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eS oa K Nahe Uae ha i t ee i re : : yy ey SS a a ra igor ee a a anne ir a Rai aes ee | ; eS ae * ? . tid coer Sie tec patente Hiscella Pe BOW, - rise.Infor the day neous. is passing, While you. lic dreaming on ; Your brothers are cased ju amor, And forth to. fight. are gone ; Your place in the ranks awaits you. ;, Bach man, has.a part to play j, The past.and the future are wothing In the face of the stem to-day. rise from, your, dreams of the fulure--= Of gaining a hard tought field, ;. Oii storming the airy fortress 5 (Of bidding the giant yield ; Youur fature has dyeams of glory, Of honor (God grant it may !) But your arm will never be stronger, Or needed: as now--tw-day... Avise !: If the past detain you, Her sunshine and storms forget > No chains so unworthy to: hold you As tho:-e of vain regret > Sad or bright, she is lifeless ever ;. Cast hey phantom arms away, Nor lool back, save to learn, the lesson Of a nobler strife to-day. | Arise ! for the hour is passing ;: - 'The sound that you dimly hear, Is your enemy marching to batile, Rise! rise ! for the foe is near ! Stay not to, brighten your weapons, Or the hour will, strike at last ;_ _And from, dreams of a coming battle, You wil), waken to find it past. [ kousehold Words, The Gipsy Slaves of Wallachia. All traxellers who have journied from - Yemlitza on the Danube to Bucharest, agree in painting the country they are obliged to traverse in the mest sombre colors. Once wut of sight of the lines of trees that border the Danube, you enter upon an interminable dismal plain, with a level horizon that sur- sounds you like a circle, of which you are wver the centre. There are no objects be- ind, to mark your progress by their gradual _ disappearance ; there is nothing ahead, to encourage you on ; no mountains of blue rising higher and higher, becoming substan- tialas you advance, breaking up their long line into peaks and valleys bristling with erags or clothed in forest, Ifyou would know that you are in motion you must look upon the ground beneath your feet and see _ the pebbles and plants pass slowly backwards as your wagon moves sleeply on, or whirl _ alimly by as the karoutchor pursues its mad career. In winter time, an additional drear- iness is given to this desert by the absenee / of the sun, which is hidden from view by une vast cloud stretching from horizon to horizon, low down, so as almost to resemble a mist just risen from the earth. | Here and there, a few slight elevations, a foot or two high, indicate the presence of an underground village. At various distances, tall poles rise "into the air, marking the positions of wells, around which the sky is speckled by flights of crows and vultures. Now and then you meet parties of peasants clothed in sheep- skin, and wearing prodigious mustachios, wandering across the level. At night the only sound is the wind whistling through the low bushes, occasionally bringing to the -ear the reports of a volley of musketry fired _ by some party of travellers who amuse them- _ selves in this martial way. * It is noé uncommon in crossing these sad 7 plains to come upon groups of wild-looking - individuals, black as Ethivpians, scantily cov- ered by old rags, stepping jauntily out, wav- ing there arms, nodding their heads, rattling fragments of songs, and clattering together as they go, the blacksmith's tools which they bear upon their backs. Further on, perhaps, when night has fallen, an hour or two after _ these odd-looking people have gone ahead of your wagon (they take two strides for one of your oxen) the ground ahead will probably ; oe spangled as with glow-worms ; and presently a sort of whirlwind of strange sounds, half song, half shout, will be borne by the night breeze, to mingle with the buzz of '-yeur own caravan, and the ereaking of the wheels. Youhave come upon a village, and encampment, aburrow of gipsy troglodytes _ (dwellers in caves,) who are either sitting around the remains of the fires they have _ lighted to cook their evening meal, or, with open doors or trays, by the the light of a an stuck in the ground, are engaged in moking red clay or cherry-wood pipes, and ~ drinking the harsh wine of the country. \. These people are of the most humble' and Mos yunfortunate section of the Wallachian peoples she Zigans, who of old formed a flour- Ashing en ahs tribute to the Greek empire, but wit are now reduced to a condi- tion of abject slavery. _ Their history is most obscure, and it isnot with certainty known whence they came or by What, steps they de- scended to their present level. "1g seemscer- tain, however, that they belong to«he same family of wanderers who are known in Eeypt as Gayaras, in Hungary as Zingari, in Germ many as Zigeuner, In Spain as Gitanos, in France as Bohemians, and in England as Gipsies. Their own traditions derive them - from Syria, whence they were transported in the eighth century, by one of the Greek em- erors, to Thrace. On account of some pecu- liarities in their manners, perhaps of some strange forms of doctrine, they seem to have become detested and despised by neighboring nations, and especially by the Mohammedans. When the Turks penetrated into their terri- tory instead of merely requiring tribute from them, they attacked them with fury, dispers- ed them, hunted them down like wild beasts, and condemned those to perpetual servitude whose lives they spared. In this persecu- tion they were encouraged by the Christians, who shared, indeed, the greater part of the newly made serfs among themselves-- It is estimated that at present there are more than twenty-three thousand Zigan families in Moldo- Wallachia, com prising about a hundred and fifty thousand souls. "A. cer- tain number of these belonging to the State, which employs them in mines and public works ; whilst the others are divided among the monasteries and the Boyards. Some of these latter possess as many as five or six thousand, engaged in the most laborious works connected with their estates, in part let out upon hire. They sell or exchange them at certain fixed periods of the year, bringiny them like cattle to market ; until lately, they treated them with such severity that | they not unfrequently drove them to suicide. Many Boyards of humane character now grant a.semi-liberty to their Zigans, allowing them 'for so much a year to go about as they splease, seeking for work, and retaining the iproduce.ofit. Once every spring, the half- -enfranchised slave must make his appearance sand -pay jhis tribute. Sometimes, also, hic btings an instalment of his own price, and 'thus; manages by degvees to free himself-- An industrious man. yay earn his liberty inj iten.years ; but this unfortunate race has _ {been:so:brutalized byjlone suffering, and iy 80 addicted :to.every 'kind ,of debauchery, | kk Fe tii Very sew succudd in rescuing thense.ves from bondage. Amongst the Boyards of the present day there are a good many whose copper complexions, white teeth, and general cast of countenance, evidently prove them to be descended from Zigans. The physical constitution of this unhappy. people is strongly marked. The men are generally of lofty stature, robust and sinewy. "Their skin is black or copper-culored, their hair, thick and woolly; their lips are of negro heaviness, and their teeth as white as pearls; 'the nose is considerably flattened, and the whole countenance is illuminated, as it were, by lively rolling eyes. All, without excep- tion, wear beards. Their dress consists com- monly of a piece of tattered cloth thrown carelessly around them ; perhaps an old bed curtain given by some master, or a blanket that has gone through every degree of fortune, until it has been rejected by the scullion. As is the case in many savage tribes, the women are either extremely ugly or extreme- ly handsome. Most of the Zigans are beau- tiful up to the age of twenty , but, after that time, they suddenly shrink and shrivel, change color, bend, and lose the lightness of their step,as if an enchanter's wand had to dishonored old age. The dress of these wo- men is peculiar, consisting generally of noth- ing but a tight tunic or bodice made of sheep-skin, and scarcely reaching to the knees. It leaves their legs, their arms, and 'heir necks bare. Over their heads the most coquettish throw a white veil, and some few indulge in leather sandals. As orna- ments they 'were ear-rings of brass filligree, necklaces of paras strung upon a slender thong, and a variety of metal bracelets-- The children go naked up to the age of ten or twelye, and whole swarms of girls and boys may sometimes be seen rolling about together in the dust or mud in summer, In the water or snow in winter--like so many black worms. As you pass by, a dozen heads of matted hair and a dozen pairs of sharp eyes are raised towards you, and you are greeted with a mocking shout, which alone tells you that the hideous things are your fellow creatures. In fine weather the Zigan is a very inde- pendent being. He sleeps in the open alr, in the forests, in the fields, in the streets of the towns--anywhere, in fact, where he can find a place to lay his head. However, it is their custom, for the summer season, to er- ect little sheds of canvass, of straw, or of branches, or of mud; whilst in the winter they scratch deep holes in the earth, which they roof with reeds and turf. Their furni- ture is surprisingly simple, consisting of an old kettle, a few two pronged forks, and perhaps a pair of scissors, a poignard, and a gourd to hold brandy or arakee--to the use of which this race is particularly addicted. When they have stowed these articles into their holes, or under a shed, they call the place their home, and go back to it every night. They squat upon heaps of filth, and begin smoking their pipes, while the women set before them the supper which has been cooked in the before-mentioned old kettle, swung upon three sticks over a fire of wood brought by the children, mixed with a kind of peat. Sometimes a piece of turned meat, which all Christian cooks have rejected in the butcher's shop, or a portion of some ani- mals which have come by an untimely death and has 'been distributed by a generous Boyard, is added toa portion of beans or maize on which the Zigans generally sup- port their strength. They use no plates or spoons, but dip their hardened fingers into the steaming kettle, and bring up a ball of porridge or a fragment of meat, which they cool by throwing from one palm to the other until they can venture to cast it down their throats. The women and children eat after the men, who, as soon as they have wiped their hands in their hair, take again to their pipes, and--if they can afford it--to drinking. They make themselves merry for an hour or two, until fatigue comes over them and then go pell-mell to their huts, or stretch out by the embers of the tires. Nothing can be more abundantly filthy than the habits of this degraded tribe. They are often compelled to abandon their village on account of the dresdful state to which they have been brought by their careless- ness. 'The abandonment costs them nothing in feeling or in money: they are essentialty wanderers. When the air is too pestiferous to breathe, they shoulder their working utensils and the furniture, and remove a mile or two away. If it be summer, they set up their sheds again in a few hours; if it be.winter, and the frost has not yet come on, they form subterranean dwellings in the course of half a night. As we have said, a°good many of the Zi- gans are employed in the rough labors of ag- riculture. The greater number, however, ate artisans, and are celebrated for their in- genuity, Their favorite trade is that of the blacksmith, but they can turn their hands to anything; andthe bazaars of Bucharest are filled with a vast wariety of toys and fancy- work, which would doecredit to our cleverest workmen. But the vagabond tendencies of the Zigan--perhaps, also, the-eontempt with which he is regarded--prevent him, except in the rare instances we have mentioned, from rising, by means ef his industry in the social scale. of their religious or other opinions. From his talk one would sometimes fancy him to be half a Christian, half Mohammedan; at other times to be a fire-worshipper, an in- fidel, a believer in fetishes, or what you will. He is a man of many colors, like his lan- guage, which contains traces of an original character, but which is encrusted, as it were, with words borrowed (it might, perhaps be more appropriate to say stolen,--for the Zi- gan, like his brethren we know of, has great propensities) from a dozen different dialects. The sound is not at all unmusieal; and | some of the songs which have been taken down are curiously characteristic. The fol- lowing is the beginning of one of them : "Through all the pathway of the sky Quail with sharpen'd beak doth fly, Christos passing with sharp beak, 'What, ob dun quail, dost thou seek 2 To the grog-shop come with me, And treat me to some arakee !" : Tt will be seen from these lines that the ideas of the Zigans on various points are somewhat confused, or at any rate, it seems rather odd to interrupt a pious quail in its doxologies by an invitation to tipple. Per- haps, as in the case of many eastern songs, the words are arbitrarily thrown together for the sake of harmony--an observation that might apply sometimes to the verse- making of our more civilized regions. _ The Zigans are not only poets and sing- ers, but they are musicians also, and 'their favorite instrument is the fiddle. They of- ten ask permission of their masterd, the é = eres aN > y > \ ; y : ao, - 4 charged them from youth,admired and wooed, It is diiicult to learn anything } Boyaras, to, form what are called Witzoulin or storms of music, consisting of ten or twelve members, who go about the country' to the towns, and castles of the rich, and let themselves out at so much an hour. No ball is considered complete without one of the musical storms, who ask very little for their services, pretending that they are paid by their pleasure; but who. unless they be grievously wronged, generally contrive to leave a deficit behind them somewhere, either in the larder or the hen-roost. They often lead a few bears about with them; and when there are no balls to attend, dance a strange dance among themselves for the amusement of the public. Forming into a circle, men and women, they begin to utter frightful cries, and then, as the fiddle strikes up, whirl, jump, roll, crawl together, sepa- rate, throw their arms and lees and arms into the air, wag their heads, shake their bracelets, and work themselves, up into a kind of fury. The dance, in fact is a kind of compendium of the bolero, the salterella, and the fandango. Sometimes, a single performer goes through a ferocious jig, which may be called the jig of murder and suicide, for these two pleasant things are the basis of his representations. The acting is often so clever, that the unaccustomed spec- tators shriek, and rush away to save them- selves. 'I'he ragged and breathless artist. fancying they want to escape payment, pur- sues them with his greasy cap held out, shouting for a piastre. Little is really known of the relations of the Zigans, among themselves. Marriage can oxly take place within the limits of the also, is required before the ceremony can take place. There is no ceremony of be- trothal, no intervention of match-makers or friends; the youth goes to the father of the girl he has ¢hosen, and, after some attempts of politeness--as offering a pipe, or praising the length of the old gentlemen's beard-- comes straight to the point, and proposes himself as a son-in-law. Few qunstions are asked, few conditions made. Unless there be some important objections, the young lover receives permission to call his comrades together, and build a hut during the course of the night to receive his bride. The very next day he requests his mother to prepare a full pot of porridge, and then repair to the dwelling--a hole six feet square, or perhaps a tent of branches--where the maiden of his choice, dressed in the sheep-skin tunic, with a veil borrowed from a neighbour, is modestly crouching in a corner. He takes her by the hand and leads her to where his family is collected. The oldest man of the tribe is there by appointment, encouraged by a fee of a few handfuls of porridge, and hastily mutters a few words by way of bles- sing. This is the whole ceremony, if, indeed, the great feed that follows be not more worthy of that name; and thus the Zigans continue from generation to generation. We are sorry to be obliged to add that both women and men are as a rule, exceedingly debauched.-- Household Words. DIAMOND DUST. Wisdom has grown so used to calling aloud without attracting attention, that the good lady would be actually embarrassed if any mortal chanced to turn his head at her first summons. One of the saddest. things about human na- ture is, that a man may guide others in the path of life without walking in it himself; that he may be a pilot, and yet a castaway. Man is never wrong while he lives for others; the philospher who contemplates from the rock isa less noble image than the sailor who Struggles with the storm. Female education is generally a gaudy and tawdry setting, which cumbers and almost hides the jewel it ought to bring out. Use not evasions when called upon to do a good thing, nor excuses when you are re- proached for doing a bad one. Invective and personality prove nothing, on either side, but lamentable want of good taste and good argument. The errors of the good are often very dif- ficult to eradicate, from being founded on mis- taken views of duty. We may do a very good action and not' be a good man, but we cannot do a very ill one and not be an ill man. Solitude is necessary in the moments when grief is strongest and thought most troubled. oneself ; all sin is easy after that. Everthing, when tending to decay, has a mystery it did not possess in its bloom, Childhood and genius have the same organ in common--inquisitiveness. Genuine politeness is the first-born offspring of generosity and modesty. The mercy of men is to be just, the justice of women is to be merciful. No plant so much as man needs the light and the air. SELFISHNESS.--Base metal, out of which we forge rack-wheels to torture Justice, Suspicion.--A fungus which sprouts from the dunghill of an impure mind. We do not want precepts so much as pat- terns. Truth, when witty, is the wittiest of all things. In all true humor lies its germ--pathos. No man is wholly bad all at once. Sorrow is the night of the mind. Blunt wedges rive hard knots, " A quiet tone is observable in the Russian organ *' said Mrs. Partington, as the line in the telegraph news arrested her eye, She mus- ed upon ita moment. "Church organs, I dare say ; and we heard tother day that the Emperor of Russia--dear pious man--was or- ganizing his soldiers to go and-giye the gos- pel to the Turks at the point of the bayonet. Quiet toned organs! Well, [ wonder if they wout get one for our church that'll play noth- ing but serious tunes, for the one we,ve got'll play Yanke Doodle jest as well as Old Hun- dred, and for my part I don't put no faith into it." She looked at the vane on the top of a distant spire that turned in the wind, and mix- ed its variableness with church organs that prayed many tunes, and men of the church variable as the organs, while Ike was teasing the kitten with a bran new cap border that the old lady was just doing up. 'Gold in the eastern townships of Lower Canada is said to be so abundant as too throw the golden discoveries of California and Aus- tralia into the shade. What seems rather strange, however, is that all the rumonred rich diseoveries have been made on the land belong to the British American, Land Company. It is even said that, the snow on the land of this Company if carefully melted will yield five dollars worth of gold to the pan of snow. But joking apart, the Sherbroke Guzette says that there is no doubt, that valueble specimens, in- dicating a rich gold field, have been found, but whether future operations will realize present expectaions, time alone can determine The British Americrn Land Company are busy in preparing to commence work at the " Placers" onthe opening of spring. .Speci- property of one master, whose permission, The first and worst of all frauds is to cheat | poenaner ae cs mens of the gold have been sent to England to induce emigration. We hope the emigrants may not be disapointed. However, indepen- dently of the gold, the country is a splended one, A Defence of Fleas. (From Household Words.) One of the peculiarities which strikes me most among the inhabitants of Turkey is their love of fleas. Iam obliged to use the word in- habitants, because all are not Turks who live in Turkey; and all are alike in this respect, whether. Qsmanli, Armenian, Bulgarian, Wallack, Moldavian, Greek, or Jew, They pounce upon them with a ery of delight wherever they find them, and fondle them before putting them to death. They show as much art and address iu their capture as a keen sportsman may evince in trying to get a shot at a flock of wild ducks. The fleas are not ungrateful for being thus held in honor, and have effected a very consider- able settlement in the country. They are, in point of fact, on of the nationalities of Turkey; the only one which has nothing to ask of government; which has no wrongs to redress, or injured innocence to bluster a- bout. Most of the houses being of wood, they find warm commodious quarters-- quarters which are utterly inaccessible to the broom of the houseman. I use the word houseman, because there is no such thing as a housemaid in Turkey. These little animals are so prompt and ferocious in their assaults, and have, more- over, such a keen appreciation of the delicocy of any fresh arrival, from a distant country, that they keep a stranger in a perpetual state of liveliness and motion: which is, doubtiess, extremely beneficial to his health, especially if he be slothful. » No idea of dirt or disgrace seems to attach to a houseful of fleas--these pugnacious lit-" tle animals being looked upon as recognised proprietors in the country, and as having as much right there as any one else. Any at- tempt, therefore, to exterminate them from a bed or sofa, would be laughed to scorn utterly. A Perote lady (and a Perote lady is the very essence of fine ladyism,) will often stop several times in the course of a flirtation, languidly to catch a flea upon her dress: feebly smiling while she twiddles him in her fingers, aud then passively dropping him on the floor. Two grave Galata merchants will stop in the midst of a bargain sportively to catch a flea on the shirt front of an acquain- tance; and cracking out his crisp life on the counter, will proceed to draw a bill on London, or to discuss the exchange, the depreciation of Kaimes, and the rise of gold. No individual throughout the conntry seems able to resist the fascination of hunt- ing a flea wherever he sees him. What trapping was to the Red Indians--what the fox-chase was to the squire of our child- hood--flea hunting is to the Oriental: it is a passion--a delight. As soon as the lively little game breaks cover, no matter where or when, the eyes of the Perote light up with an unwonted fire; a keen sporting expression passes over his face; he raises his head stealthily by a sort of instinct; the certainty of his aim might pass into a proverb, and the next moment the hand has descended, and the Perote is twiddling his finger and thumb with tranquil satisfaction, and has re- sumed his occupation, be it what it may. He would stop to catch a flea, on his way to be hanged or to be married. He must have missed appointments, lost fortunes, by the habit; but it is engrafted in his nature, and is unconquerable. I have gone into rooms where fleas lay thick as dust upon the floor, and each of my steps must have killed hundreds of them; but if I ever ventured to express the small- est distress upon the occasion, I became as incomprehensible to the men of Pera, as if I had told a Chinese I disliked stewed dog. They will even argue the point with you, if you press them closely, and maintain that the flea is like the elder Mirabeau--the friend of men. They will tell you that fleas keep up an irritation on the skin which is highly beneficial in a hot country, and pre- vents the accumulation of morbid humors. On my remonstrating also with an hotel waiter about finding them constantly in the bread (some baked and some alive,) that individual, who spoke all the languages of the world in bad French, assured me the baker had a superstition about them, and |thought them lucky! Pumping him with a 'light hand, I found he was not quite free from the same idea himself, and that it obtains generally throughout the country, He said, that to allay the irritation they occasioned, was at all times a pleasing occupation; that it was to be remarked, no flea ever bit a man in a dangerous place or injured his eye, or his ear, or opened an artery; therefore fleas were the friends of men, He did not know (nor do I) what many of the Perote gentlemen would do, if it were not for the unfailing entertainment supplied by fleas. He believed they kept people who had no- thing to do out of mischief. He said that the courteous catching of a flea upon the person of another, offered a frequent and pleasant opportunity of commencing a con- versation, or beginning an acquaintance. That acquaintances so formed had often ripened into warm and lasting friendships. He had even known more than one instance of Perote marriages brought about by a cheerful and inoffensive gailantry of this kind. He was much surprised at the unjus- tifiable anger of an English lady at dinner, upon whose shoulder he had succeeded in catching a flea by an adroit movement of his left hand, while his right was occupied in presenting her a dish of kid stuffed with chestnuts, She screamed, and her gentle- man threatened to horsewhip him. He confessed his feelings were hurt and _ his reason confounded by this behavior on the part of my country people. No Perote lady would have raised her eyes from her plate during such an occurrence. I endeavoured to soothe him by saying we were a people who lived in an inclement climate, and to whom, therefore, the utility of the flea was comparatively unknown; but he would not believe it. He could nos bring his mind to bear all at once.on a fact which appeared to him so remarkable. I was like the Christian knight who told an African king that he could ride his horse dry-footed over some of our rivers in winter, and who was Immediately bow-strung I remember a personage of no mean rank once cailing my attention specially te see him hunt and kill two fleas, who were re- posing together on the linen cover ofa sofa, He began by rousing them into flight with the golden point of 'his pencil, and then pursued them in a state of the liveliest ex. citement for some minutes. (He had a lon white beard, énd was aman of an augue; } | | | presence.) At length he ran down his game, and taking them in the usual way be- tween his finger and thumb, finally slew them upon the pipestick of a brother sports- man who offered it spontaneously for the purpose. In the mosques, in the market-place, in the palace by the sweet cool sea-side, and in the coffee-houses in the hot and sultry town--wherever there is a Perote there 1s a flea, and the Perote's greatest delight is to capture it. GLEANINGS. Live virtuously, and you cannot die too soon nor live too long.--Lady Rachel Russell. He who says there is no such thing as an honest. man, you may be sure is himself a knave.--Bishop Berkely. - A coquette is said to be a perfect imcarna- tion of Cupid, as she keeps her beau ina quiver. What is a lamp-post after the lamp has been removed ?}--A lamp-lighter. A young lady says, that 'if a cart-wheel has nine felloes attached to it, it's a pity that a girl like her can't have one." «¢ What is that dog barking at ?" asked a fop, whose boots were more polished than his ideas. "Why," replied a bystander, " because he sees another puppy in your boots." An impatient youth at a wedding party the other day, after an awful silence, suddenly ex- claimed, * Don't be so unspeakably happy." " Wife," said a man, looking for his boot- jack, " I have places where I keep my things, and you ought to know it." " Yes," said she, 'I ought to know where you keep your late hours." A gentleman rode up to a public-house in the couatry, and asked," Who is the master of this house ?' "TI am, sir," replied the land- lord; "my wife has been dead about three weeks," : A cobbler in Mobile, who also professes to teach music, has the following sign over his door :-- & Delightful task to mend the tender boot, And teach the young idea how to flute." INTERESTING TO GEOGRAPHERS.--Why did Robinson Crusoe suppose the desolatefisland on which he was cast away to be inhabited 7-- Because he saw several coves about the recks, and met witha great swell on the beach. Russia anp Turxey.--The following is stated to be a prophecy taken from an old volume of predictions written in the fifteenth century : In twice two hundred years, the Bear The Crescent will assail : But if the Cock and Bull unite, 'The Bear shall not prevail. In twice two hundred years again, Let Ishmael know ana fear. The Cross shall stand, the Crescent wane, Dissolve and disappear. Railway Travelling in Russia. We proceeded, bag and baggage, to the station of the Moscow Railway. Only one train starts daily ; and the hour at which this most important event takes place is, or ought to be eleven, A. M. Travellers are commanded by the government to be at the station at. ten precisely ; and even then they are liable to be told that the train is full--as itis quite an unheard-of thing to put on an extra carriage for any number of passengers. Having arrived, 'therefore, at ten minutes before ten, to be quite sure of being in time, our luggage was seized by a soldier, police-man, or railway porter (for, they all wear somewhat the same uniform), and carried in one direction, while we rushed in another to show our passport for Moscow, to pro- cure which we had been to three different offices the day before. Here the descriptions of our persons and our reasons for traveling, which it contained, being copied at full length, we were hurried to another counter, where we got it stamped ; whence, catching sight of our baggage en passant, we sped on to the ticket-office, and then, returning to our portmanteaux, we went through a few formalities, which ended in receiv- ing a ticket to add to the number of those with which our pockets were now pretty well filled. The anxiety of mind which such a variety of documents causes is not to be wondered at, when the consequences which the loss of any of them would entail are considered. Ladies in Russia do not think of trying to carry their tickets in their gloves. We now betook ourselves to the waiting-room, which we should have thought handsome had we not been detained in it so long that we got tired of adniiring it. For an hour did the destined occupants of the train sit patient- ly on the benches, every man with head uncover- ed--for even a skull cap is an abomination to a Russian undera roof. Every man in military garbseemed to have the entree to the platform, while the doors were rigorously shut against us unhappy civilians. Ata quarter before eleven, however,they are opened--a general rush follows, and we are hurried through the barrier, the door closes behind us. Soon the whole barrier becomes thronged with people, waving their adieus as ardently as if we were booked for Australia. A bell, a whistle, and asortof dull attempt at a scream, are, aS in more civilized parts of the world, the signal for starting; we leave the weeping eyes and waving pocket handkerchiefs, behind us, and in the course of ten minutes, find, to our satisfaction, that we have increased to fif- teen miles an hour. We have hardly done so ere we have arrived ata station. Everybody rushes out and lights'a cigarette. We are to stop here ten minutes,and the people during that time walk up and down the platform and smoke ; then we huddle into our old places, and have time to look about us. A-second class carriage accom- modates about fifty people. They are built asin Austria and America, with a passage in the cen- ter, perambulated by a man in uniform, who oc- casionally asks people for their tickets. He seems to make inquiry the first time to satisty himself that you haye got one, and afterwards more as an amusement, which he apparently en- joys the more if he fancies you are going to sleep. The men are bearded, and dirty, and relate stories in a loud tone of voice, for the whole company, most of whom have evidently never been in a rail- way before. At every station the same scene en- sues. The unsmoked ends of the last station's cigars having been carefully preserved, are light- ed afresh, and vehemently smoked on the plat- form during five or ten minutes, as the case may be. 'The stations are all very spacious and uni- formly constructed, with an Immense domed The Oyster Business. The New York Journal of Commerce 1s telling us all about the trade that is carried on in Oysters on the coasts of the Northern States--particularly Connecticut. The facts, as we give them, are ae teresting, and will be new, we think, to many © our readers. Contrary to the prevailing notion, a sel Es atively small proportion of the oysters for whic this region (Connecticut) is so famous, are natives here, but are brought from Chesapeake Bay, in immense quantities in the spring, when they are planted, to be taken up in the fah. Their ori- ginal cost is about 25 cents per bushel, to which 15 cents for freight is added. Native i oy in enerally preferred by epicures, are ai} con need nets white the adopted Southern oysters are sent off in every direction, to all parts of the country.--The method of preserving them is singular. They are. first opened and put in kegs or eans, which are afterwards packed in boxes containg ice, of a ae equal to from welve to twenty gallons each. ; The enormous extent of this trade may be in- ferred when it is known that from 150 to 200 vessels, mostly schooners, are employed in con- veying oysters to this port (New Haven)--the eargoes consisting of from 2000 to 6090 bushels. The profits, too, have been highly remunerative, where ordinary sagacity has been exercised : one firm having cleared during the last four years $75,000: or $100,000. 'Failure g in the oysters is scarcely ever known. The business is chiefly engrossed by about twenty firms, the largest of whom send off from 1000 to 1500 gallons of oysters per day. The firm of Levi Rowe & Co., who have one of the largest establishments, with branch houses in Buffalo, Cleveland, Detroit, Hamilton, C. W., &c., estimate that their busi- ness this season will amount to 150,000 gallons. No less than twenty vessels are employed by them, and from 75 to 100 individuals, mostly girls and boys, find constant employment in tak- ing oysters from the shell, during six months in the year. These girls often acquire a wonderful dexterity in their department, the several move- ments required in going through the process be- ing performed with all the regularity and preci- sion observed in touching the keys of a piano forte. If set to music, however, the ear would be grated with a succession of sounds much like this --click--gonge --splash ! Click--gonge--splash ! &c. The first indicates the use of the hammer in removing the edges of the shell; second, the inser- tion of the knife; third, the final deposition. of the disemboweled animal in a tub prior to pack- ing. The hammer is thrown down each time it is used, but the knife is always retained. in one hand. These openers receive as compensation 2 cents a quart, and some of them earn $2 per day, though $1 is more commonly earned. As there are about 150 oysters to the gallon, the-individual who opens 100 quarts, or 25 gallons per pay ne- cessarily opens 3750 oysters during: that time. Thef operation of planting is after this-fash- ion: The oyster vessels, upon their arrival from the south, are anchored near the site of the pro- posed beds, and their cargoes are removed by small boats which come along side. The beds are formed by staking off the groumd into small lots or squares, each of which is spread over with about fifty bushels so laid that one shall not lay on another. By Fall, the oysters have con- siderably increased;in size, and greatly improved in flavor. If allowed to remain too Jong in the beds, the oyster, not being acclimated to northern winters, perishes with cold. Sugar-Making Weather. The 3rd and 4th of March were excellent sugar- making, or, rather, sap-running days. This fa- vorite occupation of old Canadians, and the na- tives of America, is carried on mostly in March. There is something in it very agreeable and healthy. In the March air, in the woods, there is often astillness, broken only by the chirping of the little woodpecker, the ery of the jay, or the gambols of the squirrels; which pleases the thoughtful mind. The woods begin to smell like spring, the sap to mount the trunks of the trees, and hence the buds to swell. The autumn leaves crackle under the feet, and the snow lies in patches over the forest. In the back townships, it lies unthawed in the dense forests, awaiting April suns. The country boys and girls delight to spend a few hours each day about the sugar- bush. Sugaring-off has delights for the country swains, which city gentility knows little of Here many a future rustic match commences ; and love plays his pranks over the bowl of maple sugar. The girls are invited to the sugar-bush, at the sugaring-off; and,in turn, invite their male favorites to the Canadian quilting-bee. Live on and love, ye happy country girls ; for, while you know not the cares, vanity and non- sense of city life, health, happiness and content- ment dwell in your hearts.--Son of Temperance. Water.--Some four-fifths of the weight of the human body are nothing but water, 'The blood is just a solution of the body in a vast excess of water--as saliva, mucus, milk, gall, urine, sweat and tears are the local and partial infusions infected by that liquid. All the soft solid parts of the frame may be considered as even temporary precipitates or crystalizations (te use the word but loosely) from the biood, that mother-liquor of the body; always being precipitated or suffered to become solid, and always being redissolved, the forms remaining, but the matter never the same for more than a moment, so thai the flesh is only a vanishing solid, as fluent as the blood itself. It has alsv to be observed, that every part of the body, melting again into the river of life contin- ually as it does, is kept perpetually drenched in blood by means of the blood-vessels, and more than nine-tenths of that wonderful current is pure water. Water plays as great a part, indeed, in the economy of that little world, the body of man, as it still more evidently does in the phenomenal life of the world at large. Three-fourths of the surface of the earth is ocean ; the dry ground is dotted with lakes, its mountain-erests are covered with snow and ice, its surface is irrigated by rivers and streams, its edges are eaten by the sea; and aqueous vapour is unceasingly ascending from the ocean and inland surfaces through the yield- ing air, only to descend in portions and at inter- vals in dews and rains, hails and snows, Water is not only the basis of the juices of all the plants and animals in the world; itis the very blood of nature, as is well known to all the terrestial sciences; and old Thales, the earliest of European speculators, pronounced it the mother-liquid of the universe. In the later systems of the Greeks, indeed, it was reduced to the inferior dignity of being only one of the four parental natures--fre, air, earth and water; but water was the highest in rank.-- Westminster Review. Tue Mysrertes or Cookery.--It is said that some of the great cooks of ancient Greece carried their art to such perfection, that they were able to serve up a whole pig, boiled on building for engines attached to each. Though there is only one passenger-train daily, there are three goods trains, always well loaded with in- land produce, tallow, fur, tea, &c., ar with cotton from St. Petersburg to the interior. I should hardly think the line could. possibly pay ; but as it isa government concern nobody has any means of ascertaining this fact. Whether it pays or not, the railway traveler in Russia soon discovers that the requirements of trade are as little regard- ed by government as his own personal conveni- ence ; for the restrictive policy of the empire must ever neutralise, in a great measure, the beneficial effects of rapid communication, while the difficulties which have always been placed in the way of free mercantile intercourse exist in full force, though the physical obstacles by which it has hitherto been encompassed are overcome. In fact, though the public cannot but be benefited by the formation of railroads throughout a coun- try, it is hardly for the public benefit that rail- roads are constructed here. Russian railroads seem to be meant for Russian soldiers ; and it is the facility thus afforded of moving large bodies of men, that invests this mode of comuaunication. in Russia with an importance which does not at- tach to itin Great Britain, or perhaps any other country in Europe, to an equal extent. When St. Petersburg, Moscow, Odessa, and Warsaw become connected, Russia assumes an entirely new position with regard to the rest of Europe. A few days, instead. of many months, will then' suffice to concentrate the armies of the north and south upon the Austrian cr Prussian frontiers. Through this same quarter of the world, many. hundred years ago, poured those barbaric hordes which over-ran civilized Europe ;~it would, in- deed, be a singular testimony to the spirit of the age, if the next invaders made their descent by es of railroads.--Russian Shores of the Black ea. "Why is the letter d like a ring ?" asked a young lady of her lover, who was as the gen- erality of his sex in sucha situation; * Be- cause," added the damsel, with a modest Jook, "us com't be wed without it." : one side and roasted on the other, and stuffed besides, though without visible mark of the knife upon it. The inventor of this feat was cruel enough to keep the process secret for a whole year. At length it was revealed that he had bled the animal to death by a very small wound under the shoulder, by which he had also extracted the entrails piecemeal; that he had forced the stuffing down the throat ; and that, by means of barley-paste, he had prevented the roasting on one side, having boiled it afterwards. Jt is said also of these Greek cooks, that by their saltings, picklings, and fryings, they could actually make a tur- nip pass for any kind of fish or flesh they chose ! Evenings at Home. Now stir the fire, and close the shutters fast ; Let fall the curtains ; wheel the sota round ; And while the bubbling and loud hissing urn Throws up a steamy column, and the cups That cheer but not inebriate, wait on each: So let us welcome peaceful evening in. Cowper's ** Task." A PrrstaAn Faptx.erA merchant had a pet parrot, and previous to going to India he asked Poll, what present hejjshould bring her. present," said the parrot, 'only when you see my brothers dancing on the green sward, tell them how I pine in a little prison." The Merchant journeyed and delivered the message, and a parrot immediately fell dead from a tree. 'The merchant returned and immediately told his parrot, who fell dead from his perch on hearing the news. ant, ars picked up the body and cast it out, when to his surprise, the d f a tre singing, die to be free. Oneday, O master, th 1 s0 gain thy freedom 2" dy Ue maaten, tha shalt | ' Convention, who would introduce the subject of 66 No ; The merchant, with tears, | parrot revived and flew to a tree, 5 "The India parrot taught me to|-- TEMPERANCE, ee pea ey in There were ninety-five tavern. ie granted in New York, during, the. mo a February. : ot eo A prohibitory liquor law has passed bot branches of the Mississippi legislature, but has to go back to the House for concurrence -- in amendments made in the Senate. i The Kingston (Canada) Herald says that 7 the Hon. Malcolm Cameron has contributed -- £100 towards forwarding the Maine Liquor -- Law movement. 4 Five hudered and fifty-four clergymen of -- Massachusetts have replied to the question | « Are you in favour of the prohibitory prins | ciple and the main features of the anti-liquor | law of Massachusetts ?" of whom five hun- -- dred and forty-seven answered yes and seven -- no. : @ A little boy was killed by drinking whisky, in the North Liberties of Hollidaysburgh a 7 few days since. Another litlte boy who drank 7 from the bottle with him, barely escaped. | If parents keep poison in bottles, such acci- dents will happen. 2 , The weekly Herald, of La Salle, Ill, res | commends the increased cultivation of the grape and manufacture of wine asa remedy -- for drunkenness. We are inclined to thinkthag 7 were we well supplied with the juice of the -- grape, there would be mneh less drinking of 7 of alcohilic stimulants,thet preduce drunkenness and disease. ea Here is anitem for those who are anxiousto: retain the " liberties their fathers fought for 7 Resolved, that it be reccommended to the se- veral Legislatures of the United States, imme= -- diately to pass laws the most effectual for put- > ting an immediate stop to the pernicious prac~ 4 tice of distilling, by which the most extensive: -- evils are likely to be derived, if not quickly -- prevented.--Journal of the 1st Contmentat' -- Congress. 4 George Mason was fined fifty dollars andi 4 sent to prison three months, in Boston, last. -- Monday, for selling three glasses of liquor, -- They constituted three different offences.--- Joseph Tuner was fined ten dollars for selling' _ two glasses at one time. Hugh McLaughin: © was fined thirty dollars and gaye bonds in || $100 net todo the like again within one | year. 4 Why should physicians have a greater hor- ror of the sea than anybody. else ?--Because: they are more liable to see sickness, CALL FOR A NATIONAL EMIGRATION CONVENTION OF ia COLORED MEN, To be held im Cleveland, Ohio, on the. 24th, 25th and 26th of August, 1854. Men anv. BRetTBERN :--The time has now fully -- come, when we, as an oppressed people, should -- do something effectively, and use those means adequate to the attainment of the great and long desired end--to do something to meet the actual demands of the present and prospective necessi- -- ties of the rising generation of our people in this country. 'To do this, we must oceupy a position: -- of entire equality, of unrestricted rights, composing' _ in fact, an acknowledged necessary part of the -- ruling element of society in which we live. The: policy necessary to the preservation of this element must be in our favor, if ever we expect the enjoy- ment, freedom, sovereignty, and equality of rights. anywhere. For this purpose, and to this end, then, all eolored men in faxer of emigration out of the United States, and opposed to the American, -- Colonization sheme of Jeaving the Western Hemisphere, are requested to meet in CLEVE- -- LAND, OHIO; on TUESDAY, the 24th DAY -- of AUGUST, 1854, in a great NATIONAL, -- CONVENTION, then and there, to consider and decide upon the great and important subject of emigration from the United States. - No person will be admitted toa seat-in the emigration to the Eastern Hemisphere--either to Asia, Africa, or Eurepe--as our object and de-. termination is to consider our claims to the West. Indies, Central and South America, and the -- Canadas. This restriction has no reference to, -- personal preference, or individwal enterprise ; bu to the great question of national claims tocome _ before the Convention. 4 All persons eoming to the Convention must, -- bring credentials properly authenticated, or bring: -- verbal assuranee to the Committee on Creden-. -- tials--appointed for the purpose--of their fidelity. to the measures and objects set forth in this Call;; _ as the Convention is specifically by and for the: -- friends of emigration, and NONE OTHERS--. -- and no opposition to theny will be entertained. = The question is not whether our condition ean, -- be bettered by emigration, but whether it can be. -- made worse. If not, then, there is no part of the. -- wide-spread universe, where our social and poli- tical condition are not better, than here in our na-, _ live country, and nowhere. in the world as here, proscribed on account of eelor. We are friends, too, and ever will stand -- shoulder to shoulder by 'our, brethren, and all true. -- friends in all good measwres adopted by them, for: -- the bettering of our condition in this country, and, surrender no rights but with our last breath ; but. -- as the subject of emigration is of vital importance, and has ever been shunned by-all delegated as-. -- semblages of our people as heretofore met, we. -- cannot longer delay, and will mot be further. -- baffled ; and deny the right of owr most sanguine: | friend or dearest brother, to,prevent an intelligent; -- enqniry to, and the carrying out of these measures, _ when this can be done, to our entire advantage, -- as we propose to show, in. Convention--as the. -- West Indies, Central and South America--the-. | majority of which are peupled by our brethren, or. _ those identified with us in race, and what is more, destiny, on this continent--all stand with open, -- arms and yearning hearts, importuning us in the. -- name of suffering humanity to. come--to make. -- common cause, and share one common fate on, the continent, ; _ The Convention will meet, without fail, at the. time fixed for assembling, as -none but those fa-. -- vorable to emigration are admissable ; therefore. -- no other gathering may prevent it. The number. of delegates will not be restricted--except in the. town where the Convention may be held--and -- there the number will be decided by the Convem. - tion when assembled, that they may not too fayex- ceed the other delegations. : ; The time and piace fixed for holding the Con-. vention are ample ; affording suffieient.time, and a leisure season generally--and as Cleveland is. now the centre of all directions--a good and fa- vorable opportunity to.all who desire to attend --. Therefore, it may reasonably be the greatest -- gathering of the colored people ever before assem-. bled in a Convention in the United States. ¢ Colonizationists are advised, that no favors. will be shown to them or their expatriating- scheme, as we have no sympathy with the- enemies of our race. All colored men, East, West, Nortb and South, favorable to the measures set forth in this Call; will send in tbeir names (post-paid) to M. Rv Delany, or Rev. Wm. Webb, Pitsburgh, Pa., that, there may be arranged and attached to the Call, five names from each State. 'a We must make an issue, create an, event, and' establish a position for-ourselves, 1 is glorious. to think of, but far more glorious tocarry out, Rev. Wm. Webb, } . M. R. Delany, ' es H. G. Webb, Thos. A. Brown, John Jones, L. L. Hawkins, Samuel Venerable: John Williams, A. F. Hawkins, S. W. Sanders, Jefferson Miller, Rev A. R. Green, P. L. Jackson, a oe Maloney, Sey are . Harper, |. Alleghany City, Tonuinwe Green, ' e chat ti H. A. Jackson, i s+ RE RES E.R. Parker, : ij owlex ween Samuel Bruce, BG) . J.J. Gould Bias, M. D,,. Rev. M. M. Clank, -- A.M. Summer, Sei Johnson Woodlin, __ James M. Whitfield, Pitisburgh, Pa., . 5 H fl John N. Still, Stanley Matthews.