have her hat tied. Her aunt bore with all these follies
a while, and then deliberately resolved to counteract them.

18. Louisa at first thought this was very hard and unreasonable. "Why
can't I have my potato sliced, Aunt Cleaveland?" said she; "what hurt
can it do? And why can't I shut the door when it is open? is there any
harm in that?"

19. "Not at all, my dear, in the thing itself," Mrs. Cleaveland replied;
"but there is a great deal of evil in having your tranquillity disturbed
by things of such small moment.

20. "If you allow yourself to be distressed by trifles now, how will you
bear the real trials of life, which you must inevitably sustain, sooner
or later?

21. "By and by, you will find out that your suffering from these sources
is all imaginary, and then you will thank me for having restrained you.

22. "Now, here is this nice dish of mashed potatoes, which we have every
day. If such a little hungry girl as you are, since you have breathed
our healthy mountain air, cannot eat it, and with relish too, I am
greatly mistaken; and, in process of time, I have no doubt you will
cease to observe whether the door is open or shut."

23. On the first day of trial, Louisa just tasted the potato, and left
the whole of it upon her plate. Her aunt took no notice of this. The
next day, Louisa came in to dinner after a long walk, and was very
hungry.

24. There was but one dish of meat upon the table, and it was of a kind
which she did not much like; so, forgetting all her repugnance to mashed
potato, she ate it very heartily.

25. Mrs. Cleaveland, however, forbore to take any notice of this change;
and it was not until after several weeks had elapsed, and Louisa had
ceased to think of the distinction between sliced potato and mashed
potato, that her aunt reminded her of the importance which she had
formerly attached to the former.

26. "Now, my dear Louisa," said Mrs. Cleaveland, "since you find the
task is not so very difficult as you apprehended, promise me that you
will try to cure yourself of all these little infirmities; for such I
must term them.

27. "There is so much real suffering in life, that it is a pity to have
any which is merely imaginary; and though, while you are a little girl,
living with indulgent friends, your whims might all be gratified, a
constant and uniform regard to them will be impossible by and by, when
you are old enough to mingle with the world."

LESSON XL.

_King Edw