THE RAIN LESSON.

Ab-sorbed', swallowed up.

Car-a-van, a company of travellers.

66

350)

Grove, a small wood; a group of trees.
Spent, empty.

MOTHER, it rains!" and tears like rain fell down.
"O little daughter! see, the plants rejoice;

The rose-buds blush, and in your garden-bed
The drooping violets look so gladly up,

Blessing our God for rain. He knows what's best."

"Yes, mother, He knows everything; and so
He surely knows there's but one afternoon
In all the week that I can have from school;
And 'tis the third that I've had leave to go
And play with Mary, if it did not rain,
And gather wild-flowers in her father's grove,*
And now it rains again."

The mother took

The mourner on her knee, and kissed away
The blinding grief. And then she told her tales
Of the great Eastern deserts parched and dry,
And how the traveller 'mid the burning sands
Watches for rain-clouds with a fainting gaze;
And showed her pictures of the caravan,*

And the poor camel with his out-stretched neck
Longing for water.

And she told her, too,
Of the sad mother in the wilderness,
And the spent* water-bottle-how she laid
Her darling son among the shrubs to die,
Bowing her head down that she might not see
The agony of the long death from thirst;
And how the blessed Angel, when she prayed,
Showed her a crystal well to save her child.

And other stories from the Book of God
Breathed that kind teacher to the listening one,

11

Seated so meek beside her:-how there fell
No rain in Israel, till the grass decayed,
And the brooks wasted, and the cattle died;
And good Elijah with his earnest prayer
Besought the Lord, till the consenting cloud
Gave rain, and thankful earth her fruits restored.

And then they sang a hymn; and, full of joy,
The baby, crowing from his nurse's arms,
Came in and joined them, creeping merrily
After his little sister; till, her pain

Of disappointment all absorbed* in love,
She thanked her mother for the pleasant time
And for her tender lessons.

So that night,

Amid her simple prayer, they heard her say
Words of sweet praise to Him whose mercy gives
The blessed rain :-" For now I know, O God,
What pleases thee is best."

MRS. SIGOURNEY.

QUESTIONS.-Why did the little' girl weep? What did her mother tell her? Why was the girl angry that it rained? What did her mother tell her about the deserts? What about the sad mother in the wilderness? What about the drought in Israel? Who had prayed to God for rain then? What did they then do? Who joined them? How was the girl's disappointment removed? What words did she put in her prayer that night?

forest.

It is the largest of all land animals, and is found both in Asia and in Africa.

One of the chief places in Asia where the elephant is found is the island of Ceylon. In this beautiful island, which is as large as Ireland, there are vast forests, which form the home of thousands of elephants.

In these forests the trees grow thick and tall, so as to make many parts almost dark, while bright sunlight is above and around them.

The elephant likes the deep shady part of the forest, and seeks the coolest places that can be found. There he will stand flapping his ears, to drive away the flies; or he will pull down a bough from a tree to fan himself.

He is fond, too, of bathing, and likes to be near a lake or running water, where he will stand for hours together sucking up the water with his trunk, and spouting it all over his body.

He is fond of the fruits which grow in the forest, but he also eats the leaves and the young tender boughs of the trees. There is plenty of food for him in his native forests, though he is not always content* with what he finds there.

When the crops of rice and Indian corn are getting ripe, he often does a great deal of mischief.* At night he comes out of the forest and breaks into a garden or field. He soon tears down the fence, and marches over the field, eating as much as he can, and trampling down more than he eats. Next morning the owner of the field awakes to find that the elephant has been there, and has gone back to the forest, leaving his crops all destroyed.

When a herd of elephants moves about in the forest, the oldest of the herd goes first. The young elephants and their mothers are put in the middle of the troop, where they are safest. Then all march along with a great trampling noise, the boughs of

the trees bending and breaking before them. Though the elephant is commonly quiet and harmless, no one dares to attack a herd of elephants marching through the forest.

In Asia the elephant is tamed and made to work. At one time the African elephant also was tamed. Soldiers in ancient times often went to battle mounted on the backs of African elephants. But now the elephant that lives in Africa is hunted chiefly for its valuable ivory tusks.

QUESTIONS.-Where is the home of the elephant? How does it rank amongst land animals? In what continents is it found? Where is it chiefly found in Asia? What part of the forest does the elephant prefer? Why does he like to be near a water? What food does he eat? At what time does he often do great mischief? Which elephant marches at the head of a herd? Which are put in the middle? Where is the elephant tamed, and made to work? For what is the African elephant now chiefly hunted?