Lesson 1 STORY OF THE BEES "Frank, I am going to drive my new pair of horses. Do you wish to go with me?" "O yes. May Jane go, too?" "Yes. We will go out to see Fred and look at his bees." The horses went very fast and were soon there. "O here are the bees!" said Jane. "Do they live in this box, papa?" "Yes, Jane. The box is a hive." "Why is that hole in the hive?" "It is there so that the bees may go in and out, and have air." "See papa! How many bees there are!" "O they will sting us!" said Frank. "Look, Jane, there is one on your hair!" "Do not be afraid, Jane," said her papa. "It will not hurt your hair. Keep very still and it will fly away." Lesson 2 STORY OF THE BEES -- Continued "Look, papa, here is one on my arm," said Frank, "and one on my hat, too." "Well, if you keep very still, they will not harm you." But Frank did not mind what his papa said. He hit one of the bees with his hat and ran off. The bees did not like this and stung him. "O, O, papa! What shall I do?" "Run into the barn and get away from them," said Jane. So Frank ran and hid, but Jane stood still, as her papa had told her. Bees were on her arm and hair, but as she did not move, they soon left her. "You see, Jane," said papa, "the bees will not sting if you do not harm them." Lesson 3 VERY FUNNY "Dear me! Dear me!" Buzzed a little bee, "I'm always making honey. No time to play, But work all day; Isn't it very funny, Very, very funny?" Lesson 4 FRANK AND THE BIRD One time when Frank was going to school, he found a poor little bird in the grass. It had got out of its nest, and could not fly back. Frank took the little bird up in his hand. He could not put it back, as the nest was too high up in a tree. He did not know what to do with it. At last he said, "You poor little bird! I will take you home, and ask sister to put you into a cage. "When you are large and strong, you may fly back to the tree." So Frank took it home to his sister. She gave it food and water, and put it into a cage. Pretty soon the bird began to sing a little every day. Frank liked it very much, but one day he let it fly out of its cage, to go back to its old home in the tree. Lesson 5 FRANK AND HIS WISH When Frank was a small boy, he went to school with his sister. One very warm day, he said to his sister that it would be much more fun to play ball than to go to school. "No, no," said she, " I have no time to play." Then Frank saw a bee and said, "I wish I were a bee, and had nothing to do." "But the bee has much to do," said his sister. "It works hard all day to get honey." Then he saw a bird in a tall tree and said, "Well, I wish I were that little bird. It has nothing to do." But his sister said, "See, Frank, the bird has a straw. It has to build its nest with straw and hair, and so has no time to play." Then, when Frank saw that every bee and bird had to work, he ran to school and learned his lessons. Lesson 6 WHAT BIRDIE SAYS. What does little birdie say, In her nest at peep of day? "Let me fly," says little birdie, "Mother, let me fly away." Birdie, rest a little longer, Till the little wings are stronger So she rests a little longer, Then she flies away Lesson 7 JOCKO. Here is my tame monkey. His name is Jocko. When he is out of his cage, I have to watch him to see that he does no harm. He will put on my coat and hat, and march up and down the room as if he were a little man. He likes to get up on a chair and look in the glass. He likes to play hide-and-seek with the cat, and run after my little puppies. One day, Jocko went up into my room. I ran after him, and found him trying to wash his face. How he did splash the water! As soon as he saw me, he took up the dish of water and ran. "Stop, Jocko!" said I. "What are you going to do now?" But Jocko did not stop. He ran so fast that he fell down. Over he went with the dish of water, and poor Jocko got very wet. After that he was glad to get back into his cage. Lesson 8 MARY AND THE COW. "Papa, may I learn to milk the cow?" "I am afraid that my little girl is too small." "O no, papa. I heard Fred say that he learned to milk the cow when he was small. "Well, I will give the cow some hay, and then we will milk her." "Does the cow like hay, papa?" "O yes, she likes hay as well as you like bread." Just then Mary saw the cow take up an apple. "Why, papa" said she, "how did our cow lose her teeth?" "Lose her teeth?" said her papa. "Yes," said Mary. "She has no front teeth in her upper jaw." "She never had," said her papa. "A cow never has front teeth in her upper jaw. But come, let us milk her." So Mary stood by her papa, and learned how to milk the cow. Lesson 9 THE SHIP THAT JACK BUILT. This is the ship, that Jack built. This is the sail, that moves the ship, that Jack built. This is the mast, so strong and new, that holds the sail, that moves the ship, that Jack built. This is the flag -- red, white and blue -- that floats from the mast, so strong and new, that holds the sail, that moves the ship, that Jack built. And I hope the boys and girls are few, that love not the flag -- red, white and blue -- that floats from the mast, that holds the sail, that moves the ship, that Jack built. Lesson 10 THE DOLLS. This little girl, I'm glad to say, Is eight years old this very day. She makes a hat for little "Doll," And puts in it, a feather, tall. One doll is large, the other small, And each one has a little shawl. She talks to them. They won't obey. And then she says, "You can not play." "For, if you wish me to be kind, Then you must always try to mind." Lesson 11 FRANK AND HIS KITE. Frank went out to fly his kite. As it went up into the air, he let out more string. At last the kite was far up in the sky. Then Frank lay down in the grass to watch it. "I wish I had a string two miles long," said Frank. "I wonder if it would reach to the stars." "What is up in the sky, I wonder. I wish I could fly up like a kite." Then Frank cut out a round piece of paper, made a hole in it, and put it on the string. Away went the paper after the kite. Pretty soon a man came up and said, "Young man, your kite is very high." "Yes, sir," said Frank, "and look at the piece of paper going up to the kite." "Well done!" said the man. "How did it get there?" "I put it on the string," said Frank, "and the wind took it up." Lesson 12 FRANK AND HIS NEW KITE. Frank did not like his old kite, so he made a new one. He took two sticks and made a cross like this. Then he put a string round the ends like this. He cut some blue paper to fit the sticks, and put it on with paste. Then he tied three strings to the sticks in this way. Then he made a tail for the kite. He tied bits of paper to a string like this. Then he tied the tail to the kite. His mother gave him a long string for it, and he was very happy with his new kite. Now it is all made, it looks like this, as it floats in the air. Lesson 13 THE LITTLE PIGS. We have eight little pigs. One is white. One is all black. The eight little pigs live in a pen. The pen is in a yard near the barn. The pigs like to run in the yard. One day they made a hole under the pen. The little white pig got out of the yard first. Then the little black pig came out. Then all the other little pigs came out. The little white pig began to look about him. "Wee, wee! What a big world this is!" he said. Then all the other pigs said "Wee, wee!" The little white one was larger than any of the other pigs; so, of course, he knew all about it. "Where shall we go?" said the little black pig. "Let us go up the hill," said the white one. The other pigs said "Wee, wee!" again. That was the way they said yes. Lesson 14 THE LITTLE PIGS -- Continued. Then the little pigs went up the hill. It was a very small hill; but the pigs said, "What a large hill this is!" They were only baby pigs, you know. By and by they came to the top of the hill. They saw a large house in a yard. "What a big pen!" said all the little pigs. "Do you think we shall find more pigs there?" said the black pig. "Wee, wee!" said the other pigs. You see, a pig thinks the whole world was made for pigs. Some one had left the gate open. The little pigs went into the yard. No one was there, so they went on. They were still looking for pigs. Before they got to the door the cook came out. The pigs gave her one look. "That is no pig," said the little white pig. Then they all ran back to their pen. But they knew more than when they left it. They had seen the world, and found that there are other things than pigs in it. Lesson 15 THE MOOSE. "See, John, how fast the moose is running! He is afraid of the dogs." "I hope they will not catch him. Whose dogs are they, papa?" "I do not know whose they are; but they will not catch the moose. He will hide from them, among the spruce trees." "He is very much like a deer, papa. See his long legs and large horns!" "Yes, John. The moose is a kind of deer. His horns are not like those of a deer, but his eyes and hoofs are. "When I was a little boy, I was sent out one day to find the cow. I got on my pony, and, after a long ride among the spruce tree, the pony came to a full stop. "'Go on, pony,' said I. 'Do you see the cow?' But the pony would not go on. It was not the cow that he saw. It was a large moose. "There he stood, in a pool of water, looking at us with his large, soft eyes. "He did not move at first, but pretty soon he began to splash the water with his hoofs. "Then the pony was afraid, and I was, too. We did not stop to find the cow. We came out from among the trees, and went home as fast as we could." "Why did the moose stand in the pool of water, papa?" "It was a warm day, and he stood in the water to get cool. A moose or a deer likes to stand in the cool water on a warm day." Lesson 16 THE SNAIL. "Look here, Mary. I wish you to see this shell." "What is in it, mamma'?" "A snail is in it. See! Its head is coming out of the shell." "Can the snail come out of its shell, mamma'?" "No. The shell grows on its back." "Then it is never away from home, is it, mamma'? Why does it push up those funny little things that look like horns?" "Its eyes are in them." "Has it any teeth?" "O yes, it has many teeth." "O mamma'! But it has no ears." "Yes, it has, Mary; but you can not see them. Take it in your hand. It will not hurt you." "O look, mamma'! It has put its head into the shell again." "Yes, it saw that you were going to touch it." "How funny! I did not think it could see so well." "Now be very still, and it will soon push its head out of the shell again." "Yes, there it is, mamma'. Do see it crawl off with its shell on its back!" "That is the only way it can get about, Mary." "Well, it is a pretty slow way. I have heard that some little boys and girls are 'as slow as a snail.'" Lesson 17 TAB AND HER KITTENS. "O look at my kittens!" said Milly to May. "Just feel of their fur -- so soft and so fine." Then mother cat, Tab, to Milly did say, "O pray, little Miss, the kittens are mine." "I know they are yours," said she to old Tab, "But can I not give one to dear little May? She will take it out home with horses and cab, And give it some meat and some milk ev'ry day." "No, no, little Miss! I can not consent. What you say about May is all very fine. I could never be happy -- never content; I tell you again, the kittens are mine." "Well, well, mother cat! I will ask you no more To part with your dear little kittens, a day. So let them come out, to romp on the floor; To have a good time, and a jolly, nice play." Lesson 18 THE SHEEP. Frank and Ned like to watch the men wash the sheep. When it is time to shear the sheep, the men wash them in the brook, to make the wool clean. The sheep do not like the water, and, of course, try to get away from the men. While Frank and Ned were looking on, one of the sheep got away, and ran out of the brook. He shook the water from his wool and ran away. The man ran after him and caught him by the horns. Then he took him back and gave him a good wash. The water in the brook was clear, and the sheep came out with their wool nice and clean. Then they were put into a small yard, or pen, and the men cut off their wool with large shears. As each one had his wool cut off, he was let out of the pen. "I should think they would take cold after the wool is off," said Ned. "No, Ned," said Frank. " They shear sheep only when it is warm, as it is now. The wool grows very fast, and by winter they have a warm coat again." Lesson 19 ROVER AND THE SQUIRREL. Here are Rover and Bunny. Bunny is a tame squirrel. He is very fond of Ned. He is fond of nuts, too, and Ned gives him some every day. Bunny can hold the nuts in his paws, and crack them with his strong teeth. When he does not want to eat the nuts, he hides them under the dry leaves in the yard, and pats them down with his little paws. Bunny likes to get out of his cage and play in the tall grass, and run up into the trees. A squirrel has sharp claws, and can run up into a tree very fast. One day Bunny was running in the grass and heard a dog bark. He stood up on his hind legs and saw that Rover, the dog, was near him. Bunny does not like dogs, so up he went, into a tree. As a dog does not have sharp claws, Rover could not run up into the tree after Bunny. All he could do was to stand up, with his paws on the tree, and bark at Bunny. But Bunny was not afraid. He knew that Rover could not get up into the tree. Ned heard Rover bark, and when he found that he was after his tame squirrel, he made him go away. Poor Bunny was glad to come down from the tree and go into his cage. Lesson 20 MAKING TEA. "Mother, let me make the tea this time." "Have you ever made it, Milly?" "No, mother, but I wish to try now." "Well, take some tea from the can, and put it into the tea-pot." "How much shall I take?" "Fill the tea-spoon once for each one of us." "One, two, three, four, five, and a big one for Frank, makes six." "That will do. Now pour in some hot water, and set the tea-pot on the stove so that the tea can steep." "How long must the tea steep, mother?" "Only a little white. The hot water will soon make nice tea for us. Can you tell me what tea is, Milly?" "Yes, mother I think I can. Tea is made of the leaves of a plant that grows over the sea." "Men pick the leaves from the plant, then roll them up, and dry them." "When the leaves are dry, they are put into boxes, and sent to us in large ships." "It is very far off where the tea-plant grows, and the ships have to sail a long, long time before they get to us." Lesson 21 HOW JOHN EARNED TEN CENTS. "John, would you like to earn some money?" "Yes, father. What must I do to earn it?" "Well, those pigs are out of the pen, again. If you will drive them back, and stop the hole so they can not get out, I will give you ten cents." "O I'll do it," said John, "and Rover will help me. Here, Rover! Here, Rover! Where are you?" "But, John, you must not let Rover hurt the pigs," said his father. "O no, he shall not hurt them," said John; and away they ran -- Rover to have the fun, and John to earn the ten cents. When the pigs saw that John and Rover were after them, how they did run! It was very funny to see them. The pigs would turn first one way, and then another. After a long race, John got the pigs back into the yard. "Father, I think I have earned the ten cents," said John. "I never saw pigs run so fast as they did. It was hard work to get them back into the pen. It tired me all out." "Well, John," said his father, "we all have to work if we wish to earn money. Here are the ten cents you have earned." "Thank you, father!" said John, and then he put the money into a little box. "I will keep all the money I earn," said he," "and when I am a man, I will try to do some good with it. Then I shall always feel happy." Lesson 22 THE TWO WRENS. A wren lived in an old tree. She had made her nest in the same hole for two years. The third year, when she came to build her nest, she saw a young wren in the hole. "What are you here for?" said the old wren. "I am here to build my nest," said the young wren. "You must not, that is my place," said the old wren. "It is not! It is mine!" cried the young one. "I was here first this year. See what I have done! Look at the bits of moss I have brought here to make my nest!" "I can not help that. It is my place," said the old wren. "I have had this tree two years, and now, when I come back again, I find you here." "And I mean to stay here," said the young wren. Then the old wren began to peck at the young one, and tried to tear the moss and bits of bark from the nest. Lesson 23 THE TWO WRENS -- Continued. Then the old wren and the young one had a hard fight. Each one cried out, "It is my place." "No, it is mine. I was here first." "No, I was -- " "Aha!" said a bluebird, who was in another tree near by. "What is all this noise about?" So he went to see what it was. "What is the matter?" said he. "She has my place," said the old wren. "No, it is not her place; it is my place," said the young one. "Let me see the place," said the bluebird. "What a dark hole it is!" Then the bluebird hopped into the nest. "You can not have it," he said to the old wren, "because the young wren was here first this year." "You can not have it," he said to the young wren, "because the old one had it last year. "I think I will stay here myself." So the foolish wrens had to fly off and find some other place. Lesson 24 THE IDLE BOY. "When I was a boy at school," said an old man, " I was often very idle. Even while at my lessons, I used to play with other boys as idle as myself. "Of course we tried to hide this from the teacher, but one day we were fairly caught. "'Boys,' said he, 'you must not be idle. You must keep your eyes on your lessons. You do not know what you lose by being idle. "'Now, while you are young, is the time to learn. Let any one of you, who sees another boy looking off his book, come and tell me.' "'Now,' said I to myself, 'there is Fred Smith. I do not like him. I will watch him, and if I see him looking off his book I will tell.' "Not very long after I saw Fred looking off his book, so I went up and told the teacher. "'Aha!' said he, 'how do you know he was idle?' "'Please, sir,' said I, 'I saw him.' "'O you did, did you? And where were your eyes when you saw him? Were they on your book?' "I was fairly caught. I saw the other boys laugh, and I hung my head, while the teacher smiled. "It was a good lessons for me. I did not watch for idle boys again." Lesson 25 AN APPLE CORE. Father, one day, took an apple red, And holding it up in his hand, he said: "Where is the boy who can answer me?" His, shall this nice, red apple be. How many cells has the apple core, Where dark brown seeds are held in store? And which way, too, point the seeds in them -- Down to the blossom, or up to the stem?" Shame on us all, not one of us knew; Who can get the apple now? Can you? Lesson 26 WHAT DICK, THE DOG, SATS. "Bow-wow! Who are you? "I am only a little dog. My mane is Dick. "I am not a cross dog. I have always been a pet dog. "Shall I tell you what I can do? "I can stand up on my hind legs, and jump over a stick. "O yes, and I can run as fast as Rover, and he is a big dog. "I like to run races with Rover, because he never bites a little dog. "We like to run after birds, but we never catch any. "They fly away when we go near them. "I wonder how the birds fly! Rover and I can not fly. "My master has a cow. She is a good cow, and gives us nice milk. "I do not care much for milk. I like meat better. But old Tab, the cat, likes milk. "I like to see Tab drink milk. She laps it up so fast. "I drive the cow to pasture every day. John goes with me to shut the gate. "I wish I could open and shut that gate. Then John would not go to the pasture. "I should like to go all alone. I think it would be fine. "I take good care of the cow. "When any one goes near here, I say 'Bow-wow,' and then he runs away." Lesson 27 THE SICK DOLL. "Come, Frank, let us play that my doll is sick, and you are the doctor. You put on father's long coat, and his tall hat, and then ring the door bell, just as the doctor does." "O yes, sister, I will be the doctor. When I ring the bell, Ann must open the door for me." "Well, I will send Ann to the door when you ring." Then Frank put on his father's tall hat and long coat. He went out of the room, and pretty soon he gave the bell a pull which made it ring very loud. "Ann, there is some one at the door," said Mary. "Go and see who it is." Ann went to open the door, and there stood Frank, trying very hard to look like a doctor. "Come in, sir," said Ann, and Frank came into the room where Mary was. "Good-morning, doctor," said Mary. "Good-morning, Miss Mary. Did you send for me?" "Yes, doctor, I sent for you because my doll is very sick." "Very sick? What can be the matter? Has she been eating too much?" "No, doctor, she does not eat much. She is quite cold, and does not move about much." "Well, let me see," said the doctor; and he took out his watch while he held the doll's hand. "One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, ten," said he. "O her pulse is not very fast." "What shall I do for her, doctor?" "Give her some warm tea, a hot bath, and put her to bed." "Is that all, doctor?" "Yes, that is all. I think she will be well in the morning. Good-morning, Miss Mary." "Good-morning, doctor." Lesson 28 FRANK AND HIS STORE. "Well, Frank, what shall we play this morning?" "I will tell you, sister. I will keep store, and you come and buy things of me." "What can you find to sell, Frank?" "I will ask mother to let me have some thread, cloth, ribbon, and other little things to sell." "But, Frank, I have no money to buy with!" "Well, you can use pins for money." "But where can I get the pins?" "Mother will give you some, or you can find some on the floor. There are always pins on the floor, you know." "O I will tell you, Frank, what is better for money than pins. I will cut out round bits of paper, and have some for one cent, some for five cents, and some for ten cents." "Yes, that will do very well. Now you get the money ready, while I go and get the things to sell." Then Frank went to his mother, who gave him many little things to put in his store. He put them on a table, and then was ready to sell. Mary put on her hat and shawl, and came into the room. "Good morning, Miss," said Frank. "Can I sell you any thing this morning?" "Yes," said Mary. "Have you any red ribbon?" "Yes, here is some that is very good. Only five cents a yard." "Well, I will take one yard. Now I want some cloth to make my doll a new dress." "Here is some good cloth. It will make a very nice dress, and costs only ten cents a yard," said Frank. "Give me a yard of that, a paper of pins, and some white thread," said Mary. "Is there any things more you would like, Miss?" said Frank. "I think of nothing more now." "Shall I send the things home for you, Miss?" "No, I thank you," said Mary. "I will take them with me. Good morning." "Good morning, Miss. Come in again." Lesson 29 GEORGE WASHINGTON. Little boys and girls, have you been told any thing about George Washington? He was a great and good man, who lived many years ago. After a while you will learn more about him, but what I tell you now, I hop you will never forget. When George was a little boy, his father gave him a hatchet. George was much pleased with his new hatchet, and went about the yard, trying it on trees and other things, to see how well it would cut. His father had some trees that he took great care of, because their fruit was very fine. One of these was a small cherry tree. George did not think it was wrong to cut the trees, so when he came to this tree he cut it down. When his father was what had been done, he did not like it, and sent for Gorge. "George," said he, "some one has cut down one of my fine trees. Do you know who did it?" Poor George saw at once that he had done wrong, but he was too good to tell a lie about it. It did not take him long to make up his mind what to do. Looking up at his father, he said, "Father, I did it. I can not tell a lie about it. I cat it with my little hatchet." His father was very much pleased to know that his boy would not tell a lie. He took him in his arms, and said, "My dear boy, I would rather lose all my fine trees than have you tell one lie." I hope my dear boys and girls, that you will try to be like George Washington -- never tell a lie. Lesson 30 NEVER TELL A LIE. Never tell a lie, my boy, Always speak the truth. If your life you would enjoy, Always speak the truth. Now, as in the coming years, Always speak the truth. Save your heart from bitter tears, Always speak the truth. Be the matter what it may, Always speak the truth. If at work, or if at play, Always speak the truth. Never from this rule depart, Always speak the truth. Fix it deeply in your heart, Always speak the truth. Lesson 31 AT PLAY IN THE PARK. "Frank, will you go to the park with me?" "Yes, Mary, as soon as I get my ball. The boys are going to play ball, and I told them I would play with them." "I will take my hoop, and we will let Rover go with us. He likes to romp and play on the grass." "We will go to the lake, first, Mary, and see the water-birds." "Water-birds? What are they, Frank?" "Swans, geese, and ducks are water-birds." "Why do you call them water-birds, Frank?" "Because they live on, or near, the water, and are web-footed." "What do you mean by web-footed?" "Why, you know, Mary. You have seen the geese and ducks out of the water. They have a skin between their toes." "O I know what you mean, now. Is that why they swim so well?" "Yes, all web-footed birds swim well. "Here we are at the lake, and there are the swans. See what long necks they have! How pretty they look as they sail about on the water!" "They do look pretty, Mary. You see the ducks and geese do not have as long necks as the swans." "See, Frank, one of the swans is on her nest. How near it is to the water!" "Look, look! See those pretty little fish in the water!" "O yes, I see them. Give them some bread and see them eat it." Then Mary let some bits of bread fall into the water, and it was fun to see the fish try to get them. There were so many, that some were pushed clear out of the water by other fish trying to get the bread. When the geese and ducks saw Mary feed the fish, they came up to get some bread. As soon as the geese came near, old Rover began to bark at them. The geese did not like that, so they put out their long necks and ran at him. "Hiss, hiss!" said the geese. "Quack, quack!" said the ducks, and Rover ran off. It made Frank and Mary laugh to see the geese run after Rover. They tried to get him to come back, but he would not. When Mary had used up all her bread, they went home and told their mother what they had seen at the park. Lesson 32 THE DEER-HUNT. "Father, did you ever hunt for deer?" "Yes, Frank. Sit down and I will tell you of a deer hunt I once had. "It was when I was a young man. My father had a large farm, and on one part of it there were hills and many large trees. "We called that part of the farm the 'Big Woods,' and there were many wild deer there. "One day, I told some young men who lived near us, to bring their horses and dogs, and we would go on a deer-hunt. "The next day they all came. There were five of us on horses and we had eleven dogs. "The dogs were fox-hounds, and could run very fast. "We rode over to the 'Big Woods,' and sent the dogs in to find some deer. "The dogs knew very well what we were after, for they had been deer-hunting before. "They started into the woods and we rode after them. "In a little while we heard them bark, and knew that they had found some deer. "Our horses, too, seemed to know why the dogs were barking, and started to run after them as fast as they could go. "We tried to hold them back, because we were afraid that some of us would get hurt while they were running under the trees. "But on they went, and soon we were near the dogs. "We could not see the deer, but knew which way to go by the barking of the dogs. "We rode on in this way for about two miles, when we came to the open fields. Lesson 33 THE DEER-HUNT -- Continued. "As there were no trees in the fields, and the fences were low, we could now see the deer and the dogs running after them. "We then made our horses go faster, and away we went over fields, fences, and hills. "The deer and the dogs jumped over the fences, and of course we had to make our horses jump over after them. "One of the young men was thrown from his horse while jumping a fence, and we all thought he was hurt. "But when he saw that we were about to stop, he cried out, 'Go on, boys. I'm all right. I'll soon catch up with you.' "We were all glad that he was not hurt, and left him to follow us. "By this time the dogs were quite near the deer. "For three miles we kept up the race, and with our shouting and the dogs' barking, we made a great noise. "Of course this noise made the deer run all the faster, and when they came to a river that ran by our farm, they jumped right into it and swam to the other side. "The dogs did not stop for the river, and in they went, too. "It looked very funny to see the eleven dogs swimming in the water. "But the deer had such a start that they all got away but a young one that was tired out. "We swam our horses over to this one, and did not let the dogs hurt him. We caught him alive, and brought him home with us. "We gave him to my sister, who took so good care of him that he soon became quite tame, and was a great pet with us all." Lesson 34 DO YOUR BEST. Do your best, your very best, And do it every day -- Little boys and little girls, That is the wisest way. No matter what you try to do, At home or at your school, Always do your very best -- There is no better rule. So if you read your little book, Or if you learn to spell, Or if you play with hoop or ball, Be sure to do it well. If boys and girls, you do your best, Your best will better grow, But if you slight your daily task, You'll let the better go. What if your lessons should be hard! Do not give up to sorrow; For if you bravely work to-day, You'll surely win to-morrow. Lesson 35 TEA AND TOAST. Maud had a cold and could not leave her room. But papa came to give her a kiss every day before he went away. "O what nice toast!" said he, one morning. "I wish you would ask me to take tea with you, Maud, and give me some toast like that." "What fun it would be! Do come, papa! How shall I ask you? What shall I say?" "You must say -- "Miss Maud will be pleased to have her papa take tea and toast with her this evening at six o'clock.' "Do not forget the toast." "Very well, that is just what I do say," said Maud. "Well, I will come," said papa. "Now, good-by. I must go to march with the soldiers." "O then you will come in your uniform, papa? I love to see you in your uniform!" "Do you?" said her papa. "Well, if a tall soldier is to take tea with you, I hope you will have something very nice for him." "Of course I will. I will make the tea myself." "All right," said papa. So papa came in his blue uniform with brass buttons. What fun it was! Maud poured out the tea. How many cups of tea papa did drink! How well he liked the toast! He kept saying, "Nurse, bring some more, if you please. I'm not asked out to tea every day." Then Maud laughed and papa laughed, and they were as merry as two little birds in a tree. After tea, papa said, "Now, Maud, it is time for me to go. I will say good-by. I have had a very happy evening." "Good-by," said Maud. "I hope you will soon come and take tea with me again." Lesson 36 LITTLE BO-PEEP. One day I saw John coming with a basket. He gave it to me and said, "Little Bo-peep, take care of your sheep." I looked in, and there was a dear little lamb in the basket. I named her Bo-peep, and put a little bell on her neck. Then I got a box and put it in the barn for Bo-peep's house, and she went to sleep in it. By and by, she was large enough to run and play on the grass, and make the little bell tinkle, tinkle every-where she went. One day she tried to follow me to school. I almost wanted her to go. But John came after her and put her into the barn. Bo-peep cried all day for me. When I came home from school I went to the barn to see her. O how glad she was to have me come back! When it was cold, I used to put her to bed in the wood-box by the stove. The rest is sad to tell. One night I was sick, and asked nurse to take care of Bo-peep, and she said, "Yes, dear." In the morning I ran to the wood-box to find Bo-peep. She was not there! When nurse came in she said, "O I am so sorry! I forgot to bring the poor little thing into the house!" I ran out to the barn, and there was little Bo-peep, dead. I could not help crying. The next morning, Ned and I buried her in the garden, under an old apple-tree. Ned put up a piece of board on the tree, and I wrote this on it -- "Little Bo-peep, Fell fast asleep." Lesson 37 THE WILD RABBITS. Among the sand-hills, Near by the sea, Wild young rabbits Were seen by me. They live in burrows With winding ways, And there they shelter On rainy days. The mother rabbits Make cozy nests, With hairy linings From their breasts. The tender young ones Are nursed and fed, And safely hidden In this warm bed. And when they are older, They all come out Upon the sand-hills, And frisk about. They play, and nibble The long, dry grass, But scamper away Whenever you pass. Lesson 38 KITTY BROWN'S STORY. "O mamma'!" cried little Kitty Brown, "I want to tell you something. "I heard such a funny story about Mary Black! I did not think she could be so naughty." "But, Kitty, I do not like to hear any thing naughty about little boys and girls. "Before you tell me the story, there are three things I would like to ask you." "What are they, mamma'?" "In the first place, is the story true?" "I think so. Miss White told me, and she is a great friend of Mary's." "Well, it may be true, but is it kind?" "I am afraid it is not. I should not like to have such a story told about me." "Well, then, Kitty, if the story is not true, nor kind, do you think you ought to tell it?" "No, I do not think I need to tell it." "Ah, then, Kitty, if the story is not true, nor kind, and you do not need to tell it, why tell it to me at all?" "O because I heard it, and thought you would like to hear it, too." "No, Kitty, I do not care to hear it. Unless what you say is kind and true, and you have need of saying it, you should not tell it. "If you can not speak well of your friends, do not speak of them at all." Lesson 39 THE MONKEY BRIDGE. A party of long-tailed monkeys came to a small river, over which there was no bridge. At first, they did not seem to know how to cross the river, and so began to chatter and talk with one another, as if they were asking what should be done. After a little while they ran to a tree that stood by the bank of the river. The largest and strongest monkey climbed the tree and took hold of a strong branch with his tail. While he was doing this the rest kept up their chatter, and seemed to know just what was going to be done. When the monkey that had climbed the tree was ready, another came down over him, holding on with his tail, and the first one holding him by the legs. Then another monkey came down over both of the others, and so on, until a long string of monkeys hung nearly to the ground. What do you suppose they did next? I will tell you. The monkey nearest the ground began to make the long string swing backward and forward by putting his paws on the ground. The string of monkeys went faster and faster, and farther and farther, each time. By and by it swung so far that the last monkey could catch hold of a tree on the other side of the river. Then this monkey climbed the tree, and went up until he was as high as the first monkey on the other side. This, of course, made a bridge of monkeys from one side of the river to the other. Then the first monkey let go his hold of the tree, and the long bridge swung over to the other side. The monkeys now climbed up over each other until they all got into the tree. Then they began to chatter again, and made a great noise. They seemed to think they had done a great thing, and I think they had, don't you? Lesson 40 DICK AND THE BABY. "Bow-wow! Here I am again! I told you before, that my name is Dick. But the baby calls me 'Bow-wow.' "Do you know why? It is because I always say 'Bow-wow.' It is all I know how to say. "Have you seen our baby? She has big, black eyes, and her mouth looks like a pink rose-bud. "She is a sweet, little girl, and I love her dearly. "I did not like her at first, but that was a long time ago. "My master was very fond of her, and that made me feel cross. "I used to bark at the baby and show all my teeth. "After that they did not let me go near her. "I did not see the baby for a long time, but I did not care for that. "My master did not seem to like me then. "Every time he saw me he would say, 'Go away, Dick! Go away, you bad dog! You are not good to my baby!' "So I was not happy. I made up my mind to bite that baby. "It was a long time before I got a chance to bite her. "But one day I found her alone, as she lay in her little crib. "I jumped up and put both my paws on her crib. "But I did not bite her after all. Shall I tell you why? "She was too pretty to bite, so I kissed her, and have loved her ever since. "Now, because I kiss the baby and love her, my master likes me again. "He pats my head and says, 'Good old dog! Good Dick! You love the baby, don't you?' "I am glad I am not a cross dog now. I feel better when I am good, don't you?" Lesson 41 MAMMA'S KISSES. A kiss when I wake in the morning, A kiss when I go to bed, A kiss when I burn my finger, A kiss when I hurt my head. A kiss when my bath is over, A kiss when my bath begins; My mamma is full of kisses, As full as nurse is of pins. A kiss when I play with my rattle, A kiss when I pull her hair; She covered me over with kisses, The day I fell from the stair. A kiss when I give her trouble, A kiss when I give her joy; There's nothing like mamma's kisses, For her own, little, baby boy. Lesson 42 FRANK'S RABBITS. Frank's uncle gave him a pair of white rabbits. They had pink eyes, and were larger than wild rabbits. Frank's brother John brought a box from the store. They set it near the barn-door. This was to be the home of the rabbits, and Frank thought it would make a very nice house. Mary and Ned looked on and played with the rabbits, while Frank and John built the house. At last it was done. Mary caught one of the rabbits and held him. Ned wanted to catch the other, but the rabbits jumped away when he came too near it. It took the three boys to catch it. At last both of the rabbits were put into their new house. Frank thought the box made a very nice house, but the rabbits did not think so. The children fed them with clover, lettuce, and other plants, but the rabbits liked better to run about the yard and pick out their own food. One morning when Frank went out to feed them, he found they were not in their house. He felt very sorry. He had made a bed-room, as he called it, in one corner of the house, and had put plenty of hay in it for a bed. But the rabbits were not in the bed-room when Frank went to feed them. He went into the garden to look for them, but he could not find them. Then he went back to the little house, and there saw the rabbits eating the clover he had put in for them. Frank wondered where they had been when he first looked into their house. When he came home from school, they were gone again. This time he was sure they were not in the house. He put in some more clover, and pretty soon they came out of the bed-room. Frank did not know what to think of it, so he went and told his mother about it. "They will not run away," said his mother. "They know what they like, and where they want to live, better than you do, Frank." One day Frank went out to put some lettuce in the little house, and found two little rabbits with the old ones. How happy he was then! He ran and called John and Mary to come and see the young rabbits. Frank then learned where the rabbits had been, when he could not find them. He found a small hole in the floor of the bed-room, large enough for them to crawl through. They had gone through this hole and dug into the ground, where they had made a nest. Here they had kept their little ones until they were large enough to go out and eat clover and lettuce. Lesson 43 NELL'S LETTER. Dear Grandma, -- I will try to write A very little letter, If I don't spell the words all right, Why, next time I'll do better. My little rabbit is alive, And likes his milk and clover; He likes to see me very much, But is afraid of Rover. I have a dove, as white as snow, I call her "Polly Feather"; She flies and hops about the yard, In every kind of weather. The hens are picking off the grass, And singing very loudly; While our old peacock struts about, And shows his feathers proudly. I think I'll close my letter now, I've nothing more to tell; Please answer soon, and come to see Your loving, little Nell. Lesson 44 AUNT MARY'S PARROT. My Aunt Mary had a parrot, whose name was "Polly." All the parrots I ever knew were called "Polly." Polly was a very pretty bird. She had bright feathers of red, green, and blue. She did not like to get into the water and wash, so my aunt had to wash her. Sometimes this made Polly cross, and it was very funny to hear her scold Aunt Mary. After she had been washed, she would begin to lay her feathers. If the feather fell out, she would pick it up with her beak and try to put it on her head or back. She seemed to feel sad because she had lost a feather. Polly learned to say many words, such as "Good-by, sir," "Good-morning, sir," and "Polly wants something to eat." Uncle John had a way of saying "There's no doubt about it," and soon Polly learned that, too. One time Aunt Mary was sick, and Polly missed her very much. Polly got out of her cage and went into every room. When she came to Aunt Mary's room, she climbed up on the bed. Aunt Mary said, "Polly, I'm glad to see you. I'm very sick." "There's no doubt about it!" said Polly. Polly was very playful, but she did many naughty things that Uncle John did not like. She would walk about the room and pick the tacks out of the carpet, and bite pieces out of the chairs and table. At last Uncle John sent for a man to come and buy Polly. "How much do you want for her?" said the man. "Twelve dollars," said Uncle John. "Polly, are you worth twelve dollars?" said the man. "There's no doubt about it!" said Polly. This answer so pleased the man that he gave Uncle John the twelve dollars and took Polly home. After a while he found out the naughty things Polly did, and was sorry that he had bought her. One day he said to her, "Polly, what a dunce I was to give so much money for you!" "There's no doubt about it!" cried Polly. And this time Polly was right. Lesson 45 THE LAZY RAT. A young rat once lived in a mill with many other rats. He was too lazy to do any thing. When the old rats asked him if he would like to come out with them at night, he would say "I don't know." And if they said, "Would you like to stay in?" he still used the same words -- "I don't know." He would not take the trouble to find out what he wished. An old, gray rat said to him one day, "No one will care for you if you go on in this way. You have no more mind than a blade of grass. "It is sometimes good to give up your own plans. But it is not good to have no plans at all." The young rat sat up, and looked very wise, but said not a word. "Do you not think so? Why do you not speak?" said the old, gray rat. "I don't know," was all the young rat said. Then he walked off with slow steps, to think for an hour whether he would stay at home in the hole, or go about in the mill. One day there was a great noise in the mill. It was an old mill, and the wind blew so hard that it shook badly. By and by, some of the boards began to fall down on the floor, and all the rats were in a great fright "This will not do," said the old rats, and they shook their heads as they spoke. "We must leave this place," said they. So they sent out three or four of the old rats to look for a new home, and in the night they came back. They said they had found an old barn, where there was plenty of food and room enough for all. "Then it is best to go at once," said the old rat, who seemed to be the captain of all the rats. "Form in line!" said he. Then the rats came from their holes, and stood on the floor in a long line. Lesson 46 THE LAZY RAT-Continued. "Are you all here?" said the old, gray rat, as he looked around. "Do you all choose to go? Make up your minds at once." "Yes, yes," said all in the line; "we all wish to go. It is quite plain that it is not safe to stay here." Just then the captain caught sight of Grip -- that was the young rat's name. He was not in the line. He was near by on the stairs. "You did not speak," said the old rat. "Of course you will come?" "I don't know," said Grip. "Don't know! Why, you do not think it safe to stay here, do you?" said the old rat. "It has always been the rule with rats to quit a falling house, has it not?" "I don't know," said Grip. "The roof may not come down for some time yet. "Well, stay then," said the old rat, "and it will serve you right if you get hurt." "I don't know that I will stay, and I don't know that I will go," said Grip, with a wise look. "O well, we can not wait for you to make up your mind," said the old rat. "Come with us and be safe, or stay where you are and get hurt. Now, rats! Right face! March!" And the long line of rats marched out of the mill. They went down the steps, one by one, and the young rat looked on. "I have half a mind to go," said he, "and yet-- I don't know. It is warm and snug here, and I shall have the mill all to myself." The tail of the last rat was hardly out of sight as he spoke. Grip went near the step and looked down. "I will go back to my hole for a short time, to make up my mind," said he. That night the wind blew harder than ever. The old mill shook as if it would surely fall. Grip began to be afraid. It was the first time he had felt any fear. "I don't know," said he, "but that I had better go, too. But I will wait a little while." Then the wind blew harder and harder. Grip started to leave the mill. Before he could get out, down it came with a great crash. The next day some men came to look at the fallen mill. They thought it strange to see no rats. But at first, as one man moved a great pile of boards, he saw a young rat, quite dead. He was half in, and half out of his hole. It seemed as if he had not quite made up his mind whether to stay in or go out. Don't you think Grip ought to have made up his mind more quickly? Lesson 47 THE QUEER LITTLE HOUSE. There's a queer little house, and it stands in the sun. When the good mother calls, the children all run. While under her roof they are cozy warm, Though the cold wind may whistle and bluster and storm. In the day-time, this queer little house moves away, And the children run after it, happy and gay; But it comes back at night, and the children are fed And tucked up to sleep in a soft feather-bed. This queer little house has no windows nor doors -- The roof has no shingles, the rooms have no floors -- No fire-places, chimneys, nor stoves can you see, Yet the children are cozy and warm as can be. The story of this funny house is all true; I have seen it myself, and I think you have, too. You can see it to-day, if you watch the old hen, When her downy wings cover her chickens again. Lesson 48 Christmas Story. Mamma was putting Milly and May to bed, the night before Christmas, and she told them this story. "After little children are fast asleep, the good, old Santa Claus comes down the chimney with a great bag of toys. "Then he goes to all the little beds and looks at the faces of the sleeping children. "He has seen so many of them asleep, that he can tell if the little closed eyes look kind when they are open, or if cross words ever come out of their mouths. "He will look at my little Milly to-night, and say, 'There are no tears on her cheeks, and her mouth is sweet and rosy. "'I am sure it has been a happy, smiling mouth all day. Her little hands are at rest now, but they have taken care of Mary's toys, and put the things back in mamma's work-box. "They have taken hold of May's little hands and helped her down the stairs. "They have given her a big piece of the cake that grandmother sent to Milly.' "Then Santa Claus will see May and say, 'I think May's face looks as if she loved Milly. "'Her mouth seems full of kisses, and her little hands will soon learn to take care of her own toys.' "Last of all, Santa Claus will go to mamma's bed and say, 'Mamma's face would not look so happy if her little girls were not very kind and good. "'I must put some very pretty toys in their stockings, and I will leave two picture books on their little chairs.'" Then mamma hung up the stockings and kissed her little ones good-night. Milly and May were so happy, that they laughed softly under the bed-covers, and had to wink and blink their eyes a long time before they could go to sleep. In the morning the story came out true. Lesson 49 THE BLACK BEAR. Here is a picture of a black bear. Some bears are black, some are white, and others are brown. Bears are covered with long, thick hair, which keeps them very warm. Men hunt bears for their skins. From these skins, coats and other things are made which are useful in winter. The flesh of the bear is good to eat, and an oil is made of his fat. The black bear is a good climber. He makes his home in a hollow tree or a cave. He is very fond of wild fruit, of which he finds plenty in the woods. He is very fond of honey, and when he finds a hive of wild bees, he is sure to take all they have. The wild bees make their hives in hollow trees, and the bear finds them by the smell of the honey. When he finds a hive, he climbs the tree, and for hours and hours he gnaws away at the bark and the wood. After a while he makes a hole large enough to let in his paw. Of course the bees do not like this. They buzz around the bear, and try to sting him. But his skin is so thick, and his hair is so long, that he does not mind the stings of the bees. He puts his great paw through the hole into the hive, and pulls out large pieces of the comb which holds the honey. He never stops until he has taken all the poor bees have in their hive, and has left them without any food for winter. When winter comes, the bear creeps into a hole or a cave, and there he makes a soft bed of leaves and twigs. When the snow comes, it covers the mouth of the hole or cave, where the bear lies snugly hidden. He closes his eyes, and seems to sleep through the whole winter. In the spring, when the snow is gone, and the green leaves come out, and the birds begin to sing again, the bear wakes from his long sleep. Then he sets out once more to roam about the woods, hunting for fruit and hives of wild bees. Lesson 50 SUPPOSE. Suppose, my little lady, Your doll should break her head, Could you make it whole by crying Till your eyes and nose were red? And wouldn't it be pleasanter To treat it as a joke, And say you're glad 'twas Dolly's. And not your head, that broke? Suppose your task, my little man, Is very hard to get, Will it make it any easier For you to sit and fret? And isn't it, my boy or girl, The wisest, bravest plan, Whatever comes, or doesn't come. To do the best you can? Lesson 51 THE BABIES THAT LIVE IN A BALL. In this picture you see the home of the "Babies that live in a ball." This little ball was built on the stalks of the wheat by an animal called the "Harvest Mouse." The ball is not much larger than an egg, and yet there are sometimes three or four little harvest mice in it. They are baby mice. Of course they must be very small to live in such a little house. The mother of these little mice is not half so large as the little mouse you sometimes see running about your homes. This little mouse is almost red on her back. The under part of her body is soft and white, like silk, and her ears are short. Even wise men do not know how so small an animal can make this pretty ball. We can not tell how she fastens the ball to the wheat-stalks, nor how she gets into it to feed the baby mice. In the picture you see the mother mouse sitting on the nest, eating her dinner. She has a little bug for her dinner. Father mouse is away, trying to find one for his dinner. Do you see his tail curled around the wheat-stalk? The tale of the harvest mouse is as long as his whole body, and he can hold on with it as if it were a hand. The little harvest mice do not spend their winters in this airy home. They make a snug, warm house under ground. This house has a room large enough for the mice, but it seems to us to be very small. It has long halls leading to it, and through these, the little mice carry bits of soft, dry grass, with which they make warm and cozy nests. When the days begin to grow cold, these little mice go into their nests in the ground. There they sleep through the whole winter, and do not wake till the spring comes back and the sun warms the ground. Lesson 52 THE WHITE BEAR. In another lesson you have read about the black bear. In this lesson you will learn something about the white or polar bear. In the cold, cold North there is nearly always snow on the ground. Even in summer it is very cold, and great pieces of ice float about in the sea. Here is the home of the white bear. He does not mind the cold, for he has a coat of thick fur to keep him warm. He walks about in the deep snow, and seems to like the cold air as well as you do the warm sunshine. He never slips on the ice as you do, because the soles of his feet are covered with long hair. He walks as softly as if he had on a pair of fur boots. He always lives near the sea, for he likes to swim in the water. There, too, he finds plenty of fish and seals to eat. He likes to catch a seal for his dinner. He roams about until he finds a place where the water is clear of ice. He knows that this is a place where a seal is likely to come up for air. So he keeps very quiet and watches. By and by, up comes the round head of a seal. Soon he crawls out upon the ice, and after a while goes to sleep. Then the bear creeps softly along toward the seal. He makes no noise because of the long hair on his feet. If the seal wakes up and looks around, the bear falls flat upon the ice and lies very still till the seal, thinking there is no one about, goes to sleep again. The bear does this again and again, till at least he is near enough to spring upon the seal and fasten his long, sharp claws in his body, as you see him doing in the picture. He then kills and eats him. Sometimes he jumps into the water after a fish, and is so quick, that he catches it before it can get away. When he can not find food in this way, he goes to some place where the snow has melted and feeds on berries. If he can not find any berries, he is glad to eat even the sea-weed that grows along the sea-shore. The white bear does not sleep all through the long winter like the black bear. Where the white bear lives, it is winter nearly all the time. Men hunt these animals for their skins, which they make into coats and other things. Lesson 53 NELL AND HER BIRD. Good-by, little birdie! Fly to the sky, Singing and singing A merry good-by. Tell all the birdies Flying above, Nell, in the garden, Sends them her love. Tell how I found you, Hurt, in a tree; Then, when they're wounded, They'll come right to me. I'd like to go with you, If I could fly; It must be so beautiful, Up in the sky! Why, little birdie -- Why don't you go? You sit on my finger, And shake your head, "No." He's off! O how quickly And gladly he rose! I know he will love me Wherever he goes. I know --for he really Seemed trying to say, "My dear little Nelly, I can't go away." But just then some birdies Came flying along, And sang, as they neared us, A chirruping song; And he felt just as I do When girls come and shout Right under the window, "Come, Nelly -- come out!" It's wrong to be sorry; I ought to be glad; But he's the best birdie That ever I had. Lesson 54 THE SPARROWS' CHRISTMAS TREE. In the great city of New York there are several parks. Shade-trees grow in these parks, and there are many wide walks. Some years ago, the trees began to die. Worms were eating all the leaves. Some sparrows were brought from over the sea to kill these worms. Now there are so many sparrows that the parks seem quite full of them. The men who take care of the parks, make little houses which they place in the trees. In these houses the sparrows spend the winter. Bessie's father lived near one of these parks. One Christmas morning Bessie looked out of the window, and saw several little sparrows hopping about in the snow. They were trying to find something to eat, and they looked hungry and cold. Bessie was a kind little girl, and she felt very sorry for the poor birds. She would have asked them into her warm home if they would only have come. Pretty soon she thought of a plan. What do you suppose it was? It was a queer plan. She asked her mother if she could not make a Christmas tree for the little birds. "How will you do it?" asked her mother. "O I will take the little Christmas tree you gave me last night, and put it outside the window, and hang little baskets of seed and bread in it for the birdies." Her mother helped her fasten the little tree just outside the window. Then Bessie put her presents for the sparrows on it. At first the birds did not think the tree could really be for them. But by and by two or three sparrows came to it. They looked at it a while, and then flew off to the park and told the rest of the birds. Soon there were very many sparrows in Bessie's tree. They thanked Bessie over and over, and wished her a "Merry Christmas" more times than she could count. It took the birds nearly all day to take care of their presents, and Bessie was happier than they. Bessie was pleased because she had made the birds happy, and her mother said: "Bessie, you see that the way to be happy yourself, is to make others happy." Lesson 55 WHAT A SPIDER AND A FLY DID. There was once a young prince, who-said that, if he had the power, he would drive all the spiders and flies out of the world. One day, after a great fight, this prince had to hide from his foes. He ran into a wood, and there, under a tree, he lay down and fell asleep. A bad man saw him. He drew his sword, and crept up toward him. But a fly came creeping over the face of the prince and waked him. He sprung to his feet and the man ran off. That night the prince hid himself in a cave in the same wood. In the night, a spider wove her web across the mouth of the cave. Two men, who were hunting for the prince, that they might kill him, passed by the cave in the morning, and the prince heard what they said. "Look," cried one of them, "he must be hid in this cave!" "No," said the other, "that can not be, for if he had gone in there, he would have brushed down that spider's web." And so the men went on, and did not wait to look in the cave. As soon as they were out of sight, the prince thought how his life had been saved -- one day by a fly, and the next day by a spider. Lesson 56 HANG UP BABY'S STOCKING. Hang up the baby's stocking. Be sure you don't forget. The dear, little, dimpled darling Has never seen Christmas yet. But I told him all about it, And he opened his big, blue eyes; I am sure he understood it, He looked so funny and wise. Ah, what a tiny stocking! It doesn't take much to hold Such little toes as baby's, Safe from the frost and cold. But then, for the baby's Christmas, It never will do at all; For Santa Claus wouldn't be looking For any thing half so small. I know what will do for baby; I've thought of a first-rate plan. I'll borrow a stocking of grandma -- The longest than ever I can. And you shall hang it by mine, mother, Right here in the corner, -- so; And write a letter for baby, And fasten it on the toe. "Old Santa Claus, this is a stocking Hung up for our baby dear; You never have seen out darling; He has not been with us a year. "But he is a beautiful baby! And now, before you go, Please cram this stocking with presents, From the top of it down to the toe." PEARLS IN VERSE. Little drops of water, Little grains of sand, Make the mighty ocean, And the pleasant land. Little deeds of kindness, Little words of love, Make our earth an Eden, Like the Heaven above. Twinkle, twinkle, little star; How I wonder what you are! Up above the world so high, Like a diamond in the sky. When the glorious sun is set, When the grass with dew is wet, Then you show your little light, Twinkle, twinkle, all the night. All things bright and beautiful, All creatures great and small, All things wise and wonderful, The good God made them all. Children, do you love each other? Are you always kind and true? Do you always do to others As you'd have them do to you? Be not selfish to each other, -- Never mar another's rest; Strive to make each other happy, And you will, yourselves, be blest. Work white you work, play white you play; This is the way to be cheerful and gay. All that you do, do with your might; Things done by halves are never done right. If you tried, and have not won, Never stop for crying; All that's great and good is done Just by patient trying. Little children, you must seek Rather to be good than wise; For the thoughts you do not speak Shine out in your cheeks and eyes. In books or work or healthful play, Let my first years be passed, That I may give for every day, Some good account at last. If little things that God has made, Are useful in their kind, O let us learn a simple truth, And bear it on our mind: -- That every child can praise Him, However weak and small; Let each with joy remember this That God has work for all.