paid a visit to his
country-house, taking little Junius with him. As the day happened to be
exceedingly warm, they retired to enjoy the benefit of the shade, and
entered the arbour, in which the vine stump had before so much offended
his son Junius.

"Ah! papa," said the young gentleman, "how charming and delightful is
this green shade! I am much obliged to you for having that dry and ugly
stump plucked up, which I found so much fault with when we were here
last, and for putting in its place this beautiful plant; I suppose you
did it in order to give me an agreeable surprise. How delightful and
tempting the fruit looks! What fine grapes! some purple, and others
almost black: I see no tree in the garden that looks in so blooming a
state. All have lost their fruit; but this fine one seems in the highest
perfection. See how it is loaded! See those wide-spreading leaves that
hide the clusters. If the fruit be as good as it appears beautiful, it
must be delicious."

Little Junius was in raptures when he tasted one of the grapes, which
his father gave him, and still more when he informed him, that from such
fruit was made that delicious liquor which he sometimes tasted after
dinner. The little fellow was quite astonished on hearing his father
talk thus; but he was far more surprised, when Mr. Jackson told him,
that all those fine leaves, and delicious fruit grew from that very
crooked and misshapen stump, with which he had been so angry in the
spring. His father then asked him, if he should now order the gardener
to pluck it up, and make firewood of it. Junius was much confused; but,
after a short silence, told his papa, that he would rather see every
other tree in the garden cut down than that, so beautiful were its
leaves, and so delicious its fruit.

As Mr. Jackson was a man of good sense, he thus moralized on this
occasion. "You see then, my dear," said he, "how imprudently I should
have acted, had I followed your advice, and cut down this tree. Daily
experience convinces us, that the same thing happens frequently in the
commerce of this world, which has in this instance misled you. When we
see a child badly clothed, and of an unpleasing external appearance, we
are too apt to despise him, and grow conceited on comparing ourselves
with him; and sometimes even go so far as cruelly to address him in
haughty and insulting language. But beware, my dear boy, how you run
into errors by forming a too hasty judgment. It is pos