372 
FURTHER NOTES ON JEFFERSON COUNTY. 
FURTHER NOTES ON JEFFERSON COUNTY. 
From Kingston, I took a run across the lake, 
40 miles, to Sackett’s Harbor, upon that beauti¬ 
ful American boat, the Bay State, making the 
trip in two and a half hours. The American 
boats, like almost everything else undertaken 
by Yankee enterprise, have much more of the 
go-a-head quality, than those of the British. 
Sackett’s Harbor, is a town of some 1,200 in¬ 
habitants, situated in what may be termed the 
southeast corner of Ontario, once a flourishing 
military station, the glory of which has de¬ 
parted. Like Kingston, it depended upon the 
army and navy, instead of the soil, until the 
glory of the town has also departed. The ex¬ 
tensive barracks are almost useless, and an 
enormous shiphouse and its inclosed frigate, 
which has stood there more than thirty years, 
is not only useless, but a monument of the fool¬ 
ish waste of human labor. If the half million 
of dollars it cost, had been spent in the endow¬ 
ment of an agricultural school, how much the 
sum of human happiness might have been in¬ 
creased, and how much better defence against 
enemies, would have been the minds of enlight¬ 
ened men, than is this wooden monument of 
folly. This town is the principal port of the 
wealthy agricultural county of Jefferson, a 
county rich in her enterprising citizens, and 
rapidly growing more so through her dairy 
products and manufactures. It contains two 
hotels, besides a few taverns, and other conve¬ 
niences for consuming the alcoholic portion of 
Indian corn. There are several respectable 
stores, and more churches than manufactories; 
and a bigger custum house, in proportion to the 
commerce , than New York or Boston can boast 
of. 
Watertown .—This is 10 miles east, the seat of 
justice for the county, containing about 6,000 
inhabitants, and is altogether a very flourishing 
go-a-head sort of a place; and since the great 
fire, that consumed the business part of the 
town, several splendid blocks of stores have 
been built, and others are building, equal to those 
of any inland town in the state. In private resi¬ 
dences, I will match this place against any 
other in the Union, large or small, to show as 
great a display of common sense in their ar¬ 
rangement. I certainly never have seen so 
great a proportion of remarkably neat, moder¬ 
ate-sized cottages, embowered in lovely groves 
of ornamental and fruit trees, with grassy lawns 
in front, (for all stand back from the street,) 
as all dwellings always should in town or 
country. The grove, surrounding the house of 
Mr. E. S. Massey, whose hospitalities I enjoyed 
during my short visit, is one of the most beau¬ 
tiful native growth, I think, I ever saw. The 
trees are mostly sugar maple, for which and 
their rich products, the county of Jefferson has 
long been celebrated. An immense grapevine 
springs from one corner of the yard, and ex¬ 
tends itself upon several trees, and frequently 
gives fifteen or twenty bushels of rich fruit in 
return for the little plat of soil it occupies. Go, 
sluggard, and plant a vine, and thou, also, shalt 
enjoy such luxury. 
Note .—The article in the November number, 
entitled a “ Jefferson-County Dairy Farm,” 
would have been the proper continuation of 
this, Solon Robinson. 
THE PHILOSOPHY OF HUMAN LIFE. 
At fourteen years of age, I entered a dry 
good store as a clerk. I had been a very active 
boy. The sedentary station, probably caused 
me to become dyspeptic. I was troubled with 
flatulence and belching, and thought it useful to 
eat more to expel the air from the stomach. 
Pysicians said I had consumption of the lungs, 
and ordered a low diet. After several years, 
without change, I thought they misunderstood 
my case. I eat more, and passed on to mature 
age, and was troubled, not only with flatulence 
and belching, but with much pain in the stomach 
also; and doctors advised me to take salseratus 
or soda, to neutralise the acid, and peppermint, 
to ease the pain. I followed this prescription, 
and continued to eat heartily. If I did not take 
regular meals, at regular times, I was cramped 
in the stomach, and suffered greatly. My coun¬ 
tenance was pale and sickly, as usual. I con¬ 
tinued this course without much change till 
about forty years of age. I then ruminated up¬ 
on the subject and the thought occurred, that I 
eat more than the stomach could digest prop¬ 
erly, which caused the pain and flatulence. I 
resolved, at once, to eat half meals, as an exper¬ 
iment. When I left the table with half a meal, 
it was painful to my feelings. Between ten and 
twelve o’clock, I found it necessary to eat a 
crust or a cracker or two, till my stomach con¬ 
formed to the change. I soon found that I had 
discovered the true cause of my ill health, and 
had no trouble of belching and pain in the 
stomach; and my countenance became healthy. 
I required great watchful ness and self-denial, to 
leave the table with half a meal and a good ap¬ 
petite ; but I persevered, and became confirmed 
and satisfied that I had adopted the true course. 
Half an hour after eating, when digestion has 
begun, the hungry feeling ceases; if not, eat a 
crust or cracker or two, till the habit is fully 
established. This course I have pursued for the 
latter half of my years, and I have enjoyed im¬ 
proved health, vigor, and comfort. Iam obliged, 
however, to watch my appetite, and not indulge 
in it, for it would soon lead me astray, as I have 
found, when I have incautiously eaten a very 
little too much. I am not sensible that my fac¬ 
ulties are impaired now, at four score years. If 
I take cold, it leaves me in a quarter the time it 
did in early life. I formerly ate supper, and 
suffered if I did not get an early breakfast. I 
now take a light meal at tea, at five to six 
o’clock, and breakfast at seven to eight o’clock, 
without any inconvenience from hunger, after 
fourteen hours of abstinence. When I ate more, 
as 1 formerly did, if I lost a meal, I did not re¬ 
cover it for a fortnight. Now, if I lose a meal, 
I feel no cramp and little inconvenience from it. 
This course has proved to me to be the true 
philosophy of life and health. Except for this, 
I should have been mouldering in the grave 
twenty years ago. 
