Winyah Observer

              M-vsHMnMaPHTOMW
'OL.
IX.
" We will cling lo the Pillars ofthe Temple of eur Libe^-ties, and if it must fail, wr. will Perish amidst ihe Ruins."
No-.   '132
R Watermau, Editor.
Georgetown, S. O, VJ"ednesday, October 11,1843.
E. Waterman, Jr., Fropri«to3f»
Having arrived at the proposed place where eels were said to congrcj;at«, we went to   work, and had a most joyous
Bobbing for Eels.
BY   llAKKY   H.\WS.
Deaf- ^'¦Spirit."—An   admixture   of
l3usincss and pleasure induced me a few
years ago to visit the north of England,
and as lhat was  the part  of the "Old
'.Country" whence my ancestors used to „ ,    ,   ,        tj    j
t-    .u - u„ii   TU   1 -V    i!  ed basket, and washed  the  solids down
iievel in their own halls, I had an oppor- . ,,      „    ^ /.      /,
,    ..     f . ¦       ,,       .    ,       f'„   with " cold tea    of a very fine flavor,
lunitvot examining  the abodes ot my .I  , „ .-   , . ¦ .   ,
j,. ,, ,,     ., . .,       ^r I the excel cncv of which you may ludge
•rrrandtathcrs, as well as the  privilege of« ,    ,.       ,       , j j    n
^     ,. .   . II-     ,1    ll from the fact, that the more you pul the
standing on theirgraves, and reading the I, '      ,     , •' ,.,    ,
pot to your inouth the more you liked
Having toU thein it was as much as 3 durst do lo go home {and I thouglit of my Aunt's rooster) v.'ithoiU my crown, yet I
tiiTK?, the eels laid hold  with a delicious i| could brave the reproaches of^my coun- relish, and we hauled them  in in rapid jj trywomon betier tnan I could  the be succession.    About midnight we regaled ourselves with the contents of a well fil-
witching e)-cs -ofmy
¦ virtues ofthe departed ones, as faithfully recorded on their fust perishing tombs of marble.
I had no difficulty in finding mj' rela¬ tions, the living and the dead, and by the former Avas made to feel quite at ease iu their respective homes and right merrily I passed the winter in hunting and shoot- j ing ; and a fine spring and summer in iishing, ^cricketing, and other noble a- Tiuisements inliie vicinity of the Lakes "W^indermcre and Derweiit.
As every thing must liave an end, ex¬ cept your wife's wants, my visit, although protracted, now approaclied its end ; but, previous to my final departure, the boys were determined to make a nigiit out in " bobbing for eels," and the place select¬ ed was the mouth ofa little river which empties itself into Derwent Ltike, in the vicinity oftlie celebrated "Floating Is¬ land," and just below the no less celt bra- led " Falls of Lowdore," made familiar to the world by the muse of " Southey."
The mountain and lake scenery in the neighborhood of "Keswick" cannot be surpassed, and during the suhimer months this little town is filled with stranger?, seeking health or pleasure (I one day saw walking up the principal street together, •Sir Walter Scott, Wordsworth, and Southey, an intellectual trio not met with every day—.Southey resided near the town, and Wordsworth about IG miles oif.)
It happened on the Saturd.ay we vvere 1; going 10 " bob" a   number of servants ,| belonging to families of disli'iction (no- li blemen, &c.,) who were sojourning at the 'i Royal Oak Hotel, had Ibrined a party fbr ii the purpose of having a sailing spree  on j the Lake on the same evening, or rather on the Sunday morning, as the valets and ladies' maids could nof go until their mas¬ ters and missus' were between the sheets, and  that   was   generally well into   the "stna'' hours in the niorning.
I had heard that these "lacqueys" were in the habi lof "putting on airs," and as it was very probsvble we would come in contact with them eitffef on the Lake, oral the hotel at the Lowdere Fails, Wd deemed it advisable to prejiare for fun.
I had carried to Eirgland a variety of Indian trappings, beer and buffalo skins, '| &c., for pi-e.sents, and having seen som'e^ I thing  of "savage"' life oiit Wij|t, we | ¦ came to fffe conclusion I  should appear as an " Ingin," fur this night only. ji
About dusk in tbe evening we put such ' things into a boat as was thought neces- '¦'< sary for the night's sport, not forgetting 'j some Eagle feathers transferred from the J tail of my old AuntlPKavorile roo.sfer, - and then put olffor ihe eel ground in high ' sjiirits, and determined to make a night « of it in some shape or otlicr. p
" Bobbing for eels" is peculiar to that ',, section of country, for I never saw  the ij ".sarpints" caught in fhe same manner ll in any other part of the world,    The bait [ is thus prepared.    A number of the  lar¬ gest kinds of worms are separately  im¬ paled on pieces of wire, twenty or thirty of these worms are then twisted together intoa " bunch," a light chain about two feet long is secured to the " bunch," near I the end td" the cliain is a swivel, and at ; the end is a ring, to which a strong line ] ii attached, wliich, being fiistened to a fishing pole, completes the rig.    The del- I icate morsel being let down amongst the : eels, they hook on, and are easily hoisted ' up; you must take care, however, not fo I let the tail touch the gunwale ofthe boat, i| as   the moixient that   sensitive  part is i louched they drop off. !
the contents.
Having disposed of supper, some fine cigars vvere lighted, and an hour or two merrily passed au-ay in song and jest, albeit the Sabbath nioru had come in, in company vvith a bright moon.
About two o'clock in the morning we
new  friends, and ' 'i iherefotT; ifthey v,-ould acceptasa   pre?- \ I ent the greatest, gift I   could   niake, itii ' would render me happy, and I should le- : member them and th(j|pccasion at home in my own nation.
I now gave to each ofthe females the longest (nil fcatfiei-^, blessing each feath¬ er witli some gibterish, and thei\ put them iu thc hair of the recipients.    This
llieir prie.stsai,-JUiipopu!ar with intelli¬ gent people. But their in,lluence is still great anion'.; tiK- mosses, wlio think their religion is better than no religion.
"Ever since ihe army entered Mexico, we might anil ought to hnv'3 licca circu¬ lating thn BiWo und evangelical books. A soldier who ari'ived first with the ar^ my, assures mc lhat when noi upon the march, eight months ago, lie circulated I Spanish books in .Taktpa, and then they were read Willi llic .same eagerness tiuit they are at the present day. All kinds ofbooks are Scarce and vefy expensive in Mexico. .Tttdgiiig from appearances, the door, in   the pruVidcnce of Cod, is
heard thc .soft notes ofa violin and  flute |j sacrafice of conscience, and almost deatii float over the water, and  naturally sup- " 'oi' want of a "roar
posing the party expected were app-roach- ing, we resumed "bobbing."    As it was I a narrow part of the fiver we  were in, and as they must go close past us,  I got on some trappings and paint, and   Was Ij soon metamorphosed into   a respectable 5 looking   " Chippewa."     Just   as    thoy ij reached us, one yell—a most diabolical I " whoop,"—threw  the   " flunkeys   and I I'ddies'm'aids" into fits. Never was such an outcry raised, and we expected fVom the commotion the gentlemens' gentle¬ men made, to be swallowed whole, without skinning, but not wiihout sauce.    A par¬ ley was  held,  and  the   poor   " Indian" vvas instructed not to do so any more, and by  way of making friends,   our party vvere invited  to  accompany fhe stran¬ gers, tothe "Inn," and take a "smile." The anchor Was soon up, and failing in-^ to thc wake ofthe olher boats,  pulled a- way cheerily to the landing.
On our arrival at Lawdon Inn, we found the inmates all astir, and "cold vvithout" bottoms" mtdled ale, nips, and tililk ptlnche.^j were soon befbre the thirs¬ ty souls that had ordered them.
" Mister Ingian, vvhat shnll vve 'av the 'on or of cttlling you?'* said Lord Au¬ gustus man.
" Waw-kee'bo^^e put-nrlee."
" What is that in plain Ilinglifdi ?"
" The Devil amongst the woiiicn," re¬ plied one ofmy friends.
The girls sniggered, and hoped the foreigner vvas not a cannibal.
" Oh, no," said my friend, " he is very tame, the " natives" are noisy some¬ times, but perfclly harmless."
By particular request I danced a wat dance,! catting'up all the shines and an¬ tics I could think of, and was highly ap¬ plauded for my exertion-.
done f presented the gentlemens'gentle- ,
men wilh the balance of n,v crown. i| ^l'""''« ^e closed here, just aS   Wt^  aro
This ceremony over, to ihe great de^ I '^"'^'''"S'    I" '^'^ ^'^'"'°" "'^ ^^^, ''^^!'''''
"in Jalapa,  the   intercolii'se   will tstill be
Ivcpt up along the frontiers, and a field of on our pat is, it was • usefulness coufinue  to be   afforded.    I iroposed on their part to do the handsome
light of the parlies, although at  a great f
thing. Brooches were niiliooked, rings unfingered, and a perfect shower nf jcw- ellry bedecked my breast and -fingers; handsome speeches from each as he oi- she insisted on my accepting their small favors, almost induced me "to let the cat out ofthe bag," fori felt the hiatfer Was going rather too far. However, I vvas in fbr it, and it must be put through. We novV shook hands to part, and bav¬ in"; told them that the kiss of a maiden Was ahvays good luck to an "Indian," each pair of rosy lips vvere hteld tip by their owner, and you may rest assured a heaity smack was thereon imprinted much to the satisfaction of idl parties, es¬ pecially so to that 'ere Indian " The Devil anionst the vvomeni"
We now started for the Lake, ahd a hearty pull soon   brought  us   down its
I length, when eacsh one hastened to their abode, to seek that repose we needed af¬ ter such a spree.
My bid Aunt was siiocked to see lier -ooster perambulating the next morning, as he was a proud bird, and had taken great care of his nether extremities, but on the present occasion, he looked a sor¬ rowful aspect. Various Were the sur- inises ofmy respected relative as to the cause bf his nakedness, and had 1 not been " bobbing fOr eels," ]ierhaps some¬ body might have been suspected.
The joke we had jilayed was tob gbod to be kept, some ofour party Ict out the whole matter during the day, and before night the little town was all in a ferment. It soon came to the ears of the gentle¬ mens' gentlemen, and ladies' ladies, that'
I they had been victimised by a " live Yan¬ kee," who vvas no more an " Indian" t/i'an the fobste'f's fail feathers tliey   had  so
can fbrm no con ect idea of the propor¬ tion of the Mexican population vvho can read, and aiuong the intelligent natives there is a greal diversity of ojiinion ; but there is no doubt, for years to come vve might find persons whom vve could advantageotisly supply vvith good books;
"It is said that hundreds of Mexicans, from interest or fear, will accompany the American troops to the United States. I hope it may be so. God may convert them to Christianity, find then send therri batik liri rtiissionaries and col¬ porteurs to their Mexican Brethren. They may be llie vei'y men, at some fu¬ ture dtiVj to return as the instruments for blessing Mexico. They would be adnii- rably qualified for the work, having a knowledge of the language, customs, .Ind prejudice of their country."—Ami Ales- sengepi
c overt-;! lh(>y all at first apptlar blue, and they have rctaired fhc name.
'• In E-Jdition fo  fhe  numerotiS me¬ chanical u;?;es of vvo^jd," snys 3Ir.  Grlfl- iths, " and its chemical use as a  sort  of^ I arlificitd lieat, the chemist discovers that i it is capable of a most curious change or transmufatioi) into edible  matter ; iu fact a kind of bread may be made from wood.    Thi.-? is effected by selecting fho sawdust of the least rosionous wood—^^ thai of beech, for example—washing   it vvith water, to remove all soluble matters; and then gently drying it   ih  an oven ; after this, it is mixed Vvilh  marshmallovv juice, tind formed into cakes, which are baked at a high temperature; and these, reduced to line powder, with the addition of a little corn flour and  leaven, from   a- dough, which, wheh moulded into loaves, and baked, consfilntes brend more pala¬ table than lliat prejiaredin limes of scar- j city from brah add husks of corn."
Towards the Chd ofautiiniti may be ofifcii observed in the fields marks offoot- stcps, which appear to have scorched the grass like heated iron j fliis phenomenon: vvas formerly regarded 'villi superstitious dread, but cati ho*v be explained upon very simple chemical principles. When the grass becomes crisp by frost, it is ex¬ ceedingly brittle, aiid the fbbt ofa man or even of a child, is sufficiently heavy to' brake it completely down, and effectu- ifllykilUt} therefbre, when the sun has thawed the frosty rinic from the fields, these foot-tracks aptiear brown and bare in the midst of the surrounding and fibuiishing green grass.
The earth—speaking roundly—is eight ihbtisand miles in diameter ; the atmos¬ phere is calculated tobe fifty iniles in al¬ titude ; the lol'tiest ino'antain peak is es¬ timated at five miles above the level of the sea, for this height has nei'cr been i visited by man ; tfic deejiest mine that j he hfis formed is sixteen hdndred and fif- ' ty feet; and his own staturS does not il average six feet. Therefore if it were " possible fbr him td construct a globe eight hundred feet—or twice the height of St. Paul's cathedral—irt  diameter, and   to
l-'acts lor llie Curious^
The moon, when at full, reflecis iipon the earth only about one thfee-thou- sahdlh part ofthe light of thij sun; and the lunar rays, even when concentrated by a powerful lens, and the fbcUs direct¬ ed ufion the biilb ofa delicate thermome¬ ter, do notaflect it in the sh'ghest degree; hence the phrase, " the pale cold moon," is   not only    poetically  beautiful,  but | P'^^ce upon any one point of its   surface
an atom of l-^4{J30lhbf fin inch in di¬ ameter, and l---720th part bf an inch in height, it vvould correctly denote the pro¬ portion fhat man bears to the earth upon which he moves.
The shores of the lake 'I'iticaca, in Peru, twelve thousand seven hundred feet above the level of the sea,   are en-"
philosophically correct;
The volume of bulk bf carbonic acid gas respired by a healthy adult in twenty- four hours is said tb iimbiint to 15,000! cubic inches, contaFi7ing about six dun- jj ces of solid carbon. TliJs sl dt the rate of jj 187 pounds avoirdupbis per annutti; and j| taking the total populafio'rt of the glbbe
at seven hundred and slixty millions, the closed by a thick forest bf a beautiful amoniit of solid carbon Or charco'd ever^' rush, vvhich plays an important part in year produced by the huifian race will ex- I ^'^° economy of the surrounding district, ceed 46,482,143 tons ! Adding fb this all } In^^eed thc people of that country would As the girls were all very pretty, I felt ! carefully locked up were those  bf the i ^i^^ tarhan produced by the   comhustion I '^^^ '" g''<=^' wretchedness if nature had
! of fires and gas lights, by the decay ol'ani- J "'^^ bcstbwed on if these    plants—for it ' ftial and vyegetable matter,  the  exhala- {j "^^ ^^^' "'Jbve the lihiit of trees, and only*
a fe-iv bushesi grow in its neighborhood.
a: strong itching to carry out the name I ; ^'^rd of Jove, vvhich was the emblern of had assunted, and  having selected the [ '^'s country. ,        ,,        ,
prettiest of the lol, addressed her in   the }|     A short tim^ after that   I took   my j tions from springs, &c., there need be no most admirable broken   English.    She ji 'eave of the many iriends I  had   made, ' was nothing, loath,, a-nd 1 plied   my  love i{ no' fbrgetting to give my aunt the   most with all  the ardor I  could  cOtriroand, j valuable ring fbr the   loan  df her roos-
! fers's tail,'and divided  the other Jewells ambngstthe boys and^AezVgirls in mem
very much to the annoyance of ai genlle'-' man in red plush tights
It was fast getting tbwa'rdW daylight, ; ory ofone ofthe most glorious pieces of and time tbmove, bui! before vVe separa-1| funi eVer had, and one which lam fbr- led I gave them to understand that the cibly reminded of vvher.ever I see that in- trihe I belonged to always presented their j, tercsting ammi;', called an  Eel undergo-
friends With some token of their love and esteem when they separated, and espe¬ cially in cases like the present, vvhere vve shall sce each other no more. The most ! valuable article in an Indian's estimation, 1 gave them to understand, was a crown of eagle's feathers. This vvas the reward ofthe maidens ol a viiUvge to any youth who had taken thescalpsof twenty war¬ riors, enemies ofhis tribe, and the crown of feathers which I wore was the gift ofthe young squaws  of my village   in
ing the animated process of skinning. [Spirit of the Tinies.']
Encoiiragcinerit for Effort in Mexico.
Early, last June, one ofthe colporteurs in Jalapa wrote as follows concei'ning his position, and motives to continue evangelical eflibrt in Mexico r " The people are willing to send their children to Sabbath-schools, and the children are i dehghted at the itfea bfletirningfo speak English. I have one school coinjwsed of six American and six Mexican children
Michigan, ,,    , . ,
" What a brave man." said one of the , ^^'^^^^ parents_with one exception are
girls.
"What a great savage," replied another.
" Ha bought to be hung for murder," said a third.
" I wish I was a squaw," chimed in the one I had been most attentive lo.
Romanists. This city is said fo contain the most intelligent people in the Re¬ public, and the proporiion who can read is greater than in any other city. But few to whom I have oflered books or tracts, have refused to accept and pay for tlu|n;i. The Mexican mind appears ' readyToi'a change.    Their religion and
!j marvel as to the source whence plants derive their solid or wobdy material (vvhich is principally carbbn;) seeing that fhclr leaves are specially fitted for I'ne absorption of carbonic acid gas from ihe surrounding afmosfphere.
The almbstphere immediately incum¬ bent upori the earth has the povver of absorbing and retaining more ofthe blue raysof light than thatatgreater altitudes ; and thus when vve cast our eyes bn hi^h we look through a volume of the densest air replete with blue light ; a'nd so,- Vlke- wise if vvblook abroad over ari exten¬ sive tract of country, the horizon of which is formed by distant hills, they ap¬ pear blue, Or i'n other words, they par- f.-ikb of the color ofthe mediuto through which they are viewed if Vte journey to them tiro blue color gradually vanishes and at length their ordinary colors ap¬ pear ; and novv, looking from the hills towards tb-e spot from wh'ehb* we jour¬ neyed, it in turn app.*<'ir.^ tfue. The ridge called the " Blue Mbuntains" in Austria, an-otherbf the same name in Aniedc'a, and inan}- othei'selsewhere, are
These rushes snjiply th'e natives not only wilh fttel, covering fbr their huts, and vvilh matting, but they supply material for the Construction of their rude balsas' o'r boats, which' are merely rush-wbven,- as afe alio the' sails fhat Waft thern across the Wafers.
The ZuyderZeCWas at one time an. iidand fresh wafer lake, such as it is des¬ cribed by Po.mpoviius Mela, and ifs con- versio.n'into a gulf of the sea was aflbct- ed in ihc thirteenth century, when vib- Fent storms destroyed the barrier be'» tween the ocean and the lake. Twtcc's ofthis barrier still exist in the islands aind shoals between the Kclder and Ter Schelling.
A Frenchman  having a violent pa'   ^ in his breast and stomach, went to a ph    „. sieian for relief    The   Doctor,  enqi   ,;j._ ing where his trouble lay, the    Frei   ,(,|,. man with a dolorous accent, lAyiig      j^j   ' hand on  his  breast,  said, " Vy, s'   ,,.g_ j i have one very bad pain in my pa- rtman- teu," (meaning his chest)
" A lawyer," said Lord Brriujvham, " •'» ntot really blue fbr (hey possess all fhe di- I a learned gentleman who res-iries your es. versity of scenery vvhich their climates ji tate froiu yo'or enemies, arifj),Jicciis it Jiyvi, can give; but to the eye wlien first  dis-" self." ' ——'
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