a rapid current of air, throws the light lint to a convenient distance from the gin. 8. After the cotton leaves the gin it passes to the press, where it is packed into bales. By the river packets the bales are conveyed to New Orleans or some other port, whence the cotton is distributed over the whole world. The progress of the cotton manufacture in England and the United States is one of the wonders of the age. The vast amount of capital and labour employed in its production, not to speak of its utility as furnishing the cheapest material for clothing, warrants us in ranking the cottonplant among the most valuable vegetable substances with which the Creator has enriched the earth. Questions on the lesson :-What things render a cotton-field beautiful? What does it resemble in June? What changes pass over the blooms of upland cotton? Of what colour is the sea-island cotton? What is the great enemy of the cotton plantation? How do the planters defend themselves against these worms? How does the boll-worm moth aid the cotton-worm? How much is each person expected to pick? How does the cotton-gin work? What is next done with it? ally, a helper. attract, to draw towards. insidious, treacherous. capital, money laid out for busi- staple, the thread of cotton. tawny, dark, yellowish-brown. upland, high land. valuable, much worth. warrant, to authorize, entitle. GIOTTO. 1. The artist Cimabue, when riding one day in the neighbourhood of Florence, observed a boy of about ten years of age drawing on a stone with a piece of charcoal. Cimabue found it was one of the flock of sheep which were feeding beside him that the lad was drawing. So much struck was he with the boy's artistic skill that he persuaded him to obtain his father's consent to go with him to Florence and become his pupil. 2. Giotto, for that was the boy's name, made rapid progress in his art. In course of time he even rivalled his master and became one of the greatest artists of his age. In contrast to other painters of the day, Giotto painted his figures from living men, and sought to depict not the bodily form alone, but the thoughts and feelings of his subjects as well. His paintings were, accordingly, far from being stiff and unnatural, as they could not fail to have been had his figures been copied from the works of other artists however eminent. 3. In a frolicsome mood he is said to have imposed upon his master by painting a fly on the nose of a figure on which Cimabue was at the time engaged, and which he in vain endeavoured to drive off with his hand before beginning his work. Whatever truth may be in this story, it has been said of him that "he breathed life into art," and it is certain that all his drawings were remarkable for their lifelike effect. A thirsty man in one of his paintings, about to drink from a fountain, is regarded as worthy of perpetual praise. The eagerness with which he bends towards the water is represented with such success that a spectator is constrained to think he must be a living man actually drinking. 4. The fame of Giotto's works in the adornment of the cemetery at Pisa having attracted the notice of the pope, a messenger was despatched to inquire into the character of the painter, and to bring a specimen of his work. All that Giotto would consent to give was a sheet of paper on which, with a single sweep of his brush which he held in his hand at the time of the messenger's arrival, he had drawn a circle, so perfect that it was wonderful to behold. The pope was satisfied, and intrusted to him the execution of certain important pictures for the church of St. Peter's. 5 For this work he received a large sum of money, and his fame steadily increased. But all his previous efforts were surpassed by a mosaic which is now to be seen in the portico of St. Peter's, opposite to the principal door. The Apostles are there represented as in the act of guiding their boat through the tempest on the sea, while the wind blows into a sail which is swelling so vividly that the spectator can scarce help believing that it is a real sail into which he is looking. 6. To produce the light and shade which are so much admired in this work would have been a hard task even for the pencil. How much more when the artist was working merely with pieces of glass? A fisherman, also, is represented, standing on a rock with a line in his hand. In his attitude, with marvellous vividness, is depicted the "extraordinary patience that is suited to his employment, while the hope and desire of prey are equally evident in his countenance." 7. Giotto's kindly humour, not less than his talents, made him a favourite with many of the principal men of his time. He was never at a loss for a joke or a witty rejoinder. King Robert of Naples, one day, assured him that he meant to make him the first man in Naples. "I am so already," was the artist's prompt reply, "for it was with that view that I took up my abode in the street in which I reside, where the first houses of the city stand." 8. On another occasion, the king remarked, "Giotto, if I were in your place, now that it is so hot, I would give up painting for a time and take my rest." "So would I," retorted the artist, "if I were in yours!" Some of his jests could scarcely be relished by his royal friend. Thus having been asked by the king to represent his kingdom for him, Giotto drew the figure of an ass, loaded with a pack-saddle on which were resting a crown and sceptre. A similar saddle bearing the same symbols of royalty lay at the feet of the ass. The last, in contrast to the others, were new and the ass scented them with an evident desire to exchange them for his old load. "Such," said the artist in explanation, "is the kingdom, and such are the subjects, who are every day hankering after a new lord." Questions on the lesson:-What was Giotto's age when he gave the first evidence of genius? How were means provided for his advancement? What was Giotto's chief merit? What examples are given of the lifelike character of his painting? What sample of his work did he send to the pope? What was remarkable about the mosaic for St. Peter's? What examples of his humour are given? Florence, a celebrated city in central Italy, the birthplace of many distinguished men and possessed of one of the finest galleries of painting and statuary in the world. Giotto, was born in 1276 and died in 1336. Mosaic, a kind of work in which objects are represented by small pieces of glass, marble, precious stones, &c., cemented on stucco. Pisa, a city of Tuscany in Italy, famous for its Leaning Tower. artist, one skilled in art, as painting. cemetery, burying-place. charcoal, burnt wood. depict, to make a likeness of. despatch, to send off. eminent, distinguished. frolicsome, full of mirth. rival, to try to equal, to excel. THE ICEBERG. 1. 'Twas night-our anchor'd vessel slept And still as heaven the waters kept, The setting sun, went sinking slow And the ocean seemed a pall to throw 2. There was no motion of the air And no wave-building winds were there, But ocean mingled with the sky With such an equal hue, That vainly strove the 'wildered eye To part their gold and blue. 3. And ne'er a ripple of the sea Save when some timorous fish stole out When, flouting in the light that played All over the resting main, He would sink beneath the wave, and dart 4. Yet, while we gazed, that sunny eve, A form came ploughing the golden wave, It blushed bright red, while growing on |