money. Does there not appear something meritorious in such an action ?" "Thou hast, indeed," said the father, "fulfilled a duty that was incumbent on thee. He who could act otherwise, would be unworthy to live; for honesty is an indispensable moral duty. Thine was an act of justice,—not of goodness."

On this the second advanced. "In the course of my travels," said he, "I came to the border of a lake, in which a child was on the point of drowning. I plunged into the water, and saved its life, in the presence of a number of the neighboring villagers, all of whom can attest the truth of my assertion." "It was well done," interrupted the father; "but thou hast only obeyed the dictates of humanity. A man may be humane, without being really good."

The youngest of the three now came forward. "I happened," said he, "to meet my mortal enemy. Bewildered by the darkness of the night, he had lost his way; and being overcome with fatigue, he sat down to rest on the brink of a precipice. Here, unconscious of his danger, he had fallen fast asleep; and he was lying in such a position, that the least involuntary motion would have plunged him headlong into the frightful abyss. I gently awoke him, removed him cautiously from his perilous situation, and led him safely home."

"Ah! my son," exclaimed the good old man, while he pressed him with transport to his heart, "to thee belongs the diamond, and thou hast well deserved it. He who thus repays injury with kindness, performs, indeed, an act of goodness. The principle that could prompt to such a deed, far excels both justice and humanity."

LESSON XIX.

REMEMBRANCE OF GOD.-WOOD.

REMEMBER thy Creator in the days of thy youth. Remember that every thing which thou seest, above, beneath around thee the sun, the moon, and stars, the lofty moun tains, the wide abyss of the ocean, are all the workmanship of his Almighty, though invisible hand. At his command day and night-the beauties of spring-the glories of sum

mer-the rich profusion of harvest-and the dread desolation of winter, succeed each other in regular progression. In him all the countless tribes of living creatures, that everywhere people this vast universe, live, and move, and have their being. When he sendeth forth his Spirit, they are created; when he openeth his hand, they are filled with good; when he hideth his face, they are troubled; when he taketh away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. But, above all, remember him as thy Creator-as the heavenly Father, who called thee into being, and to whom thou art indebted for every blessing which thou hast been permitted to enjoy. Thy health, thy strength, thy reason; the air thou breathest; the light which cheers, the food which nourishes, the raiment which clothes, the dwelling which shelters thee; thy mother's fostering care; thy father's sustaining arm; the kindness of thy friends;-these, and all the other blessings of thy condition, flow from the liberal hand of him, who alone is the Giver of all good. Remember that this kind Parent and bountiful Benefactor is also the continual spectator of thy conduct, and of the manner in which thou improvest the benefits he hath so liberally bestowed upon thee; that each act thou dost, each word thou utterest, each thought thou conceivest within thy bosom, is known to him; and that for each he shall one day require of thee an account. Let, then, his presence be ever impressed upon thy mind. Let thy devotions ascend to him, with every morning's dawn, and every evening's close; accustom thyself to behold him in all his works; hallow his holy name and word; and, above all, in every moment of thy life, let it be thy first study to do his will. Sweet will be each prayer that rises from thy youthful bosom; sweet each accent of gratitude and praise. Ever bear in mind that solemn admonition of tried experience and paternal love, “Thou, Solomon, my son, know thou the God of thy father, and serve him with a perfect heart, and with a willing mind: if thou seek him, he will be found of thee; but if thou forsake him, he will cast thee off forever."

"Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind.”

LESSON XX.

INFERENCE MAKING.-AIKIN.

MAKING an inference, is a way of finding out something which we do not know, from some other thing which we do know. This is a very curious and useful art, and it will be therefore worth while to give you a few examples, that you may understand clearly what it is.

A dog, it is said, can make an inference; for when he has lost sight of his master, and follows him by the scent; if he comes to a place where three roads part, he will smell at the first, and if the scent is not there, he will smell at the second, but if the scent is not there either, he will run along the third road without smelling; thinking thus with himself: My master is not gone this way, nor yet that way, therefore he must be gone the third way, since there is no other.

I have heard of a more curious instance of a dog who had cunning enough to draw his master into a false inference. This dog, who was tied up in a yard at night, had found out that his collar was so loose that he could slip his neck in and out as he pleased; and he took advantage of this to go out in the dark and kill sheep. When he came back, after committing this offense, he always put his neck into the collar again, that his master might say, My dog is safe tied up here, as I left him, therefore it could not have been he who killed the sheep." At last, however, the rogue was closely watched, and his trick found out.

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Columbus, sailing along an undiscovered coast, came to the mouth of a river larger than he had ever seen; he inferred that the land must be a part of some mighty continent, and not an island, because all the springs which could rise, and all the rain which could fall in an island, could never, as he calculated, supply water enough to feed so prodigiously broad and deep a river. He was right: this was the first discovery of the great continent of America, and the river was the Orinoco.

There are some inferences which anybody can make who will think, and pay attention to the common things which pass before his eyes; others it requires knowledge and booklearning of various kinds to be able to make.

When king Henry the Sixth of England was a boy, and

his uncle, the duke of Gloucester, governed the country for him, it is related, that a man was brought before the duke who said that he was born blind, and had just received his sight by a miracle. "Aye!" said the duke, "were you born quite blind?" "Quite blind, my lord." “And you see very clearly now?" "O yes!" "Well; what color is that gown?" "Black as a crow, my lord." "Right. And what color is this cloak?" "Red, my lord, red as blood.”• ̈ "I will have you whipped," said the duke, "for a rogue and a cheat; if you had been born blind, and had but just now gained your eye-sight, you would be able to distinguish the colors indeed, but how should you have known the names of them?" This was an inference which any person might make who had his wits about him; but not so the other which I am going to mention.

Aristippus, a Grecian philosopher, which means a lover of wisdom, in passing over from Corinth to Asia, was shipwrecked on the isle of Rhodes. Observing, as they landed, some mathematical figures, such as squares, circles, and triangles, drawn upon the sands, he said to his companions, “Take courage! I see the footsteps of men!" inferring, not only that the island must be inhabited by human creatures, but that they could not be savages, since mathematics was known among them. The same Aristippus, having no doubt observed how many inferences his own knowledge had enabled him to make, more than others, said that it was better to be poor than ignorant; for the poor man wanted only money, but the ignorant man wanted what distinguishes men from brutes.

Thus you perceive, that the more knowledge people have, and the more they work with their heads in thinking, the greater number of useful and interesting inferences they can make; and this ought to be an encouragement to you to take pains to learn and consider things.

LESSON XXI.

THE GOLDFINCH-ANONYMOUS.

THIS is one of the most elegant of English birds; graceful in form, and arrayed in much more birds of that climate usually exhibit.

brilliant colors than the It has also a sweet and

cheerful song, which is heard from the earliest days of spring: but it is in the month of May that it gives out its sweetest and fullest strains: perched on a tree it will pour forth its notes from early morning till set of sun, and make the orchard rcsound with its music. It continues to sing till the month of August, except during the period at which it is rearing its young; then all its time and attention are devoted to parental duties. The male bird, though very attentive to his pretty mate, does not assist her in building the nest; but he is constantly watching over her, either close by her side, or perched on the nearest tree; and this he does, both when she is seeking her food, and while engaged in preparing the abode for her future progeny. The nest is small and elegant; its outside consists of fine moss curiously interwoven with other soft materials; and the inside is lined with grass, horse-hair, wool, feathers, and down. Here the hen bird deposits five or six white eggs, spotted with brown toward the thick end. While she is hatching, her companion never leaves her except to procure food; but sits on a neighboring tree and cheers her with his song. If disturbed, he flies away; but it is only as a feint to prevent the nest from being discovered, and he soon returns. On her part, she devotes herself with the utmost patience and constancy to her maternal cares. As the time approaches when the young ones will make their appearance, she is evidently increasingly interested in their preservation, and will brave every thing to defend them from injury the stormiest gales of wind, the drenching rain, or the pelting hail-storm, do not drive her from her nest; there she remains, and her faithful mate continues in attendance on her. At last the little birds pierce the shell, and faint cries proclaim their wants to their parents; then there is full employment to procure food sufficient to supply five or six craving little creatures.

The goldfinch is easily tamed, and with no great trouble may be taught to perform many curious tricks with surprising accuracy. It will draw up cups of water to its cage; it will stand upon its head; it will imitate a soldier and mount guard as a sentinel; it will light a match and fire a small cannon; it will imitate death, and suffer itself to be taken up by its claws without the least sign of life; fire-works may be exploded all around it without frightening it. Many other surprising things are told of it. Mr. Albin mentions a lady who had one which was even able to speak several words with great distinctness. This beautiful bird has been known