such a silly, superstitious rhyme as that, for taking the life of a harmless animal that never offended you?" said William.

50. "But many of the snakes are danger ous, poisonous reptiles," said Julia.

51. "I know it," said William: "and nobody would object to their being destroyed. In this neighborhood, however, and in all the old-settled countries, there has not been a poisonous snake for a great many years. They have all either been killed, or have fled from their inveterate enemy, man."

52. "But it was a snake that deceived Eve, and brought sin and misery into the world," said John Darling.

53. "That argument is good for nothing," said William. "Common sense, and the whole Scripture lead us to conclude, that the serpent was only the instrument, Satan the real actor in this matter; who is therefore called the serpent, the old dragon, a liar, and a murderer from the beginning!* and the serpent was chosen as the instrument of Satan, because any cunning in him might be thought to proceed from his native wit and subtlety; which, had it been observed in any other creature, would have alarmed Eve, and made her suspect some devilish thing to be acting within the snake."†

54. And would you kill no animal that was not poisonous?" said John.

*Scott's Commentary on the Bible.

† Newton's Notes on Milton's Paradise Lost.

55. "Cowper, the poet, has some beautiful lines on this subject," said William. "I believe I have heard you repeat them, Miss Grace. Will you have the goodness to favor us with them now?”

56. "With pleasure," replied Grace; and, without farther entreaty, she repeated the following lines:

I would not enter on my list of friends
(Though grac'd with polish'd manners, and fine sense,
Yet wanting sensibility) the man

Who needlessly sets foot upon a worm
An inadvertent step may crush the snail
That crawls at evening in the public path;
But he that has humanity, forewarn'd,
Will tread aside, and let the reptile live.
The creeping vermin, loathsome to the sight,
And charg'd perhaps with venom, that intrudes
A visiter unwelcome into scenes

Sacred to neatness and repose, th' alcove,
The chamber, or refectory, may die :
A necessary act incurs no blame.

Not so, when, held within their proper bounds,
And guiltless of offence, they range the air,
Or take their pastime in the spacious field.
There they are privileg'd. And he that hurts
Or harms them there, is guilty of a wrong;
Disturbs the economy of nature's realm,
Who, when she form'd, design'd them an abode.
The sum is this: if man's convenience, health,
Or safety, interfere, his rights and claims
Are paramount, and must extinguish theirs.
Else they are all,-the meanest things that are,-
As free to live, and to enjoy that life,
As God was free to form them at the first,
Who, in his sovereign wisdom, made them all.

Ye, therefore, who love mercy, teach your sons
To love it too. The spring-time of our years

Is soon dishonor'd and defil'd, in most,
By budding ills, that ask a prudent hand
To check them. But, alas! none sooner shoots,
If unrestrain'd, into luxuriant growth,
Than cruelty, most devilish of them all.
Mercy, to him that shows it, is the rule
And righteous limitation of its act,

By which Heaven moves in pard'ning guilty man:
And he that shows none, being ripe in years,
And conscious of the outrage he commits,
Shall seek it, and not find it in his turn.

57. "What beautiful sentiments!" cried William; "and they are as true as they are beautiful! And how reasonable and plain is the rule laid down! If an animal is troublesome, or dangerous, we have a right to remove or destroy it. But if it keeps out of our way, and troubles us not, and only claims its share in the free woods or fields, it is the height of cruelty to harm it; and he who does so out of mere wantonness, will have no claim to that mercy from the common FATHER and BENEFACTOR of all living beings, of which every one stands so much in need."

Repeat the substance of this lesson. Let the teacher examine the pupils particularly as to the meaning of every line of the poetry, as follows: What is the meaning of "enter on my list of friends?" grac'd with polish'd manners? wanting sensibility? inadvertent step? forewarn'd? &c., to the end. Who are the happiest, the contented or the discontented? Who are the most beloved? Who made the brute animals? Do you think that he desires to see them happy, or not? Do you think he will be pleased to see us torment, or kill them, when they do not offer to harm us? If a young person is accustomed to be

cruel to dumb animals, will he be likely, when he has grown up, to be kind and tender-hearted to his fellow-men? Will he who is unmerciful have any claim to God's mercy? What does the Bible say on this subject? "Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy." Matt. v. 7. "Are not five sparrows sold for two farthings, and not one of them is forgotten before God?" Luke xii. 6.

LESSON XXVIII.

The Uses and Advantages of Pain.

[Let the pupils repeat the substance of the last two lessons, before they read the following.]

58. "WELL, girls," said John Darling, "I suppose you have been so much frightened by the poor, harmless snake, that you won't want to sit down on the log again."

59. "No, no," cried Helen, "I think it is about time to go home. See! the sun is not a great way above the western mountains."

60. "Well, shall we cross the river again?" said John.

61. "I don't see any use in that," said Grace. "We can reach the road easily enough by keeping on this side. Then why should we wade, or be carried across, when we can all get home dry-shod?"

66

62. True," said John; "but we shall lose the handsome flowers we saw among the rocks, to say nothing of the pleasure of carrying you girls across the water."

63. "Oh!" cried Julia Brown, "don't let us lose those beautiful flowers."

64. Grace, as a farther objection, would have urged the danger of climbing among the rocks; but, as she plainly saw that the rest of the party were bent on returning the way they came, she said not another word.

65. The girls, accordingly, were carried across the stream on locked hands, as before, and all reached the opposite side in safety, though not without a few screams, occasioned by slight stumbles on the part of the carriers. But these only served to give a zest to the affair, and occasion a hearty laugh.

66. When the party, however, came to the ravine, Grace could not help remonstrating on the folly of running so much risk for a few flowers.

67. "Oh, nonsense!" cried John; "don't you see there are bushes all over the rocks to hold on by?"

68. Grace would have answered, that the bushes themselves might give way, but she saw that it would have been too late; for John and the other boys were already scrambling half way up the precipice.

69. See here, Grace! see here!" cried John, waving the flowers in one hand, and holding on to a bush with the other. "You see now how foolish your fears were.

70. But the triumph of John was but for a moment. For the exertion of waving his arm in token of victory, having loosened or