his bundle of sticks, and being too infirm to get them by himself on his shoulder, he had made bold to call on him to help. This, indeed, was all he wanted."

MORAL. Men weary of life desire to live from fear of death.

APPLICATION. This fable gives a true picture of the general behaviour of mankind towards that grim King of Terrors, Death. Some men are so impatient of any misfortune which ruffles the even current of their lives, that they immediately wish to die. But let the disease show serious symptoms of proving fatal, and their mind is changed. Their only supplication is then for a longer span of life, and that they may be spared to have their old burdens laid again upon their shoulders. He is the happiest man who, hoping for the pardon of the past through the merits of a Saviour, and conscious of efforts to conquer evil through the agency of a Divine influence coöperating with his exertions for self-amendment, is resigned to all the events of life, and equally abstains from either a desire for, or a fear of, the approach of death.

Lord, mend, or rather make us; one creation

Will not suffice our turn:

Except Thou make us daily, we shall spurn
Our own salvation.

No heart in which was healthful breath
Has ever truly longed for death.

AN Ass decked out with a fine saddle and a bridle adorned with ribbons, as he was going to a neighbouring fair, happened to meet a stately Boar, and having a mind to make fun of him, addressed him thus: "Brother, I am your humble servant." The boar, somewhat nettled at this address from an Ass, bristled up to him, and telling him that he was surprised to hear him speak with so much familiarity, and to utter an untruth, threatened to rip him up in a moment; but, wisely stifling his resentment, he contented himself with only saying: "Go, you foolish fellow; I could be amply and easily revenged on

you;

but I do not care to soil my tusks with the blood of so ignoble a creature."

MORAL. Scoffs have not rewards, but disdain.

APPLICATION. There are persons to be met with in society who seek every opportunity of making jokes on all whom they meet. These jests generally consist in remarks on the names, habits, or peculiarities of the persons addressed, and are more generally remarkable for their impertinence than for their wit. Dr. Burton, in his Anatomy of Melancholy, well describes the character of these persons. "They take,"

he

says, "to use the language of Shakespeare, as large a charter as the winds to blow on whom they please. Friends, neuters, enemies, without distinction, are the objects of their cruel sport, and lie within the mercy of their wit. Their wit and genius, indeed, extends no further than to sport with more honourable feelings, to emit a frothy kind of humour, to break a puny pun or a licentious jest; for in every other kind of conversation they are dry, barren, stramineous, dull, and heavy: and, indeed, they ever forget that

A jest's prosperity lies in the ear

Of him who hears it; never in the tongue

Of him that utters it.

Personal jests may fly lightly from the mouth;

but they make deep and sore wounds, especially if they proceed from the tongue of a presumed friend. This fable teaches that those who are disposed to be facetious and jocular should keep within the limits of becoming mirth, and be careful not to indulge in remarks tending to raise a laugh at the expense of another's comfort. These foolish jesters are in most cases unworthy of resentment. The best reproof is to treat them, after the example of the Boar in this fable, with silent and dignified contempt."

Wise men, ever cautious, weigh

That which they may have to say.

THE Birds met together to elect a king. The Peacock avowed himself a candidate for the throne, and displayed his gaudy plumes with the view of obtaining the votes of the multitude by the richness of his feathers. The majority declared for him, and clapped their wings in token of applause. But just as they were going to proclaim him, the Magpie stepped forth into the midst of the assembly, and addressed himself thus to the new king: "May it please your majesty elect to permit one of your unworthy subjects to represent to you his suspicions and apprehensions in the face of this audience? We have chosen you for