THE FLOWERS OF SPRING.――The shower of rain that was falling a few minutes ago, is passed away; the sun is shining bright, the drops of rain are glittering like diamonds on the young leaves. How sweet is the smell of the sweetbriar after the rain! How pleasant does the garden look! A few weeks ago there were little signs of life anywhere, but now every border is full of flowers, and fresh buds are still showing their heads above the ground. Among the low green leaves, we see colors of blue, and red, and yellow, and orange, and purple. Where were these beautiful flowers in winter? Were they dead? They were buried, indeed, in the ground, and their fair blossoms were not then unfolded, but there was life in their roots. There was life, too, in the seeds which were sown a little while ago, though they did not spring up till the rain and sunshine came. Your kind heavenly Father sends you flowers, not only to teach you wisdom, but to give you sweet and innocent pleasure. So now, my little ones, enjoy the sunshine, for it will soon pass away. The clouds are gathering again. Look for violets and primroses in the sunny banks, gather the cowslips and tie them into yellow balls, and let no innocent joy of spring pass by you.――_English magazine._ ―――― BOISTEROUS PREACHING.――A celebrated divine, who was remarkable in the first period of his ministry for a loud and boisterous mode of preaching, suddenly changed his whole manner in the pulpit, and adopted a mild and dispassionate mode of delivery. One of his brethren observing it, inquired of him what had induced him to make the change? He answered: “When I was young, I thought it was the _thunder_ that killed the people; but when I grew wiser, I discovered it was the _lightning_――so I determined to thunder less and lighten more in future.” It is a pity that all preachers had not made the discovery. Letter to Peter Parley, AND HIS ANSWER. _Belleville, Gloucester county, Va., March 26th, 1844._ DEAR MR. PARLEY: I am very much interested in your little book on the sun, moon, and stars; I understand it very well. The last lesson I read was about the centrifugal and centripetal forces. I have read a good many of your books of Asia, Africa, Europe, the Christmas Gift, and your magazine. I should like to have accompanied you in your journeys on the terrestrial and celestial globes; were you not afraid of being melted in Mercury and freezing in Uranus? I think I should have been.