{"collection":"myth-cosmogony","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_6685/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_6685","id":"gutenberg_6685","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/6685","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Children & Young Adult Reading","Category: Mythology, Legends & Folklore","Category: Short Stories","Children's Instructional Books","Readers","Reading"],"text":"Produced by Naomi Parkhurst, Charles Franks and the Online\nDistributed Proofreading Team.\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSTORY HOUR READERS\n\nTHIRD YEAR\n\nBOOK THREE\n\nBY\n\nIDA COE, Pd.M.\n\nASSISTANT PRINCIPAL, PUBLIC SCHOOLS\nCITY OF NEW YORK\n\nAND\n\nALICE J. CHRISTIE\n\nPRIMARY TEACHER. PUBLIC SCHOOLS\nCITY OF NEW YORK\n\nCONTENTS\n\n  THE LAND OF STORY BOOKS _Robert Louis Stevenson_\nHANSEL AND GRETEL _Fairy Tale_\nTHE EAGLE AND THE FOX _Fable_\n  HIAWATHA'S BROTHERS _Henry W. Longfellow_\nTHE BEAVERS' LODGE _Indian Folklore_\nMANITOU AND THE SQUIRRELS _Indian Folklore_\nTHE SWIFT RUNNER _Indian Folklore_\nBROTHER RABBIT _Indian Folklore_\n  QUEEN MAB _Thomas Hood_\nCINDERELLA _Fairy Tale_\n  THE WIND _Robert Louis Stevenson_\nTHE BAG OF WINDS _Greek Mythology_\nDIANA AND APOLLO _Greek Mythology_\n  THE TREE _Adapted from Bjornson_\nTHE FAIRY TREE _Fairy Tale_\n  HIAWATHA'S SAILING _Henry W. Longfellow_\nGRAY MOLE AND THE INDIAN _Indian Folklore_\nTHE WATER LILIES _Indian Folklore_\n  WHERE GO THE BOATS? _Robert Louis Stevenson_\nWHY THE SEA IS SALT _Northern Folklore_\nSENNIN THE HERMIT _From the Japanese_\nGREAT AND LITTLE BEAR _Greek Mythology_\n  THE BOY AND THE SHEEP _Ann Taylor_\nTHE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF _Aesop_\nTHE LION'S SHARE _Aesop_\n  ROBIN REDBREAST _William Allingham_\nTHORN ROSE _Fairy Tale_\nTHE WOLVES AND THE DEER _Fable_\n  THE CORNFIELDS _Henry W. Longfellow_\nTHE GIFT OF CORN _Indian Folklore_\n  A BOY'S SONG _James Hogg_\nTHE FROGS' TRAVELS _From the Japanese_\nTHE MERCHANT'S CARAVAN _East Indian Tale_\nQUEEN HULDA AND THE FLAX _European Folklore_\n  ALADDIN'S LAMP _Ida Coe_\nALADDIN AND THE MAGIC LAMP _Arabian Nights_\n  THE WHITING AND THE SNAIL _Lewis Carroll_\nTHE BONFIRE IN THE SEA _Australian Folklore_\nROBINSON CRUSOE _Daniel Defoe_\n  THE WONDERFUL WORLD\nTHE MAGIC GIRDLE _The Brothers Grimm_\n\n\n\n\n\nTHE LAND OF STORY BOOKS\n\n\nAt evening when the lamp is lit,\nAround the fire my parents sit;\nThey sit at home and talk and sing,\nAnd do not play at anything.\n\nNow with my little gun I crawl,\nAll in the dark, along the wall.\nAnd follow round the forest track\nAway behind the sofa back.\n\nThere in the night, where none can spy,\nAll in my hunter's camp I lie,\nAnd play at books that I have read,\nTill it is time to go to bed.\n\n       *       *       *       *       *\n\nSo, when my nurse comes in for me,\nHome I return across the sea,\nAnd go to bed with backward looks\nAt my dear Land of Story Books.\n\nROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.\n\n\n\n\nHANSEL AND GRETEL\n\n\nIn a little cottage at the edge of a forest in Germany, lived Peter, a\npoor broom maker, and his wife Gertrude. They had two children, Hansel\nand Gretel.\n\nOne day Hansel and Gretel were left alone at home. Their father had gone\nto the village to sell brooms. Their mother was away, too.\n\nThe children were left busily at work. The boy was mending brooms, the\ngirl knitting stockings.\n\nAfter a time they became tired of their hard work.\n\n\"Come, Gretel, let us have some fun!\" cried Hansel.\n\nAs he spoke, he threw the broom upon the floor, and pulled the stocking\nfrom his sister's hand.\n\n\"Oh, yes!\" said Gretel. \"I will teach you a song, and you can learn the\nsteps of the dance.\"\n\nHansel and Gretel danced about the room. Gretel sang, while she and\nHansel danced,\n\n  \"First your foot you tap, tap, tap,\n  Then your hands you clap, clap, clap;\n  Right foot first, left foot then,\n  Round about and back again.\"\n\nPresently the mother returned home. She entered the room and found\nHansel and Gretel at play.\n\n\"You lazy children!\" she exclaimed. \"Why have you not finished your\nwork?\"\n\nTaking the broom that Hansel had thrown upon the floor, the mother\nstarted to punish him, but the boy was too quick for her.\n\nHansel ran nimbly about, and as she was trying to catch him, the mother\nupset a jug of milk. It was all the food there was in the house.\n\n\"Oh, mother!\" cried Gretel. \"You have spilled the milk, and we shall\nhave nothing to eat.\"\n\n\"Go out into the woods and gather some strawberries. Do not return until\nyou have filled the basket to the brim,\" commanded the mother. \"Hansel,\nhelp your sister pick the berries, and hurry back, both of you, for\nthere is nothing else for supper.\"\n\nTowards evening the father returned from the village.\n\n\"Ho, ho, good wife!\" called Peter. \"I have had great luck to-day, and\nhave sold all my brooms. Now for a good supper! See here--bread and\nbutter, some potatoes, ham and eggs. But where are the children?\"\n\n\"They have gone to the woods to gather strawberries,\" replied Gertrude.\n\n\"It is growing dark. Hansel and Gretel should have been here long ago,\"\nsaid Peter anxiously.\n\nThe wife began to prepare supper. The husband went to the door of the\ncottage and looked out into the darkness.\n\n\"Alas, my children!\" cried Peter. \"I fear that the terrible Witch of the\nForest may find them, and that we shall never see them again!\"\n\nMeanwhile Hansel and Gretel had filled the basket with strawberries, and\nthen had wandered into the forest. They sat down upon a mossy bank under\na fir tree, to rest.\n\n\"Here is a fine strawberry! Taste it,\" said Gretel.\n\nShe put a berry into Hansel's mouth and took one for herself.\n\n\"I am so hungry! Give me another berry,\" said Hansel.\n\nThe children tasted another and another of the strawberries, until all\nwere gone.\n\n\"Oh, Hansel! We have eaten all of the strawberries,\" cried Gretel. \"We\nmust fill the basket again.\"\n\nThe children began to hunt for more berries, but it was now growing\ndark, and they could find none. To make matters worse, they had lost\ntheir way.\n\nGretel began to cry, but Hansel tried to be very brave.\n\n\"I will take care of you, sister,\" said he.\n\n\"Hark!\" said Gretel.\n\nThey could hear soft voices among the trees. The children became more\nfrightened than before.\n\n\"What is that, near the dark bushes?\" whispered Gretel.\n\n\"It is only the stump of a tree,\" replied Hansel.\n\n\"It is making faces at me!\" said Gretel.\n\nHansel made faces back again, trying to drive the strange form away.\n\nSuddenly a light came toward them.\n\n\"Oh, here are father and mother looking for us!\" cried Gretel.\n\nBut no, it was only the light of the will-o'-the-wisp.\n\nHansel called, \"Who is there?\"\n\nEcho answered, \"Who is there?\"\n\nPoor Babes in the Wood! They fled in terror, back to the mossy bank\nunder the fir tree. There they huddled close together.\n\nPresently a little man with a long white beard stood before them. He was\ndressed in gray clothes, and he carried a gray sack upon his back.\n\nHansel and Gretel were not afraid of the little man, for he seemed very\nfriendly.\n\nThe little man sang softly,\n\n  \"Golden slumbers close your eyes,\n  Smiles awake you when you rise.\n  Sleep, pretty darlings, do not cry,\n  And I will sing a lullaby.\n  Lullaby, lullaby, the Sandman am I.\"\n\nThen the Sandman threw into their tired eyes the sand of sleep. Soon the\nchildren had gone safely to Slumberland.\n\nAt midnight a little elf, whose home was deep in the heart of an oak\ntree, came forth and rang a fairy bell. He sang,\n\n  \"Twelve small strokes on my tinkling bell--\n  'Twas made of the white snail's pearly shell;--\n  Midnight comes, and all is well!\n      Hither, hither, wing your way,\n      'Tis the dawn of the fairy day!\"\n\nAt the last stroke of twelve, a troop of fairies and wood nymphs\nappeared. They danced merrily to the tune of the flower bells, forming a\nring around the children.\n\nWhen the sun's rays began to shine through the branches of the trees,\nthe fairies tripped away. Only the Dew Fairy remained. She sprinkled dew\nupon the children's faces with her magic wand.\n\nThe Dew Fairy sang,\n\n  \"Awake you, O children dear,\n     Wake you and rise!\n   The sun glowing brightly, peeps\n     Into your eyes!\"\n\nThen the Dew Fairy departed.\n\n\"O Hansel! Hear the birds singing! Where are we?\" exclaimed Gretel.\n\"Come, Hansel, wake up!\"\n\nThe children looked about them in wonder. The giant trees had\ndisappeared, and near them stood a little house.\n\n\"What a pretty cottage!\" said Hansel. \"Why, it is a candy house! The\nroof is chocolate, and the windows are sugar plums. What a queer fence!\nIt is gingerbread!\"\n\nSoon they heard some one say, in a squeaky voice,\n\n  \"Nibble, nibble, little mouse,\n  Who is nibbling my sweet house?\"\n\nThe children only ate and sang and laughed.\n\nSuddenly the door of the house flew open. An old witch came out. On her\nhead she wore a pointed hat, and in her hand she carried a stick.\n\nThe candy cottage belonged to the Witch of the Forest.\n\n\"Oh, ho!\" cried the witch. \"You dear children, who led you here? Come\nin, and I will give you candies, cakes, apples, and nuts--all that you\nwish to eat!\"\n\nHansel and Gretel were frightened. They started to run away, but the old\nwitch waved her Elder Bush above her head. It cast a spell over the\nchildren. They could not move.\n\nThen the witch put Hansel into a cage. She brought from the cottage a\nbasket of sugar plums, candies, and nuts. She gave him the sweets to\neat.\n\n\"You will soon be fat enough to cook,\" she muttered. \"I will bake the\ngirl first.\"\n\nGrasping the little girl's arm, she shook her roughly, saying, \"Go into\nthe house and set the table while I build a fire.\"\n\nThe old witch gathered some wood. As she threw it upon the fire, she\nsaid, \"Now for a ride through the air on my broom, while the oven is\nheating!\"\n\nAstride her big broom, the witch rode high above the cottage. She\ncircled around like a huge bird, over the trees and back again, while\nshe sang a strange song.\n\nHansel, shut up in the cage, watched her in terror.\n\nAt last the witch flew down to the ground, on her broom. She alighted\nclose beside the oven, which stood in the front yard.\n\nCalling the little girl out of the house she said, \"Open the oven door.\nThen creep inside and see if it is hot enough to bake the bread.\"\n\nBut Gretel guessed that the witch meant to shut the door upon her, so\nshe said, \"I am afraid to creep into the oven.\"\n\n\"Silly child!\" said the witch. \"The door is wide enough. Why, even I\ncould pass through!\"\n\nAs she spoke, she popped her head into the oven.\n\nGretel sprang toward her and shut the oven door. That was the end of the\nold witch!\n\nThen Gretel ran and unfastened the door of the cage.\n\n\"We are saved, Hansel!\" she exclaimed. Then she danced about, singing\nmerrily,\n\n  \"First your foot you tap, tap, tap,\n  Then your hands you clap, clap, clap;\n  Right foot first, left foot then,\n  Round about and back again.\"\n\nThen, taking the Elder Bush, Gretel waved it above her head as the witch\nhad done.\n\nInstantly the candy house became a log cabin. Sunflowers and\nmorning-glories were growing in the front yard, where the witch's cage\nand the oven had stood.\n\nSoon voices were heard. The sounds came nearer, and the father and\nmother clasped their children in their arms.\n\nPeter and Gertrude lived with the two children in the log cabin in the\nforest, for many happy years. And the fairies always took good care of\nboth Hansel and Gretel.\n\n\n\n\nTHE EAGLE AND THE FOX\n\n\nOne morning the fox said to his children, \"I will find some eggs for\nbreakfast.\"\n\nThen he went to the woods.\n\nThe fox saw an eagle's nest in the top branch of a tree. \"How can I\nreach those eggs?\" thought he. \"Ha, ha! Now I have a plan.\"\n\nHe put some grass stalks into his ears and knocked on the tree with\nthem.\n\n\"Throw an egg to me,\" cried the fox. \"If you do not throw an egg to me,\nI will knock this great tree over with these grass stalks.\"\n\nThe eagle was terribly frightened, and she threw an egg down to the fox.\n\n\"Throw another egg down to me at once,\" demanded the fox, when he saw\nthat he had frightened the eagle.\n\n\"One egg is enough,\" said the eagle. \"I shall not throw down any more\neggs.\"\n\n\"Throw another egg to me, or I shall knock the tree over with these\ngrass stalks, and take all your eggs,\" said the fox.\n\nThe eagle was still more frightened, and she threw down another egg.\n\nThen the fox laughed and said, \"How could I knock down a great tree with\nthese small grass stalks?\"\n\nThe eagle became very angry. She flew down from her nest and grasped the\nfox with her talons.\n\nThen she lifted the fox up and flew with him far out to sea. She dropped\nhim upon a lonely island.\n\nThe fox was left on the lonely island. One day he said to himself, \"Am I\ngoing to die on this island?\"\n\nThen the fox began to sing softly. Seals, walruses, porpoises, and\nwhales swam near the island.\n\n\"What are you singing about?\" asked the sea people.\n\n\"This is what I am singing about,\" said the fox. \"Are there more large\nanimals in the waters of the sea, or on dry land?\"\n\n\"Certainly there are more animals in the waters of the sea than on dry\nland,\" replied the sea people.\n\n\"Well, then, prove it to me!\" said the fox. \"Come up to the surface of\nthe water and form a raft that will reach from this island to the\nmainland. Then I can walk over all of you, and I shall be able to count\nyou.\"\n\nSo the large sea people--seals, walruses, porpoises, and whales--came up\nto the surface of the water.\n\nThe sea people formed a great raft, that reached from the island across\nto the mainland.\n\nThis was what the fox wanted. He ran over the great raft, pretending to\ncount the animals.\n\nWhen at last the fox reached the mainland, he jumped ashore and hastened\nhome.\n\n\n\n\nHIAWATHA'S BROTHERS\n\n\n Of all beasts he learned the language,\nLearned their names and all their secrets,\nHow the beavers built their lodges,\nWhere the squirrels hid their acorns,\nHow the reindeer ran so swiftly,\nWhy the rabbit was so timid,\nTalked with them whene'er he met them,\nCalled them \"Hiawatha's Brothers.\"\n\nHENRY W. LONGFELLOW.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BEAVERS' LODGE\n\n\nBig Chief had traveled a long distance through the forest. At last he\nreached the shore of a lake.\n\nHe was very tired, so he sat down upon a rock to rest.\n\nSuddenly a large beaver came up from the water and stood before Big\nChief.\n\n\"Who are you, that you dare to enter my kingdom?\" demanded the beaver.\n\n\"I am Big Chief,\" replied the Indian. \"The Great Spirit has given me\npower over all the animals. Who are you?\"\n\n\"I am Master Beaver. All the beavers follow me and obey my commands. We\nare busy people. We always have plenty to do.\"\n\nBig Chief was not afraid. He showed Master Beaver his bow and arrows and\nhis wampum belt, saying, \"These gifts were bestowed upon me by the Great\nSpirit. I am ruler over the animals of field and forest, over the birds,\nand over the fish.\"\n\nWhen Master Beaver saw the bow and arrows and the wampum belt, he knew\nthat the Indian was very powerful. So he said, less proudly, \"Will you\ncome with me and see how the beavers build their lodges?\"\n\nBig Chief followed Master Beaver for a short distance along the shore of\nthe lake. He saw many beavers at work cutting down trees with their\nsharp teeth.\n\nSome of the trees had fallen across the water and reached to an island\nin the lake.\n\nOn the island, other beavers were plastering the spaces between the\ntrees with mud and leaves.\n\nMaster Beaver said that this was the way the beavers built a dam.\n\nThen he led Big Chief to the beavers' village on the island. Here were\nmany lodges, built of sticks, grass and moss, and plastered with clay.\n\nAt last Master Beaver paused before one of the lodges.\n\n\"Enter! This is my home. You are welcome, Big Chief,\" said Master\nBeaver.\n\nThe Indian followed the beaver through a long, winding tunnel. They came\nto a large room. The floor of the room was covered with grass and bark.\n\nBig Chief admired the dainty house with its dome-shaped roof.\n\nMaster Beaver's wife and his daughter gave the stranger a hearty\nwelcome. They at once prepared a meal of poplar, birch and willow bark,\nand roots of water lilies.\n\nThis was choice food for beavers, but it was not the kind of dinner that\nBig Chief liked. Nevertheless he was very happy.\n\nMaster Beaver's daughter waited upon her father and his guest. She was\nso very fair that she won the heart of Big Chief.\n\nHe no longer wished to live alone. He asked Master Beaver to give the\nmaiden to him, to be his bride. This pleased Master Beaver very much,\nfor he liked Big Chief.\n\nAll the beavers and their neighbors were invited to the wedding. The\nnext morning, some of the beavers arrived bringing clay. Then came\notters, each carrying a large fish in his mouth as a present for the\nbride.\n\nThey were followed by the weasels, the minks, and the muskrats.\n\nThe guests enjoyed the wedding breakfast in the lodge of Master Beaver.\n\nAfter the feast, the beavers invited the other animals to meet them on\nthe bank of the lake. There they held a council.\n\nThey said, \"We will build a lodge, which shall be the wedding gift of\nthe beavers.\"\n\nThen they chose a place under the birch trees that grew near the shore\nof the lake. Here the beavers began to build a lodge, of sticks of wood\nand the clay which they had brought with them. Soon the cozy lodge was\nfinished.\n\nNow came the greatest wonder of all. It pleased the Great Spirit to\nchange the bride into a beautiful woman--a wife suited to the noble and\nhandsome Big Chief.\n\nAmid the cheers of their friends, Master Beaver led the happy couple to\nthe cozy lodge near the lake. There they made their home.\n\n\n\n\nMANITOU AND THE SQUIRRELS\n\n\n\"Please tell me one more story about the great Manitou, Grandmother,\"\nbegged the little Indian boy.\n\nThe grandmother liked to tell stories to the boy. She sat down facing\nhim and told him the story of the great Manitou and the squirrels.\n\nThis was the story she told:\n\nOnce upon a time, there was scarcely any food to be found. The great\nManitou and his wife had fasted for many days, and they were very\nhungry.\n\n\"We must have meat,\" said Manitou.\n\nThen he thought of a plan.\n\nHe lifted his bow and aimed a magic arrow through the door of the\nwigwam.\n\nThe arrow sped onward in the forest, until it passed through the body of\na bear. It held the bear fast to a tree.\n\nManitou and his wife went into the forest together. There they found the\nbear.\n\nThen Manitou said, \"We will have a feast and invite our friends.\"\n\nThe birds and beasts were glad to accept the invitation. A large company\narrived.\n\nThe woodpecker was the first to taste the food. He began to eat\ngreedily, for he was very hungry.\n\nWhen he put the meat into his mouth, it turned to ashes.\n\nThe woodpecker began to cough. \"This is very impolite; I must not let\nManitou hear me cough,\" thought he.\n\nThe fox was the next to taste the meat. It turned to ashes, and he began\nto cough.\n\nAll the other guests began to cough as soon as they had tasted the meat.\nThey tried very hard not to let Manitou hear them.\n\nThey kept on tasting, but the more they tasted the harder they coughed.\n\nAt last Manitou became very angry.\n\n\"I will make you remember this,\" said he.\n\nIn an instant, the woodpecker, the fox, and all the other guests had\ndisappeared. In their place were many squirrels, running up and down the\ntrees and coughing as squirrels always do when taken by surprise.\n\nTo this day, squirrels do not eat meat, but instead they nibble acorns\nand nuts.\n\n\"If you have sharp eyes,\" added the grandmother, \"you will find hollow\nplaces in the trees, where the squirrels hide their acorns and nuts.\"\n\n\n\n\nTHE SWIFT RUNNER\n\n\nIn the olden times, the animals were fond of sports. They often held\ncontests, with prizes for those that won.\n\nOnce a prize was offered for the animal who could prove himself the\nswiftest runner.\n\nThe reward was to be a pair of great antlers. Each animal was to carry\nthe antlers on his head, while running the race. The animal that should\nwin, would have the antlers for his own.\n\nA path through the woods was chosen for the race course. There were many\nbushes and brambles along the way.\n\nAll the animals gathered at the place of meeting. They chose Black Bear\nto be judge of the race. It was decided that the rabbit and the deer\nalone should try for the prize.\n\n\"They are the best runners. None of the rest of us could hope to win,\"\nsaid the other animals.\n\nWhite Rabbit was given the first chance.\n\n\"I am willing to try for the prize,\" White Rabbit said, \"but I would\nlike first to look over the ground where I am to run.\"\n\nSo White Rabbit disappeared in the woods. He was gone so long that Red\nFox was sent to look for him.\n\nRed Fox found the rabbit hard at work, cutting off twigs to clear a path\nalong which to run.\n\nRed Fox went back and told the other animals what White Rabbit was\ndoing.\n\nPretty soon White Rabbit came out of the woods. He was all ready to put\non the antlers and begin the race for the great prize.\n\n\"Oh, no!\" said Judge Bear. \"We cannot allow you to enter the great race.\nYou are too fond of gnawing twigs. You may keep on gnawing twigs instead\nof trying for the prize.\"\n\nSo little White Rabbit was not allowed to run for the prize.\n\nRed Fox placed the horns upon the head of the deer and said, \"It is your\nturn to try to win the race.\"\n\nThen the animals gave three loud cheers and told the deer to do his\nbest.\n\nThe deer ran swiftly along the woodland path. He carried the antlers so\nskillfully that they were not once caught in the bushes.\n\nWhen the deer returned to the place of meeting, Judge Bear proclaimed\nhim winner of the race.\n\nAs Black Bear gave the prize to the deer, he said, \"Henceforth you shall\nwear the antlers on your head. You shall always be called the Swift\nRunner.\"\n\n\n\n\nBROTHER RABBIT\n\n\nOne autumn day in the long ago, Eagle Eye, the great Indian chief, was\nvery sad.\n\nAll summer long there had been no rain. The prairie grass was crisp and\nbrown. The little streams were dry.\n\nThe animals, finding neither water nor green grass, had gone to the\nmountains many miles away. The Indians of the plains had no food to eat.\n\n\"I will go and search for the place where the animals have gone, so that\nI may tell my hunters and save the lives of my people,\" said Eagle Eye.\n\nSo, carrying his canoe to the river, Eagle Eye paddled up the stream for\nmany days and nights. He watched to see if any of the animals came to\nthe river to drink, but there was not even a squirrel.\n\nOne night the clouds hung low in the sky.\n\n\"There will be snow before morning,\" said Eagle Eye.\n\nThen the great chief hauled his canoe up the river bank. He made a\nshelter with branches of trees. Here he slept through the night.\n\nIn the morning, the ground was covered with snow.\n\n\"The Great Spirit is kind,\" said Eagle Eye. \"Now I shall see the\nfootprints of some of the animals, and I can follow them.\"\n\nSoon he found the footprints of deer that had been to the river to\ndrink. Eagle Eye followed the footprints for many miles. At last he\nfound where the animals lived.\n\nEagle Eye marked some trees, so that he might find the place again.\n\nThen he started to return to the river bank where he had left his canoe.\n\nSnow had fallen, and everything was white. Eagle Eye could not find the\ncanoe.\n\n\"I am lost!\" cried Eagle Eye. \"If only there were some way of finding my\ncanoe!\"\n\nJust then he saw a rabbit peering out from behind the stump of a tree.\n\n\"O Brother Rabbit!\" called Eagle Eye. \"How glad I am to see you! I am\nlost. I cannot find the river bank.\"\n\n\"Let me lead the way,\" Brother Rabbit replied. \"If you will watch my\ndark fur against the snow, you can easily follow close behind me.\"\n\nSo Brother Rabbit hopped along, and Eagle Eye, watching the dark fur\nagainst the snow, followed close behind.\n\nAt last they reached the river bank, and there they found Eagle Eye's\ncanoe.\n\nEagle Eye pushed the canoe into the water and stepped in.\n\nBefore he paddled away he said, \"You have saved my life, Brother Rabbit.\nHereafter your brown fur shall be white when the cold winter comes. Then\nno one will see your body against the snow, and you will always be\nsafe.\"\n\nThe rabbit turned pure white.\n\nHe looked like a ball of snow beside the bushes.\n\nThen Eagle Eye smiled.\n\n\"Your enemies will have a long chase after this,\" he said, \"before they\nwill find Brother Rabbit!\"\n\nAfter many days, Eagle Eye reached his home once more.\n\nThe chief told his people that he had followed the footprints of deer,\nand had found where the animals lived.\n\nThe Indians went with Eagle Eye after the deer, and soon they had plenty\nof food.\n\n\n\n\nQUEEN MAB\n\n\nA little fairy comes at night,\n  Her eyes are blue, her hair is brown,\nWith silver spots upon her wings,\n  And from the moon she flutters down.\n\nShe has a little silver wand,\n  And when a good child goes to bed,\nShe waves her hand from right to left,\n  And makes a circle round its head.\n\nAnd then it dreams of pleasant things--\n  Of fountains filled with fairy fish,\nAnd trees that bear delicious fruit,\n  And bow their branches at a wish.\n\nOf arbors filled with dainty scents\n  From lovely flowers that never fade;\nBright flies that glitter in the sun,\n  And glowworms shining in the shade.\n\nAnd talking birds with gifted tongues,\n  For singing songs and telling tales,\nAnd pretty dwarfs to show the way\n  Through fairy hills and fairy dales.\n\nBut when a bad child goes to bed,\n  From left to right she weaves her rings,\nAnd then it dreams all through the night\n  Of only ugly, horrid things!\n\nThen lions come with glaring eyes,\n  And tigers growl, a dreadful noise,\nAnd ogres draw their cruel knives,\n  To shed the blood of girls and boys.\n\nThen stormy waves rush on to drown,\n  Or raging flames come scorching round,\nFierce dragons hover in the air,\n  And serpents crawl along the ground.\n\nThen wicked children wake and weep,\n  And wish the long black gloom away;\nBut good ones love the dark, and find\n  The night as pleasant as the day.\n\nTHOMAS HOOD.\n\n\n\n\nCINDERELLA\n\n\nOnce upon a time, there was a proud, selfish woman who had three\ndaughters. The youngest was prettier than her sisters, and they were\njealous of her beauty. They made her do all the housework, while they\nwent to parties and balls.\n\nThe girl washed the dishes and swept the floors. She tended the fire and\nfed the parrot whose cage hung by the kitchen window. She spent so much\ntime among the ashes and cinders, that her sisters called her\nCinderella.\n\nNow it happened that the king was to give a ball, in honor of the young\nprince. Cinderella's mother and sisters were invited.\n\nHow pleased they were to receive the invitation! They could think of\nnothing but the fine clothes they intended to wear.\n\nThey sent for the best dressmaker they could find. The oldest sister\nchose a pink silk gown. \"I shall wear my red satin cloak trimmed with\nswan's-down,\" said she.\n\nThe second sister chose a gown of green velvet, saying, \"The green\nvelvet will show my diamonds to advantage.\"\n\nThe night of the great ball came at last. Cinderella helped her sisters\nto dress.\n\n\"Do you not wish that you were going to the ball?\" said one of them.\n\n\"Yes, indeed!\" sighed poor Cinderella.\n\nBut her sisters only laughed.\n\nCinderella watched them from the kitchen window as they drove away in\ntheir fine carriage. Then she sat down by the fire and began to cry.\n\n\"Why are you crying, Cinderella?\" said some one gently.\n\nThere stood her Fairy Godmother.\n\n\"I wish I could--I wish I could--\" sobbed Cinderella.\n\n\"You wish that you could go to the prince's ball,\" said the Fairy\nGodmother.\n\n\"Yes,\" nodded Cinderella.\n\n\"Stop crying and you may go,\" said the Fairy Godmother. \"Run into the\ngarden and bring me the largest pumpkin that you can find.\"\n\nCinderella could not think how a pumpkin would help her to go, but she\nobeyed.\n\nThe Fairy Godmother scooped out the inside of the pumpkin, leaving only\nthe rind. She carried it to the kitchen door. Then she touched the rind\nwith her wand. Instantly there stood a great coach covered with gold.\n\n\"Where shall we find horses for such a great coach?\" cried Cinderella.\n\n\"Bring the mouse trap from the cellar,\" the Fairy Godmother replied.\n\n\"Here are six live mice in the trap,\" said Cinderella breathlessly.\n\nThe Fairy Godmother lifted the door of the trap. She touched each of the\nmice with her wand as it ran out. The mice became six beautiful white\nhorses standing before the coach.\n\n\"Where shall we find a coachman to drive the horses?\" asked Cinderella.\n\n\"Bring the rat trap to me,\" replied the Fairy Godmother.\n\nCinderella brought the rat trap, and in it was a large gray rat.\n\nAt a touch of the wand, the rat was changed into a coachman. He sat in\nstate upon the coach.\n\n\"Now run into the garden again. You will find two lizards behind the\nwatering pot. Bring them to me.\"\n\nThe Fairy Godmother touched the lizards with her wand. In their place\nstood two footmen in splendid livery.\n\nThey stepped to the back of the coach as if they had been footmen all\ntheir lives.\n\nThen the kind Fairy Godmother touched Cinderella's clothes with her\nwand. The rags became a beautiful costume of satin, covered with pearls.\nIn place of her old shoes were glass slippers that had been made by the\nfairies. They were the very prettiest little slippers in the world.\n\nNever had Cinderella been so happy!\n\n\"Now you may go to the ball, but do not fail to leave before midnight,\"\nsaid the Fairy Godmother.\n\n\"If you stay until the clock strikes twelve,\" added the Fairy Godmother,\n\"your coach will again become a pumpkin; your horses will be mice; your\ncoachman will be a rat; your footmen will be lizards, and your beautiful\ndress will become rags.\"\n\nCinderella stepped into the coach. A few minutes later, the white horses\ndashed into the royal courtyard.\n\nThe door of the coach was flung open, and Cinderella stepped out.\n\nAs Cinderella entered the ball room, the prince hastened to meet her.\n\n\"Never,\" said he to himself, \"have I seen anyone so lovely!\"\n\nCinderella was so beautiful, so elegantly dressed, and she danced so\nwell, that the prince fell in love with her. He would dance with no one\nelse.\n\nThe evening passed away like a dream. Suddenly Cinderella heard a clock\nchime three quarters past eleven.\n\nShe bade the prince good-night and was soon on her way home in the\npumpkin coach.\n\nWhen Cinderella reached home, she found her Fairy Godmother waiting to\nhear about the ball.\n\n\"It was fine!\" said Cinderella. \"The prince has invited me to attend the\nball to be given to-morrow night. Oh, how I wish that I might go!\"\n\n\"You may certainly go to the prince's ball to-morrow night. I wish to\nmake you very happy, dear child,\" said the Fairy Godmother.\n\nBy the time the mother and sisters had returned home from the ball, the\nFairy Godmother had disappeared.\n\nCinderella was sitting by the kitchen fire in her rags.\n\n\"Do you not wish that you had been to the ball?\" asked the sisters.\n\"There was a wonderful princess there. The prince would dance with no\none else.\"\n\n\"Who was she?\" asked Cinderella.\n\n\"That we cannot say,\" answered the two sisters. \"She would not tell her\nname, though the prince, on bended knee, begged her to do so.\"\n\nThe next night, as soon as the mother and sisters had started in their\ncarriage to attend the ball, the Fairy Godmother appeared once more.\n\nAgain, at the touch of her wand, the pumpkin became a coach; the mice\nbecame horses; the rat became a coachman, and the lizards became\nfootmen.\n\nThe Fairy Godmother touched Cinderella's clothes with her wand, and this\ntime her rags became a beautiful costume of silver cloth, covered with\nrubies. In place of the worn-out shoes were the wonderful glass\nslippers.\n\n\"Whatever you do, remember to leave before the clock strikes twelve,\"\nsaid the Fairy Godmother, as Cinderella drove away.\n\nWhen Cinderella arrived at the king's palace, the prince met her at the\ndoor. He would dance with no one else.\n\nCinderella was very happy. The hours passed swiftly away, but she left\nthe palace before the clock struck twelve.\n\nThe king gave another ball the third night. This time Cinderella wore a\ncostume of gold cloth, covered with sparkling diamonds; and on her feet\nwere the wonderful glass slippers.\n\nThe prince met her at the door. He led her to the ball room and again\nwould dance with no one else.\n\nThis time Cinderella was enjoying the ball so much that she forgot the\nwarning of the Fairy Godmother.\n\nSuddenly the clock began to strike twelve. With a cry of alarm she fled\nfrom the ball room, dropping one of her glass slippers in her haste.\n\nThe prince hurried after her, but by the time he reached the royal\ncourtyard the beautiful maiden had disappeared.\n\nAs Cinderella arrived at her own gate, the coach became a pumpkin; the\nhorses became mice; the coachman became a rat and the footmen lizards.\n\nCinderella was again clothed in rags, but in her hand she carried one of\nthe glass slippers that she had worn at the prince's ball.\n\nThe mother and sisters came home soon afterwards. They could talk of\nnothing but the sudden disappearance of the beautiful princess.\n\nOn the following morning, there was a noise of trumpets and drums.\n\nThe king's messengers passed through the town, crying, \"The king's son\nwill marry the fair maiden whose foot the glass slipper exactly fits.\"\n\nThe prince rode behind in his coach. He was followed by a company of\nattendants, who carried the glass slipper upon a velvet cushion.\n\nAt last the procession arrived at the home of Cinderella.\n\nThe mother and sisters saw the prince coming.\n\nThey at once hid pretty Cinderella under a tub in the kitchen.\n\nThe prince tried to fit the glass slipper to the foot of the oldest\ndaughter. The foot was too long and too thin at the heel.\n\n\"You can pare off the heel,\" said the mother.\n\nBut the prince only laughed.\n\nHe tried the glass slipper on the foot of the second daughter. Her foot\nwas too short and too fat at the toe.\n\n\"You can pare off the toe,\" said the mother.\n\nBut the prince only laughed.\n\nSuddenly the parrot called, from his cage by the kitchen window,\n\n  \"You may pare off the heels,\n    Or pare off the toes,\n  But under the tub\n    The slipper goes.\"\n\nThe prince ordered his attendants to lift the tub. Crouching under it\nsat Cinderella, clothed in rags but wearing on one foot the mate to the\nglass slipper.\n\nThe prince knelt upon the velvet cushion, and tried on Cinderella's foot\nthe little glass slipper which he had found in the ball room. It fitted\nexactly. It was like the slipper that Cinderella had on the other foot.\n\nAt that moment, the Fairy Godmother appeared. She touched Cinderella's\nclothes with her wand.\n\nThere stood Cinderella, dressed in a costume even more beautiful than\nthose she had worn at the palace.\n\nThen the prince saw that Cinderella was indeed the lovely maiden for\nwhom he was searching. He arose and kissed her, and begged her to become\nhis wife.\n\nThe prince and Cinderella were married, and in time they became king and\nqueen. They ruled the kingdom long and well.\n\n\n\n\nTHE WIND\n\n\nI saw yon toss the kites on high\nAnd blow the birds about the sky;\nAnd all around I heard you pass,\nLike ladies' skirts across the grass--\n  O wind, a-blowing all day long!\n  O wind, that sings so loud a song!\n\nI saw the different things you did,\nBut always you yourself you hid.\nI felt you push, I heard you call,\nI could not see yourself at all--\n  O wind, a-blowing all day long!\n  O wind, that sings so loud a song!\n\nO you that are so strong and cold,\nO blower, are you young or old?\nAre you a beast of field and tree,\nOr just a stronger child than me?\n  O wind, a-blowing all day long!\n  O wind, that sings so loud a song!\n\nROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BAG OF WINDS\n\n\nThe great caves of an island, far away in the midst of the sea, were the\nhome of the Winds.\n\nEolus was ruler of the Winds. He kept them imprisoned in the caves.\nSometimes he allowed them to go free for a time, to have a frolic or\ntake exercise.\n\nAlthough the Winds were often unruly and were fond of mischief, they\nalways obeyed the voice of Eolus.\n\nNorth Wind was the roughest of all. He would go from his cave on the\nwildest errands.\n\nSometimes he would pile the waves mountains high and would lash them\ninto a tempest. He would tear the sails and break the masts of the\nvessels. He would uproot the forest trees and tear the roofs from the\nhouses.\n\nBut at the command of Eolus, North Wind would cease his roaring and\nwould go sullenly back to his cave.\n\n\"South Wind!\" Eolus would call. \"Send a gentle, playful breeze among the\nflowers. Bring gay sunshine and soft showers. Sing a song of spring.\n\n\"West Wind! Blow steadily against the sails of the ships and speed them\non their journey.\n\n\"East Wind! Go forth in a jolly, merry mood. Whirl the leaves over the\nground and scatter the seeds far and wide.\n\n\"North Wind! Cover the earth with a blanket of snow. Freeze the waters\nof the lakes and rivers.\"\n\nThus Eolus would command the Winds, and they would do his bidding.\n\nOne day a ship stopped near the island of the Winds, and anchored. The\ncaptain of the ship and the sailors went ashore.\n\nEolus treated the visitors very kindly.\n\nWhen the sailors discovered that they had come to the home of the Winds,\nthey cried, \"O Eolus! Tell West Wind to blow and help us reach home\nquickly:\"\n\nThen Eolus took a leather bag and put into it all the unruly Winds. He\ntied the end of the bag with a silver string. Giving the bag to the\ncaptain, he said, \"Fasten the bag to the mast of your ship. Do not open\nit, or trouble will follow.\"\n\nThen Eolus called West Wind from his island cave.\n\nThe captain and the sailors thanked Eolus and started off in the ship.\nWest Wind blew gently, and the ship sailed over smooth waters day and\nnight. Each day found them nearer home.\n\nAt last, on the evening of the ninth day, they saw the shores of their\nown land.\n\nThe captain cried, \"Land, ahoy! We shall anchor in the harbor\nto-morrow.\"\n\nTired with long watching, and thinking that the ship was safe, he went\nto sleep.\n\nThen the sailors began to whisper softly to each other.\n\n\"What do you suppose there is in the bag?\" said one.\n\n\"It is tied with a silver cord. I am sure that it is full of gold,\" said\nanother.\n\nThen they planned to rob the captain of his treasure.\n\nOne of the sailors untied the bag.\n\nOut rushed the angry Winds! They raged and roared. A storm arose, and\nthe ship was sent far out of its course. The captain begged West Wind to\nhelp the sailors, but he could not.\n\nAt last the ship was driven back to the home of the Winds.\n\nEolus was surprised when he saw the ship again.\n\n\"Why have you returned?\" asked Eolus.\n\n\"The sailors untied the silver cord at the end of the bag and set the\nunruly Winds free,\" replied the captain. \"Please call them back to their\ncaves and help us.\"\n\n\"Depart!\" cried Eolus angrily. \"I will show you no more favors.\"\n\nSadly they sailed away, and no kind West Wind helped them.\n\nThey toiled for many days and nights, and they suffered great hardship\nbefore they came once more in sight of their own land.\n\n\n\n\nDIANA AND APOLLO\n\n\nOn an island in the sea, there lived a beautiful woman who had two\nchildren, twins. The girl's name was Diana, the boy's Apollo.\n\nIt was a floating island. Neptune, the king of the sea, had placed four\nmarble pillars under it, and had fastened it with heavy chains.\n\nThe two children grew rapidly. Diana became tall and graceful. Jupiter,\nking of heaven and earth, saw that she was very fair.\n\nOne day as Diana was walking through the forest, Jupiter met her and\nspoke to her, saying, \"Fair Diana, hereafter you shall be called Queen\nof the Woods.\"\n\nDiana, followed by her maids the wood nymphs, often wandered through the\nforest. She took care of the deer and all helpless creatures, but she\nhunted fierce animals.\n\nApollo, also, grew to be fair and strong.\n\nJupiter bestowed many gifts upon the youth. He gave Apollo a pair of\nswans and a golden chariot, so that the boy could go anywhere, on land\nor sea.\n\nThe most wonderful present that Jupiter gave to Apollo was a silver bow,\nwith sharp arrows which never missed the mark. Apollo prized the bow so\nhighly and used it so very skillfully, that he came to be called \"Master\nof the Silver Bow.\"\n\n\n\n\nTHE TREE\n\n\nGreen stood the Tree,\n  With its leaves tender bright.\n\"Shall I take them?\" said Frost,\n  As he breathed thro' the night.\n    \"Oh! pray let them be,\n    Till my blossoms you see!\"\nBegged the Tree, as she shivered\n  And shook in affright.\n\nSweet sang the birds\n  The fair blossoms among.\n\"Shall I take them?\" said Wind,\n  As he swayed them and swung.\n    \"Oh! pray let them be,\n    Till my berries you see!\"\nBegged the Tree, as its branches\n  All quivering hung.\n\nBright grew the berries\n  Beneath the sun's heat.\n\"Shall I take them?\" said Lassie\n  So young and so sweet.\n    \"Ah! take them, I crave!\n    Take all that I have!\"\nBegged the Tree, as it bent\n  Its full boughs to her feet.\n\nADAPTED.\n\n\n\n\nTHE FAIRY TREE\n\n\nLong, long ago, on an island in the sea, lived a family of seven\nsisters. The oldest girl ruled the household, and her sisters obeyed her\ncommands. Flora, the youngest sister, was sent to the forest each day,\nto gather wood for the kitchen fire.\n\nNear the edge of the forest was a cave under some rocks. A stream of\nwater fell over the rocks into a basin in the cave.\n\nThis was a delightfully cool spot, and Flora often rested here on her\nway home after gathering wood in the forest. She would lie on the mossy\nbank of the stream, for hours, and dream.\n\nOne morning as Flora ran along the grassy path that led to the cave, she\nsaw a little fish in the stream. Its scales flashed out all the colors\nof the rainbow.\n\n\"I am going to keep the fish for a pet,\" said the girl to herself. \"I\nwill call him Rainbow.\"\n\nSo she caught the pretty fish and put him into the basin in the cave.\n\nThe next day Flora went to the forest for wood. She carried some crumbs\nof bread which she had saved from her breakfast.\n\nOn the way home she stopped at the cave. The fish was waiting for her.\nHe came to the edge of the basin, and she fed the crumbs to him.\n\nHow delighted the girl was! She had been so lonely, and now she had a\nplayfellow!\n\nEvery morning, instead of eating the bread which her sister gave to her,\nFlora would save it and feed the crumbs to her pet. The fish would leap\nto catch them.\n\n\"Here are some crumbs, Rainbow,\" she would say. \"This is all to-day, but\nI shall come again to-morrow.\"\n\nThen she would sing a little song.\n\nFlora began to grow thin, and her sisters wondered what could be the\nmatter.\n\nOne day the oldest sister followed her to the cave and saw her feed the\ncrumbs of bread to the fish.\n\nWhile Flora was away in the forest, the oldest sister caught the fish,\ncarried him home and baked him for supper.\n\nThe bones were buried under the kitchen fire.\n\nThe next morning, Flora went to the cave as usual, but no fish was\nthere. She sang her little song, and still he did not come.\n\n\"Rainbow cannot be dead,\" she said, \"for I do not see him in the water.\"\n\nThen Flora hastened home. She threw herself upon her bed and was soon\nfast asleep.\n\nThe following morning, a rooster flew up to Flora's window and crowed,\n\n  \"Cock-a-doodle-doodle-doo!\n  The bones of Rainbow wait for you,\n  Under the kitchen fire, too.\"\n\nFlora arose at once and went downstairs. There, under the kitchen fire,\nshe found the bones of her pet. She wept as she gathered the bones and\nplaced them in a box.\n\nShe went to the forest and buried the box near the cave.\n\nThen Flora sat down on a mossy bank near the cave and sang this song:\n\n  \"Rainbow, Rainbow, hear my cry,\n   My great wish do not deny.\n   If you can't come back to me,\n   Pray, O pray, become a tree!\"\n\nAs the last words of the song echoed through the cave, there sprang up\nbeside the girl a wonderful Fairy Tree.\n\nIts trunk was of ivory. Its leaves were of silver fringed with pearls.\nIts flowers were gold, and its fruit gems from which sparkled the bright\ncolors of the rainbow.\n\nOne day the summer breeze carried a leaf from the Fairy Tree across the\nsea to another island. It fell at the feet of the king.\n\nHe picked up the wonderful leaf, saying, \"I shall never rest until I\nfind the tree from which this leaf came.\"\n\nThe king set sail with his attendants. He soon landed on the island\nwhere the seven sisters lived.\n\nAs the king and his men were marching through the forest, they found the\nFairy Tree growing at the entrance to the cave.\n\nThe king tried to pick some of the leaves, but he could not.\n\nThen he heard the sweet voice of a girl. She was singing,\n\n  \"Rainbow, Rainbow, speak to me!\n  Bend your branches, Fairy Tree!\"\n\nAnd Flora came tripping along the grassy path that led to the cave.\n\nThe king said, \"Fair maiden, if you can pick a leaf or a flower from\nthis tree, you shall be my queen.\"\n\nAs Flora reached to pick a flower, the tree bowed low, and every leaf\ntrembled with delight.\n\nThe maiden at once presented the flower to the king.\n\nAs he took the flower, the king exclaimed,\n\n  \"To you belongs the Fairy Tree;\n  Pray be my bride and rule with me.\"\n\nFlora thought she must be dreaming, but they were married next day,\nbeneath the branches of the Fairy Tree.\n\nAdapted from \"The Lilac Fairy Book\" by Andrew Lang\n\n\n\n\nHIAWATHA'S SAILING\n\n\nThus the Birch Canoe was builded\nIn the valley, by the river,\nIn the bosom of the forest;\nAnd the forest life was in it,\nAll its mystery and its magic,\nAll the lightness of the birch tree,\nAll the toughness of the cedar,\nAll the larch's supple sinews;\nAnd it floated on the river\nLike a yellow leaf in autumn,\nLike a yellow water lily.\n\nHENRY W LONGFELLOW\n\n\n\n\nGRAY MOLE AND THE INDIAN\n\n\nAn Indian was once wandering across the prairie. He was tired, and\nhungry, and very lonely. He had traveled many miles.\n\nAt last he came to a brook, in a meadow at the foot of a hill.\n\n\"I will rest here until noon,\" thought the Indian. He sat down upon the\nmossy bank beside the brook.\n\nPresently he heard some one whisper, \"Lift me up and carry me with you,\nand I will be your friend.\"\n\nThe Indian looked carefully about him, to find who was speaking. He saw\na small, gray animal peeping from out of the moss.\n\n\"Ha, ha, Gray Mole!\" laughed the Indian. \"Why should I carry you?\"\n\n\"I am far from my island home. If you will carry me to the cliff near\nthe Place of Breaking Light, I can then reach my burrow safely,\" replied\nGray Mole.\n\nThe Indian placed Gray Mole in his large wampum belt.\n\n\"Very well, little friend,\" he said. \"You may travel with me, but I\nshall rest here for a time before starting on the journey.\"\n\nThen, covering himself with his deerskin robe, he lay down upon the\nmoss. He was soon fast asleep.\n\nAt about noon Sun passed overhead. Sun traveled so close to the earth\nthat his rays scorched and shriveled the deerskin robe.\n\nWhen the Indian awoke, he found that his deerskin robe had been scorched\nand shriveled by Sun. He was furiously angry.\n\n\"I will follow Sun and punish him,\" said the Indian.\n\nSun had traveled far beyond the meadow and was now fast disappearing\nbehind the hill. The Indian started to follow.\n\nAt last the Indian reached the summit of the hill and could look down\nthe other side. Sun could no longer be seen. He had hidden in his cave\nbeyond the Western Sea.\n\nThe Indian traveled until he came to the edge of a cliff. The Shining\nBig Sea Water beat high against the rocks, and in the distance he could\nsee the Place of Breaking Light.\n\n\"We have come to the cliff, little friend. Jump out of my wampum belt,\"\nsaid the Indian. \"But how are you going to reach your burrow on the\nisland yonder?\"\n\n\"I shall wait here with you until the break of day,\" replied Gray Mole.\n\nMany trees grew near the cliff. East Wind blew gently through their\nbranches, rustling the leaves and carrying messages to the Indian.\n\nOak Tree said proudly, \"I am King of the Forest. The Great Chief summons\nhis warriors beneath my boughs. Here he holds his councils. Of my\nbranches the strong arrows are made.\"\n\nAsh Tree whispered, \"My pliant branches make the bows which speed the\narrows in their flight.\"\n\nMaple Tree said softly, \"I am the food of the Great Chief. My sap is\nsweet and wholesome. People of all nations delight to show me honor.\"\n\nRed Willow bowed low and said, \"My bark is used for the peace pipe of\nthe Great Chief. Of my branches the women weave baskets and mats for\ntheir wigwams.\"\n\nMarsh Reeds, growing near Red Willow, chimed sweetly, \"Our stalks are\nused for the stems of the peace pipes.\"\n\nLinden Tree swayed to and fro, saying, \"I am used for the cradles in\nwhich the children are rocked.\"\n\nPine Tree said gently, \"My sweet singing lulls the children to sleep.\"\nAnd she murmured a soft lullaby.\n\nBirch Tree was standing near the path.\n\n\"Of what use are you, O Birch Tree?\" said the Indian.\n\nBirch Tree replied, \"My bark covers the canoes that sail upon the lakes\nand rivers. I am used also for the picture-writing of the people.\"\n\nEast Wind again blew gently, stirring the leaves of the trees.\n\nThen Cedar Tree said, \"My pliant branches make the canoes strong and\nsteady.\"\n\nLarch Tree whispered, \"I give my fibrous roots to bind the parts\ntogether.\"\n\nFir Tree said, \"My rosin closes the seams of the canoes, to make them\nsafe.\"\n\nThen the Indian looked at a cluster of alder trees growing near a stream\nof water.\n\n\"Of what use are you, O Alder Trees?\"\n\nThe Alder Trees replied, \"The Indian Chief comes here to fish in the\ncool stream. He finds shelter, beneath our branches, from the hot rays\nof Sun!\"\n\nAll this time, Gray Mole had been busily gathering fibrous roots from\nthe larch tree. He had made a rope to snare Sun.\n\nThen Gray Mole called to the Indian to look toward the Place of Breaking\nLight. There, in a little bay on Gray Mole's island, stood a birch\ncanoe. Soon the canoe floated to where the Indian stood.\n\n\"Follow me,\" said Gray Mole. \"Step into the magic canoe. We will go to\nthe island and there set a snare for Sun.\"\n\nThe magic canoe carried them safely over the water, and they soon\nreached the island. Then the Indian set the snare for Sun.\n\nPresently Sun came out of his cave and was at once caught in the snare.\n\nFor seven days the world was dark. The people suffered from hunger and\ncold. Then the Indian cried, \"Alas, what have I done! Who will unfasten\nthe rope and set Sun free?\"\n\n\"I can set Sun free again,\" said Gray Mole.\n\nThe little mole crept to the snare. Nibble, nibble, he went, until the\nrope gave way.\n\nThen Sun burst forth in all his might. In his anger he blazed a path\nacross the sky.\n\nThe poor little mole was scorched in the fierce heat, and his eyes were\nblinded. Never again could he see well.\n\nThe Indian was sorry, but he said, \"Gray Mole, you are a true friend.\nYou shall always live with me, and all the moles shall be my forest\nbrothers.\"\n\nThen, placing Gray Mole in his wampum belt once more, he stepped into\nthe canoe, and together they sailed to the Indian's home.\n\n\n\n\nTHE WATER LILIES\n\n\nBeautiful white flowers with hearts of gold floated on the surface of\nthe lily pond.\n\nAn Indian girl was paddling a canoe gently about among the lily pads.\nShe reached out to pick one of the flowers. Suddenly there appeared\nbefore her a little man.\n\nThe little man sat upon a lily pad. He smiled at the girl and said,\n\"Listen, and I will tell you the story of the water lilies.\"\n\nThis is the story the little man told:\n\nOnce there was a star in the heavens, it shone more brightly than any of\nthe other stars. An Indian youth watched it for many nights. Each night\nit seemed to move nearer to the earth.\n\nOne night the young man had a strange dream. In his dream a beautiful\nmaiden appeared before him and spoke to him. Her words were like music.\nShe said that she was the star that shone so brightly in the heavens.\nShe loved the birds and the flowers, and the people of the earth.\n\n\"I wish to leave my sister stars and dwell upon the earth,\" said the\nStar Maiden. \"What form is the best for me to take, to be loved by all?\"\n\nThe young man awoke. At once he hastened to tell his dream to the wise\nmen of the tribe.\n\n\"The beautiful maiden is the star that we have seen in the south,\" said\nthe wise men.\n\nAgain the Star Maiden appeared to the young man in a dream.\n\nOnce more she asked him where she might dwell in safety upon the earth,\nand what form she should take, to be loved by the Indians.\n\n\"Choose for yourself,\" said the young man.\n\nAt first the Star Maiden chose to live in the heart of a white rose that\ngrew on a mountain side. But there she was hidden from sight, so that no\none could enjoy her beauty.\n\nThen she searched among the flowers of the prairie, until she found the\nblossom of a painted cup.\n\n\"I will rest here,\" thought the Star Maiden as she swung to and fro on\nthe yellow cup.\n\nAlas! She was not safe there, for a herd of buffaloes came rushing over\nthe prairie.\n\nFinally the Star Maiden thought of a place where she was sure she would\nbe safe.\n\n\"I will live upon the lake,\" she said. \"Canoes glide gently over the\nwater, and I shall see the children at their play.\"\n\nIn the morning, hundreds of white flowers with hearts of gold floated\nupon the water.\n\nThe Star Maiden lived upon earth in the form of water lilies.\n\nWhen the little man had finished telling the story of the lilies, he\njumped into the water and disappeared.\n\n\"I shall always love the water lilies,\" said the Indian girl as she\npaddled away.\n\n\n\n\nWHERE GO THE BOATS?\n\n\nDark brown is the river,\n  Golden is the sand,\nIt flows along forever,\n  With trees on either hand.\n\nGreen leaves a-floating,\n  Castles of the foam,\nBoats of mine a-boating--\n  Where will all come home?\n\nOn goes the river\n  And out past the mill,\nAway down the valley,\n  Away down the hill;\n\nAway down the river,\n  A hundred miles or more;\nOther little children\n  Shall bring my boats ashore.\n\nROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON.\n\n\n\n\nWHY THE SEA IS SALT\n\n\nLong ago, there were two brothers, one rich and one poor. The Rich\nBrother was stingy.\n\nIt was winter. The wind howled down the chimney, and the snow almost\ncovered the hut in which the Poor Brother lived.\n\n\"We cannot starve,\" said the Poor Brother to his wife. \"I will ask my\nbrother to help us.\"\n\nNow it annoyed the Rich Brother to have the Poor Brother ask for help.\nWhen the Poor Brother asked for bread, the Rich Brother said angrily,\n\"Here, take this ham and go to the dwarfs. They will boil it for you.\"\n\nSo the Poor Brother started out, with the ham under his arm, to find the\nhome of the dwarfs. He trudged on through the snow until he saw seven\nqueer little dwarfs rolling a huge snowball, at the foot of a hill.\n\nThe dwarfs paid no attention to the Poor Brother, but kept on rolling\nthe snowball, which grew larger and larger each moment, as they sang,\n\n  \"Behind the door\n     The Mill you'll find,\n   But snow, the Mill\n     Will never grind.\n\n   We'll gather snow,\n     And still more snow,\n   Then roll it down\n     To cool Below.\"\n\n\"Ha, ha, ha!\" laughed the Chief Dwarf. \"We have snow enough here to put\nout a dozen fires. Come, brothers, let us roll the snowball Below!\"\n\n\"Heave ho! Heave ho!\" cried the other six dwarfs.\n\nIn the twinkling of an eye, the seven little dwarfs had rolled the\nsnowball through an entrance in the side of the hill.\n\nDown, down, the snowball rolled, until it reached the place where the\nfires burned.\n\nThen sizzle, sizzle, came the hot steam pouring out of the entrance.\n\nAll this time the Poor Brother had stood watching the seven dwarfs, and\nsaying not a word. But suddenly he thought, \"If I do not go Below at\nonce, there will be no fire left to boil my ham.\"\n\nSo the Poor Brother groped his way through the steam and the smoke, and\nat last he found his way into the home of the seven dwarfs.\n\nIt certainly was a very queer place! There were great fires burning on\nevery side. Although the huge snowball had cooled the air, it had not\nquenched the fires.\n\nThe Chief Dwarf was stirring some fat that was boiling in a kettle. When\nhe saw the Poor Brother standing before him with the ham under his arm,\nhe cried, \"Ho, ho! Who comes here?\"\n\nBefore the Poor Brother could answer, the seven little dwarfs had\ncrowded around him, teasing for the ham. It was many a day since they\nhad tasted ham, and they were very fond of it.\n\n\"What will you give me for the ham?\" asked the Poor Brother.\n\n\"We have neither silver nor gold,\" said the dwarfs, \"but we will give\nyou the Mill that stands behind the door.\"\n\n\"Of what use would the Mill be to me? I am hungry and have come to boil\nthe ham,\" said the Poor Brother.\n\n\"It is a wonderful Mill,\" the Chief Dwarf replied. \"It will grind\nanything in the world that you might wish, excepting snow and ham. I\nwill show you how to use it.\"\n\nThe Poor Brother agreed to give the ham in exchange for the Mill, and\nthe Chief Dwarf told him how to use it.\n\nThe dwarf said, \"When you wish the Mill to grind, use these words:\n\n  Grind, quickly grind, little Mill,\n  Grind--with a right good will!\n\n\"When you wish the Mill to stop grinding, you must say,\n\n   Halt, halt, little Mill!\n\nThe Mill will obey you.\"\n\nTaking the little Mill under his arm, the Poor Brother climbed up and\nup, until he came to the entrance in the side of the hill. Then he\ntrudged home again through the snow.\n\nWhen he arrived in front of the hut, he put the little Mill down on the\nsnow, and said at once,\n\n  \"Grind, quickly grind, little Mill,\n  Grind a HOUSE--with a right good will!\"\n\nThe little Mill ground and ground, until there stood, in place of the\nhut, the finest house in the world. It had fine large windows and broad\nstairways, and the house was furnished from garret to cellar.\n\nBy spring, the Mill had ground out the last article that was needed for\nthe house, and the Poor Brother cried,\n\n  \"Halt, halt, little Mill!\"\n\nThe Mill obeyed him.\n\nThen the Poor Brother placed the Mill in the barnyard and told it to\ngrind horses, cows, woolly sheep, and fat little pigs.\n\nWhen he told it to halt, the Mill stopped grinding.\n\nThe Poor Brother carried the Mill to the fields and commanded it to\ngrind rich crops of wheat, oats, barley, and corn.\n\nThen he took the Mill into the house and asked it to grind fine clothing\nfor his wife and his daughters, and to keep all the cupboards filled\nwith good things to eat.\n\nAt last the Poor Brother had everything that he wanted. He placed the\nMill behind the kitchen door and sat down, with his wife and daughters,\nto eat the choicest food he had ever tasted.\n\nThe Rich Brother heard about all the strange things that had happened,\nand he went to visit the Poor Brother.\n\n\"How did you manage to become so rich?\" he asked in astonishment.\n\nThe Poor Brother told about the Mill, and that he need only say,\n\n    \"Grind, quickly grind, little Mill,\n     Grind--with a right good will!\"\n\nAnd the Mill would grind anything he might wish to have.\n\nThe Rich Brother did not wait to hear any more but said, \"Lend the Mill\nto me for an hour.\"\n\nTaking it under his arm, the stingy Rich Brother ran across the fields\ntoward home.\n\nHis wife was in the hayfield, spreading the hay after the mowers. He\npassed her on the way home and told her that he would attend to\nbreakfast that morning.\n\n\"I will call you when all is ready,\" said he.\n\nWhen the Rich Brother reached home, he placed the Mill on the table, and\ntold it to grind porridge and red herrings.\n\nThe Mill began at once to grind oatmeal porridge and fat red herrings.\n\nAll the dishes and pans were soon filled. Then the porridge and herrings\nbegan to flow over the kitchen floor into the yard.\n\nThe Rich Brother tried to stop the Mill. He turned and twisted and\nscrewed the handle, but he could not stop it, for he did not know the\nmagic words.\n\nAt last he waded through the porridge across the fields to the mowers,\ncrying, \"Help! Help!\"\n\nWhen he told the mowers about the Mill, they said, \"Ask your brother to\nstop the Mill, or we shall be drowned in porridge.\"\n\nThen the Rich Brother ran to the Poor Brother's house, crying and\nshouting for help.\n\nThe Poor Brother laughed when he found out what had happened. They rowed\nback to the kitchen in a boat, and the Poor Brother whispered the magic\nwords. The Mill stopped grinding.\n\nIn the course of time, the porridge soaked into the ground, but after\nthat nothing would grow there excepting oats, and afterwards the brooks\nand ponds were always filled with herrings.\n\nThe Rich Brother no longer wished to keep the Mill. The Poor Brother\ncarried it home once more and placed it behind the door.\n\nYears afterwards, a rich merchant sailed from a distant land and\nanchored his ship in the harbor. He visited the home of the Poor Brother\nand asked about the Mill, for he had heard how wonderful it was.\n\n\"Will it grind salt?\" the merchant asked.\n\n\"Yes, indeed!\" said the Poor Brother. \"It will grind anything in the\nwhole world excepting snow and ham.\"\n\n\"Let me borrow the Mill for a short time, and great will be your\nreward,\" said the merchant.\n\nHe thought it would be much easier to fill his ship with salt from the\nMill, than to make a long voyage across the ocean to procure his cargo.\n\nThe Poor Brother consented gladly. The merchant went away with the Mill.\nHe did not wait to find out how to stop the grinding.\n\nWhen the merchant went aboard the ship, he said to the captain, \"Here is\na great treasure. Guard it carefully.\"\n\nThe captain thought that the little Mill did not appear very wonderful,\nbut he placed it upon the deck of the ship. Then he ordered the sailors\nto their posts of duty, and the ship sailed away.\n\nWhen they were out at sea, the merchant said, \"Captain, we need not go\nany further upon our voyage. The Mill will grind out salt enough to fill\nthe hold of the ship.\"\n\nSo saying he cried,\n\n  \"Grind, quickly grind, little Mill,\n  Grind SALT--with a right good will!\"\n\nAnd the Mill ground salt, and more salt, and still more salt. When the\nhold of the ship was full of salt, the merchant cried, \"Now you must\nstop, little Mill.\"\n\nBut the little Mill did not stop. It kept on grinding salt, and more\nsalt, and still more salt.\n\nThe captain shouted, \"We shall be lost! The ship will sink!\"\n\nOne of the sailors called, \"Ahoy, captain! Throw the Mill overboard.\"\n\nSo, heave ho! Heave ho! And overboard went the wonderful Mill, down to\nthe bottom of the deep sea.\n\nThe captain and his crew sailed home with the merchant's cargo of salt.\n\nBut the Mill kept on grinding salt at the bottom of the sea.\n\nAND THAT IS WHY THE SEA IS SALT.\n\nAt least, so some people say.\n\n\n\n\nSENNIN THE HERMIT\n\n\nIn the far-away land of Japan, there was a little village that lay at\nthe foot of a high mountain.\n\nEvery day the children went to play on the grassy bank near a pond at\none end of the village. They threw stones into the water. They fished,\nand they sailed their toy boats. They picked the wild flowers that grew\nin the fields near by.\n\nThey carried with them rice to eat, and from morning until evening they\nplayed near the pond.\n\nOne day, while they were at play, the children were surprised to see an\nold man with a long, white beard walking toward them. He came from the\ndirection of the mountain.\n\nThe children stopped their games to watch the old man. He came into\ntheir midst, and patting them upon their heads easily made them his\nfriends.\n\nThe children continued their play, for they knew that the old man was\nkind.\n\nThe man watched the children, and when it was time for them to go home,\nhe said, \"Come to the flat rock on the side of the mountain to-morrow,\nand I will show you some wonderful games.\"\n\nThen he climbed up the mountain once more and disappeared.\n\nThe following morning, the children went to the flat rock. They found\nthe old man waiting for them.\n\n\"Now, my dear children,\" said he, \"I am going to amuse you. Look here!\"\n\nHe picked up some dry sticks. He blew at the ends of the sticks, and at\nonce they became sprays of beautiful cherry, plum, and peach blossoms.\nHe passed a branch of each of the flowers to the girls.\n\nThen he took a stone and threw it into the air. The stone turned into a\ndove!\n\nAnother stone became an eagle, another a nightingale, or any bird a boy\nchose to name.\n\n\"Now,\" said the old man, \"I will show you some animals that I am sure\nwill make you laugh.\"\n\nThe children clapped their hands.\n\nHe recited some verses, and a company of monkeys came leaping upon the\nrock. The monkeys jumped about, grinning at the same time and performing\nfunny tricks.\n\nThe children clapped their hands again.\n\nThen the old man bowed to them and said, \"Children, I can play no more\ngames to-day. It is time for you to go back to the village. Farewell!\"\n\nThe old man turned to go. He went up the mountain in the direction of a\ncave. The children tried to follow him, but in spite of his age he was\nmore nimble than they. They ran far enough, however, to see him enter\nthe cave.\n\nWhen they reached the entrance, the old man had disappeared.\n\nThe cave was surrounded by fragrant flowers; but into its depths the\nchildren did not dare to go.\n\nSuddenly one of the girls pointed upwards, crying, \"There is the old\ngrandfather!\"\n\nThe others looked up, and there, standing on a cloud over the top of the\nmountain, was the old man.\n\n\"Let us go home now,\" said one of the boys.\n\nOn the way, they met two men of the village, whom their parents had sent\nto search for them.\n\nWhen the children had told their story, one of the men exclaimed, \"Ah,\nhappy children! The kind old man is surely Sennin, the wonderful Hermit\nof the Mountain!\"\n\n\n\n\nFOREIGN CHILDREN\n\n\nLittle Indian, Sioux or Crow,\nLittle frosty Eskimo,\nLittle Turk or Japanee,\nO! Don't you wish that you were me?\n\nYou have seen the scarlet trees\nAnd the lions over seas;\nYou have eaten ostrich eggs,\nAnd turned the turtles off their legs.\n\nSuch a life is very fine,\nBut it's not so nice as mine;\nYou must often, as you trod,\nHave wearied NOT to be abroad.\n\nYou have curious things to eat,\nI am fed on proper meat;\nYou must dwell beyond the foam,\nBut I am safe and live at home.\n\nLittle Turk or Japanee,\nO! Don't you wish that you were me?\n\nROBERT LOUIS STEVENSON\n\n\n\n\nGREAT AND LITTLE BEAR\n\n\nCallisto was a beautiful woman whom the god Jupiter admired.\n\nThe goddess Juno was very angry because Jupiter was kind to Callisto.\nShe decided to be revenged.\n\n\"I will take away her beauty, so that no one shall admire her,\" said\nJuno.\n\nNight and day she thought and planned, until she found a way to punish\nCallisto.\n\nOne morning as the fair and gentle Callisto was gathering wild flowers\nin a field, she was suddenly changed into a bear. Then she was driven\ninto a forest near by.\n\n\"You shall live in this forest forever! A cave under the rocks shall be\nyour home!\" exclaimed Juno.\n\nAlthough she had the form of a bear, Callisto was still a woman at\nheart. She feared all the animals that she met.\n\nThe hunting dogs frightened her, and she would hide in terror from the\nhunters.\n\nOne day a young man was hunting in the forest. Callisto recognized him\nat once as her son Arcas.\n\nShe rushed toward her son to embrace him, but thinking the bear was\ngoing to attack him, Arcas lifted his hunting spear.\n\nAs he was about to strike the bear, Jupiter appeared. The god snatched\naway the spear just in time to save Callisto's life.\n\nJupiter took both Callisto and Arcas, and placed them in the sky.\nCallisto became the Great Bear, and Arcas the Little Bear.\n\nThey have remained in the sky ever since. On pleasant nights you can see\nthem in the sky, as they move around the North Star.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BOY AND THE SHEEP\n\n\n\"Lazy sheep, pray tell me why\n In the pleasant field you lie,\n Eating grass and daisies white,\n From the morning till the night:\n   Everything can something do,\n   But what kind of use are you?\"\n\n\"Nay, my little master, nay,\n Do not serve me so, I pray!\n Don't you see the wool that grows\n On my back to make you clothes?\n   Cold, ah, very cold you'd be,\n   If you had not wool from me!\n\n\"True, it seems a pleasant thing\n Nipping daisies in the spring;\n But what chilly nights I pass\n On the cold and dewy grass,\n   Or pick my scanty dinner where\n   All the ground is brown and bare!\n\n\"Then the farmer comes at last,\n When the merry spring is past,\n Cuts my woolly fleece away,\n For your coat in wintry day.\n   Little master, this is why\n   In the pleasant fields I lie.\"\n\nANN TAYLOR.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BOY WHO CRIED WOLF\n\n\nThere was once a boy who tended his father's sheep on the side of a\nmountain, near a dark forest.\n\nIt was a lonely place. No one was near, excepting three men whom the boy\ncould see working in the fields, in the valley below.\n\nOne day the boy thought he would have some fun. He rushed down toward\nthe valley, crying, \"Wolf! Wolf!\"\n\nThe men ran to meet him, and one of them remained with him for a while.\n\nThe boy enjoyed the company and the fun so much, that he tried the same\ntrick again, a few days later. Again the men ran to help him.\n\nSoon after this, a wolf really came from the forest and began to steal\nthe sheep.\n\nThe boy ran after the men, crying more loudly than ever, \"Wolf! Wolf!\"\n\nBut it was of no use for him to call. The men had been fooled twice, and\nnow no one went to help him. So the wolf had a good meal from the herd\nof sheep.\n\n\n\n\nTHE LION'S SHARE\n\n\nThe fox and the donkey were friends. One day they agreed to go hunting\ntogether.\n\nOn their way through the forest, they stopped at the den of the lion.\n\n\"Ho, ho, King Lion!\" called the fox. \"Friend Donkey and I are going to\nhunt for game. Will you go with us?\"\n\n\"Certainly,\" said the lion. \"I am ready for a good dinner.\"\n\nThe lion, the fox, and the donkey set a trap near the lion's den. Then\nthey hid behind the trees near by.\n\nSoon a wolf came prowling along and was caught in the trap.\n\nThey attacked the wolf and killed him.\n\n\"Let us have our dinner now. I am hungry,\" said the lion.\n\n\"Friend Donkey,\" added the lion, \"you may divide the animal and give\neach of us his portion.\"\n\nSo the donkey divided the wolf into three equal parts.\n\nThen he said to the lion, \"Which part will you have, King Lion?\"\n\nThe lion saw how the donkey had divided the animal.\n\nKing Lion was very angry.\n\nHe said with a roar, \"What do you mean, Friend Donkey, by taking so much\nfor your share?\"\n\n\"I have divided the wolf into three equal parts,\" said the donkey. \"If\nyou do not like the way I have divided the animal, you need not take\nany.\"\n\nAt this the lion was furious.\n\nSpringing upon the poor donkey, he killed him instantly.\n\nThen the lion turned to the fox.\n\n\"There are only two of us now,\" said the lion. \"Let me see how you will\ndivide the animal.\"\n\nThe fox bowed low before King Lion.\n\nHe took one very small piece of meat for himself.\n\nThen he put all the rest of the animal in a heap for the lion.\n\nThe lion watched greedily to see what the fox would do next.\n\n\"This is your share, King Lion,\" said the fox.\n\nThe lion was pleased with the way the fox had divided the meat.\n\n\"Who taught you how to divide the wolf?\" he said.\n\nOnce more the fox bowed low before King Lion.\n\nThen he said humbly, \"Friend Donkey taught me how to divide the wolf!\"\n\n\n\n\nROBIN REDBREAST\n\n\n Good-by, good-by to summer!\n  For summer's nearly done;\nThe garden smiling faintly,\n  Cool breezes in the sun.\nOur thrushes now are silent,\n  Our swallows flown away--\nBut Robin's here with coat of brown,\n  And ruddy breast-knot gay.\n\n    Robin, Robin Redbreast,\n      O Robin dear!\n    Robin sings so sweetly\n      In the falling of the year.\n\nBright yellow, red, and orange,\n  The leaves come down in hosts;\nThe trees are Indian princes,\n  But soon they'll turn to ghosts;\nThe leathery pears and apples\n  Hang russet on the bough;\nIt's autumn, autumn, autumn late,\n 'Twill soon be winter now.\n\n    Robin, Robin Redbreast,\n      O Robin dear!\n    And what will this poor robin do?\n      For pinching days are near.\n\nThe fireside for the cricket,\n  The wheat stack for the mouse,\nWhen trembling night winds whistle\n  And moan all round the house;\nThe frosty ways like iron,\n  The branches plumed with snow--\nAlas! In winter dead and dark,\n  Where can poor Robin go?\n\n    Robin, Robin Redbreast,\n      O Robin dear!\n    And a crumb of bread for Robin,\n      His little heart to cheer!\n\nWILLIAM ALLINGHAM.\n\n\n\n\nTHORN ROSE\n\n\nIn the long, long ago, there lived a king and queen who for many years\nhad no children.\n\nAt last a lovely baby was born to them--a little princess.\n\nThere was great rejoicing over all the land. The king and queen decided\nto have a party in honor of the princess.\n\nIn the palace there was hurry and stir to make ready. Messengers were\nsent far and near, to invite the lords and ladies of the land to the\ngreat feast.\n\nAmong the guests invited to the party were seven good fairies.\n\nIt was a beautiful summer afternoon. The roses on the palace wall were\nnodding their heads sleepily in the warm breeze, when the chariot with\nthe seven fairies arrived.\n\nThe good fairies entered the princess' room. There the tiny baby lay,\nsleeping in a dainty pearl cradle.\n\n\"She is as sweet and fair as a rose!\" they exclaimed. \"We will call her\nRose.\"\n\nNow it happened that the king and queen had failed to invite a spiteful\nand ill-tempered old witch. The old witch was very angry, because she\nhad not been invited to the party.\n\nAfter the guests had all arrived, she entered through the keyhole. No\none saw her enter.\n\nEach of the good fairies bestowed on the princess a precious gift.\n\n\"I bestow upon you, sweet princess, the gifts of health and\ncheerfulness,\" said the first fairy.\n\n\"You shall be the most beautiful princess in the world,\" said the second\nfairy.\n\n\"You shall be witty and wise,\" said the third.\n\n\"You shall have the sweetest voice that ever was heard,\" said the\nfourth.\n\n\"You shall be generous and kind,\" said the fifth.\n\n\"Everyone shall love you,\" said the sixth of the good fairies.\n\nJust then a spiteful laugh was heard.\n\n\"Ah, ah, ah!\" some one called.\n\nThe king and queen saw the old witch who had not been invited to the\nparty.\n\n\"I will tell you what shall happen to this little wonder,\" said the\nwitch. \"She will cut her finger with a spindle before she is fifteen\nyears old, and then she will die!\"\n\nThe old witch shook her black stick at the princess.\n\nThen she disappeared, as she had entered, through the keyhole.\n\nThe king and queen were troubled when they heard the witch's words, but\nthe seventh fairy, who had not yet spoken, stepped forward.\n\n\"The king's daughter shall not die, but she shall sleep for a hundred\nyears. When the princess falls asleep, everyone in the palace will go to\nsleep, too. They will all sleep for a hundred years.\"\n\nThen the king ordered that every spindle in the kingdom should be\ndestroyed.\n\nNot a spindle was to be used, anywhere in the country, until after the\nprincess had passed her fifteenth birthday.\n\nThe gifts of the fairies proved true. The princess was so beautiful and\nso good that she was loved by all. She was witty and wise and her voice\nwas like a silver bell.\n\nOne day, when the princess was nearly fifteen years old, she wandered\nthrough the palace and up the winding stairs to an old tower.\n\nThere, in a little room, sat an old woman, busily twisting thread upon a\nspinning wheel. The old woman had never heard the king's command.\n\n\"How merrily the wheel goes round! Let me see if I can spin!\" said the\nprincess.\n\nScarcely had the princess touched the spindle when she cut her finger.\n\nThe girl fell at once into a deep sleep. She lay upon the floor beside\nthe spinning wheel, fast asleep.\n\nIn the castle below, the king, the queen, and all the servants fell\nasleep, too. The horses slept in their stalls. The dogs slept in their\nkennels.\n\nThe pigeons on the roof, and the birds in their nests, all went sound\nasleep. Even the fire flaming on the hearth became still.\n\nDeep shadows darkened the sunny rooms of the palace, and the garden\nround about.\n\nA hedge of thorns at once began to grow around the palace.\n\nThe hedge became thicker and higher as the days went by, until at last\nit was so tall that not even the palace towers could be seen.\n\nThe story of the princess, the beautiful Thorn Rose, was told far and\nwide.\n\nAt last a hundred years had passed. Prince Courageous was traveling\nthrough the land. He heard from an old man the story of the thorn hedge,\nand of the princess who lay in the palace behind the hedge, fast asleep.\n\nThe old man told the prince that the time had come when the long\nenchantment was at an end.\n\n\"But who knows how great the danger may be?\" added the old man. \"No one\nhas entered the palace for a hundred years!\"\n\n\"I will brave the danger, whatever it may be!\" exclaimed Prince\nCourageous. \"I will find the sleeping princess or lose my life!\"\n\nSo Prince Courageous mounted his horse and rode through the woods until\nhe came to the tall thorn hedge. He made his way through the underbrush.\n\nThe briers were thick and the thorns sharp, but Prince Courageous was\nstrong and brave.\n\nHe knocked at the gate, but there was no answer. The prince opened the\ngate and entered the courtyard.\n\nAll was silence in the palace hall. Only the sound of his own footsteps\ncould Prince Courageous hear.\n\nEverybody was fast asleep--the horses in their stalls, the pigeons on\nthe roof, the birds in their nests, the servants in the halls, the king\nand queen on their golden throne.\n\nPrince Courageous tiptoed through the silent rooms. Finally, he reached\nthe narrow stairway that led to the tower.\n\nThe prince climbed the winding stairs. There, beside the spinning wheel,\nlay the beautiful princess, fast asleep.\n\nStepping softly to her side, he kissed the princess on the cheek. Thorn\nRose opened her eyes--and there stood the prince!\n\nAnd now all the court awoke.\n\nThe horses began to neigh. The dogs began to bark. The pigeons cooed.\nThe birds sang. The kitchen fire burst into flame.\n\nThe sun shone brightly, and the roses on the palace wall swayed in the\nbreeze.\n\nThe prince and the princess were married next day, and the seven good\nfairies danced at the wedding feast.\n\n\n\n\nTHE WOLVES AND THE DEER\n\n\nLong ago, a pack of wolves lived on a prairie. Some deer lived near by.\n\nThe wolves could run swiftly, but they knew that the deer were swift\nrunners, too. The hungry wolves wondered how they might catch the deer\nand eat them.\n\nAt last they thought of a fine plan. They invited the deer to run a race\nwith them.\n\nThe wolves and the deer started in the race side by side, but the deer\nran much the faster.\n\nThe wolves were very angry. \"We will eat the deer yet,\" they said.\n\nOne day they prepared a great feast. They invited the deer to dine with\nthem. The deer sat down facing the wolves. Then the wolves said to the\ndeer, \"Laugh, you on the other side!\"\n\n\"No,\" said the deer. \"You laugh first.\"\n\n\"Very well,\" said the wolves. \"We will laugh first.\"\n\nAnd they laughed, \"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!\"\n\n\"Now you on the other side laugh, too,\" said the wolves.\n\nThen the deer laughed, \"Mm, mm, mm, mm, mm!\"\n\n\"Laugh again,\" said the deer.\n\n\"Very well,\" said the wolves, and they laughed, \"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!\"\n\nThe deer were frightened when they saw the great, sharp teeth of the\nhungry wolves.\n\nThey wanted to run away at once and hide from the wolves, but they were\nafraid.\n\nAgain the wolves said, \"Laugh, you on the other side! But do not keep\nyour mouths closed when you laugh. Nobody laughs like that.\"\n\nThen the deer laughed, \"Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha!\"\n\nThis time they opened their mouths. The wolves could not see any teeth\nin the mouths of the deer.\n\nAt once the wolves attacked the deer. They killed and ate them.\n\nOnly a few of the deer escaped.\n\nTo this day, all deer are afraid of wolves.\n\nThe wolves laugh and show their teeth when they see the deer. And deer\nrun as fast as they can when they see the wolves.\n\n\n\n\nTHE CORNFIELDS\n\n\nThen Nokomis, the old woman,\nSpake and said to Minnehaha,\n  \"'Tis the Moon when leaves are falling;\nAll the wild rice has been gathered,\nAnd the maize is ripe and ready,\nLet us gather in the harvest,\nLet us wrestle with Mondamin,\nStrip him of his plumes and tassels,\nOf his garments, green and yellow.\"\n\nHENRY W. LONGFELLOW.\n\n\n\n\nTHE GIFT OF CORN\n\n\nLong, long ago, a tribe of Indians lived on a beautiful island in the\nGreat Lakes.\n\nAn enemy attacked the Indians, and they were driven from home. They\nwandered far away and settled on the shore of a small lake.\n\nBrave Heart, a strong and powerful Indian, remained to guard the\nbeautiful island.\n\nOne morning Brave Heart stepped into his canoe. He was planning to\npaddle around the island. The canoe glided swiftly along by the tall\ntrees that grew near the water.\n\nAt last Brave Heart had gone beyond the trees. He saw a vast plain. He\npaddled to the shore and drew his canoe up the beach.\n\nThen Brave Heart started to walk across the plain. Suddenly a little man\nstood in front of him. The stranger was dressed in green, and he wore a\ngreen cap with red feathers in it.\n\n\"Ho, ho, Brave Heart!\" cried he. \"You are very strong, are you not?\"\n\n\"Yes,\" said Brave Heart, \"I am as strong as any man. But who are you?\"\n\n\"I am Red Plume,\" replied the little man. \"Stay and smoke the peace pipe\nwith me.\"\n\nPresently Red Plume said, \"I am small, but I am strong. Let us wrestle\ntogether, to see which of us is the stronger. If I fall, you must say,\n'I have conquered Red Plume.'\"\n\nThen Brave Heart wrestled with the little man. He found that Red Plume\nwas indeed very strong. He felt himself growing weaker each moment. But\nat last he succeeded in tripping the man.\n\nThen Brave Heart cried, \"I have conquered Red Plume!\"\n\nInstantly, to Brave Heart's surprise, the little man vanished. On the\nspot where he had stood lay an ear of corn.\n\nThe corn was covered with greenish husks, and the red silk at the top\nwas like a plume. It looked like the little man.\n\nBrave Heart looked down at the corn in amazement.\n\nSuddenly the ear of corn spoke.\n\n\"Take me and pull off my green garments,\" said the ear of corn. \"Plant\nmy kernels in the ground and cover them with soft soil. Break my cob\ninto small pieces and throw them near the trees at the edge of the\nforest. Then depart, and return when the next moon is high in the\nheavens.\"\n\nBrave Heart did as he was told. Then he went to his canoe and paddled\nback to his home.\n\nHe returned when the next moon was high in the heavens. He found the\nplain covered with tender green plants. Near the edge of the forest\ngreen vines were growing.\n\nBrave Heart heard some one speaking from the ground.\n\n\"Come again, before the Moon of Falling Leaves,\" were the words he\nheard.\n\nOne day, when the summer was nearly over, Brave Heart paddled his canoe\nalong the island as far as the plain.\n\nIt was almost time for the Moon of Falling Leaves.\n\nThere, near the spot where he had wrestled with the little man, stood a\nfield of ripe corn.\n\nThe red tassels nodded in the breezes, and the leaves rustled in the\nwind.\n\nNear the forest were great yellow pumpkins ripening on the vines.\n\nBrave Heart pulled some ears of ripe corn and gathered some of the\npumpkins.\n\nThen he built a hot fire and roasted the ears of corn. How delicious the\nroasted corn tasted!\n\nOnce more Red Plume spoke, again from the cornfield.\n\n\"You have conquered me, Brave Heart. If you had not done so, you would\nhave been destroyed. By your strength, you have won the Gift of Corn.\"\n\nThen Brave Heart was glad.\n\nHe hastened to his people and brought them back once more to live, ever\nafter, on their beautiful island.\n\nAnd always the people blessed him for the gift of the precious corn.\n\nBrave Heart had conquered Red Plume.\n\n\n\n\nA BOY'S SONG\n\n\nWhere the pools are bright and deep,\nWhere the gray trout lies asleep,\nUp the river and o'er the lea,\nThat's the way for Billy and me.\n\nWhere the blackbird sings the latest,\nWhere the hawthorn blooms the sweetest,\nWhere the nestlings chirp and flee,\nThat's the way for Billy and me.\n\nWhere the mowers mow the cleanest,\nWhere the hay lies thick and greenest,\nThere to trace the homeward bee,\nThat's the way for Billy and me.\n\nWhere the hazel bank is steepest,\nWhere the shadow falls the deepest,\nWhere the clustering nuts fall free,\nThat's the way for Billy and me.\n\nWhy the boys should drive away\nLittle sweet maidens from the play,\nOr love to banter and fight so well,\nThat's the thing I never could tell.\n\nBut this I know, I love to play\nThrough the meadow, amid the hay;\nUp the water and o'er the lea,\nThat's the way for Billy and me.\n\nJAMES HOGG.\n\n\n\nTHE FROGS' TRAVELS\n\n\nLong, long ago, in the country of Japan, there were two frogs.\n\nOne of the frogs lived in a pond near Tokio, and the other lived in a\nlittle stream near Kioto.\n\nOne fine morning in early spring, these two frogs decided that they\nwould travel forth to see the world.\n\nStrangely enough, though they had never heard of each other, the same\nthought came to each frog at the same time.\n\nThe first frog started along the road which led from Tokio to Kioto.\n\nHe found the journey difficult and the road hard to travel. So, when he\nhad hopped to the top of a high hill halfway, he decided to stop a while\nand rest.\n\nThe other frog started out on the same road, but from Kioto.\n\nIt took him a long time to reach the hill where the first frog was\nresting.\n\nThe two frogs met at the top of the hill. They were delighted to make\neach other's acquaintance.\n\n\"Greetings, friend!\" said the first of the two frogs. \"Where are you\ngoing?\"\n\n\"I have a great desire to see the world, and especially to visit Tokio.\nI am on my way for a visit to Tokio now,\" replied the second frog.\n\n\"There is no need of hurrying. Let us rest here and stretch our limbs,\"\nsaid the first frog.\n\n\"What a pity that we are not taller!\" said the Kioto frog.\n\n\"Why?\" asked the Tokio frog.\n\n\"If we were taller, we could see both towns from this hill. Then we\nshould be able to tell whether or not it were worth while to continue\nour journey,\" said the Kioto frog.\n\n\"Oh, we can easily find that out!\" replied the other.\n\n\"We can stand on our hind legs and take hold of one another. Then each\ncan look at the town toward which he is traveling,\" he added.\n\n\"A fine idea! Let us try it at once.\"\n\nThe two frogs stood upon their hind legs, holding each other tightly to\nkeep from falling.\n\nThe Tokio frog turned toward Kioto, and the Kioto frog turned toward\nTokio.\n\nThe foolish frogs forgot that their eyes were on the backs of their\nheads.\n\nAlthough their noses pointed toward the places to which they wished to\ngo, their eyes beheld the towns from which they had just come.\n\n\"Indeed, I shall travel no further!\" the first frog exclaimed.\n\n\"Kioto is exactly like Tokio. I shall go home at once,\" he added.\n\n\"Tokio is only a copy of Kioto,\" said the other frog.\n\n\"It is not worth while to take the trouble to journey there!\" he added\ndisdainfully.\n\nThe two frogs bade each other a polite farewell, and each returned to\nhis own home town.\n\nTo the end of their lives, the two frogs believed that Tokio and Kioto\nwere really exactly alike.\n\nNeither of the frogs ever again tried to see the world.\n\n\n\n\nTHE MERCHANT'S CARAVAN\n\n\nOnce there was a merchant who had fine silks and rugs to sell. He wished\nto send his goods to a country on the other side of the sandy desert.\n\nThe merchant owned a large caravan of camels, and he employed many men.\nCamels were the only animals strong enough to travel over the desert\nwith the heavy loads.\n\nFor many days, Abdul the merchant and his men had been preparing for the\njourney. The canvas tents and the poles were placed upon one camel.\nGreat leather bottles of water were loaded upon another camel.\n\nFirewood and bags of rice and barley meal were placed upon still\nanother. It required many camels to carry the merchant's goods.\n\nAt last the caravan was ready for the journey. The sun shone steadily,\nmaking the sand so hot that no one could walk upon it in the daytime.\nBut at night both men and camels could travel easily.\n\nSo Abdul the merchant said to the men, \"Be ready to start after sunset\nto-night. Give the camels plenty of water to drink, and feed them well,\nfor we shall have a long, hard journey.\"\n\nAbdul and his men traveled all that night. One man was the pilot. He\nrode ahead, for he knew the stars, and by them he could guide the\ncaravan.\n\nAt daybreak they stopped. They spread the canvas tents and fed the\ncamels. They built fires, cooked the rice, and made cakes of the barley\nmeal. During the day, the men rested in the shade of the tents.\n\nAfter the evening meal, the caravan started again on its way.\n\nThey had traveled thus for three long, silent nights. Early on the third\nmorning, the camels raised their heads, stretched their nostrils, and\nhastened eagerly forward.\n\nThe pilot cried, \"The camels smell water and grass. An oasis is near!\"\n\nBefore long they could see palm trees, with their spreading leaves\nwaving in the soft breeze.\n\nJoyfully they rested during the day. The camels drank freely from the\ncool spring. The men filled the great leather bottles with fresh water.\nIn the evening, refreshed and happy, the men continued the journey.\n\nSo they traveled night after night, resting during the heat of the day.\nAt last, one morning the pilot said, \"We shall soon reach the end of our\njourney.\"\n\nThe men were very glad to hear this, for they were weary, and the camels\nneeded rest.\n\nAfter supper that night Abdul said, \"Throw away the firewood and most of\nthe water. It will lighten the burden of the camels. By to-morrow we\nshall reach the city.\"\n\nWhen the caravan started that evening, the pilot led the way as usual,\nbut after a while, weary with many nights of watching, he fell asleep.\n\nAll night long the caravan traveled. At daybreak the pilot awoke and\nlooked at the last star, fading in the morning light.\n\n\"Halt!\" he called. \"The camels must have turned while I slept. We are at\nthe place from which we started yesterday.\"\n\nThere was no water to drink. There was no firewood to cook the food. The\nmen spread the tents and lay down under them, saying, \"The wood and the\nwater are gone. We are lost!\"\n\nBut Abdul said to himself, \"This is no time to rest. I must find water.\nIf I give way to despair, all will be lost.\"\n\nThen Abdul started away from the tent, watching the ground closely. He\nwalked and walked. At last he saw a tuft of grass.\n\n\"There must be water somewhere under the sand, or this grass would not\nbe here,\" thought the merchant.\n\nHe ran back to the tent, shouting and calling, \"Bring an ax and a spade.\nCome quickly!\"\n\nThe men jumped up and ran with the merchant to the place where the grass\nwas growing. They began to dig in the sand, and presently they struck a\nrock.\n\nAbdul jumped down into the hole and put his ear close to the rock.\n\n\"Water! Water!\" he cried. \"I hear water running under this great rock.\nWe must not despair!\"\n\nThen, raising his ax above his head, he struck a heavy blow. Again and\nagain he struck the rock.\n\nAt last the rock broke, and a stream of water, clear as crystal, filled\nthe hole almost before the merchant could jump out of it.\n\nA shout of joy burst from the lips of the men. They drank the water\neagerly, and afterwards led the camels to the spring. Then they set up a\npole, to which they fastened a flag, so that other traders might find\nthe well.\n\nIn the evening, the men again started on their journey, and they reached\nthe city the very next day.\n\n\n\n\nQUEEN HULDA AND THE FLAX\n\n\nThere was once a poor peasant, Hans by name. He lived with his wife and\nchildren in a valley at the foot of a snow-capped mountain.\n\nHans often drove his sheep to pasture up the mountain side.\n\nHe always carried his crossbow with him, to protect the sheep. He was a\nskillful marksman.\n\nOnce in a while, Hans would shoot a deer. The deer meat would serve as\nfood for his family during many days.\n\nOne day Hans was watching his sheep while they grazed on the mountain\nside. Suddenly a deer appeared. Its spreading antlers glittered in the\nmorning sunlight with wonderful brightness.\n\nThe deer bounded across the pasture to the rocks higher up the mountain.\nHans followed quickly, hoping to approach near enough to shoot an arrow.\n\nFrom rock to rock, higher and higher, Hans followed the deer, until at\nlast they were at the summit of the mountain.\n\nThey sped over the snow until the deer disappeared in the Blue Grotto.\n\nHans followed more slowly, along a dark and narrow tunnel that led to\nthe Blue Grotto. Suddenly he caught a glimpse of a bright light in the\ndistance.\n\nHe walked on and soon reached a brightly lighted cave. From the walls\nand ceiling of the cave hung many wonderful crystals and precious\nstones.\n\nA tall woman dressed in pure white stood in the midst of the cave. A\ngolden girdle was fastened about her waist. A crown set with jewels\nrested on her head. In her hand she held a bunch of blue flowers.\n\nLovely maidens in dainty robes, with graceful wreaths of Alpine roses on\ntheir heads, attended their queen.\n\nOvercome with wonder, Hans knelt before the beautiful woman. As in a\ndream, he heard her say very softly, \"Choose for yourself what you will\nof my treasures--gold, or silver, or precious stones.\"\n\n\"Most gracious queen,\" replied Hans, \"I ask only for the flowers in your\nhand.\"\n\nThe queen was pleased, and she gave the flowers to Hans at once.\n\n\"You have chosen well,\" said she. \"Take also these seeds and sow them in\nyour fields.\"\n\nSuddenly a peal of thunder shook the grotto. When it had ceased, Hans\nfound himself standing alone on the mountain.\n\nWhen Hans reached home, he showed his wife the blue flowers and the\nseeds that had been given him by the queen.\n\n\"Wonderful crystals and precious stones hang from the walls and ceiling\nof the cave, but the queen is more beautiful than all!\" exclaimed Hans.\n\n\"Why did you not choose some of the diamonds and gold?\" cried his wife,\nand she scolded Hans roundly, because he had taken only flowers and\nseeds.\n\nHans made no reply, but he went to the fields and plowed the ground.\nThen he sowed carefully the seeds that the queen had given him.\n\nThe weeks passed by. Tiny green leaves began to show above the ground.\nThe plants grew taller and taller, and then the blue flowers began to\nappear.\n\nThe flowers were so beautiful that even the angry wife was pleased. She\nhad never seen anything like them.\n\nHans watched his fields day and night. One moonlight night, he saw the\nlovely queen of the Blue Grotto walking about among the flowers, with\nher maidens. They seemed to be guarding the blossoms.\n\nAt last the flowers had withered, and the seeds were ripe. Then the\nqueen of the Blue Grotto appeared at the cottage door.\n\nThe queen of the Blue Grotto said, \"I am Queen Hulda. I have come to\nteach you how to spin and weave.\"\n\n\"The blue flowers that your husband chose were the wonderful flax,\"\nadded the queen. \"I love it very much.\"\n\nQueen Hulda taught Hans and his wife how to spin and weave linen cloth.\n\nMany people bought the linen and the flax seeds, so that Hans and his\nwife became very rich.\n\nEvery year Queen Hulda and her maidens watched over the fields. Hans was\nvery happy, because he had chosen the blue flowers of the wonderful\nflax.\n\n\n\n\nALADDIN'S LAMP\n\n\nOh, whither away, ye children dear!\n  To Fairy Grove in Wonderland!\n\nThe trees bend low with a wondrous glows\nDiamonds and rubies the fruit, and lo,\nGather the gems, for you they grow.\n\nSo hither hie, ye children dear!\n  To Fairy Grove in Wonderland!\n\nWelcome prince and princess gay,\nElf and fay and sprite at play,\nDancing till the dawn of day.\n\nThen hasten all, ye children dear!\n  To enter the Realm of Wonderland!\n\nNo giant or genie need cause you alarm,\nTreasures they'll give, and keep away harm,\nFor ALADDIN'S LAMP is the hidden charm.\n\n\n\n\nALADDIN AND THE MAGIC LAMP\n\n\nAladdin was a poor boy who lived in a city of Persia. His mother was a\nwidow. She supported herself by weaving mats.\n\nOne day Aladdin was playing in the street. A tall, dark man stood\nwatching him. When the game was finished, the man beckoned to Aladdin to\ncome to him.\n\n\"What is your name, my boy?\" asked the man, who was a Magician.\n\n\"My name is Aladdin,\" answered the boy. He wondered who the stranger\nmight be.\n\n\"And what is your father's name?\" the Magician asked.\n\n\"My father was Mustapha the tailor, but he died when I was only two\nyears of age,\" replied Aladdin.\n\n\"Alas!\" cried the Magician, pretending to weep. \"He was my brother, and\nyou must be my nephew. I am your long lost uncle.\"\n\nThen he embraced Aladdin and gave him five gold coins, saying, \"Come\nwith me, and I will show you the sights.\"\n\nThey went from the city, through pretty gardens, into the open country.\nThey walked a long distance.\n\nThe Magician gave Aladdin some delicious fruit to eat and told him\nwonderful stories. The lad scarcely noticed how very far they had gone.\n\nAt last they reached a valley between two mountains.\n\nThe Magician stood still for a moment and looked about him.\n\n\"Ah!\" he exclaimed. \"This is the very place for which I have been\nsearching. Gather some sticks. I will kindle a fire.\"\n\nSoon the fire was burning merrily. The Magician took a curious powder\nfrom his girdle. He mumbled strange words as he sprinkled it upon the\nflames.\n\nIn an instant, the earth beneath their feet trembled, and they heard a\nrumbling sound like distant thunder.\n\nThen the ground opened in front of them. There lay a large flat stone\nwith a brass ring fastened to the top.\n\n\"A wonderful treasure lies hidden below,\" said the Magician. \"Obey me,\nand it will soon be ours.\"\n\nThen Aladdin grasped the ring in the way the Magician told him to do,\nand easily lifted the stone.\n\n\"Now,\" said the Magician, \"go down the steps which you see before you.\nYou will come to three great halls.\n\n\"Pass through the halls, but be careful to touch nothing, not even the\nwalls, for if you do, you will certainly die. When you have passed\nthrough the halls, you will reach a garden of fruit trees. In a niche in\nthe garden wall, you will see a lighted lamp. Put out the light, pour\nthe oil from the bowl, and bring the lamp to me.\"\n\nThen the Magician placed a magic ring upon Aladdin's finger, to guard\nhim, and commanded him to go at once in search of the lamp.\n\nAladdin found everything exactly as the Magician had said. He went\nthrough the halls and the garden until he found the lighted lamp. When\nhe had poured out the oil and had placed the lamp inside his coat, he\nbegan to look about him.\n\nUpon the trees were fruits of every color of the rainbow. Some were\nclear as crystal, some were ruby red, and others sparkled with a green,\nblue, or purple light.\n\nThe leaves of the trees were silver and gold. Aladdin did not know that\nthese fruits were precious stones--diamonds, rubies, emeralds, and\namethysts, but they looked so beautiful that he filled his pockets with\nthem as he passed back through the garden.\n\nThe Magician stood at the top of the steps as Aladdin began to climb\nupward.\n\n\"Give the lamp to me,\" he cried, holding out his hand.\n\n\"Wait until I reach the top of the steps,\" Aladdin answered.\n\n\"Hand the lamp to me at once!\" screamed the Magician.\n\n\"Not until I am safely out,\" replied Aladdin.\n\nThen in a rage the Magician rushed to the fire. He threw more of the\ncurious powder upon the fire and muttered the same strange words as\nbefore.\n\nInstantly the stone slipped back into its place. The earth closed over\nit, and Aladdin was left in darkness.\n\nThe Magician at once left Persia and went to Africa.\n\nPoor Aladdin! He groped his way back through the halls to the beautiful\ngarden of shining fruits, but he could find no way of escape. For two\ndays, he cried and shouted for help. At last, as he clasped his hands in\ndespair, he happened to rub the magic ring which the Magician had placed\non his finger.\n\nInstantly a Genie rose out of the earth and stood before him.\n\n\"What is thy will, my master?\" asked the Genie. \"I am the Slave of the\nRing. I serve the one who wears it.\"\n\n\"Deliver me from this place!\" cried Aladdin.\n\nScarcely had he spoken these words when the earth opened. Aladdin found\nhimself at his mother's door. He showed his mother the lamp and the\ncolored fruit, which he still carried in his pockets.\n\n\"I will tell you all that has happened,\" he said, \"but first give me\nsomething to eat, for I am very hungry.\"\n\n\"Alas!\" said the mother. \"I have neither money nor food.\"\n\n\"Sell the old lamp that I brought back with me,\" said Aladdin.\n\n\"The lamp would bring a higher price if it were clean and bright,\"\nreplied his mother, and she began to rub the lamp.\n\nNo sooner had she given the first rub than a great Genie appeared.\n\n\"What is thy will?\" asked the Genie. \"I am the Slave of the Lamp. I\nserve the one who holds the lamp.\"\n\nAladdin's mother was so terrified that she dropped the lamp. Aladdin\nmanaged to grasp it, and say, \"Bring me something to eat.\"\n\nThe Slave of the Lamp disappeared. He returned, bringing a dainty\nbreakfast served upon plates of pure gold.\n\nAladdin now knew what use to make of the magic ring and the wonderful\nlamp. His mother and he lived happily for years.\n\nOne day the Sultan ordered all of the people to stay at home and close\ntheir shutters, while his daughter, the Princess, passed by on her way\nto the bath.\n\nAladdin had heard how beautiful the Princess was, and he greatly desired\nto see her face. This seemed impossible, for the Princess never went out\nwithout a veil which covered her entirely.\n\nHe peeped through the shutters as she passed by. The Princess happened\nto raise her veil, and Aladdin saw her face.\n\nThe moment Aladdin's eyes rested upon the Princess, he loved her with\nall his heart.\n\n\"Mother,\" he cried, \"I have seen the Princess, and I have made up my\nmind to marry her. Go at once to the Sultan and beg him to give his\ndaughter to me.\"\n\nAladdin's mother laughed at the idea. The next day, however, she went to\nthe palace, carrying the magic fruit as a gift. No one paid any\nattention to her.\n\nShe went every day for a week, before the Sultan noticed that she was\nthere.\n\n\"Who is the poor woman who comes here every day?\" he asked. \"Bring her\nforward. I wish to speak to her.\"\n\nAladdin's mother knelt before the throne and told the Sultan of her\nson's love for the Princess. \"He sends you this gift,\" she continued,\npresenting the magic fruit.\n\nThe Sultan was astonished at the gift. He exclaimed, \"Here indeed is a\ngift worthy of my daughter! Shall I not give her to the one who sends\nit?\"\n\nThen the Sultan told Aladdin's mother to return in three months' time,\nand he would give the Princess to her son in marriage.\n\nWhen the time had passed, Aladdin again sent his mother to the Sultan.\n\n\"I shall abide by my word,\" said the Sultan, \"but he who marries my\ndaughter must first send me forty golden basins filled to the brim with\nprecious stones.\n\n\"These basins must be carried by forty black slaves led by forty white\nones, all of them dressed in rich attire.\"\n\nAladdin's mother returned home.\n\n\"Your hopes are ended,\" she cried.\n\n\"Not so, mother,\" answered Aladdin.\n\nThen he rubbed the Magician's lamp. When the Genie appeared, Aladdin\ntold him to provide the forty golden basins filled with jewels, and the\neighty slaves.\n\nWhen the procession reached the palace, the slaves presented the jewels\nto the Sultan.\n\nHe was so delighted with the gift that he was willing to have Aladdin\nmarry the Princess without delay.\n\n\"Go and tell your son that he may wed my daughter this very day,\" he\nsaid to Aladdin's mother.\n\nAladdin was delighted to hear the news. He ordered the Genie to bring a\nrich purple robe for him to wear; a beautiful white horse to ride upon;\ntwenty slaves to attend him; six slaves to attend his mother; and ten\nthousand gold pieces to give to the people.\n\nAt last everything was ready. Aladdin, dressed in his royal robe,\nstarted for the palace. As he rode on the beautiful white horse, he\nscattered the gold coins among the people. They shouted with joy as they\nfollowed the procession.\n\nAt the palace the Sultan greeted Aladdin joyfully and ordered the\nwedding feast to be prepared at once.\n\nBut Aladdin said, \"Not so, your Majesty. I will not marry the Princess\nuntil I have built her a palace.\"\n\nThen he returned home and once more summoned the Slave of the Lamp.\n\n\"Build the finest palace in the world,\" ordered Aladdin. \"Let the walls\nbe of marble set with precious stones. In the center build a great hall\nwhose walls shall be of silver and gold, lighted by great windows on\neach side. These windows are to be set with diamonds and rubies. Depart!\nLose no time in obeying my commands!\"\n\nWhen Aladdin looked out of the window the next morning, there stood the\nmost beautiful palace in the world.\n\nThen Aladdin and his mother returned to the Sultan's palace, and the\nwedding took place amid great rejoicing.\n\nAladdin was gentle and kind to all. He became a great favorite at the\ncourt, and the people loved him well.\n\nFor a time, Aladdin and his bride lived happily.\n\nBut there was trouble coming. Far away in Africa, the Magician who had\npretended to be Aladdin's uncle learned of his escape with the magic\nlamp.\n\nThe Magician traveled from Africa to Persia, disguised as a merchant.\n\nHe carried some copper lamps and went through the streets of the city\ncrying, \"New lamps for old!\"\n\nNow it happened that Aladdin had gone hunting, and the Princess sat\nalone near an open window.\n\nShe saw the merchant and sent a slave to find out what the man called.\nThe slave came back laughing.\n\nHe told the Princess that the merchant offered to give new lamps for old\nones.\n\nThe Princess laughed, too. Then she pointed to the old lamp that stood\nin a niche of the wall.\n\n\"There is an old lamp,\" she said. \"Take it and see if the man really\nwill exchange it for a new one.\"\n\nWhen the Magician saw the lamp, he knew that it was the one for which he\nwas searching.\n\nHe took the magic lamp eagerly and gave the slave all of the new lamps.\n\nThen the Magician hurried out of the city. When he was alone, he rubbed\nthe magic lamp, and the Genie stood before him.\n\n\"What is thy will, master?\" said he.\n\n\"I command thee to carry the palace of Aladdin, with the Princess\ninside, to Africa,\" said the Magician.\n\nInstantly the palace disappeared.\n\nThe Sultan looked out of his window the next morning. No palace was to\nbe seen.\n\n\"This has been done by magic!\" the Sultan exclaimed.\n\nHe sent his soldiers to bring Aladdin home in chains. They met him\nriding back from the hunt. They carried him to the Sultan.\n\nWhen Aladdin was allowed to speak, he asked why he was made prisoner.\n\n\"Wretch!\" exclaimed the Sultan. \"Come and I will show you.\"\n\nThen he led Aladdin to the window and showed him that where the palace\nhad been there was only an empty space.\n\nAladdin begged the Sultan to spare his life and grant him forty days in\nwhich to find the Princess.\n\nSo Aladdin was set free. He searched everywhere, but he could find no\ntrace of the Princess.\n\nIn despair, he wrung his hands. As he did so, he rubbed the magic ring.\n\nInstantly the Slave of the Ring appeared.\n\n\"What is thy will, master?\" asked the Genie.\n\n\"Bring back the Princess and the palace,\" said Aladdin.\n\n\"That is not within my power,\" said the Genie. \"Only the Slave of the\nLamp can bring back the palace.\"\n\n\"Then take me to the place where the palace now stands, and set me down\nunder the window of the Princess.\"\n\nAlmost before Aladdin had finished these words, he found himself in\nAfrica, beneath a window of his own palace.\n\n\"Princess! Princess!\" called Aladdin.\n\nThe Princess opened the window.\n\nWith a cry of joy, Aladdin entered and embraced the Princess. \"Tell me,\ndear,\" said he, \"what has become of the old lamp that stood in the niche\nof the wall?\"\n\n\"Alas!\" replied the Princess. \"A man came through the streets, crying,\n'New lamps for old!' I gave him the lamp that stood in the niche, and\nthe next I knew I was here.\"\n\n\"The man is a Magician. He wished only to secure the magic lamp,\" said\nAladdin.\n\n\"The Magician is here,\" said the Princess. \"He carries the magic lamp\nhidden in his robes during the day, and he places it under his pillow at\nnight.\"\n\nWhile the Magician was sleeping that night, Aladdin stole softly into\nthe room and took the magic lamp from under the pillow. Then he rubbed\nthe lamp and the Genie appeared.\n\n\"I command you to carry the Princess and the palace back to Persia,\"\ncried Aladdin.\n\nThe following morning, the Sultan looked out of the window. There, to\nhis surprise, stood the palace of Aladdin, in the very place from which\nit had disappeared.\n\nAladdin and the Princess lived happily for many years. When the Sultan\ndied, they ruled in his place. They were beloved by the people, and\nthere was peace in all the land.\n\n\n\n\nTHE WHITING AND THE SNAIL\n\n\n\"Will you walk a little faster?\"\n  Said a whiting to a snail,\n\"There's a porpoise close behind us,\n  And he's treading on my tail.\nSee how eagerly the lobsters\n  And the turtles all advance!\nThey are waiting on the shingle--\n  Will you come and join the dance?\n\n\"You can really have no notion\n  How delightful it will be,\nWhen they take us up and throw us\n  With the lobsters out to sea!\nBut the snail replied, \"Too far, too far!\"\n  And gave a look askance--\nSaid he thanked the whiting kindly,\n  But he would not join the dance.\n\n\"What matters it how far we go?\"\n  His scaly friend replied,\n\"There is another shore you know,\n  Upon the other side.\nThe further off from England\n  The nearer is to France;\nThen turn not pale, beloved snail,\n  But come and join the dance.\"\n\n LEWIS CARROLL.\n\n\n\n\nTHE BONFIRE IN THE SEA\n\n\nLong, long ago, in Australia, it is said, fishes could travel as easily\non land as they could swim in water.\n\nIt happened, so the story goes, that the whole fish tribe had been\nplaying tag along a sandy beach near the sea. At last they became tired\nof the game, Fin-fin, the leader of the fishes, said, \"Let us coast down\nthe great, black rock.\"\n\nNow beyond the level shore where the fishes had been playing tag, there\nwere cliffs and rocks. Some of the rocks rose straight out of the water,\nothers sloped toward the sandy beach.\n\nHigh above the rest towered the great, black rock. The fishes climbed to\nthe top Then, one after another, they followed the leader, each gliding\nhead foremost down the rock. It was fine sport!\n\nThen the fishes formed a circle and danced, while Fin-fin slid down the\nrock alone.\n\nAgain and again he climbed to the top and slid down, as swiftly as an\narrow glides from the bow. Finally he turned a somersault at the foot of\nthe rock, and then called to the fishes to stop dancing.\n\n\"It is time to cook dinner,\" said Fin-fin.\n\n\"There is a good place for a camp under the trees on the tall cliff\nyonder.\"\n\nThe fishes climbed to the top of the cliff overhanging the sea. They\ngathered wood and heaped it high at the edge of the cliff.\n\nWhen all was ready for the bonfire, Fin-fin rubbed two sticks briskly\ntogether. Soon a spark fell upon the wood, and instantly the flames\nleaped upward. Then the fishes put some roots in front of the fire to\nroast.\n\nWhile the roots were cooking, the fishes stretched themselves under the\ntrees. They had almost fallen asleep, when suddenly great drops of rain\ncame splashing down.\n\nA dark cloud, which they had not noticed, had covered the sun.\n\nThe rain fell hard and fast and soon put out the fire.\n\nNow, you know, this was very serious, for people in those days had no\nmatches, and it was difficult to light a fire. Then, too, an icy wind\nbegan to blow, and the fishes were soon shivering in the cold.\n\n\"We shall freeze to death unless we can build a fire again,\" cried\nFin-fin.\n\nHe tried to kindle a flame by rubbing two sticks together. He could not\nproduce even one spark.\n\n\"It is of no use,\" said Fin-fin. \"The wood is too wet. We shall have to\nwait for the sun to shine again.\"\n\nA tiny fish came forward and bowed before Fin-fin, saying, \"Ask my\nfather, Flying-fish, to light the fire. He is skilled in magic, and he\ncan do more than most fishes.\"\n\nSo Fin-fin asked Flying-fish to light the fire once more.\n\nFlying-fish knelt before the smoldering ashes and fanned briskly with\nhis fins.\n\nA tiny thread of smoke curled upward, and a feeble red glow could be\nseen in the ashes.\n\nWhen the tribe of fishes saw this, they crowded close around\nFlying-fish, keeping their backs toward the cold wind. He told them to\ngo to the other side, because he wanted to fan the fire.\n\nBy and by the spark grew into a flame, and the bonfire burned brightly.\n\n\"Bring more wood,\" cried Flying-fish.\n\nThe fishes gathered wood and piled it upon the fire. The red flames\nroared, and sputtered, and crackled.\n\n\"We shall soon be warm now,\" said Fin-fin.\n\nThen the fishes crowded around the fire, closer and closer. Suddenly a\nblast of wind swept across the cliff from the direction of the land, and\nblew the fire toward the fishes.\n\nThey sprang back, forgetting that they were on the edge of the cliff.\nAnd down, down, down, went the whole fish tribe to the bottom of the\nsea.\n\nThe water felt warm, for the strong wind had driven the fire down below,\ntoo.\n\nThere, indeed, was the bonfire at the bottom of the sea, burning as\nbrightly as ever.\n\nMore wonderful still, the fire never went out, as fires do on land. The\nwater at the bottom of the sea has been warm ever since that day.\n\nThat is why, on frosty days, the fishes disappear from the surface of\nthe water. They dive to the bottom of the sea, where they can keep warm\nand comfortable, around the magic bonfire.\n\nAT LEAST, SO SOME PEOPLE SAY.\n\n\n\n\nROBINSON CRUSOE\n\n\nMany years ago, there lived in England a boy whose name was Robinson\nCrusoe.\n\nThough he had never been near the sea, Crusoe's dearest wish was to\nbecome a sailor and go on a ship to foreign lands.\n\nThis grieved his mother very much, and she begged the boy to remain at\nhome. His father also warned him of danger, saying, \"If you go abroad,\nyou will be most miserable. I cannot give my consent.\"\n\nIt happened that Crusoe visited Hull, a large town by the sea, to say\ngood-by to a companion who was about to sail for London. He could not\nresist the chance of going on a voyage, and without even sending a\nmessage to his father and mother, he went aboard the ship and sailed\naway.\n\nRobinson Crusoe met with many strange adventures at sea. On his first\nvoyage, the ship was wrecked in a fearful storm, and the crew was saved\nby sailors from another ship.\n\nNext, Crusoe went on a voyage to Africa. On the way there the ship was\ncaptured by pirates. The captain of the pirates made a slave of the boy.\nThe man took Crusoe to his home and made him dig in the garden and work\nin the house.\n\nOne day Crusoe hid some food in a small boat and managed to escape, with\na boy. They sailed for many long days and nights, keeping close to\nshore. They did not dare to land, because of the lions and other wild\nanimals.\n\nAfter a time they saw a Portuguese vessel. The captain allowed them to\ngo aboard. This ship was bound for South America. They finally landed in\nBrazil.\n\nRobinson Crusoe lived on a plantation in Brazil for several years. He\nraised sugar and tobacco. For a time he was happy and made money.\n\nBut Robinson Crusoe was never contented anywhere for very long. When a\nmerchant asked him to go on another voyage to the coast of Africa, he\nconsented, and he had soon started on this new venture.\n\nAt first the weather was very hot. Then one day, without warning, a\nhurricane burst upon them. The wind raged for twelve days, and the ship\nwas nearly torn to pieces. No one expected to escape.\n\nAfter a time the wind abated somewhat. The captain ordered the course of\nthe ship changed, but soon another storm followed, even worse than the\nfirst.\n\nEarly one morning, while the wind was still roaring and the ship was\nrolling from side to side, a sailor who was peering through the fog\nsuddenly cried out, \"Land! Land!\"\n\nAt the same moment, the vessel struck on a sand bar, with a grating\nsound. The waves dashed over the deck of the ship.\n\nWith great difficulty, the boats were lowered at the side of the ship.\nAll the sailors climbed into the boats, for they knew not at what moment\nthe ship would break to pieces.\n\nThe men rowed bravely toward the shore, but suddenly a mountain-like\nwave rolled over them and upset the boats.\n\nCrusoe was a very fine swimmer, but no one could swim in such a sea. It\nwas only good fortune and his alertness that landed him safely ashore.\n\nWave after wave washed him further and further upon the beach. At last a\nwave left him beside a rock, to which he clung until the water flowed\nback to the sea. Then he jumped up and ran for his life.\n\nRobinson Crusoe was the only person from the ship who was not drowned.\nHe was thankful indeed for his escape.\n\nAfter resting for a time, Crusoe looked about him. He was wet, cold, and\nhungry. It was growing very dark, and he was afraid of wild animals.\n\nHe found his knife still in his pocket, so he cut a stick with which to\nprotect himself. Then he climbed into a tree and hid among the branches.\nHe was soon sound asleep.\n\nWhen Crusoe awoke in the morning, the storm was over, and the sea was\ncalm. He found that the ship had been driven by the waves much nearer to\nthe shore. By noon the water was low. The tide had ebbed so far out that\nhe could walk almost to the ship.\n\nHe swam for a short distance. When lie reached the vessel, he could find\nno way to climb up, but at last he discovered a rope hanging over the\nside. By the help of the rope, he managed to pull himself to the deck.\n\nEverything in the stern of the ship was safe and dry, and the food was\nnot spoiled. Crusoe filled his pockets with biscuits and ate them as he\nwent about his work. He had no time to spare.\n\nCrusoe needed a boat, to carry to the shore many necessary things.\n\n\"It is of no use to wish for a boat,\" he thought, \"I must set to work to\nmake one.\"\n\nFirst he took some spars of wood and a topmast or two, that were on the\ndeck, and threw them overboard, tying each with a rope so that it would\nnot drift away.\n\nThen he climbed down the side of the ship, and fastened the spars\ntogether to make a raft. It was a long time before he was able to make\nthe raft strong enough to hold the things that he wished to take ashore.\n\nCrusoe loaded the raft with three seamen's chests. He had filled these\nchests with bread, rice, cheese, dried goat's flesh, and other articles\nof food. He also took all the clothing he could find.\n\nThen Crusoe dragged a carpenter's tool chest to the side of the ship. He\nplaced this on the raft. Nothing on the ship was of more use to him than\nthe tools in this chest.\n\nHe secured guns, pistols, and shot, also two barrels of dry gunpowder.\n\nThe trouble now was to land his cargo safely.\n\nCrusoe had only a broken oar, but he rigged up a sail, and the tide\nhelped him. At last he reached the mouth of a little river. The strong\ntide carried him to land.\n\nHe was able to push the raft into a little bay. When the tide flowed\nout, the raft was left high and dry on the sand, and everything was\ntaken safely ashore.\n\nThen Crusoe thought he would look about the country. He climbed to the\ntop of a high hill. He found that he was on an island, and that there\nwas no sign of people, and nothing living in sight excepting great\nflocks of birds.\n\nDay after day, Crusoe returned to the ship. He built more rafts and\nbrought from the vessel everything that he considered useful.\n\nHe made a tent of sails to protect the things that could be spoiled by\nthe sun or rain.\n\nAfter several weeks, the weather changed, and a high wind began to blow.\n\nOne morning, when Crusoe awoke, he found that the ship had broken to\npieces and was no longer to be seen. However, he had saved from the\nwreck everything that he needed.\n\nThen Robinson Crusoe decided to find a better place for his tent. There\nwas a little plain on the bide of a hill. At the further end was a rock\nwith a hollow place like the entrance to a cave; but there was really\nnot any cave or way into the rock at all. Here he placed his tent.\n\nIn a half circle, in front of the tent, Crusoe drove two rows of strong\nstakes sharpened at the top, about six inches apart. He laid pieces of\nrope between the stakes. The fence was about five arid a half feet high\nand so strong that no one could enter.\n\nThere was no door, so Crusoe climbed in and out by means of a ladder\nwhich he always drew up after him.\n\nBefore closing up the end of the fence, Crusoe carried within all the\narticles that he had saved from the wreck. He rigged a double tent\ninside the fence, to protect all from the sun and rain.\n\nWhen this was finished, Crusoe began to dig out the rock. It was not\nvery hard, and soon, behind his tent, he had a cave in which he placed\nhis powder, in small parcels.\n\nRobinson Crusoe was very comfortable. He had saved from the wreck two\ncats and a dog. He had ink, pens, and paper, so that he could write down\nall that happened.\n\n\"But what shall I do when the ink is gone?\" thought Crusoe. \"I must find\nsome way of keeping track of the time.\"\n\nHe set up a wooden cross, upon which he cut with a knife the date of his\nlanding. Each day he cut another notch in the wood.\n\nEvery seventh notch was twice as long as those for the days between, and\nthe notch for every first day of the month was twice as long again. Thus\nCrusoe kept a calendar, or weekly, monthly, and yearly reckoning of\ntime.\n\nBy and by, he found that there were many goats on the island, and many\npigeons which he could obtain for food.\n\nAfter a time, Crusoe decided that his cave was too small.\n\nAs he was sure that there were no wild beasts on the island, he began to\nmake his cave larger, and he finally built a tunnel through the rock\noutside his fence.\n\nThen he began to hang his belongings upon the sides of the cave, and to\narrange them in order. He even built shelves on the walls, and made a\ndoor for the entrance. He also made a table and some chairs.\n\nDuring all this time, Robinson Crusoe climbed the hill daily.\n\nHe looked over the lonely waters hoping--always hoping--to see the sail\nof a ship. At last he gave up all hope of ever leaving the island.\nSeveral years passed by. The clothing that Crusoe had saved from the\nship was worn out. He made himself clothes from the skins of the goats\non the island. He made also an umbrella of goat skins, to shield him\nfrom the hot rays of the sun.\n\nThough the food which he had taken from the ship had long since been\neaten, he raised plenty of barley from seed which he had found in a\nlittle bag on the ship. The goats and pigeons on the island supplied him\nwith meat.\n\nHe had become very tired of never hearing a voice. There were many green\nparrots among the trees and he decided to catch one and teach it to\ntalk. He found it difficult to obtain one, but finally he did catch a\nyoung parrot.\n\nAt first he could not teach it to say a word, but at last when he came\nback to his tent from a day on the island, the parrot called, \"Robin,\nRobin Crusoe! Poor Robin Crusoe, where have you been?\"\n\nOne morning, as Crusoe started for his canoe, a strange thing happened.\nHe was walking along, and what do you suppose he saw? The print of a\nman's foot in the sand! The sight made him cold all over. He looked\naround.\n\nHe listened, but there was not a sound, yet there in the sand was the\nprint of a man's foot--the toes, the heel, and the sole.\n\nHe did not go to the boat. Instead he hastened back to his cave. He was\nso frightened that it was some time before he ventured out again.\n\nAbout a year after this, Crusoe was surprised one morning to see a\nbonfire on the shore. He looked through his spyglass and saw a company\nof savages who had landed in canoes and had built a fire.\n\nThey had two prisoners whom they were about to kill. One of them saw a\nchance to escape, and he made a sudden dash for his life, running with\ngreat speed straight toward Robinson Crusoe.\n\nCrusoe rescued this man. The man was very grateful.\n\nCrusoe made him understand, after a time, that his name was to be\nFriday. It was on Friday that the man had been saved.\n\nCrusoe taught him to say \"Yes,\" and \"No,\" and also to say \"Master.\"\n\nFriday became the faithful servant and companion of Robinson Crusoe.\n\nMany more years passed.\n\nOne morning Friday came running toward Crusoe, shouting, \"Master!\nMaster! They come!\"\n\nCrusoe ran to the beach and looked toward the sea. There he saw a large\nsailing vessel making for the shore.\n\nThe sailing vessel proved to be an English ship.\n\nCrusoe's stay on the desert island had come to an end. When he took\nleave of the island, he carried on board the sailing vessel his goat\nskin cap and umbrella, also the parrot.\n\nSo after twenty-eight long years Robinson Crusoe and his faithful\nservant, Friday, sailed away.\n\nThe voyage was long and hard, but at last they reached the coast of\nEngland.\n\n\n\n\nTHE WONDERFUL WORLD\n\n\nGreat, wide, beautiful, wonderful World,\nWith the wonderful water round you curled,\nAnd the wonderful grass upon your breast,\nWorld, you are beautifully dressed!\nThe wonderful air is over me,\nAnd the wonderful wind is shaking the tree;\nIt walks on the water, and whirls the mills,\nAnd talks to itself on the tops of the hills.\nYou friendly Earth, how far do you go,\nWith wheat fields that nod, and rivers that flow,\nAnd cities and gardens and oceans and isles,\nAnd people upon you for thousands of miles?\n\nAh! you are so great, and I am so small,\nI hardly can think of you, World, at all;\nAnd yet, when I said my prayers to-day,\nA whisper within me seemed to say:\nYou are more than the Earth,\nThough you are such a dot;\nYou can love and think, and the Earth cannot.\n\n\n\n\nTHE MAGIC GIRDLE\n\n\nOnce upon a time, a little cobbler sat at his bench mending a pair of\nshoes. He whistled a merry tune as he worked.\n\nThe day was very warm, and the wax which he had been using began to\nmelt. In less time than it takes to tell it, a swarm, of flies lighted\nupon the melting wax.\n\n\"Ho, ho!\" exclaimed the little cobbler. \"Who invited you to a feast?\"\n\nHe threw the shoe that he was mending, at the flies, and many fell dead\nfrom the blow. The cobbler counted the flies as they lay dead, and he\nsaid, \"Not so bad! That blow should make me famous.\"\n\nThen the cobbler took a girdle and painted this rhyme upon it:\n\n   Ha, ha! Ho, ho!\n   Ten at one blow.\n\n\"Now I shall travel around the world wearing this girdle, and it will\nmake me famous,\" said the cobbler.\n\nSo the queer little man put on the girdle and started out to seek his\nfortune.\n\nAs he was entering a forest, he saw a bear walking along a narrow path.\nThe cobbler was frightened. There was no way of escape. He waited to see\nwhat would happen.\n\nThe bear growled and ran toward him. The cobbler stood with his girdle\nin sight.\n\nThe bear read the words on the girdle:\n\n   Ha, ha! Ho, ho!\n   Ten at one blow.\n\n\"Is it possible that this little man can kill TEN BEARS at one blow?\"\nthought the bear, \"I will be careful not to offend him.\"\n\nSo the bear stood still and said, \"Where are you going, my friend?\"\n\n\"Around the world to seek my fortune,\" proudly replied the cobbler.\n\n\"Stay here for a time and dine with me. I know where there is some\nchoice honey,\" said the bear, and he led the way to a hollow tree where\nthe bees had stored their honey.\n\nBut a hunter had set a trap in the tree, and as the bear reached for the\nhoney--snap! His paw was caught fast in the trap. And that was the end\nof Mr. Bear!\n\nThe cobbler quickly stripped off the skin of the animal, saying, \"This\nwill make a fine, warm blanket.\"\n\nThen he walked away, carrying the skin over his arm and whistling a\nmerry tune.\n\nAt last the cobbler reached the edge of the forest and began to climb a\nhill. Sitting on a rock overlooking the valley below was a giant.\n\nThe cobbler's heart beat fast with fear.\n\nHe walked bravely up to the giant, with his girdle in plain sight.\n\n\"Good-day, friend,\" said the cobbler.\n\n\"Here you sit at your ease. Do you not wish to travel with me to see the\nworld?\" the cobbler added.\n\nWhen the giant saw the little stranger walking up to him so boldly, he\nwas greatly surprised.\n\n\"How dare you enter the land of the giants!\" he was about to exclaim.\n\nAt that moment, he saw the girdle and read the words:\n\n   Ha, ha! Ho, ho!\n   Ten at one blow.\n\n\"Is it possible that this little man can kill TEN GIANTS at one blow?\"\nthought the giant. \"I will be careful not to offend him.\"\n\nSo the giant said, \"Good-day, my friend. I see that though you are a\nlittle man, you have great strength. Let us prove which of us is the\nstronger.\"\n\nThen the giant led the cobbler to a great oak tree that had fallen to\nthe ground.\n\n\"Help me carry this tree to yonder cave,\" he said.\n\n\"Certainly,\" said the cobbler. \"You take the trunk on your shoulder, and\nI will carry the top and branches of the tree, which, of course, are the\nheaviest part.\"\n\nThe giant laid the trunk of the tree on his shoulder, but the cobbler\nsat at his ease among the branches, enjoying the ride.\n\nSo the giant, who could not see what was going on behind him, had to\ncarry the whole tree, and the little man in the bargain. There the\ncobbler sat, in the best of spirits, whistling a merry tune as though\ncarrying a tree was mere sport.\n\nAt last the giant could bear the weight no longer, and he shouted, \"Hi,\nhi! I must let the tree fall.\"\n\nThen the cobbler sprang nimbly down, seized the tree with both hands, as\nif he had carried it all the way, and called to the giant, \"Think of a\nbig fellow like you not being able to carry a tree!\"\n\n\"Well,\" said the giant, \"I will admit that you are the stronger. Come\nand spend the night in my cave.\"\n\nThe cobbler followed the giant into the cave. There, sitting around a\nfire, were a number of giants. They were laughing and talking in a noisy\nmanner, and they scarcely noticed the little man.\n\nThe cobbler spread the bear's skin upon the floor near the fire. Then he\nlay down and pretended to sleep, but all the time he was watching to\nfind a way of escape.\n\nAt about midnight, the giants went to bed, and they were soon sleeping\nsoundly.\n\nThe cobbler seized a club which belonged to one of the giants, placed\nthe bear's skin over his arm, and tiptoed out of the cave. He was soon\nfar away from the giants.\n\nAfter many days, the cobbler reached the courtyard of the king's palace.\nHe was very tired, so he spread the bear's skin upon the grass and lay\ndown upon it. He placed the giant's club by his side.\n\nSoon he was fast asleep.\n\nPresently one of the king's soldiers came near. He was surprised to find\nthe little man sleeping there, with a giant's club by his side. Then he\nspied the girdle and read the words:\n\n   Ha, ha! Ho, ho!\n   Ten at one blow.\n\n\"Indeed!\" thought the soldier. \"This little man must have killed TEN\nBEARS at one blow, and TEN GIANTS besides.\"\n\nThen the soldier hurried away and told every one he met about the queer\nlittle man. The news spread until it reached the king.\n\n\"Bring this mighty man to me,\" the king commanded.\n\nWhen the king read the words upon the girdle, he said, \"You are the very\none I wish to have fight for me in time of war.\"\n\n\"I am ready to fight for you, O King!\" said the cobbler.\n\nThe king at once appointed the cobbler commander of his army.\n\nNot long after this, a war broke out. The king promised the hand of his\ndaughter to the man who should conquer the enemy.\n\nThe little cobbler, riding upon a white horse, commanded the king's\narmy.\n\nWhat a queer leader he was! About his shoulders was thrown the bear's\nskin, held firmly by the wonderful girdle, and in one hand he carried\nthe giant's club.\n\nWhen the enemy advanced, and the leader saw the queer commander of the\nking's army, he smiled and said, \"We have little to fear from such a\ncommander.\"\n\nThen he saw the curious girdle and read the words:\n\n   Ha, ha! Ho, ho!\n   Ten at one blow.\n\n\"Is it possible that this little man can kill TEN COMMANDERS at one\nblow?\" thought the leader.\n\nHe turned his horse quickly and gave orders for the army to retreat.\n\nThe cobbler followed the enemy and soon overtook the leader, whom he\nmade prisoner.\n\nWhen the king saw the cobbler returning with the leader, he was\ndelighted. But all at once he remembered the reward that he had promised\nto the victor.\n\nThe princess refused to become the bride of one so small and so ugly as\nthe cobbler.\n\n\"What shall I do?\" asked the king. \"A king should never break his\npromise.\"\n\nThen the princess whispered to the king, \"Try to take the little man's\ngirdle from him. He will then lose his power.\"\n\nSo the king said to the cobbler, \"You may have the hand of the princess\nif you will give your girdle to me.\"\n\nThis made the cobbler very unhappy, for he knew what good fortune the\ngirdle had brought to him.\n\nBut he smiled and answered in a cheerful voice.\n\n\"I shall be honored, if your majesty will accept my girdle.\"\n\nHe handed the precious girdle to the king.\n\nAt that moment, something wonderful happened.\n\nInstead of an ugly little man, there stood a tall, handsome youth.\n\nThe princess was very willing to become the bride of so handsome a\nyouth. The king now gladly gave his consent to the marriage.\n\nNext day a great wedding feast was spread in honor of the marriage.\n\nAfter the king's death, the princess and her husband ruled the country.\n\nThe magic girdle was placed over the throne.\n\nEver afterwards, when the new king and queen appeared, the people would\nshout with great pride,\n\n  \"Ha, ha! Ho, ho!\n   Ten at one blow.\"","title":"Story Hour Readers \u2014 Book Three","tradition":"myth-cosmogony","translated_text":null,"word_count":24406}