1. IT is told of Frederick the Great, King of Prussia,
that, as he was seated one day in his private room, a 
written petition was brought to him with the request that
it should be immediately read. The King had just re-

turned from hunting, and the glare of the sun, or some other cause, had
so dazzled his eyes that he found it difficult to make out a single word
of the writing.

2. His private secretary happened to be absent; and the soldier who
brought the petition could not read. There was a page, or favorite boy
servant, waiting in the hall, and upon him the King called. The page was
a son of one of the noblemen of the court, but proved to be a very poor
reader.

3. In the first place, he did not articulate distinctly. He huddled his
words together in the utterance, as if they were syllables of one long
word, which he must get through with as speedily as possible. His
pronunciation was bad, and he did not modulate his voice so as to bring
out the meaning of what he read. Every sentence was uttered with a
dismal monotony of voice, as if it did not differ in any respect from that
which preceded it.

4. "Stop!" said the King, impatiently. "Is it an auctioneer's list of goods
to be sold that you are hurrying over? Send your companion to me."
Another page who stood at the door now entered, and to him the King
gave the petition. The second page began by hemming and clearing his
throat in such an affected manner that the King jokingly asked him
whether he had not slept in the public garden, with the gate open, the
night before.

5. The second page had a good share of self conceit, however, and so
was not greatly confused by the King's jest. He determined that he
would avoid the mistake which his comrade had made. So he
commenced reading the petition slowly and with great formality,
emphasizing every word, and prolonging the articulation of every sylla-
ble But his manner was so tedious that the King cried out, "Stop! are
you reciting a lesson in the elementary sounds ? Out of the room! But
no: stay! Send me that little girl who is sitting there by the fountain."

6. The girl thus pointed out by the King was a daughter

of one of the laborers employed by the royal gardener;
and she had come to help her father weed the flower beds.
It chanced that, like many of the poor people in Prussia,
she had received a good education. She was somewhat
alarmed when she found herself in the King's presence,
but took courage when the King told her that he only wanted
her to read for him, as his eyes were weak.

7. Now, Ernestine (for this was the name of the little
girl) was fond of reading aloud, and often many of the
neighbors would assemble at her father's house to hear
her; those who could not read themselves would come to
her, also, with their letters from distant friends or children,
and she thus formed the habit of reading various sorts of
handwriting promptly and well.

8. The King gave her the petition, and she rapidly
glanced through the opening lines to get some idea of
what it was about. As she read, her eyes began to glisten,
and her breast to heave. “What is the matter?” asked
the King; "don't you know how to read?” “Oh, yes!
sire," she replied, addressing him with the title usually
applied to him: "I will now read it, if you please."

9. The two pages were about to leave the room. "Re-
main," said the King. The little girl began to read the
petition. It was from a poor widow, whose only son had
been drafted to serve in the army, although his health was
delicate and his pursuits had been such as to unfit him for
military life. His father had been killed in battle, and the
son had a strong desire to become a portrait painter.

10. The writer told her story in a simple, concise man-
ner, that carried to the heart a belief of its truth; and
Ernestine read it with so much feeling, and with an artic-
ulation so just, in tones so pure and distinct, that when
she had finished, the King, into whose eyes the tears had
started, exclaimed, “Oh! now I understand what it is all
about; but I might never have known, certainly I never
should have felt, its meaning had I trusted to these young

gentlemen, whom I now dismiss from my service for one year, advising
them to occupy their time  learning to read."

11. "As for you, my young lady," continued the King, "I know you will
ask  no better reward for your trouble than the pleasure of carrying to
this poor widow my order for her son's immediate discharge. Let me see
whether you can write as well as you can read. Take this pen, and write
as I dictate." He then dictated an order, which Ernestine wrote, and he
signed. Calling one of his guards, he bade him go with the girl and see
that the order was obeyed.

12. How much happiness was Ernestine the means of bestowing through
her good elocution, united to the happy circumstance that brought it to
the knowledge of the King! First, there were her poor neighbors, to
whom she could give instruction and entertainment. Then, there was the
poor widow who sent the petition, and who not only regained her son,
but received through Ernestine an order for him to paint the King's
likeness; so that the poor boy soon rose to great distinction, and had
more orders than be could attend to. Words could not express his
gratitude, and that of his mother, to the little girl.

13. And Ernestine had, moreover, the satisfaction of aiding her father to
rise in the world, so that he became the King's chief gardener. The King
did not forget her, but had her well educated at his own expense. As for
the two pages, she was indirectly the means of doing them good, also;
for, ashamed of their bad reading, they commenced studying in earnest,
till they overcame the faults that had offended the King. Both finally
rose to distinction, one as a lawyer, and the other as a statesman; and
they owed their advancement in life chiefly to their good elocution.

DEFINITIONS. 1. Petition a formal request. 3. Articulate, to utter the
elementary sounds. Modulate, to vary or inflect. Monotony, lack of
variety. 4. Affected, unnatural and silly.

9. Drafted, selected by lot. 10. Concise, brief and full of meaning. 
11. Discharge, release. Dictate, to utter so that another may write 
down. 12.  Distinction, honorable and notable position. Express, 
to make known the feelings of.

NOTES.   Fredrick II. of Prussia (b. 1712, d. 1788), or Frederick the
Great, as he was called, was one of the greatest of German rulers. He
was distinguished for his military exploits, for his wise and just
government, and for his literary attainments. He wrote many able works
in the French language. Many pleasant anecdotes are told of this king, of
which the one given in the lesson is a fair sample.