It was an hour of rest! but Hagar found
No shelter in the wilderness, and on
She kept her weary way, until the boy
Hung down his head, and open'd his parch'd lips
For water; but she could not give it him.
She laid him down beneath the sultry sky,--
For it was better than the close, hot breath
Of the thick pines,--and tried to comfort him;
But he was sore athirst, and his blue eyes
Were dim and bloodshot, and he could not know
Why God denied him water in the wild.
She sat a little longer, and he grew
Ghastly and faint, as if he would have died.
It was too much for her. She lifted him,
And bore him farther on, and laid his head
Beneath the shadow of a desert shrub;
And, shrouding up her face, she went away
And sat to watch where he could see her not
Till he should die; and, watching him, she mourned:--

WILLIS.

One Female and One Male Figure.

This group is a representation of Hagar and Ishmael in the wilderness,
and is designed to imitate sculpture. The circumstances of the scene
are well known in the simple narrative of the Scriptures. The boy,
weary and exhausted by unaccustomed hardships and suffering, has sunk
down in the desert to die; but Hagar, sustained by the measureless
affection of a mother's breast, supports the fainting form of her son,
and has just put aside the cup now drained of its last precious drops
of water. She gazes upon his face, while in her own, hope still
lingers, before yielding to the unutterable anguish of despair. The
lady who personates Hagar should be of good figure and features, tall,
and matronly. Costume consists of a white dress, cut low in the neck,
sleeves five inches long, a white tarleton scarf worn across the
shoulders, and tied at the left side, the hair hanging in curls on the
neck, a white turban on the head, with two white strips attached to
the side and passed under the chin, and white sandals laced across
white hose. The position of Hagar is kneeling, so that a side view is
had of the face. The left hand sustains the head of Ishmael, the right
is extended to the pitcher which stands at the side of the group; the
head is bent forward considerably, eyes fixed on those of the boy,
countenance expressing anxiety and hope. A young lad of six years of
age, of fair complexion and long, light, curly hair, is required to
personate Ishmael. He should be costumed in a loose,