soldier, which will not suffer the thief in the hulks to be ill-fed or overworked, and which has repeatedly endeavoured to save the life even of the murderer.

9. It is true that compassion ought, like all other feelings, to be under the government of reason, and has, for want of such government, produced some ridiculous and some deplorable effects. But the more we study the annals of the past, the more shall we rejoice that we live in a merciful age, in an age in which cruelty is abhorred, and in which pain, even when deserved, is inflicted reluctantly and from a sense of duty. Every class, doubtless, has gained largely by this great moral change; but the class which has gained most is the poorest, the most dependent, and the most defenceless.

Macaulay.

en-deavoured

mur'-der-er

gov'-ern-ment

la'-bour-er

so-ci'-e-ty

in-flict'-ed

scaf'-fold

cen'-tu-ry

re-flect'

doubt'-less

at-mos-phere de-fence'-less

dis'-ci-pline, order; regulations.
ef-fi'-cient, thorough.
in'-fin-ite-ly, very greatly.
coin'-ing, making false money.
sym'-pa-thy, feeling for.

galled horse, a horse with a sore on
its skin caused by rubbing.
spec'-ta-cle, sight.

di-ver'-sions, amusements.

glad'-i-a-tors, men who fight for show.

com'-bat-ants, fighters.

sem'-in-ar-ies, schools, or places
where something is taught.
as-siz'-es, the sittings of a court in
counties twice a year.

cul'-prits, criminals.

dock, the box in a court in which

the accused person stands.

ju'-ry, a body of not less than twelve men met to declare the truth on evidence before them.

com-pas'-sion, pity.

pries, looks carefully into.

em'-i-grant ship, a ship containing people leaving their Own country to settle in another. win'-ces, shrinks back.

hulks, old ships, which were once
used as prisons.
ri-dic-u-lous, foolish, absurd.
de-plor'-a-ble, bad, evil.
ann'-als, story of past events.
ab-horred', strongly disliked.
re-luc'-tant-ly, unwillingly.
de-pend'-ent, relying upon the help
of others.

EXERCISES.-1. The Greek prefix (1) epi- means upon; as epitaph, a writing upon a tombstone (tomb). (2) Eu- means well; as euphony, an agreeable sound; eulogy, a speaking well of.

2. Analyse and parse the following: 'It is pleasing to reflect that the public mind of England has softened while it has ripened.'

3. Make sentences of your own, and use in each one or more of the following words: Convenient, spectacle, reluctantly, abhor.

WINTER EVENING IN THE COUNTRY.

[In this extract from the Task, William Cowper describes a winter evening in the country, when surrounded by domestic comfort.]

1. Hark! 'tis the twanging horn o'er yonder bridge,
That with its wearisome but needful length
Bestrides the wintry flood, on which the moon
Sees her unwrinkled face reflected bright:
He comes, the herald of a noisy world,

With spattered boots, strapped waist, and frozen locks,

News from all nations lumbering at his back.
True to his charge, the close-packed load behind,
Yet careless what he brings, his one concern
Is to conduct it to the destined inn,

And, having dropped the expected bag, pass on.

2. He whistles as he goes, light-hearted wretch, Cold and yet cheerful: messenger of grief

Perhaps to thousands, and of joy to some,
To him indifferent whether grief or joy.
Houses in ashes, and the fall of stocks,
Births, deaths, and marriages, epistles wet

With tears, that trickled down the writer's cheeks
Fast as the periods from his fluent quill,

Or charged with amorous sighs of absent swains,

Or nymphs responsive, equally affect

His horse and him, unconscious of them all.

3. But, oh, the important budget! ushered in
With such heart-shaking music, who can say
What are its tidings? Have our troops awaked?
Or do they still, as if with opium drugged,
Snore to the murmurs of the Atlantic wave?
Is India free? and does she wear her plumed
And jewelled turban with a smile of peace,
Or do we grind her still? The grand debate,
The popular harangue, the tart reply,
The logic, and the wisdom, and the wit,
And the loud laugh-I long to know them all;
I burn to set the imprisoned wranglers free,
And give them voice and utterance once again.
4. Now stir the fire, and close the shutters fast,
Let fall the curtains, wheel the sofa round,
And while the bubbling and loud-hissing urn
Throws up a steamy column, and the cups
That cheer but not inebriate wait on each,
So let us welcome peaceful evening in.
Not such his evening who, with shining face,
Sweats in the crowded theatre, and, squeezed

And bored with elbow-points through both his sides, Outscolds the ranting actor on the stage.

M

5. O Winter, ruler of the inverted year,
I love thee, all unlovely as thou seem'st
And dreaded as thou art. Thou hold'st the sun
A prisoner in the yet undawning east,
Shortening his journey between morn and noon,
And hurrying him, impatient of his stay,
Down to the rosy west, but kindly still,
Compensating his loss with added hours
Of social converse and instructive ease,
And gathering, at short notice, in one group
The family dispersed, and fixing thought,
Not less dispersed by daylight and its cares.
I crown thee king of intimate delights,
Fireside enjoyments, home-born happiness,
And all the comforts that a lowly roof
Of undisturbed retirement and the hours
Of long, uninterrupted evenings know.

twang'-ing, sharp, quick sounding.

re-flect'-ed, mirrored; imaged.
her'-ald, person bringing or pro-
claiming the news.

locks, hair.

lum'-ber-ing, hanging heavily.

fall of stocks. Stocks is a term

applied to the various funds which constitute the national debt, and which may be bought and sold. There are also railway stocks, bank stocks, &c. These stocks are said to fall when they become less valuable.

e-pis'-tles, letters.

tric'-kled, dropped quietly. flu'-ent quill, ready pen.

am'-or-ous, loving.

swains, lovers.

nymphs, ladies.

William Cowper.

im-pa'-tient
in-struct'-ive

in'-ti-mate

un-in-ter-rupt'-ed

re-spon'-sive, replying.

un-con'-scious, having no knowledge of.

budg'-et, letters or newspapers containing the news.

tur'-ban, an Eastern head-dress,
consisting of a cap with a sash
worn round it.

har-angue', a loud speech addressed
to a multitude of people.
wran'-glers, persons disputing.
in-e'-bri-ate, intoxicate; take away
the senses. The line in which
this expression occurs refers to
tea, which was then scarcer
and higher priced than now.

rant'-ing, shouting.

the in-vert'-ed year, the winter

is so decided a contrast to summer that the year is described as 'inverted' or turned

EXERCISES.-1. The Greek prefix

about, as an hourglass is turned. com-pen'-sat-ing, making up for. so'-cial con'-verse, friendly talk. dis-persed', scattered.

(1) hemi- means half; as hemisphere, half a sphere. (2) Hyper- means over, above; as hypercritical, over-critical; hyperbole, a figure of speech representing things much greater or less than they really are.

2. Analyse and parse the first four lines of stanza 1.

3. Make sentences of your own, and use in each one or more of the following words: Unconscious, inebriate, compensate, disperse.

THE MERCHANT OF VENICE-I.

[Besides his charming Essays, Charles Lamb, with the assistance of his sister Mary, wrote prose versions of many of the plays of Shakspeare. This is his prose narrative of the Merchant of Venice. The trial scene, however, is given in Shakspeare's own words.]

1. Shylock, the Jew, lived at Venice: he was an usurer, who had amassed an immense fortune by lending money at great interest to Christian merchants. Shylock, being a hard-hearted man, exacted the