SECTION XIX. I. 87. CRUELTY TO ANIMALS. WOULD not enter on my list of friends, I manners and fine sense (Yet wanting sensibility), the man Who needlessly sets foot upon a worm. 2 2. The creeping vermin, loathsome to the sight, Sacred to neatnèss and repose, the ǎl'cove,' A necessary act incurs no blame. 5 3. Not so, when, held within their proper bounds, As God was free to form them at the first, 1 In`ad vert'ent, not turning the mind to a matter; heedless; careless. 2 Loath' some, exciting disgust; sickening. 3 Al' cōve, a recess of a library, or a room; any shady recess. 'Re fec' to ry, a room where refreshment is taken. 5 Economy, prudent arrangements, or plans. 'Păr a mount, superior to all others. 5. Ye, therefore, who love mercy, teach your sons By budding ills that ask à prudent hand To check them. But, alas! none sooner shoots, Than cruelty, most devilish of them all. 6. Mercy, to him that shows it, is the rule By which Heaven moves in pardoning guilty man; WILLIAM COWPER, S II. 88. SENSIBILITY. INCE trifles make the sum of human things, 2. To spread large bounties, though we wish in vain, To bless mankind with tides of flowing wealth, God gives its counterpoise' to every ill; 3. The gift of ministering to others' ease, 1 Foi' bles, weak points; failings; pensates or balances; equal weight. • Stint' ed, restrained; kept small. Concord, (kong' kård), a state of agreement; harmony; union. The mild forbearance at a brother's fault, The angry word suppressed, the taunting thought: There, Sensibility,' thou best mayst reign,- HANNAH MORE. III. 89. LOVE OF COUNTRY AND OF HOME. T HERE is a land, of every land the pride, Beloved by heaven o'er all the world beside; 8 Touched by remembrance, trembles to that pole : 1 Ag'gre gāte, the sum or amount. • Sěn`si bĭl' i ty, delicacy of feelIng; that feeling which leads us to perceive and feel the troubles and misfortunes of others. 3 Le git' i mate, rightful; lawful. Do mãin', dominion; empire; territory over which one's authority extends. portions or parts; distribute. 8 Măg net, the loadstone; that which attracts. 'Her'it age, inheritance; portion; an estate devolved by succession. 10 Su prēmely, in the highest ' Dis pěnse', deal or divide out in degree. Where man, creation's tyrant, casts aside JAMES MONTGOMERY. I IV. 90. THE WIFE. PART FIRST. HAVE often had occasion to remark the fortitude' with which women sustain the most overwhelming reverses of fortune. Those disasters which break down the spirit of a man, and prostrate him in the dust, seem to call forth all the energies of the softer sex, and give such intrepidity and elevation to their character, that at times it approaches to sublimity." 2. Nothing can be more touching than to behold a soft and tender female, who has been all weakness and dependence, and ǎlīve to every trivial roughnèss, while treading the prosperous paths of life, suddenly rising in mental force to be the comforter Be nign' ly, graciously; kindly. ' Găm bol, dance and skip about in sport; play in frolic, like boys and lambs. 3 Pa' tri ot, a person who loves his country, and zealously supports and defends it and its interests. 4 For ti tude, that firmness or strength of mind which enables a 6 person to meet danger with coolness and courage, or to bear pain or misfortune without murmuring or losing spirit. " Sub lim' i ty, elevation; that which is so elevated or lofty in appearance or character as to produce a feeling of astonishment and awe. " Měn' tal, belonging to the mind. and support of her husband under misfortune, and abiding, with unshrinking firmness, the bitterèst blasts of adversity.1 3 3. As the vine, which has long twined its graceful foliage ǎbout the oak, and been lifted by it into sunshine, will, when the hardy plant is rifted' by the thunderbolt, cling round it with its caressing tendrils, and bind up its shattered boughs, so it is beautifully ordered by Providence, that woman, who is the mere dependent and ornament of man in his happier hours, should be his stay and solace when smitten with sudden calamity; winding herself into the rugged recesses of his nature, tenderly supporting the drooping head, and binding up the broken heart. 4. I was once congratulating a friend, who had around him a blooming family, knit together in the strongest affection. "I can wish you no better lot," said he, with enthusiasm, “than to have a wife and children. If you are prosperous, there they are to share your prosperity; if otherwise, there they are to comfort you." 5. And, indeed, I have observed that a married man, falling into misfortune, is more apt to retrieve his situation in the world than a single one ;-partly because he is more stimulated to exertion by the necessities of the helplèss and beloved beings who depend upon him for subsistence; but chiefly because his spirits are soothed and relieved by domestic endearments, and his self-respect kept alive by finding, that, though all abroad is darkness and humiliation, yet there is still a little world of love at home, of which he is the monarch. Whereas a single man is apt to run to waste and self-neglect,-to fancy himself lonely and abandoned, and his heart to fall to ruin, like some deserted mansion, for want of an inhabitant. 6. These observations call to mind a little domestic story of which I was once a witnèss. My intimate friend, Leslie, had married a beautiful and accomplished girl, who had been brought up in the midst of fashionable life. She had, it is true, no forune; but that of my friend was ample, and he delighted in the anticipation of indulging her in every elegant pursuit, and administering to those delicate tastes and fancies that spread a 'Ad ver si ty, that which opposes plant by which it clings to any desire or success; distress. substance. 'Rift' ed, split; shattered. 'Těn ́ drils, the fine shoots of a 'Retrieve', recover make bet ter; make amends. |