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corrupted; the public weal invaded by rapine and anarchy; whole states ravaged by avenging armies. The world was amazed. The earth reeled. When the flag sank here, it was as if political night had come, and all beasts of prey had come forth to devour.

8. That long night is ended! And for this returning day we have come from afar, to rejoice and give thanks. No more war. No more accursed secession! No more slavery that spawned them both!

CXXIII. MY COUSIN BRIDGET.

CHARLES LAMB.

1. It has been the lot of my cousin, oftener perhaps than I could have wished, to have for her associates and mine, free-thinkers, leaders and disciples of novel philosophies and systems; but she neither wrangles with, nor accepts, their opinions. That which was good and venerable to her when a child, retains its authority over her mind still. She never juggles or plays tricks with her understanding.

2. We are both of us inclined to be a little too positive; and I have observed the result of our disputes to be almost uniformly this, that in matters of fact, dates and circumstances, it turns out that I was in the right and my cousin in the wrong. But where we have differed upon moral points; upon something proper to be done, or let alone; whatever heat of opposition or steadiness of conviction I set out with, I am sure always, in the long-run, to be brought over to her way of thinking.

3. I must touch upon the foibles of my kinswoman with a gentle hand, for Bridget does not like to be told of her faults. She hath an awkward trick (to say no worse of it) of reading

in company; at which time she will answer yes or no to a question without fully understanding its purport,—which is provoking, and derogatory in the highest degree to the dig nity of the putter of said question. Her presence of mind is equal to the most pressing trials of life, but will sometimes desert her upon trifling occasions. When the purpose requires it, and is a thing of moment, she can speak to it greatly; but in matters which are not stuff of the conscience, she hath been known sometimes to let slip a word less seasonably.

4. Her education in youth was not much attended to; and she happily missed all that train of female garniture which passeth by the name of accomplishments. She was tumbled early, by accident or design, into a spacious closet of good old English reading, without much selection or prohibition, and browsed at will upon that fair and wholesome pasturage. Had I twenty girls, they should be brought up exactly in this fashion. I know not whether their chance in wedlock might not be diminished by it; but I can answer for it that it makes (if the worst comes to the worst) most incomparable old maids.

5. In a season of distress she is the truest comforter; but in the teasing accidents and minor perplexities, which do not call out the will to meet them, she sometimes maketh matters worse by an excess of participation. If she does not always divide your trouble, upon the pleasanter occasions of life she is sure always to treble your satisfaction. She is excellent to be at a play with, or upon a visit, but best when she goes a journey with you.

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CXXIV. THE HUMANE SENATOR.

MRS. H. B. STOWE.

1. The light of the cheerful fire shone on the rug and carpet of a cozy parlor, and glittered on the sides of the tea-cups and well-brightened tea-pot, as Senator Bird was drawing off his boots, preparatory to inserting his feet in a pair of new handsome slippers, which his wife had been working for him while away on his senatorial tour. Mrs. Bird, looking the very picture of delight, was superintending the arrangements of the table, ever and anon mingling admonitory remarks to a number of frolicsome juveniles who were effervescing in all those modes of untold gambol and mischief that have astonished mothers ever since the flood.

2. "Tom, let the door-knob alone, there's a man! Mary! Mary! don't pull the cat's tail,-poor pussy! Jim, you mustn't climb on that table, no, no! You don't know, my dear, what a surprise it is to us all, to see you here to-night!" said she, at last, when she found space to say something to her husband.

"Yes, yes, I thought I'd just make a run down, spend the night, and have a little comfort at home. I'm tired to death, and my head aches !"

3. Mrs. Bird cast a glance at a camphor-bottle which stood in the half-open closet, and appeared to meditate an approach to it, but her husband interposed.

"No, no, Mary, no doctoring! a cup of your good hot tea, and some of our good home living, is what I want. It's a tiresome business, this legislating!"

And the senator smiled, as if he rather liked the idea of considering himself a sacrifice to his country.

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Well," said his wife, after the business of the tea-table was getting rather slack, "and what have they been doing in the Senate ?"

Now, it was a very unusual thing for gentle little Mrs. Bird ever to trouble her head with what was going on in the house of the state, very wisely considering that she had enough to do to mind her own. Mr. Bird, therefore, opened his eyes in surprise, and said,

"Not very much of importance."

4. "Well; but is it true that they have been passing a law forbidding people to give meat and drink to those poor colored folks that come along? I heard that they were talking of some such law, but I didn't think that any Christian legislature would pass it!"

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Why, Mary, you are getting to be a politician all at once."

"No, nonsense! I wouldn't give a fip for all your politics, generally, but I think this is something downright cruel and unchristian. I hope, my dear, no such law has been passed."

5. "There has been a law passed forbidding people to help off the slaves that come over from Kentucky, my dear; so much of that thing has been done by these reckless abolitionists, that our brethren in Kentucky are very strongly excited, and it seems necessary, and no more than Christian and kind, that something should be done by our state to quiet the excitement."

"And what is the law? It don't forbid us to shelter these poor creatures a night, does it, and to give them something comfortable to eat, and a few old clothes, and send them quietly about their business?"

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Why, yes, my dear; that would be aiding and abetting, you know."

6. Mrs. Bird was a timid, blushing little woman, of about four feet in height, and with mild blue eyes, and a peachblow complexion, and the gentlest, sweetest voice in the world; -as for courage, a moderate-sized cock-turkey had been known to put her to rout at the very first gobble, and a stout house-dog, of moderate capacity, would bring her into subjection merely by the show of his teeth. Her husband and children were her entire world, and in these she ruled more by entreaty and persuasion than by command or argument.

7. There was only one thing that was capable of arousing her; and that provocation came in on the side of her unusually gentle and sympathetic nature;-anything in the shape of cruelty would throw her into a passion, which was the more alarming and inexplicable in proportion to the general softness of her nature. Generally the most indulgent and easy to be entreated of all mothers, still her boys had a very reverent remembrance of a most vehement chastisement she once bestowed on them, because she found them leagued with several graceless boys of the neighborhood, stoning a defenseless kitten.

"I was

8. "I'll tell you what," Master Bill used to say, scared that time. Mother came at me so that I thought she was crazy, and I was whipped and tumbled off to bed, without my supper, before I could get over wondering what had come about; and, after that, I heard mother crying outside the door, which made me feel worse than all the rest. I'll tell you what," he'd say, we boys never stoned another

kitten!"

9. On the present occasion, Mrs. Bird rose quickly, with very red cheeks, which quite improved her general appearance, and walked up to her husband with quite a resolute air, and said in a determined tone,

"Now, John, I want to know if you think such a law as that is right and Christian?"

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