THE

"TIME STILL MOVES ON." BY PARK BENJAMIN.

1.

TIME still moves on, with noiseless pace,
And we are loiterers by the way;
Few win and many lose the race,

For which they struggle day by day; And even when the goal is gained,

How seldom worth the toil it seems! How lightly valued when obtained, The prize that flattering Hope esteems!

II.

Submissive to the winds of chance,

We toss on Life's inconstant sea; This billow may our bark advance, And that may leave it on the lee; This coast, which rises fair to view,

May thick be set with rocky mail, And that which beetles o'er the blue, Be safest for the shattered sail.

III.

The cloud that, like a little hand,

Slow lingers when the morning shines, Expands its volume o'er the land,

Dark as a forest-sea of pines;
While that which casts a vapory screen
Before the azure realm of day,

Rolls upward from the lowland scene,
And from the mountain tops away.

IV.

Oh, fond deceit! to think the flight

Of time will lead to pleasures strange, And ever bring some new delight

To minds that strive and sigh for change. Within ourselves the secret lies,

Let seasons vary as they will;

Our hearts would murmur, though our skies Were bright as those of Eden still!

GRAND VIADUCT

ON THE BALTIMORE AND WASHINGTON RAIL-ROAD.

THE engraving in this week's ROVER is a finely finished and correct view of the great viaduct over the Patuxent, on the Baltimore and Washington railroad. This is the eighth plate we have given in the ROVER, of striking and beautiful views of "American Scenery," in conformity with an intimation given by us some four or five months ago. For the benefit of new subscribers and new readers, we may mention that the subjects of these plates are as follows:

"The Ruins of Fort Ticonderoga."

"Evening on the Passaic," in New Jersey. "Falls of Montmorency."

"View of Boston and Bunker Hill." "Caldwell's Landing;" view on the Hudson. "Eastport and Passamaquaddy Bay," in Maine. "The Narrows," at the entrance of New York Harbor.

These are all beautiful engravings on steel, and to persons who do not possess them, are alone worth the price of the ROVER for a year, to say nothing of the thirty other plates which the work so far contains.

A few full sets from the commencement may still be had of the publishers at 162 Nassau street, or at the general agency, at the Sun office. VOL. II.-No. 12.

THE following true tale was written nearly a year ago for that excellent family newspaper, the Philadelphia Saturday Courier, from which we transfer it to our pages. The names used in the narrative are of course fictitious; but the incidents all occurred substantially as here related, and the parties are respectable gentlemen now living and doing business in this bustling city of New York. The writer had the account directly from the lips of the principal actor. PERSEVERANCE:

OR PETER PUNCTUAL'S WAY TO COLLECT BILLS.
BY SEBA SMITH.

SOME few years ago, Peter Punctual, an honest and industrious young fellow from Yankee land-I say Yankee land, Messrs. Editors, but I freely confess that is merely an inference of mine, drawn from circumstances of this story itself; but if your readers, after perusing it, do not come to the same conclusion, they may set him down as coming from any other land they please; but for myself, were I on a jury, and under oath, I would bring him in a Yankee. This same Peter Punctual, some few years ago, came into New York, and attempted to turn a penny and get an honest living by procuring subscribers to various magazines and periodicals, on his own hook. That is, he would receive a quantity of magazines from a distant publisher, at a discount, and get up his own list of subscribers about the city, and serve them through the year at the regular subscription price, which would leave the amount of the said discount a clear profit in his pocket, or rather a compensation for his time and labor. There are many persons in this city who obtain a livelihood in the same way.

Peter's commissions being small, and his capital still smaller, he was obliged to transact his business with great care and circumspection, in order to make both ends meet. He adopted a rule therefore to make all his subscriber's pay their year's subscription in advance. Such things could be done in those days when business was brisk, and the people were strangers to hard times." In canvasing for subscribers, one day, through the lower part of the city, and in the principal business streets, he observed a store which had the air of doing a heavy business, and read upon the sign over the door, "Solomon Sharp, Importer" of certain wares and merchandize. The field looked inviting, and in Peter went with his samples under his arm, and inquired for Mr. Sharp. The gentleman was pointed out to him by the clerks, and Peter stepped up and asked him if he would not like to subscribe for some magazines.

"What sort of ones have you got there?" said Mr. S. "Three or four different kinds," said Peter, laying

Sharp. "It's time enough to pay for a thing when you get it. I'll subscribe for it, if you have a mind to receive your pay at the end of the year, and not otherwise."

doesn't pay none of these 'ere things here—you must carry it to the store."

litely.

short of the matter."

Peter paused a little, and queried with himself as to what he had better do. The man was evidently doing a large business, and was undoubtedly rich-a whole. sale dealer and an importer-there could not possibly be any danger of losing the subscription in such a case and would it not be better to break over his rule for once, than to lose so good a subscriber?

"Well, what say?" said Sharp; "do as you like; but those are my only terms. I will not pay for a thing before I get it."

"On the whole," said Peter, "I have a good mind to break over my rule this time, for I don't like to lose a good subscriber when I can find one. I believe I'll put your name down, sir. Where will you have it

left ?"

"At my house," said Mr. Sharp, which was about a mile and a half from his store, away up town.

The business being thus concluded, Peter took up his magazines, bade Mr. Sharp good morning and left the store. No further personal intercourse occurred between them during the year. But Peter, who was his own carrier, as well as canvaser, regularly every month delivered the New England Magazine at Mr. Sharp's door. And in a few days after the year expired, he made out his bill for the five dollars, and called at Mr. Sharp's store for the money. He entered with as much confidence that he should receive the chink at once, as he would have had in going with a check for the like sum into the Bank of the United States, during that institution's palmiest days. He found Mr. Sharp at his desk, and presented him the bill. That gentleman took it and looked at it, and then looked at Peter.

"Oh! ah, good morning," said he, "you are the young man who called here on this business nearly a year ago. Well, the year has come round, has it?" "Yes, I believe it has," said Peter.

"Well, bills of this kind," said Mr. Sharp, "are paid

at the house. We don't attend to them here; you just

take it to the house, any time when you are passing,

and it will be settled."

"Oh, very well, sir," said Peter, bowing, and left the store. "Doing too large a business at the store, I suppose," he continued, to himself, as he walked up the street, "to attend to little things of this kind. Don't like to be bothered with 'em, probably."

But Peter thought he might as well make a finish of the business, now he was out; so he went directly to the house, and rung at the door. The servant girl soon made her appearance.

"Is Mrs. Sharp within ?" said Peter. "Yes, sir," said the girl.

"Jest carry this bill to her, if you please, and ask her if she will hand you the money for it."

The girl took the bill into the house, and presently returned with the answer, that "Mrs. Sharp says she

"I havn't nothing at all to do with the bills here at the house," said the lady; they must be carried to the store-that's the place to attend to them."

"Well, mam," said Peter, "I carried it to the store, and presented it to Mr. Sharp, and he told me to bring it to the house and you would pay it here, and that he couldn't attend to it at the store."

"But he couldn't mean that I should pay it," said Mrs. Sharp, "for he knows I haven't the money." "But he said so," said Peter.

"Well then there must be some mistake about it," said the lady.

"I beg your pardon, mam," said Peter, "it's possibowed and left the house. ble there may be," and he put the bill in his pocket,

"It is very queer," thought Peter to himself as he walked away a little vexed. "I can't conceive how there could be any mistake about it, though it is possible there may be. There couldn't be any mistake on my part, for I'm sure I understood him. May be he thought she had money at the house when she hadn't. I guess it will all come out righ enough in the end."

Consoling himself with these reflections, Peter Punctual thought he would let Mr. Sharp rest two or three days, and not show any anxiety by calling again in a hurry. He would not be so unwise as to offend a good subscriber, and run the hazard of losing him, by an appearance of too much haste in presenting his bills. Accordingly, in about three days, he called again at Mr. Sharp's store, and asked him in a low voice, so that no one should overhear, if it was convenient for him to take that little bill for the magazine to-day.

"But I told you," said Mr. Sharp, "to carry that bill to the house; I can't attend to it here."

"Yes, sir, so I understood you," said Peter, "and I carred it to the house, and Mrs. Sharp said she couldn't

pay it there, for she had no money, and I must bring

it to the store."

"Oh, strange," said Mr. Sharp; "well, she didn't properly understand it then. But I am too much engaged to attend to you to-day; you call again, or call

at the house sometime, when I am there."

with great earnestness, and Peter left the store. The affair began to grow a little vexatious, and Peter felt a little nettled. Still, he supposed that people doing such very large business did find it difficult to attend to these little matters, and doubtless it would be set right when he should call again.

Upon this, he turned to his desk and began to write

After waiting patiently a couple of weeks, Peter called again at Mr. Sharp's store. When he entered the door, Mr. Sharp was looking at a newspaper; but on glancing at Peter, he instantly dropped the paper, and fell to writing at his desk with great rapidity. Peter waited respectfully a few minutes, unwilling to disturb the gentleman till he should appear to be a little more at leisure. But after waiting some time without seeing any prospect of Mr. Sharp's completing the very pressing business before him, he approached him with deference, and asked if it would be convenient for him to