washed-the floors carefully swept and washed-the court or alley cleared of everything offensive— the children wearing shoes and stockings, however sorry in kind, and the clothes not ragged, however incongruously patched and darned. 'Cleanliness and propriety,' said one man, are, in spite of our poverty, the pride of Norwich people, who would have nothing to say to dirty neighbours.'

Habits of order and regularity, with a stern purpose to adhere to them, will go a great way in promoting cleanliness and tidiness, even under very disadvantageous circumstances. Benjamin Franklin's rule may be given as an excellent one, both for housekeepers to practise and to teach their children: "Do every thing at its proper time, keep every thing in its proper place, use every thing for its proper use." It is generally with a lazy, indolent, selfindulged spirit the spirit that is only for doing the work it fancies, and that puts off what is disagreeable till it cannot be avoided; that lays hold of any excuse or expedient to save trouble for the moment; that wastes time in idle gossiping or gadding about,

-we say it is generally with this kind of spirit, that we have to connect a disorderly and disagreeable house. This spirit must be remorselessly rooted out, before comfort and order can appear in the dwelling.

The next point to which we would advert, as

connected with a comfortable and happy family, is the right management and training of the children. Certain it is that children were intended to be a blessing, not a curse; to gladden the fireside by their lively mirth, and lessen the burdens of agenot to fill the home with misery, or bring down grey hairs with sorrow to the grave. From the manner in which some parents act towards their children, one would think that they regarded them as necessary evils, and that they had much the same view of the way to treat them as the keeper of a menagerie has of the way to treat his wild beasts-the great matter being to keep them in the cage or on the chain. We remember on one occasion speaking to the wife of a working man whose family was wild and obstreperous, on the duty of keeping up discipline among the children. That's well done in this house," she replied promptly and emphatically, “their father gives them aufu' leatherin's!"

The most solemn, and at the same time the most encouraging aspect of the duty of a Christian parent is that in which his children are regarded as lent him by the Lord; committed by God to his hands to be trained up for God. What Pharaoh's daughter said to the mother of Moses, may be held to be said by God to every Christian parent,-" Bring this child up for me, and I will pay thee thy wages."

The parent's duty is to bring up his children for God; to bring them up as God's children ought to be. Suppose you had a king's child placed in your hands to be brought up for him, what a responsible yet honourable duty you would feel it! How eager you would be to please the royal parent, to bring the child up as he would wish; to have him taught and clothed and fed as a royal child should be, so that he should not disgrace his origin, but even in your humble hands, resemble the son of a king. Is it not still more responsible and honourable to bring up children for the King of kings? How eager should every parent be to please Him who gives them to his charge; to consider all His wishes, follow all His rules, use all His medicines, and try to train them to the feelings, the habits, and the beauties in which the children of such a King ought to excel. At best, they will but be royal children in disguise, so far as this world is concerned. It is not an outward splendour that we are to affect for them. "The King's daughter is all glorious within." The marks of their royal parentage must be on the heart, the conscience, the life, the habits. Realize this, and you will be compelled to handle your children carefully and tenderly; you will have the feeling that a very precious charge has been committed to your hands, which you will be alarmed lest you

destroy by unskilful handling; and should you do so, what will be your feeling when you surrender your charge, thus mutilated and ruined, to the Royal Father? At the same time, you will feel that if the child has really been put by God into your hands to be trained for Him, you may rely on His taking a lively personal interest in the process, and giving the needed grace to renew the heart, and mature the character. When you view your family in this light, the objects that will seem to you supremely important and desirable will be very different from those which otherwise you might judge to be so. Brilliant worldly success will dwindle into a mere speck; and purity of heart, nobility of soul, faith, hope, and charity, will assert their native and inalienable pre-eminence. How miserably mistaken are parents often as to what is truly to be desired in the progress of their families! Excellent situations, lucrative business, wealthy marriages, conspicuous worldly position,--of how little value are such things alone, compared to victories gained over lust and greed and selfishness and ungodliness, and the formation of a character and habits suitable to a son of God! When the day comes for giving an account of their stewardship, of how little value will be the one,-of what infinite importance the other!

It is a common error among parents to take too narrow a view of what children should be taught. Many seem to think that all that a child needs to be taught systematically is to read, write, and count; to exercise the memory by repeating hymns or chapters; and to become expert at a trade, or, in the case of females, at domestic work. But the truth is, much more should be taught. Parents should aim at teaching their children to observe and to think. For example, if a chapter be read or repeated, it should be explained in a way adapted to the children's capacity, and its bearing on their own conduct indicated, so as to exercise their thoughts, their conscience, and their feelings. One of the most vital parts of education is to train the young to right feelings. To get them filled with a love of what is good; to get them to admire what is honest, lovely, and of good report; and to abhor what is false, cruel, or impure—is the great master-stroke in education, which, when successful, makes the rest mere matters of detail. Yet how little is this realized! If it were generally felt, parents would be always on the alert to attain this end. Every Bible lesson would be improved for instilling into the child's heart love and admiration of the good, hatred and detestation of the vile. The sight of a man treating his horse with cruelty would be im