1. The Mother of the Gracchi.

Long, long ago, in Rome, there lived two boys, who were called the Gracchi.  One day a lady came to call upon their mother, and began boasting of her riches.  "But where," she asked.  "are your treasures?  Have you no rings and brooches to show me?"-"I have no such things," replied the mother of the Gracchi; "my two sons are the only treasures I possess."  After a while she asked the boys' mother where her treasures were, and if she had no rings and brooches to show her.  The mother of the Gracchi replied that she had no such things, but that her two sons were the only treasures she possessed.  


2. The Wind and the Sun 1.

1.The north wind was rushing along and blowing the clouds as he passed.  2. "Who is so strong as I?" he cried, "I am even stronger than the sun."  3."Can you show that you are so strong?" asked the sun.  4. "A traveler is coming over the hill," said the wind.  "Let us see which of us can first make him take off his long cloak.  The one who succeeds will prove himself the stronger."  5. "It is a good plan," said the sun,  "You may try first."  (To be continued on page 4.) 

The Wind and The Sun 2.

1.The north wind was rushing along and blowing the clouds as he passed.  2. He boasted that there was none so strong as he.  He even said that he was stronger than the sun.  3. The sun heard this from behind the clouds, and asked the wind if he could show that he was so strong.  4. Just then a traveler was coming over a hill.  The wind pointed to him, and proposed that he and the sun should each try to make the man take off his long cloak, and that the one who succeeded would prove himself the stronger.  5. The sun said that it was a good plan.  He said that the wind might try first.  (To be continued on page 4.) (Continued from page 2 and 3.) 
6. So the north wind began first.  He blew a gale, tore up trees, and raised clouds of dust.  7. But the traveler only wrapped his cloak the more closely about him, and kept on his way.  8. The sun began to shine.  He drove away the clouds and warmed the air.  9. Higher and higher he climbed in the blue sky, shining in all his glory.  10. "What a fine day we are having after the blow!" said the traveler as he threw off his cloak.  


3. The Mother of Mencius.

Few women are more famous than the mother of the great Chinese sage, Mencius.  Her fame is owing to the care which she took in bringing up her son.  At first she lived near a grave-yard; but when she found that her boy began to play funerals, she left that place, and went to live near a market.  Once here, Mencius took to playing at trade.  This, too, thought she, was no place in which to train up a young mind.  So she moved again, in order that her son might see none but scholars and men of leaning.  In the course of time, Mencius was sent to school.  One day, when he came home, his mother asked him how far he had got on in his studies.  He answered, with a lazy air, that he was tired of work and did no care to go back to school again.  On hearing this , his mother went up to her loom, and taking up a pair of scissors cut the cloth she was weaving in two.  The idler was alarmed, and asked what she meant.  She said that she had only done what he was doing,-for a little learning was quite as useless as the web she had cut through.  This reproof had the desired effect, and Mencius went back to school and studied so hard that he became one of the wisest men in China.


4.The Forgotten Stick.

A rather foolish young man sat down one morning and penned to a friend the following note: Dear Brown, When leaving your house yesterday I came away without my stick.  Kindly hand it to bearer and bilge, Yours sincerely, E. H. Fones. Just as he was about to close up the envelope he happened to observe his stick in a corner of the room.  Opening the note again, he added as a postscript:- "Please do not trouble about the matter further; I have just found my stick."  Unconscious of the absurdity, he then sealed up the note and handed it to the messenger.


Shorter Pieces.  1.Sour Grapes.

A hungry fox spied some ripe grapes hanging from a trellis, and longed to get them.  "I wish they were not quite so high," he thought.  But he gave a great spring and nearly reached the lowest clusters. "I'll do better next time," he said; but, though he tried again and again, he did not succeed so well as at first.  Finding that he was losing his strength to no purpose, he went on his way muttering. "I don't care for them.  They are doubtless sour."  


5.Black Beauty.

The first place that I remember anything about was a large, pleasant meadow, with a pond of clear water in it, and some shade-trees near by.  From the gate we could see our master's house, which stood by the roadside.  In the daytime I ran by my mother's side, and at night lay down close by her.  When it was hot, we used to stand in the shade of the trees; and when it was cold, we went to a nice, warm shed near the house.  As soon as I was old enough to eat grass, my mother used to go out to work in the daytime, and come back at night.  There were six young colts in the pasture besides myself.  They were older than I; some of them were nearly grown-up horses.  I used to run with them, and we had great fun.  We would gallop together all round the meadow, as fast as we could go.  Sometimes we had rather rough play, and would bite and kick.  One day, when there was a great deal of kicking, my mother called me to her and said:  "The colts that live here are very good colts, but they have not learned good manners.  Your grandmother had the sweetest temper of any horse I ever knew, and I think you have never seen me bite or kick.  "I hope you will grow up to be good and gentle, and never learn bad ways.  Do your work with a good will, lift your feet well when you trot, and never bite or kick, even in play."  I have always remembered what my mother said.  I know she was a wise old horse; and I think our master was very fond of her, for he often called her Pet.  Our master was a good, kind man.  He gave us good food, and spoke as kindly to us as he did to his little children.  When my mother saw him at the gate, she would neigh with joy and trot up to him.  He would pat and stroke her; and say, "Well, old Pet, how is your little Darkie?"  I was a dull-black colt, so he called me Darkie.  He would then give me a piece of bread, and sometimes he brought mother an apple. A boy named Dick worked for our master.  He often came into the meadow to pick the blackberries which grew by the fence.  When he had eaten all he wanted, he would throw stones at us to make us gallop.  We did not mind him much, for we could run away from him; but now and then a stone would hit and hurt us.  One day our master watched him, and saw throw stones at us.  He jumped over the fence and, catching Dick by the arm, gave him a box on the ear.  When we saw him do this, we trotted up nearer to them.  "Bad boy!" said our master; "bad boy to stone the colts.  This is not the first time you have done that, but it shall be the last.  Here is your money.  I do not want you on my farm any longer."  We never saw Dick again.  Old Dan, the man who looked after the barns, was just as kind to us as our master was; so we were well off.


6. Railway Travelling.

I want a ticket for Manchester.  Single or return?  How much is it?  Two-and-six single, four-and-six return.  When does the train start?  There's an express at 3:30 and a stopping train at 3:35.  Porter, please label this luggage.  Where for, sir?  For Manchester.  Is this a through train?  Don't know sir.  Better ask the guard.  There he is , with the whistle in his mouth.  Are you the guard of this train?  Yes, sir.  Does it go through to Manchester?  No, sir.  Change at Wigan.  Take your seats, please!  Take your seats!  Wigahn, Wigahn, Wigahn!  Change here for Edinburgh, Glasgow, Carlisle, Manchester, and Yorkshire.  Change here for Manchester, did you say?  Yes, sir.  Train leaves at 4.7. No. 3. platform.  Not much time.  Give me your bag, sir.  This way, sir.  Is this Wigan then?  I didn't hear you say Wigan.  Yes, sir.  Bless you, sir, we shouted "Wigahn" as loud as anything.  Just so, you shouted Wigahn, Wigahn, Wigahn, and all I heard was gahn, gah, gahn.  You should shout Wigan, not Wigahn.  Perhaps so, sir, but it doesn't come so natural.  Here's your train,sir.  Smoker, sir?  No, I prefer a non-smoker.  Then here's a corner seat, back to engine.  Thank you.  Much obliged.  Take your seats!  Take your seats!  Train Scarborough, and Hull!  Manchester next stop.  Tickets, please!  Tickets! Tickets!  Do you take tickets here?  Yes, sir, Manchester tickets.  This is the last stop.  


7. Some Things about Frogs.

Have you ever noticed, when you have been near the side of a pond, masses of little eggs about the size of a pea, which float on the surface of the water, generally lying among the long grass at the edge of the pond?  Well, suppose you were to come back again in a few days to the same place; do you think you would find these dark-looking eggs still there?  No! they would be gone; and in their places you would see numbers of funny little black creatures with very big heads and flat, thin tails, which make them look somewhat like fishes.  These little black creatures are called tad-poles.  They grow very fast, because they eat a great deal,  Little legs grow out from the sides of the body; the tail disappears; and the animal is no longer a tadpole, but a little frog, jumping about just as you have often seen frogs do.  The frog not only drinks with its mouth, but sucks up water through a great many little holes in its skin, just as a sponge does if you put it into a basin of water.  A gentleman once caught a number of frogs, which he kept in a bowl of water.  As long as there was plenty of water in the basin, they looked fat and well; but if he took them out when the weather was very hot, they soon grew thin and ill.  These frogs became quite tame, and learned to take their food from their master's hand.  They were very fond of flies, and were very clever in catching them.  So when the fruit for the gentleman's dessert was laid out in the storeroom, these frogs were placed around it, to act as little policemen to keep the flies from spoiling it; and they did their work very well indeed.  Now there are some very funny things about the frog which you should watch for when you see it.  One is, that after it has worn its coat for some time and thinks it is becoming very tight, it makes up its mind to get rid of it; and as this is very curious, I will tell you about it.  When a number of frogs have made up their mind to change their skins, having, of course, new ones underneath, several of them begin at once.  Two of its companions hold the one whose coat is to come off, tight round the middle of its body.  Then one or two others give little bites and pulls at its skin, till first one leg, and then another, and at last the whole body is set free, and the frog appears with such a clean white skin that I am afraid it must be very vain.  


8.Presence of Mind.

A little girl once said to her mother, "What is presence of mind, mother?  At school to-day our teacher was speaking about the way Mrs. Grant's little boy had been burned; and she said, if the mother had had presence of mind, it would not have taken place.  What did she mean?"  "I suppose she meant, " replied her mother, "that , if Mrs. Grant, instead of running and crying for help, had snatched a blanket from the bed, or taken the hearth-rug, and rolled the child in it, the flames would have been soon put out."  "Is that presence of mind, mother, knowing what to do in sudden danger?"  "Yes, my child, presence of mind means coolness-it means to be calm and quite in the midst of alarm, so as to be able to think what it is best to do, and to do it at once.  "Here is a story which I heard lately.  Sir James Thornhill was a great painter, and he had been employed to paint pictures inside the roof of one of our great churches.  He had a large scaffold made for him, such as you may see masons use in building houses.  "When his work was nearly done, he was greatly pleased with it; and as the painting was to be seen better from a distance, he walked backwards one day from his picture to see how it would look when he stood farther from it.  "At each step he too, it grew more and more lovely; and he quite forgot where he was.  Just as he had reached the very edge of the scaffold, and one step more would have sent him over, crashing down on the pavement below, one of the men who helped him looked round, and saw the dreadful danger he was in.  What do you think he did?"  "I suppose he screamed to Sir James to take care."  "No; but I am afraid that is what most people would have done.  He, fortunately, had true presence of mind.  Seizing a brush full of paint, he dashed it across the painting, spoiling in a moment what it had taken Sir James weeks to do."  "Oh, mother, how cruel!  But no!  I see, I see!  This would make Sir James run forward at once."  "Just so; he sprang forward, full of surprise and anger.  But, when his friend showed him where he had been standing, he returned thanks to God, as well as to the friend who had been the means of saving his life."  


Shorter Pieces. 2. The Bat, the Birds, and the Beasts: a Fable.

A great war once took place between birds and beasts; and this war was kept up for four or five days, since both sides were strong, and neither could at once defeat the other.  There was one animal, which went first to one side, and then to the other.  If the birds began to win, it called itself a bird. If the beasts began to win, it called itself a beast.  This animal was the bat.  One day, when it seemed that the beasts were likely to win, it went over to their side, and said:  "Oh, Beasts, I am not a bird.  Can you find a bird that has two rows of teeth in its head as I have, and gives milk to its young?"  Another day, when the beasts seemed likely to fail, the bat went over to the birds, and said: "Oh, Birds, am I not a bird?  How can I be a beast?  What beast in the world can fly in the air like me?"  At last the bat was hated by both, and was sent to hide itself with shame in dark holes and corners, where no one could see it in daylight.  This is what the bat is still doing.  It hides by day, and does not come out till dark, when all the birds have gone to roost and the beasts are asleep.  The same is the lot of all those men who are false to their friends, and go first to this side and then to that, seeking only to be on the side that wins.  Such persons are hated by all good men, and are driven away at last to hide themselves with shame.  


9. Fortune and the Beggar.

One day a ragged beggar was creeping along from house to house.  He carried an old wallet in his hand, and was asking at every door for a few cents to buy something to eat.  As he was grumbling at his lot, he kept wondering why it was that folks who had so much money were never satisfied, but were always wanting more.  "Here," said he. "is the master of his house-I know him well.  He was always a good business mans, and he made himself wondrously rich a long time ago.  Had he been wise he would have stopped then.  He would have turned over his business to some one else, and then he could have spent the rest of his life in ease.  But what did he do instead?  He began building ships and sending them to sea to trade with foreign lands.  He thought he should get mountains of gold.  "But there were great storms on the water; his ships were wrecked, and his riches were swallowed up by the waves.  Now his hopes all lie at the bottom of the sea, and his great wealth has vanished like the dreams of a night.  "There are many such cases.  Men seem to be never satisfied unless they can gain the whole world.  "As for me, if I had only enough to eat and to wear, I would not want anything more."  Just at that moment Fortune came down the street.  She saw the beggar and stopped.  She said to him: "Listen!  I have long wished to help you.  Hold your wallet and I will pour this gold into it.  But I will pour only on this condition:  All that falls into the wallet shall be pure gold; but every piece that falls upon the ground shall become dust.  Do you understand?  "Oh, yes, I understand," said the beggar.  "Then have a care," said the Fortune.  "Your wallet is old; so do not load it too heavily."  The beggar was so glad that he could hardly wait.  He quickly opened his wallet, and a stream of yellow dollars was poured into it.  The wallet soon began to grow heavy.  "Is that enough?" asked Fortune.  "Not yet."  "Isn't it cracking?"  "Never fear."  The beggar's hands began to tremble.  Ah, if the golden stream would only pour forever!  "You are the richest man in the world now!"  "Just a little more," said the beggar; "ass just a handful or two."  "There, it's full.  The wallet will burst."  "But it will hold a little more, just a little more!"  Another piece was added, and the wallet split.  The treasure fell upon the ground and was turned to dust.  Fortune had vanished.  The beggar had now nothing but his empty wallet, and it was torn from top to bottom.  He was as poor as before. 


10. Make a Cat's Paw of Me.

Edwin: Come here, Charles!  Do you see that pear on the tree in Mr. Lee's garden?
Charles: Yes.  How nice and ripe it looks!
Edwin: What a fine yellow skin it has!
Charles: Yes.  The sight of it makes my mouth water.  I am very fond of pears.
Edwin: It would be easy to get that pear.
Charles: Easy?  How so?
Edwin: If you would mount on the wall, you could pick the pear and throw it to me.
Charles: Did you ever hear the story of the monkey and the cat?
Edwin: What story do you mean?
Charles: The monkey wanted some roasted chestnuts that lay on the live coals; so he got the cat to lend him her paw, and with that he pulled out the chestnuts so as not to harm himself.  
Edwin: What has that story to do with my asking you to get the pear?
Charles: Only this: you shall not make a cat's paw of me.
Edwin: You are a coward.  Out of my way!  I will get the pear myself.
Charles: If you steal that pear, I will tell about it. 
Edwin: If you turn tell-tale, I and the other boys will thrash you.
Charles: I would rather be thrashed than help a thief.
Edwin: Do you dare call me a thief?
Charles: I dare call any one a thief who steals that pear.
Edwin: Well, Charles, I think I will not take it.  It is a handsome pear, but that kind is often sour.  I do not believe it is a good pear for eating.
Charles: It certainly is not a good pear for stealing.  You call it sour.  I have heard of a fox who called the grapes sour, but not till he found he could not steal them.


11. Saved from the Sea.

A storm is raging along the English coast.  A lifeboat is nearly ready to make its way to a ship which, at some short distance from the land, is showing signals of distance.  The lifeboat still needs one man.  Ned Brown, a fisher lad and a good sailor, wishes to fill the place.  But first he bends down gently to a woman who stands beside him, and says to her in a clear, brave voice, "Mother, will you let me go?"  The mother has been a window only six months.  Her husband was a fisherman.  He put out one day during the last spring in a small fishing boat upon a calm sea.  A sudden and terrible squall came on; pieces of the boat were seen next morning, but the fisherman returned to more.  A fierce refusal rises to the woman's lips.  But her sad eyes move slowly towards the helpless ship.  She thinks of the many lives in danger within it, and of many distant homes threatened with loss of their loved ones.  She turns to her boy, and in a voice as calm and brave as his own, "Go, my son," says she, "and may God bring you back safe to your mother's arms."  She leaves the beach in haste and seeks her lonely home; and thinks of her old sorrow and her new fear.  Morning dawns again.  The storm is over.  The waves are tossing their heads, but the sea will soon be calm.  A fine ship has gone down upon the waters, but the lifeboat has nobly done its work, and all in the ship have been saved.  Why does Ned Brown linger outside his mother's door?  He has shown himself the bravest of the brave throughout the night.  Why does he hold back?  Beside him stands a tall, worn man; a man whom he saved from a watery grave; a man whose eyes, full of tenderness, never leave his own.  Around the two are many villagers; hands are extended to the man and happy words are spoken.  "Who will dare to tell her?"  So says one with a voice well-nigh choked with feeling.  sorrow nobly(noble) linger throughout watery tenderness villager extend well-nigh  "I will."  And, in another moment, Ned Brown enters the house, and is in his mother' s arms.  "Mother, listen.  I have a tale for your ears.  One of the men saved last night is a fisherman.  A storm had overtaken him upon the sea several months ago.  He was seen and saved by a foreign ship.  The ship was outward bound.  "Away from home, from wife, from friends, the man was forced to sail.  By his wife and friends he was mourned as dead.  "He came to a distant land and set sail again in the first ship bound for England.  "Last night he found himself within sight of home; but a storm was raging on sea and land, and once more the man stood face to face with death.  Help came in his need.  Mother, try to bear the happy truth.  "When your brave heart- a heart which in the midst of its sorrow could feel for the sorrows of others, sent me forth last night, you knew not (how should you know?) that you sent me to save my dear father's life."  Not another word is spoken.  A step is heard; the rescued man stands by his own fireside.  With a cry of wild joy the mother rushes forward and falls into his arms.  


12. Wanted-A Boy.

'Wanted- a boy to help in the shop and make himself generally useful.  Apply at ten o'clock.'  This was a notice that appeared in Mr. Bacon the grocer's shop-window and in the morning newspaper.  At ten o'clock the shop was full of boys; tall boys and short boys; old boys and young boys; boys with clean boots, dirty boots, and not boots at all; sharp boys, dull boys.  Some stood bolt upright as if expecting something, and others lolled against the boxes as if they were dolls propped up, and which the least movement would knock down.  Presently Mr. Bacon entered and began questioning the boys.  In a very short time he had reduced the number to three, namely, Tom Brown, John Smith, and Peter Robinson.  They were all bright-looking boys, and were eager to get work and so help their parents.  "Brown," said Mr. Bacon,  "can you work problems in arithmetic?" "Yes, sir; I have passed the sixth standard."  "Very well.  Do these;" and giving him a slate with some questions upon it, Mr. Bacon led him into a small room behind the shop and shut the door.  "What are we to do, sir?" asked the other two.  "Wait, " was the only reply.  Tom Brown soon finished the sums, and then began to look about him.  It was a queer-shaped room, and had boxes, tins, barrels, and many other things in it.  But a bookcase with red curtains attracted Tom's attention most.  "I should like to know what is in that," said he.  So he stole to it on tiptoe and softy opened the door.  Out flew a white pigeon!  How frightened Tom was as he tried to catch it.  But the more he tried the wilder the bird became, and in the middle of it Mr. Bacon stepped in.  "How did this happen?" said he.  "Please sir, the bird got out, and I was trying to catch it."  "Got out, did it?" said Mr. Bacon.  "What a cleaver bird it must be to be able to unlock a cupboard from the inside! No, no, my boy, you won't do for me.  I can't have meddlers about me;" saying which he opened a door leading into the back street and sent him away.  Returning to the shop, the grocer said to John Smith, "Now, my lad, come and try to work these problems," and leading him into the back room, left him where Tom Brown had been.  Having finished his problems, John began to look about him.  Near him were three boxes.  He wondered very much what could be in them, and for some minuets he resisted the temptation to look, but at last his curiosity overcame him.  Lifting the lid of one, he saw it was full of biscuits.  "How jolly," said he; "Mr. Bacon will never miss one," saying which he put one in his pocket.  Opening the next box, he took out f few raisins.  The lid of the third box was on very tightly; so pulling with all his might, off flew the lid, and in an instant the room was filled with cayenne pepper.  Just then Mr. Bacon walked in.  "This won't do," said he.  "You need not examine my stock before I employ you.  I see you will not suit," and so sent him on his way.  Then Peter Robinson was set a similar task, and left in the room.  When he had done, he also wondered what the boxes contained.  He heard a queer noise in the cupboard, where Mr. Bacon had shut up a mouse.  He looked with longing eyes at a row of jars of sweets on s shelf.  But he sat perfectly still for half an hour until Mr. Bacon came in.  He looked carefully at everything, and then said, "You'll do, Peter.  You are just the boy I want.  Come into the shop and begin at once."  


Shorter Pieces. 3.Pepin and his Nobles.

The King of France was so small a man that he was nicknamed Pepin the Short, and his nobles used to make fun of him.  Pepin knew this; so one day, when they were all watching a fight between a lion and a bull, he asked his nobles which of them dared go down and part the beasts.  They were all afraid.  Then the little king left his seat, went down, sprang at the lion and slew him with own blow, then, turning to the bull, killed him with another.  He then went quietly back to his seat as if nothing had happened.  His nobles never made fun of his small size again.    


13. The Emperor and the major.

The Emperor Alexander, while traveling in Western Russia, came one day to a small town of which he knew very little; so, when he found that he must change horses, he thought that he would look around and see what the town was like.  Alone, dressed in a plain military coat, without any mark of his high rank, he wandered through the place until he came to the end of the road that he had been following.  There he paused, not knowing which way to turn; for two paths were before him-one to the right, and one to the left. Alexander saw a soldier standing at the door of a house; and, going up to him, the Emperor said, "My friend, can you tell which of these two roads I must take to get to Kalouga?"  The soldier, who was in full military dress, was smoking a pipe with an air of dignity almost ridiculous.  Astonished that so plain-looking a traveler should dare speak to him, the smoker answered shortly, "To the right."  "Pardon!" said the Emperor.  "Another word, if you please."  "What ?"  was the question," continued the Emperor.  "What is your grade in the army?"  "Guess," and the pipe blazed away furiously.  "Lieutenant?" said the amused Alexander.  "Up!" came proudly from the smoker's lips.  "Captain?"  "Higher."  "Major?"  "At last!" was the lofty response.  The Emperor bowed low in the presence of such greatness.  "Now, in my turn," said the major, with the grand air that he thought fit to use in addressing a humble inferior, "what are you, if you please?"  "Guess," answered Alexander.  "Lieutenant?"  "Up!"  "Captain?"  "Higher."  "Major?"  "Go on."  "Colonel?"  "Again."  The smoker took his pipe from his mouth: "Your Excellency is , then, general?"  The grand air was fast disappearing.  "You are coming near it."  The major put his hand to his cap: "Then your Highness is field-marshal?"  By this time the grand air had taken flight, and the officer, so pompous a moment before, looked as if the steady gaze and the quiet voice of the traveler had reduced him to the last stage of fear.  "Once more, my good major," said Alexander.  "His Imperial Majesty!" exclaimed the man, in surprise and terror, letting his pipe drop from his trembling fingers.  "His very self," answered the Emperor; and he smiled at the wonderful change in the major's face and manner.  "Ah, sire, pardon me!" cried the officer, falling on his knees; "pardon me!"  "And what is there to pardon?" said Alexander, with real, simple dignity.   "My friend, you have done me no harm.  I asked you which road I should take, and you told me.  Thanks!"  But the Major never forgot the lesson.  If, in later years, he was tempted to be rude or haughty to his so-called inferiors, there rose at once in his mind a picture of a well-remembered scene, in which his pride of power had brought such shame upon him.  Two soldiers in a quite country town made but an everyday picture, after all; but what a difference there had been between the pompous manner of the petty officer and the natural dignity of the Emperor of all the Russias!  


14. A Letter.

56. Grand Hotel, Vienna, November 19,1882. Very private!!  Dear Gertic:- This letter is an awful secret between you and me.  If you tell anybody about it, I will not speak to you all this winter.  And this is what it is about.  You know Christmas is coming, and I am afraid that I shall not get home by that time, and so I want you to go and get the Christmas presents for the children.  The grown people will not get any from me this year.  But I do not want the children to go without, so you must find out, in the most secret way, just what Agnes and Toodie would most like to have, and get it and put it in their stockings on Christmas Eve.  Then you must ask yourself what you want, but without letting yourself know about it, and get it too, and put it in your own stocking, and be very much surprised when you find it there.  And then you must sit down and think about Fosephine De Wolf and the other baby at Springfield whose name I do not know, and consider what they would like, and have it sent to them in time to reach them on Christmas Eve.  Will you do all this for me?  You can spend five dollars for each child, and if you show your father his letter, he will give you the money out of some of mine which he has got.  That rather breaks the secret, but you will want to consult your father and mother about what to get, especially for the Springfield children; so you may tell them about it, but do not dare to let any of the children know of it until Christmas time. Then you can tell me in your Christmas letter just how you have managed about it all.  This has taken up almost all my letter, and so I cannot tell you much about Vienna Well, there is not a great deal to tell.  It is an immense great city with very splendid houses and beautiful pictures and five shops and handsome people.  But I do not think the Austrians are nearly as nice as the ugly, honest Germans.  Do you?  Perhaps you will get this on Thanksgiving Day.  If you do, you must shake the Turkey's paw for me, and tell him that I am very sorry I could not come this year, but I shall be there next year certain!  Give my love to all the children.  I had a beautiful letter from and Susan the other day, which I am going to answer as soon as it stops raining.  Tell her so if you see her.  Be a good girl, and do not study too hard, and keep our secret.  Your affectionate uncle, Phillips. 


15. Eyes and No Eyes.

When Bob came back from the village, he found his uncle walking up and down in the garden.  "I have posted your letter, uncle," said he.  "Thank you, Bob," replied Mr. Smith.  Then he looked hard at the boy for a few seconds, and said,-  "You went across the fields to the village, and you ran part of the way, did you not?"  "Yes, uncle," said Bob; "did you see me?"  "No, my boy, but I can see now where you have been.  I notice, too, that you had a game of marbles before you returned, and that you passes the baker's boy on your way home."  "Some one has been telling you, uncle," said Bob.  "No.  I have not seen or spoken to any one while you have been away."  Bob opened his eyes very wide.  "Then how do you know what I did?" Mr. Smith smiled.  "I see too," said he, "that you called at Fry's farm, and that you had a ride on the old gray pony.  You rode her barebacked."  "Yes, uncle; but how have you found out all these things?  Please teach me the trick."  "There is no trick," said his uncle.  "It is very simple.  I use my eyes; that is all."  Bob was very much surprised.  "Tell me how you do it," he begged.  "Look at your boots," said his uncle.  "That yellow mud on them tells me that you crossed the fields, and the splashes high up on your stockings show me that you ran part of the way."  "Yes," said Bob, "that is all right; but how do you know that I played marbles?"  "Look at the back of your hand, my boy.  The dirt on it, and the dust on your right knee, tell me that very plainly."  "Yes," said Bob, "so they do.  I suppose this four on my sleeve tells you that I brushed against the baker's boy?"  "Quite right, Bob.  You are getting on."  "I don't quite see," said Bob, "how you know that I called at Fry's farm, and rode on the old gray pony."  "You have a bit of red hawthorn in your buttonhole," said his uncle, "and the only red hawthorn tree in the neighborhood is in Mr. Fry's garden.  That is how I know that you have been to Fry's farm.  "I see quite a large number of gray horse-hairs on your knickerbockers.  They tell me that you rode the old gray pony without a saddle.  "You see, my boy, there is nothing wonderful in what I have told you, after all.  We all have eyes, but very few of us know how to use them well.  "Look about you, wherever you go, and think of what you see.  You will find that you can learn much for yourself in this way.  


16. Combat of David and Goliath.

David was the son of Jesse, and was born in Bethlehem, a small place near Jerusalem.  He was the youngest of eight brothers; and as a lad took care of his father(s flocks, for his father was a shepherd.  David was a handsome, rosy-cheeked boy.  He was also a very brave lad, shout of heart and strong of arm.  Once a lion, and at another time a bear, came and took a lamb out of the flock; but he ran after them, and killed them both.  Besides, he was a very sweet singer, and was skillful in playing the harp.  When quite young he was often called to play before King Saul, who was at times troubled with "evil spirits."  Whenever these fits came on the king, David took his harp, and played on it till Saul was well again.  The tribes of Israel were often at war with the neighboring tribes, and especially with a people called the Philistines.  Once, when the two armies were drawn up to begin battle, a great giant strode out from the camp of the Philistines, and defied all the men of Israel.  "Give me a man," cried Goliath, for that was the giant's name; "give me a man, that we may fight together.  If he is able to fight with me and to kill me, then we will be your servants; but if I overcome and kill him, then you Israelites shall be our servants."  This champion of the Philistines was "six cubits and a span" (that is, about nine feet ten inches) in height.  He had a helmet of coat of mail; while in his hand he held a huge brass-headed spear that was like a weaver's beam.  Everyday for forty days Goliath came out to the front of the army, and repeated his challenge to the Israelites.  But no one would accept it.  Even King Saul, who was a head taller than any of his soldiers, was afraid to venture a trial with the mighty giant.  Three of David's himself stayed at home tending his flocks, for he was thought too young to go to war.  One day, however, his father wanted to send some provisions to his sons, and so he told David to take them.  It happened that just as David got to the camp, the mighty champion of the Philistines was thundering out for the fortieth time his challenge to the Israelites.  When David saw that all the men ran away from this giant, he was angry, and said, "Who is this fellow that is defying you?"  David then went to the king and asked to be allowed to go and fight Goliath.  At first Saul would not listen to David.  "Why, you are only a youth," said he, "and Goliath is a mighty warrior."  But David told Saul that when less than fifteen years old he had killed a lion and a bear: so the king at last agreed.  Saul wanted to put his own armor on David; but the youth, after he had tried on the helmet and the coat of mail, laid them aside.  Picking up his staff, he chose five smooth stones out of the brook, and put them into his shepherd's bag; then, with his sling in his hand, he drew near to the champion of the Philistines.  When Goliath saw the stripling, he said, "Am I a dog, that you come to me with a staff?  Come on, and I'll give your flesh to the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field!"  "You come to me," answered David, "with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield; but I come to you in the name of the God of the armies of Israel.  And I shall smite you, and cut off your head, and give your flesh to the fowls of the air and to the beasts of the field!"  Goliath and David now ran towards each other.  David took one of the smooth pebbles from his bag, and put it into his sling, and at the right moment let fly at Goliath.  The stone struck the giant in the forehead, and went deep into his brain, so that Goliath fell to the ground.  David now rushed up to the fallen giant, placed his foot on his breast, and, having no sword of his own, he drew Goliath's sword, and killed him by cutting off his head.  When the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled.  Saul's soldiers then chased them, and defeated them with great slaughter.  And David took the head of Goliath, and brought it to Jerusalem.  


Shorter Pieces. 4.Solomon.

Solomon was the son of David.  He was a great king, and was noted for his wisdom.  Many stories are told that show how wise he was.  Here is one of them.  One day there came two women to the king.  And one of them said, "My lord, I and this woman live in one house, and we each of us had a son.  And this woman's child died in the night, and while I slept she came and took my child from me, and laid her own child by my side.  And when I woke, and went to feed my child, it was dead.  And I knew it was not my son."  "It is your son."  "It is not; the child that lives is mine."  "The dead child is yours."  In this way they spoke, and the king heard them, and said, "Bring me a sword!"  And a sword was brought to him.  And the king said, "Cut the live child in two, and give half to one and half to the other."  When the real mother of the child heard these words, she cried out, "O my lord, give her the child, but do not kill it."  But the other said,  "Cut it in half, and let it not be hers or mine."  Then the king told his men to give the child to the one who tried to save its life, for he knew that she was the mother.  And it was to find this out that he sent the men for the sword, and not to take the child's life.


17. Hans in Luck.-1

Hans had served his master seven years. So one day he said to him, "Master, my time is up; I should like to go home and see my mother."  "Would you?" said his master.  "Well, you have been a good servant; and as your service has been, so shall be your reward."  He then gave him a great piece of gold.  Hans took out his handkerchief, put the lump of gold in it, threw it over his shoulder, and set off home.  As he went along, putting one leg wearily before the other, a rider came insight.  He was trotting along, fresh and joyful, on a lively horse.  "Ah!" said Hans, out loud, "riding is surely a nice thing!  There he sits, as if he were in a chair, trips over no stones, saves his shoe leather, and gets on he hardly knows how."  The rider, who had head this, cried out to him-"Hans, what are you doing on foot?"  "Ah, I am carrying this lump home," replied Hans.  "It is gold, to be sure; but I cannot hold my head straight because of it, and hurts my shoulder."  "I tell you what," said the rider, as he reined up, "if you like, we'll exchange: I will give you my horse, if you will give me your nugget."  "With all my heart," said Hans; "but I tell you, you must carry it afoot."  The rider dismounted, took the gold, helped Hans on the horse's back, and handed him the reins.  Then he said, "If you want to go fast, you must smack your tongue, and call out, 'Hoop! hoop!'" Hans was glad when he found himself sitting on the horse, and riding so pleasantly along.  After a while he took it into his head that he would like to go faster, and he began to smack hi tongue, and call "Hoop! hoop!" The horse set off at a quick trot, and, the first thing Hans knew, he was thrown off, and lay in the ditch at the roadside.  The horse would have run on; but a farmer who came along the road, driving a cow, laid hold of it.  Hans picked himself up, and stood on his feet again; but he was very much shaken, and said to the farmer, "Riding is a poor joke, especially when one gets on a horse like this, which is all the time stumbling.  I shall never get on his back again.  I tell you what.  I like your cow very much.  You can walk quietly behind her, and you are sure of your milk, butter, and cheese every day.  What would I give to have a cow!"  "Well," said the farmer, "if you like I will exchange the cow for your horse."  Hans agreed, with a thousand thanks, and the farmer jumped on the horses back, and rode off.  Hans drove his cow quietly before him, and thought of his lucky exchange.  "If I have only a piece of bread (and I can't miss having that), I can always have butter and cheese with it.  If I am thirsty, I need only milk my cow to have milk.  Heart, what could you wish more?"  By and by he came to an inn where he made a halt, and ate with great zest all he had with him, finishing both his dinner and supper in one.  Then he drove his cow on toward his mother's village.  But the heat grew more and more hard to bear, the nearer it came to noon, and Hans now found himself on a moor which stretched out a full hour's journey before him.  He got very hot, and was so thirsty that his tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth.  "I know what to do," thought Hans, "I shall milk my cow, and drink the milk."  So he tied her up firmly, put his leather cap below her for a pail, and tried to milk.  But not a drop of milk came.  Besides, he was clumsy at milking, so the restless cow at last gave him such a kick on the head with her hind hoof, that he tumbled backwards on the ground, and hardly knew where he was for a time.


18. Hans in Luck.-2

By good luck a butcher came along with a young pig on a wheelbarrow.  "What's the matter?" cried he, and helped up poor Hans.  Hans told him what had happed.  The butcher reached him his flask, and said, "There, drink and refresh yourself.  Will the cow not give you any milk?  No wonder; it's an old brute, that at best is fit only for drawing a cart or for beef."  "Is that so?"  said Hans, as he wheelbarrow butcher refresh juicy(juice) smoothed his hair, "who would have thought of that? Well, it's a good thing when a person has a beast that he can kill, and so get meat.  But I don't think much of beef; it is not juicy enough for me.  If I had only a young pig!  That tastes very different."  "Listen, Hans," said the butcher; "to oblige you, I will exchange, and will give you my pig for your cow."  "Thank you very kindly, my friend," said Hans, as he gave the butcher the cow, and untied the pig from the barrow.  Taking in his hand the cord with which the pig had been tied, Hans jogged on.  He thought how everything went with him just as he wished, and how, if any ill luck happened to him, it was made right the next hour.  After a time a peasant came up who had a fine white goose under his arm.  They said how do you do to each other, and Hans began to tell the man about his luck, and how he had made one good bargain after another.  The peasant told him in return how he was taking the goose to the baptism feast of a child.  "Just life her," said he, "and hold her by the wings, and feel how heavy she is; and yet we have been fattening her for only eight weeks.  Whoever gets a mouthful of her when she's roasted will smack his lips."  "Yes," said Hans, as he weighed her in his hand-"she is heavy; but my pig will be heavy too by-and by."  Meanwhile the man looked at the pig all over, shook his head well, and said, "I'm afraid it's not all right about your pig.  One was stolen from the pen of the judge in the village I have just left, I'm afraid this is the one.  It would be bad for you if they should catch you driving that pig.  The very least they would do would be to throw you into the dark lock-up."  Poor Hans shook with fear.  "Oh! Dear me." said he, "do help me out of this trouble.  You know better than I what to do in such a case.  Take my pig, will you? and let me have your goose."  "I shall have some risk to run," said the fellow; "but I don't like to see you getting into trouble."  So he took the cord in his hand, and drove the pig off, very fast, up the road.  The good Hans was glad to get rid of his pig, so he went on toward home, with the goose under his arm.  "If I am right," said he to himself, "I have done well by this exchange too.  For first there is a good roast, then the dish of fat that will run out of it will give good butter for my bread for a quarter of a year.  Then there are the nice white feathers; I shall get a pillow stuffed with them, and shall fall asleep on it without rocking.  How glad my mother will be!" 


19. Hans in Luck.-3

As he went through the last village, a knife-grinder was standing with his wheel, and thus he sang at his work:-"I sharpen the blades and I whir like the wind, And whatever pays best is most to my mind."  Hans stood still and looked at him.  At last he spoke:  "You must be doing well to sing so at your work."  "Yes," answered the knife-grinder; "a good trade is a mine of gold.  A clever grinder is a man who finds money in his pocket as often as he puts hand there.  But where did you buy that fine goose?"  "I didn't buy it, but go it in exchange for my pig." "And the pig?" "I got that for a cow." "And the cow?"  "I got that for a horse." "And the horse?" "I gave a lump of gold for it as big as my head." "And the gold?" "Why, that was my pay for seven years' work." "You knew how to do yourself a good turn each time," said the grinder.  "Now if you can only fix things so that you may hear gold clinking in your pocket whenever you put your hand into it, your fortune will be made."  "How can I do that?" asked Hans.  "You must be a knife-grinder, like me.  All that you need is a whetstone.  And here, you see, I have one nearly as good as new.  I'll give it to you for very little; I'll take your goose for it, if you like.  Will you have it?"  "How can you ask such a thing?" said Hans.  "I shall be the happiest man in the world.  If I had money in my pocket whenever I wanted to use it, I would have nothing to care for."  So he gave him the goose for the whetstone.  "Now," said the grinder, as he lifted up a common heavy stone from the road near him, "here's a first-rate lapstone besides.  You may hammer on that as hard as you like, and straighten your old nails.  Take it, and use it along with the whetstone."  Hans took the whetstone and the lapstone, and went off happy.  His eyes shone for joy.  "I must have been born lucky," he cried out; "all that I wish comes to me, as if I had been born on a Sunday!"  By this time, as he had been on his feet since daybreak, he became tired and hungry.  And no wonder-he had eaten all his feet since daybreak, he became tired and hungry.  And no wonder- he had eaten all his provisions at once, for joy at getting the cow.  At last he could hardly walk; he had to stop every minute, and the stones grew heavier each step.  The thought came to him, how much better it would be if he had nothing to carry.  Moving like a snail, he at last reached the side of a brook, and there he thought he would rest and have a good drink.  Wishing not to knock the stones together in kneeling down, he laid them carefully beside him, on the edge of the brook.  He then turned and was about to bend down, but he missed his footing a little and stumbled, knocking both stones into deep water.  When he had seen them sink, Hans sprang up for joy, and cried out, with tears in his eyes, that he had good fortune this time, above all to get rid of the stones so nicely.  "There is no man so lucky as I under the sun," said he.  With light heart, and free from all burden, he now sprang forward till he got to his mother's cottage.  I hope you will learn from the story of Hans these lessons: not to get tired of everything so easily as he did, not to be so changeable and not to be so simple as to take every one's word about the bargains they offer you, without thinking well over them in your own head, and using good common sense as you do so.  


20. Sir Isaac Newton.

This great man was born in England in 1642.  He was great because he kept his eyes and ears wide open and because he worked hard.  He studied faithfully at school and stood at the head of his class.  He watched the shadows, and then put pins on houses near by, so that their shadows would show the time of day.  He observed the motions of the moon and the planets; and this, with something he saw in his orchard, led him to a great discovery.  The discovery he made was the force which causes things to fall to the ground.  Strange to say, he found that the same force which causes things to fall to the ground also causes the earth to move round the sun.  This force is called gravitation.  Persons sometimes wonder why the earth does not fall into the sun.  This is because there is another force which tries to carry the earth away from the sun in a straight line.  The two forces pulling against each other make the earth go round the sun nearly in a circle.  There are several interesting anecdotes of Newton.  The first relates to his great discovery of gravitation.  He was in the country, and one day was sitting at his door.  Overlooking his garden, he saw an apple fall to the ground.  The thought occurred to him, "Why does the apple fall?" It is no answer to say, "Its weight makes it fall;" for then the question would only take a different form, and be, "What is weight?  He could find no answer satisfactory to his own mind but this:  "The earth attracts everything."  But he asked himself, "Does the earth alone have this power?"  He soon found that all bodies have it, and then he made known his discovery.  It is said that he was absent-minded at times.  Sitting by the fire one day, he grew very hot.  He rang a bell for a servant to put the fire out.  "Why do you not move back?" asked the servant. "I never thought of that," replied Sir Isaac.  He did not often get angry, but tried to keep command of his temper.  One day his pet dog, Diamond, turning over a candle and set fire to some papers on which he had been working out some very difficult problems.  Though this meant a great loss to him, he said merely, "O, Diamond! Diamond! Little do you know the mischief you have done!"  Had Diamond known, he would been very sorry.  Being a great observer and student, Sir Isaac Newton made a number of other wonderful discoveries, about which you will learn when you are older.  He died in 1727, aged eighty-four years. 


Shorter Pieces. 5. The Astronomer.

There once lived an astronomer, who used to spend all his nights in gazing at the heavens.  But one night, while walking along with his eyes fixed on the stars, he fell into a well, and was on the point of drowning.  Some one who heard his cries, ran to the rescue; and, after asking his story, pulled him out and said, "My good man!  You should not let the stars in heaven above make you forget the common objects under your feet."


21. The Adventures of a Drop of Water.-1

I am only a small drop of water.  In fact, I am so small that you will hardly be able to see me when I tell you where I am.  Yet I have been though so much, and seen so many changes, that I feel as old as the hills.  Now I think of it, I should not be surprised to find that I am as old as they.  What do you think?  No wonder I am so small.  If you had been squeezed and knocked about as I have been, there would not be much left of you, my fat boy in the corner there.  Would you like to hear my story?  Yes, you say. Well, then, I will tell it to you, and when I have done I will tell it to you, and when I have done I will ask you a question.  So be sure and keep your ears and eyes wide open while I am talking to you.  The first thing that I can remember was being a little drop of water in company with many, many other drops.  There were hundreds and thousands of us all squeezed close together.  I dare say there were millions, only millions mean so many that they rather bother me.  By the way, how do you get on with them?  We were very happy little fellows, I can tell you, and we were so fond of each other that one never moved without the others.  We were so fond of each other that we did not like to be separated.  How bright and cheerful we were too!  Such sparkling little things!  You could have seen right through us, I am sure.  And what fun we had!  For a little while we would go along very quietly together, as gravely as sober old men.  Then all at once we would start off in a mad race as fast as we could.  How we would tumble over each other, to be sure! How we would knock and push and rub against each other!  How we squeezed and bumped each other!  What a mad rush!  Now I would be thrown to the top, and in the next instant to the bottom with all the fellows stop of me.  Was I hurt?  Not a bit; only flattened a little.  So we danced along faster and faster, until we all tumbled over some big stones and fell into a deep hole.  Here we had a rest for a very little while, and then we started off again.  This time we went a little shower.  The sun shone upon us, making us look bright and sparkling in its rays.  The birds came and dipped their bright feathers in us.  The fish were so fond of us that they would never leave us.  Nothing would tempt them.  A man on the bank did his best to tempt them to leave us, but no, they would have none of his flies or worms.  We were so bright and clear that they could see that he had a rod and line in his hands.  There was one fat old trout that lay just over a stone, and he was quite still, except that now and then he lazily moved his tail.  I thought I would tickle him as I passed, and make him jump.  So just as I reached him.  I bumped bang up against his eye; but, would you believe it, he did not stir an inch.  So far I have had only a pleasant tale to tell.  All the sad part of my history is to come.  When you have heard it all, I am quite sure you will be sorry for me.  We had been going along so gently for a long time, and had just reached a big deep pool, where I thought we should have a long rest, when all of a sudden I felt myself being pulled up with many of my friends into a dark and narrow hole.  I had never gone up anything before, for when we moved we had always moved down.  But we could not help ourselves.  We seemed to be forced up a narrow black lane.  Just as we reached the top, I saw a man with a very black face and such dirty clothes.  "That will do, mate; pull up the pipe," said he.  Then all at once we found ourselves hurled into a dark room.  How black it was!  How queer it smelt!  Sunlight, birds, flowers --  all we gone, and we were gone, and we were in prison.  And such a prison!


22. The Adventures of a Drop of Water. - 2.

We now began to wonder if we should over get out again.  Presently some one said, "Don't you think it is getting rather warm?"  This one was at the bottom of the prison, while I was just about the middle.  Then several others who were near the bottom called out, "How hot it is!  We shall all be burned!" How selfish they were too!  They began to try and get up out of their hot place and push us down into it.  We did our best to keep our places, but it was all of no use.  Down we went as they sprang bounding to the top.  Oh! how warm it was down there!  But something more wonderful happened.  We who had been pushed down now found ourselves growing so big and strong that we were soon ready to fight those who had pushed us there.  Presently we were ready and made a dash at them.  Down they went, and we were up again.  Now began a queer game.  We all felt very hot.  No sooner were we at the top than those at the bottom grew stronger and pushed us down again.  Then we did the same to them.  And soon it was a regular game of see-saw --  now at the top and then at the bottom.  And faster and faster the game grew, and bigger and bigger we became.  I felt like dropping to pieces.  At last I could stand it no longer, and all at once I seemed to change.  Instead of being one drop among millions of others, I suddenly sprang from among my friends.  I fell all to pieces, and was split up into many little drops which floated about as light as air.  But we were not alone.  There were millions more, and my friends from below were constantly joining us.  Soon we were pressed for room, for though we were so small, we seemed to be always wanting more space.  We were so dreadfully hot that we did our best to get out of our prison.  We began to push against our prison walls.  How we pushed, to be sure!  What wild rushes we made to get out!  Just as we were looking round for a weak place in the walls where we might break through, a little door opened.  You should have seen us rush at it.  It was a queer little door.  Instead of letting us quite out, we were only able to push it up a little way.  We were just wondering how far we should get it open when it stopped, and then began to come down again.  But it did not push us back into the prison.  Instead of that it let us go through a little side door and down a pipe into another room, where it was nice and cool.  How pleased we were!  Now we had another surprise.  Slowly but surely we were getting back to our old size and shape.  We were just saying how nice it was to have got out of that fearfully hot place, when all at once a door opened.  We rushed through it, only to find ourselves back again in prison.  And then we went through the same tortures again and again, till there was very little left of me.  Just as I was giving up in despair a door opened that we had not seen before.  Out I jumped with thousands of my friends, and we flew screaming into the air.  Then we found we had just come through the steam pipe of an engine that was drawing a heavy train.  You should have head the whistle we made us we escaped!  And that is how the little drop of water which has just fallen on the window pane managed to get there.  Now for my question.  Do you think you are of as much use as I?  


23. Ali, the Boy Camel --  Driver. -- 1

Hassan was a camel-driver who dwelt at Gaza.  It was his business to go with caravans, backwards and forwards, across the desert to Suez, to take care of the camels.  He had a wife and one young son, called Ali.  Hassan had been absent for many weeks, when his wife received from him a message, brought by another camel-driver, who had returned with a caravan from Suez.  It said; "Send the boy with the camel to Suez with the next caravan.  I have some merchandise to bring home, and I will stop at Suez till he comes."  Ali's mother was pained at the thought of sending her young son away to such a distance for the first time; but she said to herself that Ali was now quite old enough to be helping his father, and she at once set about doing what was required for his journey.  Ali got out the trappings for the camel, and looked to the water-bottles to see that they did not leak.  His mother did all that was needed to make him quite ready to join the next caravan that started.  Ali was delighted to think that he was to go to his father, and that at last the day was come when he too was to be a came-driver, and to take a journey with the dear old camel which he was so fond of.  He had long wanted to ride on its back across the desert, and to lie down by its side to rest at night.  He had no fear.  The camel, of which Ali was so fond, had been bought by his father with the savings of many a year's hard work, and formed the sole riches of the family. Hassan was looked upon as quite a rich man by the other camel-drivers, and Ali, besides having a great love for the animal, was proud of his father being a camel-owner.  Though it was a great creature by the side of the young boy, it would obey the voice of Ali, and come and go at his bidding, and lie down and rise up just as he wished.  Hassan called his camel by and Arabian word, which meant "Meek-eye."  At last, there was a caravan about to start for Suez which Ali could join.  The party met near the gates of the city, where there were some wells, at which the water-bottles could be filled. Ali's mother attended, and bid her son a loving farewell.  The caravan started.  The camels which were to lead the way, had around their necks jingling bells, which the others hearing, followed without other guidance.  Ali looked about and saw his mother standing near the city gate.  He took his cap off and waved it above his head, and his mother took off the linen cloth which she wore over her head, and waved it.  Tramp, trump, tramp, went the camels, their soft spongy feet making a noise as they trod the ground.  The camel-drivers laughed, and talked to each other.  Ali was the only boy in the caravan, and no one seemed to notice him.  He had a stout heart, and tried not to care.  He could talk to Meek-eye, and this he did, patting the creature's back, and telling him they would soon see his father.  The sun rose higher and higher, and the day grew hotter and hotter.   The morning breeze died away, and the room was close and sultry.  The sand glowed like fire.  There was nothing to be seen but sand and sky.  At mid-day a halt was made at one of the places well known to the drivers, where shade and water could be had.  The water-bottles were not to be touched that day, for at this place a little stream, which gushed from a rock, supplied enough for the men, while the camels needed no water for many days.  After resting a short time, the kneeling camels were made to rise, the riders first placing themselves on their backs, and the caravan then moved on.  At night the party encamped for rest, the camels lying down, while fires were lighted and food was prepared.  Several days were thus passed, and Ali found he liked this kind of life as well as he thought he should.  No Arabs were met with, nor even seen; but a danger of the desert, worse than a party of Arabs, came upon them.  There arose one day at noon, one of those fearful burning winds which do such mischief to the traveler and his camel.  The loose sand was raised like a cloud.  It filled the nostrils and blinded the eyes.  The only thing to be done, was for the men to get off the backs of the camels, and lie down with their faces to the earth.  After the storm had passed, they arose to continue their journey.  But the sand had been so blown as to cover the beaten track, and thus all trace of the road was lost.  The camel-drivers who led the way stood still, and said that they did not know which way to turn.  No distant rock or palm-tree was to be seen, and no one could say which was the south, towards which their faces ought to be turned.  They wandered on, now turning to the right, and now to the left; and sometimes, when they had gone some distance in one direction, retracing their steps and trying another.  The caravan made a halt, and it was now decided to journey towards the setting sun, in hopes of finding once more the right track.  Night came on, however, and they had not found it, nor had they reached any place where they could fill their water-bottles, which were empty.  Once or twice, some one of the party fancied that he saw in the distance the top of a palm-tree; but no, it turned out to be but a little cloud upon the horizon.  They had not yet found the old track; neither had they supplied themselves with water to cool their parched lips. 


24. All, the Boy Camel --  Driver. - 2

Poor Ali suffered like the rest from terrible thirst.  He drank the last drop of water from his water-bottle, and thought of the morrow with fear.  He was so tired when night came that he was glad to lie down by the side of Meek-eye and go to sleep.  Ali slept, but before morning, was awakened by the sound of voices.  He listened, and heard the chief driver tell one of the merchants that, if they did not find water very soon, the next day a camel must be killed, in order to get the water contained in its stomach.  This is often done in cases of great need in the desert, the stomach of the camel being so formed as to hold a great quantity of water.  Ali was not surprised to hear such a thing spoken of ; but what was his distress and alarm, when he heard the merchant propose that it should be "the boy's camel" that should be killed!  The merchant said the other camels were of too good a kind, and of too much value; while, as to this young boy, what business had he to have a camel of his own?  It would be better far, they said, for him to lose his camel than for him to die, like the rest, of thirst.  And so it was decided that Meek-eye should be killed, unless water were found the next morning.  Ali slept no more.  His heart was full of grief; but his grief was mixed with courage and resolution.  He said to himself that Meek-eye should no die.  His father had trusted him to bring the camel, and what would he say if he should arrive at Suez without it?  He would try to find his way alone, and leave the caravan as soon as possible.  That night when all was quiet, and the merchant and camel-driver had gone to sleep, Ali arose, and gently patting the neck of Meek-eye, awoke him.  He placed his empty bag and water-bottles on his back, and seating himself on him, made signs for the creature to rise, and then suddenly started off.  Tramp, tramp, trump, went Meek-eye over the soft sand.  The night was cool and refreshing, and Ali felt stronger and braver with every tramp.  The stars were shining brightly, and they were his only guides.  He knew the star which was always in the north, and the one which was in the west after the sun had gone down.  He must keep that star to the right, and he would be sure to be going towards the south.  He journeyed on till day began to dawn.  The sun came up on the edge of the desert, and rose higher and higher.  Ali felt faint, weary, and thirsty, and could scarcely hold himself on to Meek-eye.  When he thought of his father and mother, he took courage again, and bore up bravely.  The sun was now at its height.  Ali fancied he saw a palm-tree in the distance.  It seemed as if Meek-eye saw it also, for he raised his head and quickened his step.  It was not long before Ali found himself at one of those pleasant green islands which are found throughout the desert, and are called oases.   He threw himself from the camel's back, and hunted out the pool of water that he knew he should find in the midst of the reeds and long grass which grew there.  He dipped in his water-bottle and drank, while Meek-eye, lying down, stretched out his long neck, and greedily sucked up great draughts of the cool water.  How sweet was the sleep which crept over them as they lay down in the shade of the great palm-tree, now that they had quenched their thirst!  Refreshed and rested, Ali was able to satisfy his hunger on some ripe dates from the palm-tree, while Meek-eye began to feed upon the grass and leaves around.  Ali noticed, while eating his dates, that other travelers had been there recently; as the grass at the side of the pool was trampled down.  This greatly cheered him.  He quickly followed in their track, still going in a southerly direction.  He kept the setting sun to his right, and when it had gone down, he noticed the bright star that had guided him before.  He traveled on, tired and faint with hunger for many a mile, till at last he saw, a long way off, the fires of a caravan which had halted for the night.  Ali soon came up to them.  He got down from Meek-eye, and leading him by the bridle, came towards a group of camel-drivers, who were sitting in a circle.  He told them his story, and asked permission to join the party, and begged a little rice, for which he was ready to pay with the piece of money that his mother had given him when he left home.  Ali was kindly received by them, and allowed to partake of their supper.  The men admired the courage with which he had saved his favorite camel.  After supper Ali soon closed his weary eyes, and slept soundly by the side of Meek-eye.  In the midst of a pleasant dream, Ali was suddenly aroused by the sound of tinkling bells, and on waking up he saw that another caravan had arrived, which had come from the south.  The merchants sat down to wait until their supper was brought to them, and a party of camel-drivers drew round the fire near which Ali had been sleeping.  They raked up its ashes, put on fresh fuel, and then prepared to boil their rice.  What voice was that which roused Ali just a she was falling asleep again?  He listened, he started to his feet, he looked about him, and waited for a flash of flame from the fire to fall on the faces of the camel-drivers who stood around it.  It came flickering up at first, and then all at once blazing out, flashed upon the camel-driver who stood stooping over it, and lighted up the face of Ali's father!  The father had waited at Suez many days, wondering why Ali did not come; and then, thinking there had been some mistake, determined to return home with the caravan which was starting for Gaza.  We need hardly describe the joy of both father and son at thus meeting, nor the pleasure with which the father listened to the history of all the fears and dangers to which his young son had been exposed.  He was glad, too, that their precious Meek-eye had been saved.  There was not one in the whole caravan so happy as Hassan, when, the next morning, he continued his journey to Gaza in company with Meek-eye and his beloved son Ali. 


Shorter Pieces. 6. The Father and His Two Daughters. 

A man had two daughters, the one married to a gardener, and the other to a brickmaker.  After a time, he went to the daughter who had married the gardener, and inquired how she was, and how all things went with her.  She said, "All things are prospering with me, and I have only one wish, that there may be a heavily fall of rain, in order that the plants may be well watered."  Not long after, he went to the daughter who had married the brickmaker, and likewise inquired of her how she fared; she replied, "I want for nothing, and have only one wish, that the dry weather may continue, and the sun shine hot and bright, so that the bricks may be dried."  He said to her,  "If your sister wishes for rain, and you for dry weather, with which of the two am I to join my wishes?


25. An Adventure with a Shark.

Our noble ship lay at anchor in the Bay of Tangiers, a town in the north-west part of Africa.  The day had been very mild, with a gentle breeze sweeping to the northward and westward.  Toward the close of the day the sea-breeze died away, and hot, sultry breathings came from the great, sunburnt desert of Sahara.  Half an hour before sundown, the captain gave the cheering order to call the hands to "go in swimming"; and, in less than five minutes, the forms of our sailors were seen leaping from the arms of the lower yards into the water.  One of the sails, with its corners fastened from the main yard-arm and the swinging boom, had been lowered into the water, and into this most of the swimmers made their way.  Among those who seemed to be enjoying the sport most heartily were two boys, one of whom was the son of our old gunner; and, in a laughing mood, they started out from the sail on a race.  There was a loud ringing shout of joy on their lips as they put off; they darted through the water like fishes.  The surface of the sea was smooth as glass, though its bosom rose in long, heavy swells that set in from the ocean.  One of the buoys which was attached to the anchor, to show where it lay, was far away on the starboard quarter, where it rose and fell with the lazy swell of the waves.  Towards this buoy the two lads made their way, the old gunner's son taking the lead; but , when they were within about sixty yards of the buoy, the other boy shot ahead and promised to win the race.  The old gunner had watched the progress of his son with great pride; and when he saw him drop behind, he leaped upon the quarter-deck, and was just upon the point of urging him on by a shout, when a cry was heard that struck him with instant horror.  "A shark! a shark!" shouted the officer of the deck; and, at the sound of those terrible words, the men who were in the water, leaped and plunged toward the ship.  Three or four hundred yards away, the back of a monster shark was seen cleaving the water.  Its course was for the boys.  For a moment the gunner stood like one who had lost his reason; then he shouted at the top of his voice for the boys to turn; but they heard him not.  Stoutly the two swimmers strove, knowing nothing of the danger from the shark.  Their merry laughter still rang over the waters, as they were both nearing the buoy.  O, what anxiety filled the heart of the gunner!  A boat had put off, but he knew it could not reach the boys in time to prevent the shark from overtaking them.  Every moment he expected to see the monster sink from sight, - then he knew all hope would be gone.  At this moment a cry was heard on board the ship, that reached every heart,- the boys had discovered their enemy.  They cry startled the old gunner, and, quicker than thought, he sprung from the quarter-deck.  The guns were all loaded and shotted, fore and aft, and none knew their temper better than he.  With steady hand, made strong by sudden hope, the old gunner pricked the cartridge of one of the quarter guns; then he took from his pocket a percussion cap, fixed it on its place, and set back the hammer of the gun-lock.  With great exertions, the old man turned the heavy gun to its bearing, ad then seizing the string of the lock, he stood back and watched for the next swell that would bring the shark in range.  He had aimed the piece some distance ahead of his mark; but yet a moment would settle his hopes and fears.  Every breath was hushed, and every heart in that old ship beat painfully.  The boat was yet some distance from the boys, while the horrid sea-monster was fearfully near.  Suddenly the silence was broken by the roar of the gun; and, as the old man knew his shot was gone, he covered his face with his hands, as if afraid to see the result.  If he had failed, he knew that his boy was lost.  For a moment after the report of the gun had died away upon the air, there was an unbroken silence; but, as the thick smoke arose from the surface of the water, there was, at first, a low murmur breaking from the lips of the men, - that murmur grew louder and stronger, till it swelled to a joyous, deafening shout.  The old gunner sprung to his feet, and gazed off on the water, and the first thing that met his sight was the huge body of the shark floating on its back, the shot aimed by him having instantly killed it.  In a few moments the boat reached the daring swimmers, and; greatly frightened, they were brought on board.  The old man clasped his boy in his arms, and then, overcome by the powerful excitement, he leaned upon a gun for support.


26. Henry's Breakfast.

Henry's father was fond of asking him puzzling questions.  One day he said, "How many people do you suppose helped to get the breakfast that you ate this morning?"  "Two," answered Henry, without stopping to think.  Mother made the coffee, and Mary broiled the steak and fried the eggs and did all the rest of the work."  
Mr.K: Yes, but that was only a small part of what was done in order that you might begin the day with a good, wholesome meal.  Many people whom you never saw were at work weeks and months ago, helping to get that breakfast.
Henry: I don't see how that could be.
Mr. K: Well, let us begin with the coffee.
Henry: Yes.  Mother made that.
Mr.K,: She only made it ready for you to drink.  Away off in the southern part of Arabia, or perhaps it was in the sunny land of Brazil, a young man gathered and dried the berries of which the coffee was made.  Another man carried the coffee berries to market; a trader in coffee bought them; one of his servants packed them, with more than a bushel of such grains, in a strong coffee sack; a sailor carried the coffee on board of a ship, and another sailor took it down into the ship's hold.  The ship sailed across the sea, and after it had reached New York the coffee was taken out of the hold, and other men carried it to the shore.  A truckman hauled the bags away from the wharf, a commission merchant's workmen stored them in a ware-house.  By and by the village grocer bought some of the coffee, and among it were the very berries that were used for you this morning.  The expressman carried it to the grocery stone; the grocer's clerk ground the berries in his coffee mill; and the grocer's boy brought the crushed coffee to your mother yesterday.  Now, how many persons helped to make your coffee and get it ready for you to drink?  
Henry: Fourteen or fifteen, besides mother.
Mr.K.: But you have not counted all.  Your coffee was made up in large part of water which somebody must have drawn up from the well or forced through the water-pipes from the waterworks.  It also contained milk or cram, which the milkman brought to the door.
Henry: Oh, yes, I see.  And there was sugar in it, too, which came from --  from --  
Mr.K.: The sugar came from Louisiana, or it may be from Cuba.  A good many people took part in the making of that sugar.  One man planted and cultivated the sugar cane; another cut it, and hauled it to the mill; a third passed it through great rollers which squeezed all the juice out of it; a fourth saw that the juice was emptied into boilers or evaporating pans; a fifth kept the fire burning underneath the boilers; a sixth drained off the sirup from the granulated sugar; a seventh put the sugar into a barrel and made it ready for shipment; an eighth rolled the barrel into a wagon; and a ninth hauled it to the wharf at the bank of the river.  Indeed, it would be hard to say how many people, first and last, helped you to that spoonful of sugar.  At least fifty, I should say.
Henry: And all that labor for a cup of coffee!  I never thought of it before.
Mr.K.: All that, and more too!  If we knew the entire history of the coffee which you drank so thoughtlessly and yet with so much relish, we should find that it required the labor of several hundred persons to make it ready and bring it to you.
Henry: Mary brought it to me.  But the coffee was only a small part of my breakfast.
Mr.K.: True!  There was the bread.  It was made from wheat which I suppose grew in Dakota.  Think of the man that sowed the wheat, of him that reaped it, of him that hauled it to market --  and then of the millers and merchants and grocers and bakers who ground it and bought and sold the flour and prepared it for your use.  You amy count them for yourself if you can.
Henry: I am sure I could never count them.  But, now that I think of it, there were the baking powder and the salt.  It must have taken a good many men to make them, too.
Mr. K. : There is no doubt about it.  Then, besides the coffee and the bread, there is the beefsteak which Mary broiled so nicely for you.  A few weeks ago it was a part of a living animal roaming at will in the grassy fields.  How many people do you think were engaged, first in taking care of the ox, and then in preparing his flesh and bringing it to us, all ready for the broiling?
Henry: I should think fifty, at least.
Mr.K.: Then, you had potatoes, didn't you?  The gardener brought them in from his own fields, and so they did not pass through very many hands.  You have already spoken of the salt.  It came, no doubt, from the salt wells of Michigan or of New York and many men found work in the making of it.  The pepper with which you seasoned your potatoes was brought from the East Indies, on the other side of the world. 
Henry: It makes me feel quite rich to think that so many people have been at work getting things for my breakfast.
Mr.K.: Yes, you might say that you have servants in every part of the world, and that more than a thousand persons whom you never saw are busy every day, preparing and getting together and carrying the good things that you use for food.  
Henry: But they work for other people as well as for me.  Indeed, it seems as if everybody is working for everybody else.
Mr.K.: It is just so.  And if we should speak of your clothing and of you books and of your amusements, we might number your servants by the tens of thousands.  Here, indeed, is the great difference between a civilized people and a barbarous people.  In civilized life everybody is served by everybody else.  But the savage does everything for himself.  He raises his own corn, he prepares his own food, he makes his own clothing, he builds his own house.  His wants are few and simple.  He has no servant but himself.  
Henry: Haven't you forgotten his poor wife?  I have heard that she is his servant.
Mr.K.: That is true.  In fact, she does the greater part of his work, and she alone gets his breakfast.  There is nobody on the other side of the world picking coffee berries for him.  No ships are sailing across the sea to bring him spices and sugar.  No steam cars are hurrying over the land, laden with bread and meat for him.  Do you think that he can enjoy his breakfast as well as you do yours?
Henry: I don't see how he can.
Mr.K.: Well, a great deal depends upon what a person is accustomed to .  The savage has never known anything about the luxuries which we have, and he would not know how to use them if he had them.  He enjoys himself in his own rude way; but his pleasures are few and selfish, and he knows nothing of the real joys of life. 


27. The Journal of Robinson Crusoe.

September 30, 1659, I , poor, miserable Robinson Crusoe, being shipwrecked during a dreadful storm in the offing, came on shore on this dismal, unfortunate island, which I called the Island of Despair, all the rest of the ships company being drowned, and myself almost dead.  I had neither food, house, clothes, weapon, nor place to fly to, and, in despair of any relief, saw nothing but death before me, either that I should be devoured by wild beasts, murdered by savages, or starved to death for want of food.  At the approach of night I slept in a tree, for fear of wild creatures, but slept soundly, though it rained all night.  October 1.  In the morning I saw, to my great surprise, the ship had floated with the high tide, and was driven on shore much nearer the island.  There was some comfort; for, seeing her sit upright, and not broken to pieces, I hoped, if the wind abated, I might go on board, and get some food or necessaries out of her for my relief.  On the other hand, it renewed my grief at the loss of my comrades, who, I imagined, if we had all stayed on board, might have saved the ship, or at least that they would not have been drowned, as they were, and that , had the men been saved, we might, perhaps, have built us a boat out of the ruins of the ship, to carry us to some other part of the world.  I spent a great part of this day in perplexing myself about these things; but , at length seeing the ship almost dry, I walked upon the sand as near as possible, and then swam on board.  This day, also, it continued raining, though with no wind at all.  From the 1st of October to the 24th. All these days were spent on making several voyages to get all I could out of the ship; which I brought on shore, at every flood tide, upon rafts.  Much rain in these days, though with some intervals of fair weather.  It seems this was the rainy season.  October 20.  I overset my raft, and all the goods I had upon it; but, being in shoal water, and the things being chiefly heavy, I recovered many of them when the tide was out.  October 25.  It rained all night and all day, with some gusts of wind, during which time the ship broke in pieces, and was no more to be seen, except the wreck of her, and that only at low water.  I spent the day in covering and securing the goods which I had saved, that the rain might not spoil them.  October 26.  I walked about the shore almost all day, to find a place to fix my habitation, greatly concerned to secure myself from any attack in the night, either from wild beasts or men.  Toward night I fixed upon a proper place under a rock, and marked out a semicircle for my encampment, which I resolved to strengthen with a wall, or fortification made of double piles, lined within with cables and without with turf.  From the 26th to the 30th, I worked very hard in carrying all my goods to my new fortification, though some part of the time it rained exceedingly hard.  November 1 .  I set up my tent under a rock, making it as large as I could with stakes driven in to swing my hammock upon, and lay there for the first night.  November 2.  I set up all my chests and boards, and the pieces of timber which made my rafts, and with them formed a fence round me, a little within the place I had marked out for my fortification.  November 4.  This morning I began to order my time of work, time of going out with my gun, time of sleep, and time of diversion.  Every morning I walked out with my gun for two or three hours, if it did not rain; then employed myself to work till about eleven o'clock; then ate what I had to live on, and from twelve to two I lay down to sleep, the weather being excessively hot; and then, in the evening, to work again.  The working part of this day, and of the next, was wholly employed in making my table; for I was yet but a very sorry workman, though time and necessity made me a complete natural mechanic soon after, as I believe it would do any one else.  November 6.  After my morning walk I went to work with my table again, and finished it, though not to my liking; nor was it long before I learned to mend it.  November 7.  Now it began to be settled, fair weather.  The 7th, 8th, 9th, 10th, and a part of the 12th( for the 11th was Sunday), I took wholly up to make me a chair, and with much ado brought it to a tolerable shape, but never to please me; and even in the making I pulled it in pieces several times. 


28. Do Animals Think?

The question ha soften been asked, Do animals think?  I believe that some of them think a great deal more than we imagine.  Many of them are like children in their sports.  We notice this very often with dogs and cats; but it is true with other animals as well.  It is amusing to see porpoises playing with each other in the water.  As they throw themselves up above the surface and then dive down again, they chase each other as dogs and cats often do in their play.  Some birds are very lively in their sports; and the same is true of some insects.  The ants, industrious as they are, have their times for play.  They run races; they wrestle; they run one after another, and dodge behind stalks of grass, just as boys dodge behind trees and posts; and sometimes they have mock fights together.  Very busy must be their thoughts while engaged in these frolics.  There are many animals, however, that never play; their thoughts seem to be of the more sober kind.  We never see toads and frogs engaged in sport.  They always appear to be very grave.  The same is true of the owl, who always looks as if he were considering some important question.  A man who had spent all his life in a great city once bought an owl, being told that it was a parrot.  A day or two afterwards an acquaintance, who understood the joke, asked him if his parrot had learned to talk.  "No," said he, "but he is all the time very busily thinking, and I suppose that, when we become better friends, he'll speak his thoughts."  See that spider on his web!  He is watching for flies.  The mind in his little brain thinks of every fly that comes buzzing along, and is anxious that it should get its legs entangled in the snares that he has woven.  How glad he feels when he sees one caught by these snares!  And if he fears that they runs and quickly weaves some more threads about him.  Animals think much while they are building their dwellings.  The bird searches for what it can use in building its nest; and, in doing this, it thinks.  The beavers think as they build their dams and their houses.  They think in getting their materials, and also in arranging them, and in plastering them together with mud.  Some spiders build houses which could scarcely have been made except by some thinking creature.  A kind of taratula, the mason-spider, whose bite is very poisonous, builds its house in a wonderful manner.  It first digs a hole in the ground, and then lines it by spinning a pure white glossy silk over the interior, making the sides an unbroken tube of silk.  It then makes a trap-door of wet earth, mixed with a little silk.  The hinges on which this door opens and shuts are also made of fine silk.  Could any creature do this kind of work without thinking?  As animals think, they learn.  Some learn more than others.  The parrot can be taught to talk, though in some other things it is quite stupid.  The horse is quick in learning many things connected with the work which he has to do.  The shepherd dog does not know as much about most things as some other dogs, and yet he can be trained to take care of sheep perfectly.  Hough animals think and learn they do not make any change or improvement on their way of doing things, as men do.  Each kind of bird has its own way of building a nest, and it is always the same way.  The moles build their tunnelled underground dwellings year after year without making any change.  And so of other animals.  They have no new fashions, and learn none form each other.  But men, as you know, are always finding new ways of building houses, and better methods of doing almost all kinds of labour.  Many of the things that animals know how to do, they seem to know either without learning, or in some way which we cannot understand.  They are said to do such things by instinct; but no one can tell what instinct is.  It is by this instinct that birds build their nests, and bees their honeycombs, and beavers their dams and huts.  If these things were all planed and thought out, just as men plan new houses, there would be some changes and improvements in their work.  I have spoken of the building instinct of beavers.  A gentleman caught a young one and put him at first in a cage.  After a while, he let him out in a room where there was a great variety of things.  As soon as the beaver was let out, he began to exercise his building instinct.  He gathered together whatever he could find, - brushes, baskets, boots, clothes, sticks, bits of coal, and so on, - and arranged them as if to build a dam.  Now, if he had had all his wits about him, he would have known that there was no use in building a dam where there was no water.  It is plain, therefore, that animals are not able to think as much about their work as we do; and this is why they make no changes.  Even the wisest of them, as the elephant and the dog, do not think very much about what they see and hear.  The minds of animals are also unlike ours in that they do no know the difference between right and wrong.


POEMS.

1. THE ROSE.

How fair is the rose!  what a beautiful flower!  The glory of April and May!  But the leaves are beginning to fade in an hour, And they wither and die in a day.  Yet the rose has one powerful virtue to boast Above all the flowers of the field; When its leaves are all dead and its fine colours lost, Still how sweet a perfume it will yield!  So frail is the youth and the beauty of men, Though they bloom and look gay like the rose; But all our fond care to preserve them is vain --  Time kills them as fast as he goes.  Then I'll not be proud of my youth nor my beauty, Since both of them wither and fade; But gain a good name by well doing my duty; This will scent like a rose when I'm dead. 


2.THE DIAMOND RING

A rich old man, as we are told, Gave to his sons his goods and gold, But kept in store one precious thing --  A large and brilliant diamond ring.  The old man sent his sons away To travel until a certain day, When he who did the noblest thing Should have the precious diamond ring,  Not a long time had passed away When home they all came back one day, And to their father, one by one, Described the deeds that they had done.  "Listen!" (the eldest thus began), - "There came to me one day a man Who trusted all his wealth to me, Without the least security.  "I might have kept it all --  but no!  I would not serve the stranger so.  I gave him back the sum he lent, With interest added, cent for cent."  "'I was well," the father said; "but you Have only done what all should do."  The second said, "Where torrents roared I saw a child fall overboard.  I plunged beneath the threatening wave, The life of innocence to save."  The father said, "I was bravely done --  Nobly you risked your life, my son; But though it was a gallant thing Far higher worth should claim the ring."  The youngest came: - "Once, tending sheep, My enemy was lulled to sleep Close to a precipice; but I Left him not there to start and die.  I woke him, though my fiercest foe, And saved him from the impending woe."  The father cried, with pride and joy, "Take it! the ring is thine, my boy!  He who can banish from his heart Revenge, and act the Christian part, Has fairly won the golden meed I promised for the noblest deed." 


3.HOME, SWEET HOME.

'Mid pleasures and palaces, though we may roam, Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home!  A charm from the skies seems to hallow us there, Which, seek thro' the world, is ne'er met with elsewhere Home! home! sweet, sweet home!  There's no place like home!  There's no place like home!  There's no place like home!  I gaze on the moon as I tread the drear wild, And feel that my mother now thinks of her child, As she looks on that moon from our own cottage door, Thro' the woodbine whose fragrance shall cheer me no more.   Home! home! sweet, sweet home!  There's no place like home!  There's no place like home!  There's no place like home!  An exile from home, splendour dazzles in vain, O, give me my lowly thatch'd cottage again; The birds singing gaily, that came at may call, Give me them with that peace of mind, dearer than all.  Home! home! sweet, sweet home!  There's no place like home!  There's no place like home!  There's no place like home! 


4.JACK FROST.

The Frost looked forth on a still, clear night, And whispered, "Now, I shall be out of sight; So, through the valley, and over the height, In silence I'll take my way.  I will not go on like that blustering train, The wind and the snow, the hail and the rain, That make such a bustle and noise in vain; But I'll be as busy as they!"  So he flew to the mountain, and powdered its crest, He lit on the trees, and their boughs he dressed With diamonds and pearls; and over the breast Of the quivering lake, he spread A coat of mail, that it need not fear The glittering point of many a spear Which he hung on its margin, far and near, Where a rock could rear its head.  He went to the window of those who slept, And cover each pane like a fairy crept: Wherever he breathed, wherever he stepped, Bye the morning light were seen Most beautiful things! --  there were flowers and trees, There were cities and temples and towers; and these All pictured in silvery sheen!  But he did one thing that was hardly fair,- He peeped in the cupboard, and finding there That all had forgotten for him to prepare.  "Now, just to set them a-thinking, I'll bite this basket of fruit," said he, "And this costly pitcher I'll burst in three!  And the glass of water they've left for me, Shall 'tchick' to tell them I'm drinking."


5.THE ORPHAN BOY.

Stay, lady, stay, for mercy's sake, And hear a helpless orphan's tale!  Ah! Sure my looks must pity wake, - 'Tis want that makes my cheek so pale.  Yet I was once a mother's pride, And my brave father's hope and joy: But in the Nile's proud fight he died, And I am now an orphan boy.  Poor foolish child- how pleased was I When news of Nelson's victory came, Along the crowded streets to fly, And see the lighted windows flame! To force me home my mother sought, - She could not bear to see my joy; For with my father's life 'twas bought, And made me a poor orphan boy!  The people's shouts were long and loud.  My mother, shuddering, closed her ears; "Rejoice! rejoice!" still cried the crowd; My mother answered with her tears.  "Why are you crying so," said I. "While others laugh and shout with joy?" She kissed me- and with such a sigh! She called me her poor orphan boy.  "What is an orphan boy?" I cried, As in her face I looked and smiled; My mother through her tears replied, "You'll know too soon, ill-fated child!"  And now they've tolled my mother's knell, And I'm no more a parent's joy; O lady, I have learned too well What 'tis to be an orphan boy!