110 ABOUT THE WEATHER. 



repulsed ; the little child runs rejoicing to his father, 

 and, with dirty fingers, hangs to his clothes ; a rude 

 blow is his greeting ; the man throws himself gloomily 

 on his couch, and painful silence reigns in the chamber ; 

 in a word, where one looks for love and joy, ill-humour 

 and melancholy are found, and why? The continued 

 rain has ruined and washed away the hay-crop ; the loss 

 amounts to many hundreds of pounds. 



And then, on a sunny autumn morning, a wife's face 

 has rather an anxious expression; when in rushes the 

 husband, embraces her, and says : " A glorious year, a 

 wine of ' '11,' clear profit of 10,000 dollars; I have sold 

 the whole. Rejoice with me, love !" and then he gives 

 her the long-wished-for cashmere shawl ; friends come to 

 wish him joy, and, late in the night, the passers-by hear the 

 sound of festivity within. It is the weather which here 

 gladdens, and there troubled. 



Lastly, let us ascend to a still higher point of view. 

 The whole earth lies outspread beneath our feet. There 

 we see an effeminate race ; the despot revelling in every 

 pleasure, the bonze all-powerful, the pariah oppressed and 

 trodden down, superstition instead of faith, mere mechanical 

 life instead of mind. Here, a mighty people, proud of 

 their power ; where, as the poet says, " liberty walks 

 unhindered to the poorest huts, and scatters wealth over the 

 favoured plains." 



Liberty abroad 



Walks, unconfin'd, even to thy farthest cots, 

 And scatters plenty with unsparing hand. 



THOMSON'S SEASONS. 



There we see a nation whose mental development and 

 culture surpasses all others, constantly occupied with the 



