And cure of ev'ry ill!

More cruelty could none exprefs, And I, if you had fhewn me lefs, Had been your pris'ner ftill.

MR. Stanhope and his fon Gregory were one

evening, in the month of May, fitting at the foot of a delightful hill, and furveying the beautiful works of nature that furrounded them. The reclining fun now finking into the weft, feemed to clothe every thing with a purple robe. The cheerful fong of a fhepherd called off their attention from their meditations on thofe delightful profpects. This fhepherd was driving home his Rock from the adjacent fields.

Thorn-bufhes grew on each fide of the road, and every sheep that approached the thorns was fure to be robbed of fome part of its wool, which a good deal displeased little Gregory. ." Only see, papa, faid he, how the sheep are deprived of their wool by those bufhes! You have often told me, that God makes nothing in vain ; but these briars feem made only for mifchief; people fhould join to destroy them root and branch. Were the poor fheep to come often this way, they would be robbed of all their clothing. But that shall not be the cafe, for I will rife with the fun to-morrow morning, and with my little bill-hook and snip-fnap, I will level all these briars with the ground. You may come with me, papa, if you please, and bring with you an axe. Before breakfast, we shall be able to destroy them all."

Mr. Stanhope replied, "We must not go about this business in too great a hurry, but take a little time to confider of it; perhaps, there may not be fo much cause of being angry with these bushes as you feem at present to imagine. Have you not feen the fhepherds about Lammas, with great fhears in their hands, take from the trembling fheep all their wool, not being contented with a few locks only ?"

Gregory allowed that was true; but they did it in order to make clothes; whereas the hedges robbed the sheep without having the leaft occafion

for their wool, and evidently for no ufeful purpose. "If it be ufual faid he, for fheep to lofe their

clothing at a certain time of the year, then it is much better to take it for our own advantage, than to fuffer the hedges to pull it off for no end whatever."

Mr. Stanhope allowed the arguments of little Gregory to be just; for nature has given to every beast a clothing, and we are obliged from them to borrow our own, otherwife we fhould be forced to go naked, and expofed to the inclemency of the elements."

"Very well, papa, faid Gregory, though we want clothing, yet these bushes want none: they rob us of what we have need, and therefore down they fhall all come with to-morrow morning's rifing fun. And I dare fay, papa, you will come along with me, and affist me."

Mr. Stanhope could not but confent, and little Gregory thought himfelf nothing lefs than an Alexander, merely from the expectation of deftroying at once this formidable band of robbers. He could hardly fleep, being fo much taken up with the idea of his victories, to which the next morning's fun was to be witnefs.

The cheerful lark had hardly begun to proclaim the approach of morning, when Gregory got up,

and ran to awake his papa.

Mr. Stanhope, tho' he was very indifferent concerning the fate of the thorn-bushes, yet he was not displeased with having the opportunity of fhewing to his little Gregory the beauties of the rifing fun. They both dreffed themselves immediately, took the neceffary inftruments, and fet out on this important expedition. Young Gregory marched forward with. fuch hafty steps, that Mr. Stanhope was obliged to exert himself to avoid being left behind.

When they came near the bushes, they obferv. ed a multitude of little birds flying in and out of them, and fluttering their wings, from branch to branch. On feeing this, Mr. Stanhope ftopped his fon, and defired him to fufpend his vengeance à little time, that they might not disturb thofe innocent birds. With this view, they retired to the foot of the hill, where they had fat the preceding evening, and from thence examined more particularly what had occafioned this apparent bustle among the birds. From hence they plainly faw, that they were employed in carrying away those bits of wool in their beaks, which the bushes had torn from the fheep the evening before. There came a multitude of different forts of birds who loaded themselves with the plunder.

Gregory was quite aftonished at this fight, and afked his papa what could be the meaning of it.

You by this plainly fee, replied Mr. Stanhope,