can forget her melting prayer, The book of nature, and the print Of what I have been taught to be. I have been out, at eventide, And all that make the pulses pass With wilder fleetness, thronged the night Gazed up where evening's lamp is hung. And, when the beauteous spirit there To rise in heaven, like stars at night, I have been on the dewy hills, When night was stealing from the dawn, And tints were delicately drawn In the gray east,-when birds were waking,-- Upon the whisper of the breeze,— And when the sun sprang gloriously Were catching, upon wave and tree, . I say, a voice has thrilled me then, Like words from the departing night- First prayer, with which I learned to bow, LESSON XXIX. The Mountain of Miseries.—Addison. It is a celebrated thought of Socrates, that, if all the misfortunes of mankind were cast into a public stock, in be equally distributed among the whole species, o now think themselves the most unhappy, would e share they are already possessed of, before that ould fall to them by such a division. was ruminating upon this remark, I insensibly fell vhen, on a sudden, methought there was a proclamale by Jupiter, that every mortal should bring in his d calamities, and throw them together in a heap. as a large plain appointed for this purpose. I took my the centre of it, and saw, with a great deal of pleaswhole human species marching one after another, wing down their several loads, which immediately nto a prodigious mountain, that seemed to rise above Is. was a certain lady, of a thin, airy shape, who was ve in this solemnity. She carried a magnifying ›ne of her hands, and was clothed in a loose, flowing broidered with several figures of fiends and spectres, overed themselves in a thousand chimerical shapes rment hovered in the wind. There was something distracted in her looks. Her name was Fancy. up every mortal to the appointed place, after having iously assisted him in making up his pack, and layon his shoulders. My heart melted within me, to fellow-creatures groaning under their respective and to consider that prodigious bulk of human s which lay before me. were, however, several persons who gave me great upon this occasion. I observed one bringing in a ery carefully concealed under an old embroidered nich, upon his throwing it into the heap, I discovered erty. Another, after a great deal of puffing, threw luggage, which, upon examining, I found to be his were multitudes of lovers, saddled with very whimsiens, composed of darts and flames; but, what was though they sighed as if their hearts would break ese bundles of calamities, they could not persuade es to cast them into the heap, when they came up to it; but, after a few faint efforts, shook their heads, and marched away as heavy-laden as they came. I saw multitudes of old women throw down their wrinkles, and several young ones strip themselves of a tawny skin. There were very great heaps of red noses, large lips, and rusty teeth. The truth of it is, I was surprised to see the greatest part of the mountain made up of bodily deformities. Observing one advancing towards the heap, with a larger cargo than ordinary upon his back, I found, upon his near approach, that it was only a natural hump, which he disposed of, with great joy of heart, among this collection of human miseries. There were likewise distempers of all sorts; though I could not but observe, that there were many more imaginary than real. One little packet I could not but take notice of, which was a complication of all the diseases incident to human nature, and was in the hand of a great many fine people : this was called the spleen. But what most of all surprised me, was, that there was not a single vice or folly thrown into the whole heap; at which I was very much astonished, ing concluded within myself, that every one would take this opportunity of getting rid of his passions, prejudices, and frailties. hav I took notice, in particular, of a very profligate fellow, who, I did not question, came loaded with his crimes; but, upon searching into his bundle, I found, that, instead of throwing his guilt from him, he had only laid down his memory. He was followed by another worthless rogue, who flung away his modesty instead of his ignorance. When the whole race of mankind had thus cast their burdens, the phantom, which had been so busy on this occasion, seeing me an idle spectator of what had passed, approached towards me. I grew uneasy at her presence, when, of a sudden, she held her magnifying glass full before my eyes. I no sooner saw my face in it, but I was startled at the shortness of it, which now appeared to me in its utmost aggravation. The immoderate breadth of the features made me very much out of humor with my own countenance, upon which, I threw it from me like a mask. It happened, very luckily, that one who stood by me had, just before, thrown is visage, which, it seems, was too long for him. It deed, extended to a most shameful length; I believe ry chin was, modestly speaking, as long as my face LESSON XXX. The same,-concluded. ve were regarding, very attentively, this confusion of s, this chaos of calamity, Jupiter issued a second proc›n, that every one was now at liberty to exchange his ›n, and to return to his habitation with any such other as should be delivered to him. n this, Fancy began again to bestir herself, and, parout the whole heap with incredible activity, recomd to every one his particular packet. The hurry and ion, at this time, was not to be expressed. . . . . . . It easant enough to see the several exchanges that were for sickness against poverty, hunger against want of ce, and care against pain. ...... female world were very busy among themselves in ng for features: one was trucking a lock of gray hairs arbuncle, another was making over a short waist for a round shoulders, and a third cheapening a bad face ost reputation; but, on all these occasions, there was e of them who did not think the new blemish, as soon had got it into her possession, much more disagreeable he old one. I made the same observation on every misfortune or calamity, which every one in the assemought upon himself in lieu of what he had parted with: er it be that all the evils which befall us, are, in some re, suited and proportioned to our strength, or that evil becomes more supportable by our being accustomit, I shall not determine. ■ust not omit my own particular adventure. My friend a long visage had no sooner taken upon him my short but he made such a grotesque figure in it, that, as 1 |