"Not so, my child, 'twill never do:The gospel bids be kind." "Then they that kill, and they that praise, The gospel do not mind." "You know, my child, the gospel says, "But, Pa, did Alexander wish That some strong men would come, And burn his house, and kill him too; And do as he had done? And every body called him great Well, now, what right had he to kill? If one should burn the buildings here, Would any body call him great, ODE TO CHILDHOOD. CHILDHOOD, happiest stage of life! Time, when all that meets the view Then to toss the circling ball, Then the hoop's revolving pace, IMPORTANCE OF EARLY HABITS. WE shall not gather in old age that which was not sown in youth. If you "sow in corruption," says the Apostle, "you shall reap corruption." You say every day yourselves, that we always die as we have lived; that characters are unchangeable; that we carry into advanced life, all the faults and the passions of our early days, and that there is no greater happiness than to form in our youth those laudable inclinations which accustom us, from childhood, "to the yoke of the Lord." If we regarded only our repose in this life, and had no other interest than to prepare for ourselves quiet and happy days, what previous enjoyment it would be, to stifle in their birth, and turn at last to virtue, so many violent passions which afterwards rend the heart, and cause all the bitterness and misfortune of life! What felicity, to have encouraged none but innocent and amiable propensities, to be spared the wretched recollection of so many criminal pleasures, which corrupt the heart and sully the imagination, leaving a thousand shameful and importunate images, which accompany us almost into virtue, survive our crimes, and are frequently the cause of new ones! What happiness to have passed our first years in tranquil and harmless pleasures, to have accustomed ourselves to contentment, and not contracted the mournful necessity of engaging in violent and criminal pleasures, making the peace and sweetness of innocence and virtue insupportable, by the long indulgence of ardent and tumultuous passions! When youth is passed in virtue and in dread of vice, it draws down mercy on the remainder of our lives; the Lord himself watches over our paths; we become the beloved objects of his special care and paternal goodness. ON THE CHOICE OF A STATE OF LIFE. MANY are the stations of life to which we may be called by God. Some are destined by him to be his ministers, the leaders of his people in the path of virtue and eternal salvation. To those whom he calls to this heavenly vocation, he gives a great love of prayer, and an ardent zeal for the salvation of souls: he also bestows upon them those talents which are necessary to fulfil the important functions of their calling. However, few, comparatively speaking, are called by Almighty God to direct his children in the way of salvation during the course of their earthly pilgrimage. Most are destined by Divine Providence to sanctify themselves in some other station of life; some in cultivating the earth; others in manufacturing its produce for the different wants of man; others in spreading, by the means of commerce, the products of mechanical industry and of manufactures. Again, some are called to watch over the prosperity and happiness of their fellow citizens; others to defend the rights of the innocent against his unjust oppressor, whilst some are to devote their time, their labor, and sometimes their life itself, to soothe the sufferings of their fellow men, heal their diseases, when they can be healed, and bestow upon those whose health is entrusted to them, all the attention of which they are capable. Before any one enters into any state of life, he must pray with fervor, that he may know the will of Almighty God in this regard; he must examine his inclination and his means; he must consult his friends and relations, fully persuaded that his happiness in this life, and his salvation in the life to come, will depend in a great measure upon the choice he will make. After he has determined for some state of life in particular, let him follow his determination with unshaken courage, and the grace of Almighty God will be upon him and his undertakings. ON FARMING AND AGRICULTURE. THE first step from savage towards civilized life, is the acquirement, protection, and recognition of property. In early ages, this consisted only of what was essential to the immediate wants of man. The first property consisted of sheep, goats, and oxen; and the first husbandmen were shepherds, who tended their flocks, and drove them without restriction from pasture to pasture. In the pastoral ages of husbandry, there was no property in land; all the country was open and common to any occupier; and no one assumed to himself a property in the soil, or considered as his own, the produce of any particular spot. In Africa, among the native Americans, and in most parts of Asia, there exists to this day no property in the land; hence, in those places, it is but little cultivated, and subsistence is precarious, notwithstanding the fertility of the soil, and the general character of the climate. The recognition and protection of property in the soil, are the basis of industry, plenty, and social improvement. As soon as any man could call a spot of ground his own, and could secure to his family the produce of it, he would carefully cultivate, sow, and plant it, knowing that he should reap the reward of his labor in the season of harvest. Hence the origin of farms and farmers. Farmers are called arable farmers, when they are chiefly employed in raising corn; and graziers when they are engaged in rearing and fattening sheep, and other live stock. Farms vary in size, according to the place and the price of land. Arable farms are generally smaller than those employed in pasture or grazing. Those which are larger are considered by some the most beneficial to the occupiers and to the public; but facts prove that such large divisions of land have ruined thousands who had not the means to cultivate them. Pota As a succession of the same crops tends to impoverish the soil, a rotation of different crops is necessary. toes, grain, and white crops are exhausting; but after them the soil is ameliorated by tares, turnips, and green or plant crops. On stiff soils, clover, beans, wheat, cabbages and oats may be cultivated in succession; and on light soils, potatoes, turnips, peas, oats and barley may succeed each other. The general rule is, one crop for man, and one for beast. Wheat is sown in September or October; but the spring wheat is sown in March. It ripens in August and September; when reaped, it is housed and threshed. After being ground at the mill and sifted, wheat forms flour; the flour mixed with water and yest, and baked in an oven, becomes bread. Barley is sown in April and May; it is made into malt by being heated to a state of germination, and then broken in a mill. If the malt be infused in hot water, the infusion, with the addition of hops, may be fermented into beer, ale, or porter. Oats are sown in February or March; when ground, they form oat meal: mixed with water and baked, the meal becomes oatenbread; unground, they are fit food for horses. There are other species of grain cultivated, as rye, peas, and beans. The former makes black bread, and the latter are well known as a good and wholesome food. Rice, a very nutritive grain, is much cultivated in warm climates, and there preferred to other kinds of grain for the food of man. AGRICULTURAL HYMN. Great God of Eden! "Twas thy hand Nature's first rich perfume. Fresh from thy glance the flowers sprang, While plain, and hill, and valley rang With life and joy and praise. God of the Clouds! Thy hand can ope And on th' expectant thirsty crop The farmer, when the seed time's o'er, Thinks on thy promis'd harvest's store, And, smiling, looks to heaven. |