A murmur of the restless deep Was blent with every strain, A voice of winds that would not sleep :- Hearts, in that time, closed o'er the trace And strangers took the kinsman's place Graves, which true love had bathed with tears, Fresh hopes were born for other years: He never smiled again !—Mrs. Hemans. Tourney's victor-In early times it was a favourite amusement for knights, mounted on war-horses and clad in armour, to ride against each other with their lances, and try which could push the other from the saddle and throw him to the ground. When several combatants were engaged on each side, this spectacle was called a tournament or tourney; when only two knights were engaged, it was called a joust. The victor was crowned, or rewarded with a prize, in token of his valour. Pronounce, born, borne, morn, mourn, sorry, sorrow, bowl, bowels, heard, hard, hearth, sword, tourney, board, broad, groat, ally, alley, billows, bellows, vessel, vassal, angle, angel. DICTATION. The body was borne to the church-yard. Where were you born? We heard their voice at early morn. They mourn their departed friends. For them no more the blazing hearth shall burn. Fill the bowl to the brim. Coals are brought from the bowels of the earth. The vassals were on board of the vessel. France was our ally in the Russian war. He lives down the alley. His sword was broken at the tourney. The billows dashed over the vessel. The angel of death spread his wings on the blast. [THE Cach 'alot or Sperm-whale is an inhabitant of the Southern Seas, and is noted for the fineness of its oil. Its enormous head, measuring about one-third the whole length of its body, contains a large cavity filled with an oily fluid which, after the animal's death, hardens into a yellowish substance called spermacéti. The Cachalot is much more ferocious than the Common or Greenland Whale, and has been known to attack and sink even a large whaler. Nantucket is a small island on the north-eastern coast of the United States.] I WILL now relate to you a remarkable story of a ship, which sailed for the Pacific Ocean, where she was employed for some time in catching sperm-whales. One day, the seamen harpooned a young whale. The love of the whale for her young ones is, as you know, very strong. This was shown in a striking manner on that occasion. When the mother of the young whale discovered that her young one was killed, she retired some distance from the ship, and then, rushing through the water with the velocity of the wind, struck her head against the stern of the vessel with the greatest violence. So terrible was the force of the shock that several of the timbers were loosened, and the vessel pitched and reeled in the water, as if struck by a whirlwind. Nor was the whale satisfied with this. Again she withdrew to the distance of more than a mile, and then, shooting through the waves with incredible swiftness, came like a thunderbolt upon the bow of the vessel. The timbers were instantly crushed in, and the ship began to fill with water. This was an accident which no forethought could have averted. Scarcely had the crew sufficient time to get into their boat when the ship went down. Thus suddenly wrecked in this extraordinary manner, the poor sailors were now adrift on the wide ocean in a frail, open boat. If their fierce assailant had thought of attacking them while they were in this helpless condition, they would all have been drowned. But they fortunately saw no more of her. For a long time the men were tossed about upon the sea, and they suffered much from fatigue, want, and anxiety. There is no situation more dreadful than that of If a storm arises, seamen thus exposed upon the waves. they are liable every moment to be swallowed up. If they do not soon meet with some vessel that will take them on board, or succeed in getting to some port, their food is exhausted and they perish miserably of hunger or thirst. In the present instance, the captain and crew were a long time upon the sea, and they suffered a great deal from the want of victuals and drink. But at length they met with another vessel, and were all taken on board. They reached their native country in safety, and the mate of the ship published an account of these remarkable adventures. The vessel was a Nantucket whaler, called the Essex; and her disastrous voyage was made in the year 1820.Parley. QUESTIONS. Where is the Cachalot found? What is got from it? How does it differ from the common whale? What does this story show regarding it? Where did the incident happen? Why was the creature enraged? What was the effect of the first shock? of the second? To what dangers were the crew now exposed? How did they escape? From what had they suffered much? Who related the story? What was the ship named? Where is Nantucket? Spell adjectives ending in ous, derived from these nouns: danger, disaster, wonder, monster, courage, outrage, advantage, glory, envy, victory, injury, mystery, beauty, bounty, plenty, duty, pity. DICTATION. The voyage was disastrous. The wondrous tale was repeated everywhere. Foul air is injurious. It is a dangerous practice. His conduct was monstrous and outrageous. The courageous man is commonly victorious. God is plenteous in mercy. The boy told a piteous tale. How glorious are the stars of heaven! The beauteous queen was beheaded. Do not be envious. Studious boys make progress. Duteous children obey their parents. Nature scatters her gifts with bounteous hand, R. IV. D IT was New-Year's night. An aged man was standing at a window. He raised his mournful eyes towards the deep-blue sky, where the stars were floating like white lilies on the surface of a clear, calm lake. Then he cast them on the earth, where few more hopeless beings than himself now moved towards their certain goal-the tomb. Already he had passed sixty of the stages which lead to it, and he had brought from his journey nothing but errors and remorse. His health was destroyed, his mind vacant, his heart sorrowful, and his old age devoid of comfort. The days of his youth rose up in a vision before him, and he recalled the solemn moment when his father had placed him at the entrance of two roads,-one leading into a peaceful, sunny land, covered with a fertile harvest. and resounding with soft, sweet songs; the other leading the wanderer into a deep, dark cave, whence there was no issue, where poison flowed instead of water, and where serpents hissed and crawled. He looked towards the sky, and cried out in his agony, "O youth, return! O my father, place me once more at the entrance to life, that I may choose the better way!' But his father and the days of his youth had both passed away. He saw wandering lights floating away over dark |