0136m
Rover's bark, so fierce and loud,
Scares the noisy, cackling crowd.
Silly geese, how fast they run!
Gallant Rover thinks it fun;
Down the road and up the hill
Keeps the chase up with a will.
Suddenly, with rage possessed,
One goose, bolder than the rest,
Turns, and with an angry cry
Puts to flight the enemy;
Up the road and down the hill
Chases Rover with a will!
0137m
In the shine of the merry morning
Of the springtime glad and sweet,
Went Totty and Tom together,
In love with the balmy weather,
As they trod with eager feet
The road to Grandpa's orchard,
Where the apple-blossoms grew
(For dearly did they love them),
And the bright, clear sky above them
Was smooth and soft and blue.
Oh! the fragrant, dainty perfume
Filling all the sweet spring air!
From the trees with blossoms laden
For the little man and maiden
Who were hastening for a share.
But what think you strangely happened?
One great blossom, white and round,
Stirred at sound of To tty's laughter,
And, just a moment after,
Tried to spring upon the ground.
Up, up the tree climbed Tommy,
Mid the blossoms pink and white,
And found a wee, lame kitty
(Oh! it filled his heart with pity)
All trembling with affright.
In her foot a thorn was clinging,
And she could not spring away.
"Ah!" laughed Tom, "you 're good for
showing
What a blossom queer was growing
On the apple-tree to-day."
Then to Totty's arms he bore her,
Poor lame pussy, tenderly;
And, as no one since has claimed her,
"Apple-blossom" they have named
her,
So soft and white is she.
But when blossoms turn to apples,
And the boughs are bending low,
Gentle "Apple-blossom" kitty
Will turn (ah, more's the pity!)
To a full-grown cat, I know.
0138m
My name is Bessie, and I'm looking at you,
As I sit here just like a marble statue.
Bow-wow! Who are you? I am only a little dog. My name is Dime. I am not a cross dog. I have been a pet dog all my life. Shall I tell you what I can do?
0139m
I can sit up and beg. I can shake hands. I can jump over a stick, O yes; and I can run very fast. I can run as fast as Pomp, the baker's dog; and Pomp is a big dog.
I like to run races with Pomp. He never bites a little dog. We like to run after birds. But we never catch any birds. They fly away when we come near. I wonder how the birds fly. Pomp and I cannot fly.
My master has a cow. Her name is Betty. She is a good cow. She gives nice, white milk. I do not care much for milk. I like a bone better. But old Tab, the cat, likes milk. I like to see Tab drink milk. She laps it up very fast.
I drive Betty to pasture every day. John goes with me to shut the gate. John is the boy who milks the cow.
0140m
I wish I could open and shut that gate. Then John would not go to the pasture. I should like to go all alone. I think it would be fine.
I take good care of Betty. When any one comes near her, I say, "Bow-wow" very sharply.
0141m
Brindle is the cow. Tom, the milk-boy, milks her twice every day. He feeds her well both night and morning. I really think Brindle loves him: she seems to do so, any how. One day I saw her put out her great red tongue and lick Tommy on the shoulder and face.
But I must tell you about the pigeons. Tom one day put four pairs in the loft. That was a long while ago. We now have over one hundred. Almost any morning, while Tom is milking, you may see dozens of them on Brindle's back in the barn. At first she used to switch them off with her tail; but now they roost all over her, and she seems to like it. Two on her horns, and ten or a dozen on her back, and sometimes one on her ear, is n't it funny? She killed one one day with a sweep of her heavy tail; but that was before she knew what it all meant. She and they are now good friends.
0142m
Three little fishermen, down by the bay,
Went on a voyage one sunshiny day;
Dick had the bait in a pink china dish,
Ted had a basket, to bring home the fish,
And Tommy, the captain, went marching along
With a gold-headed rod on his shoulder so strong.
Three little fishermen, out on the bay,
Laughing and shouting, went sailing away,
Sailing away with the wind and the tide,
And the little waves danced as they ran by the side;
But the worms wriggled out of the pink china dish,
And the gold-headed rod only frightened the fish.
Three little fishermen, out on the bay,
Weeping and wailing, went drifting away,
Till a grimy old oysterman brought them to land,
And set them down safe in a row on the sand;
But the gold-headed rod, and the pink china dish,
And the big willow basket were left for the fish.
0143m
Ellie, Will, and Baby have a kitten, it is their very own, they say.
All day long they play with their kitten in all sorts of ways.
Sometimes Will has her for a circus cat; then kitty must jump over a stick, chase a toy mouse, and show off all her tricks. Next, Ellie will take her turn, and rig kitty out in her doll's clothes, and put her to sleep in the doll's bed.
Before poor kit has had her nap out, likely as not Baby will seize her to have a ride in his cart.
Then away she goes, down the walk, bump, bump! Baby's cart has no springs, you must know.
The folks in the house say, "O, that poor kitten! What a life it does lead!"
But kit does not seem to mind their play; she likes the children. If they are gone out of sight for a time she runs about the house to find them.
Kitty has to stay in the woodshed at night; she does not like this, but mamma says she must not stay in the house.
One night kitty found out where the children slept. It was a warm night, and the window was open. Kitty ran up a cherry-tree and out on a bough, from which she could jump into the room. She sprang up on Ellie's cot and lay close beside her, and how she did purr! Mamma had to laugh when she found her. But she said, "No, no, little kit; you must not sleep with my babies!"
0144m
The next night the window was left open at the top. Kitty could not jump so high as that; so what do you think she did? She got on the ledge, outside the window, to be as near her little friends as she could.
When Ellie waked in the morning there was the little kit looking in at her. Ellie thought she said, "Mew, mew! Do let me come to you!" And she made haste to let her in, you may be sure!
5144
"Or more like a shaggy terrier
Whose eyes are hid in hair."
Ted only laughed at being teazed,
And said he didn't care.
0145m
"You ought to go to the barber,"
Said Edith, "that is plain;
For you look like a Shetland pony, Ted,
With all that bristling mane."
But to himself he wondered
If indeed he looked like that;
And down in front of a looking-glass
Reflectively he sat.
A pair of his mother's scissors
Lay on the mantel-shelf,
And he thought, "I hate a barber's chair,
I can cut it off myself"
So, snipping, snipping, snipping,
The cold keen scissors sped,
Till one whole side of his little pate
Was bald as the baby's head.
Just then the tea bell, ringing
Its cheery call, he heard;
And he glanced at the uncut side, and said,
"I can do that afterward."
Think what a funny topknot
For company to see,
Brown elf-locks covering half, and half
As bare as bare could be!
As he seated himself at table,
Merrily laughed each one;
And mamma cried, in droll dismay,
"My boy, what have you done?"
5146
0147m
This little boy baby
Wants something to do;
So he lifts up his foot
And bites at his shoe.
He plays with his toes,
And is happy and gay
From morning till evening,
The whole of the day.
He eats when he's hungry
And drinks when he will;
When he has all he wants
He lies down and is still.
Then he shuts up his eyes,
And with each little hand
Holding tightly some plaything
He finds by-low land.
0148m
The magpie is very watchful and cunning. Its colors are black, white, and blue, and its cry is harsh and unpleasing. Its tail, which is always in motion, is quite long, and its flight is heavy because of the shortness of its wings.
It builds its nest in high trees, towers, and church-steeples. The nest is made of strong twigs and is plastered inside with mud. It lays six or seven eggs, whitish gray in color, mottled and dashed with black.
0149m
The magpie is easily tamed, is a good mimic, and can be taught to say a few words; but when tamed it is apt to become too familiar. It is a great thief, and will cany off small articles, especially such as sparkle. Thimbles, ear-rings, silver spoons, bows of ribbon, and pieces of lace have been often found in the nest of the magpie. Children and servants have been charged with taking them, when the magpie was the real thief.
A lady once owned a pet magpie. It would perch upon her shoulders and thrust its bill between her lips, to feed her with ripe cherries, just as she sometimes fed him. But what was her surprise and disgust when one day, instead of a cherry, he dropped a large green fat worm into her mouth.
Iwent over to Mrs. Good's to spend the day. I did not know there was to be a circus that day. After dinner Mrs. Good said it was time to go to the circus.
0150m
Mrs. Good had ten children. They were all going to the circus but the eldest.
The circus ring was under the big oak. On one side were chairs and benches to sit on; on the other side were animals in cages.
Walter Good was the showman. He took us around to see the animals. He was a good showman.
"Here," said lie, "is the beautiful ostrich of Arabia. Its wings are too small to fly with, but they help it in running. Look at its long legs. The ostrich can run faster than any horse except our Selim. Its feathers are used to trim hats. They cost a great deal. My sister cannot afford to buy one for her hat."
We all admired the ostrich. It was in a cracker-box, with strips of shingles nailed over it.
0151m
"And now," said he, "I will show you the greatest wonder of all. A royal Bengal tiger with cubs! Every circus has a tiger, but not the cubs. The tiger, as you all know, belongs to the cat family. It has cat claws and cat teeth. It prowls about in the night for food, like a cat."
0151m
He did look very much like a cat.
Then Walter showed us the lion. He was tied to a chair-leg. When the lion roared, it sounded like a dog barking.
When we had all sat down, a pair of ponies came prancing into the ring, Bruno and Bose. Ernest drove them with long lines and a whip.
8151
Then there was a fine trapeze performance by Benton in the swing.
After this we had a beautiful concert, with songs and readings by Alice, Jeanie, and Willie.
It was the best circus I ever went to. It was well worth two pins.
0152m
These sisters have a brother, John,
Who to a foreign land has gone;
They are much pleased from him to hear
Because he is so very dear.
What a great pleasure 'tis to see
A happy, loving family.
Spot is a great, good-natured, black-and-white dog, as full of fun as his skin can hold. If there is anything he loves to do, it is to chase a cat, just to see her run. He has not the least wish to hurt her.
0153m
One day as he was following his master's team he went by a house where a white cat lay on the porch. Spot made a dash for her. She left the porch and ran like a white streak straight up a large tree in the yard.
Spot was right at her heels. And because she went up the tree, he followed. I suppose he had never thought but that a dog could climb a tree just as well as a cat.
He was running so fast that he did go up the tree, quite a little way, six feet or more. But about that time he began to slip, and then something fell heavily to the ground. It was Spot!
When he picked himself up, he took no further interest in that cat, but just ran on, somewhat stiffly, to be sure, after his master. I think if he could have spoken he would have said, "Let cats climb trees if they wish to, I prefer to run on the ground!"
—C. W. B. Vermont.
0154m
Pussy out in the falling rain:—
He's peeping through the window pane.
By staying out too late at night,
He suffers thus in painful plight.
Learn from this careless kitten's fate
And never tarry out too late.
0155m
Come with mamma, Willie, and we will hunt for eggs."
We went out to the barn, Willie knew how to find the clean white eggs. I carried the basket, and the little boy hunted. Up and down the barn he trotted, and tumbled into the sweet-smelling hay. He found eggs by dozens.
"Come, Willie! I think there are no more."
"Yes, there are, mamma, for old Blackie is on her nest."
"Never mind, dear. Don't drive her off." I had spoken too late, for "Shoo," said Willie, and away flew Blackie.
"O mamma, mamma! look, look!"
He was bending over the nest, and beckoning to me with one hand. I jumped down into the bin and peeped over his shoulder. There, in old Blackie's nest, were three little kittens that had not "lost their mittens."
Willie was wild with joy, and every day he came to visit them. He always found old Blackie brooding them, while the kittens purred contentedly under her warm feathers.
The old mother cat enjoyed the strange sight as she nestled in the hay near by.
When the kittens' eyes were open they began to wander about at their own sweet will. Then Blackie was in trouble. In vain she clucked and scratched on the barn floor. The strange little nurslings would not come to her.
0156m
At last Blackie went away by herself. In a few weeks we saw her proudly marching along with six little downy chickens running after her.
"Cluck, cluck!" said the hen.
"Twee, twee!" said the chickens; and Blackie was contented.
Little Ned's brother Tom called him a cry-baby, because his eyes were always full of tears. His mother said that Ned had little buckets just back of his eyes that were always in a hurry to tip over if he hurt his toe or his finger, or did not have everything to suit him.
[Ill 0157]
"Now, Ned," she said, "cry real hard. I want to get the bowl full to-day if I can, so that I may buy the little fish to-morrow morning when I go to market."
Ann came into the room with a big white bowl. When he cried he must put tears into that bowl.
But Ned could not cry any more. The tears would not come. Ann said she would have to wait until the next time Ned cried. So she put the bowl on a table near by, that it might ready for the tears as soon as they started again.
0158m
But not a drop of salt water out of Ned's little tear-buckets ever fell into the bowl.
As soon as it was put it under his eyes Ned always stopped crying. The little fish was never bought. Ann said he could not live in the bowl without any salt water to swim in.
But Ned was cured of crying. Tom could not call him a cry-baby any more.
When Ned heard of other little boys who cried very often, he always told their mothers about his sister Ann's big white bowl, and the funny way he had been cured of being a cry-baby.
0159m
O little noisy Katydids,
And very plainly you can talk
Each tree within the glen
In tones both grave and gay;
A village is, all peopled by
But, "Katy did n't, Katy did,"
You small green-coated men.
Is all you ever say.
I very much would like to know
What did poor Katy do,
That you should quarrel with your friends
About it all night through.
But though I listen every night,
And question all I may,
Yet, "Katy did n't, Katy did,"
Is all you ever say.