Year: 1864

leaves on the slope OF one OF the beau


tiful mountains Of New England but


the snow hal now all melted away, and


they felt the influence of the warm sun


dawn in their dark bed beneath the soil


and the leaves


Now, ono of these acorns was wise


and tue other was foolish. SO the acorn


said to his com panion, Come, brother


the snow has gone and il is time for us


to push mp into the sunlight and begin to


grow into trees"


"No." says the other, don't you do it.


Let us stay down here and grow. Isnw


how things went on up there last Sum


mer, and If you care any thing for your


own comfort you'll stay down here with


me. You'll ipi danger enough if you


venture out Of this safe place When


you get nicely TO growing, some great OK


may come siong and eat you up at one


mouthful, or crush YOU TO death with his


hoof, before you've been up there one


Summer. And if you escape death


through the Summer very likely you will


freeze when Winter comes. But if you


chance to live till you get to be large


tree you'll be torn in pieces by the fierce


storms and your acorns will all be


stolen, and you will get no thanks for


them and then, by and by, when you


get to be old, cruel robbers will come


and cut you down, and burn up your


limbs in the fire, and hew your body


into strange shapes, and put you into


some great ship, where you must stay in


the dark, down under the water all the
rest Of your life "


The good acorn was frightened at
this pitiful story, and hardly knew what
10 say at first; for, although it had been


up in tho sunlight during the previous
c., I, L,l 80 Ill f,I,~
dangers, because il had found so many
pleasant things to see and TO think about
But, after thinking moment, he replied
"Well, it may all be as you say, but !
feel as though it was my duty to grow (
and so up into the sunlight, and am


determined to do what think is my duty, (
even if I do suffer as you say. SO the I
good achorn began To push its little head /
up above the ground, and soon had put
forth two beautiful green leaves.


The selfish acorn would not venture
up, and tried to grow below the ground.
It put forth n few pale. sickly leaves,
but God never meant it should grow in
the cold, dark ground, and it soon died
The good acorn grew very fast. and
soon had branches and many leaves. 1t
was much frightened when it saw the
cattle browsing near by, for hey .
mighttread upon it or bite its head off,
out it lived safely through the Summer
When Winter came it was sadly frighten-
ed again, and thought it would sureley
die when the cold frosts came and all its
leaves dropped off 1t did not then
understand how its roots, which had been
growing oil Summer, would keep il alive
during the Winter, and how God had
prepared new robe of leaves all safely
wrapped up i'll warm coverings in its tiny


n 4 "a.
learned as it grew older. And so it went
on. year after year, growing stron-
ger and stronger, and though it had some
narrow escapes it grew. after many Sum
mers to be a large oaktree. Meantime,
the acorns from this good oak tree had
been scattered along the mountain side,
and he now had large family of stall
wart sons growing up around him
Every year added n little to his size and
his siren 9Th. till at length he became
the tallest and the noblest tree OF all that
forest He had now lived to be almost
one hundred years old, when, on one
pleasant afternoon, strange scene
occurred III his ex ,erience. And that }
YOU may understand it, l must tell YOU
that fearful rebellion had broken out in
the land. Wicked men had tried to .
divide the nation in two. and had risen .





against the good old dag. SO the Presi
dent called upon the young men to taks :
their muskets and 60 to fight the rebels
on the land and he said TO the men who
IN ade ships, ..Get iron and timber. and
build me stronger ships. that shall go and
batter down the forts Of the enemy"
Then the ship builder took his Ak upon
his shoulder and went, along with his
through the valleys and over
the mountains TO find stout trees that |
should yield good timber for ships. In
the course OF his searching he came TO
this very tree of which have told you.
1t was by far the best one he had seen. ,
and he stopped 10 admire it and talk 70
his companions in its praise. When
ready TO go on he raised his Ak and
struck 4 stolt blow on the trunk of this ,
this tree, TO mark il as one which his men |
should cut down. :


As soon as they had passed away the ,
oil oak called out TO all his children TO
listen To him, as he had some remarks to 4
make TO them. He began by telling J
them that he had learned from what these :
mea said, that there was war in the land, +
and then he gave them history of his :
whole life. telling them the story j
of the selfish acorn, which had died :
because it was unwilling TO do its dlty.
"And now. my dear children" learn from
the fate OF this foolish acorn never TO be
afraid to do what your conscience tells
you is right, If l had followed his fool i
ish advice in my childhood, how sad il |
would have been FOR me, 1t is trae I q
have met with many of those trials which 4
he warned me of, but they have not been s
as bad as | feared they would prove. and {
many OF them hsve been nv creates. I
blessings. / have lost my leaves every
Fall. but they have only enriched the {
ground NJ my feet, so As 10 furtish me a
still more beautiful robe in the Spring I
At first l was afraid they never would I
come back anil that should die during ,
the long cold Winter. The fierce winds
nearly tore me in pieces At times. and !