THE LITTLE SAIL-BOAT.
James had a present of a big Jack-knife, and oh, how proud he was of it! He whistled all day long, and at last made himself a nice boat, with bowsprit, mast, and sail, all complete. James called his boat the “Arrow,” for it would fly so swiftly when the wind was right. O how it would go!
James had a sister Ella, near his own age, who was very fond of her brother, and proud of the boat that he had made. The two always played nicely together, and were never known to quarrel. James liked to please Ella, and Ella liked to please James, so both were happy.
There was nothing James and Ella enjoyed more than wading in the shallow water and guiding the little sail-boat—their newest toy. Ella called James—“Captain”; and James called Ella—“Mate,” and as James wore a sailor-suit he felt quite like a sea-faring man.
James was careful not to let his little boat get out into deep water, for it had cost him a great deal of time and trouble to make it, and he did not care to lose it. But one calm day the Captain and Mate had gone for a drive, leaving the sail-boat in what they thought was a safe place. While they were gone, a stiff breeze came up and blew the little boat away from the shore, and it sailed, and sailed far out of sight. Wasn’t that too bad?