being ready, Ruth's mother drew out her pencil and wrote something on the back of a bill; which she then handed to her daughter, saying, "See, my dear, if I have cast this up right.' Ruth took the paper and read the following account.

A steel purse,
Beaver hat,

Plated Inkstand,

Sundry tarts,

Total saved by doing without it, £ 2 2 4

Ruth smiled, and said, "Yes, mamma, it is quite right; and if it had not been for you I should have been quite wrong." "Nay, Ruth," replied her mother, "I must give you some credit this morning, for having yielded so easily to my suggestions; prudence does not consist in not being tempted, but in not yielding to temptation. Yes, you have saved at least 21. 2s. 4d. this morning by the timely use of those few simple words; and I think they would form an excellent motto for you, now that you are entrusted with the disposal of money. "Yes," said Ruth, quite de lighted," I can do without it; this shall be my motto; I will write it on the lid of my money box it is an excellent motto, mamma!"

When Ruth returned home, she was pleased to think not only that she had saved her money, but that not one of the articles she had wished for really wanted. She now congratulated herself that, to the mere pleasure of novelty, which would have lasted but a few hours, she had not

was

sacrificed a sum which would, by and by, purchase things that she would really want, and that she could not do without. Unnecessary expenses always rob either ourselves or others: we either deprive ourselves of something essential to our comfort afterwards; or defraud the poor and destitute of their just claims. Economy and liberality go hand in hand.

Ruth found, during many future years, that the motto thus early adopted, was of excellent use as a check upon her expenditure: indeed it led her to form habits of self-denial which were of essential importance to her during life. She was always dressed with a graceful simplicity, far more pleasing to persons of good sense and good taste, than a more studied style; and thus, by purchasing only such things as she could not with comfort and propriety do without, she had always a little overplus with which to relieve her poor neighbours, and for other useful purposes.

"Ah," said she to her mother, as she was making up a flannel gown for an old goody who was "sadly bad of the rheumatize," "poor Betsey Brown would have been obliged to do without this, if I had not sometimes recollected I can do without it."

There is no danger of economy degenerating into covetousness, when what is saved from our needless gratification is devoted to the real wants of others.

"If I had not remembered my motto," thought she on another occasion, "when the man called yesterday with his box of lace, I should not have had three and sixpence to spare for this Bible today. And oh, how much better I can do with

out a piece of lace to my frock, than my poor neighbour can do without a Bible?"

How many a superfluous article of dress, how many a trifle that wearies or disgusts almost as soon as possessed,-how many a needless and injurious dainty to please the palate would be dispensed with, and how many more of the destitute might be relieved, if persons would but recollect, and recollect in time, Ruth's excellent motto,-"I can do without it.'

THIS, we remarked, was one of the best mottos in the world, or one of the worst. Its excellence has appeared in the use made of it by Ruth the economist: we shall now according to promise, proceed to show it in its opposite appropriation. This sentence, with some variations, though not professedly, adopted as a motto, was frequently employed by Eliza, by way of excuse for the negligence to which the indolence of her disposition continually inclined her. She disliked, beyond every thing, that patient care which is essential to success; which is requisite in order to do any thing properly and which experience proves to be the best, and, in the end, the shortest way, in all the concerns of life.

This temper manifested itself in Eliza at an early age-Suppose, for example, she was writing an exercise with a bad pen that spirted, or

blotted, or scratched like a pin ;—rather than take the trouble of mending it, she would say to herself, I will do without it, or, I can manage without, and thus her writing was rarely fit to be

seen.

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In like manner if a slide broke in her frock, or if the string came out of her shoe, instead of replacing them immediately, she would exclaim "How provoking! there's that tiresome slide gone!" adding, " ah, well, I can do without it," and then she would beg some body to pin it for her, a most untidy thing, certainly :—or she would go half a day slip-shod for want of a shoe string. It was just the same if a stitch came undone in any part of her dress, or if she had torn a small rent in her frock: instead of recollecting that true saying," a stitch in time saves nine," she would let it go, upon the strength of her favourite saying, till it became a long job to mend it; so that her mother used often to declare that she had more trouble with Eliza's clothes, in one month, than Ruth's mamma had with her's in a whole year; and no wonder.

Eliza met with such frequent instances of the mischievous tendency of her favourite excuse, that one would have thought she might have been induced to discard it. Scarcely a day passed but she, or those around her, suffered more or less from it. Not to mention such misfortunes as the frequent falls and bruises which occurred from loss of shoe-strings and the like.

One time she sustained a considerable loss for want of replacing a button to her pocket. She found it was come off one morning; and saying, as usual, I can do without it, she substituted a pin.

Pins, though very useful things in their way, are certainly made most use of by lazy, untidy people. Things went thus for two or three days: but at last, as she was returning from a long walk, upon feeling for her handkerchief, she discovered that the pocket with all its contents had escaped. Eliza felt this loss considerably; for besides her thimble, a silver knife, a pencil case, and a purse with seven and sixpence in it, her pocket that day unfortunately contained a beautiful coral necklace which had lately been made her a present of. A very improper place for a necklace, it will be said; very true: but the case was this:-Eliza, being fond of ornaments, came down that day, prepared for her walk, with this necklace slipped over her tippet. To this her mother very properly objected, as having a tawdry and ungenteel appearance, and desired her to take it off. Eliza complied reluctantly; but instead of replacing it safely up stairs, she indolently slipped it into her pocket, and thus lost it, as related above. Another time, one of her bonnet-strings coming unstitched, she fastened it on, as usual, with a pin, and going out with it in this state, it came undone when she was walking by the river side; the wind being high, it blew her bonnet off into the water, and there she saw it sailing irrecoverably down the river, like a swan. One day her mother gave her a small phial containing an acid for taking out ink spots, and other stains; and desired her to write a label for it.— "Dear!" said Eliza, when her mother was out of hearing, "It will do just as well without it;" so she left it as it was. Soon after, her mother feeling unwell, desired Eliza to give her a few