1777, by Mrs. Ross, in the city of Philadelphia. When General Washington saw the flag, he was delighted with it. Every American is not only delighted with it, but he loves the dear old flag. The fourteenth day of June of each year is set apart as Flag Day.

"I pledge allegiance to my flag and the Republic for which it stands; one nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

DEVELOPMENT OF THE ABOVE LESSON ACCORDING TO THE RATIONAL METHOD.

See Remarks to the Teacher, Page vii.

What kind of a land is ours? What is meant by the stars and stripes? Over what buildings do we see the flag floating? What kind of a flag is it? For what does our flag stand? For what else does it stand? What does our flag proclaim? Who is proud of the flag? What does our flag tell to all the people? How many stars are there in the flag? For what does each star stand? When was the first American flag made? By whom was it made? In what city was it made? What did Washington think of it when he saw it? How do we Americans look upon the flag? When is Flag Day? etc., etc.

DICTATION EXERCISES

See Remarks to the Teacher, Page vii.

Our country has a beautiful flag. This flag proclaims or declares liberty to the people. I am delighted with my country's flag. I pledge allegiance or fidelity to my flag. Our nation is indivisible; it cannot be parted.

SELECTION I

A CITY STREET

  I love the woods, the fields, the streams,
    The wild flowers fresh and sweet,
  And yet I love no less than these
    The crowded city street;
  For haunts of men, where'er they be,
  Awake my deepest sympathy.

  I see within the city street
    Life's most extreme estates;
  The gorgeous domes of palaces;
    The dismal prison gates;
  The hearths by household virtues blest,
  The dens that are the serpent's nest.

  I see the rich man, proudly fed
    And richly clothed, pass by;
  I see the shivering, houseless wretch
    With hunger in his eye;
  For life's severest contrasts meet
  Forever in the city street.

  Hence is it that a city street
    Can deepest thoughts impart,
  For all its people, high and low,
    Are kindred to my heart;
  And with a yearning love I share
  In all their joy, their pain, their care.

Mary Howitt.

Questions: Can you put this little poem in prose? Tell what you admire in nature. Then tell what you observe in the city. Tell about the rich and where they live. Also about the poor and how they are housed and clothed. Let us write a composition together.

LESSON II

BREATHE PURE AIR

Some boys were playing hide-and-seek one day, when one of their number thought it would be good sport to hide little Robert in a large empty trunk. He did so and then turned the key in the lock. The little fellow in the chest was very quiet indeed, and they almost forgot about him. After some time they thought of him and some one went to the trunk and asked: "Hello, Robert. Do you want to come out now?" No answer came. They opened the trunk and found poor little Robert nearly dead. The doctor had to be called, and he worked long and hard to restore the poor boy to health.

The air which we breathe out is not fit to be breathed in again. We soon use up, in this way, all the pure air about us. So we must have a fresh supply. As soon as Robert had breathed in all the good air that was in the trunk, there was nothing left but poisoned air. If fresh air had not been given to him by opening the trunk, he could not have lived three minutes longer.

Nothing is so needful to health as good, pure air. Whether you are in the schoolroom or in the house, remember this. Bad air is so much poison, and the more we breathe it the worse it gets. The poison is carbonic acid, and to breathe it long is certain death.

Not many years ago, during a storm at sea, a stupid sea-captain ordered his passengers to go below in the hold of the vessel. Then he covered up the hold, so that no fresh air could enter. When the storm was over he opened the hold, and found that seventy human beings had died for want of pure air.

Through his gross ignorance of the laws of life, he had done all this mischief. Remember what I say: insist on having good air; for impure air, though it may not always kill you, is always bad for your health.

LESSON III

COFFEE

Coffee is made from the berries of a tree called the coffee plant, or coffee tree. This tree grows in some of the hot countries of the world, as Brazil, Cuba, Arabia, and Java. The best coffee comes from Arabia. But most of the coffee that is used in this country comes from Brazil.

When first known, the coffee tree was a wild shrub growing among the hills of Caffa, in the northeastern part of Africa. But when people learned what a pleasant drink could be made from its berries, they began to take it into other countries, where they cultivated it with much care.

There is an old story told of a shepherd who, it is said, was the first to use this drink. He noticed that after his goats had fed on the leaves of a certain tree—the coffee plant—they were always very lively and wakeful. So he took some of the leaves and berries of the plant, and boiling them in water, he made a drink for himself. He found it so pleasant to the taste that he told some of his neighbors about it. They tried it and were as much pleased as himself. And so, little by little, the drink came, after a while, into common use.

The coffee plant is a beautiful little tree, growing sometimes to the height of twenty feet. It has smooth, dark leaves, long and pointed. It has pretty, white blossoms, which grow in thick clusters close to the branches. Its fruit looks a little like a cherry; and within it are the coffee berries, two in each cherry.

When ripe, the red fruit turns to a deep purple and is sweet to the taste. In Arabia the fruit is allowed to fall on mats placed under the trees; but in other countries it is commonly gathered as soon as it is ripe, and it is then dried by being placed on mats in the sun.

After the outside part has been removed the berries are again dried. They are then put in sacks and boxes to be sent into other parts of the world.

LESSON IV

OUR NATIONAL FLAG

There is a national flag. He must be cold indeed who can look upon its folds rippling in the breeze without pride of country. If he be in a foreign land, the flag is companionship and country itself with all its endearments. Who, as he sees it, can think of a state merely? Whose eyes, once fastened upon it, can fail to recognize the image of the whole nation? It has been called a "floating piece of poetry."

Its highest beauty is in what it symbolizes. It is because it represents all, that all gaze at it with delight and reverence. It is a piece of bunting lifted in the air, but it speaks sublimely, and every part has a voice. Its stripes of alternate red and white proclaim the original union of thirteen states. Its stars of white on a field of blue proclaim the union of the states. A new star is added