earth, or the tall grass humbled beneath the sythe, or the stately corn freed from the intrusion of weeds. Fitting tasks are proportioned to the youngest ones, that no hand may be idle.

3. In the interior of the house, an equal diligence prevails. The eldest daughters take willing part with the mother in every domestic toil. No servant is there to create suspicious feelings, or a divided interest. No key grates in the lock, for all are as brethren. The children who are too small to be useful, proceed to school, kindly leading the little one who can scarcely walk. Perhaps the aged grandmother, a welcome and honored inmate, amuses the ruddy infant, that she may release a stronger hand for toil.

4. The sound of the wheel, and the vigorous strokes of the loom, are heard. The fleece of the sheep is wrought up. amid the cheerful song of sisters. Remembering that the fabrics which they produce, will guard those whom they love from the blast of winter, the bloom deepens on their cheek with the pleasing consciousness of useful industry.

5. In the simple and abundant supply of a table from their own resources, which shall refresh those who return weary from the field. all are interested. The boy, who brings his mother the fresh vegetables, selects a salad which his own hand had cultivated, with some portion of the pride with which Diocletian pointed to the cabbages which he had reared. The daughter, who gathers treasures from the nests of the poultry that she feeds delights to tell their his tory, and to number her young ducks as they swim forth boldly on the pond.

6. The bees, whose hives range near the door, add a desert to their repast, and the cows. feeding quietly in rich pastures, yield pure nutriment for the little ones. For their

bread. they have "sown, and reaped. and gathered into barns;" the flesh is from their own flocks-the fruit and nuts from their own trees. The children know where the first berries ripen, and when the chestnut will open its thorny sheath in the forest. The happy farmer at his independent table, need not envy the luxury of kings.

7. The active matron strives to lessen the expenses of her husband and to increase his gains. She sends to market the wealth of her dairy, and the surpl is products of her loom. She instructs her daughters to have, by their diligenee, a purse of their own, from which to furnish the more

delicate parts of their wardrobe, and to relieve the poor. In the long evenings of winter, she plies the needle, or knits stockings with them or maintains the quiet music of the flax wheel, from which linen is prepared for the family. She incites them never to eat the bread of idleness, and as they have been trained, so will they train others again, for the seeds of industry are perennial.

8. The fathers and brothers, having recess from the toils of busier hours, read aloud such books as have been procured from the public library; and knowledge thus entering in forms a hallowed alliance with industry and domestic order. The most sheltered corner by the ample fireside is reserved for the hoary headed grand parents, who, in plenty and pio is content, pass the eve of a well-spent life.

9. The sacred hymn and prayer, rising duly from such households, are acceptable to Heaven. To their humble scenery, some of our wisest and most illustrious men, rulers of the people, sages and interpreters of the law of God, look back tenderly as their birth-place. They love to acknowledge that in the industry and discipline of early years, was laid the foundation of their greatness.

10. Let the children of farmers feel that their descent is from the nobility of our land. In the homes where they were nurtured, are the strong holds of the virtue and independence of their country. If our teeming manufactories should send forth an enervated or uninstructed race-and our cities foster the growth of pomp, or the elements of discord-we hope that from those peaceful farm-houses, will go forth a redeeming spirit, to guard and renovate the country of their love.

QUESTIONS.-1. Are the New England farmers very wealthy? 2. What does the farmer do, and by whom is he assisted? 3. What animals delight, and what assist him? 4. Who perform the various labors in the house? 5. What sounds are heard? 6. What do the different ones furnish for the table? 7. How do the mother and daughters improve their time, and for what purpose? 8. How do the father and brothers spend their leisure hours? 9. Who have sprung from such families? 10. In what may we hope for our country?

The general questions are not numbered.

Is this lesson narrative or descriptive? With what inflection of voice should the first part of the second verse be read? With what the middle portion of the ninth verse? What Rules for such inflections? Why does Heaven begin with a capital? What is denoted by the hyphen at the end of some lines? What by it in such words as farm-houses, and the like? (See Spelling Book, page 158.)

LESSON III.

SPEIL AND DEFINE.-1. Liveried, dressed like servants. 2. Urchin, a name given to a boy. 3. Contrast, extreme difference. 4. Affluence, abundance of riches. 5. Ostentatious, having a show of splendor. 6. Romance, a tale without truth. 7. Penury, want of property.

Reverse of Fortune.-Knickerbocker.

1. Do you see that proud, over-bearing man, riding in his gilded carriage? Look! He stops before a magnificent mansion, and liveried lackeys, obedient to his nod, assist him to descend.

2. Do you see that poor, miserable boy, whose tattered

clothes scarcely shield him from the inclemency of the weather? Mark! with a beseeching look he solicits the rich man to purchase him a pencil, or a card of pens; and behold, how contemptuously he is spurned! Twenty-five years ag that pompous man was as poor, as friendless, and wretched as the urchin he despises.

3. Twenty-five years have passed since that day. The same parties met.-Lo! the contrast. The once poor boy stands in the pride of manhood's attire, active, intelligent, rich. A lovely woman, his wife, leans upon his arm, and three lovely girls are by his side, grace in every action, benevolence in every expression, and affluence smiles in his ostentatious adornments.

every

Better

4. An old man approaches. The tottering steps, the threadbare garments, and the painful expression that frets feature, too plainly denote a man of want and woe. dead, than thus to drag out a miserable existence. may appear at first to some an improbable romance. truth.

This

It is

5. In a country like ours, there is no man, however poor, if aided by industry, economy, and virtue, but may rise from the lowest ranks of society to the highest. The knowledge of this fact is a blessed incitement to the young, and cheers them on to struggle nobly in the paths that lead to honor and independence, despite of the thousand obstacles that oppose their course.

6. There is no man, however affluent, but by extravagance, and morals lax, may fall from his high estate, and close his days in penury and woe.

Let none despise the poor because of their poverty; let no one flatter the rich because of their wealth. We may

conquer poverty-wealth may subdue us. All men of equal virtues are equals. If one man possess more intelligence than his fellows, though that of itself may not elevate him in the ranks of society, yet it brings him added respects, and wins a willing admiration from all men.

"The good alone are great."

QUESTIONS.-1. Describe the man mentioned in the first verse. 2. The boy in the second. 3. What was the condition of each twenty-five years after? 4. How may the poor do in a country like ours? 5. What may happen to the rich? 6. Are men to be respected according to their property? 7. What will command respect ?

What inflection should be made at carriage, first verse? (See Rule I. Les. IV.) What at look? (Rule VII. Note I.) How should the second verse be read so as to express the sentiment?

LESSON IV.

SPELL AND DEFINE.-1. Alert, moving nimbly. 2. Cavalry, a body of soldiers on horses. 3. Prowess, great bravery. 4. Sovereign, ruler. 1. Tropical, pertaining to the torrid zone. 6. Sequestered, concealed; -cmoved from sight. 7. Cavern, a dark hollow place in the earth. is. Herbage, pasturage. 9. Savannas, open plains, usually covered with grass. 10. Domestic, subjected to man.

Wild Horses.-Juv. Por. LIBRARY.

1. In many parts of Asia and Africa wild horses are seen in numerous troops. These are each conducted by a chief, who directs their course, and makes them proceed or stop, according to his pleasure. In the hour of combat he is the first to expose himself to danger. He also gives directions for the necessary arrangements, when attacked by wolves or robbers. He is, besides, extremely vigilant and alert-runs frequently round the troop, and when he discovers any out of their ranks, or lagging behind, he gives them a push with his shoulder, and obliges them to take their proper station.

2. Hence the battalion of wild horses generally march in nearly good order as our trained cavalry; they pasture in files and brigades, and form different companies, without ever mixing or separating. It seems as if they were instructed by some secret instinct to know that their strength consists in union. Accordingly, whenever they are menaced ay a ferocious animal, they instantly combine in close order, and if any fall, it is generally the weakest-he that has not strength to fly, or that moves slowly when it is necessary to group for mutual defense.

3. The chiefs are indebted for their elevation to their prowess. They are observed to retain this fatiguing office for about four or five years; but if a chief becomes weak or inactive, another, ambitious of command, and conscious of superior strength, springs out of the troop and attacks him; if the leader is not vanquished, he still retains his pre-eminence; but if beaten, he returns with shame into the common herd, while the conqueror takes the lead, and is recog. nized as sovereign.

4. Their principal enemies are the lion, tiger, panther, and leopard, which they either escape or successfully resist. Their fleetness soon leaves the pursuers at a distance, and their strong teeth and legs serve them as weapons of no ordinary force; with the one they strike tremendously, with the other they bite with equal fury and effect.

5. This species were criginally natives of Asia and Africa. They are found in the vast and elevated plains of central Asia, and in the most southern regions of Africa; but none existed in America or New Holland previously to the discovery of those countries by Europeans. Travelers

relate that these wild horses have no fixed places of abode, -that they usually select dry and sheltered situations, at the base of some high rock, or along the skirt of an ancient wood.

6. They have the same dread of storms as most other animals. When a whirlwind approaches, or the tropical thunders are heard journeying up the cloudy steep of heaven, they become dreadfully agitated and restless, seeking the wildest and most sequestered spots, and often crowding for concealment into some cavern. If the storm bursts before they can reach a place of safety, or a loud clap of thunder is heard, the terrified troop betakes itself to instantaneous and rapid flight. Wretched indeed would be the living object that should cross them in their route.

7. He who traverses the plains of the new world, is equally astonished and delighted with the graceful movements and evolutions of the wild horses, that have found a home in those vast solitudes. Proud of their independence, they fly from the presence of man, and disdain his care. They search for, and obtain the most agreeable and salutary herbage. They wheel nimbly and bound in sportive circles throughout immense savannas, and collect the fresh produc tions of perpetual spring.