mtm. 
. 
When winter comet* and freeze# o'er 
Our crystal lake from shorn to shore, 
We vote the Ingle-sldo a bore, 
And all go out a skating; 
And then we have such jolly Tin, 
And each fantastic tricks are done 
Upon the ice, that every one 
Thinks nothing like it neath the sun. 
Racing In the frosty air, 
(lotting circles h«rc and thore, 
Banished la all thought of care 
When we go oat a skating. 
And when the biting northern wind 
Its way to muffled ears will And, 
We don’t a continental mind, 
But all go out ft skating; 
And mayhap if the ice he all 
Aglare, and bumps of caution small, 
A gout may cut an awkward sprawl 
Or lady hurt her waterfall, 
Not a word of plaint they make, 
Caring naught for thump or ache, 
All is borne for pleasure's sake, 
When wo go ont. a skating. 
And if, perchance, the ice Is thin, 
Some reckless chap will tumble in, 
And there arises quite a din 
When we are out a skating; 
The ladies scream or faint with fright, 
And comrades work with all their might 
To sure their chum from drowning quite. 
While urchins laugh to see his plight. 
.Frosty whiskers, ley nose. 
Chattering teeth and frozen toes, 
All for pleasure—so it goes 
When we go out a skating. 
grounds, that man, emanating from the Creator 
originally in a perfect, state, must remain perfect 
and happy, or imperfect and miserable, in pro¬ 
portion as he observes or violates the great car¬ 
dinal laws of perfection, which seem to sustain 
the vast bounds of creation In unvarying regu¬ 
larity and precision ? As we can only conceive 
of a workman by the result of his workmanship, 
surely the regularity, precision, Vitttnese, and 
beauty of creation, in all the extent to which 
the natural eye and scientific investigations have 
opened it to us, must give the highest, concep¬ 
tions of the great Creator. Man as his reflex 
image, and the noblest animate object of con¬ 
templation on earth, must then, as a natural 
consequence, succeed or tend upward to God 
in bis main or nobler inclinations, or deterioate 
or tend downward to darifness and uncertainty, 
in proportion as he imitates that regularity and 
precision of action in an elevating sense which 
characterizes the Creator, as the source and 
ruler and regulator of all things, man being 
simply an instrument iu His vast domain. Can 
man not be regarded as a jewel endowed with 
self-regulating power to brighten or runt, as he 
observes law and order, under the dictates of 
reason? Does not reason and common obser¬ 
vation teach this fact?—to say nothing of the 
world's history, or the revelations of the spirit 
of God to bright Intelligences. Do we not liud 
that success individually, collectively and ration¬ 
ally comes as a natural consequence in the direct 
ratio to individual observance of the cardinal 
virtues that approach the nearest to a unity lu 
design and execution with the great cardinal 
laws that, govern Creation’s vast domain as ema¬ 
nating from the Creator, who is the synonym of 
order, immutability and Incomprehensibility? 
It being u simple fact, recognizable in the 
mind of the simplest Intelligence, that there arc 
two great powers at work iu society — truth and 
falsehood, light and darkness, consistency aud 
inconsistency, virtue and vice, positive and nega¬ 
tive electricity — and that, one elevates man and 
brightens his path, whilst the other depresses 
him and beclouds his prospects—would not self- 
interest demand individual enlistment under the 
great banner of God or bright spirits, as opposed 
God and light, Satan 
joiu the happy family dwelling there, aud the 
Park managers have endeavored to make It as 
picturesque as possible.” * 
Our engraving represents a group of Deer as 
kept iu Ceutrul Park, and as we have seen them 
in that famous resort of Now Yorkers, and of all 
strangers visiting the city who have a taste for 
such curiosities iu Nature and Art as are there 
displayed. Rural readers visitiug the curios¬ 
ities of New York, should include the Park. 
Tns Central Park, New York, is a world- 
known “institution,” embracing many attrac¬ 
tions and points of interest. Such points as 
the Arbor, Casino, &c., always excite the admi¬ 
ration of strangers who visit the Park. Not the 
least interesting of the attractions is the Zoolog¬ 
ical Department, comprising rare animals, birds 
and fowls of both native and foreign origin — 
such as deer, eagles, swans, etc. The zoologi¬ 
cal collection, though a comparatively new idea 
ed fair proportions, and bids fair to prove the 
leading attraction to young people. A New 
York paper states that “ officer* of vessels ar¬ 
riving from foreign port', and travelers or citi¬ 
zens of New York sojourning abroad, send ani¬ 
mals or birds to swell the collection, until it 
numbers several hundred specimens, foreign 
aud domestic. Every few days the newspapers 
chronicle the addition Of something alive to 
For Moore's Rural New-Yorker 
HAPPINESS UNITED TO VIRTUE. 
Wi£ need but look over the wide world, and 
view the different races of mankind and the va¬ 
rious stages of life to ace that happiness is closely 
connected with virtue. Trace the history of 
man from the earliest period possible, and all 
along to the present time we must plainly sec 
convincing proofs that where virtue resides not, 
there happiness cannot dwell, liy happiness is 
meant that, state of being in which our desires 
are gratified by the enjoyment of pleasure, unal¬ 
loyed by pain. There are several degrees of it, 
of which bliss is the highest, but this is rarely if 
ever obtained in this life, a# it Is more nearly re¬ 
lated to heavenly than earthly things, aud is sup¬ 
posed to be reserved for those who go to that 
world where all U bliss aud happiness. By 
virtue we mean moral goodness, a total abstain- 
ment from vice and an unblemished character; 
aud it U only hy treading the paths of virtue that 
we may expect to be happy. How can a person 
who revels In vige and debauchury be happy? 
His efforts to drown the ever-uprising conscience 
must be anything but agreeable. The murderer 
who, In a moment of frenzied madness, wreaks 
vengonce on bis unfortunate victim, demolishes 
at once all hopes of happiness. He may try to 
persuade himself he does uot care for what he 
has done, and seek pleasure in various ways; all 
will be In vain; it. will ever mock bis grasp ; he 
cannot rid himself of that canker gnawing at his 
conscience. But had he clothed himself iu vir¬ 
tue’s raiment, It would have shielded him from 
the too often overpowering passions of the hu¬ 
man heart. Then his life would have; been far 
for he would have bad greater oppor- 
threo days, seriously threatening t.hc destruction 
of the steamer and all on board. 
When, however, the storm abated, what was 
the surprise and delight of the daughter to And 
that the old lady had suddenly recovered her 
mind, and was perfectly sane; though she was 
at a loss to know how she was iu the place, 
and under the circumstances she found her¬ 
self on awakening from such a long sleep of 
the intellectual faculties. On arriving at San. 
Francisco, what was the astonishment of the 
husband to meet her whom he had not seen for 
nine years, aud whom he doomed lioplessly a 
maniac, sound and well, and Joyfully recognizing 
him. Tids was a year ago. Letter# recently 
received by her friends hero state that there has 
been no return of the disease whatever, aud that 
she is well and entirely cured. Is there another 
such case of cure on record ? 
well, aud cut it into small pieces; put these into 
a retort, and pour some diluted nitric acid upon 
them. Apply the heat of a lamp, and insert the 
beak of the retort under a receiver. Nitrogen 
gas will come over aud fill the jar. This is one 
of the best methods of preparing this gas. 
Oxygen is one-ninth part hea/Aer, and nitrogen 
one-thirty-sixth part, lighter than common air. 
FAMILIAR ARTICLES ON CHEMISTRY 
NO. II.—NITROGEN. 
Nitrogen is also a kind of air or gas, and, like 
oxygen, Is devoid of color, taste or smell. The 
properties of Ibis Ingredient of the atmosphere 
are chiefly negative. It will not support com- 
bustiou or animal life. Place a mouse In a jar 
containing only nitrogen, and death will ensue 
almost Instantly. 11 is not poisonous, however; 
life is destroyed by suffocation. 
Throughout nature nitrogen is widely diffused, 
particularly in the organic kingdom, for we find 
it in all plants and animals. It is an essential 
constituent of the animal frame, and therefore 
enters largely into their food. The following 
analysis will exhibit its proportion in some of 
the most common articles of sustenance. The 
total is computed at 1,000 parts, and the relative 
quantity is denoted by the figure# following each 
article mentioned. Rice, SI; Potatoes, 84; Tur¬ 
nips, 100; Rye, 106; White bread, 100 to 123; 
Milk, 237; Peas, 230; Beans, 320; Eggs, (yolk,) 
305 —(white,) 345; Ham, (raw,) 539 —(boiled,) 
807; Mutton, (raw,) 773 —(boiled,) 852; Beef, 
(raw,) 8.80—(boiled,) 943. 
crust. To prevent the formation of this cru«t, It 
is necessary to destroy the Bulphate of lime, 
which is easily done by adding 1 lb. of common 
carbonate of soda (washer-woman’s soda,) to 
every 300 gallons of water supplied to the boiler. 
This converts the whole of the lime into car¬ 
bonate, which ha# no tendency to agglutinlzc, 
but remains as a scmi-orystallno powder, that 
may either be collected by placing an empty 
vessol iu the boiler, or it may be blown out at 
intervals in the form of milky fluid. In both 
eases the conducting power of the irou holler is 
preserved, which not only laeilitates the de¬ 
velopment of steam, but prevents the burning or 
oxidizemeut ol the boiler. That it must also 
prevent or diminish tile number of explosions is 
more than probable. 
PUNCTUATION PUZZLE 
Tun following paragraph is an illustration of 
the Importance of punctuation, which some 
writers woefully neglect, and, when they under¬ 
take it, bungle it iu an awful manner. There 
are two ways of pointing it, oue ol’ which makes 
the Individual in question a monster of wicked¬ 
ness, while the other converts him iuto a model 
Christian: 
“ He Is an old experienced man in vice aud 
wickedness he is never found opposing the 
works of iniquity he takes delight in the down¬ 
fall of the neighborhood he never rejoice* in the 
prosporty of any of his fellow-creatures he is 
always ready to assist In destroying the peace ot 
society he takes no pleasure in serving the Lord 
he Is uncommonly diligent iu sowiug discord 
among his friends and acquaintances he takes no 
pride iu laboring to promote the cause of Chris¬ 
tianity he has not been negligent in endeavoring 
to stigmatize all public teachers he makes no 
exertion# to subdue hia evil passions he strives 
hard to build up Satan's kingdom he lends no 
aid to the support of the gospel among the 
heathens ho coutrlbut.es largely to the evil adver¬ 
sary he pays no attention to good advice he gives 
great heed to the devil he will never go to heaven 
bo must go where he will receive the just recom¬ 
pense of reward.” 
different 
tunities of gaining the chief object of his desire, 
as well as that of all mankind. 
There are a variety of ways of obtaining hap¬ 
piness. Some seek it in one way, some iu 
another; but virtue must invariably accompany 
us In our researches, else our effort# will prove 
fruitless. Choose which path we may wo have 
many difficulties to surmount, and unless we are 
attended by virtuous principles, to sustain and 
aid us on our journey, success in this enterprize 
cannot lie assured us. To live a virtuous life is 
not impossible for any one, although its accom¬ 
plishment is far more difficult to some than to 
others. We know that circumstances — snch as 
birth, education, Ace.,— have a great deal to do 
with shaping of our lives, but every human heart 
has that “still small voice” contained withiuit, 
ever whispering, " Be honest, be good; deal up¬ 
rightly with your fellow men; bo virtuous, if 
you would be happy.” E. u. at. 
Sprlngport, N. Y., ISM. 
WEIGHT OF PEOPLE 
to Satan or dark spirits 
and darkness, each ruling Ills own Kingdom ? 
From these general cardinal laws of nature I 
deduce the conclusion, that physical, moral and 
intellectual education should be of such a char¬ 
acter as to harmonize and keep up to as high 
standards as possible all the Individual powers 
of body and mind. I conclude that forms ot 
expression are of secondary consideration. That 
the true physical and moral conditions of the 
system through which the mind gives express¬ 
ion is of first and highest importance. And that 
the inclinations of the human heart, to ignore 
the higher claim# of God and its best powers 
tend to dctcrioatlon and evasion; unless there 
are higher and rational standards kept up In 
society, at all times for imitation, as a test of 
true character. I hold the physical test as of first 
and of pre-eminent importance, the moral next 
and the intellectual a# last, as I claim the intel¬ 
lect will produce healthy and proper manifesta¬ 
tions at all times, if the bodily and moral powers 
are kept regulated at all times, by God’s stand¬ 
ards for his claims on the human heart. Thus 
to conclude this short, sketch, I argue that habit 
— habit, embracing all forms of physical aud 
mental manifestations — is of the highest mo¬ 
ment to all persons, at all times, that would 
make life a true success. *** 
We read in “All the Year Round” what is 
the average weight of a man ? At what age does 
he attain his greatest weight? How much 
heavier arc men than women? What would be 
the weight of fat people, and what of very fat 
people? M. Quctelet of Brussels, some years 
ago, deemed such questions quite within the 
scope of his extensive series of researches on 
man. He got hold of everybody he could, 
everywhere, and weighed them all. He weighed 
the babies, he weighed the boys and girls, he 
weighed the youths and maidens, he weighed 
men and women, he weighed collegians, soldiers, 
factory people, pensioners—aud as he luut no 
particular theory to disturb hi# facta, he hon¬ 
estly set down such result# as he met with. All 
the infanta in the Foundling Hospital at Brus¬ 
sels for a considerable period were weighed, and 
the results were compared with others obtained 
in similar establishment# iu Paris and Moscow. 
The average returns show that a citizen of the 
world, on the first day of his appearance in 
public, weighs about six pounds and a half—a 
boy baby a little more, a girl baby a little less. 
Some very modest babies hardly turn the scale 
with two pounds aud a half, while other pre¬ 
tentious youngsters boast of ten. or eleven 
pounds. M. Quetelet grouped his thousands of 
people according to ages, and found that the 
young men of twenty averaged 143 pounds each, 
while the young women of twenty have, an 
average of 129 pounds. His men reached their 
heaviest bulk at about thirty-five, when their 
average weight, was 153 pounds; bat the women 
slowly fattened on until fifty, when their aver¬ 
age was 129 pounds. Men and women together, 
Fig. 1. 
This gas can be obtained by putting a bit of 
phosphorus into a small cup over water, kindling 
it, and inverting over it a bottle, dipping with 
Its mouth into the water, as seen in fig. 1. 
When the phosphorus has ceased to burn, and 
the bottle ha# become cool, it may be corked 
and removed from the water. If a lighted can¬ 
dle be now introduced into the bottle it will be 
Immediately extinguished, showing that nitro¬ 
gen only remains, fig. 2. By the combustion of 
the phosphorus, phosphroic add is formed, which 
is absorbed by the water in the jar, and nothing 
remains but nitrogen. 
“ No News is Good News,” is a saying, with 
all its quaintness, which has more force aud 
depth iu it than we are commonly aware of. For 
that calm, unmitigated, unruffled flow of time, 
which leaves little to be told, is the happiest as 
well as the safest period of our lives. It is like 
the gentle lapse of rivers, which, without being 
noticed or talked of, is permitted quietly to fer* 
tilizc the soil, aud beautify the prospect; while 
the fame of the rapid and destructive torrent Is 
noised abroad. Iu such a state we are led from 
that which is without to that which is withiu; 
from the bustle of the world to a quiet com¬ 
munion with our own hearts; from that which 
depends on the will, perhaps on the capricious 
and unaccountable whims of other*, to that for 
which, under God's good guidance, we may draw 
upon ourselves .—Bishop Jebb. 
VELVET TONGUES, 
When I was a boy, I and a number of my 
playmates bad rambled through the woods and 
fields till, quite forgettul of the fading light, we 
found ourselves far from home. Indeed, we had 
lost our way. It did so happen we were nearer 
home than we thought; but how to get to it 
wa# the question. By the edge of the field we 
saw a man coming along, and we ran to ask him 
to tell us. Whether he wa3 in trouble or not, I 
do not know, but he gave us some very Burly 
answer, -/ust then there came along another 
man, a near neighbor, aud with a merry smile on 
his face. “Jim,” said he, “a man’s tongue is 
like a cat’s; it Is either a piece of velvet or a 
piece pf sand paper, just a# he likes to use it; 
and I declare yon always seem to use your 
tongue for sand-paper. Try the velvet, man, 
try the velvet principle.”— Blind Arnos. 
WEBSTER’S DICTIONARY 
Friend Moore:—You could not have put a 
more valuable thing — coating any where near 
the same money — than Webster's Pictorial Un¬ 
abridged Dictionary into your premium list. I 
have seen libraries containing one or two hun¬ 
dred volumes that were scarcely a commence¬ 
ment in value to this one work. Aside from its 
value as a dictionary proper — and it is acknowl¬ 
edged unsurpassed—it is a cyclopedia of a vast 
fund of useful Information, in all branches of 
science and literature. You never open it with¬ 
out gaining valuable knowledge, aud so exten¬ 
sive are its stores ot information, that he is 
learned indeed, who has a mind that cannot be 
enriched by consulting its ample pages. 
The lucky recipients of the new edition of 
“ Webster,” as a premium, will find themselves 
amply paid for their labor in obtaining subscrib¬ 
ers for the Rural. L. L. Fairchild. 
Rolling Prairie, Wis., ISM. 
Curious Custom.— At the funeral of the 
Prince Joseph Bonaparte, at Rome, after the 
ceremonies were concluded, that is, after the 
coffin of the Prince had been deposited iu the 
appointed place In the family vault, the malre.de 
hotel of the defunct walked up to the coffin and 
said, in a grave tone, “Voatia atteza non com¬ 
mands viente?” (What are your highness’ or¬ 
ders?) No reply issuing from the coffin the 
rnatre <Je hotel backed out, and, on reaching the 
portico of the church, shouted to the corouetted 
carriages'without“ Ternate a ossa, suu altezza 
non commanda nienta.” (Home! his highness 
has given no orders.) The custom dates from 
the fifteenth century 
Fig. 9. 
A taper which has been extinguished in a jar 
of nitrogen, may be relighted in a jar of oxygen, 
but this must be done sq quickly that a spark of 
fire shall remain on the wick of the candle after 
it is withdrawn from the nitrogen. This experi¬ 
ment, may be varied by using three jars, one of 
nitrogen, another of oxygen, and a third of 
common air. In the first the candle will be put 
out, in the second relighted, and in the third it 
will burn as usual. 
Nitrogen may be prepared from animal fibre in 
the following manner:—Wash a piece of beef 
FOR BOYS AND GIRLS, 
SINGULAR CURE OF INSANITY. 
A Kalamazoo, (Mich.,) correspondent of tho 
Detroit Advertiser relates the following:—A Mrs. 
Howland, who had tong been a resident in thi$ 
county, aud who has been hopelessly insane for 
nearly thirty years, wa* sent, for by her husband 
in California. Aeeoflipauicd by a daughter in 
law, they left and proceeded on tho journey by 
6teamer. When out about four days from New 
York a most violent storm arose, which lasted 
Tub Little Corporal. — This new first class 
monthly for the children is winning its way every¬ 
where. Forney’s Philadelphia Dally Press says 
of It; —“ Judging from the appearance of the 
numbers before us, The Little Corporal is destined 
to become the greatest children's paper of America." 
Subscription price, $1 a year. Specimen copies 
ten cents. Address Alfred L. Sewell, pub¬ 
lisher, Chicago, Ill. 
A Roman mosaic pavement has been discovered 
at Exeter, England. 
