I could get any thing to relieve you. I know nothing will effec tually remove the pain but drawing the tooth, and to-day the dentist is from home.-What can I do to amuse you? You cannot play at any game, because motion hurts you, and I must not talk to you, for you could not reply or ask me a question without suffering additional pain; but I think I can please you by giving you a book, which will amuse you, while at the same time you can sit quite still by the fire."

The lady went to her book-case, and took down a volume of Captain Cook's Voyages. Charles smiled with delight when he saw his mamma hand him a book he had long wished to read, and, though it was painful to him to speak, he thanked her affectionately for such

kind attention, and eagerly began to explore the contents. The entertaining and instructive accounts of this enterprising voyager, whose route Charles had often traced on the map, so much delighted him, and engaged his thoughts, that he scarcely felt the pain in his tooth, which yet obliged him sometimes to lay aside his book, to hold in his mouth a medicine his mamma had given him, in hopes of its affording temporary ease. Bed-time, approached, and Charles could scarcely believe it was so late. His kind mamma had provided him some gruel, and he went to bed at his usual hour. The pain continuing, prevented him immediately sleeping. He had now no book, and all was darkness, but he found amusement from thinking upon what he had read, until, overpowered by

drowsiness, he sunk into a sound sleep. In the morning his papa went to his bed-side to enquire how he did, and found him with a face much swelled, but without any pain. Instead of dwelling on what he had suffered, Charles began expatiating on the pleasure he had derived from last night's reading.

"You find then, my dear boy, the value of being early taught to read: had you been without this resource, your grievance would have been greatly aggravated by the tediousness of hours lengthened by pain, which you were without the power of alleviating; you also find, from experience, the value of pathy! had your mamma not felt for your suffering, she would not have been so anxious to relieve you. Remember, my dear boy, true benevolence consists in com

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passionating others, and in studying how to make our compassion useful. For this there are many ways, besides giving money: the demands for our sympathy are much more frequent than those on our purse; and it is always in our power to feel for the unfortunate, though not always to bestow pecuniary aid."

Charles felt the full force of what his father said: and, when he kissed his mamma, joined gratitude to affection, and determined to do all in his power to alleviate the distresses of his fellow creatures. Charles' tooth was taken out in the afternoon: he submitted to the operation very patiently, for he knew, if he did not, he would be always subject to returns of pain whenever he got cold.

CONVERSATION.

WHEN Mrs. Johnson had concluded reading, she explained to her children the meaning of such words as they did not quite comprehend; but Lucy said, she still could not see how children had it in their power to assist in relieving the distresses of their fellow creatures. My dear, (replied her mamma,) children who have the happiness of being early instructed in what benevolence consists, may find many ways of putting it in practice: for instance, they will always be ready to do any little acts of kindness to the servants of their father's family, and perhaps assist their older friends in making the lighter articles of dress for the poor. I have seen some 1