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leaves, and smell sweet to his praise. Birds, when you awake, warble your thanks amongst the green boughs! sing to him before you sing to your mates!-Let his praise be in your hearts, when we lie down; let his praise be on our lips, when we awake.

SECTION VII.

Health.

BARBAULD.

1. WHO is she that with graceful steps, and with a lively air, trips over yonder plain?

The rose blushes on her cheeks; the sweetness of the morning breathes from her lips; joy, tempered with innocence and modesty sparkles in her eyes; and the cheerfulness of her heart appears in all her movement. Her name is Health: she is the daughter of Exercise and Temperance. Their sons inhabit the mountains and the plain. They are brave, active, and lively, and partake of all the beauties and virtues of their sister.

2. Vigour strings their nerves, strength dwells in their bones, and labour is their delight all the day long. The employments of their father excite their appetites; and the repasts of their mother refresh them. To combat the passions is their delight; to conquer evil habits, their glory. Their pleasures are moderate, and therefore they endure: their repose is short, but sound and undisturbed. Their blood is pure; their minds are serene, and the physician does not find the way to their habitations.

ECONOMY OF HUMAN LIFE.

SECTION VIII.

Charity.

1. HAPPY is the man who has sown in his breast the seeds of harity and love! From the fountain of his heart rise rivers of goodness; and the streams overflow for the benefit of mankind. He assists the poor in their trouble; he. rejoices in promoting the welfare of all men. He does not harshly censure his neighbour; he believes not the tales of envy and malevolence, nor repeats their slanders.

2. He forgives the injuries of men; he wipes them from his remembrance; revenge and malice have no place in his

heart. For evil he returns not evil: he hates not even his enemies; but requites their injustice with friendly admonition. The griefs and anxieties of men excite his compassion: he endeavours to alleviate the weight of their misfortunes; and the pleasure of success rewards his labour.

3. He calms the fury, he heals he quarrels of angry men; and prevents the mischiefs of stril and animosity. He promotes in his neighbourhood peace and good will; and his name is repeated with praise and benedictions.

ECONOMY OF HUMAN LIFE.

SECTION IX.

Gratitude.

1. As the branches of a tree return their sap to the root, from whence it arose; as a river pours its streams to the sea, whence its spring was supplied; so the heart of a grateful man delights in returning a benefit received. He acknowledges his obligation with cheerfulness; he looks on his benefactor with love and esteem. And if to return a favour be not in his power, he cherishes the remembrance of it through life.

2. The hand of the generous man is like the clouds of heaven, which drop upon the earth, fruits, herbage and flowers; but the heart of the ungrateful is like a desert of sand, which swallows with greediness the showers that fall, buries them in its bosom, and produces nothing.

3. The greatful mind envies not its benefactor, nor strives to conceal the benefit he has conferred. Though to oblige is better than to be obliged: though the act of generosity commands admiration; yet the humility of gratitude touches the heart, and is amiable in the sight both of God and man. ECONOMY OF HUMAN LIFE.

SECTION X.

Mortality.

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1. CHILD of mortality, whence comest thou? why is thy countenance sad, and why are thy eyes red with weeping?I have seen the rose in its beauty; it spread its leaves to the morning sun. I returned; it was dying upon its stalk; the grace of the form of it was gone: its loveless was va»

nished away; its leaves were scattered on the ground, and no one gathered them again.

2. A stately tree grew on the plain; its branches were covered with verdure; its boughs spread wide, and made a goodly shadow; the trunk was like a strong pillar; the roots were like crooked fangs. I returned: the verdure was nipt by the east wind; the branches were lopt away by the axe; the worm had made its way into the trunk, and the heart thereof was decayed; it mouldered away, and fell to the ground.

3. I have seen the insects sporting in the sunshine, and darting along the streams; their wings glittered with gold and purple; their bodies shone like a green emerald; they were more numerous than I could count; their motions were quicker than my eye could glance. I returned: they were brushed into the pool; they were perishing with the evening breeze; the swallow had devoured them! the pike had seized them; there were none found of so great a mul titude.

4. I have seen man in the pride of his strength; his cheeks glowed with beauty; his limbs were full of activi ty; he leaped; he walked; he ran; he rejoiced in that he was more excellent than those. I returned; he lay stiff and cold on the bare ground; his feet could no longer move, nor his hands stretch themselves out; his life was departed from him and breath was out of his nostrils. Therefore do I weep because DEATH is in the world; the spoiler is among the works of God; all that is made must be destroyed; all that is born must die: let me alone, for I will weep yet longer.

SECTION XI.

Immortality.

BARBAULD.

1. I HAVE seen the flower withering on the stalk, and its bright leaves spread on the ground. I looked again :-it sprung forth afresh; its stem was crowned with new buds, and its sweetness filled the air.

2. I have seen the sun set in the west, and the shades of night shut in the wide horizon; there was no colour, nor shape, nor beauty, not music; gloom and darkness brooded around. I looked the sun broke forth again upon the

east, and gilded the mountain tops; the lark rose to meet him from her low nest, and the shades of darkness fled

away.

3. I have seen the insect, being come to its full size, languish, and refuse to eat; it spun itself a tomb, and was shrouded in the silken cone: it lay without feet, or shape, or power to move.-I looked again; it had burst its tomb; it was full of life, and sailed on coloured wings through the soft air; it rejoiced in its new being.

4. Thus shall it be with thee, O man! and so shall thy life be renewed. Beauty shall spring up out of ashes, and life out of the dust. A little while shalt thou lie in the ground, as the seed lies in the bosom of the earth: but thou shalt be raised again; and thou shalt never die any more.

5. Who is he that comes to burst open the prison doors of the tomb; to bid the dead awake; and to gather his redeemed from the four winds of heaven? He descends on a fiery cloud; the sound of a trumpet goes before him; thousands of angels are on his right hand.—It is Jesus, the Son of God; the saviour of men; the friend of the good. He comes in the glory of his Father; he has received power from on high.

6. Mourn not, therefore, child of immortality! for the spoiler, the cruel spoiler, that laid waste the works of God is subdued. Jesus has conquered death:-child of immortality! mourn no longer.

SECTION XII.

Heaven.

BARBAULD.

1. THE rose is sweet, but it is surrounded with thorns : the lily of the valley is fragrant, but it springs up amongst the brambles. The spring is pleasant, but it is soon past: the summer is bright, but the winter destroys its beauty. The rainbow is very glorious, but it soon vanishes away: life is good, but it is quickly swallowed up in death.

2. There is a land where the roses are without thorns: and the flowers are not mixed with brambles. In that land, there is eternal spring, and light without any cloud. The tree of life grows in the midst thereof; rivers of pleasure are there, and flowers, that never fade. Myriads of happy spirits are there, and surround the throne of God with a perpetual hymn.

3. The angels with their golden harps sing praises continually, and the cherubims fly on wings of fire!-This country is heaven: it is the country of those that are good; and nothing that is wicked must inhabit there. The toad must not spit its venom amongst turtle-doves; nor the poisonous henbane grow amongst sweet flowers. Neither must any one that does ill, enter into that good land.

4. This earth is pleasant, for it is God's earth; and it is filled with many delightful things. But that country is far better: there we shall not grieve any more, nor be sick any more, nor do wrong any more; there the cold of winter shall not wither us, nor the heats of summer scorch us. In that country there are no wars nor quarrels, but all dearly love one another.

5. When our parents and friends die, and are laid in the cold ground, we see them here no more; but there we shall embrace them again, and live with them, and be separated no more. There we shall meet all good men, whom we read of in holy books. There we shall see Abraham, the called of God, the father of the faithful; and Moses, after his long wanderings in the Arabian desert; and Elijah, the prophet of God; and Daniel, who escaped the lions' den; and there the son of Jesse, the shepherd king, the sweet singer of Israel. They loved God on earth; they praised him on earth; but in that country they will praise him better, and love him more.

6. There we shall see Jesus, who is gone before us to that happy place; and there we shall behold the glory of the high God. We cannot see him here, but we will love him here. We must be now on earth, but we will often think on heaven. That happy land is our home; we are to be here but for a little while, and there for ever, even for eternal ages.

BARBAULD.

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