THE GENESEE FARMlER. 



93 



I01U15 |to]ple's |ane. 



PirSSY'S PETITION. 



All for killing a robin ! 



I thought 'twould be very fine, 

 If from a plump little redbreast, 



My darling kittens could dine. 

 80 1 climed high up in Ihe tree-top, 



And took him right out of his nest, 

 Around-eyed and plump linle robin, 



With down on his pretty breast. 



All for killing a robin ! 



Arc they any better than mice? 

 I heard one last night in the pantry, 



And pounced on tiini in a trice, 

 And you culled me " a nice old pussy;" 



But mousey was sleek and fair, 

 And his eyes were brighter than robin's, 



And shiny and sleek was his hair. 



AH for killing a robin ! 



Now, Johnny, pray <lo tell me why 

 The mbin is better than mousev, 



Thr reason I can not descry. 

 I am sure, to that old mouse mother 



Her sweet Utile mouse is as dear. 

 As round-eyed and plump Utile lobin 



To the redbreast, with song-note so oloar. 



All for killing a robin ! 



O listen, deal boy, to rny woe. 

 Now don't drown your poor old pussy; 



Oome, Come, lei me scamper and go. 

 Just think of my three frisking kittens, 



80 cunniiiff and happy at play: 

 They'll mew for their old cat mother. 



If she does not come near them all day. 



All for 'filing a robin ! 



There, Johnny, you merciful boy, 

 I knew your kind heart would be softened; 



I'll scamper away now for joy. 

 ni try and do beller, dear Johnny; 



But if someiimes 1 do disobey, 

 Bemeinber, I'm only a pussy, 



And make some allowances, pray. [Child's Paper. 



HINTS ON SELF-INSTRUCTION. 



NUMBUR TWO. 



rHE first step toward the cultivation of the mind mny 

 taken independent of books. That step is to acquire 

 labit of observation, or examination. It is one thing 

 look at an object, but it is quite a different thing to ex- 

 ine it. A great many men receive but little more 

 lefit from their eyes than a blind man does from his. 

 i a careless person enter a room, remain in it an hour, 

 i he will go forth perfectly ignorant of the size, shape 

 1 contents of the room. He may be able to recall one 

 two things which have actually forced themselves 

 ou his attention, but the}* will be all that he can specify. 

 r instance, he may be certain that he entered the room 

 & door, that he sat down upon a chair or sofa, and 

 it there was or was not some other person in the room, 

 may possess indistinct notions of a number of other 

 nga or circumstances ; but this is not knowledge, 

 n very frequently make themselves ridiculous in a 

 iri-room by displaying ignorance which would shame 

 hild ten years old, and which has arisen simply from 

 ittention and carelessness. 



;t IS just as easy to be attentive and observing as inat- 

 itive and unobserving. How many boys who read 

 n arti'".le can tell the different kinds of soil on their 

 her's farm? And yet they have run all over the farm 

 ;reat many times. How many of them can tell the dif- 



ferent, kinds of trees in the woods, and whether or not 

 every piece of woods is composed of the same varieties 

 of trees ? These are facts which are very simple, and 

 which they have opportunities of learning every dayj 

 yet very few boys could answer the above questions. Do 

 not understand by what has been said that merely notic- 

 ing the different kinds of soil and trees would enable any 

 one to tell their names ; but it is certain that the Doy who 

 notices such differences will not rest until he has learned 

 the names which are applied to the different kinds of 

 trees and soils. 



The impulse which the habit of noticing things gives 

 to seek information about them, is one of the greatest 

 benefits which result from the habit. And here I would 

 observe that children should never hesitate to ask ques- 

 tions about things which have attracted their attention. 

 If one person can not tell them what they wish to know, 

 or through a mean and contemptible nature will not, let 

 them try some one else. They should not be satisfied 

 until they have obtained the knowledge they seek for. A 

 great deal of harm is done by checking this inquiring 

 spirit in children. It ought rather to be cultivated, with 

 proper restrictions as to time and place, for it is generally 

 an indication of a commendable desire to obtain knowl- 

 edge. 



Suppose we take a more particular case, in order to 

 show how much thought mav be suggested by a little ex- 

 amination of a particular object. 



Take a common dinner-table. It would be perfectly 

 easy to vviite one book or twenty (not about the table 

 itself) but qn subjects which an examination of it would 

 suggest. First, let us consider the material of whiiih it 

 is made. This is wood. Is that all one can think about 

 it? Let us see. What is wood? It is a coarse-grained 

 substance, hard, lighter than water, burns readily, lasts a 

 long time, and is employed in building bouses, vessels, 

 bridges, fences, and innumerable other purposes. I have 

 mentioned enough to show what a multitude of thoughts 

 are suggested by the simple question. What is wood? 

 Let some of my little readers see how large a list they 

 can write of articles made of wood. But is the wood in 

 the table in its natural condition? This question carries 

 us to immense forests, resounding with the blows of axes 

 wielded by sturdy woodmen. We see the large trees 

 stripped of their branches and converted into logs. 

 These will be transported down narrow streams, swelled 

 bv floods, to some broad river, upon whose bosom they 

 will float to some large city. Then we follow them to 

 the saw-mill, and here we will leave them to be trans- 

 formed into boards, planks and beams preparatory to 

 being finished for the articles we have noticed above. 



Let us ask now how the table is made. This brings to 

 mind the number of trades necessary to prepare the tools 

 bv which the wood is prepared and put together in the 

 form of a table. That will lead us to the different kinds 

 of metals, for we would hud, on examination, that most 

 all of the useful metals are employed in the construction 

 of our table. Then the different parts of the table are 

 fastened together by glue and screws. What a wonderful 

 thing glue is, and how useful and important. Glue is 

 made tVom the bone- of animal.s. But I have not space to , 

 tell how. The screws are used to fasten the leaves of the 

 table to it by means of hinges, and are made of steel. 

 What a world of thought the word fieel suggests ! What 

 could the civilized world do without it? 



This is a slight sketch of what might be written with a 

 table for a text. It is not necessary for me to write any 

 more on this text. Enough has been said to show how 

 much can be said aVjout what a thing is. 



I hope a good many boys and girls will try and profit 

 bv what I have said. Let them take familiar objects, and 

 see how much they can say about them This will make 

 them examine carefully what they wish to write or talk 

 about, and they will soon acquire a habit of observation. 

 The exercise of this habit will do more to convince them 

 of its value than anything I can say. Sherwood. 



