us, are performed during the same period, that, notwithstanding all her movements, she keeps the one side always towards us. I think you will understand this presently.” Looking round to see what would best suit his purpose, Mr. Rossar said, “Kate, bring the music-stool and place it here opposite to me. Harry, sit on the stool, and while Kate walks round it you must see that she keeps her face towards you all the time.” When Kate had walked round in a rather wide circle, her father said “What movement have you made beside that for which I asked ''' “None, father,” was the answer. “None? Well, try again: but first tell me, in what direction are you now standing 2" “I am just opposite you, with my face towards you, i. I can see you over Harry's head.” Round went Kate, and round twirled Harry on the stool to see that she did not turn her face away from him. “Stop!” said Mr. Rossar, when Kate had gone half round, “how are you standing now l’” “I have my back to you, father,” adding, as she finished her circuit, “You never moved, and yet first my face was towards you and then my back, so I must have moved myself round whilst walking round Harry and the stool. Nelly, who had stood silently beside her father watching the proceedings, now said, “I see how it was #. was in the moon's place, and as Harry was inside the circle he was in the earth's position, and saw only Kate's face. But you and I, father, were not in the place of either the moon or the earth : we were outside the circle, and therefore we could see that she did really turn herself quite round.” As soon as Nelly's explanation was finished, Harry said: “Will you please tell us next, father, how it is that there is sometimes a new moon, and sometimes a full one, and sometimes none at all to be seen I know now that it is always the one moon we see, and not a fresh one every few weeks, though I used to think there was, and many a time I have wondered what became of all the old moons.” Here the little fellow paused, and laughed merrily at the recollection of the droll notions he he had had, not so very long since, about the matter. “You must begin,” said his father, “by telling me from whence the moon receives her light.” “From the sun,” answered all three children together. “Right. Because the moon's is borrowed light, she goes through a variety of appear. ances called “phases.” But if her brightness were her own she would shine full upon us every night. How much of the moon's surface is the most we ever see?” “One half,” said the children. “And on how much of her surface do you suppose the sun shines at once f * “One half,” was the somewhat hesitating answer. “Quite right,” said Mr. Rossar: “the sun is always shining on some part of the moon, just as he is always sending his beams down to some part of our globe. But the half of the moon that at any one time is illumined by the sun is seldom just the half seen by us. In fact, only once in the moon's revolution of twenty-eight days does it occur that these halves are exactly the same portion of her surface.” “Oh,” cried Harry, “I think I know now. When the sun shines all over our half we see a circle of light, and that is the full moon.” “Yes: but what about the time when he shines on none of our half?” “Why then, father, we don't see the moon at all, because her dark side is next us; and that is just how it has been for the last two or three nights, but I could not think why it was that she was out of sight.” “Suppose,” said Mr. Rossar, “that webegin at this point, and trace themoon through the phases of her twenty-eight days’ journey round the earth. First, then, the moon is exactly in a line with the sun, and they are both on the same side of the earth. This, I think, will actually be the case in a few hours time. In this position the moon is said to be ‘in conjunction” with the sun, and at this time it is that we have the new moon. We cannot, however, see her until she is about three and a half days old, when, in her journey eastward, she appears, just about sunset, as a very slender crescent of light in the sky." “Father," said Kate, “very often on clear nights when the new moon comes into sight, besides the bright crescent, the rest of the circle is marked out by a pale grey light: where does that come from? I have heard people jestingly say that it is the new moon with the old one in her arms." “That pale, ash-coloured light is the earthlight I spoke of on the evening when first we talked about the moon," answered her father. “Our earth goes through phases, or changes of appearance, similar to those of the moon, but at opposite times. For instance, when the new moon is showing us her thin crescent we are 'full earth' to her, shining in a very bright circle of light, and sending her (except when our clouds obscure our light) thirteen times more brightness than she gives us at her full. Can any of you account for this superior brilliancy of ours ? “Perhaps," said Kate," as our earth is much larger than the moon, it catches more sun-rays to reflect back, than she gets from the sun to send us." And very pleased was Kate to hear that this was the correct explanation. “But why does earthlight look so pale when it is really so bright ?" asked Nelly. (To be concluded in our next.) very different. No one seemed to care for any world but this; and the little shop they kept was open on Sundays, just the same as on every other day of the week. It was arranged that Emma should attend to the business, which she did thoroughly ; but when the first Sunday came her father was surprised to find the shutters not opened. On asking the reason, his child firmly, but gently, said that she could not open shop on the Lord's day. The man was stern and passionate, and said that if she expected him to listen to any nonsense of that kind, she would find it useless, and that if she did not yield she would leave the house on the morrow. She did leave the house, and for a while she had no home, but Providence directed her to apply for a situation, which she obtained, and in which she lived for many years greatly respected. But a change came over the godless home. Business fell off, the father got into idle habits, and at length left his wife and child to starve. Just then Emma's mistress, going from home, had given her servant a few months' holiday; and the dutiful daughter entered her father's house just in time to save her mother and little sister from the workhouse. She was a brave, energetic girl, and resolved, if possible, to restore the business. The shop was soon furnished again with her savings, and customers soon came back. Most of the neighbours knew how it had been with the family, and many who did not care for God's day themselves, could respect the girl who was not afraid to give up her home for her principles. When success had crowned her efforts she sought her misguided father, and had the great joy of bringing him back to his restored home ere she returned to her place; and, best of all, she received his willing consent to keep a closed house on the Lord's boly day. Emma had obeyed God's command to keep holy the Sabbath-day, and her Heavenly Father had faithfully fulfilled His promise: “ Those who honour me I will honour: Those that despise Me shall be lightly esteemed." BRAVE EMMA. LITTLE Emma's father and mother lived in a crowded part of London, and she would have known nothing of the pleasure of running over the beautiful grass, and picking the spring flowers, had it not been for the visits which she paid now and then to her grandmother, who lived in the country, and who loved God's Word, and strove to make it the guide of her daily life. When the little girl was six years old she went to live always with this good old woman, who taught her to love the Bible. Her childhood was a very happy one, but after some years the pious grandmother went to the home for which she had long been ready, and Emma returned to her father's house. Here she found all CHILDREN OF THE OLD TESTAMENT. ABIJAH. T is not often that a whole nation mourns for the death of a child, yet all Israel mourned for the child Abijah. (1 Kings, xiv. 18.) More than two thousand years ago there was a king of Israel, Jeroboam, who always has added to his name in the Bible these woful words, that “he made Israel to sin . " His special sin was, that he set up golden calves in Dan and Bethel, copying an idol which the Egyptians worshipped, and said to his people, “Behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee out of the land of Egypt” (1 Kings, xii. 28.) Jeroboam's wife seems to have been wicked too, at any rate we read that she agreed with her husband in trying to deceive the Lord's prophet. Abijah was the son of wicked Jeroboam and his wife, and yet Abijah was a very good child; for God said of him that he only of all his family was to come to the grave, he only was not to be eaten of dogs, or devoured by the fowls of the air, because in him there was found some good thing toward the Lord God of Israel. (1 Kings, xiv. 13.) Perhaps it may have been because it was so hard for a holy child to live in an unholy house, that God laid His hand on Abijah, and he fell sick. (1 Kings, xiv. 1.) It is pleasant to find anything good even in a i. man, so we are glad to read that Jeroboam loved his child Abijah, and when he looked upon him in his sickness he could not bear the thought that his little son might die; and he said to his wife, “There is Ahijah the prophet, which told me that I should be king over this people; go to him, he shall tell thee what shall become of the child.” But, though Jeroboam wished to send to Ahijah, he did not wish the prophet to know it, for he had not obeyed the prophet's words, and thought he would get no answer from him. take with thee ten loaves, and cracknels, and a cruse of honey, and go to him, and he shall tell thee what shall become of the child.” Jeroboam's wife did so, and went to Ahijah's house in the dress of a poor woman, and not like a queen; and as the prophet could not see, for he was so old that his eyes were dim, no doubt she thought that she could easily deceive him. But the Lord had told Ahijah that the wife of Jeroboam was coming to ask about her son, and had told him what he was to say to her. So when the aged prophet heard the sound of her feet as she came to his door, he called out, “Come in, thou wife of Jeroboam, why feignest thou thyself to be another woman 7 for I am sent to thee with heavy tidings;” and then Ahijah told her that her husband and all her family should be slain with the sword, and that none but the child Abijah should come to the grave in peace; that none of the others should even be buried: but that the dogs should eat the dead bodies of some, and the fowls of the air devour the rest. The poor woman seems to have fallen to the ground on hearing this, for the prophet goes on, “Arise thou, and get thee to thine own house, and when thy feet enter into the city, the child shall die.” Then Jeroboam's wife arose, and hastened to Tirzah. Soon she entered the city—a little further, and she was at her own door. Her foot was on the step: she had not yet got into the house. Eagerly she would ask, “Is the child dead?" Perhaps the door-keeper said, “No ; he is not dead yet.” She hastens to the child's chamber, hoping once more to kiss his brow, and to hear him call her “mother.” But when she reached the bedside she sees that it was too late-all was over. “Has he been dead long?” she would |