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afterwards, this prince recovered his affairs, and came with a large army to lay siege to Athens.

4. The Athenians, persuaded that they had no pardon to expect from Demetrius, determined to die sword in hand, and passed a decree, which condemned to death those who should first propose to surrender to that prince; but they did not recollect that there was but little corn in the city, and that they would in a short time be in want of bread.

5. Want soon made them sensible of their error; and, after having suffered hunger for a long time, the most reasonable among them said, "It would be better that Demetrius should kill us at once, than for us to die by the lingering death of famine. Perhaps he will have pity on our wives and children." They then opened to him the gates of the city.

6. Demetrius having taken possession of the city, ordered that all the married men should assemble in a spacious place appointed for the purpose, and that the soldiery, sword in hand, should surround them. Cries and lamentations were then heard from every quarter of the city; women embracing their husbands, children their parents, and all taking an eternal farewell of each other.

7. When the married men were all thus collected, Demetrius, for whom an elevated situation was provided, reproached them for their ingratitude in the most feeling manner, insomuch that he himself could not help shedding tears. Demetrius for some time remained silent, while the Athenians expected, that the next words he uttered would be to order his soldiers to massacre them all.

8. It is hardly possible to say what must have been their surprise when they heard that good prince say,-"I wish to convince you how ungenerously you have treated me; for it was not to an enemy you have refused assistance, but to a prince who loved you, who still loves you, and who wishes to revenge himself only by granting your pardon, and by being still your friend. Return to your own homes: while you have been here, my soldiers have been filling your houses with provisions."

LESSON XLV.

Death of Prince William.-GOLDSMITH.

1. HENRY I.* king of England, had a son called William, a brave and active youth, who had arrived at his eighteenth year. * Henry I. commenced his reign A. D. 1100. He died 1135.

The king loved him most tenderly, and took care to have him recognized as his successor by the states of England; and carried him over to Normandy, in the north of France, to receive the homage of the barons of that duchy.

2. Having performed the requisite ceremony, the king set sail for England, accompanied by a splendid retinue of the principal nobility. William, his son, was detained by some accident, for several hours;—and the crew having spent the interval in drinking, became so intoxicated, that they ran the ship upon a rock and it was immediately dashed in pieces.

3. The prince was put into a boat, and might have escaped had he not been called back by the cries of his sister. He prevailed upon the sailors to row back and take her in;—but no sooner had the boat approached the wreck, than numbers who had been left, jumped into it, and the whole were drowned. King Henry, when he heard of the death of his son, fainted away, and from that moment, he never smiled again.

He never smiled again.-MRS. HEMANS.

1. The bark* that held a prince went down,
The sweeping waves rolled on,

And what was England's glorious crown
To him that wept a son?

He lived-for life may long be borne
Ere sorrow break its chain;

Why comes not death to those who mourn?

He never smiled again.

2. There stood proud forms around his throne,
The stately and the brave;

But which could fill the place of one?
That one beneath the wave.

Before him passed the young and fair,
In pleasure's reckless train;

But seas dash'd o'er his son's bright hair—
-He never smiled again.

3. He sat where festal bowls went round;
He heard the minstrel† sing;

He saw the tourney'st victor crowned,
Amidst the knightly ring.

* Bark, a small vessel.

+ Minstrel, a singer and musical performer on instruments. + Pronounced tur-ne, a martial sport or exercise.

A murmur of the restless deep
Was blent with every strain;

A voice of winds that would not sleep-
-He never smiled again.

4. Hearts in that time closed o'er the trace
Of vows once fondly pour'd;

And strangers took the kinsman's place
At many a joyous board.

Graves which true love had bathed with tears,
Were left to heaven's bright rain;
Fresh hopes were born for other years-
-He never smiled again.

LESSON XLVI.

The Shepherd and the Philosopher.
1. REMOTE from cities liv'd a swain,*
Unvex'd with all the cares of gain:
His head was silver'd o'er with age,
And long experience made him sage;
In summer's heat and winter's cold,
He fed his flock and penn'd the fold;
His hours in cheerful labor flew,
Nor envy nor ambition knew:
His wisdom and his honest fame
Through all the country rais'd his name.
2. A deep philosopher, whose rules
Of moral life were drawn from schools,
The shepherd's homely cottage sought,
And thus explor'd his reach of thought.

"Whence is thy learning? Hath thy toil
O'er books consum'd the midnight oil?
Hast thou old Greece and Rome survey'd,
And the vast sense of Platot weigh'd?
Hath Socrates thy soul refin'd,

And hast thou fathom'd Tully's mind?

Swain, a shepherd.

Plato, an illustrious Grecian philosopher-died at Athens, 348 B. C. Marcus Tullius Cicero, one of the greatest men of antiquity, whether we consider him as an orator, a statesman, or philosopher. He was born at Arpinum, (now included in the kingdom of Naples,) 107 B. C. He was baseIv assassinated by order of Mark Anthony, 42 B. C.

Or, like the wise Ulysses,* thrown,
By various fates, on realms unknown,
Hast thou through many cities stray'd,
Their customs, laws, and manners weigh'd?"
3. The shepherd modestly replied,
"I ne'er the paths of learning tried;
Nor have I roam'd in foreign parts,
To read mankind, their laws and arts;
For man is practis'd in disguise,
He cheats the most discerning eyes.
Who by that search shall wiser grow?
By that ourselves we never know.
The little knowledge I have gain'd
Was all from simple nature drain'd;
Hence my life's maxims took their rise,
Hence grew my settled hate of vice.
4. "The daily labors of the bee
Awake my soul to industry.
Who can observe the careful ant,
And not provide for future want?
My dog (the trustiest of his kind)
With gratitude inflames my mind.
I mark his true, his faithful way,
And in my service copy Tray;
In constancy and nuptial love,
I learn my duty from the dove.
The hen, who from the chilly air,
With pious wing protects her care,
And every fowl that flies at large,
Instructs me in a parent's charge.

5. "From nature too, I take my rule,
To shun contempt and ridicule.
I never, with important air,
In conversation overbear.

Can grave and formal pass for wise,
When men the solemn owl despise?
My tongue within my lips I rein;
For who talks much, must talk in vain.
We from the wordy torrent fly;
Who listens to the chatt'ring pief?

A Grecian commander at the siege of Troy. + Pie, the magpie, a chattering bird resembling a crow.

Nor would I, with felonious flight,
By stealth invade my neighbor's right.
6. "Rapacious animals we hate;

Kites, hawks, and wolves, deserve their fate.
Do not we just abhorrence find
Against the toad and serpent kind?
But envy, calumny, and spite,
Bear stronger venom in their bite.
Thus ev'ry object of creation
Can furnish hints to contemplation?
And from the most minute and mean,
A virtuous mind can morals glean."
7. "Thy fame is just," the sage replies,
"Thy virtue proves thee truly wise.
Pride often guides the author's pen,
Books as affected are as men:
But he, who studies nature's laws,
From certain truth his maxims draws;
And those without our schools, suffice
To make men moral, good, and wise."

1

LESSON XLVII.

The Youth and the Philosopher.-WHITEHEAD.

1. A GRECIAN youth, of talents rare,
Whom Plato's philosophic care
Had formed for virtue's nobler view,

By precept and example too,

Would often boast his matchless skill,

To curb the steed, and guide the wheel;
And as he pass'd the gazing throng,

With graceful ease, and smack'd the thong,
The idiot wonder they express'd,

Was praise and transport to his breast.

2. At length, quite vain, he needs would show His master what his art could do;

And bade his slaves the chariot lead

To Academus'* sacred shade.

Academus, a man who owned a place near Athens, surrounded with high trees, and adorned with spacious walks. Here Plato opened his school of philosophy, and from this, every place sacred to learning, has been called Academia.

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