The summit can be reached by means of steps, each of which is nearly as high as a man. It is usual for the stranger who wishes to ascend to obtain the assistance of three Arabs, two of whom pull the traveller up in front, and the other pushes him up behind. These avaricious assistants pause every now and then, and cannot be induced to resume their labours till they have extorted backsheesh, or drink-money, from their helpless victim.

The view from the summit is very fine, ranging over Cairo and the Nile on one side, and over the boundless desert on the other. Near the foot of the pyramid, and half-buried in the sand, is the Sphinx, a monstrous figure of a lion with the face of a woman, and further away other pyramids rear their tall, pointed heads above the desert. During the overflowing of the Nile, a large portion of the country is covered with water, and presents the appearance of a large inland sea.

8. CRUELTY TO ANIMALS.

There is scarcely any clearer indication of a weak and illregulated mind than cruelty to the inferior animals. There are so many reasons why we should be kind to them, and not give them any unnecessary pain, that it is difficult to imagine how any person can be guilty of cruelty towards them. Yet perhaps no vice is more common, or appears more inherent in human nature, especially among children. It is very often found in connection with cowardice, for frequently those who appear to take a wicked pleasure in torturing the animals who are so unfortunate as to fall into their power, are the most impatient at bearing any suffering which may come upon themselves.

The same Creator who made us created also the beasts, the birds, the reptiles, yea, even the meanest worm that crawls upon the ground, and the tiniest insect that flies in the air or lives among the leaves. The same Almighty hand which fashioned the proudest monarch that ever sat on a throne, or

even the highest archangel who stands in the Divine presence, formed also the frog, the bee, and the gnat. All living creatures proceed from the same omnipotent source. Not one had any influence in deciding his own destiny. The position of each in the scale of creation was assigned by the Creator of all things. How angry then will He be with any one who wantonly torments, or injures, or destroys any of His works. The same Almighty Being who made each living thing looks down upon it with a protecting eye, and His wrath will fall upon those who cause it unnecessary pain.

We derive great pleasure from the lower animals. How sweetly the birds sing in the woods, how beautiful are the moth and the butterfly as they pursue their gay path through the summer air. How glorious the plumage of the peacock, the ostrich, and the golden pheasant. Ungrateful would it be to torture the living creatures who add so greatly to our happiness. Many of the lower animals supply our every-day wants. We could scarcely do without them. The horse and the ass draw our burdens, the cow gives us milk, butter, and cheese, the hen lays us eggs, and the bee supplies us with honey. Surely we ought to treat these benefactors with kindness.

Some animals even lay down their lives to serve us. It is a sad necessity that we have to kill the ox, the sheep, and the pig in order to get their flesh to eat. But since we have to put them to death, we should make them as happy and comfortable as possible while they live, and we should terminate their existence in as speedy and merciful a way as possible. There is nothing more horrible than to see a monster in human form gloating over the sufferings of a poor wretched animal who is dying to supply us with food.

Nothing is more demoralizing than cruelty to animals. He who practises it is a coward, because he is oppressing the helpless. The man who ill-uses a horse would shrink from beating a person of his own size, not because he has no wish to do so, but because he would fear the consequences. If the habit be not checked in boyhood, it will probably continue to grow from

day to day, till it has become ineradicable, and has dried up every humane sentiment and every moral and Christian principle.

9. COURTS OF JUSTICE.

Justice is regarded by every Englishman as his natural right. By justice he understands the permission to conduct his own affairs in perfect freedom from interference, as long as he obeys the laws and does not interfere with the equal rights of his fellow-countrymen. He considers that justice entitles him to the three fundamental rights of personal security, personal liberty, and property.

Courts of Justice have been established mainly for the purpose of protecting the subject in the enjoyment of these rights. They defend him from attacks on his person, from unjust violations of his liberty by the public authorities, and from robbery, extortion, and fraud.

Courts of Justice are supposed to derive their authority from the sovereign, who is by the constitution the person primarily responsible for the administration of justice between man and man. Hence the Queen, through her ministers, appoints judges, lord-lieutenants, magistrates, and other public officers engaged in the courts of justice. Formerly the monarch himself, as the President of the Council, actually tried causes and administered justice in person. But the vast increase of population which has taken place in the last few centuries, and the growth of liberty, have put an end to the personal exercise of the sovereign's prerogatives in this way, and the courts are now conducted by men trained to the study of the laws, and, in the case of the judges, independent of the Crown after their appointment.

Minor cases are decided by magistrates sitting at the police courts or at quarter sessions. More important causes are referred to the superior courts, in which an accused person is entitled to be tried by a jury of his peers, who pronounce a verdict as to his guilt or innocence. Thus the liberty of the

subject is protected also from the arbitrary will or caprice of

the judges.

The superior courts hold regular sittings in London, where causes are tried by the judges during the ordinary terms.

But as it would be very inconvenient for every case, whether civil or criminal, to be carried to London, the judges, at stated times, travel through the country, or go on circuit, as it is called, for the purpose of bringing justice within the reach of every one. Thus the judges divide the country into districts, and sit at certain fixed county centres, where they hold Assizes, at which both criminal and civil cases are decided before a jury.

Every precaution is taken to ensure a just decision in each case. Both parties to a suit are allowed to bring witnesses, employ counsel to assist them, and address the jury either in person or through their advocates. Every witness is carefully examined, and may be cross-examined by the opposite party. The judge presides to lay down the law, see that fair play is exercised on both sides, and "sum up" the case, or put it fairly and impartially before the jury, immediately before they have to give their verdict. As a last and most important safeguard, the people are admitted to the courts, in order that such an important matter as the administration of justice should be under the eye of the public, who are the persons most interested in the fair and impartial observance of the laws, and the preservation of the rights of the subject.

10.

HISTORICAL COMPARISON.

[Show in what respect we are better off than our forefathers in the reign of Edward I.]

The most important point in which we are better off now than in the reign of Edward I. is the possession of civil and religious liberty. Freedom is the most valuable of all the benefits which a nation can acquire. History tells us that a country advances in prosperity and goodness almost exactly as

it progresses in the enjoyment and exercise of intelligent freedom. In the reign of Edward I. most of the people were serfs, liable to be transferred from one owner to another like so many cattle. All persons were bound to obey laws made by the king or a few of the nobles, and made therefore in the interests of a small minority. Taxes were imposed without the consent of the nation, all kinds of extortion were practised by the king and the chief barons on the common people, and there was little security for the person of the subject against the exercise of arbitrary power. Persons who held religious views differing from those established by the State, were liable to imprisonment, torture, and death. The Jews, in particular, were cruelly persecuted. In 1290, 15,000 of them were banished from the kingdom. In these times all this is changed. A Jew or a Dissenter has the same rights as other people. He can exercise his religion in peace, he may keep a shop, vote for members of parliament, or even sit in the House of Commons or the House of Lords and help to make the laws.

Education has become so general as to be within the reach of everybody. The priceless blessings of knowledge are now open to all, and no one need be ignorant in these days. In the time of Edward I. there were only a few learned men, and some of these were obliged to keep the results of their studious labours secret, for fear of exciting the alarm of the authorities, who often regarded new discoveries as acts of rebellion against the established religion. Ignorance led to superstition, and superstition to crimes, such as burning witches, persecuting the Jews, and imprisoning heretics.

The people are better fed, housed, and clothed. Many of the comforts now enjoyed by all were beyond the reach even of the noblest in the days of Edward I. A bed was a thing seldom seen, and even the best would be thought very bad now. The common people seldom or never ate the flesh of the sheep or Commerce had not then brought the produce of every clime to our very doors. No one drank tea or coffee. There were few manufacturers, and good clothing cost an enormous

OX.