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to read the service on Sundays both in Welsh and English.

Principal Rivers of England.-Thames, in the south; Severn, in the west; Trent, in the middle; Ouse, in the north.

Government.-King or Queen, House of Lords, House of Commons. The Lords are men who are called noblemen; because in most cases either they or their ancestors have done some noble or great act, and have received their titles as a reward.

The Commons are chosen from among mon" people by votes.

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Established form of Religion.-Protestant Episcopal; but all other forms of religion are allowed. Episcopal means that the clergymen are under bishops.

SCOTLAND.

SCOTLAND lies to the north of England, separated from it by the river Tweed, and a long range of mountains called the Cheviot Hills. Long, long ago, the people who lived in the south of Scotland and the north of England were always quarrelling, and stealing each other's things. The border land, as that part of the country was called, could not have been a pleasant place to live in. But now all that is changed, for England and Scotland are, as you know, governed by the same Queen, and Scotchmen sit in the Houses of Parliament at Westminster. How did this change come about? Not by fighting, for the English did not take Scotland by force.

It was in this way: more than three hundred years ago, Queen Elizabeth of England died, and left no nearer relation to succeed her than her cousin, who was King of Scotland. So a Scotch king came to reign in England, and since that time Scotch and English have been very good friends.

Scotland is a much more beautiful country than England, and much wilder. There are high mountains, and big lakes, and steep rocks, and beautiful waterfalls. There are great moors or commons, covered with a beautiful plant called heather"; and on the moors are numbers of birds, partridges, pheasants, grouse, and others, which gentlemen go and shoot in the autumn. Scotland is much colder than England, and more rainy. The mountainous part, which lies chiefly to the north, is called the Highlands, and the south the Lowlands.

The Highlanders are very fine tall men. Some of them have a curious dress on smart occasions; it consists of a short petticoat, called a kilt, and a piece of cloth wrapped round the upper part of the body called a plaid. The Scotch are very brave, and make capital soldiers. They are very fond of their country, and kind to each other. They are well educated, and care a great deal about reading. There are many shepherds in Scotland; these men have wonderfully clever and faithful dogs. They go with their masters everywhere; even to the churches.

The capital city of Scotland is Edinburgh. This is the most beautiful town in the world. Why? On account of its situation. The Castle of Edin

burgh is built on a high rock; so, when in the streets of Edinburgh, you look up at the beautiful castle.

A good many of the streets, however, are dirty, narrow, and close. There are many churches and schools in Edinburgh.

There are big dining-halls, where you can buy a dinner at this rate:-For a plate of cooked meat, one penny; for a bit of bread, one penny; for some potatoes, another penny. Everything costs a penny. This answers to the sellers, because, though some things they sell are worth much more than a penny, others are worth less.

Another big city is Glasgow; this is a great manufacturing place, like Manchester.

The highest mountain in Scotland is Ben Nevis, in the Highlands, which is more than 4,000 feet high. The biggest lake is Loch, or Lake, Lomond, which is twenty-four miles long. The largest river is the Tay. The principal islands belonging to Scotland are the Shetlands, Orkneys, and Hebrides. Very little will grow upon the Shetlands or Orkneys, because the soil is so bad. There are pretty little rough Shetland ponies, which are often sent to England and sold.

The Scotch have a great deal of fish on their coasts, and in their rivers. They catch a great many herrings, which are salted to make them keep, and sold in other countries. Scotch salmon, too, is famous.

Religion. The religion is Protestant, but the ministers are not under bishops, as in England.

They do not use a prayer-book, but pray without

one.

Many of the Scotch ministers have a hard day on Sunday, for they have to preach and pray twice over; once in English, and then immediately afterwards in Gaelic, which is the only language understood by some of the people.

IRELAND.

IRELAND is a pretty country, and, on account of the extreme brightness of the grass, is often called the Emerald Isle. There is less corn grown than in England, but there is more pasture-land. The chief plant that is cultivated is flax, from which linen is made.

This is sometimes called "the wealth of the country." However, the flax makes the north of Ireland rather disagreeable in the summer months. When it is cut it has to be steeped in water, and the water then smells very nasty. It is very unpleasant to walk near a stream in which flax has been steeped. People who are used to it say it is not unwholesome, and some even declare they like the smell.

Quantities of potatoes are grown in Ireland, for the poor people live chiefly upon potatoes, butter-milk, and porridge, seldom tasting meat, unless it is bacon, for there are many pigs in Ireland. When there is a bad potato year, the poor people get nearly starved; and when there is much disease among the potatoes, there is a famine. However, there has not

been a very bad famine in Ireland since the year 1847, when numbers of poor people died of starvation. But though potatoes and flax are grown in such large quantities, a great deal of land is waste, and produces nothing but weeds.

There are a great many unfinished buildings, for it is not uncommon for an Irishman to begin to build a fine mansion without considering whether he has money to finish it. I heard that, some years ago, an Irish gentleman bought an estate some miles from his home, and did not go to see it. Some time afterwards he was travelling, and seeing a fine place, exclaimed, to a passer by, "To whom does that elegant place belong?" "To lazy "said the man, mentioning the gentleman's own name, "and he has never been to see it." Lazy then took possession of the estate, and lived there for many years. The cottages in Ireland are built of clay and mud, and are not as neat and clean as English cottages. But they are

much more airy, for the

Irish generally have their doors open, in order that their pigs and cocks and hens may run in and out as they please.

Peat is burnt instead of coal.

The Irish do not much care about being comfortable; sometimes, when a poor man will not leave his cottage after the landlord has given him notice to quit, the roof is taken off, but it by no means follows that the tenant leaves because there is no roof over his head.

The Irish are a rather impetuous, passionate people; they sometimes shoot a landlord, if he insists

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