T. The corolla in this plant is said to be wheel-shaped, it having five parts, or divisions at the edge. But is it monapetalous, or polypetalous?

P. Monapetalous, because all the parts are united at the bottom into one.

T. How do you find the stem, square or round?

P. Square.

T. In this plant several stems grow from one root, and they all spread about on the ground in a circular form. The stem is said to be procumbent, that is lying down. Of what shape are the leaves?

P. Ovale or egg-shaped; here is the plate to illustrate that shape.

T. What else do you find remarkable about them?

P. They are beautifully dotted on the under side with purplish spots.

T. Of what colour is the corolla ?

P. Of a bright scarlet.

When I put it in

T. This is an extremely delicate flower. my tin-box an hour ago, the flower was reflexed, that is, the corolla was bent backwards, to the stem, so that the stamens and style stood out naked and separate. It is now turned upwards into a tubular form. A similar alteration takes place in a change from sunshine to cloudy weather; on which account the plant in England received the name of the "Poor Man's Weather Glass." You will find it in this vicinity mostly on dry rocks not far from the sea, where it frequently spangles the ground with its brilliant and beautiful flowers, much like the sandwort, (Aranaria.) It is thus, that the God of Nature has furnished every soil with its appropriate product; and that we are frequently surprised by beauty and elegance, where we had expected only sterility.

P. Here is the St John's Wort.

T. In what class would you place it?

P. In the thirteenth, because it has many stamens.

T. There you are in an error. Look at the position of the stamens in how many bunches do you find them collected? P. In three. O! then it is of the eighteenth.

T. Yes; the class named by Linnæus polyadelphia, or many brotherhoods, because the stamens are united in distinct sets. Of this class the vicinity of Boston affords only one genus, the Hypericum. Other countries, however, furnish enough to make the number nearly 60, which consists of eight or ten species.

This species is called Hypericum Perforatum, the perforate of St John's Wort, from a peculiarity in the leaves, which I want you to examine. Hold one of the leaves between your eye and the light.

P. It is covered with bright dots.

T. These dots are called pellucid, a term which signifies that they admit the light to pass through them, and yet are not entirely transparent. All the St John's Worts in our climate possess this property in a greater or less degree; and by this single circumstance you may know this race of plants from all others. In one or two species, however, the dots are imperceptible without a magnifier. How many styles has this plant?

P. Three.

T. Yes and the number varies in different species; some having five. In what kind of soil did you find it?

P. In a dry pasture, where I saw hundreds of others, many of them not yet blown.

T. You will see a curious peculiarity also in the stem. A prominent line runs up on each side, making it almost twoedged. Are the leaves opposite or alternate ?

P. Opposite and oval.

T. Entire or notched?

P. Entire.

T. It is a perennial plant; what is meant by that term?
P. That the root endures several years.

T. This is, in many places, nearly as common an ornament of dry and sandy soils, as the troublesome White Weed, (Leucanthanum Chrysanthemum.) I know of no use to which it may be applied either of fodder for cattle, domestic economy, or medicine. Yet it would be taking too narrow a view of the works of creation to say that any plant or animal was created in vain ; because its utility happened not to be manifest to our limited reason.

ART. IX.-First Lessons in Latin, upon a new plan; combining Abstract Rules with a Progressive Series of Practical Exercises. By Charles Dexter Cleveland. Boston. Carter & Hendee.

In our last number we promised some notice of this work. We are of the opinion that it needs but be known, to be highly valued and extensively used. We cannot better exhibit it to our readers, than in the words of the author, whose preface here follows.

'It is not necessary to commence a few prefatory remarks to this little volume, with any apology for its appearance. The character of the present age does not call for one, distinguished, as it preeminently is, for its exertions in the department of education; and looking with complacence at least, if not with approbation, upon every attempt to improve the course of youthful instruction.

'Such an attempt is the present work. As soon as the author entered upon the dutes of an instructer, he felt convinced of the inadequateness of the present method of initiating youth into a knowledge of the Latin language; thinking it contrary to the dictates of common sense, as well as to the principles of sound philosophy, to commence the instruction of youth in any language, by giving them abstract rules to be commited to memory, unattended with any practical exercises, by which those rules might be clearly understood and determinately fixed. Accordingly he began with his own pupils, upon the black board, the germ of the system of which the present volume is the maturer growth, and found his theoretical opinions supported by the happiest practical results. The manuscript was then commenced, (December, 1827,)and shewn to a few friends-scholars and practical men who encouraged its completion. Numerous avocations, however, have delayed the appearance of the work till the present time, when it is presented to the fraternity of instructers to examine, and to determine upon its merits.

"The plan of the work is so simple that it hardly requires any explanation. The system of double translation has been adhered to throughout examples being given, under most of the rules and formulas, of Latin to be translated into English, and of English to be translated into Latin. After a noun of the first declension has been declined, examples follow of nouns of the same declension in the oblique cases, the numbers, cases, and definitions of which will be required of the pupil. Similar exercises are prepared upon all the declensions; upon the adjectives, verbs, and rules of syntax; vocabularies to which will be found at the end of these divisions respectively. Thus the learner's ingenuity will be exercised, and thus the study of grammar will not be a mere task of the memory, but will make demands, simultaneously, upon the reflection and understanding. 'In the Syntax, the arrangement of Adam's Latin Grammar has been strictly adhered to, and even its rules have, generally, been

given without alteration; for so far from the present volume having been designed to supersede, it is rather intended as an introduction to that most valuable work; and of course, the nearer the approach to its forms and general arrangement, the better.

'It will be perceived, at once, that the "FIRST LESSONS" contain only the general principles of the language, without any of its anomalies. This, it is thought, must also be considered an improvement— THAT OF EMBODYING THE ESSENTIALS OF THE LANGUAGE. The reason why boys generally advance so slowly in the early stages of their Latin studies, is, that so much has been put before them, that they have been both utterly confused, confounding the essentials with the unessentials.; and quite discouraged, seeing so much to be learned.

'The catechetical form has been adopted, from a conviction of its superiority for infusing instruction into young minds. Different individuals will propose a question, the same in reality, in a different form; and even the same person will, at times, vary his mode of expression. But when children know exactly what will be asked, they will know exactly what to answer.

'In the composition, the most simple style and language have been used; for those only who have had experience in instructing, know how much the language of schools books, generally, is above the comprehension of those for whom they are designed.

"The present volume will shortly be followed by a “SEQUEL—” a Reader, with notes referring to Adam's Latin grammar for all the exceptions and irregularities of the language not contained in the "FIRST LESSONS."

The discouragements alluded to by the author may be understood, even by those who are unacquainted with the subject, from the opinion of one of our ablest instructers, that it generally takes boys about a year to commit the grammar,' that is, they must labour a year upon unintelligible forms. This labour of committing to memory is unavoidable, for we believe that even Hamilton does not profess to get rid of it entirely. Mr Cleveland has endeavoured to abbreviate it, by confining it to the essentials ;' and to alleviate it, or rather to infuse an interest into it, by making intelligible what was before unintelligible by showing the pupil, that what he is committing has a meaning and use, that that meaning may be clearly understood, and that there is a pleasure in understanding it.

We regret that the author did not give the explanations, which he professedly leaves to the instructer, in his note on page 2; particularly as we never yet saw a definition of genders, which, taken in its most obvious sense, was not absurd.

ART. X.-1. The Latin Tutor, or Exercises in Etymology, Syntax, and Prosody, Compiled in part from the best English Works, with Additions. By Frederic P. Leverett, Principal of the Public Latin School in Boston. Boston. Hilliard Gray, Little, & Wilkins. 1829. 12mo. pp. 348.

2. Key to the New Latin Tutor, or Exercises in Etymology, Syntax, and Prosody. 1829. Boston. Hilliard, Gray, Little, & Wilkins. 12mo. pp. 100.

THIS is incomparably the best work on this subject, extant in this country. It is published without preface or remark; which we mention only to express our regrets, that we are thus deprived of the opportunity of extracting, and presenting to our readers a description of the materials, arrangement, and peculiar facilities of the work, in the author's own words. It embraces the following topics. Etymological Exercises; Exercises in Syntax; Explanations of Idioms, with exercises; a kind of vocabulary explanatory of Idiomatic Phrases, and Prosody. Under all these heads, the book is as copious as could be desired; indeed, as much so, perhaps, as the just consideration of its utility would warrant.

The system followed in the Syntax, is nearly as follows. After the statement of each rule or principle, there is given a model, or English sentence correctly translated into Latin, sufficiently extensive to illustrate all the variety of forms in which the rule may be applied. Then follow exercises, after the usual method, of English sentences in one column, and the corresponding Latin words in their primitive form, in the other. Next, a quantity of English sentences to be turned into Latin,' without the correspondent Latin words; but with occasional hints interspersed, and an explanation of the more difficult words at the close. Then comes exercises in phrases, if the rule involves any. The whole work is also interspersed at proper places, with recapitulatory Exercises. Of the idioms and Prosody, (the large half of the book,) to attempt a description, would be to transcribe them; or at least, to go into details, which the proper character of these notices will not allow. The rapid sale and unusual approbation, which the work has hitherto experienced, bear sufficient testimony to its excellence; of which, truth compels us to say, but a very faint idea can be found from the sketch here given. The author has done a service to the cause of letters, which will not, we think, be soon