hurled down the steep rocks and dashed to pieces. But the survivor was very unhappy for the rest of his life, as he deserved to be.

It is said that, when two goats meet on a narrow ledge of rock, one will lie down, and let the other walk over his body. Goats are not considered very sagacious animals, but in this they are wiser than the two Highlanders were.

XII. THE POND.

MISS JANE TAYLOR.

THERE was a round pond, and a pretty pond too;
About it white daisies and buttercups grew,

And dark weeping willows, that stooped to the ground,
Dipped in their long branches, and shaded it round.

Α party of ducks to this pond would repair,
To feast on the green water-weeds that grew there :
Indeed the assembly would frequently meet

To talk o'er affairs in this pleasant retreat.

Now the subjects, on which they were wont to converse,
I'm sorry I cannot include in my verse;

For though I've oft listened in hopes of discerning,
I own 'tis a matter that baffles my learning.

One day a young chicken, who lived thereabout,
Stood watching to see the ducks pass in and out;
Now standing tail upwards, now diving below;
She thought of all things she should like to do so.
So this foolish chicken began to declare,
"I've really a great mind to venture in there;
My mother's oft told me I must not go nigh,
But really, for my part, I cannot tell why.

"Ducks have feathers and wings, and so have I too;
And my feet what's the reason that they will not do?

Though my beak is pointed, and their beaks are round,
Is that any reason that I should be drowned?

"So why should not I swim as well as a duck?
Suppose that I venture and e'en try my luck?

For," said she, spite of all that her mother had taught her, "I'm really remarkably fond of the water."

So in this poor ignorant animal flew,

And found that her dear mother's cautions were true;
She splashed, and she dashed, and she turned herself round,
And heartily wished herself safe on the ground.

But now 'twas too late to begin to repent;
The harder she struggled the deeper she went;
And when every effort she vainly had tried,
She slowly sank down to the bottom and died.

The ducks, I perceived, began loudly to quack,
When they saw the poor fowl floating dead on its back;
And by their grave looks, it was very apparent,
They discoursed on the sin of not minding a parent.

XIII. -THE SPIDER AND HIS WIFE.

MISS JANE TAYLOR.

In a little dark crack, half a yard from the ground,
An honest old spider resided:

So pleasant, and snug, and convenient 'twas found,
That his friends came to see it for many miles round;
It seemed for his pleasure provided.

Of the cares, and fatigues, and distresses of life,
This spider was thoroughly tired;

So, leaving those scenes of contention and strife,
(His children all settled,) he came with his wife,
To live in this cranny retired.

He thought that the little his wife would consume,
"Twould be easy for him to provide her,
Forgetting he lived in a gentleman's room,
Where came every morning a maid and a broom,
Those pitiless foes to a spider.

For when, (as sometimes it would chance to befall,)
Just when his neat web was completed,

Brush- came the great broom down the side of the wall,
And perhaps carried with it web, spider, and all,

He thought himself cruelly treated.

One day, when their cupboard was empty and dry,
His wife (Mrs. Hairy-leg Spinner)

Said to him, "Dear, go to the cobweb and try
If you can't find the leg or the wing of a fly,
As a bit of a relish for dinner."

Directly he went, his long search to resume,
(For nothing he ever denied her,)

Alas! little guessing his terrible doom;
Just then came the gentleman into his room,
And saw the unfortunate spider.

So, while the poor fellow, in search of his pelf,
In the cobwebs continued to linger,

The gentleman reached a long cane from the shelf,
(For certain good reasons best known to himself
Preferring his stick to his finger) —

Then presently poking him down to the floor,

(Not stopping at all to consider,)

With one horrid crush the whole business was o'er;

The poor little spider was heard of no more,

To the lasting distress of his widow.

XIV. THE SHEEP AND THE BIRDS.

A FATHER and his son were once sitting under a tree upon a hill it was near sunset, and a flock of sheep were feeding near them. A strange man came by who had a dog with him. As soon as the sheep saw the dog, they became alarmed, and ran into some thorny bushes which grew near by. Some of their wool caught upon the thorns, and was torn off.

When the boy saw this, he was troubled, and said, “See, father, how the thorns tear away the wool from the poor sheep. These bushes ought to be cut down, so that hereafter they may not harm the sheep." His father was silent a while, and then said, "So you think the bushes ought to be cut down?" " Yes," answered his son, "and I wish I had a hatchet to do it with." The father made no reply, and they went home.

The next day they came to the same place with a hatchet. The boy was full of joy, and very eager to have his father begin to cut down the bushes. They sat down upon the hill, and the father said, “Do you hear how sweetly the birds sing? Are they not beautiful creatures? Do you not delight in their song?" "O, yes,” replied the boy, "the birds are the most beautiful of all creatures."

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As they were speaking, a bird flew down among the bushes, picked off a tuft of wool, and carried it away in his beak to a high tree. See," said the father, "with this wool the bird is making a soft bed for its young in the nest. How comfortable the little things will be! and the sheep could well spare a little of their fleece. Do you now think it well to cut down the bushes?" "No," said the boy, 66 we will let them stand."

"Remember, my dear son," said the father, "that the ways of God are not always easy to understand. It seemed to you very hard yesterday that the poor sheep should lose their wool; but to-day you see that without this wool the little bird could not have made its warm nest. So, many things happen to us which seem hard; but God ordains them for our good, and they are meant in kindness and love."

2 *

XV.-BIRDS' NESTS.

ALTERED FROM MRS. CHILD.

THE nests of birds are made with great nicety and skill; and we cannot help admiring the results which are produced by a creature which has no tools to work with but a bill and two claws. It would be difficult for a man, with all his inventions and resources, to do as well. And there is this peculiarity about birds: they do not require to be taught how to build their nests; nor do they serve any apprenticeship in order to learn how to use their tools. It is an instinct, or natural faculty, bestowed upon them by our heavenly Father, before whom, our Saviour tells us, not one sparrow is forgotten.

But birds do not improve in the building of their nests, as men do in the construction of their houses. The bird that sang to Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden built just such a nest as the same kind of bird does now. And this is one of the differences between reason, the faculty of man, and instinct, the faculty of animals: reason improves and makes progress, but instinct is always the same.

Birds build their nests of different materials, in different ways, and in different places: indeed, there is almost as much variety in their structure as in the houses in which men live. Birds that build on the earth, or ground, are called ground builders. The English redbreast and most of the sparrow tribe are of this class. They frame their nests of dried grass, lined with horse hair, close to the root of some protecting bush, or under the shelter of a high tuft of grass. Every boy and girl living in the country has seen the little ground bird flutter up from her nest, when scared by an approaching foot; thus revealing her pretty nest, which would otherwise have escaped observation.

The barn swallow builds among the beams and rafters of barns and sheds; flying in and out when the farmer is tending his cows, without seeming the least afraid. They make a plaster of clay and bits of fine straw, and in some snug corner