for it, Corporal Trim, than if thou hadst had a hand in the Talmud itself."

We read, in Swedish history, that one of its kings, determining to suppress false notions of honour, issued a severe edict against the practice of duelling. Two gentlemen, however, generals in his service, in a quarrel agreed to solicit the king's permission to decide their difference by the laws of honour.

The king consented, and said he would be present at the combat; his majesty was attended by a body of guards, and the public executioner, and before they proceeded to the onset, he told these gentlemen that they must fight till one of them died.

Then, turning to the executioner, he added, “do you immediately strike off the head of the survivor." This had the desired effect; the difference between the officers was adjusted, and no more challenges were heard of in the army.

LESSON XLIII.

EDWARD II.-EDWARD III.-RICHARD II.

Edward I was succeeded by his eldest son, EDWARD II., in the year 1307. Edward, on ascending the throne, soon gave proofs of his total unfitness to succeed so great a monarch as his father, for he yielded himself up to the government of unprincipled favourites.

With the view of carrying out the plans of his father, he marched into Scotland, at the head of an army one

hundred thousand strong, but for want of skill and promptitude, he was completely defeated at Bannockburn, by the Scottish army, under Bruce, and he, with great difficulty, saved himself by flight.

Edward married Isabella, the daughter of the king of France, a woman naturally cruel, daring, and haughty; she, being exasperated at his weakness, went over to France, and returned, heading an army for the purpose of deposing her husband, and being joined by great numbers of the English, she succeeded in taking him prisoner.

Edward was sent from prison to prison, a wretched outcast, and the sport of his inhuman keepers, until at last, being afraid of a revolution in his favour, he was put to death, at the command of this worthless woman, by a cruel and torturing process. Thus died Edward II., after a reign of nearly twenty years.

Edward II. was succeeded by his son, EDWARD III., in the year 1327, when only in his fitteenth year; during his minority, his mother, and her accomplice, Mortimer, an unprincipled person, with whom she had long been disgracefully connected, were at the head of public affairs, but the nation, at large, became so dissatisfied with their conduct, that she was stripped of her power, and thrown into prison, and her favourite, Mortimer, executed.

When Edward succeeded to power, he invaded France, and gained some decisive victories, amongst which may be named that obtained at the battle of Cressy; in one fought by his son, the Black Prince, the Frencn king was taken prisoner, and the Scottish king being taken about the same time, London contained two captive kings.

E

Edward possessed every quality necessary for governing, but mistaking empty honour for greatness, he squandered away the resources of his country in its pursuit, and after reigning fifty years, he died more admired than respected.

During his reign, gunpowder was first used in war.—Cloth weaving was introduced, also that of blankets, which took their name from Thomas Blanket, of Bristol, and clocks came into use.

Edward III. was was succeeded by his grandson, RICHARD II., the son of the Black Prince, in the year 1377. Richard being only eleven years of age, his three uncles, the dukes of York, Lancaster, and Gloucester,* were appointed his guardians, and these three became extremely unpopular, in consequence of their laying a tax of three groats upon every person upwards of fifteen years of age.

This odious tax nearly led to a revolution, for one of the tax gatherers, in calling upon a person of the name of Wat Tyler, a blacksmith, began to behave in an improper manner to his daughter, a girl about fifteen years of age; this naturally exasperated the father, and he struck the tax gatherer dead upon the spot.

The country, at large, espoused Wat Tyler's cause, and a general rising took place, when every species of excess was committed, and it would probably have been attended with the most serious consequences, had not the young king, with great presence of mind, addressed the leaders of the insurrection in a conciliating manner, and promised to redress all their grievances.

This incident gave the people hopes that Richard would be a good king, but these hopes were not fulfilled, for he was not only deficient in capacity and judgment,

Glos'-ter.

but he mixed with low company, and gave himself up to luxury, until at last he became so odious to his subjects, that the Duke of Lancaster became king in his place.

Richard, finding himself deserted by his subjects, threw himself upon the mercy of the duke, but without success, for he was treated with great indignity, and led from town to town amidst the scoffs of the people.

At last he was thrown into prison, when he signed away his right to the crown, and he was afterwards murdered in Pomfret castle, having reigned twentytwo years.

LESSON XLIV.

MISCELLANEOUS INFORMATION.

Many insects are highly useful to man; thus, the bee makes us honey, the Spanish fly is used for raising blisters, the cochineal for dying scarlet, and the silkworm spins us silk.

It is also supposed that many insects contribute to our health, by eating up putrid substances upon the ground, which might infect the air, and render it unfit for breathing.

Rice is a nutritive grain, much cultivated in warm climates, where it forms the principal article of food for the humbler classes; it is produced in immense quantities in Asia, but the largest and best comes from Car-o-li'-na, one of the states of America.

Opium is a strong narcotic, obtained by making incisions or cuts in the head of the white poppy; the juice that oozes out, when dried, is opium; we obtain it from Turkey, and the East Indies.

Laudanum is a preparation made from opium; it is extensively used in medicine for lulling pain, and promoting sleep, but is a deadly poison, if taken in too large a quantity.

The toad, the frog, the dormouse, the bat, and many other animals, remain in a dormant, or sleeping state, during the winter; if it were not for this wise regulation, they would cease to exist, for the kind of food they require, could not be met with in the winter season.

Sometimes, when wood is burning, it makes a crackling noise, and sends out sparks with great violence; the reason is, the wood, being porous, is full of air, which expands with the heat, and not having room, it forces its way out with considerable noise.

The upper surface of leaves is, in general, smooth and glossy, to prevent water from lodging upon them, and causing them to decay; while the undersides are rough and porous, that they may imbibe the nourishment they require from the air and dew.

A balloon is a large bag, somewhat in the shape of a pear; it is made of silk, and covered with varnish, to make it air-tight; this, when inflated, or filled with a gas, about twelve times lighter than the air, rises in the same way that a cork would rise, if sunk in water.

The balloon will continue to ascend till it and the air are of the same weight, when, if allowed to remain, it would float about the same as a cloud; if the a'-er-onaut wish to ascend still higher, he empties his bags of sand; if he wish to descend, he lets out part of the gas.

Cannel coal is a singular kind of mineral procured in the neighbourhood of Wigan, in Lancashire; it burns with a clear white flame, it will not soil the hand, and it is so hard that it will take a beautiful polish.

In bathing, a person that is stout will swim with