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one afternoon to Roxbury, to take tea with a
friend. Our 'woman in the kitchen' wished to
pass the coming night with a sick person, and I
felt no hesitation in leaving Martha in the care
of a little girl named Polly. We were prevented
by an accidental delay from returning until ten
o'clock. On returning, the wind was sharp and
frosty, but my attention was beguiled by shelter-
ing Frederick with my furs, who soon fell asleep,
singing his own lullaby. As we neared our
home, we perceived that the neighboring houses
were closed for the night, and no light visible, ||
but a universal brilliancy through the crevices
of our parlor shutters. Our hearts misgave us.
I uttered an involuntary cry, and Edward said
that 'a common fire-light could not produce such
an effect. He urged his horse-we reached the
house-I sprang to the door. It was fastened.
We knocked with violence. There was no an-
swer. We looked through a small aperture,
and both screamed in agony, 'Fire" In vain
Edward attempted to wrench the bolt or burst
the door-that horrible light still gleamed on
us. We flew to the side door-and then I recol-
lected that a window was usually left open in a
room which communicated with the parlor, for
the smoke to escape when the wind prevailed in
that quarter. The window was open; but as it
was some distance from the ground, Edward
rolled under it some logs, that he might reach
it, in doing which we heard a stifled howl. We
mounted the logs, and could just raise our heads
to the window. Oh, heavens! what were
our emotions, as we saw Growler, with his forc.
paws stationed on the window, holding Martha ||
safely with her night dress between his teeth,
ready to spring. The little cherub was suspend-
ed so carefully that she thought it but one of
Growler's customary gambols. With a little
effort, Edward reached the child, and Growler,
springing to the ground, fawned and grovelled
at our feet.

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THE ESSAYIST.

For the Poughkeepsie Casket.
THE WORTH OF THE MIND:
IMPORTANCE OP INTELLECTUAL CULTIVATION.

Perhaps there is not anything of which we are so reckless an I careless, as the mind. We are careful to protect the body from the inclem. ency of the weather, and supply it with nutritious aliment that it may be brought to perfec. tion, so that all its powers and resources may be fully developed: while the mind-that spark of intelligence which makes man supcrior to the brute, and places him at the head of the animal creation-is too often neglected and suffered to lie dormant, without any culture or pains bc. stowed upon it; and that too, when our weal or wo in this world depends upon the right direction and the improvement of it. For man to be happy must be intelligent; not the ignorant and unthinking can enjoy the pleasures which arise from a cultivated mind, or experience those high wrought feelings of enthusiasm and delight which afford so much pleasure and satisfaction to the learned and enlightened. In no period has anything of importance been achieved where ignorance was the principal characteristic of the actors; no benefit has the world ever deriv. ed from the dark ages, when ignorance and superstition overspread the eastern hemisphere as with the pall of oblivion; no deeds of high em. prise were then accomplished, to be held in uni- || versal remembrance. Nothing but one interminable night of the mind, like an incubus, seemed to rest upon the whole human family. But the mind, when improved, is as comprehensive as the universe, of which it forms a part. Space, matter, and time, are subjects not too vast for its contemplation-it can grasp any defined length of time, however vast: nor is eternity with all its gorgeous and bewildering images much too dazzling for its ken; but this is beyond time, and therefore too great for the conception of finite beings, it being impossible for the creature to fathom the CREATOR. It (the mind) has fixed its eagle gaze upon the worlds which twinkle in the firmament, and measured their distances and revolutions with its calculating powers; it has wandered back among the ruins of empires, whose achievements live only in story and in song, and learned wisdom from their ruin and desolation; it has sought instruction among the hieroglyphics and occult sciences With prodigious effort the house was saved, and obtained it; and it has made even the wind, though with great loss of furniture. But what and the waves of the ocean, subservient to its were pecuniary losses that night to us? We purposes. By the cultivation of the intellectual were sheltered by a hospitable neighbor; our faculties, man may soar almost infinitely above little cherub was clasped in our arms, amid the sphere to which he seems to have been allot. smiles and tears; and Growler-our good ted. An intelligent mind will revel in the imGrowler-with a whimpering dream, lay sleep.agery and grandeur of its conceptions, as it ing at our feet.

Edward alarmed the neighborhood and entered the window. Poor Polly had fainted in the entry, from the close atmosphere and excess of terror. She could give no account of the origin of the fire, unless she had dropped a spark on the window curtain. The moment she saw the blaze, she endeavored to extinguish it; but,' said she, 'the flames ran like wild-fire-I snatched Martha from the cradle, and ran into the entry to get out by the back door; after that I recollect nothing.'

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ation with Newton in the heavens, and prescribe laws for the comets and the meteors :-or, could they dive into the nature of the understanding, like Locke, unravel its mysteries, explain its agency, the power of the passions, and the dreams of thought:could they have but the shadow of such feelings, how lonely and wretch. ed would they be, if they could return to their former desolate and benighted situation, with nothing save the low and grovelling desires of a brute to satisfy the highest and noblest aspirations of the soul! It is by drawing the parallel, and making the contrast in such examples as these, that we can discover the immense disparity between intelligence and ignorance; and if the bright halo of glory which surrounds tho name of Newton is not a sufficient stimulus for exciting ambition, then indeed an individual has none, and is unworthy of the high and glorious destiny for which his CREATOR designed him. La Grange, August, 1839.

B. F. D.

For the Poughkeepsie Caskot. THE STUDY OF ASTRONOMY. The study of the science of astronomy must have been coeval with the existence of man. It is a subject that has engaged the attention of the poet and the philosopher in every age of the world, and is wonderfully calculated to strike the mind with admiration at the magnificence of that Being under whose superintending care the celestial worlds run their destined rounds. If we direct our eyes to the nocturnal sky, and behold the moon walking in brightness among the planetary orbs, and view all those shining luminaries that are moving in silent and majestic grandeur along the blue vault of heaven, how sublime is the idea! and are we not ready to exclaim, 'How great is the power and how wonderful the contrivance of that God who created || all the rolling orbs on high, and who supports them from age to age! This science sets before us objects of over-powering magnitude and sub. limity, and demonstrates the boundless extent, glory and magnificence of the empire of JEHOVAH. It has a tendency to raise the thoughts from earth to heaven, and to inspire in our minds reverence for that benificent Being who has distributed for the enjoyment, and to the view of, his intelligent offspring the blessings of the earth and the resplendent glories of the heavens. A variety of speculative opinions with regard to this science has been advanced at different ages of the world, many of which were extremely crroneous. In the infancy of astronomy the carth was considered to be the largest body in the universe, being placed in the centre, and all the heavenly bodies revolving around it. But when the light of science began to shed its be. nign influence over the world, and the mind of man to be raised to its native dignity, the fallacy of such reasoning became very conspicuous. The earth was found to be but a mere point compared with the solar system, and the solar system as a grain of sand upon the sea-shore compared with the immensity of creation. It has been ascertained that the solar system contains a mass of matter ten hundred thousand times greater than the whole earth-that the number of systems which lie within the range of the telescope is at least one hundred millions (100,000,000,) comprehending within their vast

thinks upon the mysteries which surround it upon either hand, and the high and glorious desHAPPINESS. Disappointed pursuers deny the tiny which awaits it in the world beyond the existence of happiness, and call it a phantom stars: while the ignorant and uninformed can present to the view, but perpetually eluding the raise their thoughts but little higher than the grasp. Where did they hope to seize it? On the brute. But could they possess the greatness and stormy road of ambition-on the sunny and yet elevation of soul which filled Newton, or Locke, sterile waste of prodigality—or in the grovelling or Shakspeare, or Byron-could they feel the valley of slavish avarice? Amid such scenes it wonderful and inexpressible delight which Byron never professed to dwell. It will be found shel- and Shakspeare must have felt, while peopling tering under the covert of an independent mind, || in imagination their worlds with bright and glo and blooming in deeds of silent benevolence. rious shapes:-or, could they wander in imagin.

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connecting decision with hastiness, which ac-
cording to my judgement is a great error. The
hasty person always acts from the sudden im-
pulse of his feeling, but the decided one first
deliberates and then determines to act, and
whatever he makes up his mind should be done,
he does at once and with all his might. True,
a person may sometimes decide wrong, but
when he finds himself in error, retraces his
steps and commences aright; the undecided one
never knows when to commence; he is always
"halting between two opinions."

Without a good deal of decision it is difficult
to succeed in any undertaking, for so much time
is taken up in thinking what to do, that very
much of the profit and effect of what is taken
in hand, is lost to the projector. Often have I
been pained to see the tardy operations of these
persons, they never seem to go about a job as
though they intended to complete it, and I ver-
ily believe they sometimes get through, almost
without knowing it themselves. With this
class of persons the importance of the thing
makes no difference; on all occasions they are
equally slow. If they give the smallest alms,
it is done with so much seeming reluctance,
that the receiver almost wishes he had not as-
ked the pittance, when perhaps the donor gives
it with a good feeling and really desires the
person's welfare.

circumference at the lowest computation two
billions four hundred millions (2,400,000,000) of
worlds; and we have every reason to believe
that in the regions of infinite space, beyond the
utmost boundaries of all these, ten thousand
times ten thousands of other systems wheel their
stated courses. When we thus take a compre.
hensive view of the vast universe, and consider
that our globe with all its burden of mountains
and oceans dwindles into an undistinguishable
atom when compared with it, are we not ready
to exclaim with Seneca, 'Is it to this little spot
that the great designs and vast desires of men
are confined? Is it for this there is so much dis-
turbance of nations, so much carnage, and so
many ruinous wars! O! folly of deceived men!
to imagine great kingdoms in the compass of an
atom-to raise armies to divide a point of earth
with the sword! Without the assistance deriv
ed from astronomy, the navigator could never
have steered his way through the pathless deep,
and thus no messengers of salvation could ever
have been transported to those far distant islands
where benighted nations-sunk in the deepest
depravity-reside, and where all the malignant
passions of the human breast reign uncontrolled.
But by the aid afforded by this science, nations
can correspond with each other, the law and
testimony' of the Most High can be established
in heathen lands, and thus the moral abomina.
tions and idolatries of the pagan can be convert.
cd to the glory of God, and bo taught to sing the
song of that happy choir of angels who an-
nounced the birth of the Saviour, 'Glory to GOD
in the highest, and on earth peace and good will
towards men.' It is very evident that the study
of astronomy has a tendency to dissipate many
of the superstitious notions of foriner ages, and
hence the necessity of its being more generally
taught in all our common schools. Formerly
the approach of a comet or an eclipse of the
sun or moon were regarded as harbingers of
divine vengeance; and ignorance of the gene-
ral phenomena of the heavens has led to the
most distorted views of the omnipotence of God.
How important then that the views of the rising
generation be directed in the right channel, and
all their studies blended with those moral in-
But the injury does not fall merely on the in-
structions which have an ultimate reference to ward structure of the body, but also on its out-
their immortal existence. If the soul of man
ward beauty, and on the temper and feelings
was not immortal-if when the body returns to with which that beauty is associated. Beauty
dust the soul should sink into a state of utter an- is in reality but another name for that expres.
nihilation—it would then be a matter of com- sion of countenance which is the index of sound
paratively little importance what use we make health, intelligence, good feelings, and peace of
of those faculties bestowed upon us by an all-mind. All are aware, that uneasy feelings ex-
wise Creator. But when we consider that our ||isting habitually in the breast, speedily exhibit
existence is to run parallel with eternity-that || their signature on the countenance, and that
when ages, numerous as the drops in the ocean,
have rolled over us, our existence has just com.
menced that our facilities for improvement in
another world will be superior to those we now
enjoy-ought not this to stimulate us to the
most active exertion to endeavor to rise to that
eminence designed for us by God? R. D.
Washington, August, 1839.

DECISION.

For the Casket.

Young persons generally seem not to be aware of the importance of acquiring early, a habit of decision; and I am inclined to believe that those of mature years do not always appreciate its worth. This I attribute to their

If any of my young readers are given to this failing, I would urge them to mend their way as speedily as possible, not only that they may benefit by it in a pecuniary sense, but that they may choose at once which road they will take in their pilgrimage through this world; whether the straight and narrow one along which they will find peace and happiness, or whether the broad and thorny one which will inevitably lead to misery and woe. There is generally more danger in delay than in speedy action; for as I said before, he who finds himself in error will be likely to profit by the past, but he who defers acting until death knocks at the door will probably find it too late.

VARIETY.

CORSETS VS. BEAUTY.

J.

bitter thoughts, or a bad temper, spoil the lu-
man face divine of its grace. But it is not so
generally known that irksome or painful sensa
tions, though merely of a physical nature, by a
law equally certain, rob the temper of its sweet-
ness, and, of a consequence, the countenance of
the more ethereal and better part of its beauty.
Pope attributes the rudeness of a person usually
bland and polished, to the circumstance, that
"he had not dined ;" in other words, his stomach
was in bad order. But there are many other
physical pains besides hunger that sour the tem.
per; and, for our part, if we found ourselves
sitting at dinner with a man whose body was
girt on all sides by board and bone, like the

north pole by thick-ribbed ice, we should no more expect to find grace, politeness, amenity, vivacity, and good-humour, in such a comp›nion, than in Prometheus with a vulture faltening on his vitals, or in Cerberus, whose task is to growl all day long in his chains.

AARON BURR.

Small in person, but remarkably well-formed, with an eye as quick and brilliant as an eagle's, and a brow furrowed by care far more than time, he seemed a very different being from the arch-traitor and murderer, I had been secus. tomed to consider him. His voice was one of the finest I ever heard, and the skill with which he modulated it, the variety of its tones, and the melody of its cadences, were inimitable. But there was one peculiarity about him him, that reminded of the depth of darkness which lay beneath that fair surface. You will smile when I tell you, that the only thing that I disliked was his step. He glided rather than walked; his foot had that quiet stealthy movement, which involuntary makes one think of treachery, and in the course of a long life I have never met with a frank and honorable man to whom such step was habitual.

MORALS AT SPARTA.

Plutarch informs us, that Geradas, a primitive Spartan, was asked by a stranger, what punishment the law of his country had appointed for adulterers? He replied, that there were no adulterers in his country. "But," continued the stranger, "suppose there were one, and the crime were proved against him, how would you punish him?" He answered, that the offender must pay to the plaintiff a bull, with a neck so long as that he might reach over the mountain Taygetus, and drink of the river Eurotas, which runs on the other side. The stranger, surprised at this, said, "Why, it is impossible to find such a bull." Geradas replied with a smile, " "Tis just as impossible to find an adulterer at Sparta."

RELIGIOUS BELIEF.

I envy no quality of the mind or intellect in others, be it genius, power, wit, or fancy; but if I could choose what would be most delightful, and I believe most useful to me, I should prefer a firm religious belief to any other blessing; for it makes life a discipline of goodness, and creates new hopes when all earthly hopes vanish, and throws over the decay of existence the most gorgeous of all lights; awakens life even in death, and from destruction and decay, calls up beauty and divinity; makes an instrument of torture and shame, the ladder of ascent to paradise; and, far above all combinations of earthly hopes, calls up the most delightful visions of palms and amaranths, the gardens of the blest, the security of everlasting joys where the sensualist and the skeptic view only gloomy decay, annihilation, and despair.

ORIGIN OF THE WEEPING WILLOW.

The first weeping willow in England was planted by Alexander Pope, the poet. He received a present of figs from Turkey, and observing a twig in the basket ready to bud, he planted it in his garden, and it soon became a trec. From this stock all the weeping willows in England and America originated.

THE CASKET.

B. J. LOSSING, EDITOR.

POUGHKEEPSIE, SATURDAY, AUGUST 24, 1839.

Absence from home is our excuse for the want of original matter under the editorial head in this number. We deem an apology unnecessary, as our readers will be positive gainers by such a change. Correspondents will please have patience, and they shall have an introduction to immortal fame as soon as circumstances will admit of it. We know that patience

STRANGE CIRCUMSTANCE.

At the trial of a young man in Staunton, Va., by the name of Sowers, for firing a barn, the jury was locked up the evening previous to the argument, when one of them became insane and another committed suicide by cutting his throat with a razor.

COOLNESS.-lu one of Frederick the Great's battles, the horse of his nephew was killed by a cannon ball, and it was at first thought the rider was slain. 'Ah!' said the king, riding by without

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THE CHAPLET OF COMUS.

A YANKEE HORSE.-He never tried to do anything which he could'nt. As for going, he can do that, and begin again when the others leave off. No one going the same way on a 'pike ever saw anything but the critter's tail, when he was ahead and did'nt choose to be overtaken. He'll go any pace under a steam engine, and will overtake a first rate steamer-if it stops to take in water. He is the cheapest critter too, as ever was seen-for he'll go by a toll bar before the man can look our to see if anything is coming.

is a rare article during 'dog days,' but fame is at all stopping, 'there's the Prince of Prussia killed torney, 'What case is to be tried next? The lawyer

times still more scarce.

DIED, on Wednesday the 14th inst., at the residence of his father-in-law, Capt. Guion, in White Plains, ALEXANDER G. LEE, editor of the Westchester Spy, formerly of this village, in the 25th year of his age.

let his saddle and bridle be taken care of!

KILLING BED-BUGS.

Place the animal on a smooth pine boardhedge him in with putty, and then read to him The immediate cause of Mr. L.'s death was the for an account of all the rail-road accidents which mation of an ulcerous abscess in his right side, result-have occurred within the last twelve months. ing from a severe fit of sickness, brought on by too As soon as he becomes so frightened as not to be close application to the labors of his office. He was a able to stir, draw out his teeth, and he will young of talents and remarkable industry: warm, confiding, and generous in his disposition, he secured the starve to death. love and respect of all who knew him,

INTRODUCTION OF RICE INTO CAROLINA.-Rice

is a grain of India, and was introduced into Carolina by mere accident. In 1696, the master of a vessel from Madagascar landed about half a bushel of an excellent kind; from which small beginning sprung up an immense source of wealth, both to the agriculturists and merchants of the southern states. Within little more than half a century from that time, 120,000 barrels of rice were exported in one year from South Carolina, and 18,000 from Georgia-all from the remnant of a sea store left in the bottom of a sack. This shows how small beginnings have sometimes great endings; which should always be a constant stimulus to industry and exertion.

A WORD TO YOUNG MEN.

How often are we pained to see young men, after the business of the day is finished, lounging about the fashionable places of resort; when the hours they nightly devote to the pursuit of pleasure,aa it is wrongly styled, might be so usefully occupied in the cultivation of their minds. A young man has, each night, at least four hours, before retiring to rest, which he might occupy in reading and writing. Now say he goes into business at the age o. twenty, and remains unmarried five years, he will then have for mental application, doring this time, seven thousand three hundred hours. What stores of knowledge night be acquired in that period. How much useful information might he obtain. Even after he marries, his family duties will not detain him from an opportunity of instructing himself in the arts and sciences.

We extract the following curious announcement of a suicide from the Concord (N. H.) Courier:

'COWARDLY.-Jonathan Butterfield, Esq., of Hopkin on, not having sufficient nerve to meet the responsibilities of life, meanly stole out of existence Last Monday night by hanging himself,'

A French author says; "The modest deportment of those who are truly wise, when contrasted with the assuming air of the ignorant, may be compared to the different appearances of wheat, which while its ear is empty, holds up its head proudly, but as soon as it is filled with grain, it bends modestly down and withdraws from observation.”

Parents who endeavor to protect their children from labor, and encourage them to seek self-indulgence, instead of animating them to become as industrious and useful as possible, are foolishly and certainly preparing for them a hard and thorny bed to lay upon at a subsequent period of their lives.

I know of no hoinage more worthy of Deity than the silent admiration excited by the contemplation of His works.

Youthful Tears-Tears do not dwell long upon the
cheeks of youth. Rain drops casily from the bud, rests
that one only which hath lived its day.
on the boson of the maturer flower, and breaks down

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Had I a poet's tuneful lyre,

For the Casket.

Softly I'd sweep the strings for thee;
Then, ere the tender strains expire,
Perchance they'd win a smile for me.
That smile to me were dearer fir,
Than wreaths of fame to poets are.
Would that I were a 'child of song!'

I'd soar above to cloudless skies,
Catch notes from some immortal throng,
And bear thee an undying prize.
Oh! rich the recompense would be,
To touch thy heart with melody!
And deep beneath the dark-blue wave,
I'd sink, the ocean to explore;
And coral grove, and mermaids' cave,

Should yield for thee their richest store,
Yet ocean monarch's brightest gem
Were dim to form thy diadem.
Joyous o'er every clime on earth

I'd roam, wherever I might find
That aught of beauty had its birth,

Aught that would charm thine eye or mind:
O'er icy peaks, o'er burning sands,
O'er ocean isles, and fairy lands.
The south, the sunny south, I'd hail-
There ever bright the sunbeams play,
The very winds blow to regale,

And summer never speeds away!
I'd linger long 'mid orange bowers,
And gushing founts, and sweetest flowers.
But I am not a 'child of song,'

I burn not with a poet's fire;
Sweet tones will never float along

The breeze, from my poor, simple lyre:
To wake a thrill in beauty's heart,
And feelings like my own impart,
And I must needs my fate bewail,

(So other songsters may be mute
When sings the plaintive nightingale,)
For softer harp, or sweeter lute,
Of some bright genius, claims thine ear,
And his alone the strains thou'lt hear.
Albany, August, 1859.

W. B.

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'Come here, my lad,' said an attorney to a boy about nine years of age. The boy came, and asked the atanswered, 'A case between the pope and the devilwhich do you think will gain the action? The boy replied, I guess it will be a pretty tight squeeze-the pope has the most money, but the devil has the most lawyers,'

"Teddy, my boy, jist guess how many cheeses there are in this ere bag, an' faith, I'll give you the whole FIVE.' 'Five, to be sure. Arrah, by my soul! bad luck to the man that tould ye'!'

'Is dis all de Pos Offis dar is in dis place, sar?" said a ribbed nose 'darkey,' as he stood near a Post Office. 'Yes,' was the answer. 'Sakes alive!' exclaimed Cuff, 'I don't see how you does get along and lib, sar, wid only one Pos Offis!

A young apprentice to the shoemaking business lately asked his master what answer he should make to the oft-repeated question, ' Does your master warrant his shoes?' 'Answer, Tom?' said the master, Tell them that I warrant them to prove good, and if they don't, that I will make them GOOD FOR NOTHING.'

TENDER WISH.-A beggar in Dublin hd been a long time in besieging an old gentleman troubled with gout, who refused his mite with much irritability; on which the mendicant said, 'Ah, plase your honor, I wish your heart was as tender as your toes.'

"Tom, now tell the biggest lie you ever told, and I'l give you a glass of cider.' 'A lie! I never told a lie in iny life.' Draw the cider, boy.'

'Vat a tall deer that is!' said the Ibex, ven the Graffe declared she could'nt stoop to converse with her.

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MARRIED,

On Saturday morning, August 10th, in the Reformed Dutch Church, by the Rev. Alexander Mann, HARLOW E. SILL, of New-York, to Miss CAROLINE MATILDA, daughter of Benj. F. J. Gautier, of this village.

At Nantucket, Aug. 4th, by Benj. Gardner, Esq., Mr. BARNABAS E. BOURNE, of Falmouth, to Miss LYDIA B. LONG, of Nantucket.

Said the bridegroom in haste to his bride elect,
Don't Lydia B. Long for the torch of love burns;"
But the damsel, inore wary and circumspect,
Ask'd if this were the Bourne whonce no trav'ler returns ?"

THE KNELL.

DIED,

In Brooklyn, on Monday, the 12th instant, RICHARD OTIS, only son of Richard and Hannah Pease, aged 10 weeks and 6 days.

At Fishkill, July 28th, 1839, SARAH POLLOCK, in the 75th year of her age.

At the same place, Aug. 2d, ROBERT POLLOCK, in the 78th year of his age.

August 9th, Mrs. MARY CUDNER, widow of the late Richard Cudner, after a lingering illness of 11 months, which she bore with christian fortitude, and departed In the full triumph of the faith; aged 73 years 8 months and 8 days, formerly of Westchester county, town of Eastchester, of this state.

Suddenly, on Friday last, in the town of Washington,at the residence of her son in-law, Nelson A. Pond, RECECCA WILCOX, aged 60 years.

In this village, on Thursday morning last, Mrs. MAR GARET, aged 48 years, wife of Alfred Raymond. She was the daughter of Baltus Van Kleeck, deceased, and widow of Mr. John G. Vassar, deceased. In her life she gave a happy illustration of the practical influence of the religion of Jesus-in her death, the triumph of ts immortal hopes. The former will be attested by those who knew her best-the latter by those who witnessed the last parting scene. [Eagle.

80

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THE BOQUET.

For the Poughkeepsie Casket.

By publishing the following lines which I learned by hearing them repeated by a beautiful little girl of six years old, thou wilt oblige thine, &c.

THE EARLY DEAD.
'Twas autumn, and the leaves were dry,
And rustling on the ground;
The chilly winds went whistling by,
With low and pensive sound.

As through the grave-yard's lone retreat,
By meditation led,

I walked with slow and cautions feet,
Above the sleeping dead:

Three little graves, ranged side by sile,
My close attention drew;

O'er them the tall grass bending sighed-
And one seemed fi esh and new.
As lingering there, I mused a while
On death's long, dreamless sleep,
A mourner came-deceitful smile!-
A mourner came to weep.

Her form was bowed, but not with years,
Her words were faint and few,
And on those little graves her tears
Distilled like evening dew.

A prattling boy some four years old
Her trembling hand embraced,
And from my heart the tale he told
Will never be effaced:

'Mother, now you must love me more,
For little sister's dead;
The other sister died before,

And brother too, you said.
'Mother, what made sweet sister die?
She loved me when we played;
You told me if I would not cry,

You'd show me where she laid.'
'Tis here, my child, that sister lies,
Deep buried in the ground;
No light comes to her little eyes,
And she can hear no sound.'
'Mother, why can't we take her up,

And put her in my bed?

I'll feed her from my little cup,
And then she won't be dead.
For sister 'll be afraid to lie

In this dark grave to-night;
She will be very cold and cry,
Because there is no light,'

'No, sister is not cold, my child,

For GOD who saw her die,

As he look'd down from heavon and smil'd,
Call'd her above the sky.

'And then her spirit quickly fled

'To GOD, by whom 'twas given;

Her body in the ground is dead,
But sister lives in heaven.'

'Mother, won't she be hungry there,
And wan't some bread to eat?
And who will give her clothes to wear,
And keep them clean and neat?

Father must go and carry some,
I'll send her all I've got;

And he must bring sweet sister home-
Mother, now must he not?"

"No, my dear child, that cannot be,
But if you're good and true
You'll one day go to her, but she
Will never come to you.
'Let little children come to me,
Once the good Saviour said;
In his arms she'll always be,

And God will give her bread.'

The following beautiful lines were written by MARY ANNE
BROWNE, sister to Mrs. Hemans, when in her fifteenth year.
THE SABBATH.

Hark! hark! the Sabbath bells

Are calling us to prayer;
Their sounds float o'er hills and dells,
Borne on the morning air :-
Now swelling with the swelling breeze;
Now ceasing, as its murmurs cease.
They tell us 'tis the time

To seek for heavenly love

To cleanse the heart from guilt and crime,
And raise the soul above:

They warn us on this holy day
To cast our earthly thoughts away.

It is the day to rest

To quit our earthly things

To let each thought within the breast

Rise on devotion's wings;

To lay our bosom's secrets bare,
And crush the evil lurking there.

It is the day to weep

To sorrow for our sin;

The time the strictest watch to keep
On thoughts that work within-
To humble all ourselves before
Our GoD, and tremblingly adore.

It is the day of grace

The day to be forgiven-
The time to seek the Saviour's face,
And fix our hearts on heaven;
To bow before his mighty throne,
From whom we hope for grace alone.
It is the time to smile,
Grateful for mercies past

For blessings we receive the while,
And hope for to the last;

To thank the LORD, who thus would bless,
Yet feel our own unworthiness.

It is the time to love

To know each tie is dearer-
To feel the links that nature wove
Are to the heart the nearer;
For what is sweeter on this day,
Than, with the hearts we love, to pray?

It is the time to hope

To look beyond the tomb-
To give our spirits wider scope,
And let them hither roam;
And, with the piercing eye of faith,
See through the shadowy veil of death.

And oft, upon this day,

I've heard the Sabbath bell
Toll forth the mournful sign, to lay
One in his narrow cell-
To moulder in his native dust,
Till earth again resigns her trust.

Our Sabbaths here are short:
O may we be forgiven;

And make them the divine support
To lead us up to heaven!

For blessed souls, by praise and prayer,
Make an eternal Sabbath there.

THE WISE MAN.

The wise man, (says the Bible,) walks with GOD;
Surveys, far on, the endless line of life;
Values his soul, thinks of eternity,
Both worlds considers, and provides for both;
With reason's eye his passions guards; abstains
From evil; lives on hope; on hope, the fruit
Of faith; looks upwards, purifies his soul,
Expands his wings, and mounts into the sky;
Passes the sun, and gains his FATHER'S house,
And drinks with angels at the fount of bliss!

POLLOCK,

THE EARTH IN FULL OF THY GLORY.'
Midnight is keeping vigils profound-
Starlight is sleeping in beauty around;
Hushed are the billows-cloudless the sky-
Soft 'mid the willows the night-breezes sigh.
Lo!-breaks the morning o'er ocean and isle-
Light is adorning the earth with her smile!
Dew drops are beaming on beds of perfume,
Sunshine is streaming o'er Eden their bloom.
From valley and mountain what melodies rise!
Woodland and fountain send shouts to the skies-
Ether is ringing with notes of delight,
Sweet tones are singing the exit of night.

God of creation, whose matchless control
Gives planets their station-and systeins their toll-
Night speaks thy glory;-day after day
Re-echoes the story, as years pass away.

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Frot an English paper.

THE COCKNEY BOY'S ALPHABET.
A vos an 'At, wich ve vears on our 'cad,
B vos a Beak, of offenders the dread,
C vos a Cad, as 'Il vheedle the shy uns,
D vos old Drury, vot's now got the lions,

E vos the 'Ells, vere they does the green squi es,

F vos the Foenix, an hengin' for fires,

G vos grim Gog, of Guildhall, a gruff caitiff,

H vos an Hoyster, a werry nice native,

I vos Snow 'Ill, not an high un, but little,

J vos a Jarvey, vot's just lost his vittle,
K vos our Kountry, vot's ruled by a spinster,
L vos a Lawyer, as chaffs at Vestminster,
M vos Lord Mayor, vot commits prigs to Bridevell,
N vos the 'Not, by Jack Ketch that's tied vell,
O vos the 'Ouse vere they makes all the taxes,
P vos Bob Peel, as such sharp questions axes,
Qvos Queen-street, a rum place, 'tis agreed on,
R vos a 'Rit, vich you had better take heed on,
S vos a Swell, such a cove for Newmarket,
P vos old Tom, vot has made a few lark it,
U vos those prime Uns, vot flare up like rockets,

V vos a Vipe, as we vears in our pockets,
W vos Wauxall, sich a nice place, I'm thinkin',
X the 'Xchange, vere they chaffers like winkin,
Y Z are no go, so I'm sure have said many-
I've done them all now, sir-please give me a penny.

From a New-York paper.

JUVENILE DEPRAVITY.

Musing on youth, and youth's delightful days,
I met a fair boy, with a pleasing look,
Crying the 'Sunday News.' Soon I o'ertook
Another lad, less winning in his ways-
One of the many, on whom nature lays
Few outward graces. The first forsook
His cry, and curs'd the last. I could not brook
To hear such oaths from one of gentle guise,
Without reproof-so, with a heart-felt sigh,
"My child,' said I, 'pray listen unto me,
Do you not know, for all this blasphemy
You surely will be punished when you die ?'
With thumb beside his nose he instantly
Unto my question answer'd-'Ask my eye!'

WHAT I WOULD BE.

I would I were an excellent divine
That had the Bible at my fingers' ends,
That men might hear out of this mouth of mine
How GOD doth make his enemies his friends.
BRETON,

THE POUGHKEEPSIE CASKET, Is published every other SATURDAY, at the office of the POUGHKEEPSIE TELEGRAPH, Main-street, at ONE DOLLAR per annum, payable in advance. No subscriptions received for a less term than one year.

The CASKET will be devoted to LITERATURE, SCIENCE, and the ARTS; HISTORICAL and BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCHES MORAL and HUMOROUS TALES; ESSAYS, POETRY, and MISCELLANEOUS READING.

Any person who will remit us FIVE DOLLARS, she reccive six copies.

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The above cut represents the Temple of Concord, one of the most perfect ruins now existing on the site of the ancient Agrigentum.

Agrigentum was much renowned among the ancients. Different stories are told of its foun dation, among which is the fabulous tale that Dedalus, who fled to Sicily from the resentment of Minos, erected it. Its situation was peculiar. ly strong and imposing, standing as it did on a bare and precipitous rock, eleven hundred feet above the level of the sca. To this military advantage, the city added those of a commercial nature, being near to the sea, which afforded means of easy intercourse with the ports of Africa and the south of Europe.

The soil of Agrigentum was very fertile, and by means of these several advantages, it became very wealthy. It was therefore considered the

From the New York Literary Gazette.
THE RIVAL LOVERS.
A TALE OF NAPLES.

TEMPLE OF CONCORD.

|| second city in Sicily, and Polybius says it sur-
passed in grandeur of appearance, on account
of its many tombs and splendid public buildings,
most of its contemporaries. Among the most
magnifcent of these buildings were the tem.
ples of Minerva, of Jupiter Antabyus, of Her.
cules, and of Jupiter Olympius; the latter,
which vied in size and grandeur of design with
the first buildings of Greece, is said by Diodorus
to have been three hundred and forty feet long,
sixty broad, and one hundred and twenty feet
high, the foundation not being included, which
was itself remarkable for the immense arches
upon which it stood. The temple was ornament-
ed with admirable sculpture. But a war pre-
vented a completion of it, when the roof only
remained unfinished. Near the city was an ar-
tificial lake, cut out of the solid rock, about a

mile in circuit, and about thirty feet deep, from which fish were obtained in abundance for pub. lic feasts. Swans and other water-fowl frequented it. Afterward, the mud having been suffered to accumulate in this basin, it was turn. ed into a remarkably fine vineyard. Both the temple of Jupiter and the lake were the work of a numper of Carthagenian captives.

The people of Agrigentum were noted for their luxurious and extravagant habits. Their horses were also famous. After the expulsion of the Carthagenians from Sicily, it fell, with little resistance, under the power of the Romans. Diodorus states its population, in its best days, to have been not less than 120,000 persons.

Nearly all that remains of this ancient city is the above pictured temple, which in magnificence was second only to that of Jupiter Olympus.

botanist-but Andrea, though poor, was her ances to obliterate from his memory one whom favorite. On learning this, Caracciola (who he only felt that he could not now continue to very wealthy) conceived the most bitter hatred address without dishonor. This determination In the fifteenth century there lived in Naples which jealousy could engender for his rival, and he kept secret, oven from Caterina. He lingered one Signor Felix Ambrose, a man of great learn. longed for nothing so much as a favorable op-in Naples several weeks, enjoying whenever oping and wealth, whose favorite study was bota-portunity to put him out of the way. portunity offered a stolen interview, and resolv. ny. He had collected in his garden an infinite Signor Ambrose loved his daughter, yet diding that each one should be the last. Of these, variety of rare and beautiful plants, which he not fail to urge incessantly the suit of Caracci- Caracciola became informed, and his hatred for kep: under his own charge-assigning howeverola. The gentle Caterina would not for a time Andrea increased to such a height that in a moto his daughter Caterina the charge of those listen to her father's unwelcome importunities, ment of desperation he bribed two ruffians-such which needed the most constant attendance. yet at last yielding an unwilling consent on con- as can always be procured in Naples for a small The charms of Caterina, not less than the beau-dition that the marriag; should be deferred to a sum to commit any crime-to assassinate him. ty and odor of the flowers, frequently attracted distant period. The murderers, watching in the dark by a corner to the garden of Ambrose two gentlemen of where they supposed Andrea would pass, silentNaples--the one named Caracciola and the other ly waited his approach. Now it so happened Andrea. Both became enamored of the fair that Andrea, knowing of this, on that very night

When Andrea heard of this resolution, he abandoned himself to despair, and determined to seek among new soes and new acquaint.

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