Abides by his resolve, and stops not there,
But makes his moral being his prime care :
Who, doomed to go in company with pain,
And fear, and bloodshed-miserable train!
Turns his necessity to glorious gain;

In face of these doth exercise a power,
Which is our human nature's highest dower;
Controls them and subdues, transmutes, bereaves
Of their bad influence, and their good receives.
By objects, which might force the soul to abate
Her feeling, rendered more compassionate;
Is placable-because occasions rise

So often, that demand such sacrifice.

More skilful in self-knowledge, even more pure
As tempted more ; more able to endure,
As more exposed to suffering and distress;
Thence, also, more alive to tenderness.
'Tis he whose law is reason; who depends
Upon that law as on the best of friends,
Who fixes good on good alone, and owes
To virtue every triumph, that he knows ;
Who, if he rise to station of command,
Rises by open means; and there will stand
On honourable terms, or else retire,
And in himself possess his own desire.

'Tis finally the man, who lifted high,
Conspicuous object in a nation's eye,
Or left unthought of in obscurity,—
Who, with a toward1 or untoward lot,
Prosperous or adverse, to his wish or not,
Plays in the many games of life that one,
Where, what he most doth value, must be won:

Whom neither shape of danger can dismay,
Nor thought of tender happiness betray :
Who not content, that former worth stand fast,
Looks forward, persevering to the last;
From well to better, daily self-surpast:

Who, whether praise of him must walk the earth
For ever, and to noble deeds give birth,
Or he must go to dust without his fame,
And leave a dead unprofitable name,

Finds comfort in himself and in his cause;
And, while the mortal mist is gathering, draws
His breath in confidence of Heaven's applause :
This is the happy warrior; this is he

Whom every man in arms should wish to be.
WORDSWORTH.2

1. TOWARD, apt, favourable.

2. WORDSWORTH, for biographical sketch of this poet, see Fifth Book, p. 15.

TAME CARP AT FONTAINEBLEAU.

THE Carp is a fish, of which there are many species scattered over nearly the whole world. They love fresh and quiet waters, and are found in ponds, lakes, and the still deep pools of a river, where they feed on herbs, grains and even mud, but seldom eat other fish or insects; though they will not always refuse a hook well baited with grasshoppers or worms. In order to furnish them with fresh vegetable food, it is usual to rake the edges of ponds, in which they are kept, when left dry in the summer, and sow them with grass seed, so that when the pond is again filled by the rain, the carp find plenty of nice young grass to eat.

The carp have small mouths, toothless jaws, and gills

composed of thin flat rays.

But

They have one fin along the back-bone, and are covered with large scales. although these fish have no teeth in their mouths, they are not destitute of those necessary articles, but have several large ones in the gullet,1 which press the food between themselves and a glutinous knob, connected with a bony plate forming part of the skull, and commonly called the carp's tongue.

2

Under common circumstances the carp grow from two to three inches in length in a year, but when exceedingly well supplied with food, they have been known to grow from five to eighteen inches in the same time. They also increase rapidly in numbers, as they spawn three times a year.

3

When kept in ponds, and fed, carp become exceedingly tame, and the famous angler, Izaac Walton,* mentions one that came to be fed "at the ringing of a bell or the beating of a drum;" others will come when called or whistled to.

In the gardens of Fontainebleau near Paris, is a large lake stocked with these fish, many of which are very large, and decidedly tyrannical towards their smaller brethren. An amusing account of their proceedings is given in the following extract :

5

"Freed from all angling arts and lures, the Fontainebleau carp live a life of great enjoyment, marred only, we imagine, by their immense numbers, which must cause the supply of food to be somewhat below their requirements. It is not, however, very easy to define what a carp's food requirements are, for he is a voracious creature, eating whenever he has an opportunity, until he can absolutely eat no more. His favourite food consists of vegetable substances, masticated' by means of his flat teeth, which work with a mill-stone

6

kind of movement. When this fish obtains an abundant supply of food, it grows to an enormous size. Several continental rivers and lakes are very congenial to carp, especially the Oder, where this fish occasionally attains the enormous weight of 60lbs. It is not probable that any carp in the lake at Fontainebleau are so large as this; but there are certainly many weighing 50lbs., patriarchs 10 of their kind, which, though olive-hued in their tender years, are now white with age. That the great size of these fish is due to ample feeding is, we think, evident; and, as we shall see presently, it is the large fish that are the best fed.

"During many years the feeding of the carp at Fontainebleau has been a favourite Court pastime. But it is from the visitors who frequent Fontainebleau during a great part of the year, that the carp receive their most bountiful rations. Big carp have an enormous swallow, soft penny rolls being mere mouthfuls, bolted with ostrich-like celerity. To prevent the immediate disappearance of these dainty morsels, bread, in the form of larger balls than the most capacious carp can take into his gullet, is baked until it becomes as hard as a biscuit, and with these balls the carp are regaled.

"Throw one into the lake, and you will quickly have an idea of the enormous carp population it contains. For no sooner does the bread touch the water, than it is surrounded by hundreds of these fish, which dart to it from all sides. And now if you look attentively, you will witness a curious display of instinct, which might almost take a higher name. Conscious apparently of their inability to crush these extremely hard balls, the carp combine with surprising singleness of intention, to push them with their noses to that part of the lake which is bounded by a wall, and when there they butt

at them, until at last their repeated blows, and the softening effect of the water causes them to yield and open. And now you will see another curious sight. While shoals of carp have been pounding away at the bread-balls, preparing them for being swallowed, some dozen monsters hover round, indifferent, apparently, to what is passing. But not so, for no sooner is the bread ready for eating, than two or three of these giants, but more generally one-the tyrant probably of the lake-rush to the prize, cleaving the shoals of smaller carp, and shouldering them to the right and left, seize the bread with open jaws, between which it quickly disappears."

Gold and silver fish belong to the carp family, and are believed to have come originally from China; they live and breed very contentedly in glass globes and small ponds; these fish then become exceedingly tame, and capable of some personal attachment to those who feed them, and whose footsteps they can distinguish at a little distance; one gentleman assures us that they appreciate music, and like being whistled to. And Pliny speaks of a Roman Emperor who kept these and other fish in ponds, and declares that these had all separate names, and would come when called.

1. GULLET, the throat.

Adapted from "The Athenæum."

2. GLUTINOUS, like glue: tenacious.

3. ANGLER, one who fishes with a hook.

4. IZAAC WALTON, an ingenious and amusing writer. Born 1593, died 1683. Author of "The Complete Angler," and some biographies.

5. LURE, bait to attract wild animals: any enticement.

6. VORACIOUS, eager to devour.

7. MASTICATED, chewed: ground with the teeth.

8. CONGENIAL, suitable: of the same nature or feeling.

9. ODER, a large river which rises in Moravia, traverses Prussia,

and falls into the Baltic by three mouths.

10. PATRIARCH, chief father: head of a family.