SAMUEL FRANCIS SMITH.

SMITH, SAMUEL FRANCIS, an American clergyman and poet, the author of "America;" born at Boston, October 15, 1808; died at Boston, November 16, 1895. He was graduated at Harvard in 1829, Oliver Wendell Holmes and James Freeman Clarke being among his classmates; studied theology at Andover, and in 1834 became pastor of a Baptist church at Waterville, Me., and Professor of Modern Languages in the college there. In 1842 he became pastor of a church at Newton, Mass., and was also for seven years editor of the "Christian Review." He subsequently devoted himself to private teaching and to literary work, making music a specialty.

Our father's God! to Thee,
Author of Liberty,

To Thee I sing.

Long may our land be bright
With Freedom's holy light;
Protect us by thy might,
Great God our King!

THE MORNING LIGHT.

THE morning light is breaking;
The darkness disappears!
The sons of earth are waking
To penitential tears;
Each breeze that sweeps the ocean
Brings tidings from afar,
Of nations in commotion,
Prepared for Zion's war.

See heathen nations bending
Before the God we love,
And thousand hearts ascending

In gratitude above;

While sinners, now confessing,
The Gospel call obey,

And seek the Saviour's blessing-
A nation in a day.

Blest river of salvation!

Pursue thine onward way; Flow thou to every nation,

Nor in thy richness stay:

Stay not till all the lowly

Triumphant reach their home:

Stay not till all the holy

Proclaim-"The Lord is come!"

SYDNEY SMITH.

SMITH, SYDNEY, an eminent English clergyman, wit, and essayist; born at Woodford, Essex, June 3, 1771; died at London, February 22, 1845. He studied at Oxford, took orders, and in 1794 became a curate. In 1797 he went to Edinburgh, where in 1802 Smith undertook the editorship of the "Edinburgh Review," and contributed largely to it for a quarter of a century. About 1804 he went to London. In 1828 he was made a canon of Bristol, and soon afterward rector of Combe-Florey in Somersetshire. In 1831 he was made Canon Residentiary of St. Paul's, London. Besides his contribu tions to the "Edinburgh Review," he commenced in 1807 a series of "Letters on the subject of the Catholics, to my Brother Abraham, who lives in the Country, by Peter Plymley." A collection of his miscellaneous writings, in four volumes, was published in 1840. After his death were published a volume of "Sermons" preached at St. Paul's, and "Lectures on Moral Philosophy."

WISDOM OF OUR ANCESTORS.

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"OUR Wise Ancestors "The Wisdom of Our Ancestors" -"The Wisdom of Ages"-"Venerable Antiquity"-"Wisdom of Old Times." This mischievous and absurd fallacy springs from the grossest perversion of the meaning of words. Experience is certainly the mother of wisdom, and the old have of course a greater experience than the young; but the question is, Who are the old? and who are the young? Of individuals living at the same period, the oldest has of course the greatest experience; but among generations of men, the reverse of this is true. Those who come first (our ancestors) are the young people, and have the least experience. We have added to their experience the experience of many centuries; and therefore, as far as experience goes, are wiser and more capable of forming an opinion than they were. The real feeling should be, not, Can we be so presumptuous as to put our opinions in opposition to those of our ancestors? but, Can such young, ignorant, inexperienced persons as our ancestors necessarily