268 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



FEB. 5, 1840. 



MISCELLANEOUS 



JUDICIAL ANECDOTE. 



The courts of Vermont have been celebrated for 

 many years for the wit and arnusing; pectiliaritins 

 of several of their justices. Anecdotes are rife 

 respecting them, from the rough and coarse humor 

 of Harringtou, to the more polished scintillations 

 of his successors of modern times. Nothing can 

 be more racy than the following, which we are 

 confident is new to the majority of our readers. 



Judge had etfected a settlement of ac- 

 counts with one of his neighbors, a very parsimo- 

 nious man, and it was found impossible to make 

 correct change within three cents, which tlie judge 

 said he would hand to the other at any subsequent 

 period. Some days after, while the judge was 

 upon the bench, and in the midst of a cause, the 

 avaricious neighbor, whose brains could not rest 

 while the three cents were absent from his pocket, 

 appeared in the court room, and with slight ceremo- 

 ny, beckoned to his debtor to grant him an inter- 

 view. The judge, who was so unfortunate as to 

 stutter somewhat, appreciated instantly the purpose 

 of the applicant, and arrested the progress of the 

 case, with "st-stop, a f-f-few moments, unt-until I 



speak t-t-t-to my neighbor P ." He thereupon 



descended from the bencli, and accompanied neigh- 

 bor P. to a private room, and, as he expected, re- 

 ceived a demand for the delinquent three cents. 

 He paid it, obtained a receipt, and returned to the 

 court room, convulsing every one present with 

 laughter, by the following lemark; " th-they s-say, 

 th-that at t-t-tlie m-m-m-moment any one d-d-dies, 

 another is b-born, and the s-soul of t-lh-the one 

 that d-dies goes into the b-body of tli-the one 

 th-that's born. N-now, w-when neighbor P. w-was 

 b-born, n-tt-nobody died." — Ladies' Companioji. 



CAPTURE OF A BEAR. 



For the last twelve years, there has been resi- 

 ding within forty minutes ride of this city, in the 

 town of Brewer, near the " Big Pond," so called, 

 a mischievous animal called a bear, of the hog 

 species, with a brown proboscis, and short, but 

 strongly sinewed legs ; during which time, he has 

 fattened upon the corn, cattle and sheep of the 

 farmers who lived in his vicinity. During the past 

 year alone, he has destroyed upwards of one hun- 

 dred dollars worth of stock, always taking care to 

 secure his retreat when pursued, till within a few 

 days, when he was accidentally discovered by some 

 men who were employed in logging near the spot 

 where he had taken quarters for the winter. Ob- 

 serving his tracks in the snow, they traced liim to 

 the mouth of his den, which was in the cavity of a 

 ledge ; when they commenced removing the brush 

 he had carefully drawn into its aiouth. 



In a moment old Bruin began to snuff and 

 growl, and made an attempt to take leg bail, but 

 was saluted with a blow from a cudgel, cut for the 

 purpose, and fell back into his domicil, where lie 

 quivered for a few moments, but suddenly regained 

 his strength, and made good his escape for the 

 time being. The next day he was hotly pursued 

 by some half dozen of those on whose stock he 

 had preyed, and the chase was continued for some 

 five or six- days, when Mr Blood came to this city 

 and informed some of our sportsmen (we have 

 some old ones too,) who, accompanied by their 

 hounds, immediately joined in the chase, and fif- 



teen days from the time the bear was first started 

 from his den by the loggers, (during the whole of 

 which time he was hotly pursued by men and dogs, 

 having been kept on the tramp the whole time, 

 only excepting nights) he was captured and brought 

 into this city by Capt. Nye, and Mr Leonard Dow. 

 On examining him, thirteen balls were found to 

 have pierced him ; the last shots, however, were 

 those which gave him his quietus — one of which 

 took effect a little abaft his fore shoulders, and the 

 other near his spine. During the whole fifteen 

 days, Mr Blood, who is a farmer, kept open house, 

 keeping all of those free of expense who were dis- 

 posed to join in the chase, being determined to 

 have the bear before he gave up. He weighed 

 when killed, three hundred and twenty-four pounds. 

 The old hunters sayjie must have "run off" one 

 hundred pounds during the chase — but still he is 

 a lusty fellow, and you Bostonians may prepare 

 your mouths for a taste of his flesh, as I under- 

 stand it is the intention of Mr Dow to ship him at 

 Frankfort for your city. He has been on exhibi- 

 tion in this city for the last two days, at 12 1-2 

 cents a sight. — Bangor Democrat, Jan. 12. 



GREAT WALL OF CHINA. 

 Even when united under one emperor, China 

 trembled at the Tartars of the desert. About two 

 centuries before the birth of Christ, She-hwang-te 

 (the book-burner,) constructed the great wall of 

 China, to prevent their incursionsi. The wall, 

 which has always been considered one of the world's 

 wonders, is 1500 miles in length, of great height 

 and thickness, furnished with fortresses and towers 

 innumerable, and is carried with singular skill over 

 mountains and rivers, as well as across the plains 

 and valleys. Lord Macartney exclaimed on seeing 

 it that it was certainly the most stupendous work of 

 human hands, and he rationally concluded that at 

 the remote period of its building, China must have 

 been a- very powerful and civilized empire. Dr 

 Johnson was accustomed to say of it, that it would 

 be an honor to any man to say that his grandfather 

 >had seen the great wall of China. Mr Barrow who 

 saw it with iVlacartney, went into some amusing 

 calculations as to the quantity of the materials it 

 contains. According to his account, all the mate- 

 rials of all the dwelling houses of England and 

 Scotland, supposing them at that period (at the end 

 of the last century) to amount to 1,800,000, and to 

 average 2,000 cubic feet of brick work or masonry, 

 would be barely equivalent to the bulk ot the wall, 

 without taking in its fortresses or towers, which he 

 calculated contained as much masonry and brick 

 work as London did at that time. Stupendous as 

 was the work, it failed in its object. 



A Swedish peasant spoke contemptuously of the 

 King, saying — "I don't care a fa: for Bernadotte." 

 The peasant was arrested, and under an ancient 

 law of the kingdom, condemned to death. The 

 King immediately pardoned the peasant, and order- 

 ed the law to be repealed. "But," said the King 

 to the Judge, "I do not like to be insulted, and 

 therefore I cannot let this man pass off without 

 some punishment ; you will therefore please to go 

 to his house and say to him in my name — Since 

 you don't care a fig for Bernadotte, Bernadotte 

 don't care a fig for you." 



The number of lives lost by shipwreck of Amer- 

 ican vessels last year is stated at 537. 



FAITHFULNESS OF A DOG. 

 In the unhappy and too memorable winter of 

 1790, when the corn, the vine, and the olive, were 

 destroyed by severe cold in France, the wolves 

 made dreadful ravages in the fields, and rushed 

 with verocity even upon man. One of these rave- 

 nous beasts, after having broken the window, enter- 

 ed a cottage in the forest of Orte, near Angouleiiie. 

 Two children, one six, the other eight years of age, 

 were reposing on the bed, in the absence of their 

 mother, who had gone in search of wood to kindle 

 a fire. Meeting with no resistance, the wolf leap- 

 ed upon the bed, and sought to destroy his delicate 

 prey. Seized with a sudden fright, the two little 

 boys crept quickly under the covering, and held it 

 closely without drawing a breath. So near was 

 the flesh which had enticed him, that not being 

 able to attain it instantly, the murderous animal 

 became more furious, and began to destroy the cov- 

 ering with his teeth. Trifling as was this obstacle, 

 it nevertheless preserved the lives of these innocent-, 

 children. A large and faithful dog, who had fol- , 

 lowed their mother, returned in time to deliver 

 them ; lie had scented the track of the wolf at mora, 

 than a hundred yards from the house, whither the 

 mother was returning slowly, loaded with faggots;, 

 he ran with the quickness of the stag — he entered 

 like a lion, and falling upon the animal, who had 

 endeavored to secrete himself in an obscure corner, 

 he seized the base wretch by the throat, and drag, 

 ging him to the door, strangled him instantly. '1 he 

 alarm of the mother on her return was indescriba- 

 ■ble. She beheld the wolf stretched upon the earth, 

 the dog covered with blood, her bed in confusion, 

 her children gone. Observing the distress of his 

 mistress, the dog ran towards her with the most 

 energetic solicitude, then returning to the bed he 

 thrust his head repeatedly under the covering, and 

 by the most expressive signs endeavored to inti- 

 mate to her that she would find there that which 

 she held most dear. The mother approached, and 

 extending her trembling hand, discovered that her 

 children were there, although deprived of motion; 

 she hastened to restore them — there was yet time ; 

 a moment's delay would have rendered the attempt 

 useless. When they had recovered their senses, 

 they plainly recounted the danger to which they 

 had been exposed, the manner in which the wolf 

 had entered, and their wonderful preservation. The 

 faithful animal, pleased in having saved the livea 

 of these little innocents, by his eager caresses gave, 

 ample testimony that his joy was equal to that ot 

 his mistress. 



A MAN WANTED. 



To do the work on a small place, a lew miles from the 

 cily. He must understand the cultivation of vegetables, 

 fruits, ifec, and the care of horse, cows, &:c. A single man, 

 from 20 to 30 years of age, of steady and industrious habits, 

 may inquire at this office. J. B. I. 



January 15. 



ROHASf POTATOES, 



For sale at the New England .Agricultural Warehouse ami 

 Seed Store, No. 52 North Market Street, at S.i per barrel. 

 October 16. JOSEPH BllECK & CO. 



THE NEW ENGLAND FARMER 



Is puhiishod every Wednesday Evening, at S3 per annini 

 payable at the end of the year — but those who pay witliii* 

 sixty days from the time of subscribing are entitled to a (■«- 

 ductionof 69 cents. 



DENNETT AND CHISHOLM, PRINTERS, 



n SCHOOL STREET... BOSTO-N 



