ISUaDittg for for ^onirg. 
OUR FRIEND -FROM SWITZERLAND RE¬ 
LATES SOME OF HIS EXPERIENCES. 
Dear Uncle True and Rural cousins: 
As I am just now at leisure I thought It best to 
write a lew lines to my Rural relatives, and to 
present, at the same time, my sincere thanks to 
Dr. Asplmvall for his very kind and wise advise in 
regard to the preservation of Indian relies, i had 
my little collection, consisting of a number of 
stone-axes, arrow-heads, gauges, war-clubs and 
other implements already arranged li: about a simi¬ 
lar manner as this gentleman advises us to do, and I 
really think It to he the best way of any. lam actu¬ 
ally in possession ol several stone Implements which 
some people commonly call “ gauges" (probably 
from their resemblance to the more modem gau¬ 
ges). Their length varies irom 4 to lo Inches, and 
their breadth from z to 3 inches with a sharp, con¬ 
cave edge on one extremity. Some archaeologists 
pretend that the Indians used these Implements 
to tap the maple trees with, and LUat they pre¬ 
pared sugar of the sap thus obtained. Others pre¬ 
tend that the “red man"did not know auyUlliig 
about tire manufacture of maple-sugar, but that, 
he employed this Implement lor another purpose, 
for that of tanning the skins. Nut being familiar 
with the l ndian customs, l do not know which of 
these two suppositions Is the correct one, and l 
would be veil' tbaukful ror any reliable Informa¬ 
tion on this subject, one of my friends who was 
digging lately for Indian pottery on the shores of 
Lake Champlain, lound the grave of an Indian, as 
he supposed, containing the cranium and part 
of tne facial bones, the os lnnomlnatum and part 
of the extremities, and a tomahawk In close proxim¬ 
ity to this skeleton. 
Now, dear eoustns, I Intended a long time 
ago to give you a brief description of my expe¬ 
riences during the first year or my stay InAmei- 
Ica; but I always fouud my letters long enough 
without doing so, until to-day, when my thoughts 
strayed by chance three years backwards, bring¬ 
ing to my memory those days In which, the 
ocean steamer “ Celtic" landed me, then a lonely 
stranger, on the shores of America. 1 had made 
the resolution to communicate to you a few of the 
most Interesting Incidents. 1 told you In one of my 
former letters that when I first came to this coun¬ 
try I was perfectly Ignorant of the English lan¬ 
guage, and that a Frenchman was kind enough to 
hire me out to a fanner residing not very far from 
where I live now. 
My principal objects in hiring out to work on a 
farm were to learn American agriculture prac¬ 
tically ; to learn the English language as quickly as 
possible, and to earn, anyway for once In my life, 
my owu bread. But soon after 1 had commenced 
to work for “Uncle Joe," as everybody called him, 
1 found out that 1 could not easily realise my an¬ 
ticipated hopes and wishes under his guldauee. 
For he was the most peculiar man I ever met in my 
gjlfe; he cannot write or read a single word, hut 
that don’t seem to bother him much ; on the con¬ 
trary he feels proud of his Ignorance, and he for¬ 
bade me several times to read some English news¬ 
papers and books which I borrowed irom my 
neighbors for the purpose of learning the orthog¬ 
raphy, pretending that a farmer has no need of 
any learning,- that he hlmselr got atong very well 
without it, and that other folks could do the same. 
And indeed he got along well enough in pecu¬ 
niary regard without having the faculty of distin¬ 
guishing one letter from another. He has accumu¬ 
lated during the past fifty years an estate contain¬ 
ing over TOO aerosol good land. 
During the year 1876 he was appointed postmas¬ 
ter of this place,, and as he was himself unable to 
rulflll the duties he charged me with the transac¬ 
tion of the business, one day when I was making 
out the quarterly report for the Post Office De¬ 
partment at Washington, Uncle Joe got mad on 
account of the small salary that he received for 
such an important office, and he ordered me to 
write a letter to General Washington notifying 
him that In case his salary should not be speedily 
increased he would shut up the post-office at once, 
and let old Washington run the risk for the whole 
“ consarn.” I remonstrated, that as far as 1 knew, 
General Washington died a long time ago, and 
that it would be hardly fair aud legal to shut 
up the post-office and to throw all the risk that 
might grow out of such a proceeding on the shoul¬ 
ders of the deceased Father of America. 
But all my expostulations on this subject were 
In vain : he replied very positively, that he knew 
General Washington to have been head postmas¬ 
ter for several years with two or three of his 
"sisters" In his employ, (tie thought further¬ 
more that those "sisters ” must be old maids now 
by this time). After I reasoned with Uncle Joe 
for two or three hours on national history and 
Post Office business I commenced to see Into 
all mistakes. In ids dignity as P. M. he received 
occasionally official letters from the Postmaster 
General at Washington or from the assistant 
Postmasters General. 1 always had to read the 
letters and to report to him their contents. I gen¬ 
erally remarked that such a letter came from 
Washington (meaning of course the capital) and 
such a letter from the 1st. 2d. or 3d, assistant. 
Now, Uncle Joe, thought all the time that I meant 
by Washington the famous General and by the 
assistants the General’s sisters. 
On another occasion a beggar woman desired to 
stay in Ills house over night, and before he would 
permit her to, he asked her, If she was of French 
or Irish consent. The poor woman did not know 
what to answer, until I explained to her, that 
Uncle Joe did not mean consent, but he only de¬ 
sired to know her descent or origin of nation. 
Shortly after this Incident my employer got 
thrown off from a mowing machine, while taking 
a nap mowing, hurting hlmselr very badly and in 
consequence of this, he was obliged to keep the 
bed for a long time. He was in a very dan- 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER. 
MARCH 2 
gerous situation, when the Minister of the Gospel 
called on him one day, to bring him consolation 
and the blessings of the Church. Uncle Joe took 
this reverend gentleman for a whiskey drummer 
aud inquired of him, how he would sell a barrel of 
whiskey to him, pretending that he wanted It 
only for his own use. The minister expressed his 
astonishment and explained that he was not that 
kind of a drummer, whereupon Uncle Joe dis¬ 
missed him, unwilling to enter into any other re¬ 
lations with him. 
When winter came my employer sent me cut¬ 
ting timber ami gave me the advice, to Lulld a 
fire to the woods, if I should find It too cold there. 
After I found myself all alone in the forest, I 
thought that a fire would feel very comfortable 
indeed, and 1 commenced to look around for some 
dry kindling wood, which I soon round hi sufficient 
quantities In the shape of about 100 wooden buck¬ 
ets scattered all over on the ground, aroun d an old 
fl re-place. These buckets were used for the gathe r- 
lng of the sap In the manufacture of sugar, but 
at that time I was Ignorant of this fact, having 
never seen nor heard of any maple sugar before In 
my life. 1 observed quite a number of the same 
kind of buckets all over In the w oods and came to 
the conclusion finally, that they must be used 
during summer for the purpose of watering the 
cattle, concerning the buckets around tbe fire¬ 
place, 1 thought they were thrown away, per¬ 
haps as useless or superfluous to be burnt up on 
this place at some time. 1 took my axe anti in less 
time than It takes to describe It, a dozen buckets 
were smashed up in small fragments. 1 set fire to 
them and the heat thus produced was so gratli y- 
lng to my cold nose and ears, that I repeated the 
same exercise every day, until the buckets were 
all gone. 
'ihe following spring when Uncle Joe and I went 
out together in the woods to make sugar, he won¬ 
dered very much, what had become or ali his sap- 
buckets, and only then coinmouced I to understand 
the extent of my mistake In burning up said 
buckets. 
un auother occasion, when cutting down a hol¬ 
low tree, 1 found it to be Inhabited by a long-tailed 
animal. I had visited In time a great number of 
menageries and zoological gardens all over Europe, 
but never had l met with a specimen of this kind 
before, and. as it was quite tame, I resolved to 
take it home alive, to show Uncle Joe what a pre¬ 
cious treasure 1 had found. I caught the animal 
very carefully by tneneck and traveled with It home¬ 
wards ; from time to time my nose caught the im¬ 
pression of a most peculiar smell, and t was often 
tempted to let the animal go again But curiosity 
and seir-denlal succeeded at last, and 1 brought 
the animal home alive aud unhurt. In L ucie Joe’s 
parlor. At the sight of my gem which 1 held up In 
my hands, the ladles commenced to scream and to 
run from one part of the house to another; Uncle 
Joe ordered me very harshly to take that skunk 
(for that appeared to be Its true name) outside the 
the building and to kill It there. With a heavy 
heart I obeyed Ills orders, aud with tear* In my 
eyes, I gave my poor pet the death-blow. This 
remarkable event wrought a good many changes 
In the family: Uncle Joe kept all the doors and 
windows open lor a fortnight; the ladles would 
not srnlle any more upon me, and to please them, l 
was obliged to dress In my best Sunday clothes, 
until 1 had a chance to buy another suit. 
Having finished now my skunk adventure, 1 do 
not think that the cousins of the tender sex will 
care about hearing any more of my stories, and I 
will close tills letter, expressing the wish that my 
young relatives will follow my example and open 
their hearts berore our circle, ror 1 think It would 
be better to write nonsense than not to write at 
all, as It almost appears to be the case now. I ad¬ 
mire “ ivy’s" poetical strain In her last letter very 
rnuch, and hope to hear from her again; further¬ 
more, 1 expect some more details of "Jumping 
Jacks’’ travels. I would like to get acquainted 
with Uncle Mark, because 1 like his letters very 
much, i never knew before that we have two 
uncles, and I hope that all the cousins will fire off 
their guns speedily, and ir they are aimed right, I 
warrant you tnat they will find their way to the 
“TrueMark." John Scuwyn, 
Clinton Co., N. Y. 
TO THE SONS OF THE FARMER.—No. 4. 
KEV. A. W. ilANGUif. 
A word of caution Is necessary, on account of 
the great number of occupations that court the 
attention of an American youth In tuts enterpris¬ 
ing age. The number aud diversity being so great, 
It may reasonably be expected that callings which 
are very different as to utility aud profit, may ap¬ 
peal with special lorce to the same taste, one 
who Is endowed with talent to excel In the highest 
department of Fine Arts, may have a fancy, in 
earlier years, for the lowest and simplest work 
that can engage a mind whore aesthetic power Is 
entirely undeveloped. You are admonished not to 
follow any pursuit unless you can give other reas¬ 
ons besides your Inconsiderate preference. 
You should expect and be prepared for discour¬ 
agements and difficulties In any work that you 
may choose. If you wait for a held that Is rree 
from ml that tries patience and spirit, you will 
wall forever, 'lids Is taught by the nature of man 
and the world in which we live, aud Is exemplified 
by universal experience. So true is It, that one 
w ho cannot bravely struggle with opposition and 
surmount dread obstacles, la regarded by all the 
wise as utterly unfit for any Important under¬ 
taking. Be not appalled! Difficulties bring disci¬ 
pline; discipline gives strength and experience; 
aud these promise success In still greater struggles 
In behalf of nobler, vaster interests. The following- 
suggestions are respectfully urged upon your 
attention: 
Seek the opinions and advice of your parents; 
for they desire your highest success, and have 
much more knowledge of life and labor than 
youth Is likely to have. But you must remem¬ 
ber that It Is natural for them to have preferences 
that are caused by the peculiarities of their own 
lives and fortunes. Hence, you should seek not 
only their view's and counsels, but also their rea¬ 
sons. Avail yourselves of the experience and 
discretion of other Intelligent, prudent, and suc¬ 
cessful people, provided you can find such among 
your special friends. When you have obtained 
their advice and their reasons for it, you must 
calmly weigh all, and make your decision upon the 
great question In accordance with certain import¬ 
ant principles. Be careful to couslder that the 
question of respectability is decided favorably as 
soon as the fact of utility Is established. Lord 
Bacon truly said that, " Usefulness Is the measure 
of greatness," None but the vain and foolish 
entertain different notions now-a-days. li that 
which is not useful is to be avoided, of course that 
which is hurtful and corrupting 13 to be shunned 
as the deadly plague. True dignity, pleasure, and 
peace are utterly Impossible lo him who pursues 
a calling that debases himself and others, or a 
calling that tends directly to poison human enjoy¬ 
ment and destroy sweet peuce of mind. Money 
and flattery may seem, for a time, to compensate 
tor the evils Incurred and the injuries inflicted; 
but, soon or late, the vain delusion w ill be dis¬ 
pelled, the baneful consequences will appear, and 
the nights of bitter remorse will begin No man 
can afford to pursue a vocation that will make 
good parents and a pure family ashamed. Low. 
hurtful, corrupting occupations drive the best bles¬ 
sings that money is expected to obtain, far beyond 
the purchasing capacity of money. Bear this in 
Mind: The occupation that you choose for a life- 
work should be one susceptible of development 
and expansion. As you grow older and learn more 
of the world, your conceptions and desires will be 
enlarged, and your wants are almost sure to be 
much Increased. If you enter upon a kind of 
work that, In itself, can be carried to only u cer¬ 
tain limited degree, you must not regard that as 
your highest, your real calling, but only as lniro- 
duetory to something more w orthy or your growing 
talents and experience. I am glad to say that 
there are few, u any, vocations that are really and 
absolutely restricted to a certain measure of skill 
and ability. Probably those that bear sucb an 
appearance, are only seeming Illustrations. From 
the highest round or any ladder of enterprise, 
there is, perhaps always, another ladder whose 
lowest round Is In easy reach of the eager, deter¬ 
mined step. Therefore, whatever your calling, 
while careful not to abandon It without sufficient 
cause, let progress be your watchword, and do not 
fear that you will reach what Is absolutely tbe 
highest hlght. 
i o be faithful to you, and to cover all the ground 
atoeee, 1 must add that the one all-governing 
question that Is to guide your choice Is, What is it 
/up duty to cio y That alone brings the matter to 
the proper test. What are the real ends of my 
existence? In what can I best fulfil those ends? 
Philosophers have given sundry answers to the 
question, " What is the true end of life ?’’ I 
assume that while you will naturally consider 
what will best promote your individual Interest, ’ 
ujwI then look with magnanimous concern to the 
privilege of doing the most and the best you can 
ior the welfare of others, you will bring every 
thought aud purpose Into complete allegiance to 
the one sublime thought that you must do what 
you sincerely believe that it is tbe will or your 
Creator that you should do. Governed by this, 
your choice w ill be wisely made. It will be a sare 
choice; for " the path of duty Is the path of safety.” 
It will be a discreet choice; tor It wtu carry with 
it the assurance of constancy, the fountain of con¬ 
tentment and cheer, and the best guarantee of 
success. It will be a fortunate choice; for he who 
humbly, steadily performs the will or his God, Is 
sure therein to best subserve all bis own Interests 
and to truly promote, In the noblest and most last¬ 
ing way, the welfare of his fellow-beings. 
-- 
LETTERS FROM BOYS AND GIRLS. 
Dear Cousins In making our first visit to you, 
we feel as If we were leaving mamma and papa- 
going off alone on a long and hazardous journey, 
where our faults will appear magnified because so 
many hundred miles from our native home. Vet 
we hope that you wlU pass our Imperfections by, 
and as our friendship matures we will feel a warm 
interest in each other, trying to fulfill our Saviour’s 
command, that ye “love one auother.” If we meet 
with encouragement, we will tell you, In our next, 
of our home by the sea side. From 
The Two Misters. 
Dear Uncle True and Cousins:— As this is my 
first attempt at writing to you, 1 nope you will not 
criticise me too sharply. I hope all of you will 
welcome me Into your noisy circle. perhaps noisy 
is too strong a term, for of late there lias been no 
excitement whatever. Why can’t we renew the 
stirring controversy of last year. Wonder If Slay- 
erofconcelt has stopped his subscription ? li lie lias 
(poor fellow), let’s pass around the hat, and renew 
It for him! Some one spoke of getting up a collec¬ 
tion of relics. 1 have fourteen whole, and ten bro¬ 
ken, Indian arrow heads, besides three broken tom¬ 
ahawks. if this letter does not go into the waste 
basket, you may hear from me again. 
West Salem, Wls. Relic seeker, 
Dear Rural cousins:— Can 1 be welcomed as 
one of your number ? 1 should very much like to 
be so welcomed. My father lias long taken tbe 
Rural, and the letters from the cousins I have 
always read. Jumping Jack’s letter was very In¬ 
teresting I have not much to talk about, so 1 will 
say a few words about my pets. The principal one 
Is the cat, Chub. He Is a large gray cat, and very 
cunning. One of his cutest tricks Is to have a chair 
to sit In by the window, and If It is not there, he 
will beg until lie gets It. My other pets are the 
chickens, of which I am very fond. I have one 
pheasant hen that la six years old and a great pet. 
Nearly all our hens know their names, and come 
to eat out of the hand. I have had quite an expe¬ 
rience In taking care of chickens, and I wish some 
one of the cousins would write a letter, telling 
something more about chickens or other pets. As 
this is my first attempt, and as I am not yet 
Cousin, 1 will make this letter short. Yours truly, 
with all cousinly love, Minnie s. White. 
Erie Co., N. Y. 
abbatlt leading. 
BEFORE THE REFORMATION. 
Those “gooB old times,” which were all change 
by the Luthern Reformation, may he understoo 
by reading such a passage as this by Dr. Hagen- 
back in hl» History Just published: 
We have already, In our History of the Middle 
Ages, made mention of the religious plays, the 
fools’ and asses’ feasts, and the therewith con¬ 
nected mummeries and banquetingsln the church¬ 
es. In spite of ecclesiastical prohibitions, these 
disorderly proceedings continued and increased. 
Let us transport ourselves for an inst ant to th 
Cathedral at Strasburg. High mass Is about be¬ 
ing celebrated. The nobles make their appear¬ 
ance magnificently attired, wearing peaked shoe 
that clatter as they walk, and accompanied by 
hounds and falcons, the latter of which they occa¬ 
sionally let fly, by way of pastime, during the ser¬ 
vice of God. Here merchants are settling their 
worldly affairs, yonder a magistrate publicly admin¬ 
istering justice, in the churcli. For the sake 0 
shortening- the way, sucking pigs from the niarke 
close by, are carried through the sanctuary, so tha 
the noise and bustle thereby occasioned, force th 
priest to pause In his conduct of the mass. Above 
the minster organ was placed a grotesque figure, 
called the “ape or the pipes.” 
During Whltsun-ttdc some wag would conceal 
himself behind this, and auiuse the multitude by 
howls, coarse Jests, and comic songs, i rom the 
feast of Mt. Nichols to innocents’ day (to Adven 1 
and Christmas time) It was customary for a boy, 
dressed as a bishop, to read mass; the rest or the 
people who frequented the church likewise ap¬ 
peared disguised In various costumes within its 
consecrated walls. Processions were held and se¬ 
cular songs were sung. Of a still madder charac¬ 
ter were the proceedings at the feast of the con¬ 
secration of the cathedral, on St. Adolphus’s 
day (August 29), which was the time for the an¬ 
nual fair. Casks of wine were placed In the chapel 
of St. Catherine, the high altar served as a table, 
and tlie most Immoderate Indulgence in wine com¬ 
pleted orgies which surpassed those of the heathen 
In unrullness. 
-■»-*-♦- 
THE LOGIC OF A HOLY LIFE. 
Some years ago a young man who gave clear 
evidence that he was truly a subject of the regen¬ 
erating grace ot God, was asked what had led to 
the change In him, as he had been wild and 
thoughtless. Was it any sermon or book that had 
Impressed him? He answered, “No!” “ What 
was It, then ? Did any one speak to you specially 
on the subject of religion 7” The same response 
was given. 
“ Will you then state what first led you to think 
of your soul’s eternal welfare ?” The reply was: 
“ I five In the same boardlng-liouse, and eat at 
the same table with J. Y.” 
“ Well, did he e zer talk to you about your soul ?” 
“ No, never till I sought an Interview with him,” 
was the reply. “ But,” he continued, “ there was 
a sweetness In his disposition, a heavenly-mlnded- 
ness, a holy aroma about Ills whole file and de¬ 
meanor. that made me feel that he had a source 
of comfort, and peace aud happiness lo which I 
was a stranger. There was a dally beauty In Ills 
life, that made me ugly, l became more and more 
dissatisfied with myself every time I saw him; and 
though, as I said, fie never spoke to me on the sub¬ 
ject of personal religion tiu 1 myself sought the 
interview, yet fils whole life was a constant ser¬ 
mon to me. lie was • a living epistle,' speaking by 
action so clearly that I could resist no longer; and 
accordingly I went and sought an interview with 
him. We held repeated conversations with each 
other. Then he pointed me to Jesus Christ, prayed 
with me, counseled me, watched over me.”— Aat- 
ional JkipttsL 
it Is a pitiful thing to see a young disciple going 
about uud asking everybody how much he must 
"give up” In order to be a Christian. Unfortu¬ 
nately, many of those who take It upon them¬ 
selves to instruct him give him tlie same Impres¬ 
sion or Christian dlsclpleshlp—that It consists 
chiefly of giving up things that one llkt-s aud finds 
pleasure In. But a man In solitary confinement 
might as well talk about what lie must “give up” 
1 r he Is pardoned out of prison, or a patient In con¬ 
sumption about what he must “give up" in order 
to get well. 'I he prisoner must give up las fetters, 
and the Invalid Ills pains aud his weakness—these 
are the main things to be .sacrificed. It is true 
that the one has the privilege of living without 
work, aud the other the privilege of lying abed all 
day; these are privileges that must be relin¬ 
quished, no doubt. And so there are certain sac¬ 
rifices to be made by him who enters upon the 
Christian life, but they are “not worthy to be 
compared” with the liberty and dignity and Joy 
into which the Christian life Introduces us; and to 
put the emphasis upon this negative side ot the 
Christian experience, as so many are Inclined to 
do Is a great mistake.— Su into 1 /Afternoon. 
-- 
“ Whosoever,” is written on the outside of mercy, 
and “Whatsoever," on the Inside. The “Who¬ 
soever ” takes In all classes, ages, every individual 
of our race. The “ Whatsoever.” covers the whole 
range of each Individual’s time and eternity. 
Hasten to get inside mercy’s golden gate, if not 
already there, and when admitted to her banquet¬ 
ing house, grasp firmly the promise, “ Whatsoever 
ye shall ask In my name, I will do It" 
