teresting, because she knew the tune-she played it through several times, but so quickly that she was soon tired, and left the piano after practising only twenty minutes. Rose The day after she practised no longer than a quarter of an hour. The difficult bars were tried for a little while by themselves. thought then that she ought to notice the fingering, which her aunt marked, but, by this time she had heard what she thought was the tune so often, that she was rather too tired to begin it again. "Oh, Rose!" said Ann, on the fourth day, "you had better not leave off yet-I was afraid when you were so delighted with the piece at first, and began to practise so fast, that you would not practise it long!" "But," said Rose, "I know it now perfectly." When Ann sat down to practise the same piece, she began very differently. It cost her much more time. She slowly noticed the "fingering," and soon played the first three bars; but the fourth bar was not to be done so soon. She tried it three times, then six-and then six times more, but would not give it up nor pass it over to go on to the next. So, at the end of an hour, she had made very slow progress, and could only play seven bars-but, they were all played well. In three days more, Ann could play the whole tune. Some of the bars had been practised, separately, more than thirty times! But, when, after more practice, she could play them all easily, the whole piece sounded beautifully. Ann liked it more and more, and played it slowly every day, without feeling tired, until the Saturday, when her aunt returned. He W. I am quite sure that that is a good proverb, papa. In our book of fables, there is a tale about a tortoise and a hare who ran a race. The hare, you know, ran so fast that he did not run long. soon lay down to rest; and whilst he was resting, because he had tired himself, the slow old tortoise going on, and going on steadily, reached the end of the journey first. Ion. Yes, and I can tell you a moral tale about myself, papa-it is a fact, and that is better than a fable. Last Tuesday, when you and mamma went away in the omnibus, mamma told us, before she went, to weed the long bed in the garden. I get some cabbage-leaves for our So Willie and I marked out a very large piece for ourselves, because we were boys. W. Ah, and we gave Lucy and Ada the little piece, because they were girls. Ion. Well, papa-we worked away very fast-about twice as fast as the girls. We raised a great heap of weeds, and soon made ourselves in such a mess-but still we pulled and kept on pulling, as hard as we could, until our backs ached, and we were both in a perspiration. Then we went to get some water to drink. "Well," said Willie, "I think we will stop a little. We will rest a bit under the apple tree. We can work faster than they can, and will soon finish what they leave." After we had rested we began to sing a little. Then we went to rabbits-we next climbed up the apple tree; and Willie tore a hole in the knee of his trousers ;-so we went in the house to get them mended, and then came back to help Lucy-and, what do you think, papa? P. Why, I feel sure that Lucy had been doing your work for you. Ion. Yes, so she had. She had weeded her own piece, and had almost finished ours-she was so sorry that we did not wait two minutes longer. W. And what was more, papashe had worked two hours, and did not feel tired. P. That was because she worked slowly. Both Ada and Lucy might have made you sit down, and have preached this proverb to you again-"He that runs fast will not run long." LAPLAND. WITH blue cold nose, and wrinkled brow, From Lapland woods and hills of frost, Where the wolf and arctic fox -From icy oceans, where the whale VERTEBRATED ANIMALS. WILLIE'S FRAMEWORK. M. Here, Willie, is the drawing of your framework. Papa finished it last night. Ion. What a curious thing, mamma-let us all look at it! Yes, Willie, it must be like your framework, because it has such short legs. How bony it is! W. It hasn't a very pleasant look. M. Ah! but it is a very pleasant thing to learn about. See if we don't get some pleasant thoughts out of it! We will learn the names of these different bones, and their uses. How many parts do you notice in it, Willie? W. Ever so many. It is all parts. But I haven't half noticed it yet. Please let me look at it a little longer. Look, Ion-there's a queer bone! M. Well, Willie, now you have done looking at it-which do you call the principal parts? W. I should think that the Head must be one. What would it be without that! Then the middle part-the body, or the Trunk as it is called-is another principal part; and then, what is left? Why, there are legs and arms remaining, that is all-they are called Limbs. So, that there are three principal parts, (1.) The Head, (2.) The Trunk, The Limbs. I suppose we shall learn of one of these parts at a time. May we hear about the Trunk first? I want so much to learn about my backbone. M. It is time to leave off that word backbone. You must call it the "spine." L. Ah, mamma! Just as our M. That is true-count them! Ion. I will, mamma.—1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11,-12, oh! there are too many. M. Well, you cannot count them easily. I will tell youthere are thirty-three of these little bones in the spine. Each bone is called a vertebra. That is why we are called Vertebrated Animals. Here is a drawing of a single vertebra. wonderful little nerves in your body, do not exactly begin at the brain. They begin at little openings in the spine between the vertebræ. L. I see the openings, mamma. They are marked in the drawingthere are some little holes between the joints. M. At these openings, then, they are joined to the spinal cord, which I told you before, is joined to the brain. W. Perhaps that is the reason why the spine has so many little bones-that there may be openings between them. M. If you think, Willie, you may find a better reason than that. If your spine were a straight bone, Ion. It has a hole in the middle like the bone of your leg, there of it, mamma. L. To be sure it has! - and when the bones are placed on top of each other, as they are-these holes in them form one long holea tube. Thus, the spine is hollow like the bones of our legs-and so it should be, that it may be stronger. M. Yes, and this tube has even a higher purpose than giving strength to the bone. Listen. Do you remember my telling you that all the nerves in your body meet in one part the brain? You wondered how they could all be made to reach one place-now, I will show you. This tube in the spine is useful, because it forms a case for a sort of marrow, or pith. This marrow or pith is called the Spinal Cord. It extends the whole length of the tube, and at the top, it joins the brain in your skull. Do you understand that? Ion. Yes, I do, mamma, very well-and I think that Ada does. M. Very well. Now, all those might still be little holes in it for the nerves, but then, what a straight-backed, stiff-necked fellow you would be! You could never stoop to pick up anything. W. Nor could I move my head to look down easily, and I could never make a bow. I see now, these joints in the spine make it more bendable-flexible, I mean. Is not that the proper name for a thing that will bend? M. Yes, but not for everything that bends. W. Then, mamma, the spine is a famous bone, it has such good qualities 1st, It is strong, and yet 3rd, The hollow tube in it, not only gives it strength, but forms a case for the spinal cord-it is the railroad for my electric telegraphs -the Nerves. L. And with plenty of stations in it-one at every joint. M. Yes, this bone is full of wonders-it is one of the many parts of your body from which you may |