And watch thy peaceful slumbers;
Their guardian care shall safe defend,
As o'er thy couch they softly bend,

And breathe their tuneful numbers.

2. O could we hear that heavenly strain,
As low it falls, then swells again -
Its influence calm and pure

Should teach our trembling hopes to rise,
And fix their home above the skies,
Where holy joys endure.

3 Such sounds once broke on mortal ear,
When wondering shepherds bent to hear
The song of heavenly joy ;

That song proclaimed good will on earth,
When angels sung a Savior's birth,
His praise, their glad employ.

4. Dost thou, sweet babe, their music hear,
And does it banish every fear,

And soothe thy infant breast?

And is it that which makes thee smile,
As though thou wouldst our griefs beguile,
And charm our cares to rest?

5. Sleep on, dear child, and may thy smiles,
And all thy soft endearing wiles,

Gladden each parent's heart;

And should dark clouds their path obscure,
May thy fond love, so true, so pure,

The sweetest peace impart.

ERRORS.

1. soffly for softly; peaceful, for peaceful. Rule.) tuneful for tuneful. 4. doste for dost;

does.

QUESTIONS.

(See the dooz for

How should ful be sounded in the following words, viz painful, helpful, dreadfully, skilfully, manful, handful, hopeful, bashful?

EVERGREENS.

1. WHEN Summer's sunny hues adorn
Sky, forest, hill and meadow,
The foliage of the evergreens,

In contrast, seems a shadow.

2. But when the tints of autumn have
Their sober reign asserted,

The landscape that cold shadow shows
Into a light converted.

3. Thus thoughts that frown upon our mirth,

Will smile upon our sorrow,

And many dark fears of today

May be bright hopes tomorrow.

ERRORS

1. shadder for shadow. 2. tinse for tints. 3. sorrer. for sorrow; tomorrer for tomorrow.

QUESTIONS.

What Rule is over Lesson 26?-Over Lesson 27?-Over Lesson 28 ?

NOTE. In spelling words that have an apostrophe with s,

the apos

(rophe must be named: thus, s-u-m-m-e-r-apostrophe-s, summer's.

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LESSON XXXII.

RULE. A great many words have unaccented syllables, which so flow into, and mix themselves with the other syllaples, that they must not be sounded as separate and distinct syllables, in reading Poetry; and they must not be reckoned in counting the measure. Still these syllables must be sounded; and they ought not to be clipped off, for fear of making the lines too long.

For examples, see flower in no. 1; power and varying in no. 2; wanderings in no. 3 ; even and every in no. 5 ; reverend, champion, and faltering in no. 6; even in no. 7; serious in no. 8

THE VILLAGE PREACHER.

1 NEAR yonder copse, where once the garden smiled,
And still where many a garden flower grows wild,
There, where a few torn shrubs the place disclose,
e village preacher's modest mansion rose.

2. A man he was to all the country dear,

And passing rich with forty pounds a year;
Remote from towns he ran his godly ráce,

Nor e'er had changed, nor wished to change his place.
Unskilful he to fawn, or seek for power,

By doctrines fashioned to the varying hour;
Far other aims his heart had learned to prize,
More bent to raise the wretched than to rise.

3. His house was known to all the vagrant train,
He chid their wanderings, but relieved their pain;
The long remembered beggar was his guest,
Whose beard descending swept his aged breast;
The ruined spendthrift, now no longer proud,
Claimed kindred there, and had his claims allowed;
The broken soldier, kindly bade to stay,
Sat by his fire, and talked the night away;

Wept o'er his wounds, or, tales of sorrow done,

Shouldered his crutch and showed how fields were won.

4. Pleased with his guests, the good man learned t glow,
And quite forgot their vices in their wo;

Careless their merits or their faults to scan,
His pity gave ere charity began.

5. Thus to relieve the wretched was his pride,
And even his failings leaned to virtue's side;
But in his duty prompt, at every call,

He watched and wept, he prayed and felt, for all
And, as a bird each fond endearment tries
To tempt its new-fledged offspring to the skies,
He tried each art, reproved each dull delay,
Allured to brighter worlds, and led the way.

6. Beside the bed where parting life was laid,

And sorrow, guilt, and pain, by turns dismayed,
The reverend champion stood. At his control,
Despair and anguish fled the struggling soul;
Comfort came down the trembling wretch to raise,
And his last faltering accents whispered praise.

7. At church, with meek and unaffected grace,
His looks adorned the venerable place;
Truth from his lips prevailed with double sway,
And fools, who came to scoff, remained to pray.
The service past, around the pious man,
With eager zeal each honest rustic ran;
Even children followed, with endearing w: »,

And plucked his gown, to share the good man's smile.

8. His ready smile a parent's warmth expressed,

Their welfare pleased him, and their cares distressed
To them his heart, his love, his griefs, were given,
But all his serious thoughts had rest in heaven.

9 As some tall cliff, that lifts its awful form,

Swells from the vale, and midway leaves the storm,
Though round its breast the rolling clouds are spread,
Eternal sunshine settles on its head.

ERRORS.

The principal errors to which the scholar is here desired to attend, are those which are forbidden by the Rule at the

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beginning of the Lesson. Each line in this piece oughi to have ten syllables; and there are ten besides the second syllable in each of the words that are given with the Rule Thus in no. 2. By doctrines fashioned to the varying hour there are properly three syllables in varying; but the second syllable flows together with the other two, so that every letter is distinctly pronounced without making more than ten syllables. So it is with every, wanderings, reverend, champion, faltering, and serious. Each of these may have, and should have, every letter sounded plainly, as in plain conversation; but, still, they will be sounded in the time of two syllables, and should be counted as two.

In the second line of no. 1. there is another striking example of this mode of reading. The words, ‘many a' are sounded as only two syllables; yet every letter is sounded plainly.

Both the teacher and scholar are desired to observe that such words as have here been noticed, are often printed with apostrophes for such unaccented syllables. Thus: wand'ring, suff'ring, ev'ry, rad ance, &c. This mode of printing such words is wrong; and it has led persons to clip the words, so as to obscure their proper sound and meaning.

I have not here noticed such words as end in ed, that is sounded with the previous syllable. I take it for granted, that every scholar will generally avoid making it a distinct syllable. We spell it as a distinct syllable, but seldom pronounce it so, except when it follows d or t. The sense and sound will help the scholar to do right as to this syllable.

QUESTIONS.

In Lesson 30, first verse, how should glorious be pronounced? Read the lines in which the following words of that hymn occur ; viz