"What did Our Lord mean when he said to his disciples, Be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves? Are serpents wise?"

"Many things have been affirmed on this subject, Harry, which I regard as fables. The truth, I think, is, that there is a peculiar liveliness in the eyes of serpents, so that 'as sharp-sighted as a serpent,' passed into a proverb in the Eastern world. I regard Our Lord as saying, 'Be prudent as serpents in avoiding unnecessary dangers; but be far from imitating the malignity and revengeful nature of that animal; maintain at all times a holy simplicity of spirit, and be harmless and inoffensive as doves, those gentle creatures, who are remarkable for their affection."*

WHEAT, BREAD, FRUIT, &c.

"What a plentiful harvest God has given us!" said Mr. Benyon, as he sat on a gate with Harry, and looked over one of his corn-fields; "how ought our hearts to glow with gratitude to Him for his goodness!"

What did our Lord say to his disciples? What proverb is there in the East about serpents? What is our Lord thought to have meant, when he said 'Be ye wise as serpents, and harmless as doves?

Doddridge in loc.

"There has not been too much rain, as there was one year, to spoil it !"

"True, Harry! rain is a great blessing, when it is in season, and in measure. But too much rain, or too much sunshine, will alike ruin our hopes. You see how dependent we are upon God, even for our daily bread."

"This ear, with so many grains in it, all came from one corn,-did it not ?"

"Yes: the blade, and the stem, and all the grains of wheat, with their fine covering, were all wrapt up in that little space."

"But how do you know that?"

"Because, if they had not been in it, they could not have sprung out of it. The earth has only expanded, and brought to maturity, what was already in the seed."

"How wonderful this is !"

"Yes, it is the work of a divine hand." "And every one likes bread, father."

"True; It is as agreeable to the old man, as to the little infant; we never tire of it; it is as fresh and as pleasant to-day as it was yesterday. There are a variety of tastes; one is fond of an article which anoth

From what does an ear of wheat spring? What does the earth do to the seed? Do all people like bread ?

er dislikes, but no one ever lived who did not relish bread."

"And did you not say, father, that it would grow in every country and climate ?"

"Yes, Harry; and this is a kind appointment of Providence, and shews a tender care for the welfare of man."

“Pharaoh dreamed 'that seven ears of corn came up on one stalk, rank and good.' This was only a dream, was it, father?"

"It was a dream, Harry. But yet, it is remarkable that there is a species of wheat in Egypt, which really bears seven ears upon one stalk. Some of it has been cultivated in England, but it does not reach the perfection which it does in its native soil. No one would have even thought of one stem of wheat with seven ears on it. That there is such an article, and in Egypt too, is a striking, proof of the truths of the Scriptures."

"Bread is spoken of very early in the Bible.' "Mention the first place you recollect where it is named."

Will it grow in every country? What did Pharaoh dream? What kind of wheat is there in Egypt? Can it be cultivated elsewhere? What affords a striking proof of the truth of the Scriptures ?

"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return to the ground.""

"And I think the first place in any records in which the word Baker is mentioned, is in Genesis."

"The bread at that early period, father, could not have been like ours

How is bread first mentioned in the bible? Where is the word Baker first mentioned?

"What makes you think so ?"

"Because they made it so soon, and just as they wanted it, as appears from the feast which Abraham made for the three persons who called upon him."

"You are right, Harry. Their loaves appear to have been a kind of biscuit. Thus our Lord repre

sents a person requesting of his neighbor three loaves, for the entertainment of an individual, Luke xi. 5. Hence they are often called cakes. An Eastern trav

eller, describing a visit which he made to an Arab, says, 'The woman was not idle, but brought us milk and eggs to eat, so that we wanted for nothing: she made also some dough for cakes, which were of the thickness of a finger, and of the size of a trencher,she laid them on hot stones, and kept turning them; till at length she threw the ashes and embers over

Luke xi. 5. And he said unto them, Which of you shall have a friend, and shall go unto him at midnight, and say unto him, Friend, lend me three loaves.

Why was not the bread of an early period similar to ours? What does it appear to have been? Repeat the verse from Luke. What does an Eastern traveller say of his visit to an Arab?