24 



<S:i)c farmer's ittontl)hj| Visitor. 



110 longer rlie fai'iner, the critic, the observer, 

 We travelled many miles without a word, and 

 occasionally the " bi}r round tears coursed one 

 another down his cheek in piteous chase." I 

 was lost in amazement. The heliel' that my old 

 uni'le hud tallen in love could not he entertained, 

 but it was like, and unlike it. Heat length (bund 

 his tongue. "I have been wrong," said he: — 

 " the very emblem of her tnother. She may 

 have been right alter all : the post offices were 

 not trusty then. Her voice, loo. 1 have been to 

 blame. I was away more than a year, and if she 

 did not get my letters— she was not to blame in 

 marrying William after all." 



" Well, hob," said he, " now give me the reins. 

 Where did we leave off? I was thinking if you 

 could arrange matters with Peggy there, it would 

 do." How is it. Bob.' I thought at the time 

 that smile''—" Why, uncle, we are hut wailing 

 for a little place her father is in treaty for, if 1 

 must tell. We attend singing school together, 

 and I see her sale liome two evenings in a 

 week !" 



" I would rather marry her than the Queen of 

 England," said my uncle: "there is a better 

 promise of happiness liere and hereafter too. I 

 have ever (added he) been in favor of those sing- 

 ing schools. They bring out the voice, and I 

 have great faith in voices. Did you notice the 

 voice of that sweet girl to-day ? it is as like to 

 her mother's as her face is." 



" I do not think it better than Peggy Thrifty's," 

 said 1; "you have never heard Peggy since; that 

 is not new." "There is no other — and yet (said 

 my uncle) perhaps I am mistaken. But, Bob, 

 there is in the music of the day much of fashion, 

 and little of the heart. I have been to town to 

 liear the anthems; 1 have heard Kendall's band 

 at Boston, and other music much applauded ; 

 their music was good, hut my heart has only 

 been softened, and the tear gathered in my eye, 

 when I have listened to simple melody. Some 

 round, full woman's voice, where each word was 

 distinct, and the countenance and tone nnited 

 with it, this, and this only, has stirred my very 

 sold. It is natuie herself that thus speaks. 

 Hence it is that in my opinion the Scotch songs 

 are so generally admired, because they are adapt- 

 ed to melody rather than harmony." 



My uncle's remarks were becoming loo pro- 

 found for me, or something else, so that it re- 

 lieved me wh.^n as we rose to the top of a hill 

 that overlooked an extensive view of the Merri- 

 mack — "See," said my uncle, breaking off, and 

 pointing his finger — " see how the silver thread 

 of the stream winils away there, and how beau- 

 tiful the cultivated enclosure appears! Why 

 should our children leave us for other lands? 

 There is nothing surpasses, and few scenes that 

 equal this." To be sure the nearly setting sun 

 reflected back upon us a most delightful pros- 

 pect. "How many happy hearts, how many 

 comfortable fire-sides we take in at this view !" 

 said my uncle. " Paradise was only conipleted 

 when W(m]an was made, and our women are yet 

 to foster the greatest nation the sun ever shone 

 upon." 



My uncle went on, brought out by the inci- 

 dents of the ride; lie talked of almost every 

 thing until we reached his own door, when as 

 he shook me by the hand at parting he said, 

 " Bob, remember what I have said to you; and 

 to make sure, as 1 atn apt to be forgetful, I have 

 put it down on paper, for my own use, and per- 

 haps show it to Peggy one of these days." 

 October 25/A, 1842. 



P. S. Jit V7ide Jacob's, 2Slh of January, 1843. 

 Things have been arranged since our little 

 . journey. Peggy and 1 were made one on thanks- 

 giving evening. Cou.sin Mary was there, and 

 my uncle Jacob insisted that she should come 

 and keep us company tor a day or two. But he 

 almost entirely monopolized her. I never saw 

 an old man so absorbed and happy; he has given 

 her his best Durham heifer, and a New York 

 wagon to ride to meeting in ; and he went him- 

 self to convey her to father Thrifty's, where her 

 husband is to call (or her to-morrow. Peggy's 

 sister, who came back with him, informed us 

 that on parting with cousin Mary he kissed her 

 on each cheek; put hisgoM scissor chain around 

 her neck with a pair of Abbot's best suspended 

 at the end of it, and told her to bring her father 

 and mother over to see us as soon as conven- 

 ient, and that we should depend upon their 



company at the next Thanksgiving eve. My 

 uncle appears very happy ; he has turned every 

 thing over to me. He says that boys do not like 

 advice, unless they ask it, and then they want it 

 to conform to their own views. Almost every 

 pleasant evening he goes up to see Thrifty, and 

 we often go along with him. He talks of crops, 

 and stock, and composts, and all that, over his 

 pipe, and says that Peggy is the best woman in 

 the world but one. We are puzzled at his ec- 

 centricity about the old scis.sors, and look upon 

 his conduct as proceeding from a sort of mono- 

 mania, as he appears quite rational in other re- 

 spects. If he should take to conversing these 

 long winter evenings wlien we get a little more 

 settled, you may chance to hear again from my 

 uncle Jacob's neidiew, 



ROBERT. 



Young Ladies. — Young ladies, as well as 

 young gentlemen, sometimes, and very often too, 

 stand in their own light, and do themselves much 

 injury in their endeavors to win and woo each 

 other. No young lady of sense cares a fig for a 

 dapiier dandy beau, who prides himself more on 

 the cut of his coat and whiskers, the parting of 

 his hair and the insipidity of his conversation, 

 than tor the more enduring qualities of the head 

 and heart, which make his acquaintance profit- 

 able and pleasant; and what young man of sense 

 would not prefer a wife who can cook, and wash, 

 and sew, and scrub, and " do things" necessary 

 to perfect the arraugement of every well regu- 

 lated household, to one who can sing fashionable 

 music, drum on a ))iano, talk sentimental non- 

 sense, and repeat whole pages of album poetry. 

 Not that accomplishments of this nature are to 

 be discarded or neglected altogether, but that 

 the essentials ought to be acquired first and prac- 

 ticed the most. 



Young men of sense like to see their sweet- 

 hearts sometime in the kitchen, with theirsleeves 

 rolled up, and a pan of hot water before them, a 

 dishclotli and a piece of soap in their hands, and 

 haul at work on the dinner, breakfast, or suppe^ 

 dishes. Oh it is a beautiful sight, and in sweet 

 accordance with republican principles. Homer, 

 and other good old worthies, tell us how Priam's 

 daaughter and the " maids of Penelope," plied 

 the loom and wove their own and their husbands' 

 garments. But many of our daughters in these 

 degenerate days, follow the example rather of 

 Solomon's lilies, " w hicli toil not, neither spin," 

 and consider it beneath them even to have a 

 knowledge of the most ordinary parts of house- 

 keeping. 



Now young latlies you are altogether wrong 

 here. You never appear more beautiful than 

 when employed in some useful occupation, in 

 learning the art and mysteries of " making afiple 

 sweetmeats, long-sauce, and punq)kin pies," as 

 Washington Irving would say, and in testing the 

 truth of Mrs. Child's "Frugal Housewife," a 

 capital hook, by the way, for young ladies, and 

 making improvements thereon, if possible. In 

 the days of chivalry, the lady-loves of the knights 

 burnished their lovers' armor. Let the same 

 labor be now applied to burnish the milk-pans 

 and boiler covers, and strainers, and tin cans; 

 hang them on the kitchen wall, as trophies of 

 your art and industry; rise early in the morning, 

 feed the chickens and get breakfast ready, sweep 

 the floors and dust the chairs, and when the bell 

 rings, have the breakfast smoking on the table; 

 then fly round and do all the work required, and 

 if you go systematically to work, you will have 

 the whole afternoon and evening to devote to 

 reading, writing, sewing, music, or shopping. 



What a delightful wife a young lady brought 

 up in this way, makes. She is much better than 

 gold, yea, than n)uch fine gold, sweeter, also, than 

 honeycomb. In her is her husband blessed, and 

 in loving her there is much reward. — Lowell 

 Courier. 



goyne's army, and produced a change in the for- 

 tunes of the war most disastrous to our country- 

 men. 



After Gen. Burgoyne had reached Lake 

 George, at the head of the forces that had been 

 concentrated at Quebec and Montreal, with a _ 

 view to the capture of Albany, and the occupa- 

 tion of the surrounding country, his progress 

 was extremely dilatory, — to an extent, indeed, 

 that seems to those who are not fully acquainted 

 with the exact state of the country at that time 

 and tliQ. whole circumstances of the case, entire- 

 ly irreconcilable with the exalted military repu- 

 tation of that officer, and his fidelity to the royal 

 cause. Between Montreal and a point nearly 

 twenty miles this side of Saratoga, the country 

 was an almost pathless wilderness. The settle- 

 ments along the Mohawk and Hudson cherished 

 a deadly hostility to the invading army. The 

 support of the British fleet, by advancing up the 

 Hudson, was absolutely essential for the furnish- 

 ing of Burgoyne's army with the necessary sup- 

 plies, as well as desirable for military co-oi)era- 

 tion. And it was in expectation of its advance, 

 that the General resolved on a delay which ad- 

 mitted the assembling of such reinforcements in 

 support of the American General, Gates, as were 

 fatal to the enemy's plans. This delay on the 

 part of Burgoyne was however unnecessarily 

 l)rotracted. For, Sir Henry Clinton, by the cap- 

 ture of Fort Montgomery, through the instru- 

 mentality of a thousand men who had been de- 

 tached from his force at Haverstraw Bay, and 

 the successful demolition of the several obsta- 

 cles interposed by the Americans to the ascent 

 of the river, — (a heavy ship, armed with huge 

 timbers at the bow, advancing with all her can- 

 vass spread before a strong south wind, severed 

 on a second trial, the chain extended across the 

 Hudson at West Point) — had effected the pass- 

 age of the fleet up the river, and transmitted, by 

 a sure and safe conveyance, as hs believed, infor- 

 mation of this fact to General Burgoyne. This 

 was contained in the document described above, 

 as inclosed in a silver bullet. The messenger 

 intrusted with it, somewhere in the Northern 

 part of Dutchess country, fell in with some coun- 

 Irvmen who were good patriots, and who insist- 

 ed on searching him for secret correspondence. 

 They discovered on his person three musket 

 balls, in all respects alike save that one seemed 

 to weigh much lighter than the rest. On his cap- 

 tors' observing this, the spy instantly seized the 

 ball and swallowed it. The circmnstance was 

 communicated to George Clinton, by whose com- 

 mand emetics at first, and afterwards cathartics 

 were administered, the operation of which was 

 supervised by a file of soldiers, and residted in 

 the recovery of the ball and the interception and 

 disclosure of its contents. The spy was hung- 

 at Hurley, and for want of information which be 

 carried, Burgoyne and his army were captured at 

 Saratoga. 



The following is a copy of the letter inclosed 

 in the bullet : 



"Fort MoiNtgomery, Oct. 8, 1777. 

 " .Voiw voin, and nothing between iis but Gates. 

 I sincerely hope this little success of his may fa- 

 cilitate yom" operations, in answer to your let- 

 ter of 28ih September, by C. C, I shall only say 

 that I cannot presume to order, or even advise, 

 for reasons obvious. 1 heartily wish you success. 

 " Faithfullv vours, 



" 11. CLINTON. 

 " To General Burgoyne." 



From a late English Paper. 

 An interesting relic. 



At a public meeting a few evenings since. 

 General Tallmadge exhibited a silver ball, con- 

 sisting of two hollow hemispheres joined to- 

 gether by a slight screw at the edges, which bad 

 once contained an interesting and inq)orlant 

 document addressed by Sir Henry Clinton to 

 Gen. Burgoyne, which, if it had not been provi- 

 dentially intercepted, might have saved Bur- 



Value of Urine as a Manure. 

 Experiments of C. Alexander. 



The (()llowing extract transferred from tho 

 Farmers' Magazine to that s|)irited and valuable 

 agricultural work. Young's Letters of Agricola, 

 is so important and instru(!tive that I subjoin it: 



"This intelligent farmer, Charles Alexander, 

 near Peebles, Scotland, had long been impressed 

 with the great importance of the urine of cattle 

 as a manure; and he set about so discover, by 

 a long and well conducted series of experiments, 

 the best method of collecting and applying If. 

 He began by digging a pit contiguous to the 

 feeding-stall, but distinct altogether from that 

 which was appropriated for the reception of the 

 dung. The dimensions of this pit, according to 

 his own account, were 36 feet square, and 4 feet 

 deep, surroimded on all sides by a wall ; and the 

 solid contents were lt»2 yarils. Having selected 



