dinner at the usual time, my dear, had I known he would be so late." Louisa went to the window and stood for some time watching for her father's appearance. Ten minutes passed away and he did not arrive. 5. "I wish I had something to do, mamma,' " said she at last," to employ the time till papa comes. home; and yet it seems scarcely worth while to begin my drawing again, as we are expecting him every minute; neither is it worth while to fetch a book, as he would perhaps be here by the time I reached the library."

6. "Let us try to find some amusement, then," replied her mother, "that will divert your attention during the interim." "Oh, mamma," rejoined Louisa,

"there is nothing to amuse me here, in the dining-room; nothing but sideboards, tables, and carpets: I wish we had staid in the drawing-room." Nothing but sideboards, tables, and carpets, Louisa?" said Mrs. F. "look on the table, and tell me what is there."

7. "Knives and forks, mamma, plates and stands, silver spoons and silver forks, salts and castors, candles and candlesticks, damask table-cloth, mustard, pepper, vinegar."

8. "What are knives made of?" said Mrs. F. "The handles are made of ivory, mamma," replied Louisa, "and the blades are made of steel." "And what is steel, and what is ivory?" said her mother. "Steel is iron prepared by fire," replied Louisa," and ivory is the tusk of the elephant."

9. "Very well," said Mrs. F. "and of what are the spoons and forks made." "Of silver, mamma, a metal procured from the mines of Potosi in SouthAmerica." "And the salts and castors-of what are they made?" "Of glass, mamma, cut grass-glass is made of sand and flint, melted together in a furnace.

10. "You know I went to see a glass-house in Boston once, and was so much delighted with the dexterity with which the workmen made up cups and tumblers, in a minute, almost, just by twisting, and turning, and

blowing a little bit of the hot liquid glass. What question have you to put next?"

11. "Can you tell me of what the candles and candlesticks are made?" "The candlesticks are of silver, like the forks and spoons; and the candles are of tallow or of wax, I do not know which. Tallow is the fat of various animals; wax is procured by bees from various flowers; they make the cells or combs, in which they put their honey, of wax, I believe."

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12. “Very well. Now for the damask tablecloth?" It is made of thread, mamma, wove into various patterns. Thread is made of the fibrous stalks of a plant called flax, which bears blue blossoms, and is very pretty and delicate. You showed me a field of flax once, when we were walking, and described the whole process of its being manufactured into thread, and spun and wove into linen cloth."

13. "I am very glad you remember so well what I have told you, my dear little girl," said Mrs. F.; "and I shall have more pleasure in future from giving you information upon various subjects, because I shall feel assured that my pains are not thrown away."

14. "Hark! did not the hall bell ring?" 66 Yes," replied Louisa, in a joyful tone, "papa is indeed come! It is ten minutes since I last looked at the time piece, mamma. How quickly the time has passed since you began to ask me questions! I had almost forgotten we were waiting dinner."

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15. You see, my dear said Mrs. F., "that every object around us may furnish a source of useful inquiry or information. We should make the most use of every moment, and endeavor to turn every thing to some account."

16. "You have been more pleasantly, as well as more usefully, employed during the last quarter of an hour, in exercising your memory by replying to my inquiries, than you would have been in standing at the window and exclaiming, "Oh, how I wish papa would come!" which, after all, would not have brought him any the sooner."

LESSON 22.

DEFINITIONS.

Vase, a dish, as a cup or bowl.

I'd, contraction of I would, I wish or am willing.
In-no-cent, one free from guilt or crime.

What kind of word is playthings? I'd? Learned? From what is learned derived? What other words are derived from learn? What word is the opposite of pretty? Play? Shut? How many trisyllables in this lesson?

The Playthings.-Miss H. F. GOULD. 1. "Oh! Mother, here's the very top, That Brother used to spin,

2.

The vase with seeds, I've seen him drop,
To call our robin in;"

แ

"The line that held his pretty kite
His bow,—his cup,—his ball,-
The slate on which he used to write,
His feather, cap—and all.”

3. "My dear, I'd put the things away,
Just where they were before,"
"Go, Anna,-take him out to play,
And shut the closet door."

4. "Sweet innocent!-he little thinks,
The slightest thought expressed,
Of him that's dead,-how deep it sinks
Within a mother's breast."

LESSON 23.

DEFINITIONS.

Earned, gained by labor as wages.

Loung-ing, spending time idly, idling.

Swing-ing, moving backwards and forwards.

En'-vy, vexation at another's success, invidiousness.
Pugh, Pooh, a word of contempt or disdain.
Hób-bling, walking lamely, limping.

Lazy Lawrence.-MISS EDGEWORTH.

1. ONE day a little boy, whose name was Jem had worked very hard, and finished his day's work by four o'clock; so that he had all the rest of the afternoon to himself. There was another boy in the same village, whose name was Lawrence: he never did any thing either work or play, and the boys used to call him Lazy Lawrence.

2. Jem was as fond of play, as any little boy could be. So, as soon as he had finished his task, and fed Lightfoot, his mother's old horse, and laid away the sixpence he had earned, that day, he ran to the play ground in the village, where he found a party of boys playing. Among them was Lazy Lawrence, who indeed was not playing, but lounging on a gate, with his thumb in his mouth.

3. The rest were playing ball. Jem joined them, and was the merriest and most active among them; till at last, when quite out of breath with running, he was

obliged to give up, to rest himself, and sat down upon a stone, close to the gate on which Lawrence was swinging.

Jem. Why don't you play, Lawrence?

Lawrence. I'm tired.

Jem. Tired! of what?

Law. I don't know what tires me; grandmother says I an't well, and must take something. I don't know what ails me.

Jem. Oh, pugh! take a good race,-one, two, three, and away.

Law. (hanging back heavily.) Ah, no, I can't run; indeed; you know I can play all day long, if I like it; so I don't mind play, as you do, who have only one hour for it.

Jem. So much the worse for you. Come now, I'm quite fresh again; will you have one game at ball? do. Law. No, I tell you, I can't; I am as tired as if I had been working as hard as a horse.

Jem. Ten times more; for I have been working all day long as hard as a horse, and yet you see I'm not a bit tired; only a little out of breath, just now.

Law. That's very odd. (He did not know what else to say; but he yawned, and then took a handful of money out of his pocket and showed it.) See what I got from father to-day, because I asked him just at the right time, when he was good natured; then, I can get any thing out of him that I want; See! here's a penny, two pence, three pence, four pence-there's eight pence in all. Would not you be happy, if you had eight pence?

Jem. (laughing) Why I don't know; you don't seem to be happy, and still you have eight pence.

Law. That does not signify; though I am sure you say it, only because you envy me. You don't know what it is to have eight pence: you never had more than two pence or three pence, in your life.

Jem. Oh, as to that, you are mistaken; for I have at this very time, more than two pence, or three pence,