THE WIDOW OF LACHTA. -Why, Paul, my man, rather a squally ed she had let him go. passage for us! You may say that, Stephen, replied the old mariner; but the Lively Kitty has her full complement of passengers, and she must go across, whether she likes it or not. O, Paul! said the anxious mother, it is tempting Providence, to go out in such a sea! You are running into certain danger! As to that, said the hardy Paul, a sailor's life is always one of danger; and Providence takes care of those on the sea, as well as those on the land. Come, lend a hand boys, boys! We must be off! Tighten that rope, Aleck, and tell the passengers to bestir themselves. The widow, seeing the party determined to sail, and re-assured by the boatmen, who declared that, though a rough sea, there was very little danger, took an affectionate farewell of her son, and returned to her cottage. But she watched the boat with a mother's eye, as it left the shore; and fear again took possession of her mind, as she saw it crowded with passengers, consisting chiefly of soldiers and sailors, and making its way through the battling waves with evident difficulty, and apparently in no little danger. It was a trying hour for the widow's heart. He was her only child, the living image of his departed father; and he was so affectionate, so generous, and such a dutiful son, though at times a little self-willed, she wonder 293 But it was too late to recal him. A projecting rock concealed the boat from her view, and she had now but one resource left, that of making known her trouble to the God of the fatherless and of the widow. Whilst she, in the solitude of her chamber, is recommending her beloved child to the protection of his heavenly Father, we will follow the struggling little vessel, which was now in no enviable situation. The wind was blowing a furious gale; and the curling waves, dashing over her stern, compelled the passengers to bale out the water continually. At last, perceiving the tempest was too violent to suffer them to proceed on their voyage, Paul consented to steer towards home, but, whilst endeavouring to do so, the boat struck upon a quicksand! All hands immediately united in their efforts to get her off, but they were unavailing; and they were beginning to despair, when, to their great joy, they perceived that a vessel at some distance had observed their distress, and was sending out a boat to their assistance. It was high time. The little bark was fast filling with water, in spite of their exertions; and of the passengers, so many were intoxicated, and so many bewildered, that, with the exception of Stephen and two of his own boatmen, old Paul had no assistance in his endeavours to get her off the perilous quicksand. The wished-for boat at length arrived; but the sailors in it seemed fearful 294 STORY OF PETER THE GREAT. of venturing too near; and the help they a drowned man as much as he does. Here! shove him into our boat, and we will row you both to shore in no time. That's right. Now boys, pull away! The efforts of six hardy rowers soon brought them to the landing place, from which, a few hours before, Stephen had departed in such high spirits. He was now still insensible carried to his mother's cottage, followed by the seaman who had been so active in saving his life. At sight of her son, the poor widow burst into a flood of tears, and was giving way to an agony of grief, when the sailor told her that, if she would preserve her son's life, she must immediately put him into a warm bed, and endeavour to restore animation. Then assisting her to do so, and fetching her some restoratives, it was not long before poor Stephen was able to sit up and thank his preserver. rendered was so inefficient, that the exhausted mariners, beginning to give up all hopes of saving their vessel, were relaxing in their efforts; when another boat put off from the brig, and by vigorous rowing reached the spot just in time. The newly arrived sailors, loudly reproaching the laziness of their comrades, instantly set to work; and one of them, a fine tall seaman, crying out, This, way, my lads! Follow me! stripped off his outer garments, plunged into the water, and waded to the sand. The rest followed his example; and, by dint of their well directed strength, the Lively Kitty was soon afloat again. It was soon observed, however, that many of her passengers had, during that 'fearful hour, sunk, to rise no more; and, in a minute, the voice of Paul was heard in bitter woe. Can no one save him? Can none of you save Stephen? The bravest lad that ever trod a plank! And he is gone! But for his help this day, where should I be now! O, Stephen! Stephen! Who will dare tell your poor mother the news that you are lost to her! He is not lost yet, said the tall seaman, if this be the lad you are sorrow ing about. He is insensible though; and I caught a glimpse of him just in time. The next wave would have done for him. So take him in, and give him something. He will soon recover. You had better come in yourself, said one of his companions; You look like Bless me! said the grateful mother, you are in your wet clothes! And whilst you have been so kindly caring for Stephen, you have taken no thought for yourself. Dear! dear! how wet you are! Do put on some of these dry gar ments. Thank you, I will, replied the sailor; and, having equipped himself in some of Stephen's apparel, he was proceeding to look for his companions, when the widow stopped him, and said, as her eyes filled with tears,— You have this day saved the life of the being who is dearest to me upon earth; and I have no means of proving THE WIDOW OF LACHTA. my gratitude; but, noble sailor, what I can do, I will. Night and morning will I implore the blessing of Heaven upon you and yours; and that you may never stand in need of that help, which you have afforded to my child this day; and may the God who never turns a deaf ear to the widow's prayer, mercifully guide you through the sea of life, till you are safely landed on the shores of a blessed eternity! The hardy sailor brushed a tear from his eye, as he told the grateful woman he had but done his duty; and saying he would return her son's clothes the next day, he was about to depart, when the door opened, and a naval officer entered, followed by a crowd of men, women, and children. My noble master Peter Alexisoweitch! he said, falling on one knee before the mariner, right glad am I to see you in safety! We greatly feared some accident had befallen you. O, I am safe enough, Mazaroff, replied the Czar, and quite ready for my supper, I assure you! And let a sub stantial one be prepared for all these honest sailors, that they may drink to the return of the Lively Kitty, which I see down below there. Long live the Emperor! Long live Peter the Great! Long life to the Czar! were the shouts which now burst from every tongue; whilst the poor widow, overcome with surprise, faltered forth her apologies for not knowing him. 295 Nay, nay, good woman, said the Czar, smiling, how could you know the emperor in such a disguise of mud? Farewell! I shall keep your son's clothes in remembrance of the satisfaction this day's work has caused me take this in return, he said, slipping a purse into her hand; and when Stephen awakes from his slumbers, tell him he has always a real friend in Peter Alexisoweitch. O, how surprised the widow must have been, cried Egbert. And it really was Peter the Great! Dear mother, can you tell us nothing more about him? Yes, my love: my story is not quite finished. The Czar went on that same day to Lachta, a village near; but you will be sorry to hear, that he was there taken violently ill with a fever, from having remained too long in his wet clothes. The next day he proceeded to St. Petersburgh, where his disease rapidly increased, and, notwithstanding the numerous efforts made to stop its progress, he expired in two months' time, the victim of his humanity and benevolence. O, I am so sorry! said George. What a pity, that so great a man should be cut off in such a way! He certainly was a great loss to his country; and we cannot but regret, that the noble risking of his life to save another's was the cause of his premature end. But when the Ruler of the universe issues His mandate, who shall say Him nay? BANK OF THE UNITED STATES. THE bank of the United States, in the city of Philadelphia, is a most splendid building. The walls are composed entirely of white marble, and the architecture is elegant. Those who visit Philadelphia should take a view of it. This bank was called the United States Bank because it was incorporated by Congress. At this present time, there is no United States Bank. There are, in the United States, 800 banks. The capital, as it is called, of all these banks is about 324,000,000 dollars. They have in circulation, bills to the amount of 186,000,000 dollars. Their specie is about 43,000,000 dollars. We do not expect our readers will enter very deeply into the study of banks, but these general facts every one should know something of. It is curious to find that our own comparatively small state has over 100 banks; and that while the New England states have nearly 300, the six great states of Kentucky, Tennesee, Mississippi, Ohio, Indiana and Illinois have only about 100. The little state of Rhode Island alone, in 1835, had 60 banks. Since the presidency of General Jackson the banks in the United States have increased 500 in number, and in capital 125,000,000 dollars. ABOUT FINGER NAILS. If I were to tell my readers that I grow as long as we live, and are in was going to write a long chapter about finger nails, I suppose some of them would laugh. They think of me, I suppose for some of them say so-as quite a sensible old man; and how can a man of sense, they would say, write a whole chapter on nothing but finger nails. Now, my young friends, I am not deceiving you. I am in sober earnest. It is true I am not about to give you a long chapter, but it will be a whole chapter, and I hope, before you are through with it, you will like it.—I will tell you about the growth, uses, and abuses of finger nails. 1. health. If one is torn out by the roots, a new one will usually appear; though it will not always have as good a shape as the old one. But, if they are not torn out, the old nails are constantly disappearing. The nails now on your fingers were not there-a particle of them —a year ago. If you ask what has become of the old ones I have only to say that I suppose they have been pared off or worn off. Some children bite them off, but it is a very foolish habit. If you ask, how long a nail is in growing out so as to have an entire new one, I cannot tell you exactly. I suppose the Their GROWTH. Finger nails time may be longer or shorter in differ |