LU'K IN THE COUNTUY. 



service to tlie great army who have their faces set country-ward, my Iiopes will bo 

 realizt'.l. 



It was on one of those very warm days common in Auj^ust tliat I determined to 

 oomnicnco life in the country. 1 was walking leisurely from my oflice, in the business 

 part of one of our commercial cities, to my home in the upper part of the town. The 

 stages rolled by, and as the drivers cast inviting glances toward me, I mentally dis- 

 cussed the advantages to be gained by the outlay of a six-pence in this way, and 

 soon rejected the idea of packing myself into a crowded omnibus, as suffocation under 

 such circumstances, on such an afternoon, seemed almost certain: so choosing the 

 coolest side of the street, I summoned my flagging energies for the walk before me, 

 comforting myself with the tliought that of the two evils I was choosing the least. I 

 fear my statement that it was a very wann day will give my readere who are so happy 

 as to live in the country, surrounded by cool groves and nppling streams, and where 

 the pure air sweeps unobstructed, but a faint idea of the state of the weather, or the 

 amount of sulTering necessary to drive me to the resolution to leave the city. For two 

 weeks, each succeeding day had surpassed its predecessor, and the tliermometer con- 

 tinued to rise, and the energies of the people to fall, until "every thing that had life" 

 languished. The usual health salutation was forgotten, and as friend met friend, " bow 

 hot 1"' was to be heard on every side. Man and beast sutiered alike. The horse fell 

 down before his load, to rise no more ; the driver fell from his seat ; and the laborer 

 expired in the midst of bis labors. 



I had taken my family to the country a week previous, for a little relaxation, and 

 although my children were blessed with tolerable good health, I became seriously 

 alarmed when I contrasted their delicate complexions, — the white skin so transparent, 

 the blue veins so visible, — with the rugged, vigorous appearance of their countiy 

 cousins, whose every look and action spoke of ov^erflowing liealtb and happiness. 

 After becoming familiar with the healthy faces of my friends, I did not feel very well 

 satisfied on viewing my own countenance in the mirror, although in my more youthful 

 days I had derived some satisfaction from this source. 



On the previous day I had returned to the city, and enjoyed by the way, for the first 

 time in many years a moon-light nde in the country. The cool breezes, the beautiful 

 prospects, the illuminated sea of glass, as sud<lenly an opening through the trees, or a 

 turn in the road gave a view of the river — all this may be felt but can not be described. 

 Now, the streets seemed narrower and dirtier — the houses higher and more compact 

 — the air more impure and suffocating — the heat less endurable than before my visit 

 to the country. The bill of mortality for the last week seemed more terrible than 

 ever. The city seemed to me to be fast becoming the great slaughter-l)ouse for chil- 

 dren. Women, " weeping for their children, and would not be comforted because they 

 were not." 



My mind was busy with such reflections, and before I readied my home, I had 

 resolved to seek a home among the green fields. I would no longer sacrifice health 

 and comfort in the pursuit of wealth. "I am not rich," I said half-aloud, "but I have 

 something, and with care, enough to make me a comfortable, tasteful home in the 

 countrv." 



