ER OF ALL.

Little flower, in meadow bright,
With thy raiment sweet and white,
Knowest thou who set thee there,
Gave to thee a dress so fair,
Caused thee from the ground to spring,
Such a sweet and tender thing,
Sent the rain and sent the sun,
Sent the stars when day is done?

Little flower, dost thou not know
It was God Who made thee grow,
Gave to thee thy lovely dress,
Such as kings can ne'er possess;
Set thee in thy little bed,
Gave thee petals, white and red;
Sent for thee the dewdrop bright,
Shuts thy blossom up at night?

Little bird, high in the air,
Flying here and everywhere,
Dost thou know who made thy wing,
Gave thee thy sweet song to sing;
Brought thee o'er the ocean track,
Guided thee in safety back,
Caused thee with the spring to come
To thy green and shady home?

Little bird, God made thy wing,
Gave thee all thy songs to sing;
Set thee in the woods and trees,
Fanned thy nest with gentle breeze.
He it was who brought thee home,
Safe across the ocean's foam,
To the meadows green and bright,
Gave thee songs of sweet delight.

ADVICE THAT SAVED A KING'S LIFE.

A certain Khan of Tartary, making a journey with his nobles, was met by
a dervish, who cried with a loud voice: 'If any one will give me a piece
of gold I will give him a piece of advice.' The Khan ordered the sum to
be given him, upon which the dervish said, 'Begin nothing of which thou
hast not well considered the end.'

The courtiers, upon hearing his plain sentence, smiled, and said with a
sneer, 'The dervish is well paid for his maxim.' But the king was so
well satisfied with the answer, that he ordered it to be written in
golden letters in several places of his palace, and engraved on all his
plate.

Not long after, the king's surgeon was bribed to kill him with a
poisoned lancet. One day, when the king needed bleeding, and the fatal
lancet was ready, the surgeon read on the bowl which was close by:
'Begin nothing of which thou hast not well considered the end.' He
started, and let the lancet fall out of his hand. The king observed his
confusion, and inquired the reason. The surgeon fell prostrate, and
confessed the whole affair. The Khan, turning to his courtiers, told
them: 'That counsel could not be too much valued which had saved the
life of your king.'

W. Y.

[Illustration: "He s