who had on board a great quantity of meal from Scotland, was willing to share the danger and the honour. The two merchantmen were to be escorted by the Dartmouth frigate of thirty-six guns, commanded by Captain John Leake, afterwards an admiral of great fame. in-de-fat'-i-ga-ble, untiring. rev'-el-ling, feasting. ex-hort'-ed, advised. re'-sol-ute-ly, bravely. pop-u-lar'-i-ty, good name among the people. cor'-pu-lent, fat. made matters worse. in-tel'-li-gi-ble, easily understood. des-patch', official letter. arm'-a-ment, body of armed men. suc'-cour-ing, helping. es-cort'-ed, accompanied. EXERCISES.-1. Make nouns from the following nouns: City, fire, man, grain, mouth, diet, God. 2. Make nouns from the following verbs: Inhabit, slay, survive, exhort, examine, follow, assure, relieve, succeed. 3. Name the verbs from which these nouns are formed: Slaughter, existence, resolution, provisions, action, remonstrance, difference. 4. Make sentences of your own, and use in each sentence one or more of the following words: Exhort, remonstrate, succour, escort. 1. It was the thirtieth of July. The sun had just set-the evening sermon in the cathedral was over— and the heart-broken congregation had separated, when the sentinels on the tower saw the sails of three vessels coming up the Foyle. Soon there was a stir in the Irish camp. The besiegers were on the alert for miles along both shores. The ships were in extreme peril; for the river was low, and the only navigable channel ran very near to the left bank, where the headquarters of the enemy had been fixed, and where the batteries were most numerous. Leake performed his duty with a skill and spirit worthy his noble profession, exposed his frigate to cover the merchantmen, and used his guns with great effect. 2 At length the little squadron came to the place of peril. Then the Mountjoy took the lead, and went right at the boom. The huge barricade cracked and gave way; but the shock was such that the Mountjoy rebounded, and stuck in the mud. A yell of triumph rose from the banks; the Irish rushed to their boats, and were preparing to board; but the Dartmouth poured on them a well-directed broadside, which threw them into disorder. 3. Just then the Phoenix dashed at the breach which the Mountjoy had made, and was in a moment within the fence. Meantime the tide was rising fast. The Mountjoy began to move, and soon passed safe through the broken stakes and floating spars. But her brave master was no more. A shot from one of the batteries had struck him; and he died by the most enviable of all deaths, in sight of the city which was his birthplace, which was his home, and which had just been saved by his courage and selfdevotion from the most frightful form of destruction. 4. The night had closed in before the conflict of the boom began; but the flash of the guns was seen, and the noise heard, by the lean and ghastly multitude which covered the walls of the city. When the Mountjoy grounded, and when the shout of triumph rose from the Irish on both sides of the river, the hearts of the besieged died within them. One who endured the unutterable anguish of that moment, has told us that they looked fearfully livid in each other's eyes. C 5. Even after the barricade had been passed, there was a terrible half-hour of suspense. It was ten o'clock before the ships arrived at the quay. The whole population was there to welcome them. A screen made of casks filled with earth was hastily thrown up to protect the landing-place from the batteries on the other side of the river, and then the work of unloading began. 6. First were rolled on shore barrels containing six thousand bushels of meal. Then came great cheeses, casks of beef, flitches of bacon, kegs of butter, sacks of pease and biscuit, ankers of brandy. Not many hours before, half a pound of tallow, and threequarters of a pound of salted hide, had been weighed out with niggardly care to every fighting-man. The ration which each now received was three pounds of flour, two pounds of beef, and a pint of pease. 7. It is easy to imagine with what tears grace was said over the suppers of that evening. There was little sleep on either side of the wall. The bonfires shone bright along the whole circuit of the ramparts. The Irish guns continued to roar all night; and all night the bells of the rescued city made answer to the Irish guns with a peal of joyous defiance. 8. Through the whole of the thirty-first of July the batteries of the enemy continued to play. But, soon after the sun had again gone down, flames were seen arising from the camp; and when the first of August dawned, a line of smoking ruins marked the site lately occupied by the huts of the besiegers; and the citizens saw far off the long column of pikes and through. boom, bar across the harbour. nav-i-ga-ble, that might be sailed sus-pense', anxious waiting. squad'-ron, company of ships. bar'-ri-cade, something set up to hinder an enemy's advance. an'-ker, a measure of from seven to nine gallons. ra'-tion, quantity of provisions. ram'-parts, fortifications. EXERCISES.-1. Make adjectives from the following nouns : Peril, number, triumph, disorder, courage, ghost, earth. 2. Name the nouns from which these adjectives are formed: Worthy, fearful, terrible, hasty, virtuous, brazen, popular, circular, circuitous. 3. Make verbs from the following verbs: Stir, fix, move, close, mark, smear, lighten. THE TREASURES OF THE DEEP. [This is one of the shorter lyrical poems by Mrs Hemans.] 1. What hid'st thou in thy treasure caves and cells, Thou hollow-sounding and mysterious main? Pale glistening pearls and rainbow-coloured shells, Bright things which gleam unrecked of and in vain. Keep, keep thy riches, melancholy sea! We ask not such from thee. 2. Yet more, thy depths have more! What wealth untold, Far down, and shining through their stillness, lies! Thou hast the starry gems, the burning gold, Won from ten thousand royal argosies. |