wisdom, to any--if it drops but a single good seed into the heart
of each of its readers, and awakens the slightest aspiration to
morality, usefulness, and religion--it will not have been prepared
in vain. With a prayer to God that he would protect and bless the
youth of our common country, and prepare them to preserve and
perpetuate the priceless legacy of Freedom and Religion, which they
will inherit from their fathers, this book is given to the world, to
fulfil such a mission as Divine Wisdom shall direct.

THE AUTHOR.
AUBURN, June, 1850.





LECTURE I.

The Value of a Good Reputation.

"Laying up in store for themselves a good foundation against
the time to come."--1 Tim. vi. 19.


In this language St. Paul asserts a principle which should commend
itself to the mature consideration of every youthful mind. If the
young would have their career honorable and prosperous--if they
would enjoy the respect and confidence of community; if they would
have the evening of their days calm, serene, and peaceful--they must
prepare for it early in life. They must lay "a good foundation