THE KING WHO FANCIED HIS MINISTER WAS GUILTY OF EXAGGERATION.

One day a king together with his minister went out for a walk, and arrived at a field where there were stalks of wheat as tall as a man. The king was much astonished and said, I never saw wheat so tall as this." The minister replied, "My Lord! in my native country wheat grows as high as an elephant" The sovereign smiled, and the minister said to himself, "the king deems my words false, hence he smiles." When they had finished their walk he sent a letter to his friends in his own land asking for some stalks of corn; these, however, could not be gathered at the time the letter arrived, the harvest being over. In short, after a year some stalks of corn arrived. The minister went to the king, who demanded, "Why do you come here?" He represented, "Last year one day I stated that in my country corn grew to the height of an elephant, at which you smiled. I thought to myself that you doubted my assertion, so I have brought some stalks to verify my remark." The king said, "I now believe it, but beware not to make before any one a remark which cannot be verified till the lapse of a year."-PERSIAN TALES.

SAGACITY OF A FOX.

A tame fox that was kept in a stable-yard was on very friendly terms with several of the dogs, but he could never induce the cats to come near him. Cats have very keen smell, and the odour arising from the fox was displeasing to them; they would not walk on any spot where he had been standing, and kept at as great a distance from him as possible. The fox soon saw the distaste of the cats to his

company, so he made use of his knowledge to cheat them out of their breakfasts. As soon as their allowance of milk was poured out, he would run to the spot, and walk round the saucer, knowing that none of the cats would approach the defiled place. Day after day were the cats deprived of their milk; but the trick of the fox having been discovered, it was removed to some place where he could not get at it. The fox, not liking to be deprived of his morning draught, fell upon another plan for obtaining it. The dairymaid was in the habit of passing through the yard where the fox was, so he managed to go up to her and brush himself against one of the pails; the milk was immediately so tainted with the smell of the fox that the dairymaid did not venture to take it into the house, so she poured it out into a vessel and gave it to the cunning animal. He repeated this several times with success, but when the spoiled milk was given to the pigs, he left off troubling himself about it.-ANON.

ANECDOTE OF DR. PALEY.

"I spent the two first years of my college life happily, but unprofitably. I was constantly in society, where we were not immoral, but idle and expensive. At the commencement of the third year, after having left the usual party at a late hour, I was awakened at five in the morning by one of my companions, who stood at my bedside and said, ' Paley, I have been thinking what a fool you are. I could do nothing, probably, if I were to try, and I could afford the indolent life you lead. You could do everything, and cannot afford it. I have had no sleep during the whole night on account of these reflections, and am now come solemnly to inform you that if you persist in your indolence, I must renounce your society.' I was so

I ordered my

order that it

struck with the visit and the visitor that I lay in bed great part of the day, and formed my plan. bed-maker to lay my fire every evening, in might be lighted by myself. I arose at five, read during the whole day, took supper at nine, went to bed, and continued the practice up to this day." Such is Dr. Paley's led him to pursue

own account of the reason which first his studies with energy, and turn to account the vast talents which for many years were concealed under a cloak of indolence and sloth.-ANON.

FABLE-THE SHEPHERD AND HIS DOG.

A certain shepherd had a dog, upon whose fidelity he relied very much, for whenever he had an occasion to be absent himself, he committed the care and tuition of the flock to the charge of his dog; and to encourage him to do his duty cheerfully, he fed him constantly with delicate morsels, and sometimes threw him a crust or two more than usual. Yet, notwithstanding all this, no sooner was the man's back turned, but the treacherous cur fell foul upon the flock, and devoured the sheep, instead of guard ing and defending them. The shepherd being informed of this, was resolved to hang him; and the dog, when the rope was about his neck, and he was just going to be tied up, began to expostulate with his master, asking him, why he was so unmercifully bent against him, who was his own servant and creature, and had only committed one or two crimes; and why he did not rather execute revenge upon the wolf, who was a constant and declared enemy? Nay, replies the shepherd, it is for that reason that I think you ten times more worthy of death than he; from him 1 expected nothing but hostilities, and therefore could guard against him; you I depended upon as a just and faithful

servant, and fed and encouraged you accordingly; and therefore your treachery is the more notorious, and your ingratitude the more unpardonable.-ESOP's FABLES.

TRUTH.

A young offender, whose name was Charlie Mann, broke a large pane of glass in a chemist's shop, and ran away at first, for he was slightly frightened; but he quickly began to think, "What am I running for? It was an accident; why not turn about and tell the truth ?"

No sooner thought than done. Charlie was a brave boy ; he told the whole truth-how the ball with which he was playing slipped out of his hand, how frightened he was, how sorry too, at the mischief done, and how willing to pay if he had the money.

Charlie did not have the money, but he could work, and to work he went at once in the very shop where he broke the glass. It took him a long time to pay for the large and expensive pane he had shattered, but when it was done, he had so endeared himself to the chemist by his fidelity and truthfulness that he would not hear of his going away, and Charlie became his clerk. Ah, what a good day it was when I broke that window," he used to say.

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No, Charlie," his mother would respond, "what a good day it was when you were not afraid to tell the truth!"ANON.

FABLE-THE NIGHTINGALE AND THE HAWK.

A nightingale sitting all alone among the shady branches of an oak, sung with so melodious and shrill a voice, that she made the woods echo again, and aroused a hungry hawk, who was at some distance off, watching for his prey. He had no sooner discovered the little musician but, making a

swoop at the place, he seized her with his crooked talons, and bid her prepare for death. "Ah!" says she, "for mercy's sake do not do so barbarous a thing, and so unbecoming to yourself. Consider, I never did you any wrong, and am but a poor small morsel for such a stomach as yours; rather attack some larger fowl, which may bring you more credit and a better meal, and let me go." "Ay!" says the hawk, "persuade me to do it if you can; I have been upon the watch all the day long, and have not met with one bit of anything till I caught you; and now you would have me let you go, in hopes of something better, would you? Pray, who would be the fool then?"-ESOP's Fables.

ANECDOTE OF A SICK ELEPHANT.

An elephant at Calcutta had a disease in his eyes. For three days he was completely blind. His owner, an Engineer officer, asked my dear Dr. Webb if he could do anything to relieve the poor animal. The doctor said he would try the nitrate of silver, which was a remedy commonly applied to similar diseases in the human eye. The large animal was ordered to lie down, and at first, on the application of the remedy, raised a most extraordinary roar at the acute pain which it occasioned. The effect, however, was wonderful. The eye was in restored, and the animal could partially see. day, when he was brought and heard the doctor's voice, he laid down of himself, placed his enormous head on one side, curled up his trunk, drew in his breath just like a man about to endure an operation, gave a sigh of relief when it was over, and then, by trunk and gesture, evidently wished to express his gratitude. What sagacity! what a lesson to us of patience!-BISHOP WILSON.

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