The Watchman (Georgetown, Tex.), Vol. 4, No. 2, Ed. 1 Saturday, April 30, 1870 Page: 1 of 8

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PROPRIETOR.
VOL. IV.
GEORGETOWN, TEXAS, APRIL 30, 1870.
NO. 2.
The Georgetown Watchman,
is published every saturday.
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For the Watchman. !
Extracts from my Diary.
by (j retch ex
Oct. 4th, 1 have been very sick, sever- j
al weeks have passed since 1 last wrote in
this book; and I feel some unwillingness j
to begin again. But I know how pleas-
ant it will be in future years to read over j
byc-gones, and so 1 shall try to keep up j
the habit. Mrs Harris says she began to
keep a journal when she was thirteen j
years old, at school. She wrote almost j
daily for several years. Soon after she j
was married, before she went to house-
keeping for herself, a fire broke out in j
her father's library, which, before it'could ;
be checked, consumed nearly half of his
books and papers. Among the ruins, she
found the remains of a little writing desk
in which she hid lo?ked her diary. Ofj
course it was all destroyed, either by the j
lire or by water, and she says she h.-is j
never frogotton it, or ceased to regret its j
loss: it contained so much that would have j
been interesting and profitable to Frank j
a id Kose.
I have received several letters from1
Frank. He is hard at work, at his studies.
He says he has a pleasant room-mate, a j
young man from Illinois, who entered Col-
lege with him, and is as fond of study as j
he is. So that's a good thing; he will i
help Frank, instead of hindering him.
I told mother and father what Frank!
said to me on the Saturday evening be- j
fore he left home. Father replied that lie
was pleased to h ive me come and tell him
all about it, but said that Frank had spo- j
ken to him nearly a week before: and he
told him he mu«t take his chance—if he
could win, he might have. Mother said j
Mrs. Harris had told her what Frank's j
ideas were, and she knew what he had j
come for that evening; and that was why ;
Kose wouldn't walk out with me in the j
garden, too. So every body knew every
thing but myself, and I did, at last.
Let me see—I must write something of j
Mrs. Lewis. She has become all fixed in
her comfortable home, and keeps her two j
rooms, her children and'herselt as neat as
wax-work. Mother says while I was sick j
she was very helpful. She came and sat |
up with me several nights, and prepared
broths, fillies, and soon, more nicely than
anybody else could do it. Mother likes
her very much, but she hasn't found out
any thing more about her. She is very
reticent in regard to all that concerns her- j
M-lf. But she is quiet all the time, only
now and then a little nmile flits over her
face when she is particularly pleased; a
very sweet smile it is too. She has some
scholars now. five or six little girls, to
whom she teaches the primary branches
of a common education—mother lias sent
for me: * * * * *
Oct. 8th. Here I am, twenty miles away
from home. Mother called me last Mon-
day. as I was writing, to say that she had
received a note from Mrs. Spencer,inviting
Kose Harris and me to visit her girls, and
remain three weeks, So Kose and I made
ourselves ready, and came up in the cars
on Wednesday. This is a beautiful place.
They call it Appleton,andit is well named.
There is an orchard of two thousand ap-
ple trees and five hundred peach trees, be
sides any quantity of other and smaller
fruits. Mrs. Spencer said she had heard
of my recent illness, and she thought it
would help me recover strength to leave
home awhile and come to her. She is such
a good motherly woman, that we all love
her dearly; her heart is as big as her body.
Her girls are like her in kindness and hos-
pitality, and she has taught them her skill
in all departments of house-hold work.—
Their knowledge of all that will conduce
to the comfort of the body, has not, how-
ever prevented them from attendingto the
improvement and elevation of their minds.
Their father has fitted up a small room in
one wing of the house as a library for his
daughters. I think it is more comfortably
furnished than any apartment of its kind
T ever saw. All four of lis meet there
frequently, and have nice little confabs,
to which we freely admit any of the fam-
ily who choose to join us, especially "Wil-
lie the only son, the pet and pride of the
house. He is a promising youth of four-
teen, the particular charge of his sister
Dora. She has attended to his education
ever since he was four years old. She is
ten years older than he is, and he looks up
to her as to a second mother. Ellen, the
other sister, is not yet twenty. She is a
dear good, t\t, fun 1 iving girl, not so ac-
complished or stately as Dora, but mak-
ing up for her lack of much book
by her earnest love of all hum-mitv
her devotion to music. I have nev
fore been moved by any outward
ence as I have been by Ellen's wonderful
playing. She has a magnificent piano:
a genuine Broadwood, which her father
imported for her from England. It dif-
fers from those made in this country. It
is longer and deeper, and so gives increas-
ed length and power to the strings. The
result is a deep and resonant bass, and a
sweet treble, that mav be prolonged by
aid of the padal until the music resembles
that of an organ. Ellen conies into the
parlor after tea is over, in the dusk, and
plays whatever ha, )pens to come first into
her mind, or whatever suits her mood.—
Sometimes she fancies Beethoven's mourn-
ful sounds, and we remain spell-bound as
the piano wails and sobs under the influ-
ence of her skillful fingers: or, if in a gay
humor, she chooses one of Strauss' waltzes
we can hardly resist the temptation of
testing her time on the floor. But I like
best to hear her play her own composi-
tions: she is a real improvisatrice. Last'
evening I was sitting some distance be-
hind her: the others had gone out, and she
imagined herself alone. Her thoghts
seemed far away, and her fingers wandered
at will over the keys. I fancied I could '
detect in the beautiful melody running
through the chords, a thread of sadness,
deep sadness* of the heart, that certainly
never has shown itself in her every-day
manner. I do not believe I know her yet.
Any way, I've been here only two days.
Oct. 9. "Went out grape gathering this
morning after breakfast. The grapes are
a little wild fruit they call •' frost grapes,"
because they are hot eatable until they are
touched by lrost. On our return, Willie
guided us to a group of persimmon trees,
and we came home to dinner with loaded
baslirts. I found waiting for me a letter
from mother, inclosing one from Frank.— (*;
He had heard that I had been sick, he
said, and wrote dear words of sympathy
and love. He says he is studying hard, I m,
but he is determined not to ruin his health j IflC Jlrilllkaru S Wife.
as so many students do. He writes that j He comes not! I have watched the moon
many of the young men are poor, and de- : Sink slowly in the dusky west,
pendant upon their own exertions to get And, like the fading of her light,
through the course of study prescribed for j Hath hope died out in my sad breast,
the ministry; therefore they sit up far into j 'Tis midnight, but he comes not yet;
the night, laboring over their books, and ! All vainly still I watch and weep-
instead of taking exercise at proper hours How long, O Father ! O how long
they continue their thought, their argu- " * "
ment or their study: so that there is a con-
tinual strain upon their minds, which re-
acts upon fheir bodies, and they never re-
lax. Even when the College vacation j ^a* woven first around my heart,
comes,they still take no recess; they teach j ^ ^re from its shrine my idol fell.
school, perhaps, for five or six months, that! 110W' alas! a fearful doom
they may earn the. money necessary to Of wretchedness, and woe, and fear,
carry them t hrough another port ion of j I* mine—the fate to watch and pray,
Must I these lonely vigils keep!
O! for one hour of happiness
Such as I felt when love's deep spell
their College term. And then taking the
~ O I
part alternately of teacher and pupil, but !
always retaining the character of student,
they manage to get through the course, j
and come out of College, full fledged j
young ministers, as to mental equipment, i
but sadly behind-hand as to physical de- j
velopment. Frank happily, is not obliged j
to labor for the means to carry him thro'; I
therefore he thinks it would beunpardon- j
able if he should lose his health through |
too much study or too much idleness.—
He says he and his room mate agree in
this matter; so a few days ago, throwing
With aching heart and bitter tears.
I listen to the ceaseless stroke
Which marks the weary hours go by,
And start and tremble at the sound
Of e'en the night wind's gentle sigh.
I gaze upon my children fair.
And list-in to their low soft breath.
Till in my broken heart's despair,
I almost wish their sleep were death.
A blight upon the drunkards child
Rests ever, from life's opening morn ;
O! must my loved ones feel the sting
Of the world's cold, unfeeling scorn?
lore.
. and
•r be-
influ-
aside then- pride and their coats together, j Savior! Thou, whose soul hath felt
they sawed, split and piled two cords of | Dccp sorrow's fearful a<-onv.
sound oak wood hi the space of one after- j 0 fill my weary, fainting heart
With strength that only comes from
Thee.
—— m m m —
Sound Advice to Planters.
The Memphis Avalanche remarks that
the prospects are that the price of Cot-
ton will range between fifteen and eiglv-
teen ccnts next fall and winter, at the
highest, in which case all who have failed
to raise enough of the necessaries of life
will be in as deplorable a condition as was
noon: pocketed their pay, and sauntered
back to their room as unconcernedly as if
they had not been stared at by some of
their fashionable lady acquaintances.
By the way, I had almost forgotten
Miss Brown who bothered me so one day j
last Summer, at a pic nic party. She went
home to Mississippi some time in August
I believe, and Rose, heard a few.days ago
that she had gone to New York to spend
the winter. She is a dashing young la-
dy, and in the excitement of brilliant
parties and new conquests, her village
vi
her mind.
the planting community in the fall and
amesano new conquests, ner village j winte|. of when" they sold cotton
isit has probaldv long ago passed from | ^ ,ow asthirtecu 001lts pel/p„ulld to pay
for corn at one dollar and twenty-five
iir.i ~ „ ! cents to one dollar and fifty cents a bushel
AY iIhoii. of the Land Of-I and po|.k at (hirty_fom. tJ ,hil.ty_six dol_
lars per barrel. The experience of those
( Vmimissioner
lice, reports that quite an important dis-
covery has been made in Texas of a rich
vein of copper. A man who had read an
advertisement of the Land Office, desi-
few months, which ruined both the mer-
cantile and agricultural interest of the
South, and contributed to the wealth of
ring mineral specimens, picked up a cun- tl)e w sllollld bc sllfficlent to point
otu looking lump in his fields, and sent it out to lanters theh. „ f J. tfa
to that bureau. On examination it j lutui.c.' Yot m> ;t ;s ,|ot Efficient,
proved to be native copper. The Gov- | T,)u 00untry is w;,d
on the subject of
cotton planting and unless the mania is
eminent, in consequence, is now about to
send Prof. Roessler, geologist of the Mi-
ning Bureau, to Texas, to explore and re-
checked, a year hence will show serious
• , ,, i drawbacks on the present prosperity of
port.on the region where the discovery i the cotton region.
It should not be forgotten that the
was made.
Senator Flannngan was serenaded ! country i* steadily receding from the in-
pnees
said he hoped never to do Texas in-jble. If cotton brings only fifteen cents
justice, or while representing her, neg- next it will be ruin to those who are
lecther interests on any occasion. His j Joying com and pork now, and will also
speech was mainly devoted to railroad j ia\e to *)l1/ Jn or(|®r *°
• i. * -lm " i-i ! such a state of auairs, the policy of the
interests. Mamingaii proposes thej agrionltnn.1 interest is to plant an ahuu-
removal of the capital. ; dance of corn this season. It will prove
—to be the best kind of economy. With
The recent change of military their cribs full of corn, and fat swine in
headquarters from New Orleans to j their pens next fall, planters will be in a
this city, is the cause of some ill feel-1 to some extent, to dictate prices
ingand vexation on the part of the
citizens of the former place. This
is natural enough. Xew Orleans has
reaped great benefit f rom army head-
of cotton,otherwise, they will beat the
mercy of cotton gamblers and brought to
the verge of ruin.
A squire in Indianapolis marrieJ a
quarters, which will in future inure i coul^° we«k, adopting the service to
' . , 4 t i modern times by pronouncing them man
to our advantage Annhu Jmnml am, „-ifc .. unti| ,l,.pal,lU.d , ?