low tree, I drew out the Bible, the leaves thereof were glued together with moisture. I turned to the place which was designated by THE VIOLET LEAF. I opened it carefully. Where now was that hand which had plucked the leaf, and placed it there? and to what passage was it intended to point the attention? My eye dropped upon the verses on which the leaf had been laid, and on which it had actually formed the impression of its outline, Rev. vii. 15-17. "Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. For the Lamb, which is in the midst of the throne, shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters; and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes." "Ah, sweet Adolphus!" I said, bursting into tears, " your dying, your last address to your miserable sister, shall not be lost. Where my Adolphus is gone, there will I go; where he is, there will I be. O Lamb of God, have mercy on me," I added, kneeling alone on the grass where I had so often knelt with my sweet brother, "hear my prayer; hear the prayer of a poor sinful child; take me to the fountains of living water, and let me drink of those immortal streams which imparted everlasting life to my angel brother, now no more." At that instant, looking up, I beheld a rainbow, all-glorious with his tints of violet, azure, and gold, extending over the whole valley, and at the same moment a young maid-servant appeared crossing the bridge, and exclaiming, "a letter, a letter, mercy and joy." I sprang to meet her-Í seized the letter-I read these words in my father's hand,

"The crisis is past, and after a long sweet sleep, our Adolphus has recognized and blessed his parents."

Neither were our hopes premature-the beloved son and brother were restored to us, and brought home within a few weeks. He was never more sent to school, but educated under a pious tutor at home; and when the violets bloomed again, and the voice of the blackbird was heard in the woods, our sweet reunions in the arbour were renewed, and our beloved parents not unseldom were there found uniting in prayer and praise with their beloved children. There we anticipated a still more glorious and delightful re-union with Christ our Saviour, when the present order of things shall have passed away; and this sweet hope has accompanied me through life, and is now the consolation of my latter days: for though my parents and my beloved brother, with many others dear to me as they were, are passed away from the present scene, yet shall I not find all that I have lost, yea, more than I have ever lost, when united with Him to whom I first was brought through the instrumentality of my own beloved Adolphus.

EMMELINE.

PREFACE.

EMMELINE is a very favourite little story, and might be a partner to the useful little girl; Sophia was a useful little girl, and her history shews that children may do good even with the materials which are given to them for their dolls and toys. I trust that you will

that any

of your poor

be very careful not to suppose little works could gain eternal happiness for you, you had even better not do them, than have such a thought respecting them; and I also hope, that if you are made able to do any kindness to any body, that you will not do it in order that you may be praised for it, as I have seen some children do; who, when they have given a penny to a beggar, have turned round to see who is admiring them; for I tell you, that if you are proud of your good works, you are like the persons whom our Lord reproved, Matth. vi. 1-4. "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them, otherwise ye have no reward of your Father which is in heaven. Therefore when thou doest thine alms, do not sound a trumpet before thee, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, that they may have glory of men; verily, I say unto you, they have their reward; but when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth; that thine alms may be in secret, and thy Father, which seeth in secret, himself shall reward thee openly." But when you have read these verses, do not suppose that I mean you to keep any thing you do secret from your parents; let them see what you do; but let it not be boasted of to others, and thus you will keep close to the words of scrip

ture.

THIS little volume is not intended for grown persons, or such as we may suppose to have lived so long in the world as to have forgotten that they ever were children, or ever delighted in such things as children love.

I am not now, indeed, a child myself, for forty summers and forty winters are already passed since I entered my teens-and my youngest child is older now than I was when the things took place which I am about to relate; but I am not purposing to write the whole history of my childhood, or to say more of myself than is necessary to make my little readers thoroughly understand an adventure which happened when I was in my twelfth year.

It was so sweet and so pleasant an adventure to me at the time, and left such profitable and delightful recollections behind it, that I cannot but hope that the account of it will be exceedingly agreeable to all such little people as may happen to become acquainted with it through my recital.

I am the eldest daughter of a clergyman, and had one sister a year younger-I wish, for my own credit, that I could say she was a year older than myself. My name is Margaret, and if my sister were called Sophia she well deserved the name, for from a babe it had pleased God to incline her heart to that heavenly wisdom whose price is far above rubies.

Our father's house was situated in the fairest valley in England; I will not tell you where that valley is, but I will so far satisfy you, that you shall see the picture of the house-turn therefore to the frontispiece, and look well at it; see how the woods arise behind it, and imagine, if you can, what delightful haunts there were in those regions. My sister and I had liberty to play in those woods, and to climb those heights, and to dive into the deep dells between the heights; we had, indeed, a wide range in those