On this page
- Departments (3)
-
Text (9)
-
TN D \« nd . to * orfcare the differentl...
-
$totm ipoctrn
-
THF POOR MAX'S TEMPLE. jy t he author of...
-
iuweute.
-
The Theory of Human Progression, and Nat...
-
The Moorland Cottage. By the author of M...
-
Christianity in Ceylon; Us Introduction ...
-
aneue*
-
The British Museum has twelve miles of b...
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
-
-
Transcript
-
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.
Tn D \« Nd . To * Orfcare The Differentl...
December 28 , 1850 . « THE NORTHERN STAR . - ( | i ¦ ¦ t — j 3
$Totm Ipoctrn
$ totm ipoctrn
Thf Poor Max's Temple. Jy T He Author Of...
THF POOR MAX'S TEMPLE . jy t he author of " The Omnipotenca of ike Liety , " and other Poems . I stood one morning early , In a lone cathedral aisle-. The organ's notes were swelling Throughout the solemn pile ; I listen'd to the music—Gazed on the mi ghty dome—Till trembling at the grandeur , Thought ' twas no poor man ' s home .
I fancied that my presence Denied the spotless floor , Polluted the rich windows , The lined and gilded door ; Cast shadows on the marble , And on the flowing dress , "Which seem'd to scout my meanness And nnpatch'd raggedness . ' I was startled from my musings By one in braided suit , Who drove me from the building With curses like a brute ; Who bade me " not come stealing The silver caps away , " And told me that" the prison Was my only place to pray . "
I wander'd through the city ; The sabbath prayer-bell toll'd , The rich crowds hurried by me ; To church the magnates roll'd ; "With weary step I follow'd ; All kept aloof from me , Till almost then I doubted My own humanity . I enter'd at the portals , To seek the balm that ' s given To hearts bow'd down with sorrow—The gracious gift of heaven ; But tbe red and angry beadle Thrust back my beggar'd form , And said " this is no workhouse—Begone !"—I fled the storm . And sought a quiet chapel ,
In a dark and lonely street , "Where crowds of long-faced people In solemn mockery meet . I saw their Christian faces Their sad and contrite air , And thought with foolish fondness , God ' s worship must be there . I enter'd then the chapel , And was softly sitting down , When a stern man , and unbending , Came near me with a frown ; Came near with sacred unction , And said with solemn face , " Your garments prove your wickedness—So this is not your place . " I hasten'dfrotn this temple , — I fled the hated town , — And sought the glorious mountains ,
Where God's sunlight came down ; I threw me . on the green sward , The green and flower geram'd sod , Uprais'd mine eyes to heaven . And told my thoughts to God . And oh ! He did not spurn me , As I breatb ' d my prayer to \ am Which floated up to heaven With hymns of seraphim ; For he sent me down an angel , Who touch'd those secret springs Which hush our griefs with weeping And bright Imaginings .
I poured forth adoration , And laugh'd , and danced , and sang , Till the distant echoes heard me , The sky with music rang . Content with my condition , I slept upon the sod , And till men own me brother , Will pray apart to God .
Iuweute.
iuweute .
The Theory Of Human Progression, And Nat...
The Theory of Human Progression , and Natural Probability of a Reign of Justice . London : Johnstone and Hunter . The author defines Politics as "the science of Equity , and treats of the relations of men in equity : " to obliterate all unequitable actions of men , singly or in bodies , towards each other , is , therefore , its practical ultimatum ; and it professes to develops the fates by which human actions ought to be regulated , in so far as men interfere with each other . But human actions may be viewed under various distinct aspects
—e . g . killing a man may be regarded in its physiological aspect , an injury causing the cessation of his functions—in its economical aspect , the destruction of a mechanism which possessed so much value—in its political aspect , as a crime , or duty , or neither—in its religious aspect , as a sin or otherwise . The position of Politics is thus seen to be—" posterior to political economy , aud anterior to religion . It superadds a new concept to economics , and religion again adds a new concept to politics . Political economy can in no respect be allowed to discourse of duty , nor can pontics be allowed to discourse of sin .
In every branch of knowledge the first question is its method . The following extract on this head will do much to give the reader the outline of the inquiry : — The question is , " Is there any possibility of di » - eovefwg or evolving a natural theory which is not arbitrary ? " Is there in the question of man s political relation to man , a truth and a falsity , as independent of man ' s opinion as are the truths of geometry or astronomy ? A truth there must be somewhere , and in the present volume we attempt to exhibit the probability of its evolution . Our argument is hosed on the theory of progress ,
or the fact of a progress ; for it is a fact as wen as a theorv . And the theory of progress is based on the principle , that there is an order in which man not only does evolve the various branches of knowl edge , but an order in which man must necessarily evolve the various branches of knowledge . And this necessity is based on the principle , that every science , when undergoing its process of discovery , is objective , thatis , the object of contemplation ; but and reduced to ordination it be
• when discovered - comes tvbiective , that is . a means of operation for the discovery and evolution of the science that lies logically beyond it , and next to it in logical proxi-^ If " this logical dependence of one science on another could be clewly made out for the whole realm of knowledge , it would give the outline , not only ot thi » classification of the sciences , but of mans in-SnJSl Sstorv-of man's intellectual
developetnent— where the word developement means , not toe alteration of man ' s nature , but the extension ot his knowledge , and the consequent improvement of his mode of action , entailing with it the improvement Of d € 5 ? S 20 £ tr of this intellectual development can be made < " * the branches of j ? ? ^ X bbave already been reduced to ordination , it _ £ y be carried into the fotare , and the future prog ^ ss of mankind may be seen to evolve logically ^ S & JZI ^ ^ ' *^* ' ^ 0 ^ ll ? 7 J DlMy d onts evolution , based on the lo gical determination of its position m a scheme
^ 1 sStWBt P ro OMtion 5 , andtberoethod " ITS ^ to ^^ SeVnot the history ^^ r ^&^^^ Bz ^ Sciety ; thereby attempting -iff estimate what changes ought to be made , and what , in fact , ^ ought to be the one definite form of political society . The present volume treats only of the first of theie divisions . After tbe above prelran-» arr matter the author enters on tbe matters involved in p olitical science . Its categories
are liberlg and property ; under these may he discussed all the relations of men in equity . The essence of liberty is non-interference ; to secure this univer sally is the first end of all political associati on . This leads to a consideration of the mode in which men have made law * . Laws have notheen directed only to thl prohibi tion of actions naturally enmesbut hw created crimes by the despotism of fa se _ £ Thus , ununited Il lation o ^ r legisl ahas ade crimes b
; Jr rf ifaT sphere , m y f ° Lit fri international exchange of laws against tree im anufactnre of produce-the ^* * & % JL * A against certain ai-hcles lioUetoexcise ^ Thought , f * S V ^ w Sing , " thelast unjust and persecuting laV-- f Xnn nf > j remnant is now found in th « *» J ^ lalt reconformists ; and church rates are the ^ lastre presentative of that system of >*& £ ;* £ lit the firesof Smitlifield , andsent ^*™ J ™ and Ms dragoons to murder the hill-side pea .
The Theory Of Human Progression, And Nat...
g \« . * orfcare the differentl y thinking _ To reduce the powers of the government and the laws of the country within the bounds of equ , ty-. m other words , theevolution of liberty and justice—demands a progress of mankind from ignorance , error and superstition , towaroj knowled ge—a combination of knowledge and reason—of credence based onsufficient evidence , and the power of perceiving consequences and inferring antecedents . Not that men are to combine knowled and reason sa-t > and to tortare the dirWHv to « M
ge , but that the unprivileged classes must combine together on the same knowled ge , and on the same principles that they have rationall y deduced from that knowledge . All great changes in the political condition of a people must be preceded by changes in the theoretic credence of the people ; and the progress of political society from prescriptive privilege and the arbitrary will of the legislator , to a condition of absolute freedom and justice ( and this is the ultimate end to which all civilised
societies must progress ) is strictl y proportioned to the progress made in correct knowledge , as the essential of correct action , by which man works out his political well-being . " The acquisition , scientific ordination , and general diffusion of knowledge , will necessarily obliterate error and superstition , and continually amend the condition of man upon the globe , until his ultimate condition shall be the best the circumstances of the earth permit of . " On this ground the author takes up " th natural probability of a millennium "—based on the
classification of the sciences , on the past progress of mankind , and on the computed evolution of man ' s future progress . By a millennium the author does not mean any particular portion of time—nor a miraculous condition of society , produced by supernatural changes in the nature of man—nor a personal reign of Christ in the world , but , "by a millennium , " he says , * - wemean a period of universal peace and prosperity—a reign of knowlenge , justice and benevolence—a period when the systematic arrangements of society shall be in perfect accordance with the dictates of man ' s
reasonand when societies shall act correctly , and thereby evolve the maximum of happiness possible on earth . " The argument for the natural probability of such a reign of justice is based , first , on the classification of the sciences . The author , therefore , enters on that subject , and with great learning and philosophical acumen , investigates the logical order of the sciencesthe chronological order An which they have been evolved—the sciences at which we have now
arrived ( for more sciences than one are at every period undergoing evolution though at different stages of progress ; antecedent and consequent to each other , but also interweaving or overlapping each other)—and then he inquires , "What are the branches of knowledge yet to be reduced to scientific ordination ; and in what order may we expect those future branches to be reduced to the form of science , which excludes diversity of credence ? " After
thus classifying these branches of knowledge in a very able manner , the author proceeds to the determination of the character , p osition , and boundaries of political science;—the province of political economy , now pervaded by endless superstitions , is said to be utility , and its ultimatum the production of man ; the province of politics proper is equity , its principles and scheme entirely restrictive , and its object the realisation of a reign of justice .
The argument may be thus condensed . The progression of humanity is in proportion to the acquisition and reduction to practical operation of rational knowledge;—that rational knowledge is divided into the various sciences ;—the sciences have among themselves a necessary co-ordination ;—the measure of this coordination is the relative simplicity or complexity of the objects involved in the sciencebut the sciences have also a necessary order of chronological discovery ; the order of chronological discovery is coincident with the order of logical classification ;—consequently , if the logical classification be satisfactorily achieved , and the whole of the sciences are not yet
evolved , we can predict what the future order of discovery will be . The progression has been from logic and the mathematical sciences , through the physical sciences , and up to manscience ;—man ' s functions are—action" on the external world ; action on man , without interference ; action on man by interference ; actions towards the Divine Being;—the first of these functions is artistic , the second economic , the third politic , the fourth theologic ;—the point at which we are now arrived is economic ; the order of science , the history of the past , assure us that the next step will be political science , however long or short may be the process of its evolutien ^
The discussion on the princip les arrived at in the course of the investigation , of the practical questions of property , pauperism , representation , crime , justice , and equality—contributes greatly to the general interest of the argument . The cause of freedom and truth looks hopeful as it now lies before us in the light of the calm wisdom this work imparts . One sees social traditions , and the superstitions which have influenced all political arrangements , creep off as pale shadows ; and Reason alone remains to shape the institutions of human society . The creed of the freest , most liberal , " People's p arty " is here reduced to scientific ordination . Philosophy and Religion give us our c ommission , and add a prophecy of
sure success . The last chapter is a brief outline of a historical sketch , in which it is attempted to apprehend the sentiments of the human mind which have ruled society , and to appreciate the psychological developement of man through historic manifestations . We give a tabular summary from its close : — To sum up the historic probabilities we may present the following table . The producers of food , and of articles to exchange against food , are the ruled ; and tin rulers appear under their respective forms . _ The Ruled . The Cultivators , Traders , Manufacturers , < fcc . _ c . Thk Rulers .
Warriors . War on barbarous principles , from the departure of the Romans to the Conquest . Knight Warriors . From the Conquest to the death of Richard III . - King and Courtiers . From Henry VII . to Revolution of 1688 . Church and State Policy Riders . From 1638 to George IV . or William IV . Political Economy Rulers . Beginning to assume direction of the State in the reien of Queen Victoria . And the order of the systems that have hithe . to been pursued bv the ruling classes , and of the systems which may be expected in future , is as
follows : — „ ., Manifestation . 1 . —The Barbarous War System . 2 . —The Knig htlv War System . 3 . —The Court Gallant System . 4 . —The Court Policy System . 5 , —The Political Economy System . g ' —The Science of Equity s J' ? ! ; - . ,. . , 7 —Finally , the Supremacy of Christianity . Faculties of Mind . 1 —Combativcness and Lower Passions—Manual
Ar rmSvcness and Sentiments-Fine Arts ' J T-Volup tuousness , with the Mechanical Arts ^ r ^ Sfn ' ing , with the Understanding developing . 5 "LSI or Utility , with the Practical
Rea-Tr ^^^ ^ SSSped . have advanced it ) , * e mninta >* » J »™ ° _^ % l . v tbe analytic reason analysing fJ ° / " 3 J ™ £ \ cntifio truth r . nd the order of scientific dc « Jopincnt second , by the analvsis of the components of nian _ nature ; and third , by the abstract form of history so far as it has' extended . And on these . thr . e irroands , if they coincide and mutually suPPOrtcM " other , may be projected the natural P'f ability w a period yet to come , when justice shall oer ^ f * jr on earth , to be followed by a period when Lnrisiianity shall reign supreme , and call into real ana
The Theory Of Human Progression, And Nat...
systematic action the higher and nobler sentiments of man . ¦ "• ¦ '" "' *¦ •""•• -- ....-r ,. .... ...... .................. . More and more are men feeling after ! political truth ;— -delivered from superstition / they fall into empiricism ;—* ny adopting , a theory , they too often embrace one which ; ignores the facts of history , has none of the sanctions of science , and , perhaps , fails to recognise the unchanging though progressive nature , or the actual condition of man . Superficial notions —political crotchets—a propensity to . rely on the force of external institutions , super-imposed , rather than developed from the existmtm ( .., i ,. v . . l „ .... . „ *^ . :
ing state of human society in its succession of modified necessities or enlarged possibilitiesand the habit of seeking remed y for admitted evils in fresh social creations , instead of working cure in men themselves , obediently to the law of true progress—these , and many other weaknesses and falsehoods of modem politics , this treatise is potent to correct and remove . Every writer , talker , and actor in the political field , will find that an acquaintance with its firmly-established principles and grand conceptions will incalculably promote the attainment of clearness of mind , a definite basis of certitude , aud vitality of action .
The Moorland Cottage. By The Author Of M...
The Moorland Cottage . By the author of Mary Barton . London : Chapman and Hall . Most of our readers will recollect Martj Burton as a powerful and truthful exposition of the evils inherent iu the factory system . The graphic manner in which the writer placed before the public the domestic , moral , and social results of factory life , brought down from the upholders of the factory system many sneers at her political economy and her sentimentalism ; but none denied the unquestionable genius and superior discrimination of character and motives which pervaded the work .
The Moorland' Cottage exhibits the same qualities , the same nice perception of character , the same skill in delineation , though the scene is a new one . Instead of the crowded and dirty streets , the long rows of tall factories , and the tall chimnies vomiting forth smoke , we are here taken to a quiet country town , and a solitary cottage , the secluded home of the people the author has chosen as the heroes of this admirable
Christmas book . The characters and incidents are ordinary and simple enough in themselves "; it is the charming truthfulness with which they are narrated that makes them so wonderfully interesting . The story is a chronicle of the fortunes of the widow of a country curate , and her orphan son and daughter . We are first introduced to them as children , and made to keep them company till the one is disposed of by death , and the other as happily as tbe reader feels she deserves to be .
The description of the Moorland Cottage and its inmates ,. as they are first introduced to us , forcibl y marks the power of the author , not only in portraying external scenery , but penetration and discernment in the observation and depiction , of mental phenomena . We are made to see that the widow , whose sorrow is sincere enough in the beginning , however shallow , becomes the slave of appearances , and the growth of a habit of insincerity , for the purpose of maintaining conventional respectability and character , is nicely indicated .
If you take the turn to the left , after you pass the lyke-gate at Combehurst Church , yon will come to the wooden bridge over the brook ; keep along the field-path which mounts higher and higher , and , in half a mile or so , you will be in a breezy upland field , almost large enough to be called a down , where sheep pasture on the short , fine , elastic turf . You look down on Combehurst and its beautiful church-spire . After the field is crossed , you come to a common , richly coloured with the golden gorse and the purple heather , which in summertime send out their warm scents into the quiet air . The swelling waves of the upland make a near h orison against the sky ; tbe line is only broken in one
place by a small grove of Scotch firs , which always look black and shadowed even at mid-day , when all the rest of the landscape seems bathed in sunli ght . The lark quivers and sings high up in the air ; too high—in too dazzling a region , for you to see her . Look ! she drops into sight;—but , as if loth to leave the heavenly radiance , she balances herself and floats in the ether . ' 2 fow she falls suddenly right into her nest , hidden among the ling , unseen except by the eyes of Heaven , and the small bright insects that run hither and thither on the elastic flower-stalks . With something like the sudden drop of the lark , the path goes down a green abrupt descent ; and in a basin , surrounded by the grassy hills , there stands
a dwelling , which is neither cottage nor house , but something between the two in size . Nor yet is it a farm , though surrounded by living things . It is , or rather it was , at the time of which I speak , the dwelling of Mrs . Browne , the widow of the late curate of Combehurst . There she lived with her faithful old servant and her only children , a boy and girl . They were as secluded in their green hollow as the households in the German foresttales . Once a week they emerged and crossed the common , catching on its summit the first sounds of the sweet-toned bells , calling them to church . Mi' 9 . Browne walked first , holding Edward ' s hand . Old Nanny followed with Maggie ; but they were all one
party , and all talked together in a subdued and quiet tone , as beseemed the day . They had not much to say , their lives were too unbroken ; for , excepting on Sundays , the widow and her children never went to Combehurst . Most people would have thought the little town a quiet , dreamy place ; but to those two children it seemed the world ; and after they had crossed the bridge , they each clasped more tightly the hands which they held , and looked shyly up from beneath their drooped eyelids when spoken to by any of their mother ' s friends . Mrs , Browne was regularly asked by some one to stay to dinner after morning church , and as regulaily declined , rather to the timid children ' s relief : although in the week-days they sometimes spoke together in a low voice of the pleasure it would be
to them if mamma would go and dine at Mr . Buxton's , where the little girl in white and that great tall boy lived . Instead of . staying there , or anywhere else , on Sundays , Mrs . Browne thought it her duty to go and cry over her husband's grave . The custom had arisen out of true sorrow for his loss , for a kinder husband , and more worthy man , had never lived ; but the simplicity of her sorrow had been destroyed by the observation of others on the mode of its manifestation . They made way for her to cross the grass towards his grave : and she , fancyinsr , that it whs expected of her , fell into the habit I have mentioned . Her children , holding each a hand , felt awed and uncomfortable , and were sensitively conscious how often they were pointed out , as a mourning group , to observation .
The widow , in short , is shallow , superficial , and fond of display . The boy resembles her , and is indulged and petted , to his ruin ; while little Maggie , with her overflowing wealth of true affection , gentleness , and womanly intellect , is treated with a jealous harshness , amounting , though unintentionally , to positive cruelty . Mr . Buxton , the great man of the village town , a kind-hearted , but not over refined or intellectual friend of the late curate , has become aware that Maggie Brown is not properly appreciated at the cottage , and invites her over to his house at Combermere ; this the mother grudging permits ; and thus a new
world of instruction , of hope , of thought , feeling , and action , is opened up to her . The description of the great man ' s house is a piece of delicious painting . But , leaving the " still life , " let us look at the groups on their way from the Moorland Cottage to the party ; first premising that , while Edward , the favourite , has had a now suit made for the occasion , an old gown of her mother ' s has been washed , and made up for little Maggie . The old frock , however , could not have troubled Maggie very much , but her mother ' s discourse , anent manners in the great house they were going to , must have been sufficiently terrifying . These are Mrs . Brown ' s notions of '' company manners . "
" Ma"gie ! vou must sit as upright as ever you can ¦ make vour back flat , child , and don't poke . If Icough you must draw up . I shall cough whHi , ever I see you do anything wrong , and I shall be lookin" at you all day ; so remember . You hold vourself very well , Edward . If Mr Buxton asks you , you may have a glass of wine , because you re a boy . . But mind and say , ' Your good health , sir , ' before you drink it . " ' I'd rather not have the wine if i m to say that . " said Edward , bluntly . ,, . , . ,., « ' Oh , nonsense ! my dear . You'd wish to be like a gentleme n , I'm sure . "
The Moorland Cottage. By The Author Of M...
. Edward muttered -something which was inaudiifn ^ b er went onmn *?* * " yonOlLnever think of being helped more than twice ; vv Twice of meat , twice of pudding , n ^ ver mfre ? ¦ * ng < Y U ' take Iess ' * ie 'L ^ ™^!^ 1 n 0 W ueautiful Combehurst spire n' I ! th at . dark cloud behind ifc-r * as they came weight of the town . . ' : , •"• You ' ve no husiness with Corabhurst spire when [ S » S J * 7 <* u . I ' m talking myself out of breath to teach you howto behave , and there you go looking after clouds , and such like rubbish . I ' m ashamed of you . " .. ..... - ~ -
But it is this very faculty which makes Maggie perceive and admire the beautifulthat enables her to make a far better impression than the slip-slop formalism and rigid , but meaningless external observance , her mother permits the clever Edward to leave behind him . With arras round each others necks Maggie and Erminia * ( the niece of Mrs . Brown ) take their way to the sick chamber of that fair and saint-like sufferer . Maggie starts , at first , but soon finds that
Something of herself was so much in harmony with Mrs . Buxton ' s sweet resigned gentleness , that it answered like an echo , and tho two understood each other strangely well . They seemed like old friends . Maggie , who was reserved at home because no one cared to hear what she had to say , opened out , and told Erminia and Mrs . Buxton all about her way of spending her day , and described her home . . " How odd ! " said Erminia . " I have ridden that
way on Abdel-Kadr , and never seen your house . " "It is like the place the Sleeping Beauty lived in ; people sometimes seem to go round it and around it , and never find it . But unless you follow a little sheep track , which seems to end at a grey piece of rock , you may coma within a stone ' s throw of the chimnies and never see them . I think you would think it so pretty . Do you ever come that way , ma ' am V " No , love , " answered Mrs . Buxton . " But will you some time ?"
"I am afraid I shall never be able to go out again , " said Mrs . Buxton , in a voice which , though low , was very cheerful . Maggie thought how sad a lot was here before her ; and by-and-bye she took a little stool , and sat by Mrs . Buxton ' s sofa , and stole her hand into hers . Here is another fine hit at mere surface and shallow worldly wisdom : — When Mrs . Browne heard where Maggie had drank tea , she was offended . She had only sat with Mrs . Buxton for an hour , before dinner . If Mrs . Buxton could hear the noise of children , she could not think why she shut herself up in that room , and gave herself such airs . She supposed it was because she was the granddaughter of Sir Henrv
Biddulph that she took upon herself to have such whims , and not sit at the head of her table , or make tea for her company in a civil decent way . Poor Mr . Buxton . ' What a sad Ufa for a merry lighthearted man to have such a wife ! It was a good thing for him to have agreeable society sometimes . He looked a deal better for seeing his friends . He must be sadly moped with that sickly wife . ( If she had been clairvoyante at that moment , she might have seen Mr . Buxton tenderly chafing his wife ' s hands , and feeling in his innermost soul a wonder how one so saint-like could over have learnt to love such a boor as he was ; it was the wonderful mysterious blessing of his life . So little do we know of the inner truths of the households , where we come and go like intimate guests !)
Mr . Buxton has a son , a dashing , spirited , impressible , and noble young fellow , and Maggie wins his heart as well as his mother ' s and his father ' s , but the latter does not foresee that the frequent visits of the " little brown mouse , " as his son first called her , is to lead to such a scene as this : — One summer's day , as hot as day could be , Maggie had been busy all the morning ; for the weather was so sultry that she would not allow either Nancy or her mother to exert themselves much . She had gone down with the old brown pitcher , coeval with herself , to the spring for wator ; and while it was trickling , and making a tinkling music , she sat
down on the gronnd . The air was so still that she heard the . distant wood-pigoons cooing ; and round about her the bees were murmuring busily among the clustering heath . From some little touch of sympathy with these low sounds of pleasant harmony , she began to try and hum some of Ertninia ' s airs . She never sang out loud , or put words to her songs : but her voice was very sweet , and it was a great pleasure to herself to let it go into music . Just as her jug was filled , she was startled by Frank ' s fudden appearance . She had thought he was . it Cambridge , and , from some cause or other , her face , usually so faint in colour , became the most vivid scarlet . They were both too
conscious to speak . Maggie stooped ( murmuring some words of surprise ) to take up her pitcher . " Don't go yet , Maggie , said he , putting his hand on hers to stop her ; hut , somehow , when that purpose was effected , he forgot to take it off again . " I have come all the way from Cambridge to see you . I could not bear suspense any longer . I grew so impatient for certainty of some kind , that I went up to town last night , in order to feel myself on my way to you , even though I knew I could not be here a bit earlier to-day for doing so . Maggie—dear Maggie ! how you are trembling ! Have I frightened you ? Nancy told me you were hero ; but it was very thoughtless to come so suddently upon you . " It was not the suddenness of his coming ; it was the suddenness of her own heart , whicli-leaped up
with the feelings called out by his words . She went very white , and sat down on the ground as before . But she rose again immediately , and stood , with drooping , averted head . He had dropped her hand , but now sought to take it again . "Maggie , darling , may I speak ? " Her lips moved , he saw , hut he could not hear . A pang of affright ran through him that , perhaps , she did not wish to listen . " May I speak to you ? " he asked again , quite timidly . She tried to make her voice sound , but it would not ; so she looked round . Her soft grey eyes were eloquent in that one glance . And , happier than his words , passionate and tender as they wore , could tell , he spoke till her trembling was changed into bright flashing blushes , and even a shy smile hovered about her lips , and dimpled her cheeks .
The water bubbled over tho pitcher unheeded . At last she remembered all the work-a-day world . She lifted up the jug , and would have hurried home , but Frank decidedly took it from her . " Henceforward , " said he " I have a right to carry your burdens . " So with one arm round her waist , and with the other carrying the water , they climbed the steep tnrfy slope . But the sweet dreams of opening life do not often meet the approving smilo of those whose own youth and summer has passed away . Mr . Buxton has formed other and more ambitious plans for the future career of his son and heir , and will not hear of the
match . Edward , meantime , who mistakes cunning for talent , becomes a lawyer instead of a clergyman , is entrusted with business by Mr . Buxton , and in order to meet the debts caused by his extravagance at the university , forges that gentleman ' s name . The father takes advantage of this occurrence to visit Maggie , and to tell her that now her brother has brought this disgrace on the family , he trusts she will give up Frank , and further offers , if she will do this , that instead of prosecuting he will enable Edward to escape . We
will not attempt to explain how Maggie escapes out of this terrible and afflicting dilemma , and how Maggie and Frank are married , notwithstanding all the obstacles that have to be encountered . It is sufficient to say , that the story ends happily , as it ought to , and that the great and abiding lesson it leaves on the heart and the memory , is that of hopeful encouragement for all unselfish exertion and kindly feeling . For its beautiful pictures of nature , for its sound , but unobtrusive truthfulness and sound ethical tone , we commend this as a most desirable Christmas book .
Christianity In Ceylon; Us Introduction ...
Christianity in Ceylon ; Us Introduction and Progress under the Portuguese , the Dutch , the British , and American Missions . With an Historical Sketch of the Brahmahical and Buddhist Superstitions . By Sir J . E . Tennent . Murray ., To the majority of English readers Ceylon is an unknown land .. Before the recent insurrection and the hig h-handed repression of the revolt by Lord Torrington drew attention to whether
the subject , very few cared to inquire the island-held a separate race from that of the main land of India , or exhibited any marks of individual character and special interest . This indifference is at least shaken by late events : and it may reasonably be expected that henceforward councils of missionary societies and Government officials will not constitute the entire British public so far as the affairs of Ceylon are concerned . As Colonial Secretary to the island , Sir
Christianity In Ceylon; Us Introduction ...
James has had access to the did D utch records ' —those of the Portuguese were unfortunately carried away ,, first to Goa , then to Lisbon , afterwards to Riode Janeiro , so as not to have been within his reach . From theunworked sources at his disposal he has brought forth some new facts of interest , and corrected a few historical errors . The account here given of the Brahmanical and Buddhist systems as they exist in Ceylon , is clear and forcible . Thefollowers of Brahma are the most inveterate opponents of the Christian faith , and of the civilisation which accompanies it to the East ; nor have the most patient and subtle missionaries yet discovered the point where it can be assailed with success . Sir James observes : —
The difficulty of effectually assailing the Brahmanical system arises from the mysterious immensity , from the vastness and indistinctness of its huge proportions . It is in this that consists at once its real and its artificial strength—real in the prodigious area ' over which its baleful influence extends , nnd in the myriads who bend blindly and submissively before its despotic authority ; artificial but still overpowering in the infinitude into which it has multiplied all its component parts . Its mythical cosmogony stretches aw ; iy beyond the bounds of space ; its historical annals extend backwards to the birth of time . Its chronology is recorded , not by centuries , but by millions of millions of
ages ; and the individuals engaged in one single exploit , minutely commemorated in its archives , exceed in number the whole congregation of human beings that have pressed the earth since tha creation of man . Its events have been chronicled in Sanskrit , a language the most expressive and harmonious that has ever been attuned to human utterance ; a language whose characters are declared to be a direct revelation from tho Deity himself , and its sounds the accents of the celestials . It is professed that in the revolution of ages the use of this melodious tongue has been withdrawn from the lips of ordinary mortals , and its knowledge has been entrusted to the divine race of the Brahmans alone ,
to whom it has been permitted to cultivate this dialect of the gods . The Vedas and the Shastras , the sacred volumes which contain all imaginable knowledge , and embody all that has been communicated by the inspiration of Omniscience , are written in this venerable language , and are believed to be as ancient as eternity , and to have issued direct from the lips of the Creator . From the Vedas proceed the Upangas and Puranas , those versified commentaries and interminable treatises which compose the wisdom of the East , teaching all arts , expounding all sciences , developing all mysteries , explaining all laws and ethics , embracing all that it becomes man to know , and enjoining all that it behoves him to perform . All these form a body of learning so profound as to be infallible , so vast as to be
inscrutable , so voluminous that the mere fragments of these giant epics , which are still accessible to mankind , are computed by millions of stanzas , and the whole existence of an ordinary mortal , though prolonged to the uttermost hour , would barely suffice to initiate him into the first rudiments of" the ineffable literature of Brahma . It ia this imposing immensity in which cor fi „ tjS the ascendancy and duration of the syste m * its vastness baffles all scrutiny and defiles all human comprehension . The mind of the Hindoo is overawed by the sense of inconceivable extension ; he feels it impious to explore where he despairs to comprehend ; he bows in distance and in humbleness before the sublimity of mystery , and in the very prostration of his intellect —he believes . "
The great material bulwark of Brahmanism is the system of caste , so universal in the East . Each man ' s place is by it fixed in society . He cannot rise to a higher or decline to a lower grade . He cannot change his condition . There is but one niche in the world for him;—as he lives so he must die . Losing that , lie does not merely descend in the social scale , like proselytes to new ideas in Western countries , —but drops entirely out of the pale of mankind . Caste is a distinction of essence , —not merely of degree . It is in no sense analogous to rank . The latter is a social institution ; but the former is held to be a divine and immutable
distinction . The humblest follower of Brahma scorns the idea of taking for his teacher the Son of a carpenter ! The social system of Gotama Buddha is less rigid . It is a system of philosophy rather than a religion in the European sense . Its precepts are noble , and its practices tolerant . Its professed mission is that of the teacher . It repudiates caste , and proclaims the equality of mankind . Yet the idea of caste is firmly rooted in the minds of its worshippers . This form of belief has acceptance with one-third of the human race , —and it is of interest to find that it . is more open to the advances of European doctrines than its rival creed . Speaking of the ancient feuds between the Hindu disciples of Brahma and Buddha , our author observes : —
From the earliest period of Indian tradition , the struggle between the reli g ion of Buddha and that of Brahma was carried on with a fanaticism and perseverance which resulted in the ascendancy of the Brahmans , perhaps about the commencement of the Christian era , and the eventual expulsion some centuries later of the worshi p of their rivals from Hiridostan ; but at what precise time the latter catastrophe was consummated has not been accurately mentioned in the annals of cither sect . That Buddhism thus dispersed over eastern and central Asia became an active agent in the promotion of whatever civilieation afterwards enlightened thftSe ¥ & ce 9 by whom its doctrines were embraced , seems to rest upon evidence which admits of no reasonable doubt . The introduction of Buddhism into China is ascertained to have been contemporary with the early
development of civi'isation and the arts amongst this remarkable people , at a period coeval , if not anterior , to the era of Christianity . Buddhism exerted a salutary influence over the tribes of Thibet ; through them it became instrumental in humanising the Moguls ; and it would seem more or less to have led to the cessation of the devastating incursions by which the hordes of the East wore precipitated over tbe Western empire in the early eras of Christianity . To Buddhism the Singhalese owe their al p habet and whatever they enjoy of a native literature . AY hen the Portuguese acquired possession of the island , they began to convert the inhabitants to Christianity . They succeeded , first with the fishermen of the coasts , and afterwards with others . Whatever the
means employed , they achieved a degree of success—wide spread and permanent—such as no other people from the West have done since . Sir James finds several reasons for this marked success ; but the chief one , according to his authority , is the resemblance in outward rites between the two systems : — Buddhism , like the ceremonial of the Church of Rome , has , to some extent , its pageantry and decorations , its festivals and its fireworks , its processions , its perfumes , its images , its exhibition of relics , its sacred vestments , and its treasures of «» barbaric pearl and gold . " It has its holy places and its pilgrimages in prosperity and health , and its votive offerings in calamity and disease . Tho priests of both are devoted to celibacy and poverty ,
to mortification ' aud privation . Each worship . _ has its' prostrations and genuflexions , its repetitions and invocations , in sin unoient , and to the multitude an unintelligible tongue [ Latin and Pali ]; and the purgatory of the one has its counterpart in the transmigrations of the other . Both have their legends and their miracles ; their confidence in charms , and in tho assistance of guardian saints and protectors : and in the general aspect of their outwarii observances , not less than in the concurrence of many of their leading beliefs , it is with the least conceivable violence to established customs , and the slightest apparent disturbance of preconceived ideas , that the Buddhist finds himself at liberty to venture on the transition from his own faith , to that of his new advisers .
Another reason for their rapid conversion may be found in the instructions sent by the King of Portugal to the Viceroy of Goa , in which lie says , " Pagans maybe broughtover to our religion , not only by the hopes of eternal salvation , but also by temporal interest and preferment ; " after which , he gives special instructions to his functionaries that , on receiving the rite of baptism , the natives are to be provided with places in tho Customs , exempted from service in the navy , or fed out of the public stores .
When tbe Dutch took possession of the country , they tried a different plan . They founded schools—but no scholars came . They performed their own worship — but their chapels were empty . The rigid discipline and simple ceremonial of the Church of Holland had no attractions for the Singhalese . * The Jesuits had already shown the way to success ; but the Dutch spurned such an example as unworthy of the cause which they had in hand . They would not , like their rivals , become " all
Christianity In Ceylon; Us Introduction ...
things to all men . " How the Jesuits went to work Sir James shall tell us : — : They assumed the character of Brahmans of a superior caste from the 176816111 World ; they took the Hindoo names , and conformed to the Heathen customs of this h .-uighty and exclusive race , producing , m support of their pretensions , a ¦ deed m , '" ancient characters , to show that the Brahmans of Rome were ' of much older date than the ft ^ ST r In ( , iil > and descended in an equally win ? ? T Br ; , hn , a himself . They composed a pretended \ odn , in which they soucht to insinuate
T T ; ; Christianity , in the language and phraseology of the Siltred books of the Hindoo * , f hey wore the cavy , or orange robe peculiar to the Saiuassees , the fourth , and one of tho most venerated , sections of die Brahmanical caste . They hung a tiger > kin from their shoulders , in imitation of Shiva ; they abstained from animal food , from wine , and certain prohibited vegetables ; they performed the ablutions required by the ' Sba ' sters they carried on their foreheads the sacred spot of sandal wood powder , which is the distinctive emblem of the Hindoos : and in order to sustain their
assumed character to the utmost , they affected to spurn the Pariahs and lower castes , who lay no claim to the same divine origin with tho Brahmans . Incarrjingout this system , the Jesuits not only contended that ; hoy were justified in the employmentof such mcui ' s by the sanctity of the object they were to accomplish , but they derived encouragement and facility from the many poinis of resemblance presented by the religion of their own church , as compared with the practices of the idolatry which they came to overthrow . " If , " says the Abbe Dubois , himself a Eoman 'Catholio missionary in India , ; " any one of the several modes of Christian worship bo calculated more than another to make an impression , and gain ground in India , it is no doubt the Catholic form , which Protestants consider idolatry . " Its external pomp and show
are well suited to the genius and disposition of tho natives . It has a pooja , or sacrifice , processions , images , and statues ; tirtan , or holy wator : leasts , fasts , and prayers for the dead ; invoesition of saints and other practices which bear more » . ' ¦ I ^ s resemblance to thsit of the Hindoos . Of thc-Mi facilities and coincidences the Je-uits availed tln' -mselves to the utmost : they conducted tho images of the Virgin and the Saviour on triumphal cars , imitated from the orgies of Jag « ernath ; thoy introduced the dancers of the Brahmanical rites into the ceremonial of the Church ; and , in fine , by a system of mingled deception and conformity , and a life of indescribable privation , they succeeded in superseding the authority and the influence of the Franciscans throughout Southern India , and in enlisting multitudes of nominal converts to the Church .
The sturdy Dutch Protestants were scandalised at such proceedings , and banished the Papist priests from the island ; at tho sarao time prohibiting the public celebration of mass . We may learn , at the present aiomeiii , a lesson from the result . The attempt at perse * cution failed . Tbe Presbyterian Church , which it was sought to uphold by the arm of the secular power , dwindled away , and by the time the English took possession of the island , was nearly extinct .
In our turn and time we have done little to introduce either European civilisation , or European religions ideas . Sohie i : n provement has , no doubt , been made ; but tbu late Sec retary cordiall y relies more on books , and printing presses—newspapers , in the native language ^—and the general intermixture with the natives of European civilians , understanding their language , than upon clerical missions . We must concur , for we see no use ia driving one devil out , merely for the purpose of putting another in its place .
Aneue*
aneue *
The British Museum Has Twelve Miles Of B...
The British Museum has twelve miles of bookshelves . Ixdiobstion and industry are seldom found united . Nothing sits so gracefully upon children , and makes them so lovely , as habitual respect and dutiful deportment towards their parents and their superiors . Advice to Puseyite Pabsons .--You had better not remain in an establishment which , although it finds you clothes , victuals , and coils , can by no means afford you candles . —Punch , The Albany Knickerbocker tells of a young man who recently died in that city of disappointed ambition , as he " wanted to wear high shirt-collars , and his mother wouldn ' t let him . "
Happiness and Wisdom . —There is this difference between happiness and wisdom ; he that thinks himself the happiest man , really is so ; but he who thinks himself the wisest , is generally the greatest fool . Singing bt Ear . —Banti scarcely knew a note of music ; Incledon knew the gamut , but imperfectly ; and Ferrari , the author of a work on Italian singing , declares that Catalina * ' barely knew her notes . " The bbsi Vegrtablb Pill . —Mm . Speckles says that the best vegetable pill that has yet been invented in an apple-dumpling . To destroy a gnawing at the stomach , it is the only pill to be relied on .
It is said that in Grenville , Missouri , there is not a person over eighteen years of age that does not belong to a temperance suciety , and that there is not a grog shop in the town . Fortunate Discovert . —A poor vine grower , in the neighbourhood of Nismes , has just discovered in a field belonging to him an earthern urn , containing more than 3 , 000 Roman silver medals . Another small urn was near it , containing 162 medals of pure gold . Conscience . —Judge Jeffries , whoa on the bench , told an old fellow with a long beard that he supposed he had a conscience as long as his beard , " Does your lordship , " replied the old man , " measure consciences by beards . " If so , your lordship has none at all .
tri , ASS . —Water-pipes of glass appear to be getting into use in America . Mr . W . T . De Gloyler , of Shenectady , N . Y ., has a patent for making tubes of such a form as to couple different lengths together , and form glass conductors for water of any length . The world would be more happy if persons gave up more time to an intercourse of friendship . But money engrosses all our deference ; and we scarce enjoy a social hour , because we think it unjustly stolen from the main business of life .
Hydropathy . —The following hit at the water cure was made by Charles Lamb , and no one but himself could have had so quaint a conceit . "It is , " said he , " neither new nor wonderful , for it is as old as the Deluge , which , in my opinion , killed more than it cured . " True Philosoph * . — A country poet , after looking about over life , has come to the following rhyming conclusion : — " Oh , I wouldn ' t live for ever—I wouldn ' t if I could ; But I needn't- fret about it , for I couldn ' t if I would . "
Wealth . —The wise editor of the Pittsburgh Chronicle says : —" Talk about enjoyment of wealth —it never can be enjoyed ! An abundance is a heap of misery . A man who owns a house , a small farm , a small wife , a big dog , a cow , two or three fat pigs , and a dozen children , ought to be satisfied . If he ain't , he never ought to be . " Curious Omen . —Among the peasantry of Westphalia , and in some parts of Wales , young females knock ) on Christmas eve , at the hen-house . If a hen first cackles , they relinguish the hope of being married during the ensuing year ; but if a cock crows , they deem it an infalliable omen of their married before the year expires .
Length or Public Halls . —Exeter Hall is 131 feet six inches long , and seventy-six feet nine inches wide ; Westminister Hall , sixty-eiyht feet wide ; Birmingham Town Hall , sixty-five feet ; Liverpool Philharmonic Hall , sixty-four feet ; WlutehP . ll Chapel , fifty-five feet ; St . Martiu's Hall , ( Long Acre , ) fifty-five feet ; Guildhall ( City , ) forth-eight feet ; New Houses of Parliament , forty-feet ; Freemasons' Hall , forty-three feet ; Hanover-square It'ioms , thirty-five feet six inches . California . —According to an American journal , a returned emigrant from the California track over the prairies says , than on the portion known as Carson ' s route , he counted 963 graves , and believes that at least 5 , 000 persons musthave perished on the plains this year . He also counted 1 , 001 dead mules , 4960 dead horsesand 3 . 750 dead oxen .
, , Neapolitan Dbspotism . — The Araldo , a weekly military journal published at Naples , states' that the Neapolitan Government has prohibited the following works : —The Cosmos of Humboldt , the works of Schiller , Shakspeare , Moliere ,: Lamariine , Thiers , Sismondi ; besides Ovid , Lucian . Lucretius , and Sophocles . The King ot Naples , be it remembered , is the especial favourite of the Pope of Rome . Flattkuy . —Queen Elizabeth , admiring the elegance of the Marquis Ville de Medina , a Spanish it at the
nobleman , complimented him on , begging same time to know who possessed the heart of so accomplished a cavalier ? ' * Madam , ' . said he , a lover risks too much on such an occasion -, biu your Majesty ' , will is law . Kscuse »• , . _ ¦ . wevcv , it I fear to name her ; but request your Majesty s acceptance of her portrait . " He sent . her a looking-glass . fVninus Sion .-There is posted in one of the windo 3 K > 0 P in Westminster , " Musi , taught here , " ^ 'd in the other , " Ears bored here without Pa is a lover , popping the question , like a tailor ruiiiing a hot gooacover a suitof clothes?—Because he ' a pressing a mit .
-
-
Citation
-
Northern Star (1837-1852), Dec. 28, 1850, page 3, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/ns/issues/ns2_28121850/page/3/
-