flowers blush with delicate hues, or are sprinkled with gorgeous dyes; the gems of ocean shine with dazzling lustre, and our Maker has deeply implanted a love of the beautiful in every human heart. The utilitarian may deny this, but, with all the splendours of creation around us, we have but to open our eyes, and his arguments are forgotten. Youth, buoyant with hope, and radiant with gladness, why should it be shrouded in sombre hues? Have we not here the teachings of nature? Should not life's spring-time and summer be clad like their prototypes, and old age wear the sober livery of winter! Goldsmith compares the style of dress appropriate to different periods of life to the three orders of Grecian architecture. The elaborate and beautiful Corinthian, for youth; the graceful, but less ornamented Ionic, for middle life; and the chaste, simple Doric, for venerable age. Children love the gayest colours; but, as the mind expands and the taste refines, more delicate hues are preferred. Colours, in dress, that do not harmonize or contrast agreeably, pain the eye, as discords in music do the ear. Light blue and pink, purple and blue, green and blue, yellow and pink, worn as contrasts, are unpleasant to almost every eye; while purple and yellow or orange, blue and brown, salmon and blue, green and pink, lilac and green, are pleasing contrasts. This is not a factitious taste, but is, as the painter well knows, derived from observation of the harmonies of nature. Fashion may reconcile us for a time to almost any absurdity; but good taste, being founded in natural sensibility to beauty, will not yield entirely to her caprices. It is much to be desired, that the young ladies of our country would always dress with plainness and simplicity in the street and at church. Ladies do not surely go to church to display their finery; they have other public places where their vanity may be gratified. Almost the only arena for display in many places unfortunately seems to be the holy sanctuary-the place for humiliation and selfabasement. Gay as a parterre of tulips and hyacinths at one season, and waving with plumes, like a regiment of soldiers, at another. Is this a Christian assembly, met to worship God? Not that such an assembly should be clothed in sackcloth, or any other peculiar and homely garb; but surely a simple and unostentatious style of dress would be far more appropriate. On a journey, a plain dress is most becoming. We form an opinion of strangers from their appearance; it is the only index. When a young lady carries her light silks, her embroidery and jewellery, upon her person, in stage-coach, railway, and steamboat, through the length and breadth of the land, we conclude that they are her only letter of recommendation, and there may be those to whom it is sufficient. Still more, not a few will be apt to think that such things must be novelties to herself, or she would make less display of them. 8. Dress should correspond in some degree with the wealth of the wearer. There should be moderation and sobriety, however, arising from principle. The extravagance of wives and daughters has doubtless increased men's desire to be rich, and led them in many instances to those rash endeavours and wild speculations that have seemed to threaten destruction to our country. Is the present comparative calm a proof that they have become more considerate, more economical? Are there none who still encroach upon a father's fond indulgence to gratify vanity? If you follow Shakspeare's rule, “Costly as your purse can buy," how will you be able to obey a charge coming from higher authority: "To do good, to be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate?" 9. Dress should not occupy too much time and thought, nor be made the subject of never-ending discussion. Well chosen, neatly made, and carefully put on, it has already been a cruel monopolizer of time; give it no farther attention than is necessary to preserve it from injury, and let not that care be apparent. A splendid dress may be worn so consciously as to lose all gracefulness and elegance. equal 145 teful slander, gone by, the tion for that better educaGod's holy violation of who "filches 10ment, with ispering one Condemn age to avoid ir rank and you do not ully not the eath of slanthe mirror, › a world of ce fair fame. sioned by a er of a busy ome women of the most e following n the evil be without things the rfect conbreathed ion." le to the iend, and ught it?" at another. Is this a Christian assembly, met to worship God? Not that such an assembly should be clothed in sackcloth, or any other peculiar and homely garb; but surely a simple and unostentatious style of dress would be far more appropriate. On a journey, a plain dress is most becoming. We form an opinion of strangers from their appearance; it is the only index. When a young lady carries her light silks, her embroidery and jewellery, upon her person, in stage-coach, railway, and steamboat, through the length and breadth of the land, we conclude that they are her only letter of recommendation, and there may be those to whom it is sufficient. Still more, not a few will be apt to think that such things must be novelties to herself, or she would make less display of them. 8. Dress should correspond in some degree with the wealth of the wearer. There should be moderation and sobriety, however, arising from principle. The extravagance of wives and daughters has doubtless increased men's desire to be rich, and led them in many instances to those rash endeavours and wild speculations that have seemed to threaten destruction to our country. Is the present comparative calm a proof that they have become more considerate, more economical? Are there none who still encroach upon a father's fond indulgence to gratify vanity? If you follow Shakspeare's rule, "Costly as your purse can buy," how will you be able to obey a charge coming from higher authority: "To do good, to be rich in good works, ready to distribute, willing to communicate?" 9. Dress should not occupy too much time and thought, nor be made the subject of never-ending discussion. Well chosen, neatly made, and carefully put on, it has already been a cruel monopolizer of time; give it no farther attention than is necessary to preserve it from injury, and let not that care be apparent. A splendid dress may be worn so consciously as to lose all gracefulness and elegance. CHAPTER XIX. CONVERSATION. "Talk to women, talk to women as much as you can. This is the best school. This is the way to gain fluency, because you need not care what you say, and had better not be sensible."-D'ISRAELI. It is not very unfair to believe, that most young men have adopted this motto as their own; at least their conversation in ladies' society too often indicates that they think they "had better not be sensible." If young ladies are flippant and silly, may it not arise from a similar desire to please? It is morally certain, that the tone of conversation will not be much improved, until the taste of your superiors is more correct. Every lady thinks it complimentary to have sensible rational conversation addressed to her; it proves that her mind is not considered vastly inferior. She need not say much; a good listener is invaluable, and Bacon says "The honourablest part of talk is to give the occasion." Let us learn farther from his wisdom: "She that questioneth much shall learn much, and content much, but especially if she apply her questions to the skill of the persons whom she asketh ; for she shall give them occasion to please themselves in speaking, and herself shall continually gather knowledge." Shakspeare makes Gratiano say, "Silence is only commendable in a neat's tongue dried!" But a severer satirist on the sex says: "A dearth of words a woman need not fear, The solemn fop, the flippant coxcomb, the prosing pedant -all may like to please themselves by prating to you, each in his peculiar style; and to adapt your conversation with equal delicacy and tact to each, would require more than |