infant, and went up stairs; and the mistress hastened to the drawing-room, to receive her guests.

In a few minutes, some one asked, "Where is little William ?"

"Is he not in the parlour, with his father?" "No!"

"In the drawing-room with his mother?" "No!"

The poor little fellow had wandered into the court-yard, unperceived, in the moment of confusion, and, leaning over a low tub, which stood there filled with rain water, had fallen in, and was drowned! The Young Servant, &c.

HELPS TO THE NURSERY-MAID.

CULTIVATE cheerfulness as well as gentleness in your manner to children; you will gain their obedience best by winning their affections. A pleasant cheerful face is of much importance among children. A good memory is a great help also; the young nurse who can repeat nice stories and pretty verses will be a favourite in the nursery, and find a ready way to quiet the turbulent, or soothe the fretful or the sickly. Are you fond of singing? I dare say you are; and so am I. There is something very pleasant in hearing the voice tunefully employed while the hands are at work; it seems to tell us that the mind is cheerful and happy, and that duties are not a toil. The possession of a "good voice," as it is called, is a good gift, and you know from whom all good gifts do come. Take care, then, never to abuse this gift, by singing improper or wicked songs. "With the voice we are to bless God;" and if you are able to sing without disturbing others, you will only be doing right to join in the public psalms and hymns at church. But what I now wish to point out is the cheerfulness and pleasure that may be diffused by nursery songs and tales. I knew an excellent nursery.maid, whose retentive memory and pleasing voice added greatly to

Her

the value of her faithful services. She made the nursery very happy. If she wished for a little leisure for needlework, she would first find some little occupation for all; even the child of eighteen months would be set to cut paper with blunt scissors, or sort rags to fill a bag for his nurse, seated on the floor near her and listening to her tales (she could repeat all Miss Taylor's nursery verses); and then a song would be sung, in which the children would join in chorus. principal charge, the infant, had a very quick ear, and readily caught up the air of his favourite songs. In times of sickness, or in calming the hasty passions of her little charge, poor Lydia was invaluable; often has her mistress found her at midnight sitting up in her bed, soothing the sleepless child with a gentle song, and invariably the last sound of his voice in dropping off to sleep was the closing line and chorus of his favourite hymn. Lydia is now, I trust, singing in heaven the praises of her Saviour, whom she loved; but her memory will ever be cherished by those who knew her value.

I. A. C., &c.

THE NURSEMAID.

I was young when I first went to service, 'tis true,
And, like other young people, but little I knew;
But my parents thus charged me:— "Be just and upright,
And still keep the fear of your Maker in sight;
And mind, too, whatever your mistress may say,
You attend, recollect, and exactly obey.

Keeping close to your orders, you can't well displease,
And experience and knowledge will grow by degrees;
But don't be conceited, or forward, or vain,

Or you'll never true wisdom and goodness obtain.”
Their sober advice I've endeavour'd to mind,
And its truth and importance still daily I find.
At first my good mistress, again and again,

Would with patience her motives and maxims explain,
Till at length, to her habits quite thoroughly grown,
She is never afraid to trust me alone.

If by illness confined, or gone out for the air,
She knows all goes on just as if she was there.

As she passes the nursery, and takes a kind peep
At the children, at meal times, at play, or asleep,.
With pleasure her voice or her footsteps I hear,
For I've nothing to hide and I've nothing to fear.
My mistress's orders and plans are so good,

That I wish they were everywhere well understood.

Then hear, ye young nursemaids! the rules she has taught: "When an infant is first to the nursery brought,

Think how precious the charge! let it constantly share
Your watchfulness, tenderness, cleanliness, care;
Keep it warm and well nurtured; yet don't overload
Its body with clothes, or its stomach with food:
In all things distinguish too much from enough.
Be gentle, yet lively, and active, not rough:
If, disorder'd and restless, the baby should cry,
Never venture an opiate or cordial to try;

Though some ignorant neighbour should strongly advise,
You know not what mischiefs from hence may arise.
If 'tis suddenly ill, or in violent pain,

Seek quickly some proper advice to obtain:
Call the mother, if near, or her medical friend;
On immediate attention its life may depend.
If accustom❜d betimes on the carpet to crawl,

"Twill acquire skill and strength, and 'scape many a fall.
Then be sure, when you guide its first efforts of speech,
You are careful no lisping or nonsense to teach.
When beginning its toys and its pastimes to choose,
Neither weakly indulge, nor perversely refuse.
If it chooses to play with a knife, or the fire,
"Twill be needful, you know, to correct the desire:
All its innocent wishes with pleasure fufil,
But yield not to stubbornness, pride, or self-will.
When passion and violence struggle and cry,
Though painful the conflict, yoù must not comply;
But when humbled he seeks you, by penitence driven,
Let the fault be at once both forgot and forgiven.
In your language be simple and clear as you can,
Let no sort of deception e'er enter your plan.
Never threaten with objects terrific and vain,
Nor mislead or mispromise, compliance to gain.
Be it always your care that each sister and brother
Be gentle, obliging, and kind to the other.
Not for worlds let a single expression or word
From your lips, that's profane or indecent, be heard,

In song or in story, in earnest or jest ;

Or a book lie about that might poison its taste.
Be your tales and your ditties not vulgar nor vain;
The sweet stories of Scripture will best entertain:
Hymns, poems, and rhymes, too, a plentiful store,
You safely may add to your nursery lore;

They will aid you some simple devotion to teach
To the first dawning efforts of reason and speech.
And, oh think! if your charge at some far-distant day,
Looking back to the years of his childhood, should say,
Receive the warm tribute of gratitude due,

I imbibed my first lessons of goodness from you,'
What blissful emotions would wake in your breast,
Cheer your labour, and soften your pillow of rest!
Far different her feelings, who has to reflect
On a nursling destroy'd by her vice and neglect;
Sin's fearful weeds growing ripe for the curse,
From the seeds in young infancy sown by his nurse !”

The Faithful Servant.

RICH AND POOR.

BESIDES those who work for their living, some at a higher rate and some at a lower, there are others who do not live by their labour at all, but are rich enough to subsist on what they or their fathers have laid up. There are many rich men, indeed, who do hold laborious offices, as magistrates and members of parliament. But this is of their own choice. They do not labour for their subsistence, but live on their property.

There can be but few of such persons compared with those who are obliged to work for their living; but there are countries where all are poor, and in those countries where all are forced to live by their labour the people are much worse off than most of the labourers are in this country. In savage nations almost every one is half-starved of times, and generally half-naked. But in any country in which property is secure, and the people industrious and frugal, such

as are so will gain more than such as are idle and extravagant, and will lay by something for their children, who will thus be born to property. Several of the richest

families have risen in this manner from a low station.

Can it be supposed that the poor would be better off if all the property of the rich were taken away, and divided among them, and no one allowed to become rich for the future? The poor would then be much worse off than they are now : they would still have to work for their living, as they do now, for food and clothes cannot be had without somebody's labour. But they would not work near so profitably as they do now, because no one would be able to keep up large establishments or well-stocked farms, nor to pay wages.

And if a bad crop, or a sickly family, brought any one into distress, what would he say after he had spent his little property? He would be willing to work for hire, but no one could afford to employ him. Under such a state of things the whole country would become poorer and poorer every year, and we should soon be reduced to the same general wretchedness and distress which prevails in many half-savage countries. The rich, indeed, would have become poor; but the poor, instead of improving their condition, would be much worse off than before. All would soon be as miserably poor as the most destitute beggars are now indeed, so far worse, that there would be nobody to beg of.

It is best for all parties, the rich, the poor, the middling, that property should be secure, and that every one should be allowed to possess what is his own, to gain whatever he can by honest means, and to keep it or spend it as he thinks fit, provided he does no one any injury. Some rich men, indeed, make a much better use of their fortune than others but one who is ever so selfish in his disposition can hardly help spending it on his neighbours. He pays away his income to servants, labourers, tradesmen, and manufac turers of different articles, who lay out the money in food and clothing for their families: so that, in reality, the same sort of division of it is made as if it had been taken away to share with others. The rich man therefore, though he appears to have so much larger a share allotted to him, does not really consume it, but is only the channel through which it flows to others. And it is by this means much better distributed than it could have been otherwise.

You see, then, that a rich man, even though he may care