Mary, in good earnest set about knitting the pair of stockings which you promised poor old Reynolds; but, for the last week, I have seen nothing of the copybook, and heard nothing of the stockings.

William. But I do intend to write the copies, papa.

Mary. And I really will finish the stockings. Mr. Railton. That I do not doubt; but I want you to see clearly, that it is possible to be zealous without being determined. George. I can see that now.

Mr. R. When once you feel determined, you can do a thing easily, which before appeared hard.

W. Yes; I saw an instance of that to-day. I saw the gardener pushing the heavy roller along the gravel walk, but a stone stopped it; he drew it back twice, but it would not go over. At last, he pulled it back further than he did before, for he seemed to have made up his mind that the roller should go over the stone, whether it would or not. He was determined, so giving it a push, with all his might, it went over, and rolled down the

stone.

Mrs. R. I read, yesterday, the following examples. Two boys were tempted to do wrong. One of them said, in a mild, quiet way, that he had rather not; but the other was determined, and said, in a firm voice, I will not!' This at once silenced the

tempter. Two men saw a thief picking a gentleman's pocket. One of them told him that he was a rogue, but the thief only laughed at him; the other, however, was determined, for he called out, "Stop thief!' and boldly seized him. A cottage thatched with straw was in flames, without the family knowing any thing of the matter. A neighbour, willing to do them a good turn, knocked at the door to tell them of their situation; but another was more in earnest about the matter, he was determined to save them, so he burst open the door at once, crying out Fire! fire!' at the very top of his voice, till the family hurried out at the door, just before the falling of the burning roof. Now, here was something like decision: the expressions 'I will not!' 'Stop thief!' and 'Fire, fire!' arose from a feeling of determination; and a feeling of determination is sure to produce actions that correspond with it.

Mrs. Railton made little Fanny understand that she would never do any thing well, while she was careless; but that, when she tried her best, she would get on better.

Mr. R. A feeling of determination is closely connected with perseverance. He who is determined, will go on. I will relate an anecdote of Tamerlane, which I met with some time ago, of a striking kind. "In early life, and when reduced to the utmost distress, defeated in battle, and without a follower, he

one day threw himself into the ruins of a Tartar caravansera, where he resolved to give up all further effort, and die. As he lay on the ground, sunk in despair, his eye was caught by the attempts of an ant to drag a grain of corn up to its nest in the wall. The load was too great for it, and the ant and the grain fell to the ground together. The trial was renewed ninety and nine times, and on the hundredth it succeeded, and the grain was carried into the nest. The thought instantly struck the prostrate chieftain: Shall an insect struggle ninety and nine times until it succeeds; while I, a man, and the descendant of heroes, give up all hope after a single battle? A feeling of determination rose within him-he sprang from the ground, and found a troop of his followers outside, who had been looking for him through the wilderness. Scimitar in hand, he threw himself on his pursuers, swelled his troop into an army, his army into myriads; and finished by being the terror of Europe, the conqueror of Asia, and the wonder of the world." I cannot answer for the truth of this story; but, whether true or false, it will serve to set forth what I wish to impress on your minds, that a feeling of determination is sure to lead us on to a determined and persevering course of action.

W. That is a capital tale.

Mr. R. An ant is a very persevering

creature; and so is a spider, as the following

lines set forth.

The spider o'er his lines will run,
Though weary, till his web is spun:
Break but a thread, what does he then?
Why nimbly sets to work again,
With eager speed and firm intent,
To mend his shattered tenement.
Noting his vigilance, let me
As indefatigable be,

With equal patience, skill, and care,
My shattered projects to repair.'

G. Well done, spider!

W. But if you were to break a spider's thread over and over again, I do not think that he would mend it a hundred times.

G. Perhaps not; papa hardly believed the story about the ant. A hundred times are

too many.

Mr. R. It is well to be determined in every good cause, but especially in holy things. The apostle Paul says, "I determined not to know anything among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified," 1 Cor. ii. 2.

W. What is the principal thing we must do, in learning to be determined?

Mr. R. In striving to gain the feeling of determination, in addition to your prayers to your heavenly Father, you must try to remember all that you hear in favour of acting with energy; and remind one another, how much is lost by being listless and lifeless, and how much is gained by being in earnest.

W. We must learn to feel determined, that is certain. You must help me, George, and I will help you.

M. But you must not forget me, and Susan, and Fanny, for we all mean to learn. We must all help one another.

Mrs. R. Very true, Mary; none of you must be left behind in this race. You must all, if possible, gain the feeling of determination.

Mr. R. Fancy to yourselves the difference between one who is half asleep in every thing he undertakes; and another who has a feeling of determination, looking upwards for strength to continue humble, to become wise, to resist evil, and to do good. Do, my dear children, fling your hearts into all your efforts to be, and to do good. When you pray,