around; as she turned, her hand was again lifted to pull the coloured yarn. At that moment her foot stumbled on an edge of the uneven step, the clay pitcher fell from her head, and was dashed into pieces on the broken marble capital that formed the step beneath her. She burst into tears. The beautiful daughter of Rome's imperial palace wept over the broken clay pitcher. With bare feet she stood on the ruinous steps and wept, not daring now to pull the coloured yarn, the bell string of the Roman Cæsar's palace."

CHAPTER V.

DR. HERSCHEL AND THE MOON.

"I HAVE often looked upon astronomers as they have gazed up at me," said the Moon, one night when she visited me. 66 "I have seen their great pleasure as they made, or thought they made, some new discovery concerning me. I was looking right down upon Dr. Herschel on the evenings of April 19th and 20th, of the year 1787.

"There he was on the first of those evenings, with his telescope fixed for me. His sister was at his side, she who has lately died; she was young then, full of gaiety and hope, and enjoyed pursuing astronomical inquiries with the aid and guidance of her distinguished brother. They were in great spirits, for as they gazed, they observed upon my

pale orb, an unusual appearance. I showed them a brighter light, though perhaps less steady than I ordinarily give. Theirs was like the joy of the

-watcher of the skies,

When some new planet shoots into his ken.'

"Dr. Herschel had several times before, and especially in 1783, seen the like, though less distinctly and brightly than now. The fact was, that I was at that time sending forth from one of my volcanoes or burning mountains, (the largest of all of them) a quantity of burning matter. The Doctor supposed it to be of the same kind as that lava which is seen on the surface of your earth to rise at times from your own burning mountains, such as Vesuvius or Etna; and perhaps you may imagine that he was not very wrong. He gazed with delight and called his sister to look with him. They observed, and measured, and compared; sometimes the eye of one, and sometimes that of the other, was at the telescope. Occasionally it was pointed from me for a few minutes to some other heavenly body, especially

to the Georgian planet, and to the third moon of Jupiter, in order, that by the help of these other bodies, they might the better compare and measure what they noted with regard to me, I saw them mark down many things on paper. Presently the Doctor sat down to his desk and wrote letters to several other astronomers, to inform them of his observations. He, however, continually rose from it and looked again at me. It was almost morning before he, and his sister and helper, retired to rest.

"The next evening,-that was the 20th of April, -I perceived the telescope fixed again, and as early as possible he caught a view of me.

“More vivid than ever,' he cried to his sister enthusiastically, and in fact, I was showering forth the molten flood of lava, even more vigorously than the night before."

29

CHAPTER VI.

THE MOON'S ACCOUNT OF GILIMER, KING OF THE
VANDALS IN BARBARY.

66

"I HAVE looked upon many cities which were mighty in ancient times, but which now lie in ruins," said the Moon. Carthage is one of these. In the place where it once stood, is now the wretched village of Beloma.

"Since the day when Queen Dido fled in distress from Tyre, and with her few followers founded Carthage, I have been acquainted with the several peoples who have, each in turn, borne sway there. I have beheld within the city many a scene of festivity and enjoyment, and I have seen also deeds of blood and the havoc of war which have been visited upon her children.