If we felt the full force of this truth, it would often have a controlling influence over our minds, and the affections we exercise. There are many who are careful enough of their external appearance: any poisonous cosmetic, arsenic, acetate of lead, &c., is used by the leaders of fashion,health, of course, being subordinated to external appearances. All would seem, a la Chesterfield, to take good care of their manners, their dress, their complexion; but think little of the beauty or deformity they are becoming when so fully engrossed by these things. The most important effects (which need no cosmetic) wrought in the facial as well as the spiritual nature, are omitted in the calculation. We may live by forms, but we cannot die by forms.

THE SOURCES OF PERSONAL BEAUTY.-"Mamma, am I pretty?" "No, my dear; but beauty is of no consequence." Now what an unmitigated fib! and every day of that child's life she will be finding it out. Why not tell her the truth-that beauty is of consequence, as is everything that GOD has made. Why not tell her that the eye is irresistibly fascinated by it; that a handsome child is always more noticed by a stranger than a plain one; just as, when one walks in a garden, a beautiful flower invites admiration above its fellows; but like that, if upon examination it be found scentless-if it pierces with sharpness the hand that would caress it-the gazer plucks it but to throw it aside, or passes it for one less pretentious, whose sweetness will endure long after its pale hues shall have faded away. It is right for people to wish to be pleasing, and it is not only right, but a duty, for everybody to look as beautiful as they can. Tell your child all this; but tell her that for the higher order of beauty, something beside the body must be decorated. Tell her that the soul must be washed of bad passions-the cobwebs of envy brushed away-the dust of selfishness wiped off, and its chambers aired of the foul atmosphere of uncharitableness. Tell her how resplendent the soul can make the body,-how, like a light within a crystal vase, it makes fair what else were dark and dim to human sight. Tell her how before its radiance men bow down, hushing the hot breath of world

liness, as before GOD's own calm presence. Tell her to tread the earth with the triumphant step of one who is heir to all Heaven-second to none. Oh, I have seen such ! lofty-yet lowly. No earthly artiste could trace their beauty, or sculptor mould their symmetry. To hear the rustle of their garments was to feel the sweep of an angel's wing.

Swift's remark that man was too proud to be vain, does not apply to Lord Chesterfield. True vanity and pride are moral antipodes of each other; there is not the slightest affinity between them. Great power of mind, and great elegance of manner, are nearly incompatible. It is difficult for a man of genius to be an adept in the graces of the drawing room. Powerful minds have an originality and intractability about them, which render it extremely difficult for them to fall into that ease of conversational politeness which is considered to constitute the finished gentleman. The politeness of a man of genius is more that of nature than art. Politeness mechanically exercised is quite foreign to his soul. Montalembert remarks"It is the height of aristocracy to dare to hold out against the idol of the day, to strive against the precipitous torrent, and to stand alone and erect when all are bowing down, hiding their obsequious cowardly heads. But nothing prevents the energy of an invincible conscience from displaying itself in a Christian and sincerely liberal democracy."

Men have been seen who, after having been unpopular for many years, have gained in one day general esteem and public admiration. This is great encouragement to patience and perseverance. If honour and morality are sacrificed-farewell ambition! Embody pride and vanity,

and they will appear in every feature and act,-in every motion. Is envy the predominant passion ?-in the lineaments of the face the vile passion is stereotyped. So of cunning, malice, and every other inferior faculty;—you see the brand of Cain on the os frontis. By the love of goodness we become the embodiment of it: in the dominant love, the soul becomes the form and type of that affection. Who, in view of such consequences, will not make his life the prayer-"Let the beauty of the LORD be upon us!"

"FASHION.-FEMALE EDUCATION.-Satirical writers in countless numbers, have been wittily severe upon a modern fashion, said to have been introduced by the Empress of the French before the birth of the Imperial Prince, and which our English ladies have adopted enthusiastically. Mr. Punch' has, in fact, exhausted his wit upon Crinoline,' and all the funny things that could be said upon the subject having been said, it is turned over to Paterfamilias to grumble about, when the cost of it appears in the dressmakers' and milliners' bills. But really, if 'crinoline' were the only thing to criticise in connection with our 'sweethearts and wives,' the task would be a light one, and the trouble by no means unendurable. For our own part, the ladies might carry their passion for crinoline to any breadth they pleased, if they would take but half the pains to make themselves useful as they do to make themselves ornamental. A fine woman, well dressed, is one of the most beautiful objects the eye can rest upon. We see no reason why its beauty should not be improved, and its charms heightened, by self-dedication to useful purposes. Woman, unfortunately, is badly educated. There is no system which takes account of the mind with which the Creator has endowed the girl-child for the performance of Woman's Mission. All our systems of female education have reference to superficial graces and personal attractions only. The girl is taught a little French and a little German; she plays the piano a little, and makes little drawings for papa to exhibit to his Christmas party (she is very silent as to the share of the drawing-master in the work), and she is

deep in the mystery of French novels; she can flirt also upon occasion ; and has romantic dreams, and waking thoughts which are quite poetical, as she thinks: but of domestic duties she knows nothing. She is unequal to anything like housekeeping; cookery is, of course, a horrible bore; and a sick-room frightens her. Yet, in the part which she is destined to play in the world, a sick-room will necessarily have to be attended by her; and O! the pain, the misery, which the discovery of her utter uselessness there will occasion to the sufferer.

"The trashy novels, of which young females are the chief readers and supporters, are extremely mischievous; for they encourage false ideas and establish incorrect opinions. A recent writer, describing one of Mrs. Gore's works, makes some pertinent and judicious remarks upon the subject. A married woman,' he says, ‘having convicted herself of extravagance, repents, brings her account book to her husband, professes herself to be incapable of arithmetic, renounces her pin-money, and the volume closes with the implied moral that a woman should by no means trust herself to buy her own gloves and shoes. If the authoress had added another chapter to show how a very little of Cocker and common sense would have remedied the lady's helplessness, and how the pretty dependence of the young bride came to be provoking imbecility in the middle-aged matron, she would have done the world some service. In another place, there is much ridicule bestowed on the distresses of a lady Margaret, who is past thirty, and goes to Almack's, and has no one to dance with--a lesson which of course impresses upon its young and girlish readers, as an unquestionable fact, that it is esteemed in high life an eminent misfortune to be at a ball without a partner, or to be thirty without being married; and, of course, that they should set themselves to dress, flirt, and be fascinating, with all their might, try all schemes, and make all efforts to avert so dreadful a disaster. They learn from such books to think coarsely and boldly about lovers and marrying, their early modesty is effaced by the craving for admiration, their warm affections are silenced by the desire for selfish triumph, they lose the fresh and honest feelings of youth while they are yet scarcely developed, they pass with sad rapidity from their early visions of Tancred and Orlando to notions of good connexions, establishments, excellent matches, &c.; and yet they think, and their mammas think, that they are only advancing in prudence, and knowledge of the worldthat bad, contaminating knowledge of the world which I sometimes

imagine must have been the very apple that Eve plucked from the forbidden tree. Alas! when once tasted, the garden of life is an innocent and happy Paradise no more!' What are the evils of crinoline to such as are here referred to? Let the ladies have as much breadth of flounce as they please-let them throw their bonnets as much off their head as they please, even to the middle of their backs, should their taste descend so far-if they will only correct their wrong ideas, and study to be useful.

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"A writer in Blackwood more than insinuates that, in addition to other female follies, that of gluttony is growing into importance. We should hope this is not the case: but what is there in the system of female education to prevent it? Girls are never taught to reason or reflect. 'We do not like to see a young lady ignore her food,' says Blackwood, or turn from the proffered wing of a chicken, albeit with an air of the prettiest disgust. That always-to us, at least— engenders suspicion of previous banquets, of surreptitious luncheons, of forenoon indulgences in cakes and hot jelly, it may be with a flavour of maraschino. We see at once that there is a falsity in our sweet neighbour's performance; that she is acting a part deliberately studied and conned; and we remember, with a shudder, the story in the Arabian Nights, of the lady who restricted herself to a few grains of rice, at regular meal-tinies, in order that she might be properly appetised for her hideous supper with the Ghouls. This is bad enough; but what shall we say of an undisguised voracious woman? It is frightful that such a thing should be; yet, nevertheless, we lie not when we assert its existence. Gluttony is not altogether a male sin; it can be found in the female. How often have we beheld it in the Park carriages rolling by, containing enormous women, bursting with plethora, in whose rubicund countenances the awful signs of hot luncheons appeared. Are they to be pitied? Yes-but their husbands are more pitiable still.

"These are severe remarks, but not too severe if they are just. Formerly, it was only among the higher order of society that useful arts were ignored in female education; but of late years the idea that anything useful must necessarily be vulgar, has descended until it extends through the whole chain of society. Even our domestic servants are disposed to shirk as much of work as they can; and Molly, the housemaid, who advertises in the Times, stipulates that there shall be a boy to clean the knives and shoes. She, of course,