"I'm sure you will not, I will not let you," said Arthur opening the door. "What do you think I asked you for? Now come in."

"Don't take hold of my arm like that," said Samuel; "I don't want to be pulled in. If I mean to come in I will come, and if I don't mean to, I won't;" and with that he drew away his arm so violently that he nearly pulled Arthur down the steps. When Samuel did this Arthur felt his blood rising, and he was just going to say, "I think you had better go home," when he remembered the words "suffereth long and is kind." Then he was kind to Samuel again. "Come in," he said, "now do! there's a good fellow."

At these kind words Samuel changed for the better; he even seemed to smile, and he followed Arthur into the house.

Let us follow him.

Samuel sat by himself in the corner of the room, and watched all around him. The lustres on the mantelpiece looked pleasant, and twinkled and glittered, and sparkled; and the two great camphine lamps glowed pleasantly, and the light of the fire on the flower of the hearth-rug was pleasant, and so was the warm comfortable feeling in the room, and the joyful look of the children; and then again, at the end of the room some one was sitting at the piano, and was playing a pleasant tune-indeed, all was very pleasant, except the countenance of Samuel.

"How do you do, my dear?" said Arthur's mamma,coming up

to him; "how is your mamma?"

"Don't know," said Samuel gruffly, and he turned his head away, for he saw some toast, and muffins and cake being brought into the room. He only thought to himself, "I can eat plenty of cake."

Samuel thought correctly; he could eat plenty of cake, and he did. He ate four pieces of cake, four biscuits, four pieces of toast, and many other things, until he was quite tired, and his face was very sticky with marmalade and other sweet things.

Arthur was sitting near to Samuel, and could not help seeing how much he ate. When he saw him take a fifth piece of cake he thought, You are a greedy fellow!" and he had a great mind to say to him, "I think you have had enough." He then ran to the other side of the room to his mamma. "Mamma," he said, "I wish you would come to Samuel, he has eaten five pieces of cake!" "Well, my dear!" said his mamma, you cannot say to him, you shall not have any more."

"But I wish you would, mamma, I cannot bear to see him eat so; it makes me feel angry."

"But you should not feel angry. You need not notice him, and if you really can't help noticing that he is doing wrong, you should suffer long, and be kind' to him."

"I never did feel kind to Samuel," said Arthur; "but I will try:" so he went back to his seat. Directly Samuel had

eaten his last piece of cake, Arthur went up to him and offered him some other good things. "Just try these ratifees," he said. Samuel took several and put them into his plate, but he did not look into Arthur's face, nor did he say "thank you."

"He's a disagreeable fellow," said Arthur to himself, as he sat down again—“it is very hard-work to be kind to him." "Here is the bagatelleboard," said Frederick Carter, directly after tea. "Now who will play?"

"I will," said Edward Hall; "and so will I," said Samuel Croker; and all said, "I will."

"Six on each side," said Frederick Carter, " and Samuel Croker over-oh, we don't want him," he added, " for he cheats." "Hush, Fred!" said Arthur, coming up; "I am sure Samuel wouldn't do so. Let us make him 'Jack o' both sides.""

Accordingly Samuel was made Jack, but he did not play well; and once, when he only counted three, he placed the peg ten holes beyond the right place.

"There! you are cheating," said James Foster to him; "I saw you move the peg!"

"I was not!" said Samuel directly; and then a dispute arose. The boys were going to count up all the marks, but Arthur, who had been out of the room, came up and took Samuel's part.

game; but though Samuel was much relieved, he was not more kind to Arthur than before. He acted like a selfish and mischievous boy. Afterwards when he was looking at the scrap-book, he turned over the leaves before the other children had seen the pictures; when he wished to look through Arthur's microscope he tried to push the other children out of their places, that he might see first. Arthur could hardly bear this; he felt much inclined to push him back again; but then he thought once more of his motto, "suffereth long and is kind."

"It is really very hard to be kind to him," Arthur once more said to his mamma, shortly afterwards; "he quite spoils our party." He had no sooner said this than he found that the boy was in trouble again. A servant had brought in the magic-lantern to exhibit; he had placed the lantern on its stand, and while his back was turned, Samuel had climbed on the stand to peep into the lantern, in doing which he took hold of the lantern violently, pulled it down upon himself, and injured it.

This time he injured himself also, for the edge of the lantern had bruised his forehead. When the other boys saw this they said that it served him right. Arthur felt half inclined to say so too, but his mamma was close to him, "Don't let us be angry with him," said his mamma; "remember that he is our visitor-so try and excuse him."

cried out loudly against Samuel, but Arthur again took his part. Some said that he hindered all their games and ought to be sent home; but Arthur said, "We will not be angry with him this time; I think he won't do so any more.' ." Samuel really looked grateful to Arthur when he said this. Arthur noticed that it was the first pleasant look he had shown during the evening. His mamma noticed it too, and when she went out of the room she called Arthur to her.

"You see, Arthur," she said, "that though Samuel is so very mischievous, you have done him some good. If you will keep on being kind to him you will in time make him better."

"But, mamma, it will take a great deal of kindness to do that. I think nearly all the boys have "suffered long" during the evening; but what is that? There's a great noise in the parlour again."

When Arthur and his mamma returned to see what was the matter, they were met with the cry, "It is Samuel Croker again"-"Master Croker has pushed him down."

Arthur found that James Foster had been telling Samuel that he was mischievous, and Samuel in anger had pushed him under the table. His companions were all much vexed now, and were taking Foster's part; they said, that Samuel was too rude, and really ought to go home.

"I am not rude," said Samuel, "you are rude! I didn't mean to hurt him. I think I will go

home. I don't like parties. Let me go!"

66

'No, you shall not go," said one of the boys, taking hold of him-"you are my prisoner, and we mean to try you. Arthur, you come and sit in this chair and be judge."

"No, I would rather not," said Arthur; "no, let him go! Here is Edward Hall, he will be judge."

"I am not going to be tried," said Samuel surlily; "I am going home."

"No, you are not," said another boy, seizing his other arm; 66 we mean to try you for being so naughty-it will be good fun." So Arthur was forced into a chair, and made to sit there as the judge.

Samuel Croker pulled very hard to get away, but he found that he could not escape from his two policemen. He did not know whether they were joking or in earnest; so he looked on the ground and said nothing.

I cannot tell you of all that was said at the trial; one boy after another said that he had been rude; and when Samuel himself heard all they had to report, he began to feel very guilty indeed. When his two policemen told the judge to pass sentence upon him, and said that he ought to be transported, he almost feared that they would really do so.

"I don' know what sentence to pass, I am sure," said Arthur; “I had better ask the jury."

"We will be the jury," said some of the boys-"we say he ought to be sent home without any supper."

"I will ask mamma," said Arthur; "she will make a very good jury."

The judge then left his chair to consult with his jury; and soon he returned with his sentence written upon a piece of paper.

When Samuel looked at the piece of paper, and observed that all were waiting in silence, he felt more afraid than before. "It has been proved," said Arthur, as he stood up on his chair and looked at the paper, "It has been proved that the prisoner was not polite to my mamma, when he was spoken to-it has been proved that he did not agree with the other boys when playing at bagatelle -it has been proved that he pushed some of his friends out of their places, that he broke my magic lantern, that he knocked down James Foster, and did other disorderly things." "Go on!" said the other children.

"Wait till I find the place," said Arthur, looking again at the paper. "It is the opinion of the jury, however," he continued, "that the prisoner ought to be-ACQUITTED!"

"Hurrah!" said three or four boys who were standing round "Hurrah!" said Samuel's policemen, and they let him go; then all the girls and the little children said, "Hurrah!" But Samuel hardly knew what to say; he looked in the face of his judge and smiled, and ventured to smile at one or two others who were near him.

"But I haven't read all the sentence," said Arthur. "The

jury thinks that the prisoner is a very good fellow, after all-and that he did not really mean to be rude. I think that he did not mean to be rude to me. Mamma says she forgives him; and I say I forgive him, and you all say-"

"Oh, yes," said several voices at once; "we all forgive him; he is a very good fellow, after all. Let us go to supper; it has been waiting a long time."

All the boys and all the girls, and the very little children, and Arthur and Samuel, ate a good supper. I should like you to have seen how different Arthur looked all the rest of the evening.

L. Is that the end of your story, papa? What was the use of trying the boy in such a way? Did it do him any good?

P. Yes; it did good to him, and to all the others.

In the first place, Samuel could not forget the words, "he is a very good fellow, after all." When he heard them applied to himself, he thought that, perhaps, he really could be "a good fellow." He tried and found that he could, and has been very different ever since.

2ndly. Arthur learned how good it was to suffer long and be kind. He gained some practice that evening in bearing with the faults of others, and he resolved always to keep on forgiving those who vexed him until he made them better.

3rdly. The other boys learned how pleasant it is to forgive. They now forgive one another more easily than they used to do.

P. YESTERDAY as I was walking by the side of a hedge, I saw a shrubby plant. I had seen similar ones in plantations, but had never noticed the plant growing in a hedge before. L. And when you saw it what did you do, papa?

P. I admired the bright red berries upon it; and then, I picked it and brought it home. The blossoms had gone off from the plant which I had picked, but near it was a smaller one on which I found a bunch of yellow flowers.

W. Did you pick that too?
P. Yes; and here they are.

The COMMON BARBERRY (showing the spines, compound leaves, racemes of blossom, and berries).

The plant is The Common Barberry.

W. Oh, I have seen that plant often enough. When we were at uncle's farm last year, berries from the hedges; but we picked plenty of those red they have such a sharp sour