Below is the text version of the image above.
Old Papers, Essays Stranger Than Fiction
An early Covington phenomenon Jame Rees
By RON BARTHET
COVINGTON — Anyone who would write that the definition of wisdom is the knowledge of billiards might find someone not in agreement with him today. If this same person would define "churches" as a comfortable place to take a snooze or "marriage" as a couple yoked together by law to quarrel during life, there might be some to take a second look at his observations.
These were the humorous opinions of James Rees, essayist, author, newspaper reporter and philosopher. No one knows where Rees came from or where he went, but it is known that during the years 1831 and 1833 he resided in Covington, taking life easy and writing numerous pieces. His main contribution to Covington, however, was the fascinating observations he wrote as a contributing reporter for the Covington Palladium, a newspaper in this area popular around the early 1830's.
The humor of Rees was not all frivolous, however. He defined lawyers as the "perverters of truth," doctors as "death's attendants" and preachers as "fortune tellers." He saw independence as a knowledge of our own strength and love as a tumbler and a bottle of port.
Taverns, he stated, were places where one gets credentials to go to the Devil, and Hell he described as a place represented by Judges as to be rather warm.
Rees described himself as a "moderate man", not very intellectual and admitted to a lack of genius, talent and knowledge of the world.
The writing of Rees was lost to the area for almost a hundred years for there were no copies of the Palladium to be found in the parish. No one even knew the man existed until early in the 1960's when, by a stroke of luck, several copies of the Covington paper were found stashed in an attic in Philadelphia. Apparently someone in that northern state had taken a subscription to the Palladium and had stored the issues in his attic. They were found only when a renovation of Independence Square around 1963 sent workmen to clean out the attic where the Palladium rested.
Someone in Philadelphia wrote to the historian of St. Tammany Parish stating that a number of early Covington newspapers had been found and asked if they wanted them to send them down. Adrian D. Swartz, a local attorney and historian, got possession of the newspapers and found that Rees had contributed much to the attitude of those issues.
Not only were copies of the Palladium sent, but some manuscripts by Rees also arrived, notably his "Tales and Sketches." This included a number of poems, short stories and political essays by Rees.
"Tales and Sketches" was written in September of 1832 and the Palladium began publication on December 23, 1832, so Rees had come to the Covington area prior to the beginning of the newspaper, presumably for his health.
Some of his newspaper accounts are vivid reminders of the terror that disease wrought on the area in the early 1800's. From the Covington Palladium of Saturday, August 25, 1832, comes this account.
"The Cholera. It will be seen from our extracts that this scourge is passing our land like a mighty whirlwind, hurrying to the grave, the young, the aged; the rich, the poor; the bond and free. What an awful lesson does this present to the vicious, who are its earliest victims. What a melancholy picture to the Christian: There are some who are callous to the terrors it everywhere creates, who mock its ghastly form as it stalks unfettered over our land."
On a more personal note, Rees wrote this "Journal of a week in Covington" covering the span of time beginning July 21, 1832.
"Sunday: Rose at seven, being awoke by the ringing of a bell. Sounded just about like a steamboat leaving the wharf. Breakfasted. Looked up one street, then down another. Roamed in spirit and wondered how people could live in a place so retired."
"I wrote the first chapter of the Politician ( which, later appeared in the pages of the Palladium). Umph. Did not like it. Lacks interest. Drank two mint julips and walked down to village school. Heard one of Blair's sermons read by a young man with much feeling. . ."
He includes comments on political feelings of the time, observations on people he meets ("I first believed that he was a thief, and so he was. . .") and other personal incidents ("I gave the second chapter of the "Politician" to a friend to read and he laughed so hard he injured himself. . .").
He tells how on Tuesday of the week he went down to a special place of meditation and decided
to climb a tree, which he fell out of. "Didn't break any bones," he wrote, "but fell very flat. Hope no one saw me."
He continues, "went down to Bogue Falia - curious kind of name, it means 'bog trotter.' Tried to fish, got five hundred nibbles, and caught a snapper. Stole a man's boat and rode down the river. Came home late to dinner."
Rees wrote of many topics and revealed many opinions. All in all, he scribed an amusing picture of Covington and its inhabitants in the 1830's. More of his writings will appear in The Covington Daily News and St. Tammany Register.
End of article
Here is another of James Rees observations....
The text of the above article is below:
By RON BARTHET
COVINGTON — James Rees, contributing writer to the Covington Palladium in the year 1832, wrote much of the atmosphere of life in those times, making observations on the people, the way of living, and the institutions that then existed.
He covered many of the events of the day, the cholera epidemic in New Orleans, the shipping activity of Covington and other ports along the Bogue Falaya and Tchefuncte Rivers, and his own personal opinions on the current controversies.
On the 1832 school system, he observed, "The want of a good school in this place is most sensibly felt. The advantages of a well-regulated school are so universally experienced in every place where they are located, that it would be an insult to the good sense of our citizens to reiterate them here."
He continued, "The youth of our parish, showing a willing disposition to learn and who are attentive to their studies when such an opportunity offers. This is both honorable to themselves and praiseworthy to the few who have undertaken such a laudable design."
"The time is approaching when it is becoming an important duty of parents, guardians and others who value the happiness and prosperity of their children to adopt such measures as will tend to achieve such a desired object. A carelessness on their part produces a corresponding disposition on the part of their
offspring; and "as the twig is bent, the tree's inclined" will be awfully verified. As they advance into life, children are apt to follow examples much sooner than precepts. Hence, if the example be a good one, they follow it; if it be bad, and connected with idleness, they assuredly do the same."
"And if a spirit of emulation and ambition be kindled within them and good examples placed before them through the medium of schools, there is not a child in the parish that would not follow when all their faces are pointed toward that beacon of light which guides them through all their after scenes of life. This with honor to themselves and credit to their families."
Rees closed his comments on the school system by saying that following his sound advice on the behavior of children and the attitudes they have toward learning would be of advantage to the community.
Plague Described
In the Nov. 3, 1832, edition of the Covington Palladium, Rees wrote this vivid account of the New Orleans plague conditions: 'One hundred to one hundred thirteen deaths per day in New Orleans, sometimes averaging over 150. The demand for coffins is so great that the most distressing scenes and heart 'rending facts therefrom results in upwards to thirty bodies at a time have been lying in the Charity Hospital for want of coffins to bury them.
"The excitement there is truly alarming and we are too well assured of it being well-founded," Rees told his readers.
Some of Rees' attempts at poetry appeared in the pages of the Palladium, also. Under the topic of "Love," he wrote a poem which appeared in the Sept. 12, 1832 issue. It said in part,
"Happy days shall yet be yours,
when his absence glides away,
swifter be the leaden hours,
to welcome in the happy day."
Rees wrote poetry about holidays, people and places. His short stories covered a range of topics both political and personal. He even wrote an ode to the romance of the sea. James Rees, poet, humorist, philosopher and newspaper writer.
Click on the above article to make it larger and more readable.
