polished by frequent rubbing. The areas were divided from the street by curiously wrought railings, or balustrades of iron, surmounted with brass and copper balls, scoured into dazzling effulgence.

The very trunks of the trees in front of the houses were by the same process made to look as if they had been varnished. The porches, doors, and window frames of the houses were of exotic woods, curiously carved, and polished like costly furni ture. The front doors are never opened, except for christenings, marriages, or funerals; on all ordinary occasions, visitors enter by the back door. In former times, persons when admitted had to put on slippers; but this Oriental custom is no longer insisted upon.

I walked about the place in mute wonder and admiration. A dead stillness prevailed around, like that in the deserted streets of Pompeii. No sign of life was to be seen, except now and then a hand, and a long pipe, and an occasional puff of smoke, out of the window of some pleasure house overhanging a miniature canal; and on approaching nearer, the portly presence of some substantial burgher.

After having been conducted from one wonder to another of the village, I was ushered by my guide into the grounds and gardens of Mynheer* Broekker, a mighty cheese manufacturer, of large fortune. I had repeatedly been struck with the similarity of all I had seen in this amphibious little village to the buildings and landscapes on Chinese plates and teapots; but here I found the resemblance complete, for I was told these gardens were modelled after a Dutch traveller's description of those of a Chinese mandarin. Here were serpentine walks, with trellised borders; winding canals, with fanciful Chinese bridges; flower beds resembling huge baskets, with flowers falling over to the ground.

But the owner's fancy had been chiefly displayed about a stagnant little lake, on which a corpulent pinnace lay at anchor. On the border was a cottage, within which were a wooden man

Mynheer, the Dutch word for Mister.

among

and woman seated at a table, and a wooden dog beneath, all the size of life on pressing a spring, the woman commenced spinning, and the dog barked furiously. On the lake were wooden swans, painted to the life; some floating, others on the nest among the rushes, while a wooden sportsman, crouched the bushes, was preparing his gun to take deadly aim. In another part of the garden was a dominie * in his clerical robes, with wig, pipe, and cocked hat; and mandarins with nodding heads, amid red lions, green tigers, and blue hares. Last of all, the heathen deities, in wood and plaster, male and female, seeming to stare with wonder at finding themselves in such strange company.

To attempt to gain admission to any of these stately abodes was out of the question. I was fortunate enough, however, through the aid of my guide, to make my way into the kitchen of one of them; and I question whether the parlor would have proved more worthy of observation. The cook, a little wiry woman, worn thin by incessant action and friction, was bustling about among her saucepans and kettles, with the scullion at her heels, both clattering in wooden shoes, which were as clean and white as the milk-pails; rows of vessels, of brass and copper, regiments of pewter dishes and portly porringers, gave resplendent evidence of the intensity of their cleanliness. The very trammels and hangers in the fireplace were highly scoured, and the burnished face of the good St. Nicholas shone forth from the iron plate of the chimney back.

I must not omit to mention that this village is the paradise of cows as well as of men; indeed, you would almost suppose the cow to be an object of worship here; and well does she merit it, for she is in fact the patroness of the place. The same scrupulous cleanness, however, which pervades every thing else, is manifested in the treatment of this venerated animal. She is not permitted to roam about the place; but in

* Dominte, a title given to a clergyman among the descendants of the Dutch in New York.

winter, when she forsakes the rich pasture, a well-built house is provided for her, well painted, and maintained in the most perfect order. Her stall is of ample dimensions; the floor is scrubbed and polished; and her hide is daily curried and brushed, and sponged to her heart's content.

XVIII.-THE HEAVENLY BODIES.

ADDISON.

[Joseph Addison, a native of England, born 1672, died 1719, was highly distin guished as a writer of prose. His poetry was popular in his own age, but is not now much read, with the exception of two or three of his hymns, which have much merit both in sentiment and expression.]

THE spacious firmament on high,
With all the blue, ethereal sky,
And spangled heavens, a shining frame,
Their great Original proclaim.

Th' unwearied sun, from day to day,
Does his Creator's power display,

And publishes to every land

The work of an almighty hand.

Soon as the evening shades prevail,

The moon takes up the wondrous tale,
And nightly to the listening earth
Repeats the story of her birth;

While all the stars that round her burn,
And all the planets in their turn,
Confirm the tidings as they roll,

And spread the truth from pole to pole.

What though in solemn silence all,
Move round the dark, terrestrial ball?
What though nor real voice nor sound
Amid their radiant orbs be found?

In reason's ear they all rejoice,

And utter forth a glorious voice,
Forever singing, as they shine,
"The hand that made us is divine."

XIX. THE FLYING FISH.*

MOORE.

WHEN I have seen thy snow-white wing
From the blue wave at evening spring,
And show those scales of silvery white
So gayly to the eye of light,
As if thy frame were formed to rise
And live amid the glorious skies,
O, it has made me proudly feel
How like thy wing's impatient zeal
Is the pure soul that rests not, pent
Within this world's gross element,
But takes the wing that God has given,
And rises into light and heaven.

But when I see that wing, so bright,
Grow languid with a moment's flight,
Attempt the paths of air in vain,
And sink into the waves again,
Alas! the flattering pride is o'er;
Like thee, a while, the soul may soar,
But erring man must blush to think

Like thee again the soul must sink.

* Certain species of fish are enabled to throw themselves out of the water, and rise into the air, by a wing-like action of the fins. But this power is very limited. They cannot remain in the air more than thirty seconds, or fly more than two hundred yards.

O virtue, when thy clime I seek,
Let not my spirit's flight be weak;
Let me not, like this feeble thing,
With brine still dropping from its wing,
Just sparkle in the solar glow,

And plunge into the depths below;
But, when I leave the grosser throng
With whom my soul hath dwelt so long,
Let me, in that aspiring day,
Cast every lingering stain away,
And, panting for thy purer air,
Fly up at once, and fix me there.

XX.-AN ADVENTURE WITH A BEAR.

MAYNE REID.

[Captain Mayne Reid is a native of Ireland, who has lived much in North and South America, and is familiar with the scenery, animals, and vegetable productions of both countries. He has written a number of works, descriptive of prairie and forest life, which are great and deserved favorites with young people.

The following extract is from the Boy Hunters, a book which narrates the adventures of three brothers, Basil, Lucien, and Francis, sons of a retired French officer living in Louisiana, in an expedition to the western part of North America, in search of the skin of a white buffalo, which their father wished to procure for a friend in Europe. After many hardships and dangers they succeed in the object of their quest, and return in safety. They are all represented as quite young, Basil, the eldest, being only seventeen years old.]

THE three brothers slept on the ground, within a few feet of one another. They were under a large, spreading tree, and, wrapped in their blankets, had been sleeping soundly through the night. Day was just beginning to break, when something touched Francis on the forehead. It was a cold, clammy object, and pressing upon his hot skin, woke him at once. He started as if a pin had been thrust into him, and the cry which he uttered awoke his companions also. When his eyes were fairly open, he caught a glimpse of two animals running off at a distance.