The Georgia collegian. (Athens, Ga.) 1870-current, March 05, 1870, Page 7, Image 7

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    ...Squibob recommends a strict
observance of Beecher’s maxim, —
“Never lie, unless necessary.”
...Said an enrolling officer to a
conscript during the war, “ ’Tis
sweet to die for one’s country!”—
“Ah, me,” replied the conscript, “ I
never was fond of sweet things.”
...The Bank is the very place to
catch a bad cold; there are so many
drafts there. The reason is perhaps
that so many people go to the bank
to raise the wind.
...Noah must have had a very val
uable menagerie in his ark; none of
the people in that day could furnish
the admission fee. Noah’s family
went in as deadheads. Likewise, we
have heard a youngster envying
Daniel—for, said he, “ Daniel sot up
all night looking at the lions in the
den, and it did’nt cost him a cent.”
Speaking of Daniel reminds us of the
little fellow who asked the manager
in a panorama of “ Daniel in the Li*
on’s den,” which was Daniel and
which was the den ? Replied the
show-man, “ You pays your money,
you takes your choice.”
Facts Concerning Distinguished
Characters.
Lord Brougham, of England, was
reported to have lost his life twenty
years before his death really occur
red. Immediately upon the an
nouncement of the supposed fatal
mishap, the leading journals of Eng
land wrote extended notices of his
life and character, So that he enjoy
ed the pleasure of reading his own
obituaries; and the advantage of see
ing the ideas of both his friends and
foes concerning him.
Miss Mary Russell Mitford’s life
was one long story of a devotion to
a profligate father. All her literary
earnings were appropriated to meet
the demands of his lavish extrava
gance. Yet, with the prejudice of a
woman’s heart, she thought him a
vital assemblage of all manly virtues.
Spurgeon is a wonderfully effectn
ive preacher, because he convinces
his congregation that he is terribly
in earnest. Read one of his sermons
and 3’ou will wonder how it could in
fluence, impressively, an audience.—
Hear it, and you will be amazed at
yourself for doubting its capacity to
produce powerful feeling. He agrees
with Henry Ward Beecher, in think
ing that the pulpit is not intended
solely for the conveyance of Gospel
truth; that he *who declares his de
termination to preach nothing “save
Jesus Christ, and Him crucified,” re
pudiates God’s providence and all its
developments. Believing thus, Spur
geon does not hesitate to harangue
on political issues and to introduce
ever and anon panegyrics on William
Ewart Gladstone—whom he regards
as the embodiment of all those qual
ities necessary to constitute a wor
thy Premier.
THE GEORGIA COLLEGIAN.
Celebration of Washington’s Birth-
Day, by the Literary Societies of
Emory College.
Owing to the inclemency of the
weather, the celebration was held in
the Few Hall, instead of the College
Chapel, as has been the custom here
tofore.
About 10 o’clock, could be seen the
students of the College (a goodly
number of whom “ were sporting”
young ladies of rare beauty), wend
ing their way from all parts of the
village toward the Few Hall, where
they afterwards heard two fine
speeches from the orators of the ocs
casion, who were Messrs. Lewis, of
the Phi Gamma, and A. M. Campbell,
of the Few Society.
The weather being so cold, the
greater portion of the citizens did not
“ turn out.” However, the greater
part of the young folks did. The
Hall was very comfortable—being
rendered so, by the blazing fires
which were built in the morning.
The Exercises were opened with
prayer by Dr. Smith, President of
the College, after which the Oxford
Brass Band played most beautifully,
and greatly to the credit of its mem
bers.
As soon as the music was over, Mr.
Campbell was introduced as the first
f'rator of the occasion. After a few
beautiful and appropriate remarks on
the character and life of the great
warrior and statesman whose birth
day we were celebrating, Mr. Camp
bell announced to the audience his
subject, which was, “National De
generacy.” I would like to tell you
more concerning this address, but
time prevents. Suffice it to say that
the orator did his subject justice in
every respect; that he displayed
such knowledge as very few young
men are capablo of displaying.
After this address, which brought
the house down in applause, was mu
sic. Then Mr. Lewis was introduced.
This gentleman’s address was not so
long as the preceding, but
.less was splendid. The subject of
his speech was, “ Duty,” in which he
took occasion to eulogize Washing
ton ; and his eulogy was perfectly
beautiful—especially the concluding
portion —when he spoke of the grave
on Mt. Yernon, in which lie the re
mains of Washington, the father of
American liberty.
I fear that I have already taken up
too much of the precious space of the
Georgia Collegian , and will therefore
close. After the speaking was over,
the audience adjourned, amid shouts
of applause, and while tho Band was
playing “ Georgia gals and Sorghum
’lasses.”
Hoping that the Georgia Collegian
may, ere another return of Washing-
ton’s birth-day, bo circulated over
the whole South,
I am truly yours, c. l. w.
Generosity of Narvaez.
The following instance of generos
ity on the part of a Christian Al
calde, will not be read without inte
rest, since it proves that, in a brave
man, neither national nor religious
prejudice can smother tho best prin
ciples of our nature:
“In tho latter part of the 15th
Century, the war between the Chris
tians and Mahommedans, for the su
premacy in Spain, raged violently.
However, in the year 1466, an armis
tice was agreed upon and all fight
ing ceased, with the exception of
guerilla and partisan warfare. Tho
most illustrious of these guerillas was
Fernando Narvaez; governor of An 1 *
tequera, who had signalized himself
in many an incursion into the ene
mies’ borders.
One day, during the armistice, on
the eve of an expedition, Narvaez
detached some horsemen to reconnoi
tre the country. The men, perceiv
ing no enemy, were returning to An
tequera, when, on turning a hill, they
suddenly fell in with a Moorish
horseman, and made him a prisoner.
He was a young man, about twenty-
of age ; of prepossessing
appearalce; richly habited; wear
ing a sw/ord and buckler of exquisite
workmanship, and mounted on a fine
horse; evidently belonged to some
distinguished family of the country.
He was brought before Narvaez,
who asked him who he was, and
whither he was going ? He replied,
with considerable emotion, that he
was the son of the Alcalde of Honda;
but, on endeavoring to continue his
narration, his tears fell in such abun
dance that he could not add another
word.
“ Thou surprisest me !” said
vaez. “ Thy father I know to be an
intrepid warrior; but thou weepest
like a woman ! Dost thou not know
that this is one of the ordinary
chances of war?”
“ I do not lament the loss of my
liberty,” replied tho Moor, “ but a
misfortune a thousand times heav
ier !”
Being pressed to explain the cause
of his agitation, he said :
“ I have long loved the daughter
of a naighboring Alcalde, and that
love is returned. This very night
was to see her mine; she is now
waiting for me, and thy soldiers have
detained me. I ennnot describe my
despair!”
“ Thou art a noble cavalier !” re
plied the compassionate Christian.—
“If thou wilt promise to return, I
will allow thee to go and see thy
mistress.”
Full of gratitude, the Moor, accep
ted the condition, and departed ; be
fore daylight he reached her dwell
ing. On learning the cause of his
evident dejection, she said :
“ Before this fatal moment, thou
hast always shown affection towards
me; and now thou givest me new
proofs of it. Thou searest that if I
follow thee I shall lose my liberty,
and thou wishest me to remain ; but
dost thou think me less generous
than thyself? My fate must be uni
ted with thine; whether free or en
slaved, thou shalt always find me at
thy side. In this casket, are jewels
sufficient either to pay tby ransom or
to support us both in slavery.”
The two lovers immediately de
parted, and towards evening arrived
at Antequera. They were nobly re
ceived by Narvaez, who passed tho
highest praise on the fidelity of the
cavalier and the affecting devoted
ness of the maiden. He not only
dismissed them both, but loaded them
with presents, and sent an escort to
conduct them safely to Ronda. The
news spread throughout the king
dom of Granada, and became the
subject of many romances, in which
Narvaez was sung by his enemies—
a pleasing reward for his beneficence.
Cats.
Some carping critic thus gives Yic
tor Hugo’s aesthetic contemplation of
the Cat, to in his novel :
The cat is the concrete symbol of
a vacillating politician.
It is always on the fence.
It is the feline embodiment of one
of the profoundest human principles
wrenched from the circumambienco
of the Unknown, and hurled into tho
bosom of consciousness.
Jsine tailors make one man. A cat
has nine times tho life of one man,
for it has nine lives. Possession, al
so, is nine points of the law. Behold
a legal possession of existence equal
to the span of eighty-one clothiers*
lives.
The ocean roars.
The cat only purs.
The billows rise and culminate and
break.
The cat’s back rises. The feline
tide is up, and we have a permanent
billow of fur and flesh.
Oh ! osculations .between sky and
earth ! Oh ! lips of the Seen touch
ing the lips of the Unseen ! Oh !
wave of thought careering through
the asymptotes of cioudland, crysta
lizing into angelic feel the tangents
of humanity.
The stars come out at night.
So do the cats.
...Such constructions as “Is Being
Done,” &c., are manifestly improper.
Macauley never uses this pbraseolo*
gy. The purer English is to say, e.
g. that “ the house is building;” not
“ the house is being built.”
7