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See that the balanc'd scales be such,
You neither fear nor hope too much.
For disappointment's not the thing;
"Tis pride and passion point the sting.
Life is a sea where storms must rise;
"Tis folly talks of cloudless skies:
He who contracts his swelling sail,
Eludes the fury of the gale.

Be still, nor anxious thoughts employ; Distrust imbitters present joy:

On God for all events depend;

You cannot want when God's your friend.
Weigh well your part, and do your best;
Leave to your maker all the rest.

The hand which form'd thee in the womb,
Guides from the cradle to the tomb.
Can the fond mother slight her boy?
Can she forget her prattling joy?
Say then, shall Sov'reign Love desert
The humble and the honest heart?
Heav'n may not grant thee all thy mind;
Yet say not thou that heav'n's unkind.
God is alike, both good and wise,
In what he grants, and what denies :
Perhaps, what Goodness gives to-day,
To-morrow, Goodness takes away.

You say, that troubles intervene ;
That sorrows darken half the scene.
True and this consequence you see,
The world was ne'er design'd for thee;
You'r like a passenger below,
That stays perhaps a night or so;

But still his native country lies

Beyond the bound'ries of the skies.

Of Heav'n ask virtue, wisdom, health;
But never let thy pray'r be wealth.
If food be thine, (tho' little gold,)
And raiment to repel the cold;
Such as may nature's wants suffice,
Not what from pride and folly rise;
If soft the motions of thy soul,

And a calm conscience crowns the whole;
Add but a friend to all this store,
You can't in reason wish for more:
And if kind Heav'n this comfort brings,
'Tis more than Heav'n bestows on kings.

COTTON.

CHAPTER IV.

DESCRIPTIVE PIECES.

SECTION L

THE PLEASURES OF RETIREMENT.

HAPPY the man, whose wish and care
A few paternal acres bound;
Content to breathe his native air,

In his own ground.

Whose herds with milk, whose fields with bread,
Whose flocks supply him with attire;
Whose trees in summer yield him shade,
In winter fire.

Blest who can unconcern'dly find

Hours, days, and years, slide soft away, In health of body, peace of mind,

Quiet by day.

Sound sleep by night; study and ease,
Together mix'd; sweet recreation,
And innocence, which most does please,
With meditation.

Thus let me live, unseen, unknown;
Thus unlamented let me die,

Steal from the world, and not a stone

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SECTION II.

THE SLUGGARD.

"Tis the voice of a sluggard-I heard him complain, "You have wak'd me too soon, I must slumber again.” As the door on its hinges, so he on his bed,

Turns his sides and his shoulders, and his heavy head.

"A little more sleep, and a little more slumber;" Thus he wastes half his days, and his hours without number:

And when he gets up, he sits folding his hands,
Or walks about sauntering, or trifling he stands.

I pass'd by his garden, and saw the wild brier,
The thorn, and the thistle, grow broader and higher,
The clothes that hang on him are turning to rags;
And his money still wastes, till he starves or he begs.

I made him a visit, still hoping to find

He had taken better care for improving his mind:
He told me his dreams, talk'd of eating and drinking;
But he scarce reads the bible, and never loves thinking.

Said I then to my heart, "Here's a lesson for me;
That man's but a picture of what I might be :
But thanks to my friends for their care in my breeding,
Who taught me betimes to love working and reading.

WATTS.

SECTION III.

CREATION AND PROVIDENCE.

I SING the almighty pow'r of God,
That made the mountains rise:
That spread the flowing scas abroad,
And built the lofty skies.

I sing the wisdom that ordain'd
The sun to rule the day;
The moon shines full at his command,
And all the stars obey.

I sing the goodness of the Lord,
That fill'd the earth with food:

He form'd the creatures with his word,
And then pronounc'd them good.

Lord! how thy wonders are display'd
Where'er I turn mine eye;

If I survey the ground I tread,
Or gaze upon the sky!

There's not a plant or flow'r below

But makes thy glories known; And clouds arise, and tempests blow, By order from thy throne.

Creatures (as num'rous as they be)

Are subject to thy care;

There's not a place where we can flee, But God is present there.

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