ere was a murder done in Russia, very lately, on a
traveller. The murderess's little daughter was in the way, and found it
out, somehow. Her mother killed her, too, and put her into the oven.
There is a peculiar horror about the relations between parent and child,
which are being now brought about by our variously degraded forms of
European white slavery. Here _is_ one reference, I see, in my notes on
that story of Cleobis and Bito; though I suppose I marked this chiefly
for its quaintness, and the beautifully Christian names of the sons; but
it is a good instance of the power of the King of the Valley of
Diamonds[153] among us.

In 'Galignani' of July 21-22, 1862, is reported a trial of a farmer's
son in the department of the Yonne. The father, two years ago, at Malay
le Grand, gave up his property to his two sons, on condition of being
maintained by them. Simon fulfilled his agreement, but Pierre would not.
The tribunal of Sens condemns Pierre to pay eighty-four francs a year to
his father. Pierre replies, 'he would rather die than pay it.' Actually,
returning home, he throws himself into the river, and the body is not
found till next day.

MARY. But--but--I can't tell what you would have us think. Do you
seriously mean that the Greeks were better than we are; and that their
gods were real angels?

L. No, my dear. I mean only that we know, in reality, less than nothing
of the dealings of our Maker with our fellow-men; and can only reason or
conjecture safely about them, when we have sincerely humble thoughts of
ourselves and our creeds.

We owe to the Greeks every noble discipline in literature; every radical
principle of art; and every form of convenient beauty in our household
furniture and daily occupations of life. We are unable, ourselves, to
make rational use of half that we have received from them: and, of our
own, we have nothing but discoveries in science, and fine mechanical
adaptations of the discovered physical powers. On the other hand, the
vice existing among certain classes, both of the rich and poor, in
London, Paris, and Vienna, could have been conceived by a Spartan or
Roman of the heroic ages only as possible in a Tartarus, where fiends
were employed to teach, but not to punish, crime. It little becomes us
to speak contemptuously of the religion of races to whom we stand in
such relations; nor do I think any man of modesty or thoughtfulness will
ever speak so of any religion, in which God has al