THE YOUTH AND THE PHILOSOPHER

"Oh! how canst thou renounce the boundless storeOf charms which Nature to her votaries yields,—The warbling woodland, the resounding shore,The pomp of groves and garniture of fields;All that the genial ray of morning gilds,And all that echoes to the song of even,All that the mountain's sheltering bosom shields,And all the dread magnificence of Heaven;—O! how canst thou renounce and hope to be forgiven!"BeattieEatinganddrinkingare too closely connected with our general subject of health, to be forgotten here.That regard for Temperance which I have endeavored to commend to you, of course yields a prominent place to habits in these respects.In relation toeating, I strongly recommend the cultivation ofsimple tastes, and the careful avoidance of every indulgence tending towardssensuality.Some knowledge ofDieteticsis essential to the adoption of right opinions and practice on this point. For instance, no man should wait for dire experience to enforce the truths that roast and broiled meats possess the most nutritious qualities; that allfrieddishes are, necessarily, more or less unwholesome; that animal oils and fatty substances require stronger digestive force for their assimilation than persons of sedentary life usually possess; that warm bread, as a rule, is unsuited to the human stomach, etc., etc. No one should consider these matters unworthy of serious attention, though temporarily free from inconvenience arising from neglecting them. Eventually, every human constitution will exhibit painful proofs of all outrages committed upon the laws by which its operations are governed; and the greater the license permitted in youth, the severer will be the penalty exacted in after years.——"Mind and Body are so close combined,Where Health of Body, Health of Mind you find."Preserve, then, as you value the means of usefulness, the perfect play of your mental powers—so easily trammelled by the clogging of the machinery of the body—the unadulterated taste that is content with a sufficiency of wholesome, well-cooked food to satisfy the demands of healthful appetite. Cultivate no love of condiments, sauces and stimulants; indulge no ambition to excel in dressing salads, classifyingragouts, or in demonstrating, down to the nicety ofa single ingredient, the distinction between a home-made and an importedpâté de foie gras! Distinctions such as these may suffice for the worn-out society of a corrupt civilization, but our countrymen—MEN—should shoutExcelsior!Abstract rules in relations to the hours proper for taking meals, however carefully adapted to the security of health, in themselves considered, must, of necessity, give place to those artificially imposed by custom and convenience. Thus, though the practice ofdining lateis not sanctioned by Hygeia, it admits of question, whether, as the usages of the business-world at present exists, it is not a wiser custom than any other permitted by circumstance.All who have given any attention to the subject know, that neither bodily nor mental labor can be either comfortably or successfully pursued directly after a full meal. Hence, then, those whose occupations require their attention during several successive hours, may find the habit of dining after the more imperative labors of the day are accomplished, most conducive to health as well as convenience.Still, it should not be forgotten, that long abstinence is likely to produce the exhaustion that tells so surely and seriously upon the constitution, of young persons especially. This may be prevented by taking, systematically, a little light, simple nutriment, sufficient to produce what is aptly termed thestimulus of distentionin that muchabused organ—the stomach. This practice regularly adhered to, will also promote a collateral advantage, by acting as a security against the too keen sharpening of appetite that tends to repletion in eating, and which sometimes produces results similar to those exhibited by a boa-constrictor after dining upon a whole buffalo, swallowed without the previous ceremony of carving! One should never dine so heartily as to be unfitted for the subsequent enjoyment of society, or of the lighter pursuits of literature.Deliberate and thorough masticationwill more beneficially, and quite as pleasurably, prolong the enjoyments of the table, as a more hurried disposal of a large quantity of food. And really I do not know how the most rigid economist of time, or the most self-sacrificing devotee either of Mammon or of Literature, can more judiciously devote an hour of each day than to the single purpose ofdining!Happily for those whose self-respect does not always furnish the sustaining power requisite for the maintenance of a principle, fashion no longer requires of any man the use of evenwine, much less of stronger beverages. And with reference to the use of all alcoholic stimulants, as well as of tobacco, I would remind you thatthose only who are not enslaved by appetite, areFREE! If you have acquired a liking for wine or tobacco, and would abjure either, or both, you will soon be convinced, by experiment, of the truth of Dr. Johnson's saying,of which, by the way, his own life furnished a striking illustration, that "abstinence is easier than temperance."To prolong arguments against the habits of smoking and drinking, were a work of supererogation, here. I will advance but one, which may, possibly, possess the merit of novelty. Both have the effect, materially to limit our enjoyment of the presence and conversation of"Heaven's last, best gift to man!"I cannot better dismiss this important topic than by quoting the following passage from the writings of Sir Walter Raleigh:"Except thou desire to hasten thy end, take this for a general rule—that thou never add any artificial heat to thy body by wine or spice, until thou find that time hath decayed thy natural heat; the sooner thou dost begin to help nature the sooner she will forsake thee, and leave thee to trust altogether to art."In my youth, advice to young men was constantly commingled—whatever its general tenor—with admonitions regarding the necessity for industry and perseverance in those who would achieve worldly success. In these utilitarian times, when all seem borne along upon a resistless current, hurrying to the attainment of some practical end, engrossed by schemes of political ambition, or devoted to the acquisition of wealth, a quiet looker-on—as I am wont to regard myself—is tempted to counsel"moderation in all things," contentment with the legitimate results of honorable effort, the cultivation of habits of daily relaxation from the severity of toil, of daily rest from the mental tension that is demanded for successful competition in the arena of life.The impression thatsleepis a sufficient restorative from the wearing effects of otherwise ceaseless labor, or thatchange of occupationfurnishes all the relief that nature requires in this respect, is, undoubtedly, erroneous. "The man," says an eminent student of humanity, "who does not now allow himself two hours for relaxation after dinner, will becompelledto devote more time than that daily to the care of his health, eventually."To allow one's self to be so engrossed by any pursuit, however laudable in itself, as to reserve no leisure for the claims of Society, of Friendship, of Taste, is so irrational as to need nothing but reflection to render it apparent. In a merely utilitarian view, it is unwise, since, as Æsop has demonstrated, the bow that is never unbent soon ceases to be fit for use; but there is, surely, a higher consideration, addressed to the reason of man. Pope embodies it, in part, in the lines——"God is paid when man receives,To enjoy is to obey!"To have an aim, a purpose in life, sufficiently engrossing to act as an incentive to the exercise of all the powers of being, is essential tohealth and happiness. But to pursue any one object to the exclusion of all considerations for self-culture and intellectual enjoyment, is destructive of everything worthy that name.They who devote all the exertions of youth and manhood to the acquisition of political distinction, or of gold, for instance—cherishing, meanwhile, a sort of Arcadian dream of ultimately enjoying the pleasures of intellectual communion, or the charms of the natural world, when the heat and burden of the conflict of life shall be done—exhibit a most deplorable ignorance of the truth that they will possess in age only the crippled capacities that disuse has almost wholly robbed of vitality, together with such as are prematurely worn out by being habitually overtaxed.On the contrary, those who believe that"It is not all of life to live,"and early establish a true standard of excellence, and acquaint themselves with the immutable laws of our being, will so commingle self-ennobling pursuits and enjoyments with industrious and well-directed attention to the needful demands of practical life, as to secure as much ofever-present happinessas falls to the lot of humanity, together with the enviable retrospection of an exalted ambition, rightly fulfilled. They may also hope for the invaluable possession of intellectual and moral developments to be matured in that state of existence of which this is but the embryo. These are truisms, I admit, my youngfriends, yet the spirit of the age impels their iteration and re-iteration!Burke's musical periods lamented the departure of the "age of chivalry." Would that one gifted as he may revive the waning existence of the social and domestic virtues, and inspire my young countrymen with an ambition too lofty in its aspirations to permit the sacrifice of mental and moral powers, of natural affections, and immortal aspirations, upon the altars of Mammon!—shrines now yearly receiving from our country a holocaust of sacrifices, to which battle-fields are as naught in comparison.But to return from this unpremeditated digression. Natural tastes and individual circumstances must, to a considerable extent, determine the relaxations and amusements most conducive to enjoyment and health.You will scarcely need to be told that persons of sedentary habits, and especially those devoted to literary occupations, should makeexercise in the open aira daily recreation, and that it will best subserve the purposes of pleasure and health when united with the advantages arising fromcheerful companionship.Hence the superiority of walking, riding, driving, boating, and sporting in its various forms, to all in-door exercises and amusements—and especially to those tending rather to tax the brain than exercise the body—for those whose mental powers are most taxed by their avocations.On the other hand, there are those to whom the lighter investigations of literature and science afford the most appropriate relief from the toils of business.Permit me, however, to enter my protest against the belief that a change from the labors and duties of city life to the close sleeping-rooms, the artificiality and excitement of a fashionable watering-place affords a proper and healthful relief to a weary body and an overwrought brain. Life at a watering-place is no more an equivalent for the pure air, the simple habits, the wholesome food, therepose of mind and heart, afforded by unadulterated country life, than immersion in a bathing-tub is a satisfactory substitute for swimming in a living stream, or a contemplation of the most exquisite picture of rural scenes, for a glorious canter amid green fields and over breezy hills! Nor will dancing half the night in heated rooms, late suppers, bowling-alleys and billiards, not to speak of still more objectionable indulgences, restore these devotees to study or business to their city-homes re-invigorated for renewed action, as will the least laborious employments of the farmer, the "sportive toil" of the naturalist, the varied enjoyments of the traveller amid the wonders of our vast primeval forests, or of the voyager who explores the attractions of our unrivalled chain of inland lakes. People who do their thinking by proxy, and regulate their enjoyments by theon ditof the fashionable world, yearly spend money enough at some crowded resort of thebeau monde(heaven save the mark!) to enable them to make the tour ofEurope, or buy a pretty villa and grounds in the country, or do some deed "twice blessed," in that "it blesseth him that gives and him that takes." In Scotland, in England, in the North of Europe generally, men and women whose social position necessarily involves refinement of habits and education, go, in little congenial parties, into the mountains and among the lakes, visit spots renowned in song and story, collect specimens of the wonders of nature, "camp out," as they say at the West, eat simply, dress rationally—in short,really rusticate, in happy independence alike of the thraldom of fashion and the supremacy of convention. Thus in the Old World, among the learned, the accomplished, the high-born. Here in Young America—let the sallow cheek, the attenuated limbs, the dull eye andblaséair of the youthful scions of many a noble old Revolutionary stock, attest only too truly, a treasonous slavery to the most arbitrary and remorseless of tyrants! Would that they may serve, at least, as beacons to warn you, seasonably, against adding yourselves to the denizens of haunts where"Unwieldly wealth, and cumbrous pomp repose;And every want to luxury allied,And every pang thatfolly pays to pride!"I would that all my young countrymen might have looked upon the last hours of my revered friend, John Quincy Adams, and thus learned theimpressive lessons taught by that solemn scene; lessons that—to use his own appropriate language———"bid us seize the moments as they pass,Snatch the retrieveless sun-beam as it flies,Nor lose one sand of life's revolving glass—Aspiring still, with energy sublime,By virtuous deeds to giveEternity to Time!"[5]It was, indeed, a fitting close of his long, noble life! Faithful to his duty to his country, he maintained his post to the last, and fell, like a true defender of liberty—renouncing his weapons only with his life. Borne from the arena of senatorial strife to a couch hastily prepared beneath the same roof that had so often echoed his words of dauntless eloquence, attended by mourning friends, and receiving the tender ministrations of the companion alike of his earlier and later manhood, the flickering lamp of life slowly expired. After, apparently, reviewing the lengthened retrospection of a temperate, rational, useful life, from the boyish years"Whose distant footsteps echoed through the corridors of Time,"to the dying efforts of genius and patriotism, the hushed stillness of that hallowed chamber at length rendered audible the sublime words—"It is the last of Earth! I am content!"I think it was during the administration of Sir Charles Bagot, the immediate successor of Lord Durham, as Governor General of the Canadas, that I had the pleasure to dine one day, at the house of a distinguished civilian who held office under him, in company with the celebrated traveller L——, and his friend, the well-known E—— G—— W——, a man who, despite wealth, rank, and talent, paid a life-long penalty for a youthful error. There were, also, present several members of the Provincial Parliament, then in session at Kingston, which was, at that time, the seat of government, and a number of ladies—those of the party of Americans with whom I was travelling, and some others.The conversation, very naturally, turned upon the national peculiarities of theYankees—as the English call, not the inhabitants of New England alone, but the people of the North American States generally—in consequence of the fact that the world-wide traveller had just completed his first visit to our country. Some one asked him a leading question respecting his impressions of us as a people, and more than one good-humored sally was given and parried among us. At length L—— said, so audibly and gravely as to arrest the attention of the whole company:"I have really but two serious faults to charge upon Jonathan.""May we be permitted to inquire what those are?" returned I."That herepudiates his debts, anddoesn't take time to eat his dinner."When the general laugh had subsided, Mr. W—— remarked that, except when at the best hotels in the larger cities, he had found less inducement for dining deliberately in the United States than in most civilized lands he had visited, in consequence of the prevalent bad cookery."The words of Goldsmith," said he,—"'Heaven sends us good meat, but the devil sends cooks!'were always present to my mind when at table there! They eschew honest cold roast beef, as though there were poison in meat but once cooked, served a second time, though Hamlet is authority forourtaste in that respect.—The cold venison you did me the honor to compliment so highly, at lunch, this morning, L——, would have been offered youfriedby our good Yankee cousins!""The patron saint ofla cuisineforefend!" cried a smooth-browed Englishman—"not re-cooked, I hope?""Assuredly!" returned W——, "I trust these ladies and Colonel Lunettes will pardon me,—but such infamous stupidity is quite common. I soon learned, however, the secret of preserving my "capacious stomach" in unimpaired capacity for action, [an irresistiblycomic glance downward upon his portly person] and could, I thought, very readily explain—'What is't that takes fromthemTheir stomach, pleasures, and their golden sleep,Why they do bend their eyes upon the earth,* * * * * * *In thick ey'd musing and curs'd melancholy!'"If the frank denunciations of this eccentric observer of life and manners might otherwise have been regarded as impolite, his more severe comments upon his own countrymen proved, at least, that no national partiality swayed his judgment.I remember his telling me the following anecdote, as we chatted over our coffee, after joining the ladies in the evening:—In answer to some inquiry on my part, respecting the social condition ofthe people—the peasantry, as he called them, of the Provinces, he spoke in unmitigated condemnation of their ignorance, and especially of their insolence and boorishness. "Get L—— to tell you," said he, "how nearly he and his servants were frozen to death one fierce night, while an infernal gate-keeper opposed his road-right. Then, again, the other morning, Mrs. M—— (our hostess) who like every other lady here, except, perhaps, Lady Bagot, goes to market every day, was referred by a man, from whom she inquired for potatoes, to an old crone, with the words—'Thisladysell them,—here isa womanwho wants to buy potatoes!'"The following morning, while our American partywere driving out to the superb Fort that protects the Harbor of Kingston, to visit which we had been politely furnished with a permit by an official friend, I endeavored to draw from a very charming and accomplished lady the secret of her unusual silence and reserve at dinner the evening before. She is really a celebrity, as much for her remarkable conversational powers, as for any other reason, perhaps, and I had, therefore, the more regretted her not joining in the conversation."What made the mystery more difficult of solution," said one of the other ladies, "was the equally imperturbable gravity of that handsome Frenchman who sat beside Virginia.""Handsome!" retorted Virginia, "do you call that man handsome!—his high cheek bones and swarthy complexion show his Indian blood rather too plainly for my taste, I must confess.""That commingling of races is very common here, Virginia," said I, "Mr. E—— is a somewhat prominent member of the Canadian Parliament. I heard a speech from him, in French, yesterday morning, which was listened to with marked attention. There were a number of ladies in theside-boxes, too, and it is evident from his attention to his dress, if for no other reason, that Mr. E—— is anélégant!""All that may be," rejoined Virginia, "but I have no fancy for light blue 'unwhisperables,' as Tom calls them, nor for ruffled shirts!""A change has come o'er the spirit of your dream, most queenly daughter of the 'sunny South!'—isthis the sprightlyAméricainewho won all hearts the other day on the St. Lawrence,—from that magnificent British officer, to the quiet old priest whose very beard seemed to laugh, at least"——"That, indeed, Col. Lunettes!—but for your ever-ready gallantry I would exclaim—'Man delights me not, nor woman either!'but here we are at the entrance of the famous donjon keep!"We spent some time in examining the—to the ladies—novel attractions of the place. By-and-by, the fair Virginia, who had strayed off a little by herself, called to me to come and explain the mode of using a port-hole to her. In a few minutes, she said, in a low tone, sitting down, as she spoke upon a dismounted cannon, "Col. Lunettes, I beg you not to allude again to that—to the dinner, yesterday, or, at least, to my embarrassment"——"Your embarrassment, my dear girl!" I exclaimed, "you astonish me! Do explain yourself"——"Hush," returned my companion, looking furtively over her shoulder, "that young Englishman seems to be engrossing the attention of the rest of the party, and, perhaps, I shall have time to tell you"——"Do, my dear, if anything has annoyed you—surely so old a friend may claim your confidence.""I have heard of the 'son of a gun,'" replied she, evidently making a strong effort to recall the natural sprightliness that seemed so singularly to have deserted her of late; "I don't see why I amnot thedaughter of a gun, at this moment, and so entitled to be very brave! But about this Mr. E——, Colonel," she almost whispered, bending her head so as to screen her face from my observation. "You know Mrs. M—— called for me the other morning to go and walk with her alone, because, as she said, she wanted to talk a little about old times, when we were in the convent school at C—— together. Well, as we came to a little "shop," as she styled it—a hardware store,weshould say—she begged me to go in with her a moment, while she gave some directions about a hall-stove, saying, with an apology: "We wives of government officers here, do all these things, as a matter of course." While she walked back in the place, I very naturally remained near the door, amusing myself by observing what was passing in the street. Presently, a fine horse arrested my eye, as he came prancing along. His rider seemed to have some ado to control him, as I thought, at first, but I suddenly became aware that he was endeavoring to stop him, in mid career, and that, when he succeeded—he—I—there was no mistaking it—his glance almost petrified me, in short, and I had only just power to turn quickly in search of Mrs. M——."The slight form of the speaker quivered visibly, and she paused abruptly."Why, my poor child," said I, soothingly, "never mind it! How can you allow such a thing to distress you in this way?""If anything of the kind had ever happened to mebefore, I should have thought it my fault, in some way; but when I got back to our hotel, and reviewed the whole matter, and—but there come the rest of the party"—she added, hurriedly. "Do you wonder now at my manner at the dinner? I knew his face the moment the man entered the dining room; and when Mr. M—— introduced him, and requested him to conduct me, the burning glow that flashed over his swarthy brow convinced me that he, too, recognized me. I would sooner have encountered a basilisk than your elegant, parliamentary Frenchman!""Doctor, what may I eat?" inquired a dyspeptic American, who had just received a prescription from Abernethy—the eccentric and celebrated English physician."Eat?" thundered the disciple of Galen, "the poker and tongs, if you willchew them well!"What a commingling of nations and characters there was in the little party of which I made one, on a serene evening, lang-syne, at Constantinople! We floated gently over the placid bosom of the sunset-tinted Golden Horn, rowed by four stout Mussulmans, and bound for that point of the shore of the Marmora nearest the suburb of Ezoub wherehorses awaited us for a brisk canter of some miles back to the city. There were, Lord ——, an English nobleman; a Hungarian refugee; a Yankee sea-captain; a dark-eyed youth from one of the Greek Islands; and myself—men severed by birth and education from communion of thought and feeling, yet united, for the moment, by a similarity of purpose; associated by the subtle influence of circumstance, into a serene commingling of one common nature, and capacitated for the interchange of impressions and ideas, at least in an imperfect degree, through the medium of a strange jargon, compounded originally of materials as varied as the native languages of the several individuals composing the group in our old TurkishCaique, which may have been, for aught we knew, the identical one that followed Byron in his Leander-swim!The conversation naturally partook in character of the scene before us:—Near, towered the time-stained walls of the Seraglio—so long the cradling-place of successive Sultans, and then furnishing the embryo of the voluptuous pleasures of their anticipated paradise. Beyond, rose the ruin-crowned heights, the domes and minarets of old Stamboul, rich in historic suggestions, glowing now in the warmly-lingering smile of the departing day-god,"Not, as in Northern climes, obscurely bright,But one unclouded blaze of living light!"Before us, in our way over the crystal waters,loomed up the gloomy, verdure-draped turrets of the "Irde Koule" of this oft-rebelling and oft-conquered seat of Oriental splendor and imperial power. As with the "Tower" of London, the mere sight of this now silent and deserted castle, conjured up recollections replete with deeds of wild romance, and darker scenes of blood and crime. Around us flowed the waters whose limpid depths had so oft received the sack-shrouded form of helpless beauty, when midnight blackness rivalled the horror of the foul murder it veiled forever from mortal ken. Argosies and fleets had been borne upon these waves, whose names or whose conflicts were of world-wide renown—from the mythical adventurers of the Golden-Fleece to the triumphant squadrons of the Osmanlis, all seemed to float before the eye of fancy!From the broken sentences that, for some time, seemed most expressive of the contemplative mood engendered both by our surroundings and by the placidity of the hour, there gradually arose a somewhat connected discussion of the present condition of the Ottoman Porte.It is not my purpose to inflict upon you a detailed report of our discourse; but only to relate, for your amusement, a fragment of it, which somehow has, strangely enough, floated upwards from the darkened waters of the past, with sufficient distinctness to be snatched from the oblivion to which its utter insignificance might properly consign it."There is not," said the British noble—a man curious in literature, and a somewhat speculativeobserver of life—"there is not a single purely literary production in the Turkish language, written by a living author; not a poem, nor romance, nor essay. The Koran would almost seem to constitute their all of earthly lore and heavenly aspiration. What an anomaly in the biography of modern peoples!"This last sentence was addressed especially to the sea-captain and me, theidiomaticalEnglish in which the passing fancy of the speaker found expression being wholly unintelligible to all except ourselves."Their total want of a national literature," said the American, "does not so materially affect my comfort, I must confess, as the utter absence of decent civilization in their renowned capital. For instance, they have not an apology for a night-police in their confoundedly dark streets, except the infernal dogs that infest them. The other night, returning to my quarters, with my 'Ibrahim' pilot in front with a lantern, I was persuaded, as one of these 'faithful guardians' fastened his glistening ivories in my boot-top, that, like one of your 'lone stars' at New York, Colonel Lunettes, he had 'mistaken his man,' and supposed me to be the returned spirit of some one of the countless throng of infidel dogs, upon whom his public education had instructed him to make war to—the teeth!""Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the Greek, in tones as musical as his dress and attitude were picturesque, from the pile of boat cloaks upon which he reposed in the bow of the boat, and opening his dark eyes till one saw far down into the dreamy depths of hishalf-slumbering soul through his quick-lit orbs. He had caught enough of thesenseof the captain's nonsense, to imagine the joke to the full. "Ha, ha, ha!" laughed he, again, and the shadowy walls of the blood-stained "Chateau of Seven Towers," by which we were gliding, gave back the clear, clarion-like tone; "but, while this bravefils de la mer[6]thus sports with the terrors of my country's enslaver [here a frown, deep, dark, threatening, and a quick clenching of the jewelled handle of the yataghan he wore in his belt], the gates of fair Stamboul will close, and nor foe, nor Frank, nor friend, be given to the dogs.""By thunder!" shouted the American, shaking himself up, as if at sea, with a suspicious sail in sight, "he is more than half right. Would you have thought it so late?""Even a Yankee, like Captain ——, a fair representative of the'universal nation,' learns to dream and linger here," responded the Englishman, good-humoredly.Upon this, I made use of the little knowledge I possessed of the Turkish, to interrogate ourCaidjisrespecting the time further required to reach our landing-place."Allah is great, and Mohammed is his Prophet!" was all I could fully apprehend of his slowly-delivered reply.It was now the captain's turn to laugh, and as hissonorous peal rippled over the Marmora, he quietly insinuated his fore-finger and thumb into the disengaged palm of the devout Mussulman I had so touchingly adjured.The only response of the devotee of the Prophet was a gutteral repetition of "Pekee! good! pekee! pekee!" But by an influence as effective as it was mysterious, our swan-like movement was exchanged for a most hope-encouraging velocity."Bravo!" exclaimed my lord."Bravissima!" intonated the Hun."Go it, boys!" shouted the "old salt.""By the soul of Mithridates and the deeds of Thermopolæ!" chimed in the scion of the "isles of Greece," catching the instinctively-intelligible contagion of the sportive moment."And what said Uncle Hal?" you wonder, perhaps. Oh, I was listening to the low, melancholy, semi-howl in which the imperturbable Moslems were slowly chanting "Güzal! pek güzal!"[7]as they turned their dull eyes lingeringly towards their fast-receding mosques and minarets.But, meeting the questioning glances of my companions, as their mirth began to subside, I contributed my humble quota to the general stock of fun by saying, with extreme gravity of voice and manner:"When will wonders cease in the Golden Horn! At first, even its unquestionable antiquity did notredeem this vessel from my contempt—now I consider it an 'irresistible duck!'—and I wish, moreover, to publish my conviction that, though barbarous in matters of literature and art, the Turks impressively teach their boastful superiors areligious respect for cleanliness."I remember to have been singularly impressed, when I read it, with an anecdote somewhat as follows:As too frequently happens on such occasions, a discussion in relation to some insignificant matter, into which a large party of men, who had dined together, and were lingering late over their wine, had fallen, gradually increased in vehemence and obstinacy of opinion, until frenzied excitement ruled the hour."From words they almost came to blows,When luckily"the attention of one of the most furious of the disputants was suddenly arrested by theappearance of one of the gentlemen present. There was no angry flush on his brow, no "laughing devil" in his eye, and he sat quietly regarding the scene before him, serene and self-possessed as when he entered the apartment hours before. His astonished companion inquired the cause of such placidity, in the midst of anger and turbulence.The gentleman pointed, with a smile, to a half-empty water-bottle beside him, and replied: "While the rest of the company have been industriously occupied in endeavoring to drown the distinctive attribute of man—reason—I have preserved its supremacy by simply confining myself to a non-intoxicating beverage."I trust you will not think the following somewhat quaint verses, from the pen of an old and now almost forgotten poet, amal-à-proposconclusion to this letter:THE YOUTH AND THE PHILOSOPHERA Grecian youth, of talents rare,Whom Plato's philosophic careHad formed for Virtue's nobler view,By precept and example too,Would often boast his matchless skillTo curb the steed, and guide the wheel;And as he passed the gazing throngWith graceful ease, and smack'd the thong,The idiot wonder they expressed,Was praise and transport to his breast.At length, quite vain, he needs would showHis master what his art could do;And bade his slaves the chariot leadTo Academus' sacred shade.The trembling grove confessed its fright,The wood-nymphs started at the sight;The Muses drop the learned lyre,And to their inmost shades retire.Howe'er, the youth, with forward air,Bows to the Sage, and mounts the car;The lash resounds, the coursers spring,The chariot marks the rolling ring;And gathering crowds, with eager eyes,And shouts, pursue him as he flies.Triumphant to the goal returned,With nobler thirst his bosom burned;And now along the indented plainThe self-same track he marks again;Pursues with care the nice design,Nor ever deviates from the line.Amazement seized the circling crowd;The youths with emulation glowed;E'en bearded sages hailed the boy,And all but Plato gazed with joy.For he, deep-judging sage, beheldWith pain the triumph of the field:And when the charioteer drew nigh,And, flushed with hope, had caught his eye,"Alas! unhappy youth," he cried,"Expect no praise from me," (and sighed);"With indignation I surveySuch skill and judgment thrown away:The time profusely squandered thereOn vulgar arts, beneath thy care,If well employed, at less expense,Had taught thee Honor, Virtue, Sense;And raised thee from a coachman's fate,To govern men, and guide the state."One seldom finds a nicer selection of words than those of the last lines of these admonitory stanzas. With the wish that they may gratify your literary acumen, I am, as ever,Your faithful friend,Harry Lunettes.Footnotes:[5]Concluding lines of Mr. Adams' "Address to theSun-Dialunder the window of the Hall of the House of Representatives."[6]Son of the sea.[7]My beautiful! my most beautiful!LETTER VIII.LETTER-WRITING.My dear Nephews:Thereis, perhaps, no form of composition with which it is as desirable to be practically familiar, and in which all educated persons should be accomplished, as that ofletter-writing; yet no branch of an elegant education is more frequently neglected. Consequently, the grossest errors, and the utmost carelessness, are tolerated in regard to it. Rhetorical faults, and even ungrammatical expressions, are constantly overlooked, and illegibility has almost come to be regarded as an essential characteristic.Following the homely rule of the lightning-tamer, that "nothing is worth doing at all that is not worth doing well," you will not need argument to convince you of the propriety of attention to this subject, while forming habits of life.Different occasions and subjects require, of course, as various styles of epistolary composition. Thus the laconic language adapted to a formal business letter, would be wholly unsuited to one of friendship; and the playfulness that might be appropriatein a congratulatory communication, would be quite out of place in a letter of condolence.While it is impossible that any general rules can be laid down that will be always applicable in individual cases, a few directions of universal application may, not inappropriately, be introduced in connection with our present purpose.The principal requisites ofLetters of Businessare,intelligibility,legibility, andbrevity. To secure the first of these essentials, a clear, concise, expressive selection of language is required. Each word and sentence should expressexactlyandunequivocallythe idea intended to be conveyed, and incharactersthat will not obscure the sense by doubtfullegibility. A legible hand should certainly be as essential as intelligible utterance. We pity the man who by stammering, or stuttering, not only taxes the time and patience of his hearers, but leaves them, at times, uncertain of his meaning, despite their efforts to comprehend him. What, then, is the misfortune of those who, like the most genial of wits, 'decline to read their own writing, after it is twenty-four hours old!' Do not, I pray you, let any absurd impression respecting the excusableness of this defect, on the score thatgenius is superior to the trifles of detail, etc., lead you either into carelessness or indifference on the subject. Few men have the excuse of possessing the dangerous gift of genius, and to affect the weaknesses by which it is sometimes accompanied, is equally silly and contemptible. A man of sense will aim at attaining a true standardof right, not at caricaturing a defective model. Depend upon it, agood business-handis no small recommendation to young men seeking employment in any of the occupations of life. The propriety ofbrevityin letters of business, will at once commend itself to your attention. Time—the wealth of the busy—is thus saved for two parties. But remember, I repeat, that, while this precious treasure is best secured by expressing what you wish to communicate in as few words as possible, nothing is gained by leaving your precise meaning doubtful, by unauthorized abbreviations, confused sentences, or the omission of any essential—as a date, address, proper signature, important question, or item of information. Let me add, thatrapidity of mechanical executionis of no mean importance in this regard.Letters of Introductionshould be so expressed as to afford the reader a clue to the particular purpose of the bearer in desiring his acquaintance, if any such there be. This will prevent the awkwardness of a personal explanation, and furnish a convenient theme for the commencement of a conversation between strangers. Thus, if it be simply a friend, travelling in search of pleasure and general information, whom you wish to commend to the general civilities of another friend, some such form as the following will suffice:—— —— ——My dear Sir:Allow me the pleasure of introducing to you my friend, Mr. —— ——, a gentleman whoseintelligence and acquirements render his acquaintance an acquisition to all who are favored with his society. Mr. —— visits your city [or town, or part of the country, or, your celebrated city, or, your enterprising town, or your far-famed State, etc.] merely as anobservant traveller. Such attentions as it may be agreeable to you to render him will obligeYour sincere friend,and obedient servant,—— ——.To Hon. —— ——When you wish to write a letter of introduction for a person seeking a situation in business, a place of residence, scientific information, or the like; briefly, but distinctly, state this to your correspondent, together with any circumstance creditable to the bearer, or which it will be advantageous to him to have known, which you can safely venture to avouch. (No one is in any degree bound by individual regard to impair his reputation for probity or veracity in this, or any other respect.)A letter introducing an Artist, a Lecturer, etc., should contain some allusion to the professional reputation of the bearer—thus:

Eatinganddrinkingare too closely connected with our general subject of health, to be forgotten here.

That regard for Temperance which I have endeavored to commend to you, of course yields a prominent place to habits in these respects.

In relation toeating, I strongly recommend the cultivation ofsimple tastes, and the careful avoidance of every indulgence tending towardssensuality.

Some knowledge ofDieteticsis essential to the adoption of right opinions and practice on this point. For instance, no man should wait for dire experience to enforce the truths that roast and broiled meats possess the most nutritious qualities; that allfrieddishes are, necessarily, more or less unwholesome; that animal oils and fatty substances require stronger digestive force for their assimilation than persons of sedentary life usually possess; that warm bread, as a rule, is unsuited to the human stomach, etc., etc. No one should consider these matters unworthy of serious attention, though temporarily free from inconvenience arising from neglecting them. Eventually, every human constitution will exhibit painful proofs of all outrages committed upon the laws by which its operations are governed; and the greater the license permitted in youth, the severer will be the penalty exacted in after years.

——"Mind and Body are so close combined,Where Health of Body, Health of Mind you find."

Preserve, then, as you value the means of usefulness, the perfect play of your mental powers—so easily trammelled by the clogging of the machinery of the body—the unadulterated taste that is content with a sufficiency of wholesome, well-cooked food to satisfy the demands of healthful appetite. Cultivate no love of condiments, sauces and stimulants; indulge no ambition to excel in dressing salads, classifyingragouts, or in demonstrating, down to the nicety ofa single ingredient, the distinction between a home-made and an importedpâté de foie gras! Distinctions such as these may suffice for the worn-out society of a corrupt civilization, but our countrymen—MEN—should shoutExcelsior!

Abstract rules in relations to the hours proper for taking meals, however carefully adapted to the security of health, in themselves considered, must, of necessity, give place to those artificially imposed by custom and convenience. Thus, though the practice ofdining lateis not sanctioned by Hygeia, it admits of question, whether, as the usages of the business-world at present exists, it is not a wiser custom than any other permitted by circumstance.

All who have given any attention to the subject know, that neither bodily nor mental labor can be either comfortably or successfully pursued directly after a full meal. Hence, then, those whose occupations require their attention during several successive hours, may find the habit of dining after the more imperative labors of the day are accomplished, most conducive to health as well as convenience.

Still, it should not be forgotten, that long abstinence is likely to produce the exhaustion that tells so surely and seriously upon the constitution, of young persons especially. This may be prevented by taking, systematically, a little light, simple nutriment, sufficient to produce what is aptly termed thestimulus of distentionin that muchabused organ—the stomach. This practice regularly adhered to, will also promote a collateral advantage, by acting as a security against the too keen sharpening of appetite that tends to repletion in eating, and which sometimes produces results similar to those exhibited by a boa-constrictor after dining upon a whole buffalo, swallowed without the previous ceremony of carving! One should never dine so heartily as to be unfitted for the subsequent enjoyment of society, or of the lighter pursuits of literature.Deliberate and thorough masticationwill more beneficially, and quite as pleasurably, prolong the enjoyments of the table, as a more hurried disposal of a large quantity of food. And really I do not know how the most rigid economist of time, or the most self-sacrificing devotee either of Mammon or of Literature, can more judiciously devote an hour of each day than to the single purpose ofdining!

Happily for those whose self-respect does not always furnish the sustaining power requisite for the maintenance of a principle, fashion no longer requires of any man the use of evenwine, much less of stronger beverages. And with reference to the use of all alcoholic stimulants, as well as of tobacco, I would remind you thatthose only who are not enslaved by appetite, areFREE! If you have acquired a liking for wine or tobacco, and would abjure either, or both, you will soon be convinced, by experiment, of the truth of Dr. Johnson's saying,of which, by the way, his own life furnished a striking illustration, that "abstinence is easier than temperance."

To prolong arguments against the habits of smoking and drinking, were a work of supererogation, here. I will advance but one, which may, possibly, possess the merit of novelty. Both have the effect, materially to limit our enjoyment of the presence and conversation of

"Heaven's last, best gift to man!"

I cannot better dismiss this important topic than by quoting the following passage from the writings of Sir Walter Raleigh:

"Except thou desire to hasten thy end, take this for a general rule—that thou never add any artificial heat to thy body by wine or spice, until thou find that time hath decayed thy natural heat; the sooner thou dost begin to help nature the sooner she will forsake thee, and leave thee to trust altogether to art."

In my youth, advice to young men was constantly commingled—whatever its general tenor—with admonitions regarding the necessity for industry and perseverance in those who would achieve worldly success. In these utilitarian times, when all seem borne along upon a resistless current, hurrying to the attainment of some practical end, engrossed by schemes of political ambition, or devoted to the acquisition of wealth, a quiet looker-on—as I am wont to regard myself—is tempted to counsel"moderation in all things," contentment with the legitimate results of honorable effort, the cultivation of habits of daily relaxation from the severity of toil, of daily rest from the mental tension that is demanded for successful competition in the arena of life.

The impression thatsleepis a sufficient restorative from the wearing effects of otherwise ceaseless labor, or thatchange of occupationfurnishes all the relief that nature requires in this respect, is, undoubtedly, erroneous. "The man," says an eminent student of humanity, "who does not now allow himself two hours for relaxation after dinner, will becompelledto devote more time than that daily to the care of his health, eventually."

To allow one's self to be so engrossed by any pursuit, however laudable in itself, as to reserve no leisure for the claims of Society, of Friendship, of Taste, is so irrational as to need nothing but reflection to render it apparent. In a merely utilitarian view, it is unwise, since, as Æsop has demonstrated, the bow that is never unbent soon ceases to be fit for use; but there is, surely, a higher consideration, addressed to the reason of man. Pope embodies it, in part, in the lines

——"God is paid when man receives,To enjoy is to obey!"

To have an aim, a purpose in life, sufficiently engrossing to act as an incentive to the exercise of all the powers of being, is essential tohealth and happiness. But to pursue any one object to the exclusion of all considerations for self-culture and intellectual enjoyment, is destructive of everything worthy that name.

They who devote all the exertions of youth and manhood to the acquisition of political distinction, or of gold, for instance—cherishing, meanwhile, a sort of Arcadian dream of ultimately enjoying the pleasures of intellectual communion, or the charms of the natural world, when the heat and burden of the conflict of life shall be done—exhibit a most deplorable ignorance of the truth that they will possess in age only the crippled capacities that disuse has almost wholly robbed of vitality, together with such as are prematurely worn out by being habitually overtaxed.

On the contrary, those who believe that

"It is not all of life to live,"

and early establish a true standard of excellence, and acquaint themselves with the immutable laws of our being, will so commingle self-ennobling pursuits and enjoyments with industrious and well-directed attention to the needful demands of practical life, as to secure as much ofever-present happinessas falls to the lot of humanity, together with the enviable retrospection of an exalted ambition, rightly fulfilled. They may also hope for the invaluable possession of intellectual and moral developments to be matured in that state of existence of which this is but the embryo. These are truisms, I admit, my youngfriends, yet the spirit of the age impels their iteration and re-iteration!

Burke's musical periods lamented the departure of the "age of chivalry." Would that one gifted as he may revive the waning existence of the social and domestic virtues, and inspire my young countrymen with an ambition too lofty in its aspirations to permit the sacrifice of mental and moral powers, of natural affections, and immortal aspirations, upon the altars of Mammon!—shrines now yearly receiving from our country a holocaust of sacrifices, to which battle-fields are as naught in comparison.

But to return from this unpremeditated digression. Natural tastes and individual circumstances must, to a considerable extent, determine the relaxations and amusements most conducive to enjoyment and health.

You will scarcely need to be told that persons of sedentary habits, and especially those devoted to literary occupations, should makeexercise in the open aira daily recreation, and that it will best subserve the purposes of pleasure and health when united with the advantages arising fromcheerful companionship.

Hence the superiority of walking, riding, driving, boating, and sporting in its various forms, to all in-door exercises and amusements—and especially to those tending rather to tax the brain than exercise the body—for those whose mental powers are most taxed by their avocations.

On the other hand, there are those to whom the lighter investigations of literature and science afford the most appropriate relief from the toils of business.

Permit me, however, to enter my protest against the belief that a change from the labors and duties of city life to the close sleeping-rooms, the artificiality and excitement of a fashionable watering-place affords a proper and healthful relief to a weary body and an overwrought brain. Life at a watering-place is no more an equivalent for the pure air, the simple habits, the wholesome food, therepose of mind and heart, afforded by unadulterated country life, than immersion in a bathing-tub is a satisfactory substitute for swimming in a living stream, or a contemplation of the most exquisite picture of rural scenes, for a glorious canter amid green fields and over breezy hills! Nor will dancing half the night in heated rooms, late suppers, bowling-alleys and billiards, not to speak of still more objectionable indulgences, restore these devotees to study or business to their city-homes re-invigorated for renewed action, as will the least laborious employments of the farmer, the "sportive toil" of the naturalist, the varied enjoyments of the traveller amid the wonders of our vast primeval forests, or of the voyager who explores the attractions of our unrivalled chain of inland lakes. People who do their thinking by proxy, and regulate their enjoyments by theon ditof the fashionable world, yearly spend money enough at some crowded resort of thebeau monde(heaven save the mark!) to enable them to make the tour ofEurope, or buy a pretty villa and grounds in the country, or do some deed "twice blessed," in that "it blesseth him that gives and him that takes." In Scotland, in England, in the North of Europe generally, men and women whose social position necessarily involves refinement of habits and education, go, in little congenial parties, into the mountains and among the lakes, visit spots renowned in song and story, collect specimens of the wonders of nature, "camp out," as they say at the West, eat simply, dress rationally—in short,really rusticate, in happy independence alike of the thraldom of fashion and the supremacy of convention. Thus in the Old World, among the learned, the accomplished, the high-born. Here in Young America—let the sallow cheek, the attenuated limbs, the dull eye andblaséair of the youthful scions of many a noble old Revolutionary stock, attest only too truly, a treasonous slavery to the most arbitrary and remorseless of tyrants! Would that they may serve, at least, as beacons to warn you, seasonably, against adding yourselves to the denizens of haunts where

"Unwieldly wealth, and cumbrous pomp repose;And every want to luxury allied,And every pang thatfolly pays to pride!"

I would that all my young countrymen might have looked upon the last hours of my revered friend, John Quincy Adams, and thus learned theimpressive lessons taught by that solemn scene; lessons that—to use his own appropriate language—

——"bid us seize the moments as they pass,Snatch the retrieveless sun-beam as it flies,Nor lose one sand of life's revolving glass—Aspiring still, with energy sublime,By virtuous deeds to giveEternity to Time!"[5]

It was, indeed, a fitting close of his long, noble life! Faithful to his duty to his country, he maintained his post to the last, and fell, like a true defender of liberty—renouncing his weapons only with his life. Borne from the arena of senatorial strife to a couch hastily prepared beneath the same roof that had so often echoed his words of dauntless eloquence, attended by mourning friends, and receiving the tender ministrations of the companion alike of his earlier and later manhood, the flickering lamp of life slowly expired. After, apparently, reviewing the lengthened retrospection of a temperate, rational, useful life, from the boyish years

"Whose distant footsteps echoed through the corridors of Time,"

to the dying efforts of genius and patriotism, the hushed stillness of that hallowed chamber at length rendered audible the sublime words—"It is the last of Earth! I am content!"

I think it was during the administration of Sir Charles Bagot, the immediate successor of Lord Durham, as Governor General of the Canadas, that I had the pleasure to dine one day, at the house of a distinguished civilian who held office under him, in company with the celebrated traveller L——, and his friend, the well-known E—— G—— W——, a man who, despite wealth, rank, and talent, paid a life-long penalty for a youthful error. There were, also, present several members of the Provincial Parliament, then in session at Kingston, which was, at that time, the seat of government, and a number of ladies—those of the party of Americans with whom I was travelling, and some others.

The conversation, very naturally, turned upon the national peculiarities of theYankees—as the English call, not the inhabitants of New England alone, but the people of the North American States generally—in consequence of the fact that the world-wide traveller had just completed his first visit to our country. Some one asked him a leading question respecting his impressions of us as a people, and more than one good-humored sally was given and parried among us. At length L—— said, so audibly and gravely as to arrest the attention of the whole company:

"I have really but two serious faults to charge upon Jonathan."

"May we be permitted to inquire what those are?" returned I.

"That herepudiates his debts, anddoesn't take time to eat his dinner."

When the general laugh had subsided, Mr. W—— remarked that, except when at the best hotels in the larger cities, he had found less inducement for dining deliberately in the United States than in most civilized lands he had visited, in consequence of the prevalent bad cookery.

"The words of Goldsmith," said he,—

"'Heaven sends us good meat, but the devil sends cooks!'

were always present to my mind when at table there! They eschew honest cold roast beef, as though there were poison in meat but once cooked, served a second time, though Hamlet is authority forourtaste in that respect.—The cold venison you did me the honor to compliment so highly, at lunch, this morning, L——, would have been offered youfriedby our good Yankee cousins!"

"The patron saint ofla cuisineforefend!" cried a smooth-browed Englishman—"not re-cooked, I hope?"

"Assuredly!" returned W——, "I trust these ladies and Colonel Lunettes will pardon me,—but such infamous stupidity is quite common. I soon learned, however, the secret of preserving my "capacious stomach" in unimpaired capacity for action, [an irresistiblycomic glance downward upon his portly person] and could, I thought, very readily explain—

'What is't that takes fromthemTheir stomach, pleasures, and their golden sleep,Why they do bend their eyes upon the earth,* * * * * * *In thick ey'd musing and curs'd melancholy!'"

If the frank denunciations of this eccentric observer of life and manners might otherwise have been regarded as impolite, his more severe comments upon his own countrymen proved, at least, that no national partiality swayed his judgment.

I remember his telling me the following anecdote, as we chatted over our coffee, after joining the ladies in the evening:—In answer to some inquiry on my part, respecting the social condition ofthe people—the peasantry, as he called them, of the Provinces, he spoke in unmitigated condemnation of their ignorance, and especially of their insolence and boorishness. "Get L—— to tell you," said he, "how nearly he and his servants were frozen to death one fierce night, while an infernal gate-keeper opposed his road-right. Then, again, the other morning, Mrs. M—— (our hostess) who like every other lady here, except, perhaps, Lady Bagot, goes to market every day, was referred by a man, from whom she inquired for potatoes, to an old crone, with the words—'Thisladysell them,—here isa womanwho wants to buy potatoes!'"

The following morning, while our American partywere driving out to the superb Fort that protects the Harbor of Kingston, to visit which we had been politely furnished with a permit by an official friend, I endeavored to draw from a very charming and accomplished lady the secret of her unusual silence and reserve at dinner the evening before. She is really a celebrity, as much for her remarkable conversational powers, as for any other reason, perhaps, and I had, therefore, the more regretted her not joining in the conversation.

"What made the mystery more difficult of solution," said one of the other ladies, "was the equally imperturbable gravity of that handsome Frenchman who sat beside Virginia."

"Handsome!" retorted Virginia, "do you call that man handsome!—his high cheek bones and swarthy complexion show his Indian blood rather too plainly for my taste, I must confess."

"That commingling of races is very common here, Virginia," said I, "Mr. E—— is a somewhat prominent member of the Canadian Parliament. I heard a speech from him, in French, yesterday morning, which was listened to with marked attention. There were a number of ladies in theside-boxes, too, and it is evident from his attention to his dress, if for no other reason, that Mr. E—— is anélégant!"

"All that may be," rejoined Virginia, "but I have no fancy for light blue 'unwhisperables,' as Tom calls them, nor for ruffled shirts!"

"A change has come o'er the spirit of your dream, most queenly daughter of the 'sunny South!'—isthis the sprightlyAméricainewho won all hearts the other day on the St. Lawrence,—from that magnificent British officer, to the quiet old priest whose very beard seemed to laugh, at least"——

"That, indeed, Col. Lunettes!—but for your ever-ready gallantry I would exclaim—

'Man delights me not, nor woman either!'

but here we are at the entrance of the famous donjon keep!"

We spent some time in examining the—to the ladies—novel attractions of the place. By-and-by, the fair Virginia, who had strayed off a little by herself, called to me to come and explain the mode of using a port-hole to her. In a few minutes, she said, in a low tone, sitting down, as she spoke upon a dismounted cannon, "Col. Lunettes, I beg you not to allude again to that—to the dinner, yesterday, or, at least, to my embarrassment"——

"Your embarrassment, my dear girl!" I exclaimed, "you astonish me! Do explain yourself"——

"Hush," returned my companion, looking furtively over her shoulder, "that young Englishman seems to be engrossing the attention of the rest of the party, and, perhaps, I shall have time to tell you"——

"Do, my dear, if anything has annoyed you—surely so old a friend may claim your confidence."

"I have heard of the 'son of a gun,'" replied she, evidently making a strong effort to recall the natural sprightliness that seemed so singularly to have deserted her of late; "I don't see why I amnot thedaughter of a gun, at this moment, and so entitled to be very brave! But about this Mr. E——, Colonel," she almost whispered, bending her head so as to screen her face from my observation. "You know Mrs. M—— called for me the other morning to go and walk with her alone, because, as she said, she wanted to talk a little about old times, when we were in the convent school at C—— together. Well, as we came to a little "shop," as she styled it—a hardware store,weshould say—she begged me to go in with her a moment, while she gave some directions about a hall-stove, saying, with an apology: "We wives of government officers here, do all these things, as a matter of course." While she walked back in the place, I very naturally remained near the door, amusing myself by observing what was passing in the street. Presently, a fine horse arrested my eye, as he came prancing along. His rider seemed to have some ado to control him, as I thought, at first, but I suddenly became aware that he was endeavoring to stop him, in mid career, and that, when he succeeded—he—I—there was no mistaking it—his glance almost petrified me, in short, and I had only just power to turn quickly in search of Mrs. M——."

The slight form of the speaker quivered visibly, and she paused abruptly.

"Why, my poor child," said I, soothingly, "never mind it! How can you allow such a thing to distress you in this way?"

"If anything of the kind had ever happened to mebefore, I should have thought it my fault, in some way; but when I got back to our hotel, and reviewed the whole matter, and—but there come the rest of the party"—she added, hurriedly. "Do you wonder now at my manner at the dinner? I knew his face the moment the man entered the dining room; and when Mr. M—— introduced him, and requested him to conduct me, the burning glow that flashed over his swarthy brow convinced me that he, too, recognized me. I would sooner have encountered a basilisk than your elegant, parliamentary Frenchman!"

"Doctor, what may I eat?" inquired a dyspeptic American, who had just received a prescription from Abernethy—the eccentric and celebrated English physician.

"Eat?" thundered the disciple of Galen, "the poker and tongs, if you willchew them well!"

What a commingling of nations and characters there was in the little party of which I made one, on a serene evening, lang-syne, at Constantinople! We floated gently over the placid bosom of the sunset-tinted Golden Horn, rowed by four stout Mussulmans, and bound for that point of the shore of the Marmora nearest the suburb of Ezoub wherehorses awaited us for a brisk canter of some miles back to the city. There were, Lord ——, an English nobleman; a Hungarian refugee; a Yankee sea-captain; a dark-eyed youth from one of the Greek Islands; and myself—men severed by birth and education from communion of thought and feeling, yet united, for the moment, by a similarity of purpose; associated by the subtle influence of circumstance, into a serene commingling of one common nature, and capacitated for the interchange of impressions and ideas, at least in an imperfect degree, through the medium of a strange jargon, compounded originally of materials as varied as the native languages of the several individuals composing the group in our old TurkishCaique, which may have been, for aught we knew, the identical one that followed Byron in his Leander-swim!

The conversation naturally partook in character of the scene before us:—Near, towered the time-stained walls of the Seraglio—so long the cradling-place of successive Sultans, and then furnishing the embryo of the voluptuous pleasures of their anticipated paradise. Beyond, rose the ruin-crowned heights, the domes and minarets of old Stamboul, rich in historic suggestions, glowing now in the warmly-lingering smile of the departing day-god,

"Not, as in Northern climes, obscurely bright,But one unclouded blaze of living light!"

Before us, in our way over the crystal waters,loomed up the gloomy, verdure-draped turrets of the "Irde Koule" of this oft-rebelling and oft-conquered seat of Oriental splendor and imperial power. As with the "Tower" of London, the mere sight of this now silent and deserted castle, conjured up recollections replete with deeds of wild romance, and darker scenes of blood and crime. Around us flowed the waters whose limpid depths had so oft received the sack-shrouded form of helpless beauty, when midnight blackness rivalled the horror of the foul murder it veiled forever from mortal ken. Argosies and fleets had been borne upon these waves, whose names or whose conflicts were of world-wide renown—from the mythical adventurers of the Golden-Fleece to the triumphant squadrons of the Osmanlis, all seemed to float before the eye of fancy!

From the broken sentences that, for some time, seemed most expressive of the contemplative mood engendered both by our surroundings and by the placidity of the hour, there gradually arose a somewhat connected discussion of the present condition of the Ottoman Porte.

It is not my purpose to inflict upon you a detailed report of our discourse; but only to relate, for your amusement, a fragment of it, which somehow has, strangely enough, floated upwards from the darkened waters of the past, with sufficient distinctness to be snatched from the oblivion to which its utter insignificance might properly consign it.

"There is not," said the British noble—a man curious in literature, and a somewhat speculativeobserver of life—"there is not a single purely literary production in the Turkish language, written by a living author; not a poem, nor romance, nor essay. The Koran would almost seem to constitute their all of earthly lore and heavenly aspiration. What an anomaly in the biography of modern peoples!"

This last sentence was addressed especially to the sea-captain and me, theidiomaticalEnglish in which the passing fancy of the speaker found expression being wholly unintelligible to all except ourselves.

"Their total want of a national literature," said the American, "does not so materially affect my comfort, I must confess, as the utter absence of decent civilization in their renowned capital. For instance, they have not an apology for a night-police in their confoundedly dark streets, except the infernal dogs that infest them. The other night, returning to my quarters, with my 'Ibrahim' pilot in front with a lantern, I was persuaded, as one of these 'faithful guardians' fastened his glistening ivories in my boot-top, that, like one of your 'lone stars' at New York, Colonel Lunettes, he had 'mistaken his man,' and supposed me to be the returned spirit of some one of the countless throng of infidel dogs, upon whom his public education had instructed him to make war to—the teeth!"

"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the Greek, in tones as musical as his dress and attitude were picturesque, from the pile of boat cloaks upon which he reposed in the bow of the boat, and opening his dark eyes till one saw far down into the dreamy depths of hishalf-slumbering soul through his quick-lit orbs. He had caught enough of thesenseof the captain's nonsense, to imagine the joke to the full. "Ha, ha, ha!" laughed he, again, and the shadowy walls of the blood-stained "Chateau of Seven Towers," by which we were gliding, gave back the clear, clarion-like tone; "but, while this bravefils de la mer[6]thus sports with the terrors of my country's enslaver [here a frown, deep, dark, threatening, and a quick clenching of the jewelled handle of the yataghan he wore in his belt], the gates of fair Stamboul will close, and nor foe, nor Frank, nor friend, be given to the dogs."

"By thunder!" shouted the American, shaking himself up, as if at sea, with a suspicious sail in sight, "he is more than half right. Would you have thought it so late?"

"Even a Yankee, like Captain ——, a fair representative of the'universal nation,' learns to dream and linger here," responded the Englishman, good-humoredly.

Upon this, I made use of the little knowledge I possessed of the Turkish, to interrogate ourCaidjisrespecting the time further required to reach our landing-place.

"Allah is great, and Mohammed is his Prophet!" was all I could fully apprehend of his slowly-delivered reply.

It was now the captain's turn to laugh, and as hissonorous peal rippled over the Marmora, he quietly insinuated his fore-finger and thumb into the disengaged palm of the devout Mussulman I had so touchingly adjured.

The only response of the devotee of the Prophet was a gutteral repetition of "Pekee! good! pekee! pekee!" But by an influence as effective as it was mysterious, our swan-like movement was exchanged for a most hope-encouraging velocity.

"Bravo!" exclaimed my lord.

"Bravissima!" intonated the Hun.

"Go it, boys!" shouted the "old salt."

"By the soul of Mithridates and the deeds of Thermopolæ!" chimed in the scion of the "isles of Greece," catching the instinctively-intelligible contagion of the sportive moment.

"And what said Uncle Hal?" you wonder, perhaps. Oh, I was listening to the low, melancholy, semi-howl in which the imperturbable Moslems were slowly chanting "Güzal! pek güzal!"[7]as they turned their dull eyes lingeringly towards their fast-receding mosques and minarets.

But, meeting the questioning glances of my companions, as their mirth began to subside, I contributed my humble quota to the general stock of fun by saying, with extreme gravity of voice and manner:

"When will wonders cease in the Golden Horn! At first, even its unquestionable antiquity did notredeem this vessel from my contempt—now I consider it an 'irresistible duck!'—and I wish, moreover, to publish my conviction that, though barbarous in matters of literature and art, the Turks impressively teach their boastful superiors areligious respect for cleanliness."

I remember to have been singularly impressed, when I read it, with an anecdote somewhat as follows:

As too frequently happens on such occasions, a discussion in relation to some insignificant matter, into which a large party of men, who had dined together, and were lingering late over their wine, had fallen, gradually increased in vehemence and obstinacy of opinion, until frenzied excitement ruled the hour.

"From words they almost came to blows,When luckily"

the attention of one of the most furious of the disputants was suddenly arrested by theappearance of one of the gentlemen present. There was no angry flush on his brow, no "laughing devil" in his eye, and he sat quietly regarding the scene before him, serene and self-possessed as when he entered the apartment hours before. His astonished companion inquired the cause of such placidity, in the midst of anger and turbulence.

The gentleman pointed, with a smile, to a half-empty water-bottle beside him, and replied: "While the rest of the company have been industriously occupied in endeavoring to drown the distinctive attribute of man—reason—I have preserved its supremacy by simply confining myself to a non-intoxicating beverage."

I trust you will not think the following somewhat quaint verses, from the pen of an old and now almost forgotten poet, amal-à-proposconclusion to this letter:

A Grecian youth, of talents rare,Whom Plato's philosophic careHad formed for Virtue's nobler view,By precept and example too,Would often boast his matchless skillTo curb the steed, and guide the wheel;And as he passed the gazing throngWith graceful ease, and smack'd the thong,The idiot wonder they expressed,Was praise and transport to his breast.At length, quite vain, he needs would showHis master what his art could do;And bade his slaves the chariot leadTo Academus' sacred shade.The trembling grove confessed its fright,The wood-nymphs started at the sight;The Muses drop the learned lyre,And to their inmost shades retire.Howe'er, the youth, with forward air,Bows to the Sage, and mounts the car;The lash resounds, the coursers spring,The chariot marks the rolling ring;And gathering crowds, with eager eyes,And shouts, pursue him as he flies.Triumphant to the goal returned,With nobler thirst his bosom burned;And now along the indented plainThe self-same track he marks again;Pursues with care the nice design,Nor ever deviates from the line.Amazement seized the circling crowd;The youths with emulation glowed;E'en bearded sages hailed the boy,And all but Plato gazed with joy.For he, deep-judging sage, beheldWith pain the triumph of the field:And when the charioteer drew nigh,And, flushed with hope, had caught his eye,"Alas! unhappy youth," he cried,"Expect no praise from me," (and sighed);"With indignation I surveySuch skill and judgment thrown away:The time profusely squandered thereOn vulgar arts, beneath thy care,If well employed, at less expense,Had taught thee Honor, Virtue, Sense;And raised thee from a coachman's fate,To govern men, and guide the state."

At length, quite vain, he needs would showHis master what his art could do;And bade his slaves the chariot leadTo Academus' sacred shade.The trembling grove confessed its fright,The wood-nymphs started at the sight;The Muses drop the learned lyre,And to their inmost shades retire.Howe'er, the youth, with forward air,Bows to the Sage, and mounts the car;The lash resounds, the coursers spring,The chariot marks the rolling ring;And gathering crowds, with eager eyes,And shouts, pursue him as he flies.

Triumphant to the goal returned,With nobler thirst his bosom burned;And now along the indented plainThe self-same track he marks again;Pursues with care the nice design,Nor ever deviates from the line.Amazement seized the circling crowd;The youths with emulation glowed;E'en bearded sages hailed the boy,And all but Plato gazed with joy.

For he, deep-judging sage, beheldWith pain the triumph of the field:And when the charioteer drew nigh,And, flushed with hope, had caught his eye,"Alas! unhappy youth," he cried,"Expect no praise from me," (and sighed);"With indignation I surveySuch skill and judgment thrown away:The time profusely squandered thereOn vulgar arts, beneath thy care,If well employed, at less expense,Had taught thee Honor, Virtue, Sense;And raised thee from a coachman's fate,To govern men, and guide the state."

One seldom finds a nicer selection of words than those of the last lines of these admonitory stanzas. With the wish that they may gratify your literary acumen, I am, as ever,

Your faithful friend,Harry Lunettes.

Footnotes:[5]Concluding lines of Mr. Adams' "Address to theSun-Dialunder the window of the Hall of the House of Representatives."[6]Son of the sea.[7]My beautiful! my most beautiful!

[5]Concluding lines of Mr. Adams' "Address to theSun-Dialunder the window of the Hall of the House of Representatives."

[6]Son of the sea.

[7]My beautiful! my most beautiful!

LETTER-WRITING.

My dear Nephews:

Thereis, perhaps, no form of composition with which it is as desirable to be practically familiar, and in which all educated persons should be accomplished, as that ofletter-writing; yet no branch of an elegant education is more frequently neglected. Consequently, the grossest errors, and the utmost carelessness, are tolerated in regard to it. Rhetorical faults, and even ungrammatical expressions, are constantly overlooked, and illegibility has almost come to be regarded as an essential characteristic.

Following the homely rule of the lightning-tamer, that "nothing is worth doing at all that is not worth doing well," you will not need argument to convince you of the propriety of attention to this subject, while forming habits of life.

Different occasions and subjects require, of course, as various styles of epistolary composition. Thus the laconic language adapted to a formal business letter, would be wholly unsuited to one of friendship; and the playfulness that might be appropriatein a congratulatory communication, would be quite out of place in a letter of condolence.

While it is impossible that any general rules can be laid down that will be always applicable in individual cases, a few directions of universal application may, not inappropriately, be introduced in connection with our present purpose.

The principal requisites ofLetters of Businessare,intelligibility,legibility, andbrevity. To secure the first of these essentials, a clear, concise, expressive selection of language is required. Each word and sentence should expressexactlyandunequivocallythe idea intended to be conveyed, and incharactersthat will not obscure the sense by doubtfullegibility. A legible hand should certainly be as essential as intelligible utterance. We pity the man who by stammering, or stuttering, not only taxes the time and patience of his hearers, but leaves them, at times, uncertain of his meaning, despite their efforts to comprehend him. What, then, is the misfortune of those who, like the most genial of wits, 'decline to read their own writing, after it is twenty-four hours old!' Do not, I pray you, let any absurd impression respecting the excusableness of this defect, on the score thatgenius is superior to the trifles of detail, etc., lead you either into carelessness or indifference on the subject. Few men have the excuse of possessing the dangerous gift of genius, and to affect the weaknesses by which it is sometimes accompanied, is equally silly and contemptible. A man of sense will aim at attaining a true standardof right, not at caricaturing a defective model. Depend upon it, agood business-handis no small recommendation to young men seeking employment in any of the occupations of life. The propriety ofbrevityin letters of business, will at once commend itself to your attention. Time—the wealth of the busy—is thus saved for two parties. But remember, I repeat, that, while this precious treasure is best secured by expressing what you wish to communicate in as few words as possible, nothing is gained by leaving your precise meaning doubtful, by unauthorized abbreviations, confused sentences, or the omission of any essential—as a date, address, proper signature, important question, or item of information. Let me add, thatrapidity of mechanical executionis of no mean importance in this regard.

Letters of Introductionshould be so expressed as to afford the reader a clue to the particular purpose of the bearer in desiring his acquaintance, if any such there be. This will prevent the awkwardness of a personal explanation, and furnish a convenient theme for the commencement of a conversation between strangers. Thus, if it be simply a friend, travelling in search of pleasure and general information, whom you wish to commend to the general civilities of another friend, some such form as the following will suffice:

—— —— ——My dear Sir:Allow me the pleasure of introducing to you my friend, Mr. —— ——, a gentleman whoseintelligence and acquirements render his acquaintance an acquisition to all who are favored with his society. Mr. —— visits your city [or town, or part of the country, or, your celebrated city, or, your enterprising town, or your far-famed State, etc.] merely as anobservant traveller. Such attentions as it may be agreeable to you to render him will obligeYour sincere friend,and obedient servant,—— ——.To Hon. —— ——

—— —— ——

My dear Sir:

Allow me the pleasure of introducing to you my friend, Mr. —— ——, a gentleman whoseintelligence and acquirements render his acquaintance an acquisition to all who are favored with his society. Mr. —— visits your city [or town, or part of the country, or, your celebrated city, or, your enterprising town, or your far-famed State, etc.] merely as anobservant traveller. Such attentions as it may be agreeable to you to render him will oblige

Your sincere friend,and obedient servant,—— ——.

To Hon. —— ——

When you wish to write a letter of introduction for a person seeking a situation in business, a place of residence, scientific information, or the like; briefly, but distinctly, state this to your correspondent, together with any circumstance creditable to the bearer, or which it will be advantageous to him to have known, which you can safely venture to avouch. (No one is in any degree bound by individual regard to impair his reputation for probity or veracity in this, or any other respect.)

A letter introducing an Artist, a Lecturer, etc., should contain some allusion to the professional reputation of the bearer—thus:

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