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| Sir John Franklin. |
Cortland County Express, Thursday, May 9, 1850.
THE SEARCH FOR SIR JOHN FRANKLIN.
The following are the ships either now in search or going out in search of Sir John Franklin, and the two missing ships of his expedition to the Arctic Seas, the Erebus and Terror:
In search in Davis's Straits, the North Star; in Behring's Straits, the Herald, Plover, Enterprise, and the Investigator.
Going in search to Jones' Sound and Welling Channel, the Lady Franklin and Sophia.
Going in search to Cape Walker, Banks's Land, and Melville Island, the Resolute, Assistance Pioneer, Intrepid, and the Felix, with the old Arctic veteran Sir John Ross.
The foregoing are all British ships. The following is the American expedition:
Lady Franklin, Captain De Haven, and Rescue, Captain Griffin going, if not disappointed, to the point of danger where Sir John Franklin is to be found, if living, and to convey him to England under the Yankee flag.
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| Franklin Expedition. |
SIR JOHN FRANKLIN AND THE CLAIRVOYANTS.
A little girl in Liverpool has lately been making some revelations with regard to the present condition and prospects of Sir John Franklin and his crew, while in a clairvoyant state, which are thus detailed in a Liverpool paper:
"Did you say," inquired the operator, "that Sir John Franklin is dead?" And to this and other questions the clairvoyant responded, "That cannot be, for I see him! He looks sad and worried, and not so well as when I was last here. (The girl had previously been sent in search of the missing expedition.) He says he is poorly and tired, and almost worn out with hopes deferred; but his men console him, and behave nobly, God never made a path through these desolate waters. What could induce him to break through these icy mountains? He frequently thinks of the folly of trying to do so. Such thoughts humble him, and make him sad and hopeless, and yet he thinks he will succeed in returning to England. He is right. He will return in six months and three or four days.
"The ships are at a great distance from each. They look dirty and battered. They have sails set. They (the seamen) are cutting the ice before them. In some places, it appears as thick as two houses; in others like mountains. They (the vessels) are in another place now to what they were when I was here last. They are now where ships never sailed before. They are not returning the same road they went. They are going that way (pointing to the west.) What can be the use of this road? It ought never to have been sailed. It will never be sailed again. He has seen some of the natives. They are wild, stupid, and uncommunicative. The vessels sent out in search of him (Sir John Franklin) will not find him; they will cross each other, and he will be first heard at a place called the Cape. It appears to have no other name."
It will be remembered that in October last, a clairvoyant at Bolton was consulted, and he fixed the same period for the return of the expedition. This is thought to be a remarkable coincidence.
ANOTHER GREAT FIRE IN ELMIRA.
ELMIRA, Wednesday, May 2, 1850, 4 A. M.—Last night about 12 o'clock fire was discovered in the row of old buildings East of S. Ayres' Jewel shop, and before the Fire Companies were on the ground, it had spread to the Elmira and Southport toll-bridge, and thence across a distance of 600 feet, and was burning as rapidly in the latter place as in the former.
Never did we see a fire burn with the rapidity before. It was thought it occupied no more than two minutes in running the whole length of the bridge. In Southport it consumed the toll-house, Messrs. McDonald & Palmer's Tannery, J. I. Nick's Tobacco manufactory, arid E. Palmer's dwelling,
On Water-St., (Elmira) it ran up as far as the three story brick block occupied by Messrs. McDonald & Palmer as a sale shop. From the bridge to this place it consumed six stores of different kinds with a great portion of their contents.
A correct estimate of the loss, and what particular individuals, would be impossible to state. So far as we know, we repeat below:
Messrs. McDonald &. Palmer are the heaviest losers—the loss is estimated at $15,000. The Elmira & Southport toll-bridge company follow next, loss $12,000, insurance $4,000. S. Ayer's Jewelry shop, $3,000, J. I. Nick's Tobacco Manufactory $2,500.
We have not been able to ascertain who the greatest sufferers were, from the bridge up as far as the extent of the burnt district. The whole amount cannot fall short of $15,000—making in the aggregate not far from $50,000.
This is the third fire we have had within ten days, and not an individual doubts but what it was the work of an incendiary in every case. What will become of us, unless something is done to remedy it all can see. We are satisfied the citizens feel willing to take any steps within their power to have this hellish work stopped.
We have had a set of rowdies, lounging about the place for a long while, whether these chaps have had a hand in it or not, we will not say. But one thing we will say; they ought to be compelled to do something to obtain a livelihood, respectably. We believe in the good old Connecticut Law, that obliged all people to labor, or be arraigned as paupers.—Chemung Democrat.
EDITORS' SANCTUMS.
We have often thought of those editors—perhaps we should say envied them—who are permitted to occupy neat and quiet apartments. Do believe if we could only have some little, retired corner—and we shouldn't be particular either, whether it were down cellar or up garret—we might throw off smoother editorials. For some reason, we can't put on the polish that some of our contemporaries do. There's Hoogland of the Record—one would think, to read his well-penned productions, that he is accustomed to sit primed up in one of the nicest parlors in Dundee; again Kinney of the Columbian, must have in addition to a carpet and mahogany desk, a gold pen and Fine French paper; the editor of the Saturday Evening Post must have a more magnificent sanctum than we can ever aspire to; so must the conductor of the North American; nor can the editor of the Baptist Register, judging from the smoothness of his lucubrations, be a whit behind any of these in respect to fixings; the editors of the Rural New Yorker must write editorials and cut copy in a miniature paradise; while Mathews of the Blade, undoubtedly (he is a bachelor) enjoys an easy chair, white curtains, embroidered slips, and laughs through gold spectacles! But we have enumerated more of our exchanges, perhaps, than has been necessary. We only proposed in a single paragraph to render some apology for a want of smoothness in our editorials. We often observe, when too late, errors in phraseology and sometimes blunder into mortifying misstatements; but we should just like to have some one who finds fault with these come and sit down to our table—in a room that unites the departments of type-setting, press work, and editing—and give us one of his productions.
Imagine a fastidious young gent—no, it shall be a young lady—that thinks we are rather careless with our pen—and, if you please, let it be her of the rapid elocution, that had a mind to "scold" us for giving a random sketch. She grasps the stub of a pen and scribbles a few lines delightfully; but when about the middle of a paragraph and her subject perhaps one of the most difficult—either love or moonshine, a compositor calls out, "Madame, how long before I shall have your article?" Being thus interrupted, she is obliged to read over the few lines she has written, to get the connection. By the time she has thrown off another thought, another compositor is at her elbow with bad manuscript, which she with some difficulty translates for him. She commences another paragraph, and thinks to proceed undisturbed, when some one calls to have her prepare the manuscript for a handbill; this done, she hurries off a few more lines, and the proof for the first side of the sheet must be read. Before proceeding to the new task however, she pens a few lines hastily, by way of closing the article, (which she had purposed to make four times as long,) and, having no time to read it over and make corrections, she hands it to the compositor and thinks to make a better article at the next trial. The time comes and, impressed with the beauties of nature, she sits down at the same table, and begins to pour out the feelings of her full heart—perhaps in verse. Her subject is Spring, and she commences her effusion thus:
Just as she has completed the third line, a lad presents a bill, to cancel which takes about all the change in her wallet when, half vexed and half amused, she completes the stanza with:
Subscribers, pay the printer.
By this time, Madam begins to think the task of editing, in a room in which she is so liable to be interrupted, is not so easy a task—she has played editor about long enough—and we may imagine her dropping a hasty courtesy, and making O. P. H.
Nobody need wonder, if this article is a little crooked, for we have been called off, since we began it, half a dozen times, to attend to something else—bring a pail of water, sweep, cut wood for the fire, &c, in order not to interrupt the setting of type, and the getting out of the paper in season. It will be recollected that we are not yet able to hire what is technically termed a printer's devil; the duties of that functionary must therefore be discharged by us; and as to the matter of a retired corner of the garret or the cellar—we can't indulge in such extravagances till those indebted to us are more prompt in making payment. Don't see but we must do without an editor's sanctum, yet awhile. If the day ever comes when we can luxuriate in such quarters, won't we polish our editorials? Won't we indulge in some magniloquent coruscations? Till such time, then, as we can enjoy a private office and suitable fixings, the man that would grumble at a want of elegance in style should be obliged to take our place in the Office for a whole week!
TEMPERANCE.
We are highly pleased to see the Sons of Temperance making public demonstrations in this place. It was our privilege to listen to the most of an able lecture delivered in their Hall, on Thursday evening last, by Rev. E. G. Bush; and it gave us great satisfaction to find the room crowded on that occasion. The fair sex were handsomely represented; there were certainly very flattering indications that the daughters felt an interest in the subject as well as the Sons. This is as it should be; and we are mischievously inclined to put this inquiry to the latter: how can you exclude the ladies from your organization, since their presence so much enhances the interest? If any one replies it is their duty to "ask their husbands at home," we rejoin, many of them have no husbands. But, seriously, we are glad to see the ladies countenance every effort put forth for the suppression of the rum traffic; the temperance cause is their cause; it is humanity's cause—it is God's cause!
The meeting certainly must have left a very good impression upon the minds of the auditory; the arguments presented in favor of sobriety, and against the debasing traffic in intoxicating liquors were unanswerable. We felt altogether too dull to report Mr. Bush, otherwise we should have given a synopsis of his lecture. Rev. Mr. Darby closed the exercises by the offering up of a fervent prayer for the success of the enterprise, and for the opening of the eyes of the drunkard makers to behold in its true light the desolation which their business is spreading around them—especially did he pray for the reforming of the rumseller of this village, to which, doubtless, every heart responded, AMEN.
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