July, 1842. 



THE FARMER'S MONTHLY VISITOR. 



101 



of pouMiN, anil is con?Iaiitly Wiereasing. Tlie 

 iniiiiliHi- oftilmep in tlie United States may be es- 

 tiinate<l at twenty millions, and llie clip of wool 

 nt fiCty millions, about equal to the wiinls of tlie 

 rounti-y. There is a vast capital engaj;eil in lliisi 

 produolion of wool by the farmer, and the prices 

 aeem to have reached the lowest point compwii- 

 ble with the business, and further reiluciion 

 wonhl be destruction. We think farmeis have 

 n right to ask that in the mutual adjustment of 

 the claims of the various interests of ilie comjtry, 

 one so vitally important to its interests, and their 

 l)rosperity, shall not be overlooked. The eilitor 

 of the paper named, savs: 



'• We have now before us on our table, six 

 kinds of wool imported duty free from South 

 Ainerica, furnished us as samples by one of the 

 largest importers in the United St.-ites, which 

 nciually cost in South America from 3i to less 

 than 8 cents per lb., and therefore all admitted 

 duly (i-ee. 



" The first kind is a lonjr coarse wool about 7 

 inches in len^'tii, about as fine as wool of our 

 coarse long wool sheep, such as is manufactured 

 into coarse lilaid<et!>, carpets, worsted, and coarse 

 cloth.i. This sample is very white and clean, 

 and may be afforded for 12i to J6 cents per 

 ]K)iind. 



"The second is n coarse wool of a finer grade, 

 fully equal to the wool of our best old-liishioned 

 common sheep, and is adapted for middle satin- 

 et:s, coarse woolens imd comiuiiu blankets. 

 ],2C0 bales of this wool were imported into Bos- 

 ton in one week, duty free. If sold at one siiill- 

 iriL' per pounil, it would atibrd llie importer ov.-r 

 ]G(1 per cent, profit. This woul, 1 v comparison, 

 is equal to some taken from a half "l.lood Dishley 

 ewe, anil cleanses white and fine. 



"The third is fidi as f-ood as our half blood 

 merino wool, ami may be cleanetl, as the import- 

 er said, at an expense of from \h to 2 cents per 

 poimd. This v.'ool is fit fiir the second grade of 

 broadcloths, cassiiiieres, flannels, and the fin-^t 

 class of satinetts, and may be imported so that 

 it sIihII not cost the inanufacturer, when perfectly 

 cleaned, twenty cents per II). 



"The fointh is of the same grade, fiill of burrs 

 and dirt; may be cleaned for two cents per lb. 

 and may be purchased abroad at the lowest rate 

 above slated, or -ih cents jier lb. 



"The fifth is a .sample of wool about the same 

 grade as the two ibrmer, short and fine, cleanseil 

 i.n South America, very wliite and clean. We 

 were much surprised when the iia porter assured 

 IIS that this wool <;ost in South America, posi- 

 ti»ely less than 8 cents per lb. and was imjiorted 

 duty free. 



•'The sixth is very similar to pure merino 

 wool, and tiie sample which we have washed in 

 hot soap suds is beautifully white and clean. 

 When compared with some wool from the Hon. 

 Isaac C. Bates' flock, we were unable to decide 

 which was the finest, and so we called in a third 

 per-son, who declared Mr. Bates' a little the 

 finest, but the difference was trifling. This wool 

 being iincleaned, cost le.-s than 8 cents, and was 

 imported duty free ; while the cloths maniilac- 

 tiired from such wool, by the compromise act, 

 have been protected by a iluty ransini' from 50 

 to 214 per cent, down to Jupre, 1842." — Jilbany 

 Cutlivalor. 



'•WiM. YOU siG.N THIS NOW?" — A beautiful 

 incident occurred at a tem|)erance meeting in 

 this rriiy a few evenings since, which is worthy 

 ^of a more extend<'d record than that made on 

 the hearts of the few who witnessed if. 



The hall was crowded by an intelligent and 

 nttptitive audience ; many were moving up the 

 aisle to sign the pledge, urged to this course by 

 the eloquent pleadings of their own minds anil 

 consciences. Suddenly a young and beautifid 

 girl left her seat, anrl taking the pleilge from the 

 secretary's desk, walked steadily down ihe aisle 

 and presented it to a youn;; man, with this sim- 

 ple request, in tones soft and musical as Eolian 

 notes — 



" Will you sijin this noii) ?" 



We were sitting just in front, and turned our 

 bend to witness the eflTeci of the apjieal. The 

 young man colored slightly, and we feared would 

 decline. But when he looked up into her mute 

 but imploring eye.s,-and read in every line of her 

 sunny cciunienance the deep interest which she 

 felt in the result, be took the pej) from her ex- 



tended hand aiiil placed his name to the sheet. 

 A loud and long burst of applause testified the 

 gratificaiioii of those who witnessed the act, ami 

 the fiiir enthusiast returned to her seat with light 

 step, and doubtless a light heart. 



Was she a sister or a betrolhed ? Did she 

 .save a brother, or one who was to be her bus- 

 hand ? We know not — it matters not. Suffi- 

 cient is it to know that some strong im|iidse 

 ()rompted her — that some deep and holy sympa- 

 thy urged her to this step. 



And was it not noble and generous thus to 

 exert an influence which she posswssed for good? 

 Is it not worthy of imitation ? It may be that 

 that young mtui was treading in a dangerous 

 way, and that he lia<l lisiened night after night 

 to the dark details which the drunkard's experi- 

 ence gives, without eflfect. It may be that she 

 alone had the power to save him, and that had 

 she omitted to exercise the power he would have 

 been lost. 



.^re there not hundreds of young men in this 

 trity, who, noble ami generous and manly as they 

 are, need a like interposition? Have they no 

 sisters or fi'iends whose words of entreaty may 

 arre.st (hem in their headlong coiii-.-e, ere it be 

 loo late ? Let the young n\u\ beautifid of the 

 other sex bethink them of their duty, and fol- 

 lowing the example of the girl here alluded to, 

 say to each and every young man within their 

 influence— "Will you sign this now ?"— JV. Y. 

 H'ashtngtonian. 



Hints to the Working Classes, 



AND ALL OTHERS. 



If a man at 21 years of age began to save one 

 dollar a week, and put it .-it interest every year, 

 he would have— at 31 years of ajre, $650; at 41, 

 .*l,8a0; at 51, .•53.680;*at 61, S6.150; at7l, $11,- 

 500. When we look at the.-e sums, and when 

 we think how much temptaiiin and evil mi^hl 

 he avoided in the very act of saving them, and 

 how much good a man in humble circumstances 

 may do for hisfiimily by these .sjinis, we cannot 

 help wonileriiig that there are not more savers of 

 $1 a week. He who saves this sum may not on- 

 ly pay his own way, but be may help the afflicted 

 and snbsciibe to various beijevolent societies. — 

 In short, he may show mercy to thtius.-uids in this 

 world, and he may help them on their way to a 

 better. 



The above calculation is from an English pape 

 and the interest is reckoned at about one-hal 

 the rate in this country. }f a man here were t< 

 save one dollar a week dining the time above 

 specified, he would, at seventy-one, be worth 

 nearly $20,000^ provided the interest be compu- 

 ted semi-annually at (J percent, per annum. 



Earthquakes. 



It has often been remarked that there is nf 

 calamity from which men shrink with so miicl 

 dread as from an earthquake. In countries 

 which are subject to them, and which are among 

 tlie most fertile and pleasant in the world, tlu 

 oldest resirlents live in continnal fear and trem 

 ling at the omens of an earthquake. They nevei 

 become fiimiliarizcd to it as lliey often do to oth 

 er calamities. A writer say.s, "tlte feelings ex 

 [lerieiiced at such a time are wholly indescriJiable 

 and must be tiell to he known. I have tieen in 

 many trying situations, but I have never found a 

 a place or ciicuiiistances that made one feel .so ut- 

 terly helpless, and so wholly dependent upon the 

 mercy of God, as in the moaient of un earth- 

 quake. The stable earth upon whicb you have 

 walked without fiiar, is stable no more. Your 

 habitation in which you have rested securely, 

 becomes your place of greatest danger, and you 

 flee from it t()r your lite. You turn to your 

 fiiends, and they are helpless as yourself You 

 flee from the city to escape it.s falling walls, and 

 the aaping earth threatens you on every side." 



The last earthquake which was felt with any 

 degree of severity in the United States, was that 

 in Loui.siaiia in 181 1, and vvliich was felt through 

 the whole of the valley of the Mississippi, mak- 

 ing a great change in the siu-face of n large por- 

 tion of the country, which was then however but 

 a wilderness. The memorable earthquake in 

 New England, which was in the recollection of 

 many who have lived since the present genera- 

 lion came on the stage, was on the night of the 

 29ili of October, 1727. The air was calm and 

 the atmosphere clear at the lime; and there was 



Warning of the first shock, which took place 

 about a quarter before eleven, and was attended 

 by a very loud rumbling, saiil to have resembled 

 the noise of many coaches driven with rapidity 

 over paved streets. Ttie shock continued at in- 

 tervals until six o'clock in the morning. Vast 

 quantities of stone wall wer<; overturned, huge 

 ledges of rocks broken down, and chimneys and 

 some buildings thrown down or damaged. Slight 

 shoirUs wete lult for a week afierwards. 



In January, 170.5, there was a slight earthquake 

 in Massachusetts and Connecticut. In January, 

 1663, an earthquake was felt, which sensibly 

 rocked the houses all over New England. In 

 October, 1653, and on the 2d January, 1(>J8, was 

 one so severe as to shake articles fioiii the shelves 

 in the houses, and to nearly throw down many 

 people who were in the roads, and who were ob- 

 liged to lay hold oti what was near them to sava 

 themselves from falling. This earthquake was 

 sensibly felt by vessels on the coast. 



In the old world, there were in the last century 

 several disastrous earthquakes; the most recent of 

 importance occurred in the northern part of Sy- 

 ria, on the 13ih of August, 1822. The city of 

 Aleppo was destroyed lo its foundations, and 

 about every village in the province. 20,000 per- 

 .sons are supposed to have perished in the ruins. 

 A writer, who was in Aleppo at the time, says, 

 on the eleventh and iwelfili the wind blew strong 

 and was insupportably hot and oppressive. The 

 frequent remarks of the people during the two 

 days were that "the wind came from an oven; 

 that it was like fire," etc. It seemed to strike the 

 Ijice upon exposure, as if it had been the blast of 

 a furnace. On the evening of the I3ili, a slight 

 shock was felt about 8 o'clock. Soon after, the 

 people discovered that the water in the wells was 

 so hot that it could not be drank. 



About ten o'clock the earth began to move, as 

 if it had been placed upon the waves of the sen. 

 This rapidly undulating motion continued for 

 some seconds, but produced no very serious in- 

 jury. Some walls cracked but resumed their 

 places when the earth rested. A moment after 

 the undulating motion ceased, came the dreadful 

 shock. It was strictly vertical, seeming to strike 

 directly beneath the city. The confu.>iioii and 

 ruin that succeeded that awful moment is beyond 

 all description. The crash of falling houses, the 

 shrieks of the dying and wounded, husbands 

 calling for wives, childreu entreating help from 

 their parents, and pan nts seeking for lost child- 

 ren, mingled with prayers and groans in many 

 languages, presented a scene of sufteringnnd wo 

 fixuii which the mind turns instinctively away. 



The first iminilse of the surviving inhabitants 

 seemed to be to rush to the gates of the city. — 

 Many were crushed in their flight, and those >vho 

 were permitted to reach a |>lace of comparative 

 safely, outside the walls, were compelled lo pass 

 over mangled and dead liodies, and fly amid 

 "ten thousand deaths on every side." 



In 1731, in China, four whole populous pro- 

 vinces were suddenly swallowed up l>y an earth- 

 quake. In 1754, a great part of the city of Con- 

 stantino|ile was destroyed by an earthquake; and 

 the same year two thirds of the houses of Grand 

 Cairo, and 40,000 of the inhabitants were swal- 

 lowed up. 



In 1775, a very remarkable and destructive 

 earthquake was felt over a large part of Europe, 

 Africa ami America. It was most terrible in 

 Portugal and the neighboring countries, St. 

 Ubes was overflowed by the sea; Lisbon was al- 

 most destroyed ; and several towns in Spain and 

 Barbary were destroyed or very much injuretl. 



Ill 1783, a great pa'rtof Calabria, in Italy, was 

 destrojed by an earthquake, and more than 40, 

 000 people lost their lives. 



In South Anierica, in the early part of the last 

 century, there was an earthquake, which in a 

 quarter of an hour laid the country of Peru in 

 ruins, lo the extent of three hundred leagues in 

 length, and ninety in breadth. In 1730, a great 

 part of the kingdom of Chili, together with its 

 capital, St. Jago, was swallowed up by an earth- 

 quake. 



The earthquake in Venezuela, in 1812 was one 

 of the most dreadful of modern times. In the 

 Caraccas, the shock lasted less than one minute, 

 yet nine tenths of the city wag entirely destroyed. 



In 1822, an eartlwpiake was experienced in 

 Chili, which extended 1200 miles, but was not so 

 violout as to be attended with much Ip«m of life. 



