proudly out into the water. Ships have their names and sponsors-though, for my part I would rather be godfather to a ship than a child; for after she is once fairly in the water the responsibility ends, which is not, as you are aware, the case with a child. The buildings behind, which look like nothing but timber roofs supported upon walls, are called the slips; beneath one of these the ship has been an inhabitant for some months, its purpose being to keep her dry and secure from the elements during the process of formation: but now that she is launched she is towed into what is called the wet dock to be rigged and finally finished, victualled, and stored. The art of rigging is one which, simple as it appears, requires the utmost care and circumspection; not a rope in her whole economy being without its proper name and use. There are a number of men employed in this operation; they are generally old sailors, who are acquainted with the entire art and mystery of yards and sails, and shrouds and ladders, and tillers, and all the various lines of cordage necessary for the proper controul of the huge machine. In the description of the building of a ship we mentioned the various trades necessary to complete the mere hull; now when she is rigged and stored, the owners appoint captain, who upon a certain day engages his sailors, carpenters, sail-makers, surgeons, stewards, cooks, cabin-boys, and all who are necessary to her proper care and navigation. Upon this occasion the captain opens the instructions he has received from the owners, and reads them to the assembled officers and crew. These instructions mention the time and place of sailing, the port of destination, and probable length of voyage; and the whole ship's company sign what are called articles of agreement, which are equally binding upon officers and men.

a

How

grateful ought we to be to those brave men who dare the perils of the deep, and shrink not from the certain danger that attends their useful and adventurous lives, to carry forward the commerce and defend the interests of their native land.

s the fox and the cat were
talking politics together in
the middle of the forest,
Renard said, let things turn
out ever so bad, he did not
care, for he had a thousand
tricks for them yet, before
they should hurt him.
"But

pray Mr. Puss," said he, "sup

pose there should be an invasion, what course do

you intend to take ?"-"Nay," replied the cat, "I have but one shift for it, and if that won't do, I am undone.”—“I am sorry for you," replied Renard, "with all my heart, and would gladly furnish you with one or two of mine; but, indeed, neighbour, as times go, it is not good to trust; we must even be every one for himself, as the saying is, and so your humble servant." These words were scarcely out of his mouth, when they were alarmed by a pack of hounds that came upon them in full cry. The cat, by the help of his single shift, ran up a tree, and sat securely among the top branches ; from whence he beheld Renard, who had not been able to get out of sight, overtaken with his thousand tricks, and torn in as many pieces by the dogs that surrounded him.

POLITENESS OF A BEAR.

There are a great many bears in Norway, but they seldom do any injury to the inhabitants, who are therefore not afraid of them. A Norwegian was once about to cross a river in a boat. While he was sitting in one end of the boat, a bear very gravely walked into the other end of it, and seated himself. The boatman rowed across the river; the bear then jumped upon the land, and ran into the wood without offering to pay toll, or even saying so much to the boatman as "thank you."

PRIDE.

Pride puts on various forms-there is a family pride by which we pretend to the merits of others: this ought to make us exceedingly cautious of our own conduct. There is a pride of learning-the sure sign of ignorance. And there is a money pride, which is always a sign of an empty head or empty pockets.

QUEEN
AT

MARY'S
HOLYROOD HOUSE.

SUN-DIAL

HEN you have seen a sun-dial in a garden you will understand the meaning of the engraving. This is one which is said to have belonged to Mary, Queen of Scots, who was beheaded by her cousin queen Elizabeth. It stands in the garden of Holyrood-house, the royal palace of Edinburgh, where Mary resided before she was taken prisoner. The purpose of the sun-dial, as you are aware, is to show the correct time of the day. A dial, or clock-face, is laid upon a flat surface, above which

is raised a triangular piece of metal; and as the sun rises or sinks in the heavens, the hand of the dial throws a shadow across the figures, and so tells the time of the day. This is a very simple method, you will perceive, of finding the hour; and yet for hundreds of years men had no other means of reckoning time than by observing the rising and setting of the sun, moon, and stars.

THE NATURALIST.

THE LONG TAILED MONKEYS OF THE OLD WORLD.

HESE form a separate family of the monkey-tribe, and are the most sociable and tractable of any of the race. They are known by a long face and small head; beauty of covering, and extreme length of tail, which in some species is as long as the rest of the body. The GUENON, which is the scientific name for the long-tailed monkeys of Asia and Africa, is deficient in intelligence; and while possessing most of the characteristics of the family, is not so acute as the ape, or so beastly in his habits as the baboon. The ENTELLAS, SO called

by Dufresne from its fancied resemblance to an old man, is described as being almost a distinct species. Its movements

are slow, and its coun

tenance, instead of

being gay and lively, like the rest of the monkey