A STORY ABOUT HARD WORDS.

BY J. P. M'CORD.

DIDN'T touch your jack-knife-I never saw it more than once," roared an angry voice in the midst of the street.

"You saw me buy it," replied another angry voice, "and you saw me have it yesterday to mend my kite, and John Wilson says you picked it up when I left it." "John Wilson lies, and so do you."

"You tell ten lies to my one. You are a thief besides." "I guess you don't remember how you was thrashed last summer, for stealing Sarah Cramer's pencil."

"How long since your father was let out of jail?"

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How long since your father was found in a hen-roost?"

Mr. North happened to be out near the road, and heard more of this shameful dialogue. Presently, he saw a couple of boys approaching, engaged in earnest conversation. "Good morning, my lads," said he. The boys started, for until then they were not aware of his presence. "I judge from your books and baskets," continued he, "that you are on your way to school. I am convinced by what I have heard, that you have considerable learning already."

The boys looked at each other, silently, and with evident confusion. In a moment, however, William cried out "James stole my jack-knife."

"You tell a lie," said James.

They were waxing warm again, and would have said, in the very presence of the old gentleman, a great many other foolish things, had he not exclaimed-" Stop, boys, stop! A thunder-storm on a bright morning, would be quite out of place."

The boys tried to smile. After a short pause, Mr. North went on : "I suppose, boys, you don't have to spell many words, when you read at school."

"O no," answered James-" we read in the next to the highest class, and we don't find many words too hard for us."

“I am glad to hear that. Boys appear pretty smart if they are not brought to a stand by such tough words as metempsychosis, Heliogabalus, Maher-shalal-hash-baz. But there is nothing smart in rolling out hard words of another sort. The longer you stick on them the better. What do we gain by calling one another hard names? Does it make a pot white to call a kettle black?

No charge of coward, thief, or knave,
Proves him, who shouts it, just or brave.'

If we reproach others with their sins, very likely they will reproach
us with ours. The best way is, to mend all our own faults first. Do
as well as you can; and then if any mad-brain chooses to speak
of you, keep cool, and he will soon stop-for no one can quarrel
alone more than ten minutes. If you should begin to be stirred up,
and feel disposed to answer him according to his folly, catch your
tongue between your teeth, and bite it pretty hard, rather than re-
tort a single hard word. The vulgar breath of a madman will not
harm you.
It will not make you rascals just to be called so."
When the boys had gone a little on their way, Mr. North heard
one of them say, "The old man is about half right."

"I think he is all right," replied the other.

Before they reached the school-house, James walked up to his companion, saying, "Here, William, is your jack-knife. I did pick up where you laid it down, and I have been wicked enough to lie about it, too."

it

"Well, James, I myself have sometimes done what was just as wicked. Now, instead of telling each other of our naughty deeds, let us see how well we can behave in time to come. We had better bite our tongues pretty hard, as the old gentleman said, than use them so foolishly."

"I go for that," said James.

DEFINITION OF NOBILITY.-Punch, or somebody else I hope the reader will not relish the sentiment any less because I am unable to find the author of it—says, that a man who has no bills to pay, belongs to the no-bil-ity, in the strictest sense of the word.

A CURIOUS EXPERIMENT.

FILL a tumbler with water, lay a piece of paper on the top of it, place the palm of your left hand flat on the paper, and press it closely down; then take hold on the foot of the tumbler with the right hand, and invert the position of the glass, still pressing the paper close with the left hand. Hold it in this manner for a minute or two, and then withdraw the left hand, when the paper will remain attached to the glass; for the pressure of air underneath, acting against the paper with a greater force than that of the water, is sufficient to retain it in its position, and consequently sustain the

water in the tumbler.

THE MAN-RIDING KING.

BY WILLIAM A. ALCOTT, M.D.

HE late Henry Colman used to say, “I never ride when I can walk." And I have said so to my friends, a great many times. Whenever I ride, it is for the sake of expedition or economy. In these days of swift and cheap traveling, one can hardly afford to perform long journeys on foot. Besides this, we

cannot always walk, if we would. There are, as yet, no inventions for walking on the water; and Mr. Woodworth, the children's friend, would never have written his interesting letters from the Old World, had there been no way of getting to that world besides walking.

Many men, I find, however, prefer to ride, even when they can walk. It has been jocosely said of sailors, that when they first enter upon the sailor's life, they have to take a great oath about certain things; and one thing they are said to swear, is never to walk when they can ride. The more ignorant and undeveloped men's minds are, the more they love to be carried about. Hence it is that children love to ride. Hence, too, it is that sailors, soldiers, dandies, and idiots, are always so fond of being carried. And hence, too, it may be that men, whose minds are highly developed, like that of Henry Colman, choose to walk, if they can. They would be glad, if they could, to carry somebody who needs help, rather than to have anybody or anything carry them. They come into the world to do something for the world, rather than to have the world employ itself to gratify them. They have found out, in one word, that it is more blessed to give than to receive. How many ways there are of being carried! Men have dogs, horses, mules, donkeys, camels, elephants,