RICH WITHOUT MONEY.

MANY a man is rich without money. Thousands of men with nothing in the pocket, and thousands without even a pocket, are rich. A man horn with a good, sound constitution, a good stomach, a good heart and good limbs, and a pretty good headpiece, is rich. Good bones are better than gold; tough muscles than silver; and nerves that flash fire, and carry energy to every function, are better than houses and land.

It is better than landed estate to have had the right kind of father and mother. Good breeds and bad breeds exist among men as really as among herds and horses. Education may do much to check evil tendencies or to develop good ones; but it is a great thing to inherit the right proportion of faculties to start with.

The man is rich who has a good disposition-who is naturally kind, patient, cheerful, hopeful, and who has a flavour of wit and fun in his composition. The hardest thing to get along with in this life is a man's own self. A cross, selfish fellow-a desponding and complaining fellow-a timid, care-burdened man-these are all born deformed. Their feet may not limp, but their thoughts do.

WHEN foolish lambs forsake the fold,
Through thorny ways to wander wide,
In noontide's heat and darkness cold

To stray upon the mountain side,

Does not the Faithful Shepherd then
With tireless steps those lambs pursue,
O'er rocky height, through darksome glen,
To bring them to the fold anew?

Great Shepherd! let Thy watchful eye
With vigilance Thy flock survey,

And by Thy presence, ever nigh,

Restrain those lambs that else would stray.

But if, despite Thy warning voice,

One wilful lamb from Thee should roam,
Ah! overrule his fatal choice;

Pursue, reclaim, and bring him home.

AFFLICTIONS SENT AS CHASTISEMENTS.-When a Christian is under the afflicting hand of God, he may well say, 66 I may thank this proud heart of mine, this worldly heart, this froward heart, this formal heart, this dull heart, this backsliding heart, this selfseeking heart of mine, that this cup is so bitter, this pain so grievous, this loss so great, this disease so desperate, this wound so incurable; it is mine own self, mine own sin, that hath caused these floods of sorrow to break in upon me."-Brooks.

MENDING THE SAILS.

(See cut, page 57.)

ERE is a fisherman and his wife, the former mending his sails ready for his next adventure. His wife is looking rather sadly on the sea, on which very soon her husband will have launched his craft. What an awful amount of danger is encountered every day and every night to supply us with food and the other necessaries of life! Our miners in the pit, where a spark may any moment cause an explosion which will launch them into eternity; our fishermen on the sea, in fog, storm, and darkness, plying their occupation to add to our stores of food-these and many more are all serving us at the risk of their lives. But see how quietly the fisherman takes it! He is mending his sails as calmly as if no danger was to be apprehended. So in all our affairs. It is best to go about them calmly and cheerfully. Sometimes children have to perform duties which are very unpleasant and very hard, but they will get through them better if they will be patient, cheerful, and industrious. Above all, it is of importance to see that our sails are mended, or, in other words, take care that everything is done in order and at the proper time. When you go to bed at night do not throw a stocking here and another there; a shoe in one corner and another perhaps out at the window. Then in the morning what a cry there is, "Where is my shoe? Where are my stockings? Where are all my things?" and everybody gets distracted because there was so much carelessness and want of order overnight. Dear children, look at the picture and be sure to mend your sails; that is, be sure to keep everything in order and ready for use, and you will be glad when you become men and women to know how much this habit of order, neatness, and industry has helped you on in life.

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"KNUCKLE DOWN!"

By TOM BROWN, Author of "A Year at School," etc.

is an old saying that fashionss change, and no one will for a moment dispute its truth. The fashion of this world passeth away." Fashion affects all things. There is no need to instance the sudden and violent revolutions it now and again makes in matters of ornament and dress-we are all quick enough to see those changes in their most ridiculous aspects. But custom, which is the regulator of fashion, is constantly changing. What have we to-day that is as it was fifty years ago?

It is not my intention, however, to write an essay either on fashion or change. If it had been, instead of the rather queer words at the head of my paper, I might possibly have had the French words, " à la mode," or the Latin motto, "Tempora mutantur," for the meaning

of which you must consult your teachers. But these thoughts came into my head directly I began to think of my subject. I could not help remarking what a very great deal fashion or custom has to do with the amusements and recreations of youth. Of course we all know that boys play at certain games according to the weather. We no more expect to see them playing at cricket in the winter, or spinning tops in damp, muddy, spring weather, than we expect to find them wearing light thin garments in a hard frost, or overcoats and woollen gloves in midsummer. But apart from these perfectly natural changes in the style of recreation, which answer exactly to the same changes in dress, there are others which correspond with the more sudden changes of fashion. Sometimes there is almost a rage for certain games, which after a time are almost forgotten and never played at.

For instance: Many years ago tops spun by whips were the only tops boys could get, but when I went to school-of course I shall not say how long it is since then-I never once saw a whipped top, and when I saw pictures of them in books I often wondered however they could be made to spin. Well, years rolled on, and to my surprise the fashion for whipped tops, after being out for so long a time, came in again last year. Who brought it in I know not, but there were so many in use, and they were so frequently spun in the public streets, that passers-by ran a great risk of getting cut or blinded with the lashes of the whips. I cannot say how long whipped tops may remain in favour-I suppose it lies chiefly with the toy-dealers, and possibly humming-tops may be popular next summer, but I mention this just to show you how fashion affects school games; and that brings me a little nearer my subject.

There are the various games played with marbles. I fear in these days these are going out of favour. As I go up and down the streets I scarcely ever see anyone playing at them, and toy-shop windows rarely exhibit any. Yet in my youth no games were more popular. A marble-bag was then quite as essential to a schoolboy's outfit as a slate or book-strap; and a boy could not hope to be considered of any importance unless he had a good stock of "alleytors and commoneys." I doubt not parents are rather pleased than otherwise that marbles are not such favourites as they once were, for they often ruined the boys' pockets, and as, while playing, the lads generally knelt on the ground, the trousers knees were generally ornamented with a patch of mud or dust, which in a little while fell into a hole. For my part I am sorry the games are not popular, and not merely because I liked them when I was a boy. Grown people are always apt to think the games of their youth the best; but, apart from that consideration, I think marble games are preferable to most others. They are all games of skill, and as such should be preferred to sports in which mere strength and animal courage carry off the palm. While we all admire physical strength, we must admit that it is an accident of birth or the result of healthy training, and a boy deserves no more credit

for it than for having the right number of fingers on his hands. We ought to show more appreciation for ability which is acquired by practice and perseverance. And it is one of the chief recommendations of marble games that the weakest and most delicate can successfully compete with their more robust comrades. But I do not suppose anything I can say will bring marble games into favour if the young folks are really tired of them and want a change. If, however, an increased demand should result, I think my friends in the Potteries-where, I presume, most of the marbles are made-ought to present me with a very handsome testimonial in recognition of the value of my advocacy.

But, dear me! I must at once come to the point and say what I have to say on the words, "knuckle down." When I began I had no intention of writing such a lengthy introduction.

To those who have often played with marbles the words will be quite familiar and easily understood, but for the benefit of any of the young folks of this generation who may not be informed on the subject I must explain them. In playing at marble games, of course the smoothest piece of level ground was chosen, but however good it might be, there were sure to be some slight unevenness, and as in a lively game the marbles often went a great distance, and sometimes into the most unlooked-for places, it is clear that occasionally the "tor" would get in a corner, down in a hollow, or perhaps behind some piece of stone. And it is equally clear that in such places its owner could not take anything like a correct aim at his opponent's marble. But for these and all other exigencies there was, as the law-books say, a statute of limitations made and provided," and which was rigidly enforced. Now, the best thing for a player to do when he found his "tor" in a hole, or behind a stone, was to raise his hand a little higher than the obstruction, and shoot the marble so as to pass over it and hit that of the other player. But in order to claim this privilege he had to cry "Knuckle up!" before his opponent could utter the counter cry of "Knuckle down!" If the opposite player spoke first he had to rest his knuckles on the ground and shoot his marble under all disadvantages.

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I hope this explanation is sufficiently clear to make it evident to all that to" knuckle down" is to labour under a disadvantage, to stoop to something unpleasant, and to be hindered from having one's own way.

Now, I want, if possible, to teach you how and when it is right to "knuckle down.' Do not imagine that I am going to write an elaborate system of rules for skilful marble-playing. I have merely borrowed the expression from the playground with a hope that I might make use of it with reference to other matters.

There has to be a great deal of "knuckling down" after we have left school; indeed some of us have had to do it much oftener since than ever we did while we carried a marble-bag and gloried in a choice assortment of marbles. I suppose it is well for us that we