THE SPARROWS. 1. WHAT a great time the sparrows have in the fall of the year, making preparations to go on their southern journey. They seem to be very fond of company. "The more the merrier," is their motto. When the leaves of the forest trees begin to fade, and the first frosts appear, these little birds begin to assemble in flocks. 2. At first, you will see only a dozen or two together. But the number rapidly increases as the autumn advances. Before the weather becomes very cold, hundreds join the party. They seem to know, by the signs they discover around them, that winter is coming; and so they set themselves about the business of preparing for it. 3. Dear reader, these little birds show their wisdom in this provision for the future. They are taught that they cannot endure the cold of a northern clime, that they cannot remain where the ground is wrapped in a mantle of snow. In the language of another, "Thus taught, they meditate a speedy flight; For this, even now, they prune their vigorous wing; For this consult, advise, prepare, excite, And prove their strength in many an airy ring. "And does no power its friendly aid dispense, Nor give us tidings of some happier clime? Find we no guide in gracious Providence 66 Beyond the stroke of death, the verge of time? Yes, yes! the sacred oracles we read, Point out the path to brighter realms above; 240 SEQUEL TO THE GRADUAL READER. They bid our hearts nor death nor anguish heed, “Then let us timely for our flight prepare, "Let no fond love for earth exact a sigh, No doubts divert our steady steps aside, Nor let us long to live, nor dread to die; Heaven is our hope, and Providence our guide." |