I miss thee from my side When the light of day grows pale; When with eyelids opened wide, Thou wouldst list the oft-told tale, And the murdered babes bewail; Yet so greedy of thy pain, That when all my lore would fail, I must needs begin again. I miss thee from my side In the haunts that late were thine; Where thy twinkling feet would glide, And thy clasping fingers twine; Here are checkered tumblers nine, Silent relics of thy play ; Here the mimic tea-things shine, THE FROZEN DOVE. AWAY from the path! silly dove, Where the foot that may carelessly tread To sink mid the shadows of night, Poor Bird! thou hast pictured the fate In a cold and a pitiless world, Bewilder'd and palsied, like thine, Has the wing of the spirit been furl'd. The heart the most tender and light, In its warmth to the earth has been thrown, With the chill of adversity's night, To suffer and perish alone. THE TURKEY AND THE ANT. A FABLE. In other men, we faults can spy, And blame the mote that dims their eye, Each little speck and blemish find; To our own stronger errors blind. A turkey, tired of common food, Forsook the barn, and sought the wood; Collecting here and there a grain. "Draw near, my birds," the mother cries, Behold the busy creeping race, An ant who climbed beyond his reach, Bid thy own conscience look within. Nor for a breakfast nations kill." PETER THE GREAT, CZAR OF RUSSIA. In all countries, there is a chief ruler. In some, he is called "King," in others, "Emperor," in others, "President." In Russia, the chief ruler is called "Czar." Peter the First, or Peter the Great as he was afterwards called, was the first Czar of the name of Peter. He was born in the year 1672, and lost his father when only ten years old; and at the early age of seventeen, he was acknowledged by the Russians as their chief ruler or Czar. The Russians were at that time, a very ignorant and barbarous nation. It is true that all the other nations of Europe were also much more ignorant and barbarous than they are now; but the Russians were looked upon as barbarians even by them. Peter, although wanting instruction quite as much as the people of whom he was ruler, was fortunately aware of his igno rance. There are two kinds of ignorant people. One, who with their ignorance, are contented to remain ignorant all their lives; the other, who are sensible of their ignorance, but are, at the same time, sorry for it, and are resolved to spare no exertion to learn and improve. Peter was of the latter kind; and it has been often and justly remarked, that it is a great step towards knowledge to be sensible of one's own ignorance. It was not Peter's fault that he had no kind instructer to teach him in his childhood- it was his misfortune. Happily for him, while still a young man, he became acquainted with a foreigner of the name of Le Fort, who was an instructed man, and by whose advice and example, he was urged to take those pains with himself, which made him the useful man, that he afterwards proved to be. Peter was soon led to form many plans for improving the condition of the Russians, both by increasing their knowledge, and by introducing tools, articles of dress and manufactures, which as yet were unknown in Russia. To assist himself in these plans, he applied industriously to the study of the German and Dutch languages, and as Le Fort was acquainted with these languages, he was able to help Peter in his laborious undertaking. From Russians, and from Russian writings, he could not expect to learn anything. From Germans and Dutchmen, and from German and Dutch books, he knew that he might learn many things that would be useful to him. But as few foreigners could speak or write in Russia, it was necessary, if he wished to learn what foreigners alone could teach, that he should learn their languages. It was for this reason that he determined to make himself master of the Dutch and German languages. Peter became warmly attached to Le Fort. He saw that he had met with a true friend; one willing to advise, assist, warn and teach him- not a mere flatterer, ready to assent to whatever he might propose. |