on. Nothing escapes his notice. "The very hairs of your
head are all numbered." So small a bird as a sparrow, the Bible tells
us, cannot fall to the ground without his knowledge. If he cares for
the birds, he certainly does for children, and wishes them all to be
good and happy.

God has given you all many gifts, for which you ought to thank him. If
I should look into your play-rooms, how many things I should see which
add to your enjoyment! In one there is a pasteboard house, with
windows and doors, and partitions to divide it into rooms. It is
furnished with tables and chairs, and the dolls can sit in them. In
another, are blocks with which to build houses, castles, and railways,
or any thing the fancy of the young architect may dictate; and here
is Noah's ark, in miniature, containing himself and family, and many
animals. Countless other toys are distributed among my young friends,
which make their bright eyes sparkle, and wreathe their lips with
smiles.

Other treasures, more valuable than these, are not wanting. How many
books I see! and as I open them, one after another, at the fly-leaf, I
read your own names and the names of those friends and relatives who
have given them to you.

Have you ever thanked your heavenly Father, as Mary Wilson did, for
these pleasant things which make you so happy, and for all the
blessings he confers upon you?

Your parents provide you with food and clothes, and many other
comforts which you need; but it is God who enables them to do so, and
who fills their hearts with such love for you as to make it a pleasure
to watch over and care for you. You should be grateful to them for all
their kindness, but you should never forget that to your Father in
heaven you owe your gratitude for such loving friends.

God himself has taught you to ask him, day by day, for your daily
bread. That prayer shows who provides for your wants, and whom you
should thank for the pleasant things you enjoy.

There is one gift of exceeding great value which the Lord has bestowed
upon us--greater than all others--but I will tell you about it another
time.

BESSIE HARTWELL.

Children who are called obedient children are often not so prompt in
their obedience as they should be. Instead of doing directly as they
are bidden, they stop to ask "Why?" and seem to wish some other reason
for compliance with a command than the word of a parent. It is often
proper to tell children why they should do or sho