2.  His wife and children were almost miraculously saved from sharing the fate of the horse; but the loss of this poor animal was enough.  By its aid the family, it may be said, had lived and moved; now they were left helpless in a land of strangers, without the ability to go on or return, without money or a single friend to whom to appeal.  The case was a hard one.

3.  There were a great many who “passed by on the other side.”  Some even laughed at the predicament in which the man was placed; but by degrees a group of people began to collect, all of whom pitied him.

4.  Some pitied him a great deal, and some did not pity him very much, because, they said, he might have known better than to try to cross an unsafe bridge, and should have made his horse swim the river.  Pity, however, seemed rather to predominate.  Some pitied the man, and some the horse; all pitied the poor, sick mother and her six helpless children.

5.  Among this pitying party was a rough son of the West, who knew what it was to migrate some hundreds of miles over new roads to locate a destitute family on a prairie.  Seeing the man’s forlorn situation, and looking around on the bystanders, he said, “All of you seem to pity these poor people very much, but I would beg leave to ask each of you how much.”

6.  “There, stranger,” continued he, holding up a ten dollar bill, “there is the amount of my pity; and if others will do as I do, you may soon get another pony.  God bless you.”  It is needless to state the effect that this active charity produced.  In a short time the happy emigrant arrived at his destination, and he is now a thriving farmer, and a neighbor to him who was his “friend in need, and a friend indeed.”

Definitions.—­1.  Em’i-grate, to remove from one country or state to another for the purpose of residence, to migrate. 2.  Mi-rac’u-lous-ly, as if by miracle, wonderfully.  A-bil’i-ty, power, capability. 3.  Pre-dic’a-ment, condition, plight. 4.  Pre-dom’i-nate, to prevail, to rule. 5.  Lo’cate, to place.  Des’ti-tute, needy, poor. 6.  Des-ti-na’tion, end of a journey.  Thriv’ing, prosperous through industry, economy, and good management.

XXII.  AN ELEGY ON MADAM BLAIZE.

Oliver Goldsmith (b. 1728, d. 1774) was born at Pallas, or Pallasmore, in the parish of Forney, Ireland.  He received his education at several schools, at Trinity College, Dublin, at Edinburgh, and at Leyden.  He spent some time in wandering over continental Europe, often in poverty and want.  In 1756 he became a resident of London, where he made the acquaintance of several celebrated men, among whom were Dr. Johnson and Sir Joshua Reynolds.  His writings are noted for their purity, grace, and fluency.  His fame as a poet is secured by “The Traveler,” and “The Deserted Village;” as a dramatist, by “She Stoops to Conquer;” and as a novelist, by “The Vicar of Wakefield.”  His reckless extravagance always kept him in financial difficulty, and he died heavily in debt.  His monument is in Westminster Abbey.