risen in her splendor, and was shedding a broad path- ALTHOUGH it is no longer the custom with the present generation to inculcate superstition by allowing || admiring for sometime the surpassing brightness of the nursery maids, unrebuked, to relate supernatural tales to their children, yet do I believe that superstitious fears and feelings still exist in some parts of our land to a very considerable extent; not with the young alone, but with the middle-aged and the old. It is in the hope that these lines may be read by some of this class that I now relate my ghost story. moonlight, my thoughts turned inward, and I closed my determination, and resolved, in my desperation, to I had arrived at years of maturity before Sir Walter Scott's "Demonology and Witchcraft," and Sir David Brewster's "Natural Magic," had explained away all superstitious belief, with the enlightened part of the community, by taking them, as it were, behind the scenes, and exhibiting to them all the wires and pullies of spectreism; so that those who now have the courage to look a ghost in the face, may literally see through it as through a thin vapor. I had listened in my youth||fore been with supernatural dread. But I remembered to many well authenticated tales of this kind, which I dared not distrust, and which I feared to believe; and perhaps there still clung to me an unacknowledged leaven of this sort; for I earnestly desired that I might never be visited by a spectre, but still hoped if I ever were, that I might have the courage, if not to "speak to it," to reconnoitre and investigate it. My wishes were at length granted. In the year 1834, I was on a|| visit to the southwest, and had been brought to the borders of the grave by the prevailing fever of that country. It had left me in such a low nervous state that the slightest sound would awaken me from sleep, and keep me watchful for the night; so that in order to be entirely undisturbed, I had my bed removed to a large unfinished upper room, extending the whole length of the house, with the rafters sloping overhead. Of this room I was the sole occupant. My bed was placed nearly in one corner, and was so high as to bring my head within a few feet of the roof. Here I had slept for several nights in undisturbed quietude. But the night in question was dark and cloudy when I ascended to my chamber; so that when I had extinguished my candle, there was scarcely light enough to make the "darkness visible." Although there were two large windows at each end of the room, yet I could see nothing; but it was delightfully still, and I soon fell into a sweet, quiet sleep, from which, after the lapse of some hours, perhaps, I was suddenly awakened by a rude sound directly over my head; but at this I was not alarmed, for my ear recognized it to be the alighting of some night bird on the roof, and I did not even unclose my eyes lest I should induce a state of wakefulness. But it was all in vain, and my prudence availed me nothing. My sleep had been disturbed, and slumber had flown from my eye-lids; so, after tossing about for sometime, I opened my eyes and looked around. The room now presented so different an appearance from what it did when I went to bed, that I could hardly realize where I The clouds had dispersed, and the moon had was. When the moon should have attained a sufficient altitude in the heavens, to have passed away from the mirror, my ghost, which actually kept moving, would have vanished also; and I should still have continued the victim of doubt and uncertainty. Let every one who beholds a suspicious looking object in an uncertain or obscure light, approach and examine it; and then, and not till then, will ghost stories vanish from the dark corners of our land, and spectres, like witchcroft, be heard of no more. Reader, you may smile if you will—I am no coward; and, all circumstances considered, I esteem it the greatest act of courage I ever performed; and I still contemplate the old black waiter with the greatest complacency, as the evidence of my heroism. CORNELIA AUGUSTA. GoD is on the side of virtue; for whoever dreads punishment, suffers it, and whoever deserves it, dreads it. i Аn! why do the sons of sorrow fear And heal the wound of the care-worn breast. And the heart is lull'd to a dreamless rest. To him of a sorrowful spirit I say, Weep not," and the last tear is wip'd away. The beggar who starves near the rich man's door, I call-he hungers and thirsts no more. I press the diseas'd to my tranquil breast, And serenely calm is the sufferer's rest. And it fades like a flower 'mid its young perfume; I come to thee in the storm's career The deep-ton'd thunder is hushed on thine ear, And the lightning that gleams thro' the stormy sky Sends no fearful flash to thy rayless eye. I cradle thee on the foaming wave And the storm that sweeps o'er the swelling sea, And heal the wound of the care-worn breast. I. Ho! Christian traveler! Faint, yet pursuing, Why dost thou loiter thus? Up and be doingGird on your panoply Faith, hope, and loveSeek on your bended knee Strength from above. II. Forth on thy pilgrimage, Dark though it be, Light of eternity Soon thou shalt see. Work for thy blessed Lord- III. What though the tempests rave Pour-gently pour. Tempest and storm may then Cease their commotion, And the bright star of hope Beam o'er the ocean. IV. Help to the helpless give- Though life be drearyWhisper sweet words of love To the heart-broken, Praying that they may prove Words fitly spoken. V. Hast thou a comrade borne VI. Deem not thy duty done With the lone weeper: Rouse yonder careless one! Wake up that sleeper! Tell him night waneth fastDay-light soon shineth TO THE MISANTHROPE. 318 I love my race, tho' fallen far Be mine what friendship can bestow Which gone, we die; which here, we live. Be mine the burden of her sigh. And when some grassy hillock lies, That he whose humble grave is shown, NOTICES. NOTICES. STERLING'S POEMS.-Adequate judges pronounce these poems to be "full of truth, fancy, and pathos." Their versification is correct, and they have not that artificial manner which so mars the beauty of much that is called good poetry. 319 days of the meeting with them, and felt continually (except the painful interruptions and confusion of the holy Sabbath, which we have never seen more fearfully desecrated by the wicked) that God was with his people to bless them, and that the Holy Spirit was present to convict and convert souls. We are advised the best of the meeting was on Tuesday and Wednesday after we left, and this, from all we hear, was doubtless the case. Great good, and, with the exception of the Sab THE DAUGHTERS OF ENGLAND.-This is a treatise on the relations, prerogatives, and duties of woman, by the author of "The Women of England "--a lady whose writings have gain-bath day's doings of the profligate, little evil will flow from ed her a name, and won for her golden opinions. DEVOTIONAL MELODIES. By C. F. Deems, A. B.-This is a small collection of pieces for family or social use in the high praises of God. Its aim is excellent. The sentiments of the "Melodies" are truly devotional, and there is considerable merit in the compositions themselves. The author can safely cultivate his talent. Read the following: "Tis pain to see our hopes go out, Like the unfed taper's light, 'Tis pain to send our purest love When Death shall read our doom, Dear Savior, in that awful hour Of darkness and of pain, O! let thine own right hand of power And when I tread Death's vale of night, One glimpse of God and heaven." THE ELEMENTS OF CONSTITUTIONAL LAW AND OF POLITICAL ECONOMY. By Daniel Raymond.-It has passed through four editions, is highly recommended, and is a valuable work, well adapted to the use of common schools, and the instruction of the young. this blessed opportunity to worship God day after day amidst the sylvan scenes of the forest. "Thanks be to God for his unspeakable" blessings! We shall look forward to next August with great expectations of a camp meeting still more glorious in its results. Commencing on Monday, and closing on Saturday, we may look for unmingled blessings, and we should not wonder if, in such a case, a thousand souls would be converted to God. The camp meeting on White-Oak circuit commenced on the 27th, and closed on the 31st of August This was, for several reasons, a pleasant and an interesting occasion. Three of the most venerable ministers in the western Church were present. Brother Q., the youngest of the three, is almost seventy years of age. He is remarkable for his theological acquirements, and for the gentle and winning persuasion with which he brings out of his treasury things new and old. Brother C. is more than seventy, and yet retains all that is interesting in his original, inventive, and philosophic mind. Brother L. is approaching eighty, and feels the weight of years, yet speaks with a clear, full voice, and rejoices as in the days of his youth. Brothers Q. and C. preached, each in his peculiar style, and we know not when we have heard more instructive lessons, or melting appeals. The congregation was moved like the forest in a storm, yet their eloquence was gentle as the softest breeze. Each of these aged brethren produces a happy effect by anecdotes, which instruct the mind, as well as move the heart. I will give one from each. Brother C. was, at the close of his sermon, pointing his hearers to their final blest abode; and to impress on them more familiarly and effectually a sense of its nearness and its blessedness, he said, "I once knew a sea captain by the name of P****, who made a voyage to the Indies, and was absent several years. In the meantime an infant child grew up to boyhood. He wrote to his family that the ship would sail on her return voyage at such a time. When the period arrived which might be expected to bring the vessel into port, this little boy, who had never seen his father, would go down to the dock daily and watch for the ship. At last a ship of the same name came THE AMERICAN ECLECTIC, for September, has been received. We publish the contents below. The articles will be interest-into port. The lad was there, and waited on tip-toe for her to ing to readers generally. The work is well conducted, and is published on the first day of every alternate month, at four dollars, in advance. "Memoirs of Jeremy Bentham, with an Introductory Note by the Editor-from the Westminster Review. The Church and the State, with an Introductory Note by the Editor-from the British and Foreign Review. The Oriental Plague and Quar. antine Laws-from the British and Foreign Review. Mohammedan Dominion in India-from the Asiatic Journal. The Reign of Terror, with an Introductory Note by the Editorfrom the Foreign Quarterly Review. Colliers and Collieries, with an Introductory Note by the Editor-from the Quarterly Review Ignatius Loyola and his Associates, with an Introductory Note by the Editor-from the Edinburgh Review. Bibliographical Notices. Select List of Recent Publications." EDITOR'S TABLE. THE CAMP MEETINGS.-These extraordinary means of grace are becoming more and more valued by the Church, and are attended with clearer tokens of the Divine favor than heretofore. The meeting for the city stations and Madison circuit commenced on the 17th of August, and continued seven days. The weather was good, and a great number of people were in attendance. The ministers of Christ were filled with love for souls, and preached as dying men. We enjoyed the first five haul in. As soon as she touched the dock, the little fellow sprang aboard, and saluting a gentleman at hand, he said, "Do you command this ship?" The answer was yes. "Is your name Captain P****?" "Yes, my son; what is your name?" "My name is James P****-come along with me and I will show you where mother is." The application of this simple incident, which very few men would have thought of using to illustrate the possible state of the soul entering upon a future life, will be made by the reader as it was by the hearers without any farther aid. In the audience were some who had buried their partners and their children. They doubtless seemed to see their spirits, just escaped from the perils of their earthly voyage, entering the confines of eternity, and overwhelmed and lost in the first burst of glory which encircles them, almost incapable, even in their immortal vigor, of calmly surveying so wonderful a scene. In the midst of their awe-struck wonder, a little cherub approaches, all covered with celestial grace, and says, "My name on earth was I am your child, redeemed by the sufferings of Jesuscome let me lead you to my mother, who is seated in yonder throng, with a crown upon her head, dressed in flowing robes like these, which have been washed and made white in the blood of the Lamb." This little incident, related in father C.'s peculiar manner, was, to the hearts of his hearers, like the prophet's rod to the smitten rock. To illustrate man's poverty, and show our entire dependance on God, father Q. says, "When I was at the General con . 'Nothing but sin have I to give, Nothing but love shall I receive.' Dr. Coke said, 'And how would you have it read ?' 'Nought but a broken heart I give, Nothing but love shall I receive.' 'But,' said the Doctor, where did you get your broken heart? 'From God.' 'It stands just right as it is. All we have that is our own is sin, and that line must not be changed.'" We wish that those who call us legalists could have heard this. TRUST IN GOD.-In all the works of nature and grace God has a constant and an overruling agency. This should be always impressed upon our minds. Whether we seek some good, or strive to avoid some evil, we need to act under the conviction that all is vain unless God be on our side. Let us learn to trust in God. No cordial is so comfortable as that which is drawn from words like these, "Come unto me all ye that labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest." Nothing so fortifies the mind and invigorates the spirit as faith in God, blended with a holy life. Such a life and trust warrant us to look forward with the blessed expectation of a life to come, in which the soul shall be a stranger to every form of evil and sorrow, and shall be intimate with many forms of heavenly felicity and joy. This hope may well warm the coldest heart, and infuse into our hearts a preliminary comfort, even while we dwell in this vale of tears. The strength of this trust and hope has been tried by thousands. They appeared to best advantage in the early Church, when persons of the tenderest age and of the timorous sex would embrace the stake or the rack, without the least uneasiness in look or gesture, and never quailed or trembled at any torture which the ingenuity and malice of the persecutor could invent or inflict. And if religion had such power in it then, is it degenerated now? Does it not contain the same supports at this day? If it was thus effectual in the hardest circumstances of life, has it not virtue in the ordinary and lesser evils of our lot? Let us fortify our minds by faith. And to do it, knowing that the grace of faith is from God, let us diligently apply to him in prayer for an increase of faith. Then shall we be able to adopt the language of the Psalmist in the 46th Psalm: "God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble. Therefore will not we fear, though the earth be removed, and though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof." TI. METHODIST FEMALE COLLEGIATE INSTITUTE OF CINCINNA Terms of Tuition.-Terms of tuition from $4 to $12 per quarter. The extra branches, as Music, Painting, &c., will be a separate charge, and as moderate as circumstances will justify. Boarding can be obtained, for any number of pupils, in the family of the Principal. Further information, if desired, can be obtained by addressing the Principal. References.-Hon. John M'Lean, John Reeves, Esq., William Neff, Josiah Lawrence, Dr. Charles Woodward, Moses Brooks, Esq., Harvey Decamp, Joseph G. Rust, Edward Taylor, Thos. H. Miner, Dr. Samuel A. Latta, Dr. Mussey, B Hazen, John Litherberry, William Johnson, Esq., Dr. J. Seagar. Reference can also be had to all the stationed preachers in the city. FOURTH ANNUAL CATALOGUE OF THE OAKLAND FEMALE SEMINARY, for the year ending August 5, 1842.-Teachers: Rev. Joseph M'Dowell Mathews, Principal. Miss Ann E. Shields, Miss Joann Wallin, Miss Selina Blanchard, Assistant Teachers. Mrs. M. C. M'Reynolds, Teacher of Music. Miss Sariah R. Wilson, Miss Sarah J. Hibben, Miss Mary A. Jones, Miss Sarah E. Kibler, Assistant Pupils. Whole number of pupils 105. The winter session of this institution will commence on Monday the 10th of October, and continue twenty-one weeks. Patronage of the Conference.-The Principal, having formerly been a member of the Ohio annual conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church, and knowing the members of that body to be deeply interested in the cause of education, solicted them to patronize his school so far as to appoint a committee to attend his examinations. This they consented to do. But it is not the object of this patronage to exert any sectarian influence in the school. We cordially commend this excellent seminary to the parents and guardians of youth. CATALOGUE OF THE OFFICERS AND STUDENTS OF NORWALK SEMINARY, for the year 1842.-Faculty: Rev. E. Thomson, M. D., Principal, and Teacher of Moral and Intellectual Philosophy. Rev. A. Nelson, Teacher of Natural Science. Rev. H. Dwight, A. M., Teacher of Ancient Languages. Mr. J. S. Mitchell, Teacher of Mathematics. Mr. E. W. Dunn, Teacher of Primary Department. Female Department: Mrs. J. Z. Nel. son, Preceptress. Mrs. A. Dwight, Teacher of Ornamental Branches. Students.-Males, 265; Females, 126; Total, 391. The annual examination takes place on the second Tuesday and Wednesday in July in each year. There are four vacations in the year-the first five weeks from the annual examination, and a vacation of one week at the close of each quarter. This institution is located in a healthful and beautiful village, and in the midst of an enlightened, moral, and religious community. North side of Ninth-street, between Main and Walnut.-Faculty: Rev. P. B. Wilber, A. M., Mrs. Mary C. Wilber, The building is an elegant three story brick edifice, affordPrincipals. Rev. Charles Elliott, D. D., Professor of Greeking ample accommodations for three hundred students. The and Latin. Rev. William Nast, Professor of Hebrew and GerRev. L. L. Hamline, A. M., Professor of Elocution and Belles Lettres. Mrs. Emma Behne, Professor of Music, Orna man. mental Needle-work and French. The preparatory department will be under the superintendence of competent instructors. Division of the Year.--The regular collegiate year consists of forty-four weeks, divided into terms of twenty-two weeks each; and a quarter, of one-half a term, or eleven weeks. The first term commenced on the first Monday of September, and will continue twenty two weeks. After a vacation of two weeks, the second term will commence, and continue twentytwo weeks, succeeded by a vacation of six weeks. Course of Study.-The course of study embraces all those branches usually taught in common and select schools, together with those pursued in the most approved female institutions; and some of the branches will be pursued as far as they are in colleges and universities. The course will be divided into departments, forming a systematic and regular course, which will be so arranged that young ladies may have an opportunity of receiving instruction in any one branch, as well as the whole. two departments, male and female, although under the same roof, are conducted separately, except so far as to be under the supervision of the same Principal, and the same Board of Trustees. consisting, among other articles, of an air pump, solar microThe institution is in possession of a philosophical apparatus, scope, lenses, electrical machine, artificial fountain, model of mechanical powers, globes, orrery, pneumatic cistern, tubes, receivers, and materials for a variety of chemical experiments. During the winter, lectures are delivered to the students on philosophical and historical subjects by an association of gentlemen formed for that purpose. The success of this institution outruns all hope. It is to be the instrument of incalculable good. To READERS. The necessary absence of the editor for several weeks, must account for some errors in the last two numbers. Errors, however, are unavoidable, and will always, with our best care, now and then appear in our work. TO CORRESPONDENTS.-We appeal to our friends to be more prompt. For several weeks their minds seem to have been diverted from us and our necessities. Will they favor us? |