THE TWELVE MONTHS OF THE YEAR; WITH A PICTURE FOR EACH MONTH. ADAPTED TO NORTHERN LATITUDES.



SHOULD you like to read something about the months of the year?" "How many months are there?" "Twelve." "How many days are there in each month?"

Thirty days hath September,

April, June, and November:

February hath twenty-eight alone,

And all the rest have thirty-one:

Except in leap-year; then's the time

That February hath twenty-nine.



JANUARY.--Now the weather is very cold. There are no leaves upon the trees. The ground is frozen quite hard. Perhaps it is covered with snow. Every thing looks very cold and comfortless. A little boy or girl, when out of humor, reminds me of this month. Bring plenty of wood and make a good fire, that we may warm ourselves.



FEBRUARY is a cold month, but the days are getting longer. Soon the violets and snowdrops begin to appear. When little boys and girls have been naughty, how pleasant it is to see them begin to be good again. Remember, the violets and snowdrops do not make themselves grow: it is God that causes them to grow. So we must look to him to enable us to be good.



MARCH.--The wind blows very hard. Mind it does not blow you away. See how the trees bend before it. Job says that God is angry with the wicked, and that they are as stubble before the wind. Do you recollect that the winds and the sea obeyed Christ, and were still when he bade them? He can still our angry passions as easily as he did the winds and the waves.



APRIL.--The spring is come: the trees are in blossom; the leaves begin to appear. The birds sing merrily, and every thing looks cheerful. Now you may work in your gardens. Do you not like to see a garden neat and free from weeds? It is very pleasant to see children free from bad habits and wicked ways.



MAY.--This is a very pleasant month: now there are a great many flowers. This little girl is swinging. I hope she has not disobeyed her mamma. Little boys and girls often get hurt when they are disobedient to their parents. They forget that the Bible says, "Children, obey your parents."



JUNE.--Now it is time to cut the grass and make hay. It is very pleasant to go and help. See how the grass withers after it is cut. "In the morning it flourisheth and groweth up; in the evening it is cut down and withereth." Little children often seem very well, but on a sudden they are taken ill and die; they are compared to grass and flowers.



JULY.--It is very hot, and the animals retire to the shade. Now you must water your garden; if you do not, your plants will die. Are you fond of strawberries and currants? They are now ripe, but do not eat them without leave.

Our father are forbidden fruit,

And from his glory fell;

And we, his children, thus were brought

To death, and near to hell.



AUGUST.--The grain begins to ripen. Now the farmer sends his men with their sickles, and they reap it; it is then tied up in sheaves, and carried to the barn. Do you recollect the parable about the wheat and the tares? Matthew 13. Christ compares those who love him to wheat: they will go to heaven. The wicked are compared to tares: they are to be burned.



SEPTEMBER.--It is time to gather the apples and pears. You may get a basket and pick up those that fall down. Christ said, "By their fruits ye shall know them:" he then spoke of people's actions. We know whether little children are good or naughty, by what they do.



OCTOBER.--The leaves are falling from the trees. The days are much shorter than they were. The grapes are ripe; it is time to gather them. Christ compared himself to a vine, and his disciples to the branches. It is to him we are to look for grace and strength to enable us to do what pleases him. The branches will not bring forth fruit if they are parted from the vine.



NOVEMBER.--Now the weather is dark and dismal; you must amuse yourself in doors. When you are tired of playing, come and sit down and read a little. Here is a pretty picture-book to look at. It is about the "Histories in the Bible." I do not know any picture-book with stories half so interesting as those which are taken from the Bible.



DECEMBER.--Now dreary winter reigns, and the year comes to its solemn close. All the sins we have committed this year against God, and all we have done in obedience to his commands, are written down in his book. Our life will soon close; and we must appear before God in judgment, and render up our account for all the deeds done in the body, whether they be good or whether they be evil.



You have read in your Testament, that Christ came down from heaven to save sinners, and that all have sinned. We cannot be happy unless we love him. Our hearts are inclined to evil by nature, so that we do not like to hear about him, unless he causes us to love him. Pray, then, that he would, by the power of his Holy Spirit, enable you to love and serve him in early youth.



Go, when the morning shineth;

Go, when the moon is bright;

Go, when the eve declineth;

Go, in the hush of night,

Go, with pure mind and feeling,

Send earthly thought away,

And, in thy chamber kneeling,

Do thou in secret pray.