{ title: 'Warren County messenger. (Glens Falls, N.Y.) 1829-1830, June 25, 1829, Page 1, Image 1', download_links: [ { link: 'http://www.loc.gov/rss/ndnp/ndnp.xml', label: 'application/rss+xml', meta: 'News about NYS Historic Newspapers - RSS Feed', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031174/1829-06-25/ed-1/seq-1/png/', label: 'image/png', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031174/1829-06-25/ed-1/seq-1.pdf', label: 'application/pdf', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031174/1829-06-25/ed-1/seq-1/ocr.xml', label: 'application/xml', meta: '', }, { link: '/lccn/sn83031174/1829-06-25/ed-1/seq-1/ocr.txt', label: 'text/plain', meta: '', }, ] }
Image provided by: Adirondack Museum
PUBLISHED WEEKLY BY A. SMITH, GLEN’S FALLS, N. Y,, AT TWO DOLLARS PER ANNUM,-PAYABLE HALF YEARLY. =SE THURSDAY MORNING, JUNE 25, 1829, NO. 26. [IS C E L I i A N E O l i S . ran) 1n- I Philatirliiliia Smvr i, i.J L e n g t h o f c h a r a c t e r . snial is tlie essence, of strength ofj which includus a capability of |g present indulgence for some fu- Idistaut object of desiie. Sere sentimentalist loses the pres- contemplation o f the past; the in vader is,fin a great measure, the if present circumstances; but the Jfiarac ter subjects the present to the Hid I. altes it subservient to the cv- |f spine ultimate supposed good, fth of character assumes different fdilferent individuals, according to fre of ike objects which it exerts it- |cuyc; and these are again diversi- le natural talents, passions, attain- m-judices, ami situations, of the jyiduals. jer may display as much strength (ter, in his rise from indigence to |s any successful usurper that ever the pages of hitftory: for strength Jeter is not necessarily connected ] most comprehensive character.— lainly a most desirable quality: nu- |nslanccs may be adduced of its a- these form no argument against Rgln as well wish the earth to be gwiili perpetual jiight, because the 30 generally made subservient to |s purposes. If strength of clmr- i slain its thousands, weakness of Ir lias slain its tens of thousands; for fins,as her ibost loyal subjects, all jjo arc unnbleto resist the immedi- [tation ofappttiiP, who cannot post- invitation of indulgence, und upon has set her peculiar seal—the 'an infirm character. st,i iigul'i luiosta n c c o fdui indritl in line under my observation a few > S,iii the case of a youth at a semaua- was an entire slave to his appetite. Iter his arrival at school, having red aw ay all his money, he disposed Jayf'iings for one quarter of their [hen this resource failed, unable to in. ;'.r.jiug demands of his appo- Epntfdr* mg present indulgence to &hif<rttyitfe*:raT»rictfl's»ecl' U«rAvhot*r\of- [Coming half \ear’s allowance ot fenoncy (to the amount of 6s.) for Thee of ready money; and when this Earned sum was dissipated, he pro- Ifetv more pence by bartering away [Ikfnst for the roinniuder of the holf- jid, at last having parted with all |c him an appearance of rcspcctn- Je completed Ids degradation by sel- pself a-s a lacquey to a senior scbool- I would ask, what could be cxpec- sucli a youth in after life? Noth in peetdiar concurrence of circum- or divine interposition, could have jhini from an infamous death. In ran be little doubt, but that nine if the hanktuplcus daily recorded in |scllc, are originally owing to weak- character. :strength of character is generally cannot be denied; but as upon a Sly weak constitution of body much |h nuty be i ngrafted by approved : and rxcrcismg, so, in my humble i. may a naturally weak character Bo almost any degree of strength by iSsivu efforts. his future advances. He parcels out the space to lie lrave.mil, and exults to find, that if he be ortly constant to his purpose, lie shall not only give a notable proof of his not 5nly make a most strength of character, desirable acquisition, but even realise all that could have been effected by an ordina ry mind during the whole period both of his past and future application, and thus steal a march upon time itself. Now’, should this paper chance to be read by a thousand readers, may I not affirm, that eight hundred-can bear an experimen tal testimony to the fidelity of this represen tation? The supposed student makes no allowance for hindrances, ov probable fail ure of will and strength; be makes no pro vision for that weak point of humanity wiiichwill not admit o f unwearied applicR- tiori. • We need scarcely infer, that 'in such a course of martyrdom he does riot continue long. The natural ebb of bis excitement accelerated by the increasing irksomeness of his'career, soon leads him to abandon his hopes in disgust; and he resigns himself to his former imbecility’, either with the com posing conviction that lie is constitutionally incapaciated for ever becoming a strong character, or with the delusive hope of ma king at some future time a more successful completely succeeded. The irksomeness pfth.ejiriv.aUn; wh’rch was at first very great grad umly worh oft’ until it was no longer felt, and long before the expiration of six months his abstinence had totally ceased lb be an exercise of self denial. Tlie conse quent pecuniary saving, although not to be despised by those who riglitly estimate the worth of money, was oflittle importance in comparison with the value oE the habit su- perinduced-r the confidence^ in his own powers, and (he.accession of inoral strength which he had thus gained, together with the well earnd self approbation which natu rally resulted. It is now four months since the completion kf his vow. and I find that he has expended nothing whatever in the pursuit of srrtsuul gratification; not from necessity, nor even in a general way so mhch from principle; as from the absence of inclination. Since then, loo, he has as cended yet higher in the scale of character; ho has added two more links to that chain which will cnabje him to connect the fai lure with the present, and entitle him to the appellation, and secure to him tlie advanta ges, of a strong character. He was once such a student as we have described at the commencement of our Essay. He aimed a t pre-eminence orili- by desultory efforts, and was incapable of prolonged'application to any one pursuit; he was ever forming de signs, but they stretched far into futurity, lie never completeejl them; and his past attempt Accordingly, we find that nearly all the failures in the attempt to acquire strength of character proceed from a mistaken deter course might be computed as well by the ruination o the part of the aspirant, to be come a strong character at oncq He should rather imitate the early Romans, who first measured their strength with their more immediate neighbours, and gaining additional power from each successive en counter to meet another yet more arduous, at length extended their dominion oven the iiniyevse.,' ... ^ i ' .............. :r J 1 should recommend those who are so far sensible of.their infirmity of character as to determine to get the better of it—l,st, (o adopt as their war cry, the standing max iin,‘that if’a man exerts liimsolf he may be any tiling he pleases,’ i. c. if lie exerts him self in the right way. Animated by the in fluence of this encouraging truth, let them first acquire a just confidence in their ownjpoimment,by abempling more than Im r e powcrspsclcct sortie one of those habits';sburCCff'of time and inclination would cna can have supported a tenacity of\ purpose in reference to the interests of an unseen world, in the case o f persons who, on eve* ry other point, have manifested the utmost imbecility and weakness of character? One of the many strong evidences of tlie truth of Christianity appears to me to be supplied by this fact, viz.—that persons who in all respects but this one, are as unstable as water, and can scarcely plan with cer tainty for any portion of futurity, nolwith- slanding manifest, in their preusing forward for the ‘prize of their high calling,’ * strength of character which, both in respect foils object and degree, infinitely trans cends that ever bl,esseilc>r cursedthfe world. C antab . A FIELD c T b a TTLE. “Enough of joy and triumph! The roar of hi tile i» hushed! The hurry-of the action is over! Let us walk over the corpse.encumbered field! look around! behold thousands Main,\ thousands of wounded groaning -with anguish, agony and despair. Alovo a little this way. Here fought the lancers of the French hundred; all corpses! 'A by, that hoy cannot have numbered eighteen yaars! how beuulifukJipwr serene a counte nance! Perhaps, on thchaal^ofthj murmuring Loire, some mother thinks unfonsciously of her dir ling child Hero lough the third brigade, Iwro the fusileere; how illicit these heroes lay! most of the bodies arc already stripped; rank is no longer diutinguishredl Tea. this must have >een an officer; look a t the delicate whiteness of ms hands, and observes on hia finger the made of his ring; >\hat manly beauty; what a srtiilo still iday* upon his lip! he fell, perhaps, beneath hi* ”l«»r»; died easy; lie is to be onvied. Here char- ■*d thi> Polish lamie.n -3 not long ago the tramp- ng of horses, the shout, the cry. the prayer, the ath stroke mingled their wild sounds on this succession of brilliant but unaccomplished projects, as by the ordinary divisions o f time. . In his aims at self improvement in tlies* respects, instead of sketching a magnificent plan, which his present habits would not i mt; it is now, but a luw pitiful and stifled groan* jijtve maided him to execute, he first pro- ■•* silent as the grave. \\ hat is this?,a battered posed to accomplish som.e single task, (to 'umpol; the bread), ivhlcl* filled this morning, it* 'rcflfl^rjn^ttnc.c; .h.ccriaiii pqrtjojrjof'aq ^autghty ten^ha* Rod, ffethnffi: foreyst; Jarid author, at staled hours every day, for a specified'time;) requiring time rather than labor for its execution; for be it remember ed, that it in not so much intensity as con stancy of effort, that marks the strong char acter. When this point was gained, he added a second and a third, taking care not to expose himself* to chagrin and disajo- which on mature consideration they find lojble him to support; and heig at this present be incompatible with strength o f character, lime pressing forward to the attainment p f and determine to annihilate it by the vigor ous and systematic counteraction of an op posite one: and let them not attempt any other great reform till the said superindu cod habit, by dint of repetition, be, if I may be allowed the expression, so completely naturalized, as to require little or no exer cise of self denial When this point is gain ed- inspirited, nml not, libe-Pyrrhus, vreak- t’nctd, by their victory, they may proceed in a strong character, by the progressive ac cumulation of the necessary habits. Before, he could not reckon with confi denco upon the performance of an opliosi nl design, if a few days only necessarily i n tervened; lie was master only of the prrsenl and hold by a most precarious tenure all those thoughts and intentions which exten ded to futurity: any one of these was like a rudderless boat on the bosom of the deep, a ihvro agaTn,\a bib¥vn faiice; b iliis the muscular arm that wielded it, ’mas vigorous, »nd “low ■iortiap*, a victim on this ft«ldj it i« unn<'nro«l hy death. L*jok at llio ron'roclion < f this body, and 'lies anguish ot theie f*tmires;>i<ghi i.rneg has this innee pierced his Hamel Herr, again, lie head* Iosk trunks, and bodies loro and struck down by cannon shot. Such chalk is horrid, but ’tin mer ciful. Who are these- iliat catch at our cout-. A: ■•ling at our feet in such a humble attltud- ? tbu ivoiindetf sol(iit‘B of th e enemy,* 'Lwiio ar* iipplor ■ng; British protection Trim* the exhssperated and revengeful Spaniard! wluit a pr«ud compliment to our country.— RecoJltclinnsnf Ptninsula. the same way with a second and a third, & , which, if no contrary wind or storm arose, will find their difficulties retire as they ad-j might possibly be wafted to its destined vancc. Their progress will resemble that shore. But now, he can rerkon with con JFnovciy uncommon (lung for vounc '.fn,r pei using an account of some tabh strong clmrai ler, or such an as Post* i -> on ‘Dec ision,’ lo be so far i as to determine to be henceforth ixhaiactcis themselves. The mere 'seems to derate them aboic all op- n, and they determine to be so at jrtmd to begin iminetlintcly by putting 'Strain on nil those habits which are sislcnl with their vague conception necessary qualifications. 1’erhaps ssumc an unwonted importance of e, ablusteiingimpatience of contra il, or a vehement mode of expressing 'opinions and wishes. If this be the they are soon convinced by the re- :they meet with, that theincie skin of qn wh U not secure an ignobler animal fluence of the syh an monarch. Or ps, with move plausibility7, they sketch magnificent pmn during the first heat Lt|feir excitement:they determine to re- tjiiice all those jilcnsures which, in their cf a great stone which is first dragged a slior* way;, with great difficulty, to the sum mit of a hill, but afterwards descends by its own weight, with increasing velocity. A youth whom I know well, was a short time ago so much stimulated by the perusal of Poster’s Essays; and a conviction of his infirmity of character, as lo form a deliber ate determination lo get the better 6f it.— One of his grand failings, and a failing too peeuliaily ebaraclercstic of a w7cak charac ter, was.an improvidence about the futurejself-demal fiderce upon tlie future fulfilment of RliFEliUTION’-S. How fugitive in nun! Of what avail His strides for honor and his toil for wealth? lie scopes, at best, a very narrow sphere, His pains are many and bi« griefs ore great. Ni* star is blotted from the field of heaven, Though nations perish in tho fi»lil of war. Nor is the sun shorn of its beams,—nnr earth Depriv’d of verdure, wlinn the proud man diei, ( Tears never ceaso to flow, for some are sick n|0r dying ijaily on the onrih. This world present conreptionvrtt least as far ns it d e pends upon himself; and be entertains a hope that it may one day lie said of his life- in the beautiful language of a livjng uhiter, that ‘lo-day knowssometi ing of yesterday, and all his days pass along, likr a well o r tVitholl Its splendors—alf its tinsHl’J joy*, - Piesenls an awful proofnf\ wrath divine. il» who looks, trnm hi* high throno to enrlh, ^ees and conipas-ionabs the woe* of man; 1 And yet, Tor man's rebellion, «cc*urgi>H oft; And thus gbes proof that hidden wratll and m^rnenT*1 °” en'erpriZe ° f pil1' \u * y yet fill heavy on the guilty head. The last hint, I shall venture to offer, i f latcs Every g|rl ve is proof «f punishment s to the expediency of gratuitous acts (wfl'cled^-on the fnulty sons of men. -denial, in order to the attainment <,f But 0, if there await-* sternal puntshment in hts.gcneral expenditure—a reckless spir- ^'rengtli of character, For as—to recur to it of extravagance i:i minor matters, pro- (our former illustration—the early Romans ceeding not so much from wanton thought-.prepared themselves for their .most stupen- lessucsi, as from a deliberate sacrifice of! dous conquests, not only by previous com- tlie future lo the present. He knew the in-!(lict with their pretty ndjaccnt foes, hut al«so ■lulsence of his inclination to purchase this i oolc, or that luxury , &c, would occasion him much future inconvrnionce and unea siness, bul be could not withstand the temp tation to present indulgence. Although by no means selfish, he was too much the slave of appetite. He had, in particular, an inordinate fondness for fruit, and being dlnated where it formed no part of the or dinary meal, he was in (be daily practice of expending a sum upon it; so much so, that, like oilier confirmed practices, it became essential lo his comfort. In the career of self improvement, he first proposed to himself the subjugation of this prominent failing—this improvident prodi gality; and to promote ibis end, he made a vow not to purchase any fruit whatever for six months, and at the expiration of that time to regulate Ids future expenditure by c ardour, limy li^dlol.c unnecessary, the sevcicsl dictates of his judgment, rightly ito sutistituiefor them a s* ries of self- calculating, that hy that time his appetite would be so far subdued, and the powers of self rontroul so far augmented by exercise, nnd invigorated by su e d s-s, as to secure the uncontrolable supremacy of reason in tlie disposal of his inclinations. His plan . ......... .. ........ Jjm g pursuits, which shall fully evince ii pos-i-ssion o f -urensrih of character, 'no hitherto negligent student, for in- .i ■ , ml’Iis over tnc waste »t die past, b't' erum.i-i io mal»i up l*»r lost ground b\> puni F-’f the UnfofgivoB, why Hors not this Mnnv’ntous truth excite a dread of sin? Why do men doza and sleep o’er present ills, \nd future wrath, as tlinugh the g]o»ms of h t\i , - . - - , , _ _ . Were but the sanction of a law repeal’d by martial exercises and mock fights m lime of peace; so 1 should recommend thci BEE WORM, OR MOTH, youthful aspirbnt after eminence of char- AAV have been told, (in*l indeed w« arn satis- acter to exercise a self-control on parlieu-dpd f,f the fact from personal observation) that lar occasions, even when it may not be alj- 'be bee Worm, or bee moth, has been very de^ solulcly necessary. I recollect reading a \ruciivo to bees in tbUp.irt of the country — very instructive anecdote, which, short us jhW«have soon whole hive« of hees destroyed by ____ : ____ r. i: __ r __ t _ i ____ !lh«*m. Each cavity «l tho comb H found t-> bi ^0'in‘’,<^ ’! lecupied by a round black worm, about the size . j of a Urge bee’s body; somo of them appear to is, comprises a folio of wisdom in a letter to a young friend recently cd atlhe University of Cambridge in; us Jil<e a vv- d ins-el,in its chrysalis the which be cautioned linn against the tbB.^-!nlou,h9 uf the cnutVs containing the worm-are pationand vice so prevalent there, gave loatd by a l4;nd Ilf wb( nol unlike fin8 co,trtn. him this injunction, 4Learn-lo refuse an in- have sei*n a tnoilioci of destroying iheso vitation to supper sometimes, even when'- i . oi I b prescribed, which svesubjoin, there be no particular necessity for doing “ ln-linct teaches tbo beomoth to h»r- so.’ The young man afterwards declare d, «df during the day, in the cofriero of /ho hive.-- that it was astonishing how much the oc- All, therefore,necessary to be done is to taka casional adoption of this simple hint cpn-\uch advantage of thb (act, as (hat this most tributed to bis/Strength of character. | permi-iona enemy shall rurfi to its owm destruc- In conclusion, I would observe, that- if, l'on l'»r this purposi', I**t the orifice of the ‘strength of character,’ principally includes1 hi\ ,1,0 four inche\ ' ° nCn<sh , 9. ,♦ r .i r . f 7 iM ia cummoncornenl r>i the eeaeon fur (he (he subjection of the present to the future,; >lnl Iaco a flhlnglf. on th# or flof,rof l e. tenacity of purpose m reference to; |lif>.hiv'0 y RU will Find m the tnormrjgthi.i al- somereniotc object o( desire, and-r *'■ - - 1 * ■ - dinary scope, even in its most memornhl fils t>r.j moat every moth has t«l.en, refuge uVdc-r nr- readily degpaub- d. Tbis r lb- ii — . - . I\ ■ J * i-xemplilicaliims, has been bounded Iry lime ( |jav„ vviih my w> •>'•••-■& - ■ sin- what short of natural and divine in fluence'«|c lave has been i n j u r e d , Crirolinan, ■ * * r I
