had he recovered himself, than he went from the spot.

In a short time afterwards he began thus to say to himself:- "If a sparrow could frighten me thus, I may be sure that what I was going to do was very wicked."

And now he worked with greater diligence than before, nor once again trusted himself to look on the fruit. The sparrows chirped again as he was leaving the garden, but he no longer fled at the sound.

66

"You may cry 'Jem, Jem,'" said he, looking steadily at the tree in which several birds were perched, as often as you like, I don't care for you now; but this I will say, I will never forget how good a friend one of you has been to me, and I will rob none of your nests again."

Oh, may all the young watch and pray that they enter not into temptation, and ever remember the admonition, "Thou God seest mc."

THE HOLY DAY.

THIS is God's most holy day;
We must neither work nor play;
But we'll try to pray and sing,
And to serve our heavenly King.

Oh! 'tis pleasant now to go
To our Saviour's house below;
And we hope to sing and love
In our Saviour's house above.

MRS. PARSON,

TRYING TO BE HAPPY.

"I WISH you would tell me how to be happy, uncle. I have heard the saying, 'As happy as a king,' and wish I knew how I could be happy as a king, too."

66

No doubt of it; but, Peter, though the saying seems to suppose the contrary, we have no good reason to believe that kings are a whit happier than other people."

No. 94. OCTOBER, 1852.

L

"No! Why what should make a king unhappy? Has he not everything he can wish for P❞

'Indeed he has not; for, all through the world, much will have more. He who has fifty pounds wishes to have a hundred, and he that has ten thousand tries his best to make it up twenty thousand."

"But a king wears a crown and a royal robe, and is lifted up above the people."

"True; but his crown will not cure the headache, nor his royal robe drive away the heartache; and then his being lifted up above the people is quite as likely to make him enemies as friends. Believe me, Peter, a king has his cares, and crowned heads and peaceful hearts rarely go together. If you really want to be happy take my advice, and on no account whatever wish to be made a king."

"Then please to tell me how to be happy."

"I will give you two or three good rules, which may help you to become happier than you would be without knowing them; but as to being quite happy, that you can never be till you get to heaven."

"Well then, uncle, tell me your good rules." "The first is, "Try your best to make others happy.' I never was happy,' said a certain king, 'till I began to take pleasure in the welfare of my people; but, ever since then, in the darkest day I have had sunshine in my heart.'

"That was a wise and a good king. I will try to remember your first rule."

My second rule is, 'Be content with little.' There are many good reasons for this rule.

We deserve but little, we require but little, and better is little with the fear of the Lord, than great treasures and trouble therewith,' Prov. xv. 16. Two men were determined to be rich; but they set about it in different ways, for the one strove to raise up his means to his desires, while the other did his best to bring down his desires to his means. The result was that the one who coveted much was always repining, while he who desired but little was always contented."

66

The last was right, and the first was wrong. I will try to remember your second rule, uncle."

"My third rule is, 'Look on the sunny side of things.'

Look up, look up, with hopeful eyes,

Though all things seem forlorn;
The sun that sets to night will rise
Again to-morrow morn.

The skipping lamb, the singing lark, and the leaping fish, tell us that happiness is not confined to one place; God in his goodness has spread it abroad on the earth, in the air, and in the waters. Two aged women lived in the same cottage; one was always fearing a storm, and the other was always looking for sunshine. Hardly need I say which it was who wore a forbidding frown, or which it was whose face was lighted up with joy."

"I know which it was very well, and I will try to remember your third rule, uncle."

"My fourth and last rule is, 'Fear God and keep his commandments,' and this is the best rule of all. The others without it are of little use. 'I had all things,' said one, but I was

unhappy, for I knew not God. God took all things away, and I was at peace; for he gave me a knowledge of himself in Christ Jesus.' My fourth rule must on no account be forgotten."

"I will try to remember it as well as the rest of them."

"All are trying to be happy, but many are trying the wrong way. Some look for it in health, some in wealth, some in friends, and some in renown; but strength fails, riches are lost, friends die, and renown is but an uncertain thing. You were wrong, Peter, in thinking that kings and great people are the happiest people in the world."

"I think I was, uncle."

"If we are humble and wise there is a great deal of happiness within our reach, but we must try to make others happy as well as ourselves. We cannot be happy without contentment; we cannot be content without peace; we cannot have peace unless we have the hope of heaven; and we cannot reasonably hope for heaven, unless we have a humble faith in the Saviour, and obey him. To put the matter in the simplest form that I can, Peter, try to make others happy, be content with little, look on the sunny side of things, fear God and keep his commandments, and take my word for it,

As much of happiness will then be given,

As youth and age can have on this side heaven."

"Godliness is profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that now is, and of that which is to come," 1 Tim. iv. 8.