wine! for how seldom is it that a parent's greatest care is or the immortal happiness of that being, whose precarious nd, at best, transient existence engrosses her every thought nd desire! But, perhaps, Mrs. Fairbairn, like many a foolh, ignorant mother, did her best; and had she been satisfied ith spoiling her children herself, for her own private amuseent, and not have drawn in her visiters and acquaintances share in it, the evil might have passed uncensured. But, stead of shutting herself up in her nursery, she chose to ring her nursery down to her drawing-room; and, instead of odestly denying her friends an entrance into her purgatory, he had a foolish pride in showing herself in the midst of her ngels. In short, as the best things, when corrupted, always ecome the worst, so the purest and tenderest of human afctions, when thus debased by selfishness and egotism, turn o the most tiresome and ridiculous of human weaknesses.

LESSON LXVI.

The same, concluded.

"I HAVE been much to blame," said Mrs. Fairbairn, adressing Miss Bell, in a soft, whining, sick-child sort of voice, for not having been at Bellevue long ago; but dear little harlotte has been so plagued with her teeth, I could not ink of leaving her; for she is so fond of me, she will go to obody else: she screams when her maid offers to take her, nd she won't go even to her-papa."

'Is that possible?" said the major.

"I assure you it's very true; she's a very naughty girl -metimes"-bestowing a long and rapturous kiss on the child. Who was it that beat poor papa for taking her from mamma st night? Well, don't cry: no, no, it wasn't my Charlotte. he knows every word that's said to her, and did from the ne she was only a year old."

"That is wonderful!" said Miss Bell; " but how is my tle favorite, Andrew ?"

66

He is not very stout yet, poor little fellow; and we must

eful of him." Then, turning to Miss St. Clair, Andrew has had the measles; and you know the e measles are a serious thing-much worse than themselves. Andrew, Andrew Waddell, my love, and speak to the ladies." And thereupon Andrew à a night-cap, riding on a stick, drew near. Being namesake, Miss Bell, in the ardor of her attachght proper to coax Andrew Waddell on her knee, o open her watch for his entertainment.

see who spoils Andrew Waddell," cried the delight

jor chuckled; Miss Bell disclaimed; and, for the rew Waddell became the hero of the piece: the he measles were carefully pointed out, and all his and sayings duly recapitulated. At length Miss indignant at finding herself eclipsed, began to cry with all her strength.

r teeth, darling little thing," said her mother, caress

ure it's her teeth, sweet little dear," said Miss

oubtedly must be her teeth, poor little girl," said

will feel her gum," said Mrs. Fairbairn, putting nger into the child's mouth," you will feel how

is addressed in a sort of general way to the compaof whom seemed eager to avail themselves of the till the major stepped forward, and having, with his , made the circuit of Miss Charlotte's mouth, gave it ded opinion, that there was a tooth actually cutting Miss Bell followed the same course, and confirmed sting fact, adding, that it appeared to her to be" an a large tooth."

moment, Mr. Fairbairn entered, bearing in his her of the family,—a fat, sour, new-waked-looking sucking its finger. Scarcely was the introduction There's a pair of legs!" exclaimed he, holding out thick purple stumps with red worsted shoes at the em. "I don't suppose Miss St. Clair ever saw legs

Eike these in France; these are porridge and milk legs, are chey not, Bobby?"

But Bobby continued to chew the cud of his own thumb En solemn silence.

“Will you speak to me, Bobby?" said Miss Bell, bent upon being amiable and agreeable; but still Bobby was mute. "We think this little fellow rather long of speaking,” said Mr. Fairbairn ; we allege that his legs have run away with his tongue."

“How old is he?" asked the major.

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"He is only nineteen months and ten days," answered his mother; so he has not lost much time; but I would rather see a child fat and thriving, than have it very forward."

"No comparison!" was here uttered in a breath by the major and Miss Bell.

"There's a great difference in children in their time of speaking," said the mamma. "Alexander didn't speak till he was two and a quarter; and Henry, again, had a great many ittle words before he was seventeen months; and Eliza and Charlotte both said "mamma" as plain as I do, at a year; but girls always speak sooner than boys: as for William Pitt and Andrew Waddell, the twins, they both suffered so much from their teething, that they were longer of speaking than they would otherwise have been; indeed, I never saw an infant suffer so much as Andrew Waddell did."

A movement was here made by the visiters to depart. "Oh! you mustn't go without seeing the baby," cried Mrs. Fairbairn. "Mr. Fairbairn, will you pull the bell twice for Daby?"

The bell was twice rung, but no baby answered the sum

mons.

ale."

"She must be asleep," said Mrs. Fairbairn; "but I will cake you up to the nursery, and you will see her in her craAnd Mrs. Fairbairn led the way to the nursery, and opened the shutter, and uncovered the cradle, and displayed he baby.

"Just five months-uncommon fine child-the image of Mr. Fairbairn-fat little thing-neat little hands-sweet little mouth-pretty little nose-nice little toes," were as usual whispered over it.

t. Clair flattered herself the exhibition was now was again taking leave, when, to her dismay, the the whip and the trumpet rushed in, proclaiming pouring of rain. To leave the house was impos

, as it was getting late, there was nothing for it but

iner.

ldren of this happy family always dined at table, food and manner of eating were the only subjects sation. Alexander did not like mashed potatoesw Waddell could not eat broth-and Eliza could ish-and William Pitt took too much small beer nry ate as much meat as his papa—and all these es had descended to them from some one or other acestors. The dinner was simple, on account of en; and there was no dessert, as Bobby did not fruit. But to make amends, Eliza's sampler was d Henry and Alexander's copy-books were handed table, and Andrew Waddell stood up and repeated e is Norval," from beginning to end, and William revailed upon to sing the whole of "God save the a little squeaking, meally voice, and was bravoed aded as though he had been Braham himself.

t a scene in itself so tiresome is, doubtless, but a ement to my reader, who must often have endured secution. For who has not suffered from the obdness of parents for their offspring? and who has at it was to be called upon, in the course of a isit, to enter into all the joys and the sorrows of the nd to take a lively interest in all the feats and peof the family? Shakspeare's anathema against hated music, is scarcely too strong to be applied to

dislike children. There is much enjoyment, , in making acquaintance with the little beings; ght in hearing their artless and unsophisticated ad something not unpleasing even in witnessing freaks and wayward humors; but when a tiresome stead of allowing the company to notice her child, very one to death in forcing or coaxing her child The company, the charm is gone, and we experience

st.

LESSON LXVII.

Local Associations.-H. G. OTIS.

THERE are none, who have paid even a superficial attenon to the process of their perceptions, who are not conscious at a prolific source of intellectual pleasures and pains, is und in our faculty of associating the remembrance of charcters and events, which have most interested our affections nd passions, with the spot whereon the former have lived nd the latter have occurred. It is to the magic of this local fluence, that we are indebted for the charm, which recalls he sports and pastimes of our childhood, the joyous days of outh, when buoyant spirits invested all surrounding objects ith the color of the rose.

It is this, which brings before us, as we look back through e vista of riper years, past enjoyments and afflictions, asiring hopes and bitter disappointments, the temptations we ave encountered, the snares which have entangled us, the angers we have escaped, the fidelity or treachery of friends. t is this, which enables us to surround ourselves with the mages of those, who were associates in the scenes we conemplate, and to hold sweet converse with the spirits of the eparted, whom we have loved or honored in the places hich shall know them no more.

But the potency of these local associations, is not limited o the sphere of our personal experience. We are qualified y it to derive gratification from what we have heard and ead of other times, to bring forth forgotten treasures from he recesses of memory, and recreate fancy in the fields of magination. The regions, which have been famed in sacred fabulous history; the mountains, plains, isles, rivers, celerated in the classic page; the seas, traversed by the discov ers of new worlds; the fields, in which empires have been -st and won,-are scenes of enchantment for the visiter, who dulges the trains of perception which either rush unbidden n his mind, or are courted by its voluntary efforts. This culty it is, which, united with a disposition to use it to adantage, alone gives dignity to the passion for visiting foreign