McGuffey's Fourth Eclectic Reader

Part 20

DEFINITIONS.--l. Cat'a-ract, a great fall of water. 2. O-ver--flow'ing, running over. Ex'qui-site, exceeding, extreme. 3. Poised', balanced. Goblet, a kind of cup or drinking vessel. Nec'tar, the drink of the gods. In-tru'sive-ly, without right or welcome. Re-verts', returns.

EXERCISES.--Who was the author of "The Old Oaken Bucket"? What is said of this piece? What does the poem describe? and what feeling does it express?

LXXIII. THE SERMON ON THE MOUNT. (204)

1. And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him; and he opened his mouth and taught them, saying,

2. Blessed are the poor in spirit; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn; for they shall be comforted. Blessed are the meek; for they shall inherit the earth.

3. Blessed are they which do hunger and thirst after righteousness; for they shall be filled. Blessed are the merciful; for they shall obtain mercy. Blessed are the pure in heart; for they shall see God.

4. Blessed are the peacemakers; for they shall be called the children of God. Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteousness' sake; for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.

5. Blessed are ye when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice and be exceeding glad; for great is your reward in heaven. * * *

6. Ye have heard that it hath been said by them of old time, Thou shalt not forswear thyself, but shalt perform unto the Lord thine oaths: but I say unto you, Swear not at all; neither by heaven; for it is God's throne: nor by the earth; for it is his footstool: neither by Jerusalem; for it is the city of the great King.

7. Neither shalt thou swear by thy head, because thou canst not make one hair white or black. But let your communication be, Yea, yea; Nay, nay: for whatsoever is more than these cometh of evil.

8. Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth: but I say unto you, That ye resist not evil; but whosoever shall smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also. And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let him have thy cloak also. And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain. Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of thee turn not thou away.

9. Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor and hate thine enemy: but I say unto you, Love your enemies; bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust.

10. For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not even the publicans the same? And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others? do not even the publicans so? Be ye, therefore, perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect. * * *

11. Judge not, that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye mete, it shall be measured to you again. And why beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?

12. Or how wilt thou say to thy brother, Let me pull out the mote out of thine eye; and, behold, a beam is in thine own eye? Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye. * * *

13. Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: for everyone that asketh, receiveth; and he that seeketh, findeth; and to him that knocketh, it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent?

14. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him? Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and the prophets. * * *

15. Whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not; for it was founded upon a rock.

16. And everyone that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: and the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.

17. And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: for he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes.

DEFINITIONS.--l. Dis-ci'ple, one who receives instruction from another. 2. Bless'ed, happy. In-her'it, to come into possession of. 5. Re-vile', to speak against without cause. Per'se-cute, to punish on account of religion. 6. For-swear', to swear falsely. 9. De-spite'ful-ly, maliciously, cruelly. 10. Pub'li-cans, tax collectors (they were often oppressive and were hated by the Jews). 11. Mete, to measure. Mote, a small particle. 12. Hyp'o-crite, a false pretender. 17. Scribes, men among the Jews who read and explained the law to the people.

EXERCISES.--Who delivered this sermon? Who are blessed? and why? Is it right to swear? How should we treat our enemies? Should we judge others harshly? What does Jesus say of him who finds faults in his neighbor, but does not see his own? What is said about prayer? About our conduct to others?

LXXIV. THE YOUNG WITNESS. (207) By S. H. HAMMOND.

1. A little girl nine years of age was brought into court, and offered as a witness against a prisoner who was on trial for a crime committed in her father's house.

2. "Now, Emily," said the counsel for the prisoner, "I wish to know if you understand the nature of an oath?"

3. "I don't know what you mean," was the simple answer.

4. "Your Honor," said the counsel, addressing the judge, "it is evident that this witness should be rejected. She does not understand the nature of an oath."

5. "Let us see," said the judge. "Come here, my daughter."

6. Assured by the kind tone and manner of the judge, the child stepped toward him, and looked confidingly in his face, with a calm, clear eye, and in a manner so artless and frank that it went straight to the heart.

7. "Did you ever take an oath?" inquired the judge.

8. The little girl stepped back with a look of horror; and the red blood rose and spread in a blush all over her face and neck, as she answered, "No, sir." She thought he intended to ask if she had ever used profane language.

9. "I do not mean that," said the judge, who saw her mistake; "I mean were you ever a witness?"

10. "No, sir; I never was in court before," was the answer.

11. He handed her the Bible open. "Do you know that book, my daughter?"

12. She looked at it and answered, "Yes, sir; it is the Bible."

13. "Do you ever read in it?" he asked.

14. "Yes, sir; every evening."

15. "Can you tell me what the Bible is?" inquired the judge.

16. "It is the word of the great God," she answered.

17. "Well," said the judge, "place your hand upon this Bible, and listen to what I say;" and he repeated slowly and solemnly the following oath: "Do you swear that in the evidence which you shall give in this case, you will tell the truth, and nothing but the truth; and that you will ask God to help you?"

18. "I do," she replied.

19. "Now," said the judge, "you have been sworn as a witness; will you tell me what will befall you if you do not tell the truth?"

20. "I shall be shut up in the state prison," answered the child.

21. "Anything else?" asked the judge.

22. "I shall never go to heaven," she replied.

23. "How do you know this?" asked the judge again.

24. The child took the Bible, turned rapidly to the chapter containing the commandments, and, pointing to the one which reads, "Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbor," said, "I learned that before I could read."

25. "Has anyone talked with you about being a witness in court here against this man?" inquired the judge.

26. "Yes, sir," she replied, "my mother heard they wanted me to be a witness; and last night she called me to her room, and asked me to tell her the Ten Commandments; and then we kneeled down together, and she prayed that I might understand how wicked it was to bear false witness against my neighbor, and that God would help me, a little child, to tell the truth as it was before him.

27. "And when I came up here with father, she kissed me, and told me to remember the Ninth Commandment, and that God would hear every word that I said."

28. "Do you believe this?" asked the judge, while a tear glistened in his eye, and his lip quivered with emotion.

29. "Yes, sir," said the child, with a voice and manner which showed that her conviction of the truth was perfect.

30. "God bless you, my child," said the judge, "you have a good mother. The witness is competent," he continued. "Were I on trial for my life, and innocent of the charge against me, I would pray God for such a witness as this. Let her be examined."

31. She told her story with the simplicity of a child, as she was; but her voice and manner carried conviction of her truthfulness to every heart.

32. The lawyers asked her many perplexing questions, but she did not vary in the least from her first statement.

33. The truth, as spoken by a little child, was sublime. Falsehood and perjury had preceded her testimony; but before her testimony, falsehood was scattered like chaff.

34. The little child, for whom a mother had prayed for strength to be given her to speak the truth as it was before God, broke the cunning device of matured villainy to pieces, like a potter's vessel. The strength that her mother prayed for was given her; and the sublime and terrible simplicity,--terrible to the prisoner and his associates,--was like a revelation from God himself.

DEFINITIONS.--l. Wit'ness, one who gives testimony. Com--mit'ted, done, performed. 2. Coun'sel, a lawyer. 4. Re-ject'ed, refused. 6. As-sured', made bold. Con-fid'ing-ly, with trust. 8. Pro-fane', irreverent, taking the name of God in vain. 33. Per'ju-ry, the act of willfully making a false oath. Chaff, the light dry husk of grains or grasses. 34. Ma-tured', perfected, fully developed. Pot'ter, one whose occupation is to make earthen vessels. Rev--e-la'tion, the act of disclosing or showing what was before unknown.

EXERCISES.--What is this story about? Why did the counsel wish to have Emily refused as a witness? Was she a fit person to be a witness? How was this shown? Which commandment forbids us to bear false witness? What was the result of Emily's testimony?

LXXV. KING SOLOMON AND THE ANTS. (211)

By John Greenleaf Whittier, born near Haverhill, Mass., In 1807, and died at Hampton Falls, N. H., In 1892. Until he was eighteen years old he worked on the farm, and during that time learned the trade at a shoemaker. He afterwards became an editor and one of the first poets of America.

1. Out from Jerusalem The king rode with his great War chiefs and lords of state, And Sheba's queen with them.

2. Proud in the Syrian sun, In gold and purple sheen, The dusky Ethiop queen Smiled on King Solomon.

3. Wisest of men, he knew The languages of all The creatures great or small That trod the earth or flew.

4. Across an ant-hill led The king's path, and he heard Its small folk, and their word He thus interpreted:

5. "Here comes the king men greet As wise and good and just, To crush us in the dust Under his heedless feet."

6. The great king bowed his head, And saw the wide surprise Of the Queen of Sheba's eyes As he told her what they said.

7. "O king!" she whispered sweet, "Too happy fate have they Who perish in thy way Beneath thy gracious feet!

8. "Thou of the God-lent crown, Shall these vile creatures dare Murmur against thee where The knees of kings kneel down?"

9. "Nay," Solomon replied, "The wise and strong should seek The welfare of the weak;" And turned his horse aside.

10. His train, with quick alarm, Curved with their leader round The ant-hill's peopled mound, And left it free from harm.

11. The jeweled head bent low; "O king!" she said, "henceforth The secret of thy worth And wisdom well I know.

12. "Happy must be the State Whose ruler heedeth more The murmurs of the poor Than flatteries of the great."

DEFINITIONS.--4. In-ter'pret-ed, explained the meaning of. 5. Greet, Address, salute. 9. Wel'fare, happiness. 10. Train, a body of followers. 12. Flat'ter-ies, praises for the purpose of gratifying vanity or gaining favor.

LXXVI. RIVERMOUTH THEATER. (213)

From "The Story of a Bad Boy," by Thomas Bailey Aldrich. The author was born at Portsmouth, N. H., in 1836. When quite young his family moved to Louisiana, but he was sent back to New England to be educated, and later he located at New York. He is a well-known writer of both prose and poetry.

1. "Now, boys, what shall we do?" I asked, addressing a thoughtful conclave of seven, assembled in our barn one dismal, rainy afternoon. "Let's have a theater," suggested Binny Wallace.

2. The very thing! But where? The loft of the stable was ready to burst with hay provided for Gypsy, but the long room over the carriage house was unoccupied. The place of all places! My managerial eye saw at a glance its capabilities for a theater.

3. I had been to the play a great many times in New Orleans, and was wise in matters pertaining to the drama. So here, in due time, was set up some extraordinary scenery of my own painting. The curtain, I recollect, though it worked smoothly enough on other occasions, invariably hitched during the performances.

4. The theater, however, was a success, as far as it went. I retired from the business with no fewer than fifteen hundred pins, after deducting the headless, the pointless, and the crooked pins with which our doorkeeper frequently got "stuck." From first to last we took in a great deal of this counterfeit money. The price of admission to the "Rivermouth Theater" was twenty pins. I played all the principal characters myself--not that I was a finer actor than the other boys, but because I owned the establishment.