eally a worthy woman, was very tender of him, and workd exceedingly hard to maintain him, and through the haritable assistance she met with at the 'squire's, she was nabled to support him decently to the last, and had great omfort in seeing him so sincere a penitent. Many a time lid he lament that he had been such a bad husband and ather, and when he found himself dying he called his famiy about him, and entreated them to take warning by his ate, and not cut their days short by drunkenness as he had done; he also warned them not to go on sinning with a design of taking up at the latter end of their days; for though he had been so happy as to be brought to a sense of his crimes, it might not be the case with them; and if it even should, they might believe his words, that the better people had lived, the happier they would be at the hour of death. He then desired the vicar might be sent for immediately, who came, and while he was saying the recommendatory prayer TIMOTHY SPARKS breathed his last. "As soon as Mrs ANDREWS heard that he was departed, she went to see his widow, whom she found very decently and properly affected. She lamented that her husband was taken from her, as his reformation gave her reason to think they might have passed their old age happily together, but at the same time she was resigned to his loss, as she trusted that on account of his penitence he would, through the merits of his Saviour, find admittance into a better place. She expressed great satisfaction in the reflection, that she had done all in her power for him in his last illness, and only regretted that she had not borne his faults with more patience formerly; she said, it certainly was a very great trial to a woman, after a hard day's work, to see a husband so drunk that he could neither stand nor speak, nay, perhaps sick, and obliged to be carried to-bed, or so cross that there was no speaking to him; but that when she looked back back upon the time that was passed, she was convinced, that she often made things worse by her own want of patience, for she was too apt to give way to reproaches; and she heartily wished she had observed a more gentle and indulgent conduct to him in the beginning, and perhaps it might have prevented his growing so bad, for she could very well recollect that he constantly sought THOMAS BRIGGS's company when she had scolded him for getting drunk. "Mrs ANDREWs said, that it was now too late to call back the past. To be sure, on all occasions, gentleness and mildness were becoming wives towards their husbands, and were the most likely means to gain on their affections; but whatever cause MARY had to condemn herself, she had still more to bless God for enabling her to see her error, and for giving her a proper sense of her duty, and an opportunity of showing her love to her husband before he was taken from her. The lady added, that she might judge from what she now felt in her mind, that her reflections would have been very bitter indeed, if she had coutinued her rancour to him while he lay upon his death bed; but now she had reason to rejoice that she had made him every amends in her power, and might look forward, with well-grounded hope, that they should pass a happy eternity together. Mrs ANDREWS said, that she very well recollected a woman who had a husband that was in the main a good one, and a very industrious man, but sometimes he would fly out of bounds, get drunk, and return home very riotous, on which occasions he was sure to be well lectured by his wife. At first he bore this with tolerable patience, and would say, Do not be foolish, Jenny; I have my faults and you have yours, let us give and take; but she made no allowance for his failings, and at length her repeated remonstrances made his own house quite irksome to him, and he sought refuge in company when his inclintion would have led him to stay at home. "As they had no children, his wife, when he thus abented himself, used to go among her neighbours, and make Is irregularities the constant theme of her discourse, and ery often was wicked enough to wish him dead. One me in particular, after a quarrel they had had, he was issing, and no tidings could she hear of him, so she went er usual gossiping round, talking of him as the most progate husband that ever poor women was plagued with, nd wishing all manner of mischief to befal him. In the idst of her complaining, news was brought that JOSEPH ANDALL (which was his name) was taken out of the river rowned; having accidently walked in, not being sober nough to keep the proper road. In an instant her reroaches were exchanged for the bitterest lamentations; ae wrung her hands, she tore her hair, she accused herself s the cause of all the misery which now afflicted her. onscience immediately stuck a, thousand daggers in her eart-She ran like a distracted creature to her own buse-She threw herself on the lifeless body of her husind, which she bathed with tears-She called to mind any instances of his tenderness to her, and of her ingratude to him. The last quarrel in particular wounded er to the bottom of her soul.-She looked upon herself as e author of his death. There was no pacifying her; the olence of her grief threw her into a fever, from which with fficulty she recovered, but never forgave herself for the art she had acted. How happy are you, MARY SParks, id the lady, in comparison of the woman I have been escribing. “I am, indeed, Madam, replied the widow; and I am ery thankful that the wishes which I own my fretfulness is caused me sometimes to utter in respect to poor TIMOVOL. I. THY, THY, never came to pass; and I can truly say I long ago repented of them; and, since you and my master, and the good vicar were so kind as to talk to me, and I have gone to church and read my Bible, I have had a deal more patience; I have considered that no one is without their troubles, and instead of scolding at my husband, I used to pray GOD to turn his heart; and latterly have thanked the Almighty sincerely for doing so. "All this was very right, said Mrs ANDREWS, and I am heartily glad to hear it. You have nothing to do now but to reconcile yourself to the death of your husband, to live a good life, prepare for your own latter end, and enjoy, with gratitude, the blessings which GOD has left you. "MARY followed the lady's advice, and passed the remainder of her days very comfortably; for her children were dutiful and sober, and assisted her greatly in old age." But I need not add, that it would have been still better for MARY, and added much to her comfort, if she had adopted a more conciliatory deportment towards her hus band before her lecture from Mrs ANDREWS, and net till after his health was ruined by his evil courses, and his constitution broke beyond the possibility of recovery by those excesses to which she seems to grant she had been accessary by her 1eproaches, when she acknowledges, "that he constantly sought THOMAS BRIGGS's company when she scolded him for getting drunk."-Then-might she have continued to live a life of harmony with her husband a few years longer, and have experienced what she had rea son to think would have taken place in consequence of his reformation, and they "have passed their old age happily together." -E. Natural Appearances in December. No mark of vegetable life is seen, No bird to bird repeats his tuneful call: Save the lone redbreast on the moss-grown wall. THE changes which take place in the face of nature durng this month, are little more than so many advances in he progress toward universal gloom and desolation. The lay rapidly shortens, and the weather becomes foul and cold. In our climate, however, no great and continued severity of cold usually takes place before the close of the month. Several of the wild quadrupeds now take to their winter concealments, which they either seldom or never quit during the winter. Of these, some are in an absolutely torpid or sleeping state, taking no food for a considerable time; others are only drowsy and inactive, and continue to feed on provisions which they have hoarded up. In this country few become entirely torpid. Bats retire early to caves and holes, where they remain the whole winter, suspended by the hind feet, and closely wrapped up in the membranes of the fore-feet. As their food is chiefly insects, they can lay up no store for the winter, and therefore must be starved, if nature did not thus render food unnecessary for them. Dormice also lie torpid the greatest part of the winter, though they lay up stores of provision. A warm day sometimes revives them; when they eat a little, but soon relapse into their former sleepy condition. Squirrels, and various kinds of field-mice, provide magazines of food against winter, but are not known to become torpid. The badger, the hedgehog, and the mole, keep close in their winter quarters in the northern regions, and sleep away great part of the season. |