of, and ere long thou shalt sell thy necessaries;' and again, Silks and satins, scarlet and velvets, put out the kitchen fire.' "But what madness must it be to run in debt for these superfluities! We are offered by the terms of this sale six months' credit; and that, perhaps, has induced some of us to attend it, because we cannot spare the ready money, and hope now to be fine without it. But, ah! think what you do when you run in debt: you give to another power over you. If you cannot pay at the time, you will be ashamed to see your creditor; you will be in fear when you speak to him; you will make poor, pitiful, sneaking excuses; and by degrees come to lose your veracity, and sink to base, downright lying; for The second vice is lying, the first is running in debt,' as Poor Richard says; and again, to the same purpose, Lying rides upon Debt's back.' "When you have got your bargain, you may perhaps think little of payment; but, as Poor Richard says, "Creditors have better memories than debtors; creditors are a superstitious sect, great observers of set days and times.' The day comes round before you are aware, and the demand is made before you are prepared to satisfy it; or, if you bear your debt in mind, the term, which at first seemed so long, will, as it lessens, appear extremely short. Time will seem to have added wings to his heels as well as to his shoulders. 'Those have a short Lent who owe money to be paid at Easter.' At present, perhaps, you may think yourselves in thriving circumstances, and that you can bear a little extravagance without injury; but, "For age and want save while you may; No morning sun lasts a whole day.' Gain may be temporary and uncertain, but ever, while you live, expense is constant and certain, and 'It is easier to build two chimneys than to keep one in fuel,' as Poor Richard says; so, Rather go to bed supperless than rise in debt.' 6 "This doctrine, my friends, is reason and wisdom; but, after all, do not depend too much upon your own industry and frugality and prudence, though excellent things, for they may all be blasted, without the blessing of Heaven; and therefore ask that blessing humbly, and be not uncharitable to those that at present seem to want it, but comfort and help them. Remember, Job suffered, and was afterwards prosperous." Thus the old man ended his harangue. I resolved to be the better for it; and though I had at first determined to buy stuff for a new coat, I went away resolved to wear my old one a little longer. Reader, if thou wilt do the same, thy profit will be as great as mine. BENJAMIN FRANKLIN. Benjamin Franklin, an eminent American statesman, was born in Boston, Massachusetts, January 17, 1706, and died April 17, 1790. Active as was his life, he was yet a voluminous writer. The peculiar charm of his writing consists in the clearness and the simplicity with which he described his subject. While never flowery, he had an elegant and a lively style. The quotations from Poor Richard are from a book written by Franklin entitled, "Poor Richard's Almanac." frugality: prudent economy.groat: an old English silver coin, worth about eight cents. mickle: much. - superfluities: greater quantities than are wanted. - veracity: truth. - thriving: prosperous condition. -harangue: speech to a large assembly. To the Ladybird. Ladybird, ladybird! fly away home! Ladybird, ladybird! fly away home! The glowworm is lighting her lamp, The dew's falling fast, and your fine speckled wings Ladybird, ladybird! fly away home! Good luck if you reach it at last! The owl's come abroad, and the bat's on the roam, Ladybird, ladybird! fly away home! The fairy bells tinkle afar! Make haste, or they'll catch you, and harness you fast Ladybird, ladybird! fly away now To your house in the old willow tree, Ladybird, ladybird! fly away home! And if not gobbled up by the way, You're in luck!—and that's all I've to say. CAROLINE B. SOUTHEY. Mrs. Caroline B. Southey (sowth'y or suth'y), the wife of Robert Southey, an eminent English author, was born in England in 1787, and died in 1854. She was the author of several volumes of prose and verse which met with considerable favor from the reading public. red eyes: English daisies are of a reddish color. — glowworm: a beetle which gives out light as it moves about. - flag: limp; hang loose.-sharp-set: hungry.-Ram'azan fast: the great annual thirtyday fast of the Mohammedans, kept from dawn to sunset, during their ninth month. Ob'eron (õb'er on): the king of the fairies. St. Hubert. From the earliest ages of the Church the lives of the saints have been a source of inspiration for pen and pencil. The legends of St. Anthony of Padua and his vision of the Holy Child, St. George and the Dragon, St. Clare, St. Elizabeth, and other devoted servants of God have fired the imagination of the painter and the poet, who have perpetuated the story of these holy lives in picture and in song. A legend connected with the life of St. Hubert, the patron saint of hunters, is worth relating. St. Hubert, it is said, was the son of a certain Duke of Aquitaine, a province of Gaul, and was born in the year 656. Living in troubled times as he did, he was sent for safety, as a child, to an aunt, a holy woman, who placed him at the court of Pepin of Herstal. There the future saint grew up. When he reached the age of twenty-six, Hubert married Floriban, the daughter of a Count of Louvain; for three years they lived an ideal life, happy in each other's company; then Floriban fell ill and died. Hubert had a passion for the chase, and after the death of his wife he would for days and weeks together hunt the wild boar and the stag in the vast Forest of Ardennes, often to the neglect of his duties. Such a strong hold did his love of hunting gain on him, that he even went in pursuit of game during Holy Week. So it turned out that one Good Friday he strayed from his companions. After a while he found |