stumbled and fell over the same piece of wood myself. So the evil I designed for another fell upon myself. I was not very badly hurt. Immediately I recollected the precept of the golden rule. I got up, and rolled the piece of wood out of the road; with the truth deeply fixed upon my mind, that it was always best to be kind and good to all, if we wish like treatment ourselves. And ever afterwards, when I feel a momentary inclination to indulge an uncharitable wish, or ill-treat any one in any manner whatever, my mind immediately reverts to this adventure, when I ask myself, "Is this the way I would have them treat me? Is this in accordance with that Bible-rule which says, 'As ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them?'' Dear child, do you ever say harsh words to your playmates, or treat them in any way in which you would not like to be treated? If you do, you violate one of the precepts of the Bible, and sin against that God who cannot look on sin with any degree of allowance. Then let me ask you to keep that rule sacred and inviolate; for it contains the substance of the whole law of man's duty to man. 0, what delights cluster around the sweet home where this rule is the mainspring of action! It imparts a cheerful expression to every countenance, a charm to every word and look, and a glow of love to every heart. THE PIN-TAILED SAND-GROUSE. THE sand-grouse (we read in the "Pictorial Museum of Animated Nature") are natives of the sandy plains and rocky deserts of Africa, Asia, and the southern districts of Europe. They are distinguished by long, pointed wings, and by the form of their tail, the two middle feathers of which are, in some species, much lengthened. Birds of powerful and rapid flight, they love to wander from place to place, sweeping over the hot and dry solitudes in which they find a congenial abode. Some associate in vast flocks, others live in pairs. The prevailing tints of their plumage are grey, sandy yellow, chestnut, olive, and black. The pin-tailed sand-grouse is found in the south of Spain, the north of Africa, and the deserts of Arabia and Syria. The stony districts of the country beyond Jordan swarm with these birds. So many are they, that the whole plain seems at times to rise; and, far off in the air, they are seen like large moving clouds. Their flesh is dry, black, and hard, but relished by the Turks. The bird lays its eggs on the dry ground, without any nest. The Arabs collect them in large quantities, and eat them fried in butter. Some are of opinion that the pin-tailed grouse is the quail of the ancient Israelites. "I CANNOT PRAY FOR FATHER ANY A CHILD knelt, at the accustomed hour, to thank God for the mercies of the day, and pray for care through the coming night; then, as usual, came the earnest "God bless dear mother and —.' But the prayer was stilled, the little hands unclasped, and a look of agony and wonder met the mother's eye as the words of hopeless sorrow burst from the lips of the kneeling child, "I cannot pray for FATHER ANY MORE!" Since her little lips had been able to form the dear name, she had prayed for a blessing upon it. It had followed close after MOTHER's name. But now he was dead. I waited for some moments, that she might conquer her emotion, and then urged her to go on. Her pleading eyes met mine, and, with a voice that faltered too much almost for utterance, she said, "O, mother, I cannot leave him ALL OUT! Let me say, 'Thank God that I HAD a dear father ONCE!' so I can still go on and keep him in my prayers." And so she always does; and my stricken heart learned a lesson from the loving ingenuity of my child. Remember to thank God for mercies past, as well as to ask blessings for the future. HEAT. If one end of a bar of iron is heated, what happens to the other end? The heat passes along through the bar, and makes the other end hot also. Has heat any weight? Like light, it is imponderable, or without weight. How is this known? From the fact that the heated body which contains it weighs no more than a cold one. Is anything absolutely cold, or, in other words, absolutely destitute of heat? Nothing is absolutely destitute of heat. Ice, for example, contains heat, and may be made colder by its withdrawal. What are the principal sources of heat? The sun, the fixed stars, chemical action, electricity, and friction. How much heat does the sun send to the earth? Enough every year to melt a shell of ice enveloping the earth a hundred feet thick. How much does it send in all directions? So much, that, if it all came to the earth, it would melt in a year a crust of ice nearly four thousand miles thick, or thirty-seven feet every minute. How much would the highest heat of a blastfurnace melt? Five feet per minute. How much hotter is the sun's furnace, then, than the fire of a blast-furnace? Seven times as hot. What is said of the heat of the fixed stars in this connexion? They are suns of other systems, and altogether give us nearly as much heat as the sun. What would happen if their heat were withdrawn? The earth would not be sufficiently warmed by the sun for the existence of animal and vegetable life. (To be continued.) "I AM DEBTOR." WHEN this passing world is done, When I hear the wicked call On the fiery deluge brink, |