Of noble natures, of the gloomy days,
Of all the unhealthy and o'erdarkened ways
Made for our searching—yes, in spite of all,
Some shape of beauty moves away the pall
From our dark spirits.

The poet next tells us what "things of beauty" he means. They are the sun, the moon, old and young trees, daffodils, clear rills, the brake (a flower which grows in the forest), lovely tales we have heard or read, and the grand burials we give to great and noble men. These things please the imagination. Thinking of them we forget our own miseries; they please us in spite of ourselves. What more beautiful than the sunshine! How it cheers the hearts of men, both old and young!

Such the sun, the moon,

Trees old and young, sprouting a shady boon

For simple sheep. And such are daffodils,

With the green world they live in; and clear rills,
That for themselves a shady covert make
'Gainst the hot season; the mid-forest brake,
Rich with a sprinkling of fair musk-rose blooms;
And such, too, is the grandeur of the dooms
We have imagined for the mighty dead;
All lovely tales that we have heard or read:
An endless fountain of immortal drink
Pouring unto us from the heaven's brink.

These feelings not only endure for the time in which we experience them, but their constant succession makes them become as necessary to us as our daily bread. This sentiment agrees with the verse in the Old Testament which says, "Man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the Lord doth man live." (Deut. viii., 3.)

Nor do we merely feel these essences

For one short hour. No! even as the trees
That whisper round a temple become soon
Dear as the temple's self, so does the moon,
The passion poesy, glories infinite,
Haunt us till they become a cheering light
Unto our souls, and bound to us so fast,
That, whether there be shine or gloom o'ercast,
They always must be with us or we die.

JOHN KEATS.

[Those who appreciate this manner of opening up the meaning of poetry to children, will find the most popular poems in the language so dealt with in John Heywood's Explanatory Book of Standard Poetry, 160 pages, price One Shilling.]

AUGUSTUS Cæsar would say that he wondered that Alexander should want work, having no more worlds to conquer; as if it were not as hard a matter to keep as to conquer.

Gulliver in Lilliput.

BY DEAN SWIFT.

CHAPTER IV.

Y gentleness and good behaviour had gained so far on the emperor and his court-and, indeed, upon the army and people in general-that I began to conceive hopes of getting my liberty in a short time. I took all possible methods to cultivate this favourable disposition. The natives came by degrees to be less apprehensive of any danger from me. I would sometimes lie down and let five or six of them dance on my hand; and at last the boys and girls would venture to come and play at hide-and-seek in my hair. I had now made a good progress in understanding and speaking their language.

The horses of the army, and those of the royal stables, having been daily led before me, were no longer shy, but would come up to my very feet without starting. The riders would leap them over my hand as I held it on the ground; and one of the emperor's huntsmen, upon a large courser, took my foot, shoe and all; which was indeed a prodigious leap.

It was my good fortune that no ill accident happened in these entertainments; only once a fiery horse that belonged to one of the captains, pawing with his hoof, struck a hole in my handkerchief, and, his foot slipping, he overthrew his rider and himself; but I immediately delivered them both, and, covering the hole with one hand, I set down the horse with the other. It was strained in the left shoulder, but the rider got no hurt, and I repaired my handkerchief as well as I could.

About two or three days before I was set at liberty, as I was entertaining the court with such feats as these, there arrived an express to inform his majesty that some of his subjects, riding near the place where I was first taken up, had seen a great black substance lying on the ground, very oddly shaped, extending its edges round as wide as his majesty's bedchamber, and rising up

in the middle as high as a man; that it was no living creature, as they at first apprehended, for it lay on the grass without motion, and some of them had walked round it several times; that, by mounting upon each other's shoulders, they had got to the top, which was flat and even, and, stamping upon it, they found that it was hollow within: that they humbly conceived it might be something belonging to the man-mountain, and, if his majesty pleased, they would undertake to bring it with only five horses.

I at once knew what they meant, and was glad at heart to receive this intelligence. It seems, upon my first reaching the shore after our shipwreck, I was in such confusion that, before I came to the place where I went to sleep, my hat, which I had fastened with a string to my head while I was rowing, and had stuck on all the time I was swimming, fell off after I came to land; the string, as I conjecture, breaking by some accident, which I never observed, but thought my hat had been lost at gea. I entreated his imperial majesty to give orders it might be brought to me as soon as possible, describing to him the use and nature of it; and the next day the waggoners arrived with it, but not in a very good condition. They had bored two holes in the brim, within an inch and a half of the edge, and fastened two hooks in the holes: these hooks were tied by a long cord to the harness, and thus my hat was dragged along for above half an English mile; but, the ground in that country being extremely smooth and level, it received less damage than I expected.

Two days after this adventure, the emperor, having ordered that part of his army which quarters in and about his metropolis to be in readiness, took a fancy of diverting himself in a very singular manner. He desired I would stand like a Colossus, with my legs as far asunder as I conveniently could. He then commanded his general (who was an old, experienced leader, and a great friend of mine) to draw up the troops in close order, and march under me the foot by twenty-four abreast, and the horse by sixteen, with drums beating, colours flying, and pikes advanced. This body consisted of three thousand foot and a thousand horse.

I had sent so many memorials and petitions for my liberty that his majesty at length mentioned the matter, first in the

cabinet and then in a full council, where it was opposed by none except Skyresh Bolgolam, who was pleased, without any provocation, to be my mortal enemy. But it was carried against him by the whole board, and confirmed by the emperor. That minister was admiral of the realm, very much in his master's confidence, and a person well versed in affairs, but of a morose and sour complexion. However, he was at length persuaded to comply; but prevailed that the articles and conditions upon which I should be set free, and to which I must swear, should be drawn up by himself. These articles were brought to me by Skyresh Bolgolam in person, attended by two under-secretaries and several persons of distinction. After they were read, I was demanded to swear to the performance of them; first in the manner of my own country, and afterwards by the method prescribed in their laws, which was, to hold my right foot in my left hand, and to place the middle finger of my right hand on the crown of my head, and my thumb on the tip of my right ear. But, because the reader may be curious to have some idea of the style and manner of expression peculiar to that people, as well as to know the articles upon which I recovered my liberty, I have made a translation of the whole instrument, word for word, as near as I was able, which I here offer to the public:

"Golbasto Momaren Evlarne Gurdilo Shefin Mully Ully Gue, most mighty emperor of Lilliput, delight and terror of the universe, whose dominions extend five thousand blustrugs (about twelve miles in circumference) to the extremities of the globe; monarch of all monarchs, taller than the sons of men; whose feet press down to the centre, and whose head strikes against the sun; at whose nod the princes of the earth shake their knees; pleasant as the spring, comfortable as the summer, fruitful as autumn, dreadful as winter. His most sublime majesty proposes to the man-mountain, lately arrived at our celestial dominions, the following articles, which by a solemn oath he shall be obliged to perform :

"1st. The man-mountain shall not depart from our dominions without our licence under our great seal.

"2nd. He shall not presume to come into our metropolis without our express order; at which time the inhabitants shall have two hours' warning to keep within doors.

3rd. The said man-mountain shall confine his walks to our principal high roads, and not offer to walk or lie down in a meadow or field of corn.

"4th. As he walks the said roads he shall take the utmost care not to trample upon the bodies of any of our loving subjects, their horses or carriages, nor take any of our subjects into his hands without their own consent.

"5th. If an express requires an extraordinary dispatch, the man-mountain shall be obliged to carry in his pocket the messenger and horse a six days' journey once in every moon, and return the said messenger back (if so required) safe to our imperial presence.

"6th. He shall be our ally against our enemies in the island of Blefuscu, and do his utmost to destroy their fleet, which is now preparing to invade us.

"7th. That the said man-mountain, at his leisure, be aiding and assisting our workmen in helping to raise certain great stones towards covering the wall of our principal park, and other our royal buildings.

"8th. That the said man-mountain shall, in two moons' time, deliver in an exact survey of the circumference of our dominions, by a computation of his own paces round the coast.

"Lastly. That, upon his solemn oath to observe all the above articles, the said man-mountain shall have a daily allowance of meat and drink sufficient for the support of 1,728 of our subjects, with free access to our royal person, and other marks of our favour.

"Given at our palace at Belfabovac, the twelfth day of the ninety-first moon of our reign."

I swore and subscribed to these articles with great cheerfulness and content, although some of them were not so honourable as I could have wished, which proceeded wholly from the malice of Skyresh Bolgolam, the high admiral: whereupon my chains were immediately unlocked, and I was at full liberty. The emperor himself, in person, did me the honour to be by at the whole ceremony. I made my acknowledgments by prostrating myself at his majesty's feet; but he commanded me to rise, and, after many gracious expressions, which to avoid the censure of vanity I shall not repeat, he added that he hoped I should prove a useful