58 _ MORAL. SONGS FOR CHILDREN.

3 I pass’d by his garden, and saw the wild brier,
The thorn and the thistle grow broader and higher ;
The clothes that hang on him are turning to rags ;
And his money still wastes, till he starves or he

begs.
4 I made him a visit, still hoping to find

He had took better care for improving his mind:
He told me his dreams, talk’d of eating and drink-

ing;
But he scarce reads his Bible, and never loves
thinking.

5 Said I then to my heart, “ Here’s a lesson for me,
This man’s but a picture of what I might be: .
But thanks to my friends for their care in my

breeding,
Who taught me betimes to love working and read-
ing.”