Elihu Burritt （b. 1810,d. 1879）. "the learned blacksmith," was born in New Britain,Conn. His father was a shoemaker. Having received only a limited amount of instruction at the district school,he was apprenticed ta blacksmith about 1827. During his apprenticeship he labored hard at self-instruction. He worked at his trade many years,from ten ttwelve hours each day,but managed,in the meantime tacquire a knowledge of many ancient and modern languages. He made translations from several of these,which were published in the "American Eclectic Review." In 1844 he commenced the publication of "The Christian Citizen." His leading literary works are "Sparks from the Anvil," "A Voice from the Forge," "Peace Papers," and "Walks tJohn o’ Groat‘s House." From the last of these the following selection is abridged.
1.Take it in all,nbird in either hemisphere equals the English lark in heart or voice,for both unite tmake it the sweetest,the happiest,the welcomest singer that was ever winged,like the high angels of God’s love. It is the living ecstasy1 of joy when it mounts up intits "glorious privacy of light."
2.On the earth it is timid,silent,and bashful,as if not at home,and not sure of its right tbe there at all. It is rather homely withal,having nothing in feather,feature,or form tattract notice. It is seemingly made tbe heard,not seen,reversing the old axiom2 addressed tchildren when getting noisy.
3.Its mission is music,and it floods a thousand acres of the blue1Ecstasy,overmastering joy,rapture. 2 Axiom,a self-evident truth.sky with it several times a day. Out of that palpitating1 speck of living joy there wells2 forth a sea of twittering ecstasy upon the morning and evening air. It does not ascend by gyrations3,like the eagle and birds of prey. It mounts up like a human aspiration.
4.It seems tspread its wings and tbe lifted straight upwards out of sight by the afflatus4 of its own happy heart. Tpour out this in undulating 5rivulets of rhapsody6 is apparently the only motive of its ascension. This it is that has made it sloved of all generations7.
5.It is the singing angel of man‘s nearest heaven,whose vital breath is music. Its sweet warbling is only the metrical8 palpitation of its life of joy. It goes up over the rooftrees9 of the rural hamlet10 on the wings of its song,as if ttrain the human soul ttrial flights heavenward.
6.Never did the Creator put a voice of such volume intssmall a living thing. It is a marvel-almost a miracle. In a still hour you can hear it at nearly a mile’s distance. When its form is lost in the hazy lace work of the sun‘s rays above,it pours down upon you all the thrilling semitones of its song as distinctly as if it were warbling tyou in your window.
1Palpitating,throbbing,fluttering. 2 Wells,pours,flows.3Gyrations,circular or spiral motions. 4 Afflatus,breath,inspiration.5Undulating,rising and falling like waves.6Rhapsody,that which is uttered in a disconnected way under strong excitement. 7Generation,the mass of beings at one period.8Metrical,arranged in measures,as poetry and music.9Rooftree,the beam in the angle of a roof,hence the roof itself. 10Hamlet,a little cluster of houses.