1. Weave, pastimes, gamboled, pretence, impetuously, sympathy, fickle, seraphic.

2. What is the thought of this extract? Is some loved one missing this Christmas who was with those "round the Christmas hearth" last year? What was the "shadow"? Explain "vain pretence," "winds were in the beech," "rapt from the fickle," "from veil to veil."

XLVII. DON QUIXOTE AND SANCHO PANZA.

1. Don Quixote, hearing how soon Sancho Panza was to depart to his new government, took him by the hand and led him to his chamber, in order to give him some advice respecting his conduct in office. "First, my son, fear God; for to fear Him is wisdom; and being wise thou canst not err. Secondly, consider what thou art, and endeavor to know thyself, which is the most difficult study of all. The knowledge of thyself will preserve thee from vanity, and the fate of the frog who foolishly vied with the ox will serve thee as a caution; the recollection, too, of having been formerly a swineherd in thine own country will be to thee, in the loftiness of thy pride, like the ugly feet of the peacock."

2. "It is true," said Sancho, " that I once did keep swine, but I was only a boy then; when I grew towards manhood I looked after geese, and not hogs. But this, methinks, is nothing to the pur

pose, for all governors are not descended from the kings."

3. "That I grant," replied Don Quixote; "and therefore those who have not the advantage of

noble descent should fail not to grace the dignity of the office they bear with gentleness and modesty, which, when accompanied with discretion, will silence those murmurs which few situations in life can escape.

4. "Conceal not the meanness of thy family, nor think it disgraceful to be descended from peasants: for when it is seen that thou art not thyself ashamed, none will endeavor to make thee so; and deem it more meritorious to be a virtuous humble man than a lofty sinner. Infinite is the number of those who, born of low extraction, have risen to the highest dignities, both in church and state; and of this truth I could tire thee with examples.

5. "Remember, Sancho, if thou takest virtue for the rule of life, and valuest thyself upon acting in all things conformably thereto, thou wilt have no cause to envy lords and princes; for blood is inherited, but virtue is a common property, and may be acquired by all; it has, moreover, an intrinsic worth which blood has not. This being so, if peradventure any one of thy kindred visit thee in thy government, do not slight nor affront him, but receive, cherish, and make much of him; for in so doing thou wilt please God, who allows none of his creatures to be despised, and thou wilt also manifest therein a well-disposed nature.

6. "Be not under the dominion of thine own will;

it is the vice of the ignorant, who vainly presume on their own understanding. Let the tears of the poor find more compassion, but not more justice, from thee than the applications of the wealthy. Be equally solicitous to sift out the truth amidst the presents and promises of the rich and the sighs and entreaties of the poor.

7. "Whenever equity may justly temper the rigor of the law, let not the whole force of it bear upon the delinquent; for it is better that a judge should lean on the side of compassion than on that of severity. If perchance the scales of justice be not correctly balanced, let the error be imputable to pity, not to gold. If the cause of thine enemy come before thee, forget thy injuries, and think only on the merits of the case. Let not private affection blind thee in another man's cause; for the errors thou shalt thereby commit will be often without remedy, and at the expense of both thy reputation and thy fortune.

8. "Revile not with words him whom thou hast to correct with deeds; the punishment which the unhappy wretch is doomed to suffer is sufficient, without the addition of abusive language. When the criminal stands before thee, recollect the frail and depraved nature of man, and, as much as thou canst without injustice to the suffering party, show pity and clemency; for, though all the attributes

of God are equally adorable, yet His mercy is more shining and attractive in our eyes than His justice.

9. "If, Sancho, thou observest these precepts, thy days will be long and thy fame eternal, thy recompense full and thy felicity unspeakable. Thou shalt marry thy children to thy heart's content, and they and thy grandchildren shall want neither honors nor titles. Beloved by all men, thy days shall pass in peace and tranquillity; and when the inevitable period comes, death shall steal on thee in a good and venerable old age, and thy grandchildren's children, with tender and pious hands, shall close thine eyes.

10. "But here let it rest, Sancho; for if thou governest ill, though the fault will be thine, the shame will be mine. However, I am comforted in having given thee the best counsel in my power; and, therein having done my duty, I am acquitted both of my obligation and my promise: so God speed thee, Sancho, and govern thee in thy government, and deliver me from the fears I entertain that thou wilt turn the whole island topsy-turvy."

11. "Look you, sir," replied Sancho. "If your worship thinks I am not fit for this government, I renounce it from this time; for I have more regard for a single nail's breadth of my soul than for my whole body, and plain Sancho can live as well upon