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Mifchievous. mifchievous pranks, in neglecting the tasks and leffons, and for every vice and irregularity which the puerile age can admit.

puerile?

gaiety.

13. You will have fenfe enough, I hope, to difcover, beneath the mask of gaiety and good nate, that malignant fpirit of detraction, malignant? which endeavors to render the boy who apples to books, and to all the duties and prodetraction? per bufines of the fehool, ridiculous.

sidicule?

mifupplied. recourfe? elegant. principles.

fail, received.

fouree?

onfolation Jublunary? viciffitude?

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fociation

onfpiracy

facrificed?

Shrine?

14. You will ice by the light of your reason, that the ridicule is mifapplied. You will therefore effectually repel the attack, by a dauntlefs fpirit, and unyielding perfeverance. Though numbers are against you, yet, with truth and rectitude on your fide you may, though alone, be equal to an army. 15. By laying in a ftore of ufeful knowledge, adorning your mind with elegant literature, improving and establishing your conduct by virtuous principles, you cannot fail of being a comfort to thofe friends who have fupported you, of being happy with yourself, and of being well received by mankind.

16. Honour and fuccefsin life will probably attend you. Under all circumftances, you will have an internal fource of confolation and entertainment, of which no fublunary viciffitude can deprive you.

17. Time will fhow how much wifer has been your choice than that of your idle companions, who would gladly have drawn you into their affociation, or rather into their confpiracy, as it has been called, against good manners, and against all that is honorable and ufeful.

18. While you appear in fociety, as a refpectable and valuable member of it, they will, perhaps,have facrificed at the fhrine of vanity, pride, and extravagance, and falfe pleasure their health and their sense, their fortune and

extravagance. their characters.

Life is a flower.

"THE bloffoms are fallen, and the beds of flow- Scythe. 1, ers fwept away by the fcythe of the mower."

This is a fcene to which we are accuftomed at this season of the year. We fee the grafs fall by the mower's scythe, and the gay flowers that adorn the meadows, unregarded, fwept away. 2. The green, the yellow, the crimson, the fucculent, fall undiftinguished before the fatal inftrument that cuts them off. They are fcattered on the ground, and withered by the intenfe heat of the day.

3. That blooming flower which flands the pride of the verdant field, glowing in beautiful colours and fhining with the dawn of the morning, ere the fun gains its meridian height, falls a facrifice to the fevering fteel, and fades in the fcorching rays of noon.

4. Thus it is with human life-The thread is cut and man falls into the filent tomb. Nothing can ward off the fatal ftroke-The aged, old and infirm-manhood, in strength and vig or-youth, in bloom and beauty--the infant, weak and helpless,are without distinction swept away by the fcythe of the greatest destroyer, Death.

5. The active youth, who in the morning rifes with health and vivacity, may at noon lie pale and motionlefs, at the feet of this great victor; and at the fetting of the morrow's fun, be configned to the dark and lonefome manfions of the dead. Cities and nations are fubject to the fame fate.

mower.

fcene.

meadows.

green.

fucculent? intense?

verdant ?

meridian?

height.

tomb.

ward.

weak.

defroyer.

vivacity?

configned?

marfions.

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depopulat

ed?

6. How foon is a flourishing town depopulated by a peftilential difeafe. How foon is a nation cut off by the raging of a direful war. ` direful ?

B

Liquid? deluge?

Effentially.

I.

perpetual?

feries? folitude?

fuitable.

luflre. or;

lufter.

Source?

reigns?

'O! that mine head were waters, and mine
"Were fountains, flowing like the liquid fkies;
Then would I give the mighty flood releafe,
And weep a deluge for the human race.'

Knowledge.

eyes

NOWLEDGE is that which next to

man above another. It finishes one half of the human foul. It makes being pleasant to us, fills the mind with entertaining views, and adminifters to it a perpetual feries of gratifi cations. It gives eafe to folitude, and grace, fulness to retirement.

2. It fills a public ftation with fuitable abilities, and adds a luftre to those who are in the poffeffion of them. Learning, by which I mean all useful knowledge, whether fpecula. tive or practical, is in popular and mixed governments the natural fource of wealth and honor.

3. If we look into most of the reigns from the conqueft, we fhall find that the favourites favourites. of each reign have been those who have raised themfelves. The greatest men are generally the growth of that particular age in which they flourish.

growth.

extenfive?

cotemporaries? impofible.

fail.

choice,

applies,

4. A fuperior capacity for business, and a more extenfive knowledge, are the steps by which a new man often mounts to favour, and outshines the rest of his cotemporaries.

5. But when men are actually born to titles, it is almost impoffible that they fhould fail of receiving an additional greatness, if they take care to accomplish themselves for it.

6. The ftory of Solomon's choice does not only instruct us in that point of history, but furnishes out a very fine moral to us, namely, that he who applies his heart to wisdom, does

at

at the fame time take the moft proper method Reputation. for gaining long life, riches, and reputation, which are very often not only the reward, but reward. the effects of wisdom.

7. As it is very fuitable to my prefent fubject, I fhall quote this paffage in the words of facred writ, not queftioning but it will be very pleafing to fuch of my readers, who have a tafte for fine writing.

8. "In Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night; and God faid, ask what I fhall give thee. And Solomon faid-Thou haft fhewn unto thy fervant David, my father, great mercy, according as he walked before thee in truth and in righteoufnefs, and in uprightness of heart with thee, and thou haft kept for him this great kindness, and thou haft given him a fon to fit on his throne, as it is this day. 9. And now, O Lord my God, thou haft made thy fervant king inftead of David my father: And I am but a little child; I know not how to go out or come in. Give, therefore, thy fervant an understanding heart to judge thy people, that I may difcern between good and bad, for who is able to judge this thy fo great people!

fuitable? quote. questioning.

hewn.

walked.

righteouf

nefs.

uprightness.

inftead.

fervant.

difcern?

judge.

Speech.

neither.

10. And the fpeech pleafed the Lord, that Solomon had afked this thing. And God faid unto him, because thou haft asked this thing, and haft not asked for thyself long life, neither haft afked riches for thyfelf, nor haft asked the life of thine enemies, but hast asked for thyfelf enemies. understanding to difcern judgment. Behold, I have done according to thy words.

II. Lo, I have given thee a wife and underftanding heart, fo that there was none like thee, before thee, neither after thee fhall any arife like unto thee. And I have also given thee that which thou haft not asked, both riches and honor, fo that there fhall not be any among the kings like unto thee all thy days.

judgment.

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12. And if thou wilt walk in my ways, to keep my ftatutes, and my commandments, as thy father David did walk,then I will lengthen thy days. And Solomon awoke, and be.

hold it was a dream."

Efther.

SECTION 1. Ahasuerus makes a royal feaft.-
Vafbti's difobedience.

I.

AND it came to pafs in the days of

king Ahafuerus, when he fat on the throne of his kingdom, which was in Shuthan the palace, that he made a feaft unto all his princes and his fervants; the power of Perfia and Media, the nobles and princes of the provinces, being before him, when he thewed the riches of his glorious kingdom, and the honor of his excellent majety many days, even an hundred and four score days.

2. And when thefe days were expired, the king made a feaft unto all the people that were prefent in Shufhan the palace, both unto great and small, feven days, in the court of the garden of the king's palace.

3. And they gave them drink in vessels of gold, and royal wine in abundance, according to the state of the king. Alfo, Vafhti, the queen, made a feaft for the women in the royal houfe which belonged to king Ahafue

rus.

4. And on the feventh day, when the heart of the king was merry with wine, he commanded his feven chamberlains to bring Vashti before the king with the crown royal, to fhew the people and the princes her beauty; for fhe was fair to look upon.

5. But the queen Vashti refused to come at the king's commandment by his chamber

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