of the truth having passed from the pious youth to any of his companions or acquaintance since his second residence in his nurse's house, may anticipate the necessity of turning back to Mabel Souith, and endeavoring to discover whether she did not prove the channel of the truth to others besides Horace-others to whom it might be permitted in the arrangements of Providence to carry it to future generations. But could not God, we ask, prevent the truth which Horace poured into the mind of the poor boy from wasting away and sinking into the depths of the natural foolishness of the young and feeble-minded individual, as the streams of the hills lose themselves in the quicksands of the desert? The next number will answer the enquiry (To be continued.) M. M. S. THE BAZAAR. (Resumed from page 119.) NOTHING could exceed the beauty of the morning, (at least so they both said) on which Catherine Simpson and Emma Maxwell set out to pay their long-talked of visit to Strawberry Hill, the pretty residence of the elder Mr. Simpson. The girls were both in high spirits, particularly Emma, who had scarcely breathed the fresh air since the memorable day of the bazaar, now nearly three weeks ago. To her, they had been three long dull weeks, and now that winter seemed to have passed away, and the bright blue sky and the soft mild air heralded the return of spring, it appeared as if a dreary gulf were passed that separated her from the source of so much unhappiness; and she exulted like a bird set free from its cage. Mrs. Simpson only was at home, and she gave them that cordial welcome with which she always received her friends, whether young or old. She had led a very active life in earlier days, but advancing infirmities now principally confined her to her chair by the fireside, which she might truly be said to adorn; and so unvaryingly neat was her appearance, so placid yet cheerful her demeanour, that few young persons ever visited her without wishing that should they live to be old, they might be just such another as Mrs. Simpson. Her drawing room, too, possessed much to interest and attract, and at this time was almost overpoweringly fragrant from the number of beautiful hyacinths which were in bloom, some of which, imbedded in moss, occupied a large china bowl which stood on an ornamental stand in the centre of a bay window at one end of the room. After the first mutual greetings were over, Catherine advanced to examine a very beautifully worked screen which stood on one side of the fire. "Why, grandmamma," she exclaimed, " you quite surprise me: whose table was this lovely screen at? How very odd I did not see it at the bazaar! Oh, do forgive me, but I really had believed you did not buy anything, but I see now how mistaken I was." "I fear, dear Catherine," said Mrs. Simpson smiling, “I must be content with a low place in your opinion, for indeed I did not buy anything at the bazaar: that screen I ordered from the repository." "From the repository?" involuntarily repeated Emma, thinking in her own mind that the price paid for it would have nearly purchased all her own work twice over. "Yes, my dear," said the old lady, a good deal amused at her look of blank astonishment. "I dare say you are surprised that I should go to any other mart of fancy work, when you young ladies had taken the trouble of opening so gorgeous an one; but I never buy anything at bazaars. The repository, you know, is for the sale of work by those whose altered circumstances prevent their gaining employment in any other way. Of course the names of the workers are from motives of delicacy concealed, but little secrets sometimes transpire, and I have reason to know that that is the work of a young lady who was formerly a governess, but the illness of her mother whose only support she is, compelled her to relinquish her situation. She was educated in Germany, where that beautiful style of raised flower work is brought to such perfection; and she was in hope of being able to turn her acquirements to account, but the bazaar of course has prevented her having any orders with the exception, I believe, of that one group." "Then, grandmamma, you and grandpapa really do not approve of bazaars? Do you know I have long had a suspicion of the kind?" "We do not," was the firm but gentle reply. "Then why have you never told us so before, dear grandmamma, when you know how we have been toiling for one?" "Because your mother, I know, wished you to work for it, and far be it from me to interfere between parent and child. However, as when your mamma and Mrs. Maxwell dined here yesterday, I mentioned the circumstances to them which first induced me to think that more good might be done by the same amount of substance disposed of in other ways, and as they both requested that I would name them to you to-day, I of course can have no hesitation in complying with their desire. "It is now many years since the first bazaar for a charitable purpose was proposed in our neighbourhood. I forget just now what its object was, for there have been so many since. However, that does not signify. It was for something that excited universal interest, and about which no party feeling could exist, and the fingers of all the ladies in the neighbourhood were soon busily engaged in preparing for it. This house was not then so empty as it now is: I had all my dear children about me, and my girls entered into the scheme with the utmost ardour. My dear Catherine, (after whom you are named,) was then beginning to droop, though she was spared to us for nearly a year afterwards, and her father and I were delighted that any thing had occurred to provide her with interesting occupation in the house, now that she was confined to it almost constantly. I suggested to my daughters that they should make none but useful articles, for I thought that whenever there was a professed purchase, the value of the article ought to correspond to the price paid for it. I had just before bought a very pretty little dress for your uncle James, who was then beginning to trot about. It was beautifully braided, and Catherine, who was fond of that kind of work, made several like it. They were so much admired that many more were bespoken, indeed more than she could undertake herself, so that she induced different friends to make them, as it seemed a pity that so much should be lost to the funds of the bazaar: indeed they became quite the fashion, so that at last I think I scarcely exaggerate when I say that there was hardly a gentleman's child in the county who was not provided with one, if not more of these dresses. Catherine of course was very much pleased with her success; her own work sold for ten pounds, and she was highly congratulated upon her successful industry. “There was a Mrs. Winton, who lived near us then, who had a large family of children, and she thought she could not do better than fit them out for the winter at the bazaar; and I rather think she purchased the greater part, if not the whole, of Catherine's work. Shortly after the bazaar she came to me one morning in great distress, saying she had had a letter from her sister begging her to visit a Mrs. Wilson, who had once been her sister's maid. She was now a widow and had come to live here a few months before, principally owing to Mrs. Winton's representations to her sister of the opening afforded here to a maker of children's dresses. She had, it seems, promised to get her children's winter dresses from her as well as to recommend her to other ladies, but the engrossing claims of the bazaar had completely made her forget all about it. "Her sister now reminded her of her promise and urged its fulfilment, particularly as she feared Mrs. Wilson was in rather embarrassed circumstances, and not in very good health. "Mrs. Winton came to ask me to go and see her, as she felt ashamed to go herself, being unable to do anything for her in the way of her business, and, as for asking Mr. Winton for anything to give her in the way of charity, that was out of the question, as in providing her so amply with money to spend at the bazaar, he had warned her that there must be no claims brought forward except for necessaries for a long time to come. "I was very much interested in the case, particularly as I was aware we had indirectly contributed to destroy Mrs. Wilson's prospect of employment, for I remembered to my no little confusion, that the famous pattern frock, from which so many had been made, was bought of her. "I found her very poorly and very dejected, not seeing a prospect of employment for some time at any rate, and there are few heavier trials to a person, than not to be able to procure work when they are desirous of it." "And what became of her, grandmamma ?” "Why, we contrived to procure one thing or another for her to do, till we had made her case pretty well known, which we were bound to do, as we had been the means of inflicting the injury; and ultimately she had a flourishing business. At the same time, I have no doubt that many suffer in a similar manner, of whom nothing is ever heard, from their having no influential friends to make their case known." Emma Maxwell thanked Mrs. Simpson for her story, and said "it confirmed her in the opinion she had always held, that it was better only to make articles that were of no positive utility, for bazaars, and then no one could be sufferers from them." Mrs. Simpson shook her head, and was just going to reply, when the girls catching sight of Mr. Simpson coming up the approach, bounded out to meet him. Mrs. Simpson then ordered luncheon, and when they were all seated round the table in the dining room, she named the subject of their conversation to her husband. "When I write my famous Treatise on Arithmetic,” he said, smiling, “for the use of young people, I intend to head one chapter as follows: "CHARITY ADDITION; OR THE "ARITHMETIC OF BAZAARS, The girls laughed, as I suppose he intended that they should; and begged him to explain. "Why," he said, "have you not heard how ten pounds worth of little frocks were sent to the only bazaar I ever had anything to do with? And also how a lady bought ten pounds worth of work, and yet the charity only received ten pounds-in point of fact, not so much; for there must be the deductions made for wax lights, evergreens, attendants, and I know not how many et cæteras. And yet my dear child firmly believed she had given ten pounds, and the lady in question as firmly believed that she too had given ten pounds, although it was spent in clothes for her children, which she must have procured in some way or other, although had it not been for the bazaar, she might perhaps have been content with less expensive ones. No, no, I like to call things by their right names, and a charity bazaar seems to me made up of too many materials to admit of charity being its dis tinguishing name." "But, sir," said Emma, "do you think the eight hundred |