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5. "His mother used to spin and weave;
From farm to farm she went;

And, though it made her much to grieve,
She John to service sent.

He lived with one, a woman stern,
Of hard and cruel ways;

And he must bring her wood to burn,
From forest and highways;

And then, at night, on cold, hard bed,
He laid his little, aching head.

6. "The weary boy had toiled all day
With heavy spade and hoe;
His mistress met him on the way,
And bade him quickly go

And bring her home some sticks of wood,
For she would bake and brew;

When he returned, she'd give him food;
For she had much to do.

And then she charged him not to stay,
Nor loiter long upon the way.

7. "He went; but scarce his toil-worn feet Could crawl along the wood,

He was so spent with work and heat,

And faint for lack of food.

He bent his aching, little back
To bear the weight along,
And staggered then upon the track;

For John was never strong.
His eyesight, too, began to fail,
And he grew giddy, faint, and pale.

8. "The load was small, quite small, 'tis true,
But John could bring no more;
The woman in a rage it threw,-

She stamped upon the floor.

(f.) No supper you shall have to-night;
So go along to bed,

You good-for-nothing, ugly fright,
You little stupid-head!'"

Said Edward: "I would never go;
She wouldn't dare to serve me so!"

9. "The moon-beams fell upon the child
As, weeping, there he lay;

And gusty winds were sweeping wild
Along the forest way,

When up rose John, at dead of night;
For he would see his mother;

She loved her child, although he might
Be nothing to another.

That narrow creek he forded o'er,—
'Tis nearer than around the shore.

10. "But here the shore is rough, you see;
The bank is high and steep;

And John, who climbed on hands and knee,
His footing could not keep.

He backward fell, all, all alone;

Too weak was he to rise;

(pl.) And no one heard his dying moan,
Or closed his dying eyes.

How still he slept! And grief and pain
Could never come to him again.

11. "A stranger, passing on his way,
Found him, as you have said;
His feet were out upon the clay,
The water o'er his head.

And then his foot-prints showed the path
He took, adown the creek,

When he escaped the woman's wrath,
So hungry, faint, and weak.

And people now, as you have heard,

Do call the place, THE DEAD CHILD'S FORD."

4.

QUESTIONS.-1. Was John an orphan, or half orphan? 2. Was he drowned at night, or in the daytime? 3. By whom was he found? What is the place called where he was drowned? 5. Give the rule for the rising inflections, as marked in the 1st, 2d, and 4th verses. 6. Why are there no quotation marks at the beginning of the 2d verse? 7. Why are half quotations used in the 3d and 8th verses ? 8. How should a part of the 8th and 10th verses be read, according to the notation marks? See page 41.

LESSON VII.

EX CLAIM' ED, cried out.
DE MAND' ING, asking; requiring.
A MISS', wrong; improperly.
AC CUS' ED, charged with.

BREACH, violation.
VIS' ION, Sight; view.
DE SCRIP' TION, account.
SLUG' GARD, lazy person.

LAME AND LAZY.

-A FABLE.*

1. Two beggars, LAME and LAZY, were in want of bread. One leaned on his crutch, the other reclined on his couch. Lame called on Charity, and humbly asked for a cracker. Instead of a cracker, he received a loaf.

2. Lazy, seeing the gift of Charity, exclaimed: "What!

*For an explanation of the term fable, see page 236

ask a cracker and receive a loaf'? Well, I will ask a loaf." Lazy now applied to Charity, and called for a loaf of bread. "Your demanding a loaf," said Charity, "proves you a loaf-er. You are of that class and character who ask and receive not; because you ask amiss.”

3. Lazy, who always found fault, and had rather whine than work, complained of ill-treatment, and even accused Charity of a breach of an exceeding great and precious promise: "Ask, and ye shall receive."

4. Charity pointed him to a painting in her room, which presented to his vision three personages, Faith, Hope, and Charity. Charity appeared larger and fairer than her sisters. He noticed that her right hand held a pot of honey, which fed a bee disabled, having lost its wings. Her left hand was armed with a whip to keep off the drones.

5. "I do not understand it," said Lazy. Charity replied: "It means that Charity feeds the lame, and flogs the lazy." Lazy turned to go. "Stop," said Charity, "instead of coin, I will give you counsel. Do not go and live on your poor mother; I will send you to a rich ant." 6. "Rich aunt' ?" echoed Lazy.. "Where shall I find her' ?" "You will find a description of her," replied Charity, "in Proverbs, sixth chapter, sixth, seventh, and eighth verses, which read as follows: Go to the ant, thou sluggard; consider her ways, and be wise; which, having no guide, overseer, or ruler, provideth her meat in summer, and gathereth her food in the harvest.'"

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7. MORAL. Instead of waiting and wishing for a rich UNCLE to die, go and see how a rich ANT lives.

QUESTIONS.-1. Where is the quotation in the 3d paragraph to be found? Answer. John, 16th chapter, 24th verse. 2. Where, the quotation in the 6th paragraph? 3. Why does it commence with a half quotation? Answer. Because it denotes a quotation within a quotation.

LESSON VIII.

HAUGH' TY, proud⚫ disdainful.
PAR TIC' U LAR LY, especially.
TRANS ACT', do; perform.
A BASH' ED, confused.
DIS COVER, find out.

EX AM' INE (egz ăm' in), look over;
inspect.

REC' TI FY, Correct; make right.
REC' OM PENSE, reward.

DE SERVE$', merits.

DE CLIN' ING, failing.

PRE VENT' ED, hindered.
AP PRO BA' TION, approval

PRE CEPTS, instructions; counsels.
BEN E FACTOR, friend; one tha
benefits.

A MASS' ED, gathered.

A DAPT ED, suited.

CON FI DEN' TIAL, trusty; trusted
IN TEG RI TY, honesty.

FAITHFULNESS IN LITTLE THINGS.

1. "Is Mr. Harris in'?" inquired a

ELIZA A. CHASE.

plainly, but neatly dressed boy, twelve or thirteen years of age, of a of a clerk, as

he stood by the counter of a large bookstore.

The clerk regarded the boy with a haughty look, and answered: "Mr. Harris is in; but he is engaged."

2. The boy looked at the clerk hesitatingly, and then said: "If he is not particularly engaged, I would like to see him."

"If you have any it," replied the clerk. with boys like you."

business to transact, I can attend to

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3. "What is this, Mr. Morley?" said a pleasant-looking man, stepping up to the clerk; "what does the boy

want?"

"He insisted on seeing you, though I told him you were engaged," returned the clerk, a little abashed by the manner of his employer.

4. "And what do you wish to see me about, my lad ?" inquired Mr. Harris, kindly.

The boy raised his eyes, and, meeting the scornful glance

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