a lily instead of a violet, but we will not try to change his name now. We all know him very well, and are glad to welcome his return with the first warm days of spring.

He first spreads out his mantle of green, white, and purple, so that his friends may know that before long he will be here himself. He is as good as his word; and as if by magic, we see him standing with his spotted cloak around him, and his yellow cap turned up, giving us a good view of his happy face. He has not rung in vain, for a whole troop of his companions are ready to welcome him.

Standing beside him, and willing to shake hands at any time, is that delicate little creature, the Spring Beauty. She is very frail, and does not seem able to bear much, and we will handle her very carefully as we look with wonder on her delicate beauty.

Her gauzy, rose-colored dress seems ready to melt at the touch, and we smile to see what a low bow her friend, the Dog-tooth-violet, gives her. She is a little queen, and he knows it. They are enjoying each other's society so well, that we can leave them to themselves; for in their quiet way, they are having a confidential chat that we will not listen to.

Farther on, where the thickets are lost in the deeper woods, we see the blue-bird's flower-the dainty Hepatica. Clustering among the dead leaves of the past summer, at the roots of the trees, or covering large patches in the upland forest, they cluster together in a timid, wide-awake manner. Very gentle and loving they seem to be, and though they do jostle one another a good deal, they never complain, but smile and wink, and go on stretching

up their downy necks that they may show their beautiful new dresses to the blue sky, as it looks down at them through the bare branches of the trees.

Near by, within speaking distance, the Bloodroot is unfolding her pearly spring dress; and shaking out all its creases, she arrays herself in it, and stands up looking like a bride in her gold and pearls.

These lovely spring blossoms, the fairies that attend Mother Nature in all her rambles through woodland and meadow, have been tenderly cared for by her through the long winter. She has had them tucked up most carefully in their snug, little beds, with snow-white blankets wrapped around them, and, by a gentle rocking, peculiarly her own, has kept them sleeping through the long, cold night.

And now, when they hear her gentle voice calling them, they are only too glad to obey, and, like obedient children, come and go at her bidding.

The Buttercups, with their yellow dresses, fresh and new, are gilding meadows and uplands everywhere. They are not very particular, but are contented if they only have standing room. They open their eyes wide to the sunshine, and greet their friends, the daisies and violets, with a pleasant nod, while the children are delighted to reflect their little fat chins in their yellow cups.

These flowers are sturdy little fellows, some of them, and lift up their heads pretty high as they pass the gentle Wind-flowers, with the remark that they are too tender to live, and the Wind-flowers, as though hurt by the remark, gently close their mild eyes, bow their heads, and, before long, fade

away out of sight; while the Buttercup, in his strength and vain-glory, keeps on his march through the long summer days.

The voice of that little orator, Jack-in-the-Pulpit, is heard just as soon as it is considered safe for him to speak without danger of getting cold and having a sore throat. He erects his pulpit,

spreads his canopy over it, and then commences his speech, which well pays all that hear it. He is very attractive in his fanciful robe of green-spotted velvet, and is considered the king of his time; but as his labors and strength are spent almost entirely in the grand old woods, hundreds of his subjects are off at play, on the lawns, in the meadows, and by the brook side.

Those comical little beauties, the Dutchman's Breeches, may be seen any time climbing the low hill-side, or waving their feathery leaves in the margin of the woods; and, although they spend their time mainly in lolling about on the young grass, or even on the bare ground, their waxy-white garments are never soiled, and they are the envy of their neighbors.

The Columbine in her scarlet and gold, that lives in the rocky castle just above him, on the summit of the knoll, is shaking her head in displeasure at his laziness, telling him that he can never be any body as long as he is content to live such a quiet, humdrum life, never getting up on the highlands, or making any expeditions among chasms or dangerous depths; for her part, she delights in gazing down steep places, and clinging to the rock side, enjoying many a chat with the Harebells, whom he never meets. But the flowers all know the Col

umbine, and feel that if she does hold her head so high up in the world, she is kind at heart and means well.

Far out on the distant prairies and bluffs of the West, are seen some rare gems of flowers. Queen among them all is the lovely Pasque-flower, or, as it is called, the Easter-bell, because she presents her "lilies" at Easter. Before the ground has been warmed even by the early spring sun, we see her pushing up into view her flower-bud, covered with plush of the softest brown. She stands alone on the bare, cold ground, with the chill winds blowing over her; often making her first offering before there is even one blade of green grass to welcome her, and her sister flowers are yet sleeping soundly in their beds.

The beautiful brown plush of her cloak is lined with bluish-purple, shading to white; and when she unveils her face in all its beauty, a fairer one was never seen. Her Eastern cousins would gaze in delight if they could only see her, but they probably never will; for she is queen among the spring flowers of the West, and never leaves home.

The Dodecatheon," or Shooting-star, as it is familiarly called, is a tall, graceful flower, hanging its crown of lilac and pinkish blossoms in wing-like clusters on the summit of the stem. It is a remarkable flower, noted for its grace and beauty, and grows in lavish profusion in the hazel-thickets.

But one long, bright, summer day would not give us time enough to tell the names, even of the darlings east and west, that people our groves, meadows, and brook sides; beginning with that fragrant, waxy

gem, the Trailing Arbutus, and closing our list with the last blossoms of the season, the waving Goldenrod and the classic Blue Gentian.

They smile on us from every nook the sun shines on, and lift their bright eyes to the sky in mute adoration, always receiving storm and sunshine alike, in quiet content.

MARY W. ALLEN.

Notes.-The Dog-tooth-violet is so called on account of two projections somewhat resembling blunt teeth near the base of its petals.

The Pasque-flower (pask) derives its name from pasque, an old French word meaning Easter. The flower blooms about the time of the Easter festival.

Do de cath'e on (dodeka, twelve; theoi, gods) is a name given by the poetic naturalist, Linnæus, inasmuch as the twelve

flowers seemed to him to deserve the name of divinities.

Elocution.-State what inflections should be employed in reading the first paragraph on page 74.

Point out the position of rhetorical pauses in the first paragraph of the lesson.

Language. The lesson, although prose in form, resembles poetry both in thought and language. It may therefore be called a prose-poem.

In the statement-"The day is gaining on the night," is the thought of a race between day and night suggested?- If so, name the figure of comparison employed.

When we speak of flowers as rubbing their sleepy eyes, rising and dressing, we attribute to them the actions of persons. A metaphor in which human characteristics are attributed to objects not properly possessing them, is called personification.

What figure of comparison is used in the expression-Dame Nature?

Composition. - Use as a subject for analysis and treatmentButtercups and Daisies.

Remark. The description of flowers will afford matter for an occasional composition, to those interested in the subject of botany. The habits of observation and classification acquired through the study of plants and other natural objects, will lead to the systematic arrangement of thoughts upon any subject, and prove invaluable aids to original composition.