,
one warm afternoon, becoming tired, conclud-
ed to sit down for a few minutes under the
standing near. Sitting in an easy position,
leaning his back against the trunk Of tree,
he soon fell asleep. Upon awakening, he
felt something in contact with his ''great toe"
he Of course being barefoot at the time. To
his astonishment he discovered that large
striped snake had the toe in his mouth, no
doubt thinking he had caught frog, and was
commencing to swallow it. The gentleman
says it was but the work of minute for him
to seize stick and dispatch the snake. He
snaked the life out of him quite suddenly.
Since that time he has had holy horror of
snakeS-Ken. Jour.
Year: 1870

In the midst of change, improvement
and reform, quite a number of question
able old notions continue to be followed
even now, whrn the very erroneous
character of some of them has been
generally acknowledged. OF this char
acter is the rigid adherence of drivers
of horses to that useless and injurious
rule of old times, the check.rein. Its
use with draft horses is positively cru
ell. When horse is drawing heavy
load, and particularly up hill, he needs
the utmost freedom of lungs aud wind
and this he can never have with tight
check-rein. That the check-rein pre-.
vents horse from stumbling is more
than doubtful on the contrary, by ele-
waiting his eyes, it prevents him from
seeing clearly where to place his foot.
When horse does stumble, he is far
less likely to go down when his head is
left free. In England, where they are
far ahead of us in everything pertain
ing to horses, the check-rein has been
abolished; the last surrender being
that of the artillery and commissarait
trains of the British army, the change
having been made by Sir George Bur-
goyne, the Commander in Chief, and
he testities to the beneficial effects at
tending it. In New York City many
of the finest equipages are driven with
out the check,rein, and few humane
people have also thrown it out of use
here. The old fashioned "blinkers," I"
or blind halters, are also useless, if not
positively injurious, by rubbing the
lids Of the horses eyes and many ex
perienced horsemen long ago came to
the conclusion that horses are more ea-
silly alarmed at what they hear and do
not see, because intelligent animals, if
they can fully see the objects, which
when unseen or imperfectly seen, tend
to frighten them, they are more readily
calmcd
Year: 1870

Every man should be sober some
time. 1 once knew man to be so I'M
fortunate as to be sober all the time,
and yet an honest man. We have
known men that never smiled, or sell
dom, whose mces were rigid as an iron
mask, and yet they were kind, simple
and really reliable.


But such are exceptional cases. Uni
form sobriety is presumptively very
much against man. He who gives no
play to the gentler feelings has some-
thing the matter with him that should
be looked into before he trusts him.


Mirth itself is not always honest.
But it tends to openness. Mirth has
better stuff in it to make man of than
sobriety has. 1t too, is used sometimes
as a mask for hypocrisy; but not half
as often as sobriety is Only consider
how many men, quite empty and
worthless inwardly, neither brave nor
fearful, are kept going by the mere
trick of gravity.


When some men come to you it is
like sunrise. Everything seems to take
new life and shines. Other men bring
night with them. The chill shadow of
their sobriety falls upon every innocept
gayety, and your feelings, like birds at
evening, stop singing and go to their
roosts.


Away with these fellows who go
growing through life, all the while
passing for birds of Paradise.


He that cannot laugh well and be gay
should look well to himself. He should
fast and pray until his face breaks forth
into light.
Year: 1870

rum tne beverly IN. ID NlSltOr.


Many years ago the Rev. II. S. Mac
lay was sent by the Board of Missions
as missionary to China. He was rca.
sonably successful, but felt in need of a
wife, and wrote to the Board requesting
them to send him one from America.
The Rev. DIR. Pittman, then Secretary
of the Board, being a man of very fine
feelings, wrote to Brother Maclay that
IL was a very delicate and difficult mat
ter to select a wife for another man, and
advised him to defer marriage until "a
moro convenient season." when he
might be permitted to return to his ma
tive land and make a choice of one of
its fair and worthy daughters. The Rev.
DIR. Kidder, a member of the Board,
had more boldness, however, and set
about the work of wife-selecting with a
zeal worthy of the most ardent lover.


lie directed his attention particularly
to a Miss Sperry of Brooklyn, N. Y,
then on visit to Newark, N. j., whom
he knew to be every way worthy the
confidence ard love of any man, but
more especially of Christian minister,
being a lady of picty and culture; but
he was somewhat doubtful whether she
possessed the selfsacriflcing spirit of a
missionary-to leave her relatives and
friends and all she held dear, and travel
thousands of miles to land of straf1-
gers, where she was not acquainted
with living soul, not even the man
hn tn ic etv 10
asked her to become his wife. After
the first surprise, the lady asked time
to consider, the result of which was ac-
ceptance, and she set about preparing
for the long journey.


Mr.. Maclay was written the state of
the case-there was no telegraph in
those days-and it may be just at this
time he may have had some misgivings
of his mode of action. Here was lady
coming thousands of miles to marry
him, whom he had never seen, with
whose disposition or temperament he
had no knowledge, and all he had to
rely upon was the recommendation of a
brother minister! There is not man
in thousand who would be satisfied
with such choice. But then she was
pious and seif-sacrificing-oh! how self
was completely thrown in the shade
by her acceptance of such an offer and
her going upon such mission. This
was the comfort, the consolation, and
the harbinger of love and happiness.


And how was it with the young la
dy? Was she not equally exercised
about her position? Did she not fire.
quently, during that long and hazard
Gus journey, question herself as to her
prudence in accepting the proposal of
marriage in such second hand way?
She never saw the man that was to be
her husband; she only knew him by
reputation she might be unattractive
TO him, and he repulsive to her, when
they met for the first time.


AT length she arrived at her destina-
ton in China, and the marriage took
place at the house of brother mission
ary, and ever since they have not only
lived happily together, but have been
eminently successful in their mission.
AIRY work. The two eldest sons of that
romantic union are now students in the
Wesleyan University at Middletown,
Conh., having graduated at Pennington
Seminary, N. j., about a year ago.
They are both destined for the minis
try.
Year: 1870

THE following lines are from the pen of Gel
tonewall Jackson, of Confederate fame. The
renthe the true spirit of poetry and tend,
athos. AS a beautiful expression of though
icy VIII no doubt be appreciated. by our rea
rs.l


The tattoo beats-the lights are gone,


The camp around in slumber lies;
The night with solemn pace moves on,
The shadow thickens DER the skies;
But sleep my weary eyes hath flown,


And sad uneasy thoughts arise.
think of thee my dearest one,


Whose love my early heart hath blest;
OF thee and him-our baby SON


Who slumbers on thy gentle breast.
God of the tender, frail and lone,


Oh guard the tender sleeper's rest.
And hover gently, hover near


To her, whose watchful eye is vet
To mother, wife-the double dear,


In whose young heart have freshly met
Two streams of love so deep and clear
And cheer her dropping spirits yet.
Now, while she kneels before thy Throne,
Oh teach her, Ruler of the skies,
That, while by Thy behest alone,


Earth's mightiest powers fall and rise,
No tear is wept TO Thee unknown,


No hair is lost, no sparrow dies.
That Thou can'st stay the ruthless hand
OF dark disease, and soothe its pain;
That only by Thy stern command


The battles lost, the soldiers slain;
That from the distant sea or land


Thou brlng'st the wanderer home again.
And when upon her pillow lone,


Her tear-wet cheek is sadly prest,
May happier visions beam upon


The Frightening current of her breast:
No frowning look or angry tone


Disturb the Sabbath of her rest.
Whatever fate those forms may show,


Loved with a passion almost wild
By day, by night, in joy or woe


By fears oppressed, or hopes beguiled,
From every danger, every foe,


Oh, God protect my wife and child!
Year: 1870

o land unknown Beyond our mortal sight,
Wrapt round with gloomy shadows of the night.
our spirits dread, yet long to wing their light,


To thy mysterious shores.
land unknown. A never ending train
In stern procession from these realms of pain,
Moves slowly on, but comes not back again


From thy mysterious shores.
o land unknown By the dividing stream
We stand and gaze, and sometimes fondly dream
The clouds will part and yield one transient
CLEAN


OF thy mysterious shores.
o land unknown! That day of days draws nigh
Which shall unlock this hidden mystery,
And bid our dreading longing spirits 1y


To thy mysterious shores.
Year: 1870

WHAT'S THE UsE.-Whats the use
of minding what "they say?" What
is the use of lying awake of nights with
unkind remarks ofsOme friend running
through your brain like forked light
ming? What's the use getting into a
worry and fret over gossip that has
been set afloat TO your disadvantage by
some mtddlesome busybody? These
things can't possibly injure you, unless
indeed, you take notice of them, and,
by combating them, give them charac-
ter and standing. If what is said be
true, set yourself right at once. If it
be false, let it go for what it will bring,
until il dies of inherent weakness.
Year: 1870

Hail, beaut eous maiden of immortal birth,
Thrie blessed gift OF heaven to sons of EARTH
The feeble tongue must fail to hymn thy praise.
Or slkilful heart n monument to raise
Worthy Of thee and thy exalted name,
Sweet noble Faith undyiug Is thy fame.
Thy features radiant with surprising grace,
Reflect peace unknown TO time and place;
Thine eyes, upturned, bespeak thy prayer rapi


soul,


And up waId. pointing TO the long for goal,
The finger seems to becGon us away
From dark-robed earth to realms of endless day
Then only shall Hy day be quenched In night
When the last trump turns Faith TO gorous
sight
Year: 1870

A BANKER lent a gracelees scamp
fifty dollars in the hope of getting rid
Of him; but, to his surprise, the fellow
paid the money punctually on the day
agreed upon, and short time after
ward applied for another loan. "No,"
said the banker, "you have deceived
me once, and am resolved you shan Y
do it second time.n
Year: 1870

WE would advise everybody in
Mineral Point and surrounding country, to
go and see KENSKDr's goods that he has just
purchased. We think it is the choicest
stock Of Fancy Goods we have ever seen
in the Point. He has also added very
choice selection of millinery goods to bis
stock. Why, he has almost everything for
sale. and he sells so cheap, that is the hest
of it. He also keeps suits ready. for
children. X, is selling lots Of goods now
although nearly everybody is complaining
of hard times.
Year: 1870

THE measles with which the juven-
lies of Mineral Point were afflicted during
the winter, have given place to the Whoop
ing Cough and Mumps Editors families
are not exempt. Friends with children
will take the hint.
Year: 1870

Herald Special Correspondent and French
Legitimist in the Holy City Conversation
on Public Affairs-Napoleon Policy
IN Rome-Infallibility and the
Church-American Interest


a City for HIS Holiness


To Jerusalem.