The two others are Welsh and Irish. In the northern part of Scotland, which is called the Highlands, there is still another language spoken, called Gaelic. But Gaelic and Irish are so much alike, that it is perhaps best to say that there are only three languages spoken in Great Britain and Ireland, namely, English, Welsh, and Irish.

Freeman's Old English History

There are two sorts of oranges, the sweet, and the bitter of which Scotch marmalade is made and Dutch curaçoa flavoured. The trees begin to bear fruit about the sixth year after they are planted, and the quality continues to improve for 16 or 20 years, after which the orange is no longer so good, the rind gets thick, and it becomes unfit for the foreign market, which always takes the best. The trees flower in March, and perfume the air of Seville with an almost sickening odour: from the blossoms sweetmeats are made and delicious orange-flower water. To eat the

orange in perfection it should not be gathered until the new blossom appears. The oranges begin to turn yellow in October, and are then picked, as they never increase in size after changing colour. They are wrapped in Catalan paper, and packed in chests which contain from 700 to 1000 each, and may be worth to the exporter from 25s. to 30s. They ripen on the voyage, but the rind gets tough, and the freshness of the newly-gathered fruit is lost. The natives are very fanciful about eating them; they do not think them good before March, and poison if eaten after sunset. The people who sell them in the street cry, "Oranges sweeter than syrup."

Ford's Handbook to Spain (Murray).

Nay, only look what I have found!
A sparrow's nest upon the ground;
A sparrow's nest, as you may see,
Blown out of yonder old elm tree.

And what a medley thing it is!
I never saw a nest like this,
Not neatly wove, with decent care,
Of silvery moss and shining hair;

But put together, odds and ends,
Picked up from enemies and friends:
See, bits of thread, and bits of rag,
Just like a little rubbish bag.

There is a scrap of red and brown,
Like the old washerwoman's gown:
And here is muslin, pink and green,
And bits of calico between.

Oh, never thinks the lady fair,
As she goes by with mincing air,
How the pert sparrow overhead

Has robbed her gown to make his bed.

See hair of dog, and fur of cat,

And ravellings of a worsted mat,

And shreds of silk and many a feather,

Compacted cunningly together.

Well, here has hoarding been, and hiding, And not a little, good contriving,

Before a home of peace and ease

Was fashioned out of things like these.

Think, had these odds and ends been brought

To some wise man renowned for thought,
Some man of men the very gem,

Pray, what could he have done with them?

If we had said, "Here, sir, we bring
You many a little worthless thing,
Just bits and scraps so very small
That they have scarcely size at all;

And out of these you must contrive
A dwelling large enough for five,

Neat, warm, and snug, with comfort stored,
Where five small things may lodge and board."

How would the man of learning vast
Have been astonished and aghast,

And vowed that such a thing had been
Ne'er heard of, thought of, much less seen!

Ah! man of learning, you are wrong,
Instinct is more than wisdom strong:
And He, who made the sparrow, taught
This skill beyond your reach of thought.
Mary Howitt.

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A

Do you see those two pretty cottages on opposite sides of the common? How bright their windows are, and how prettily the vines trail over them! year ago one of them was the dirtiest and most forlorn-looking place you can imagine, and its mistress the most untidy woman.

She was once sitting at her cottage door with her arms folded, as if she were deep in thought, though, to look at her face, one would not have supposed she was doing more than idly watching the swallows as they floated about in the hot, clear air. Her gown was torn and shabby, her shoes down at the heel; the little curtain in her casement, which had once been fresh and white, had a great rent in it; and altogether she looked poor and forlorn.

She sat some time, gazing across the common, when all on a sudden she heard a little noise, like stitching near the ground. She looked down, and sitting on