March 21

That the Lord thy God may bless thee in all the work of thine which thou doest.—DEUT. xiv, 29.

Be useful where thou livest, that they may

Both want and wish thy pleasing presence still.

Kindness, good parts, great places are the way

To compass this. Find out men's wants and will

And meet them there. All worldly joys go less

To the one joy of doing kindliness.

GEORGE HERBERT.

It is a great satisfaction, at the close of life, to be able to look back on the years that are past, and to feel that you have lived not for yourself alone, but that you have been useful to others. You may be assured also that the same feeling is a source of comfort and happiness at any period of life. Nothing in this world is so good as usefulness. It binds your fellow-creatures to you, and you to them; it tends to the improvement of your own character, and it gives you a real importance in society, much beyond what any artificial station can bestow.

SIR BENJAMIN BRODIE.

Three ends of thy being God hath placed before thee—to improve thyself, to glorify Him, and to be useful to thy fellow-creatures. Neglecting the first, thou art a barren cumberer of the ground; the second, a faithless servant, and the third, a misanthrope to thy species. . . . Be useful, and thus be blest and happy. Be useful, and honor thine own nature.

THOMAS DICK.