conditions of life are going on bēfōre you. Feel at least sympathy' for something that is not a reflection of yourself. Learn to be in'terested without egotism.'

4. But no, the first impulse of rational' man, educated to despise insects and God's minor works, is to seek another stone, and, with kindled eye, pound these thoroughfares of harmless insect life until all is utterly destroyed. And if we leave them and go our way, we have a sort of lingering sense that we have fallen somewhat short of our duty. The most universal and the most unreasoning destroyer is man, who symbolizes' death better than any other thing.

6

5. I, too, learned this murderous pleasure in my boyhood. Through long years I have tried to train myself out of it; and at last I have unlearned it. I love, in summer, to seek the solitary hillside, that is less solitary than even the crowded city, -and, waiting till my intrusion' has ceased to alarm, watch the wonderful ways of life which a kind God has poured abroad with such profusion. And I am not ashamed to confess that the leaves of that great book of revelation which God opens ěvèry morning, and spreads in the valleys, on the hills, and in the forests, are rich with marvelous' lessons that I could read nowhere else. And often things have taught me what words have failed to teach. Yea, the words of revelation have themselves been interpreted to my understanding by the things that I have seen in the solitudes of populous nature.

6. I love to feel my relation to every part of animated nature. I try to go back to that simplicity of Paradise" in which man walked, to be sure at the head of the animal kingdom, but not bloody, desperate, cruel, crushing whatever was not useful to him. I love to feel that my relationship to God gives me a right

1 Sym' pa thy, kindness of feeling toward sufferers; fellow-feeling.

2 E' go tism, the practice of too often using the word I; hence, speaking or writing much of one's self; self-praise.

3 Im' pulse, hasty inclination.
4 Rational (råsh' un al), having

reason.

❝ Sŏl' i ta ry, not much visited; retired.

Intrusion (in trô′ zůn), act of entering into a place without invitation, right, or welcome.

8 Profusion (pro fù' zůn), great supply or plenty; rich abundance. 9 Marvelous,strange; wonderful. 10 Păr a dise, the garden of Eden,

5 Symbol iz es, serves as a sign in which Adam and Eve were first or representation of.

placed; heaven.

to look sympathět'ically upon all that God nourishes. In his bitterness, Job declared, "I have said to the worm, 'Thou art my mother and my sister."" We may not say this; but I surely say to all living things in God's creation, "I am your elder brother, and the almoner' of God's bounty to you. Being his son, I too have a right to look with beneficence upon your little lives, even as the greater Father does."

7. A wanton disregard of life and happinèss toward the insect kingdom tends to produce carelessness of the happiness of animal life everywhere. I do not mean to say that a man who would needlessly crush a fly would therefore slay a man; but I do mean to say that that moral constitution out of which springs kindness is hindered by that which wantonly destroys happiness anywhere. And I hold that a man who wantonly would destroy insect life, or would destroy the comfort of the animal that serves him, is prepared to be inhuman tōward the lower forms of human life.

3

8. The fact is, that all those invasions of life and happiness which are educating men to an indulgence of their passions, to a disregard of God's work, to a low and base view of creation, to a love of destructiveness, and to a disposition that carries with it cruelty and suffering, and that is hindered from breaking out ōnly by fear and selfishness, lead to a disregard of labor and the laborer. The nature which they beget will catch man in his sharp necessities, and mercilessly coërce' him to the benefit of the strong and the spoiling of the weak. And it is the interest of the poor man, and the oppressed man, that there should be a Christianity that shall teach men to regard the whōle animal kingdom below themselves as God's kingdom and as having rights-minor and lower rights, but rights-befōre God and before man. BEECHER.6

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1 Al' mon er, one who distributes alms, or gifts, in behalf of another.

? Be něf i cence, the practice of doing good; kindness.

3 Invasion (in và củn), encroachment; raid.

4 Coerce (ko års'), restrain by force. 5 Christianity (krist yăn' i ty), the system of doctrines and precepts

taught by Christ; the religion of Christians.

'Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, the distinguished American preacher, lecturer, and writer, was born at Litchfield, Conn., June 24, 1813. He graduated at Amherst College, Mass., 1834. He is at present minister of Plymouth Church, Brooklyn, N. Y.

II.

30. THE CHAIN OF DESTRUCTION.

PART FIRST.

IRECTLY in front of the tent, and at no great distance

trees. Over the leaves grew flowers so thickly as almost to hide them; the whole surface shining as if a bright carpet had been spread from tree to tree, and hung down between them. Francis, who had for some time kept his eyes in that direction, all at once exclaimed: "Look yonder-humming-birds!"

2

2. "Where are they ?" inquired Lucian.' "Softly, brothers, approach them gently." As Lucian said this, he walked cautiously forward, followed by Basil' and Francis. "Ah!" exclaimed Lucian, as they drew near, "I see one now; it is the ruby-throat: see his throat how it glitters!"

3. "Shall we try to catch it?" asked Francis. "No, I would rather observe it a bit. You may look for the nest, as you have good eyes." When the curiosity of the boys was satisfied, they were about to return to the tent; but Lucian suddenly made a motion, which caused his brothers to look on the ground.

4. Crouching among the leaves, now crawling side-ways, now making short springs, and then hiding itself, went a fearfullooking creature about the size of the humming-bird. Its body consisted of two pieces joined about the middle, and covered all over with a reddish-brown wool or hair, that stood upright like bristles. It had ten limbs, long, crooked, and covered with hair like the body-two curved claw-like feelers in front, and two horns projecting behind, so that but for its sharp fiery eyes, it would have been difficult to tell which was its head. 5. "The leaping-spider," whispered Lucian to his brothers; "see, it is after the humming-bird!" This was evident. Step by step, and leap after leap, it was approaching the cluster of blossoms where the humming-bird was at that moment. Sometimes the spider would hide itself among the leaves of the vine, then, when the bird settled for a moment to feed, it would advance nearer by a quick run or a leap, concealing itself again 1 Lucian (lu' shỉ an). 2 Basil (båz' il).

to ǎwait a fresh opportunity. At last, the bird poised itself at the mouth of a flower, sucking out the honey with its long tongue, and in a moment the spider sprang forward and clutched it round the body with his feeler.

6. The bird, with a wild chirrup, flew outwards and upwards as if to carry the spider away. But its flight was suddenly checked; and, on looking more closely, the fine thread of the spider was seen attached to the tree at one end and his body at the other, strong enough to prevent the poor bird from escaping from his enemy. Soon the little wings ceased to move. The boys could see that the bird was dead, and the mandibles1 of the spider were buried in its shining throat.

7. And now the spider began reeling in his line, in order to carry up his prey to his nest among the branches. But the eyes of the boys were caught at this moment by a shining object stealing down the tree. It was a lizard of the most brilliant colors; its back of golden green, the underneath part of its body a greenish-white, its throat of the brightest scarlet. It was not more than six inches in length.

8. As it was crawling onward, its bright eye fell on the spider and his prey. All at once the lizard stopped, its color changed; the red throat became white, the green body brown, so that it could hardly be distinguished from the bark of the tree on which it crouched. Soon it was evident that it meant to attack the spider, and to do this it ran round the tree to the nest, where it crouched down, waiting the return of the master of the house.

9. The spider, no doubt exulting' in the thought of the feast he was going to have, and little suspecting a foe so near, came up. In a moment the lizard sprang upon him, and lizard, spider, and bird fell to the ground. There was a short struggle between the first two, but the spider was no match for the lizard, who in a few moments had ground off his legs, and killed him by thrusting his sharp teeth into the spider's skull.

10. From the moment the lizard sprang upon his prey all his bright colors had returned—if possible, brighter than before. And now the lizard began dragging the body of the spider ǎcross the grass, when suddenly, from a tree close by, out of a

1 Măn' di bles, jaws; the anterior or upper pair of jaws of spiders.

'Exulting (8gz ůlt' ing), leaping for joy; glad above measure.

dark round hole, some twenty feet from the ground, a red head and brown shoulders were visible. It was moving from side to side, watching the ground below, and evidently preparing to come down. Lucian, when he saw the red head, olive-brown body, and fierce dark eyes, knew it for a scorpion-lizard.

III.

31. THE CHAIN OF DESTRUCTION.

PART SECOND.

HE little green lizard, rustling over the dead leaves with the spider, caught the scorpion's attention, and he resolved to deprive him of the prey. But the green lizard was brave, and turned to fight-his throat swelled out, and looked brighter than ever.

2. After a while, they sprang at each other open-jawed— wriggled over the ground, their tails flying in the air; then separated, and again assumed defiant' attitudes, their forkèd tongues shot fōrth, and their sparkling eyes glittering in the sun.

3. The weakest part of the green lizard lies in his tail. So tender is it, that the slightest blow will separate it from the body. Its foe evidently knew this, and tried to attack the tail; but the lizard carefully faced him whichever way he turned. For several minutes they fought, and then the bright colors of the green lizard grew paler; the scorpion rushed forward, threw the other on his back, and before he could recover himself, bit off his tail. The poor little fellow, feeling he had lost mōre than half his length, ran off, and hid among the logs.

4. It was well for him that he did so; and it would have been better for the scorpion had he stayed in his hole, for a new enemy had drawn near while the battle was raging. From the leafy spreading branches of a mulberry-tree, a red snake, about the thickness of a walking-cane, was hanging down, a full yard of it, out from the trees. Just as the lizard ran off without its tail, the scorpion perceived the long red body of the serpent dangling above him, and knowing it was a terrible enemy, ran off to hide himself.

5. But instead of taking to a tree, where he might have 1 De fi' ant, bold; challenging.