erfelf, and a vexation and torment to her friends. Let as view a perfon educated in the fchool of diffipation, and furnished with merely polite accomplishments. Engroffed by the defire of leading a life of amufement before the can even spell a fentence, and unfurnished with juft fentiments and induftrious habits, fhe is fent to the dancing academy that her manners may become graceful. Here the fees gayer dreffes than her own, which inflame with vanity and envy her giddy, unoccupied mind. She is determined to be outdone by none in elegance. She difputes with Mama about fafhion and fine clothes; and if her extravagant defires are not indulged, murmurs and repines at her cruel fate; becomes confirmed in the deteftable habit of fretting; and knows not content but by the name., A fondness for thofe phantoms which lure to ruin, called pleafures, and a paffion for fhow and parade, which perhaps through life the can never indulge, gain entire poffeffion of her heart. All her joys are in gay parties and affemblies, where, like the butterfly of fummer, fhe pleafes by the brilliance of her colors only; which, however, is no fooner familiar to the eye, than it is beheld with indifference; yet alas! this is. all the attraction which this child of vanity can boast. Maturer years fteal on; her mind is fo uncultivated that fhe is incapable of the rational pleafures of thinking and converfation; her love of diffipation and amufement grows with her growth; fhe fighs for new pleasures; but alas ! fhe has fo often travelled the circle, that their novelty is deftroyed. With all her apparent gaiety, fhe is probably more wretched than the mifcreant, who begs the morfel that fuftains his being. If the be ever placed at the head of a family, fhe difgufts her husband, neglects her children, and order, peace and induftry are ftrangers in her house. Her company is ever uninterefting or difagreeable, her name is fynonimous with folly, and her memory is loft with her life.

Mrs. Care. What a picture, my dear Mrs. Friendly, have you drawn! I turn from it with horror. I affure you my chief care fhall be to form my children to reflection, felf-government, and induftry; and they and I fhall have reafon to rejoice in the change you have made in my fentiments.

Mrs. Fr

a manner.

Mrs. Fr. I rejoice to hear you exprefs yourself in fuck Believe me, when I fay, the best fortune which can be bestowed on a child is a good education.. It fe cures her honor and happiness through life, whatever be her ftation; and it leads her to the exercife of those nobleand virtuous difpofitions which are an indifpenfable preparation for the enjoyments of the future state..

SINGULAR ADVENTURE CR - GENERAL
PUTNAM..

WHEN General Putnam first moved to

Pomfret, in Connecticut, in the year 1739, the country was new and much infefted with wolves.. Great havoc was . made among the fheep by a fhe-wolf, which, with her annual whelps, had for feveral years continued in that vicinity.. The young ones were commonly deftroyed by the vigilance of the hunters; but the old one was too fagacious to be enínared by them.

2. This wolf, at length, became fuch an intolerable nuifance, that Mr. Putnam entered into a combination with, five of his neighbors to hunt alternately until they could deftroy her. Two, by rotation, were to be conftantly in purfuit. It was known, that, having loft the toes from one foot, by a steel trap, the made one track shorter than the other.

3. By this veftige, the purfuers recognised, in a light. fnow, the route of this pernicious animal. Having followed her to Connecticut river, and found she had turned back. in a direct courfe towards Pomfret, they immediately returned, and by ten o'clock the next morning the bloodhounds had driven her into a den, about three miles diftant from the houfe of Mr. Putnam

4.

The people foon collected with dogs, guns, straw, fire and fulphur, to attack the common enemy. With this apparatus, feveral unfuccefsful efforts were made to force her from the den. The hounds came back badly wounded, and refused to return. The fmoke of blazing straw had no effect. Nor did the fumes of burnt brimftone, with which the cavern was filled, compel her to quit the retirement. 5. Wearied

THE AMERICAN PRECEPTOR.

95

5. Wearied with fuch fruitlefs attempts (which had brought the time to ten o'clock at night) Mr. Putnam tri-ed once more to make his dog enter, but in vain; he propofed to his negro man to go down into the cavern and hoot the wolf. The negro declined the hazardous fervice.

6. Then it was that their mafter, angry at the difappointment, and declaring that he was afhamed of having a coward in his family, refolved himself to destroy the ferocious beaft, left the should escape through fome unknown fiffure of the rock.*

7. His neighbors ftrongly remonftrated against the perilous enterprize; but he, knowing that wild animals were intimidated by fire, and having provided feveral ftrips of birch bark, the only combuftitle material which he could obtain, which would afford light in this deep and darkfome cave, prepared for his defcent.

8. Having, accordingly, divefted himfelf of his coat. and waistcoat, and having a long rope faftened round his legs, by which he might be pulled back, at a concerted fignal, he entered, head foremoft, with the blazing torch in his hand.

9. Having groped his paffage till he came to a hori zontal part of the den, the moft terrifying darkness appeared in front of the dim circle of light afforded by his torch. It was filent as the houfe of death. None but monsters of the defert had ever before explored this folitary manfion of horror.

10. He cautiously proceeding onward, came to an af cent; which he flowly mounted on his hands and knees until he difcovered the glaring eyeballs of the wolf, who was fitting at the extremity of the cavern. Startled at the fight of fire, fhe gnashed her teeth and gave a fullen growl.

II. As foon as he had made the neceffary difcovery, he kicked the rope as a fignal for pulling him out. The people, at the mouth of the den, who led liftened with painful anxiety, hearing the growling of the wolf, and fuppoling their friend to be in the moft inminent danger, drew; him forth with fuch celerity that he was ftripped of his clothes, and feverely bruifed.

12. After he had adjusted his clothes, and loaded his gun with nine buck fhot, holding a torch in one hand and

the

the musket in the other, he defcended a fecond time. When he drew nearer than before, the wolf affuming a ftill more fierce and terrible appearance, howling, rolling her eyes, fnapping her teeth, and dropping her head between her legs, was evidently in the attitude and on the point of fpringing at him.

13. At this critical inftant, he levelled and fired at her head. Stunned with the fhock, and fuffocated with the fmoke, he immediately found himfelf drawn out of the cave. But having refreshed himself and permitted the fmoke to diffipate, he went down the third time.

14. Once more he came within fight of the wolf, who appearing very paffive, he applied the torch to her nofe; and perceiving her dead, he took hold of her ears, and then kicking the rope (ftill tied round his legs) the people above, with no fmall exultation, dragged them both out together.

EXTRACT FROM DR. JOSEPH WARREN'S ORATION, DELIVERED AT BOSTON, MARCH 5, 1772.

THE voice of your fathers' blood cries to

you from the ground, "My fons, fcorn to be SLAVES!" In vain we met the frowns of tyrants; in vain we croffed the boisterous ocean, found a new world, and prepared it for the happy refidence of liberty; in vain we toiled; in vain we fought; we bled in vain, if you our offspring want valor to repel the affaults of her invaders !

2. Stain not the glory of your worthy ancestors; but like them refolve never to part with your birthright. Be wife in your del berations, and determined in your exertions for the prefervation of your liberty.

3.

Follow not the dictates of paffion; but enlit yourfelves under the facred banner of reason; ufe every method in your power to fecure your rights; at leaft present the curfes of posterity from being heaped upon your memories. If you, with united zeal and fortitude, oppofe the ent of oppreffion; if you feed the true fire of patrio tift berming

4.

burning in your breafts; if you, from your fouls, defpife the moft gaudy drefs which flavery can wear; if you really prefer the lonely cottage, whilft bleft with liberty, to gilded palaces, furrounded with the enfigns of flavery, you may have the fulleft affurance that tyranny, with her whole accurfed train, will hide her hideous head in confufion, shame and defpair.

5. If you perform your part, you must have the strongest confidence, that the fame Almighty Being, who protected your pious and venerable forefathers, who enabled them to turn a barren wilderness into a fruitful field, who fo often made bare his arm for their falvation, will still be mindful of their offspring.

6. May this ALMIGHTY BEING graciously prefide in all our councils. May he direct us to fuch meafures as he himself shall approve, and be pleafed to blefs. May we ever be favored of God. May our land be a land of liberty, the feat of virtue, the afylum of the oppreffed," a name and a praife in the whole earth," until the laft fhock of time fhall bury the empires of the world in undiftinguifhed ruin!

SELF-INTEREST.

Derby. GOOD morning, neighbor Scrapewell.

I have half a dozen miles to ride to-day, and fhould be extremely obliged if you would lend me your grey mare.

Scrapewell. I should be happy, friend Derby, to oblige you; but am under a neceffity of going immediately to the mill with three bags of corn. My wife wants the meal this very morning.

Der. Then the muft want it ftill, for I can affure you the mill does not go to day. I heard the miller tell Will Davis that the water was too low.

Scrape. You don't fay fo? That is quite unlucky; for in that cafe, I fhall be obliged to gallop off to town for the meal. My wife would comb my head for me, if I should neglect it.

I

Der.