LIFE OF KOSCIUSKO. "Hear him ye senates! hear this truth sublime, THERE is in all minds a desire to inquire into the facts of former days; we love to trace the rise and progress of nations-how, from small beginnings, kingdoms have reached a towering height, till overbalanced by the weight of their own greatness, they tottered and fell. But the scenes which excite the liveliest interest are the struggles for liberty. November 8th, 1794, saw Warsaw, the capital of Poland, taken by the Russians, and the iron fetters of slavery riveted on her sons. It is in the most critical times that the genius of an individual is displayed; and many instances are on record, of men, who, in times of quiet, would have passed through life compar atively unnoticed, and sunk peaceably to their graves; have in the storm, stood foremost the champions of liberty, and defended their country from its tyrannising foes. The Poles determining to resist the encroachments of Russia, rose in insurrection, and raised Kosciusko to the dignity of General. This patriot was born a gentleman, but his family not being in affluent circumstances, he was sent to the school of cadets to be educated for the army. It was usual for the kings of Poland to send annually four youths to foreign countries, to perfect themselves in the art of war. Kosciusko studied four years at Versailles, and returned to Poland with the reputation of being a skilful engineer. In 1789 he was made major-general in the Polish army. He served with distinction in the campaign of D 1792 against the Russians, but king Stanislaus having soon after submitted to the will of the empress Catherine, and Poland being occupied by Russian troops, Kosciusko with several other officers left the service and withdrew to Germany. When the revolution broke out in Poland at the beginning of 1794, Kosciusko was put at the head of the national forces, which were hastily assembled, and in great measure were destitute of arms and artillery. In April, 1794, he defeated a numerically superior Russian force at Raclawice. Again in the month of June he attacked the united Russians and Prussians near Warsaw, but was defeated and obliged to retire into his entrenched camp before the capital. He then defended that city for two months against the combined forces of Russia and Prussia, and obliged them to raise the siege. Fresh Russian armies however, having advanced from the interior under Suwarrow and Fersen, Kosciusko marched against them with 21,000 men. The Russians were nearly three times the number, and on the 10th of October, the battle of Mackiewice took place, about 50 miles from Warsaw. After a desperate struggle the Poles were routed, and Kosciusko being wounded, was taken prisoner, exclaiming that there was an end of Poland. The storming of Praga by Suwarrow and the capitulation of Warsaw soon followed. Kosciusko, was taken to St. Petersburg as a state prisoner, but being afterwards released by the emperor Paul, he repaired to America, and afterwards returned to France about 1798. In 1816, Kosciusko settled at Soleure, in Switzerland, where he applied himself to agricultural pursuits. He died in October, 1817, in consequence of a fall from his horse. His remains were removed to Cracow by order of Alexander, and placed in the vaults of the kings of Poland, and a monument was raised to his memory. THE DOG. DOGS are of such great service to man, that almost all the tribe are domesticated. However, there are still some to be found wild, particularly in the woods of America. These animals do not hunt alone, as those of the cat kind do; but as a single dog would not be able to attack any of the large beasts, they join together, and hunt in packs. Their numbers make up for the want of individual strength, and by these means they procure food enough for all. When animal food cannot be had, they will subsist on vegetables; but never do so from choice. There are many different species; all, generally speaking, sagacious, active, and courageous, though some certainly possess more intelligence than others. They cannot climb trees like cats, but have the sense of smelling remarkably acute. When young they are called puppies; and, for the first nine days of their lives, are blind. Man is more indebted to this useful quadruped, than to any other that exists. The dog is not only the servant of man, but is his faithful friend and constant companion. The dog guards his master's house and property with the utmost vigilance. He will not be bribed, to let any stranger come near the mansion he is to protect, without alarming the family with incessant barking. He knows his master, and on his return after an absence, will go out to welcome him; and he testifies his joy by fawning and licking his hands, and various other signs of happiness, If so unfortunate as to lose his master, he even appears to feel sorrow and regret. |