to extend the range of innocent recreation and virtuous enjoyment; useless to brighten and strengthen the chain of sympathy which binds man to man; or useless to excite a fresher or more frequent glow of grateful admiration in the human breast, towards the giver of all good."

"Flowers," says a writer, "flowers of all created things, the most innocently simple, the most superbly complex, playthings for childhood, ornaments of the grave, and companions of the cold corpse! Flowers, beloved by the idiot, and studied by the thinking man of science! Flowers, that unceasingly expand to heaven their grateful, and to man their cheerful looks; soothers of human sorrow; fit emblems of the victor's triumph and the young bride's blushes! Welcome to the crowded ball, and grateful upon the solitary grave! Flowers are in the volume of nature, what the expression 'God is love' is in the volume of revalation! What a desolate place would be a world without a flower; it would be a face without a smile-a feast without a welcome. Are not flowers the stars of earth, and are not our stars, the flowers of heaven? One cannot look closely at the structure of a flower without loving it; they are the emblems and manifestations of God's love to the creation, and they are means and ministrations of man's love to his fellow creatures, for they first awaken in his mind a sense of the beautiful and good. The very inutility of flowers, is their excellence and great beauty, for they lead us to thoughts of generosity and moral beauty, detached from, and superior to all selfishness, so that they are sweet lessons in nature's book of instruction, teaching man that he liveth not by bread alone, but that he hath another than animal life."

Who, that was blessed with parents that indulged themselves, and children with a flower garden, can forget the happy, innocent hours spent in its cultivation! O! who can forget those days, when to announce the appearance

of a bud, or the coloring of a tulip, or the opening of a rose, or the perfection of a full-blown peony, was glory enough for one morning. With tender emotions do I remember the old white rose-bush, trained up to the top of the house by the hand of a dear mother, the abundant and fragrant flowers of which gave delight to all the household, as well as to the neighbors, who received them as expressions of neighborly friendship and good-will. How many pleasant reminiscenses, crowd upon the memory of one who at the age of three-score and ten, as he looks back on the scenes of his childhood and youth, when from his sainted mother he received lessons of morality and piety, while engaged in the culture of a limited flower garden. Did she forget to love flowers? Were they no source of pleasure to her when old age crept upon her? No, no! At the age of ninety, her table never lacked a bouquet, a pot of fuchsia, or a rose or some other flower, which received her tender care. How many otherwise tedious hours were spent in the contemplation of her little flower garden; and with what cheerfulness did she pass away, from the flowers of earth, to the paradise of heaven, leaving a delightful example, of a happy, cheerful, contented old age, as a rich legacy to her numerous descendants and friends.

But the gratification derived from the garden, is not confined to the young or the old. Who that has been confined to the business of the day, toiling and laboring in the "sweat of his face," does not feel invigorated and refreshed, as he takes his walk in the cool of the evening, with the happy family group about him, and notes the progress of his fruits and flowers? Or, who that breathes the delicious fragrance of the morning flowers glittering with dew, but can look up with greater confidence and love to Him, who has strewed with such liberal profusion in every direction, the evidence of his goodness and love to the children of men!

Man was not made to rust out in idleness. A degree of exercise is as necessary for the preservation of health, both of body and mind, as his daily food. And what exercise is more fitting, or more appropriate for one who is in the decline of life, that that of superintending a well ordered garden? What more enlivens the sinking mind? What more invigorates the feeble frame? What is more conducive to a long life? What can be more grateful to the mechanic or merchant or professional man, than to recreate for a short time in a well selected garden of flowers, neatly arranged and well cultivated?

In reply to the question often asked, "what is the use of flowers?" William Cobbett asks another, "what is the use of anything?" There are many things in this wide world pleasing to the eye of man; many of them expensive and not in the power of all to obtain; but flowers may, without much or no expense, be obtained and possessed by the most humble individual. Their cultivation

may be made one unfailing source of happiness to the family. Let parents gather around them every source of innocent amusement and recreation for their children. They should endeavor to make their home attractive and lovely, both within doors and without.

THE LILY OF THE FIELD, or THE WONDERFUL BEAUTY OF FLOWERS.

The contemplation of the beauty of flowers, with their varied tints of exquisite colors, beautiful forms and delightful odors, is a source of never ending pleasure to all who have any taste for the beautiful, even when examined by the naked eye; but when placed under a powerful microscope, we are introduced to the hidden wonders of God's handiworks, where we see the exquisite finish of the most minute parts of the flower, with the adorning of colors that seem to be more splendid than anything earthly; here is no imperfection, and no blemish, but in every part of the most humble flower, we see nothing but the perfection of beauty. I was so well pleased with an article I found in the New-York Observer on this subject, entitled the "Lily of the Field," that I give the article entire, as follows, (believing that it will be read with pleasure and profit):

"In the reign of Solomon, the kingdom of Judah reached the acme of its splendor. He was the wisest, the richest, and the most powerful of kings.

"So widely extended was the fame of his character and magnificence, that distant nations came to add their portion to the sum of his glory. The grandest manifestations of his prosperity, and power, were, when the king appeared, arrayed in robes of finest texture, sitting upon the throne of ivory overlaid with pure gold. It was no mere display of barbaric magnificence, dazzling to the eye sense, with the glitter of gold, and the glare of brilliant colors. It was the suitable expression of that blessing which crowned the kingdom and its king. All that earth

of

could furnish and art apply, was centered upon him, who set forth in his own person the glory of the state. When our Saviour desired to impress his disciples with the superiority of the least of the works of God to the greatest of the works of man, He compared the humble beauty of the flowers at their feet, with the utmost that could be accomplished by human taste and skill.

"Consider,' said he, 'the lilies of the field, they toil not, neither do they spin; and yet I say unto you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.' We need not make a garland of these lilies, nor seek a meadow covered with their varied brightness, in order to find what surpasses the brilliant costume of the richest king. A single one of these frail flowers, is clothed with finer texture, adorned with richer hues, and expresses more of that perfection in form and color, which delight the eye and heart. As he stood before the altar, the royal robes of Solomon hung in graceful folds and shone with the purple blush of Tyre, but no angel's wings swept in more graceful curves, than that in which this lily of the field upturns its blushing face to the light and dews of heaven.

"In these lilies of the field, there is brightness, not of materials prepared and arranged by human hands, but the living brightness that flows directly from the hand of God. There is life in these flowers: every tint glows with the warmth of the unseen love which gives it being. It is not like the beaming stars, nor the glory of western cloudiness, for it shines with the mysterious power of the living principle, it has a breathing and growth toward the source of all true loveliness in this world, and that which is to come.

"Let us learn another lesson from the lily of the field. How small a portion of its exquisite beauty is within the reach of our vision. Look with a true heart and loving