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4. "It proved to be a rusty old sleigh fastened behind a covered-wagon, proceeding at a very slow rate, and taking up the whole road. Finding that the owner did not turn out, we determined upon a volley of snow-balls and a good hurra.29

5. "These we gave with a relish, and they produced the right effect; for the crazy machine turned out into the deep snow by the side of the road, and the old pony started on a full trot. As we passed, some one, who had a whip, gave the old horse a good crack, which made him

run.

6. "And so, with another volley of snow-balls, pitched into the front of the wagon, and three times three cheers, we rushed by. With that, an old fellow in the wagon, who was buried up under an old hat, and beneath a rusty cloak, and who had dropped the reins, bawled out, 'Why do you frighten my horse?'

7.666 Why do you not turn out, then?' says our driver. So we gave him three rousing cheers more; his horse was frightened again, and ran up against a loaded team, and I believe almost capsized the old creature. And so we left him."

8. "Well, boys," replied the instructor, "that is quite an incident. But take your seats, and, after our morning service is ended, I will take my turn, and tell you a story, and all about a sleigh-ride, too."

CXXVI.

TWO WAYS OF TELLING A STORY.

The Second Way.

1. THE teacher spoke as follows: "Yesterday afternoon, a very venerable old man, and a clergyman by profession, was on his way from Boston to Salem, to pass the residue of the winter at the house of his son. That he might be prepared for journeying in the spring, he took with him his light

wagon, and for the winter his sleigh, which he fastened behind the wagon.

2. "He was, as I have told you, very old and infirm; his temples were covered with thinned locks, which the frosts of eighty years had whitened; his sight, and hearing, too, were somewhat blunted by age, as yours will be, should you live to be as old.

3. "He was proceeding very slowly and quietly, for his horse was old and feeble, like the owner. Suddenly this venerable man was disturbed, and even terrified, by loud hurras from behind, and by a furious pelting and clattering of balls of snow and ice upon the top of his wagon. his trepidation, he dropped his reins, and, as his hands were quite benumbed with cold, he found it impossible to gather up, and his horse began to run away.

them

In

4. In the midst of the old man's trouble, there rushed by him, with loud shouts, a large party of boys, in a sleigh drawn by six horses. 'Turn out, turn out, old fellow!'Give us the road, old boy!'-'What will you take for your pony, old daddy?'-' Go it, frozen-nose!'' What is the price of oats?' were the various cries that saluted his

ears.

5. "Pray, do not frighten my horse!' exclaimed the infirm driver.-'Turn out, then,- turn out!' was the answer, which was followed by repeated cracks and blows from the long whip of the 'grand sleigh,' with showers of snow-balls, and three tremendous huzzas from the boys who were in it.

6. "The terror of the old man and his horse was increased, and the latter ran away with him, to the imminent danger of the old man's life. He contrived, however, after some exertion, to secure his reins, which had been out of his hands during the whole of the affair, and to stop his horse just in season to prevent his being dashed against a loaded

team.

7. "A short distance brought him to his journey's end.

That son, boys, is

and to the comfortable house of his son. your instructor; and that 'old fellow,' and 'old boy,' who did not turn out for you, but who would gladly have given you the whole road, had he heard your approach,— that old 'frozen-nose' was your teacher's father!”

8. It is not easy to describe, nor to imagine, the effect produced by this new version of the boy's own narrative. Some hid their heads behind their desks; some cried, and many hastened to the desk of the teacher, with apologies and regrets.

9. All were freely pardoned, but at the same time cautioned against similar conduct in future. We should treat all persons with civility, but especially the agëd and infirm. However poor and ragged they may be, to call them by nicknames, or address them in any other tone than that of sympathy and respect, is unworthy the character of a high-minded youth.

10. Politeness has its true source in benevolence. If we love our fellow-creatures as we ought to do, we cannot fail to be courteous to them, and to avoid giving them, by word or look, unnecessary offence.

Oliver.

CXXVII. EARLY HABITS OF WASHINGTON.

1. WHEN about fourteen years of age, George Washington evinced a desire to enter the navy. The opportunity for gratifying it appeared at hand. Ships of war frequent'ed the colonies, and at times were anchored in the Potomac. The inclination was encouraged by Lawrence Washington and Mr. Fairfax. Lawrence retained pleasant recollections of his cruisings in the fleet of Admiral Vernon, and considered the naval service a popular path to fame and for

tune.

2. George was at a suitable age to enter the navy. The great difficulty was to procure the assent of his mother. She was brought, however, to acquiesce; a midshipman's

warrant was obtained, and it is even said that the luggage of the youth was actually on board of a man-of-war, anchored in the river just below Mount Vernon.

3. At the eleventh hour the mother's heart faltered. This was her eldest born: a son whose strong and steadfast character promised to be a support to herself, and a protection to her other children. The thought of his being completely severed from her, and exposed to the hardships and perils of a boisterous profession, overcame even her resolute mind, and at her urgent remonstrances the nautical scheme was given up.

4. To school, therefore, George returned, and continued his studies for nearly two years longer, devoting himself especially to mathematics, and accomplishing himself in those branches calculated to fit him either for civil or military service. Among these, one of the most important, in the actual state of the country, was land-surveying.

5. In this he schooled himself thoroughly, using the highest processes of the art; making surveys about the neighborhood, and keeping regular field-books, some of which we have examined, in which the boundaries and measurements of the fields surveyed were carefully entered, and diagrams made, with a neatness and exactness as if the whole related to important land transactions, instead of being mere school exercises.

6. Thus, in his earliest days, there was perseverance and completeness in all his undertakings. Nothing was left half done, or done in a hurried and slovenly manner. The habit of mind thus cultivated continued throughout life; so that, however complicated his tasks and overwhelming his cares, in the arduous and hazardous situations in which he was often placed, he found time to do everything, and to do it well. He had acquired the magic of method, which of itself works wonders. WASHINGTON IRVING.

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When the American steamship Arctic came in collision with another steamship at sea, in the autumn of 1854, there was a youth, named Stuart Holland, stationed at the gun, to keep firing it, in the hope of attracting the attention of vessels at a distance, that they might come to the relief of the sinking vessel. Nearly all the crew deserted, leaving the captain and most of the passengers without a boat. But Stuart Holland kept at his post, and sank with the ship. "I saw him," says an eye-witness, " in the very act of firing, as the vessel disappeared."

1.

THE thick fog baffled vision,
But daylight lingered yet,
When two ships, in collision,
Upon the ocean met;
The Arctic shook and reeled;
A hole in her fore-quarter

Let in a rush of water:

The good ship's doom was sealed.

2. And there were men and women
Crowded upon the deck;

And there were frightened seamen
Rushing to leave the wreck !
In vain the captain shouted;
The craven crew have left him,
Of every boat bereft him:
Destruction is undoubted.

3. But, hark! a gun is pealing

Fast from that vessel's side;

One true heart is revealing
That Duty doth abide

O'er Death and all his host.

The boy stands loading, firing,

Unaided and untiring,
Nor thinks he of inquiring
If he may quit his post.

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