"wal, Hosea he com home considerabal riled, and arter I'd gone to bed I heern Him a thrashin round like a short-tailed Bull in fli-time. The old Woman ses she to me ses she, Zekle ses she, our Hosee's gut the chollery or suthin another ses she; don't you be skeered, ses I, he's oney amakin pottery ses wounds of the old warfare were long a-heal- | he hed as much as 20 Roosters' tales stuck ing, and an east wind of hard times puts a onto his hat and eenamost enuf brass a bobnew ache in every one of them. Thrift was bin up and down on his shoulders and figureed the first lesson in their horn book, pointed onto his coat and trousis, let alone wut natur out, letter after letter, by the lean finger of hed sot in his featers, to make a 6 pounder the hard schoolmaster, Necessity. Neither out on.. were they plump, rosy-gilled Englishmen that came hither, but a hard faced, atrabilarious, earnest-eyed race, stiff from long wrestling with the Lord in prayer, and who had taught Satan to dread the new Puritan hug. Add two hundred years' influence of soil, climate, and exposure, with its necessary result of idiosyncrasies, and we have the pre-i, he's ollers on hand at that ere busynes like sent Yankee, full of expedients, half-master of all trades, inventive in all but the beautiful, full of shifts, not yet capable of comfort, armed at all points against the old enemy, Hunger; longanimous, good at patching, not so careful for what is best as for what will do, with a clasp to his purse and a button to his pocket; not skilled to build against Time, as in old countries, but against sore-pressing Need; accustomed to move the world with no ro or, but his own two feet, and no lever but his own long forecast. A strange hybrid, indeed, did circumstances beget here in the New World, upon the old Puritan stock, and the earth never before saw such mystic-practicalism, such niggard-geniality, such calculating-fanaticism, such cast-iron enthusiasm, such unwilling humor, such closefisted generosity." But to the Biglow Papers and their humor. The principal subjects discussed in them, are the Mexican war and the slavery question, seen from a popular or rustic point of view. If the reader can master the dialectic peculiarities of the following extracts, he will find some genuine humor in them, and not a little shrewd sense. We believe the Papers are also valuable as furnishing a repository of the current patois of the New England States, as well as the tone of thought and mode of viewing public questions which prevails in most of them. The first letter is from Ezekiel Biglow to the editor of the Boston Courier, enclosing a poem by "our Hosea" on the recruiting then going on for soldiers to serve in the Mexican It begins thus: war. 'MISTER EDDYTER:-Our Hosea wuz down to Boston last week, and he see a cruetin sarjunt a struttin round as popler as a hen with 1 chicking, with 2 fellers a drummin and fifin arter him like all natur. the sarjunt he thout Hosea hedn't gut his i teeth cut cos he looked a kinda's though he'd jest com down, so he cal'lated to hook him in, but Hosy woodn't take none o' his sarse for all Da & martin, and shure enuf, cum mornin, Hosey he cum down stares full chizzle, hare on eend and cote tales flyin, and sot right of to go reed his varses to Parson Wilbur bein he aint aney grate shows o' book larnin himself, bimeby he cum back and sed the parson wuz dreffle tickled with 'em as i hoop you will Be, and said they wuz True grit." We can only give a few verses of Hosea's "Pottery," composed in answer to the recruiting sergeant's invitation to him to "List, list, O list!" They are genuine Yankee: Thresh away you'll hev to rattle Let folks see how spry you be,— Want to tackle me in, du ye? I expect you'll have to wait; To them poor half-Spanish drones? Whether I'd be sech a goose Take them editors that's crowin' Though they be so very bold; 'Fore they think on't, they will sprout, (Like a peach that's got the yellers,) With the meanness bustin' out. Hosea is a thorough Peace-man, and goes the whole hog in that line, calling war murder, in plain terms: 'Taint your epyletts an' feathers Make the thing a grain more right; Will excuse ye in His sight; God 'll send the bill to you. But although Hosea was able to resist the drum and fife of the recruiting sergeant, it appears that a "yung feller" of the same. town, Birdofreedom Scawin by name, whose great ambition was to sport a "cocktale" on his hat, had been tempted to volunteer to Texas; and, feeling a good deal of disgust at the military profession, he writes home a letter which falls into Hosea Biglow's hands, and which Parson Wilbur says "oughter at once Bee printed." Mr. Scawin, it appears, finds real sojerin a very different thing from holiday reviewing, much more disagreeable, and he is disgusted accordingly: This kind o' sogerin' aint a mite like our October trainin'; A chap could clear right out from there ef't only looked like rainin'; An' th' Cunnles, tu, could kiver up their shappoes with bandanners, An' send the insines skootin' to the bar-room with their banners, (Fear o' gittin on 'em spotted,) an' a feller could cry quarter, Ef he fired away his ramrod arter tu much rum an' water. It is very different, however, in Texas. Hard work, hard fighting, and no time for bandanners. Mr. Scawin also makes a very alarming discovery about the particular shape of the bayonet, which he thus comically alludes to! It's glory,but in spite o' all my tryin to git callous, I feel a kind o' in a cart, a-ridin' to the gallus; But wen it comes to bein' killed,-I tell ye I felt streaked, The fust time ever I found out WY BAGGONETS one; So it saves drink; and then, besides, a feller couldn't beg A gretter blessin' than to hev one ollers sober peg; It's true a chap's in want o'two fer follerin a drum, But all the march I'm up to now is jest to Kingdom Come. He finds he can also dispense with his lost eye, for the one that remains he finds quite big enough to see all that he will ever get by losing the other. But the loss of his fingers is more serious, as his powers of arithmetic are thereby taken away from him, and he can no longer cast up his calculations on his finger-ends. As for Texas, now conquered, it entirely disappointed Mr. Scawin. Instead of a country flowing with rum and water, as Canaan flowed with milk and honey; instead of gold being dug up in as great plenty as taters are in America during harvest-time; instead of precious stones and 'propaty to be had for the gathering, there were horrid insects, abominable water, scarcity of food and many very hard knocks. Here is Mr. Scawin's graphic account of the climate,-its long droughts and then sudden deluges-and the reader will observe in the description the extremely clever picture of female perplexity in Prude's management of her tea-pot: 'Ould all come down kerswosh! ez though the dam broke in a river. Jest so 'tis here; holl months there ain't a day o' rainy weather, An' jest ez th' officers 'ould be a layin' heads together Ez t'how they'd mix their drink at sech a milingtary depot, O, wouldn't I be off, quick time, ef't worn't thet I'T 'ould pour ez though the lid wuz off the everlastin' teapot. The consequence is, thet I shall take, wen I'm allowed to leave here, One piece o' propaty along,-an' thet's the shakin' fever; Its reggilar employment, though, an' thet aint thought to harm one, Nor 'taint so tiresome ez it wuz with 't other leg an' arm on; An' it's a consolation, tu, although it does n't pay, To hev it sed you're some gret shakes in any kin o' way. Consoling himself with this philosophy, Mr. Scawin looks to the future, but doesn't see his way so clear. He finds he has got some "glory," which may, "arter all," turn out a good investment; but as for solid pudding, it has not yet come to hand. For (speaking of the common soldiers) he says: We get the licks,wer'e just the grist thet's put into War's hoppers; Leftenants is the lowest grade thet helps pick up the coppers. It may suit folks thet go agin a body with a soul in't, An' aint contented with a hide without a bagnethole in it; But glory is a kin' o' thing I shan't pursue no furder, Coz thet's the officers parquisite,-yourn's only jest the murder. Mr. Seawin forthwith thinks of making use of his wooden leg for the purpose of hopping into Congress. He will set up as a candidate for office, on the strength of his "milingtary" reputation, for There ain't no kin' o' quality in candidates, it's said, So useful ez a wooden leg,-except a wooden head. As for principles, he has none, but if any cantankerous elector should ask for them, he will answer that he has a wooden leg got in the service of his country; and if harder pressed for something more definite, he will reply that he has had one eye put out. Then for a popular cry of the "Old Hickory" kind, Mr. Scawin thinks he will do: Then you can call me "Timbertoes,”—that's wat the people likes; Sutthin combinin' morril truth with phrazes sich as strikes ; "Old Timbertoes" you see's a creed it's safe to be quite bold on, There's nothin in't the other side can any ways git hold on; It's a good tangible idee, a suthin' to embody, That valooable class o' men who look thru brandy which it appears that he retires from the contest for President, as sick of political as he had been of "milingtary campaigning." But, from the specimens we have given, it will be observed how rich is the vein of humor which runs through his observations. There is only one little difficulty which Birdofreedom Scawin admits, which is, that in order to be a proper candidate for the presidency, he must own a nigger of some sort, and, therefore, he requests his friends to raise subscriptions amongst them to enable him to purchase the requisite qualificationthat is, "enough for me to buy a low-priced baby." Mr. Scawin writes a third letter, from There are other pieces in the Biglow Papers quite as good as these. The speech of Increase O'Phace, Esquire," at an extrumpery caucus meeting, is full of humor, mixed with shrewd common sense. Take the following little extract as an example :I'm willin a man should go tollable strong Agin wrong in the abstract, fer that kind o' wrong Is ollers unpop'lar an' never gits pitied, Because it's a crime no one ever committed. Coz then he'll be kickin the people's own shins. But he musn't be bard on partickler sins, 66 He "The Pious Editor's Creed" is a terrible satire on Yankee politics-more severe than any thing that old country writers have yet derive the name of Editor not so much from said of them. Parson Wilbur is disposed to edo, to publish, as from edo, to eat, that being the peculiar profession to which the American editor esteems himself called. blows up the flames of political discord for no other occasion than that he may thereby handily boil his own pot. Nine hundred and ninety-nine out of the thousand labor to impress upon the people the great principles of Tweedledum, and nine hundred and ninetynine out of the other thousand preach with equal earnestness the gospel according to Tweedledee." Here are a few extracts from "The Pious Editor's Creed :". I du believe in Freedom's cause, I love to see her stick her claws To dror resoves and triggers,- That don't agree with niggers. I du believe the people wunt I du believe it's wise an' good An' orthydox conditions ; I mean nine thousan' dolls. per ann., I du believe in special ways I du believe with all my soul An' in the traces lead 'em ; I du believe in prayer an' praise But O, I DU in interest. I du believe in bein' this Or that, ez it may happen: One way or t'other hendiest is To ketch the people nappin'; It aint by principles nor men My president course is steadied,— I scent which pays the best, an' then Go into it bald headed. I du believe wutever trash 'll keep the people in blindness,-- Thet bombshells, grape, an' powder 'n ball MUST BE DRUV IN WITH BAGNETS. In short, I firmly du believe Fer it's a thing that I perceive This heth my faithful shepherd ben, Hosea Biglow puts some questions to a popular candidate, who sends an answer of a very comical description. The candidate is of the class "artful dodger"—one that won't give a pledge. Yet he pretends to be very straight forward, though all the while he is, as the Yankee say, "riding on the fence." Here are his views anent the Mexican war, which some of our peace-men in the House of Commons may imitate to advantage next time they appear before their British constituents : Ez for the war, I go agin it,— The best way is to fight it thru ; SOMETIMES UPON A POWDER-CART. We cannot, however, proceed further with quotations from these clever and highly-humorous jeux d'esprit. But we cannot refrain from giving a short piece by Mr. Lowell in an altogether different vein-one which, perhaps, he thinks the lightest of, having thrown it off in a careless mood; and yet it is the most characteristic little poem which he has yet written. It is so thoroughly American— so native-so true. Why will not Americans write after nature, instead of after Wordsworth and Tennyson? Let Mr. Lowell write more in the following strain-commonplace and vulgar as it may seem, yet thoroughly true to nature--and he will do more to create a school of popular American poetry, than by writing no end of "Rosalines" and 66 'Legends of Brittany." The piece which we refer to is unfinished. It is entitled "The Courtin," Time - twilight. Ezekiel goes a courting Huldy, who is sitting in the kitchen all alone, peeling apples by the firelight. The piece has the finish of a Dutch picture : Zekle crep' up, quite unbeknown, An' peeked in thru the winder, 'ith no one nigh to hender. Agin' the chimbly crooknecks hung, The wannut logs shot sparkles out The very room, coz she wuz in, Looked warm from floor to ceilin'; Ez th' apples she wuz peelin'. A-raspin' on the scraper,- Like sparks in burnt-up paper. Some doutfle o' the seekle; * * * Here the poem ends. Perhaps to carry it much further would have been to spoil it. But even as it stands, it is a gem. We only wish that Mr. Lowell would write more in this vein. He might even do so in English if he liked, instead of that lingo. |