JUDGE NOT. Of beauty, and manly pride, and grace, 4 "Oh, what," the voice inquired again, "Hath wrought this change, so sad and stränge! Didst thou at length, O youth, obtain, 227 In its full measure, thy heart's fond treasure? 5. "Too soon," exclaim'd the stricken form, Ah! my spirit hath been with the giddy throng, The curse of pleasure is on my brow." CHARLES H. LYON 97. JUDGE NOT. MANY years since, two pupils of the University of Warsaw were passing through the street in which stands the column of King Sigismund, round whose pedestals may be seen seated a number of women selling fruit, cakes, and a variety of eatables, to the passers-by. The young men paused to look at a figure, the oddity of which attracted their attention. 2. This was a man apparently between fifty and sixty years of age. His coat, once black, was worn threadbare; his broad hat overshadowed a thin, wrinkled face; his form was greatly 'Profusion (pro fü' zun), great abundance.-2 In tense', strained close; violent; earnest.- War' saw, the capital of the kingdom of Poland, dependency of Russia. Sigismund, the name of three kings of Poland. Sigismund III., surnamed De Vasa, born 1566, and died 1632.Pêd' es tal, that on which any thing stands. emaciated,' yet he walked with a firm and rapid step. He stopped at one of the stalls beneath the column, purchased a half-penny worth of bread, ate part of it, and putting the remainder into his pocket, pursued his way toward the palace of the lieutenant of the kingdom, who, in the absence of the Czar, Alexander, exercised royal authority in Poland. 66 3. "Do you know that man ?" asked one student of the other, "I do not; but, judging from his costume', and mournful coun tenance, I should guess him to be an undertaker." "Wrong, my friend; he is Stanislaus Staszic." 4. "Staszic!" exclaimed the student, looking after the man, who was then entering the palace. "How can a mean, wretchedlooking man, who stops in the middle of the street to buy a morsel of bread, be rich and powerful?" "Yet, so it is," replied his companion; "under this unpromising exterior3 is hidden one of our most influential ministers, and one of the most illustrious men of Europe." 5. The man whose appearance contrasted so strongly with his social position, who was as powerful as he seemed insignificant, as rich as he appeared poor, owes all his fortune to himself-to his labors, and to his genius. Of low extraction," he left Poland while young, in order to acquire learning. He passed some years in the Universities of Leipsic and Gottingen,' continued his studies in the College of France, under Brisson and D'Aubanton; gained the friendship of Buffon; visited the Alps and the Apennines; and finally returned to his native land, stored with rich and varied learning. 1Emaciated (e ma' shat ed), thin; wasted.-Czar (zår), emperor of Russia. This word is probably from Cæsar, a title given to the emperors of Rome. Ex tè' ri or, outward appearance.-Social position, rank or standing in society.- Extraction (eks tråk' shun), source; birth; origin.- Leipsic (lip' sik), the second city of Saxony, and one of the chief seats of commerce in Germany. The university, founded 1409, with a library of 110,000 volumes, and about 100 professors and private teachers, is attended by above 900 students.-' Gottingen (get' ting en), a town of Hanover, capital of the principality of Gottingen. Its university, founded 1734, was, down to 1831, the chief of the German universities, and the number of its students, from 1822 to 1826, averaged 1481, annually. In 1845, it had only 633 students.- Buffon, an eminent naturalist, born in 1707, and died in 1788. 6. He was speedily invited by a nobleman to take charge of the education of his son. Afterward, the Government wished to profit by his talents; and Staszic, from grade to grade, was raised to the highest posts, and the greatest dignities. His economical habits made him rich. Five hundred serfs cultivated his lands, and he possessed large sums of money placed at in terest. 7. When did any man ever rise věry far above the rank in which he was born, without presenting a mark for envy and detraction' to aim their ǎrrows against? Mediocrity always avenges itself by calumny,' and so Staszic found it; for the good folks of Warsaw were quite ready to attribute all his actions to sinister1 motives. A group of idlers had paused close to where the students were standing. All looked at the minister, and every one had something to say against him. 8. "Who would ever think," cried a noble, whose gray mus taches and old-fashioned costume recalled the era of King Sigismund, "that he could be a minister of State? Formerly, when palatine' traversed the capital, a troop of horsemen bōth preceded and followed him. Soldiers dispersed the crowds that pressed to look at him. But what respect can be felt for an old miser, who has not the heart to afford himself a coach, and whc eats a piece of bread in the streets, just as a beggar would do?" 9. "His heart," said a priest, "is as hard as the iron chest in which he keeps his gold; a poor man might die of hunger at his door, before he would give him alms." "He has worn the same coat for the last ten years," remarked another. "He sits on the ground, for fear of wearing out his chairs," chimed in a saucylooking lad, and every one joined in a mocking laugh. 10. A young pupil of one of the public schools had listened in indignant silence to these speeches, which cut him to the heart; and at length, unable to restrain himself, he turned toward the priest, and said: "A man distinguished for his gen 'De tråc' tion, abuse; taking from the merits of another. Me dioc' ri ty, a middle state; moderate degree of talents.-3 Cål' um uy, de traction; abuse; scandal.-Sin' is ter, left-handed; evil, corrupt.-Mustache (mus tåsh'), long hair on the upper lip.- Cos tùme', dress - Pål' a tine, a minister; one invested with royal privileges.—" In dig nant, affected with anger and disdain. erosity ought to be spoken of with more respect. What does it signify to us how he dresses, or what he eats, if he makes a noble use of his fortune?" 11. "Pray, what use does he make of it?” "The Academy of Sciences wanted a place for a library, and had not funds to Who bestowed on them a magnificent palace? Was hire one. it not Staszic?" "Oh, yes! because he is as greedy of praise as of gold," was the reply. "Poland esteems as her chief glōry the man who discovered the laws of the sidereal' movement. Who was it that raised to him a monument worthy of his renown-calling the chisel of Canova2 to honor the memory of Copernicus ?" 12. "It was Staszic," replied the Europe honors the generous senator. priest; "and for that all But, my young friend, it is not the light of the noon-day sun that ought to illumine Christian charity. If you want really to know a man, watch the daily course of his private life. 13. “This ostentatious miser, in the books which he publishes, groans over the lot of the peasantry, and in his vast domains he employs five hundred miserable serfs. Go some morning to his house; there you will find a poor woman beseeching with tears a cold proud man, who repulses her. That man is Staszic; that woman his sister. Ought not the haughty giver of palaces, the builder of pompous statues, rather to employ himself in protecting his oppressed serfs, and relieving his destitute relatives?" 98. JUDGE NOT-CONCLUDED. THE young man began to reply, but no one would listen to him. Sad and dejected at hearing one who had been to him a true and generous friend so spoken of, he went to his humble lodging. 1 'Si de' re al, relating to the stars.- Antonio Canova, one of the most distinguished sculptors of modern times, was born in 1757, and died in 1822, at Venice.-3 Copernicus, a most distinguished astronomer, who revived the true system of the motion of the heavenly bodies, according to the theory of Pythagoras. He was born February 19th, 1473, and died in 1543.-Os ten ta' tious, showy; making a display. 2. Next morning, he repaired at an early hour to the dwelling of his benefactor. There he met a woman weeping, and lamenting the inhumanity of her brother. This confirmation of what the priest had said, inspired the young man with a fixed determination. It was Staszic who had placed him at college, and supplied him with the means of continuing there. Now, he would reject his gifts; he would not accept benefits from a man who could look unmoved at his own sister's tears. 3. The learned minister, seeing his favorite pupil enter, did not desist from his occupation, but, continuing to write, said to him: "Well, Adolphe, what can I do for you to-day? If you want books, take them out of my library; or instruments, order them, and send me the bill. Speak to me freely, and tell me if you want any thing." 4. "On the contrary, sir, I come to thank you for your past kindness, and to say that I must in future decline receiving your gifts." "You have, then, become rich ?" "I am as poor as ever.' "And your college?" "I must leave it." "Impossible !" cried Staszic, standing up, and fixing his penetrating eyes on his visitor. "You are the most promising of all our pupils; it must not be !" 5. In vain the young student tried to conceal the motive of his conduct; Staszic insisted on hearing it. "You wish,” said Adolphe, "to heap favors on me at the expense of your suffering family." 6. The powerful minister could not conceal his emotion; his eyes filled with tears, and he pressed the young man's hand warmly, as he said: "Dear boy, always take heed to this counsel-'JUDGE NOTHING BEFORE THE TIME.' Ere the end of life arrives, the purest virtue may be soiled by vice, and the bitterest calumny proved to be unfounded. My conduct is in truth an enigma,' which I can not now solve-it is the secret of my life.” 7. Seeing the young man still hesitate, he added: "Keep an account of the money I give you; consider it as a loan; and when, some day, through labor and study, you find yourself rich, pay the debt by educating a poor, deserving student. As for me, wait for my death, before you judge my life.” 'Enig' ma, a riddle; something mysterious. |