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diff --git a/44981-8.txt b/44981-8.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 7551c2e..0000000 --- a/44981-8.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2693 +0,0 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Harper's Young People, March 8, 1881, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Harper's Young People, March 8, 1881 - An Illustrated Weekly - -Author: Various - -Release Date: February 22, 2014 [EBook #44981] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE, MARCH *** - - - - -Produced by Annie R. McGuire - - - - - - - - -[Illustration: HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE -AN ILLUSTRATED WEEKLY.] - - * * * * * - -VOL. II.--NO. 71. PUBLISHED BY HARPER & BROTHERS, NEW YORK. PRICE FOUR -CENTS. - -Tuesday, March 8, 1881. Copyright, 1881, by HARPER & BROTHERS. $1.50 per -Year, in Advance. - - * * * * * - - - - -[Illustration: "SUGARING OFF."--DRAWN BY W. R. YEAGER.] - -FUN IN A SUGAR BUSH. - -BY WILLIAM O. STODDARD. - - -"Well, yes, Jerry," remarked Salina Meadows, "old Mr. Wire'll be glad to -have anybody come to see him that knows as much about sugar as you do." - -"It's all the hobby he's got," said her brother Phin. "He makes the best -maple sugar in all these parts. Whitest and cleanest. Biggest lot of it, -too." - -"I've heard him say," added Rush Potts, "that no man was ever too old to -learn. Glad we could bring you along." - -"There isn't much about sugar I don't know," replied Jerry Buntley, -modestly, with a pull at his dog-skin gloves to make them fit tighter. -"You just ought to see a real sugar plantation once." - -"I would like to," said Hannah Potts, all the red in her rosy face -coming to the surface to meet the wind that blew in her face from the -direction of old Mr. Wire's great forest on the hill-side. - -They were all cuddling down in Elder Meadows's great box sleigh, and -Phin Meadows was putting the sorrel span along the road in a way that -made their bells dance lively enough, for the March thaw had only just -begun, and the sleighing was capital. - -Jerry Buntley had told them more about sugar that day than they had ever -heard before. It was a great treat to be invited to a maple-sugaring at -old Mr. Wire's, and Jerry's country cousins were glad of having -something worth while to take with them by way of payment; that is, they -were glad to take Jerry. - -He was glad to go, and he talked sugar until every soul in the sleigh -thought he could taste candy, and Phin found himself comparing the color -of his sorrel team to that of the five pounds his mother sent back to -Barnes's grocery store, because, as she said, "She wasn't going to pay -any 'leven cents a pound for building sand." - -It was not many minutes before they pulled up in front of old Mr. Wire's -big rambling old farm-house, and there were Jim and Sally Wire coming -out to meet them. Old Mrs. Wire was in the doorway, and she looked -twenty years younger as soon as they had a look at her husband. Mainly -because the difference in their ages was a good deal more than that. - -Nobody knew how tall Mr. Wire would have been if he had stood up, but -the oldest old ladies around Lender's Mills village all said he'd had -that stoop in his shoulders ever since they'd known him. - -"My mother used to say," said Elder Meadows, "that old Wire's father was -a short, stocky man, and built his log-house to fit himself, and so when -his son got taller'n he was himself, he had to hold his head down, -'specially coming through the door." - -There he was now, and the visitors had not been in the house five -minutes before Salina Meadows told how much Jerry Buntley knew about -sugar. - -"His father sells tons of it, and his brother's a clerk in a sugar -store, and his uncle's a book-keeper in a sugar refinery in the city--" - -"Ten stories high!" put in Jerry, with a down look of modesty. - -"--and he's seen sugar plantations, and molasses factories, and where -they make all sorts of candy." - -"You don't say!" exclaimed Mrs. Wire. "I'm glad you fetched him along." - -"Wa'al, so'm I," said old Mr. Wire. "No man ain't ever too old to l'arn. -I've only been a-b'ilin' sap for a leetle risin' of fifty year, and I -don't know much. You're jest in time. The sun's lookin' down warm -to-day, and we was jest a-wantin' to set out for the bush." - -"It isn't the fur-away bush," said Mrs. Wire; "it's that there patch -nighest the house. The trees ain't been tapped this five year, and -they'll run the best kind." - -"There'll be more here by-and-by," said Sally Wire. "Don't take your -things off. We'll have a real good time." - -Old Mr. Wire took Jerry Buntley right along with him--under his wing, as -you might say. He asked him questions, too, and nobody could guess how -many times Jerry made him exclaim, "You don't say!" or, "Do tell, now, -is that so?" - -The forest had been left standing on all that hill-side for nothing else -in the world but sugar. It was not half an hour before the Wires and -their visitors were crunching over the crust among the trees, or -standing around the great fires that had been built and lit before they -came. Every fire had a great iron kettle on it, and every kettle was -bubbling for dear life, except when a dash of cold sap was ladled into -it from the barrel that stood under the nearest tree. - -"It's afternoon now," said Sally Wire. "I do hope the other folks'll get -here before it's too dark. But then we can have a good time at the house -in the evening." - -"Boys," said old Mr. Wire, "if you want to help, you jest take them two -auger bits and them spiles, and go and tap a fresh lot of trees over -there to the east'ard. Jim and I'll go round with the buckets." - -Wonderfully white and clean were all his buckets and shoulder-yokes, and -his wooden troughs that caught the sap as it dripped into them from the -ends of the wooden spiles he had driven into the trees he had tapped -already. There was plenty of work for him and his son, and so Jerry -Buntley and Phin Meadows and Rush Potts marched away to the east, while -the girls hung around the kettles, and tested the syrup, in every way -they knew how, to see if any of it had boiled long enough. - -"We'll have plenty to sugar off with in the house this evening," said -Sally Wire; "but we mustn't let any of it get burned." - -Jerry took possession of an auger and a bundle of spiles, and Phin took -the other auger, and Rush Potts said he'd just go along to learn how. - -"Catching cold are you, Phineas?" asked Jerry, as he began to work his -auger into a splendidly tall tree, and Phin and Rush both were seized -with a sudden fit of coughing, - -"Ugh, ugh, ugh--no--ugh--I guess not. Bore it deep, Jerry. Old man Wire -is particular about that." - -"Guess I know how to tap a tree," said Jerry. "The sun shines right on -this one, and the sap'll run well." - -"Ugh--ugh--ugh," coughed Rush Potts. "I guess I'll help Phin. He doesn't -know as much as you do." - -"I should say not," diffidently replied Jerry; but he had finished his -first tree quite skillfully, and now he went for his second with all the -zeal of a true sportsman. - -"Phineas," he shouted, a moment later, "when you come to a maple of this -kind, knock off the outer bark. It bores easier." - -"All right," replied Phin, with his mouth half full of his handkerchief. -But he added, in a lower voice: "Rush, stop rolling in the snow. He's -tapping a hickory this time." - -"T'other was an elm. Oh, if he isn't fun! What'll old man Wire say to -that?" - -"Keep still. Get up, can't you? I can't bore a hole worth a cent. Give -me a spile." - -Jerry was an enthusiastic sugar-maker, and his rapidity of work was a -credit to him. - -"Maple this time," said Phin, at the end of Jerry's next job. "But look -at what he's doing now." - -"Beech! There'll be more sugar 'n old Wire'll know what to do with." - -"We must pitch in, Rush. I want to be on hand when old Wire comes to see -if his spiles are set right. Maybe it'll kill him." - -"I've tapped pretty nearly two trees to their one," said Jerry to -himself, "but I won't boast of it. Here's a remarkably fine tree, right -in the sun. I hope they won't make any mistakes." - -With that he started his twist of steel into the yielding wood of one of -the noblest silver-birches in all that forest, and in a wonderfully -short time there was another spile fitted. Whether there would be any -need for Mr. Wire to put a sap trough under the end of that spile was -quite another question. - -The crust was thick, and bore very well, so that the girls had no -wading to do in going from one fire to another; and Jim Wire and his -father worked like beavers at emptying the sap troughs, and carrying in -the almost colorless, sweetish-tasting liquid their trees had yielded -them. - -"Now, Jim," said Mr. Wire at last, "we'd better take a lot of troughs -and follow them fellers. 'Twon't do to waste any sap." - -Phin and Rush saw them coming, and at once stopped work. So did Jerry -Buntley, for he had some suggestions to make about those spiles. It -seemed to him that some of them were bored too small for the quantity of -sap which was expected to run through them. - -He and the others came up just as the gray-headed old sugar-maker -stopped in front of Jerry's first tree, and they got there in time to -wink hard at Jim Wire. All three of them stepped around behind Jerry and -Mr. Wire. - -"You've sot that there spile in jest about right, Mr. Buntley," said Mr. -Wire, without changing a muscle of his wrinkled face; "but this kind of -maple don't give any sugar at this season of the year. It isn't a winter -maple; it's the kind we call an ellum." - -"Ah! Oh yes! Strange I didn't notice." - -"Doesn't yield anything but brown sugar--common brown sugar. It's all -right, though. I declar'!" - -He was looking at the shell-bark hickory now, and that specimen of -Jerry's work was a hard pull on his politeness. - -"Jim," he said, "put a trough under thar. It's a changin' world. Things -isn't what they used to be. Mebbe thar's sugar into hickory nowadays." - -"Hickory?" gasped Jerry. "That's a fact. I kind o' didn't look up to see -what it was." - -"And ye couldn't ha' told by the bark; of course not. I'd -say--now--there--well--exactly--nobody ain't never too old to l'arn. -Beech, bass-wood, ellum, black walnut, birch--if thar'd been a saxafrax, -he'd ha' gone and tapped it for root-beer." - -There was an explosion behind them just then, for the three other boys -gave it up the moment they saw it had been too much for old Mr. Wire. - -"Put troughs to all on 'em, Jim," said the latter, solemnly, recovering -himself. "Stop your ignorant, on-mannerly laughin'. Mr. Buntley, jest -you come back to the kittles, and tell me over ag'in what you was -a-sayin' about surrup." - -Jerry was beginning to understand the tree joke, but he could not see -why Phin Meadows should roll Rush Potts and Jim Wire over in the snow -the way he did, for he said to himself: - -"It's a mistake any man would make. One tree is just like another. I -wonder how Mr. Wire tells them apart? I think I will ask him before we -go to the house." - -So he did, and the old man answered him with cast-iron politeness that -he knew his trees, just as he did his dogs, by their bark. - -When the day in the sugar bush was over, however, and when, after -supper, the fun in the house began, with a round dozen more of country -boys and girls to keep it up, Jerry heard all sorts of things. The -syrup, carried in and boiled down in the kettles over the kitchen fire, -was cooled, on the snow, and every other way, into "hickory sugar," -"birch candy," "elm taffy," "beech twist," and all sorts of uncommon -sweetness, and Jerry overheard Mrs. Wire saying to Hannah Potts: - -"You don't say! Did he really tap 'em all? He looks as if he might know -suthin', too. Mebbe he was jokin'." - -All the rest were, except old Mr. Wire; and when the sorrel span was -brought out to take home the sleigh-load that came from Lender's Mills -village, he said to Jerry Buntley: - -"No man ain't never too old to l'arn, and it wasn't knowin' too much -made me stoop-shouldered. Thar's a heap o' sense in what you told me -about that new way of settlin' surrup." - -Nevertheless, Jim Wire went around the next morning and took away all -the troughs from under the trees which had not yielded any sap, and put -them where they were likely to do more good. - - - - -[Begun in No. 58 of HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE, December 7.] - -TOBY TYLER; - -OR, TEN WEEKS WITH A CIRCUS. - -BY JAMES OTIS. - -CHAPTER XIII. - -TOBY ATTEMPTS TO RESIGN HIS SITUATION. - - -At last it was possible for Toby to speak of his loss with some degree -of calmness, and then he immediately began to reckon up what he could -have done with the money if he had not lost it. - -"Now see here, Toby," said Ben, earnestly, "don't go to doin' anything -of that kind. The money's lost, an' you can't get it back by talkin'; so -the very best thing for you is to stop thinkin' what you could do if you -had it, an' just to look at it as a goner." - -"But--" persisted Toby. - -"I tell you there's no buts about it," said Ben, rather sharply. "Stop -talkin' about what's gone, an' just go to thinkin' how you'll get more. -Do what you've a mind to the monkey, but don't keep broodin' over what -you can't help." - -Toby knew that the advice was good, and he struggled manfully to carry -it into execution, but it was very hard work. At all events, there was -no sleep for his eyes that night, and when, just about daylight, the -train halted to wait a more seasonable hour in which to enter the town, -the thought of what he might have done with his lost money was still in -Toby's mind. - -Only once did he speak crossly to the monkey, and that was when he put -him into the cage preparatory to commencing his morning's work. Then he -said: - -"You wouldn't had to go into this place many times more if you hadn't -been so wicked; for by to-morrow night we'd been away from this circus, -an' on the way to home an' Uncle Dan'l. Now you've spoiled my chance an' -your own for a good while to come, an' I hope before the day is over -you'll feel as bad about it as I do." - -It seemed to Toby as if the monkey understood just what he said to him, -for he sneaked over into one corner, away from the other monkeys, and -sat there, looking very penitent and very dejected. - -Then, with a heavy heart, Toby began his day's work. - -Hard as had been Toby's lot previous to losing his money, and difficult -as it had been to bear the cruelty of Mr. Job Lord and his precious -partner Mr. Jacobs, it was doubly hard now while this sorrow was fresh -upon him. - -Previous to this, when he had been kicked or cursed by one or the other -of the partners, Toby thought exultantly that the time was not very far -distant when he should be beyond the reach of his brutal task-masters, -and that thought had given him strength to bear all that had been put -upon him. - -Now the time of his deliverance from this bondage seemed very far off, -and each cruel word or blow caused him the greater sorrow because of the -thought that but for the monkey's wickedness he would have been nearly -free from that which made his life so very miserable. - -If he had looked sad and mournful before, he looked doubly so now, as he -went his dreary round of the tent, crying, "Here's your cold lemonade," -or "Fresh-baked pea-nuts, ten cents a quart," and each day there were -some in the audience who pitied the boy because of the misery which -showed so plainly in his face, and they gave him a few cents more than -his price for what he was selling, or gave him money without buying -anything at all, thereby aiding him to lay up something again toward -making his escape. - -Those few belonging to the circus who knew of Toby's intention to escape -tried their best to console him for the loss of his money, and that -kind-hearted couple, the skeleton and his fat wife, tried to force him -to take a portion of their scanty earnings in the place of that which -the monkey had thrown away. But this Toby positively refused to do, and -to the arguments which they advanced as reasons why they should help him -along, he only replied that until he could get the money by his own -exertions he would remain with Messrs. Lord and Jacobs, and get along as -best he could. - -Every hour in the day the thought of what might have been if he had not -lost his money so haunted his mind, that, finally he resolved to make -one bold stroke, and tell Mr. Job Lord that he did not want to travel -with the circus any longer. - -As yet he had not received the two dollars which had been promised him -for his two weeks' work, and another one was nearly due. If he could get -this money, it might, with what he had saved again, suffice to pay his -railroad fare to Guilford, and if it would not, he resolved to accept -from the skeleton sufficient to make up the amount needed. - -He naturally shrank from the task; but the hope that he might possibly -succeed gave him the necessary amount of courage, and when he had gotten -his work done, on the third morning after he had lost his money, and Mr. -Lord appeared to be in an unusually good temper, he resolved to try the -plan. - -It was just before the dinner hour; trade had been unexceptionally good, -and Mr. Lord had even spoken in a pleasant tone to Toby when he told him -to fill up the lemonade pail with water, so that the stock might not be -disposed of too quickly, and with too little profit. - -Toby poured in quite as much water as he thought the already weak -mixture could receive and retain any flavor of lemon, and then, as his -employer motioned him to add more, he mixed another quart in, secretly -wondering what it would taste like. - -"When you're mixin' lemonade for circus trade," said Mr. Lord, in such a -benign, fatherly tone, that one would have found it difficult to believe -that he ever spoke harshly, "don't be afraid of water, for there's where -the profit comes in. Always have a piece of lemon-peel floatin' on the -top of every glass, an' it tastes just as good to people as if it cost -twice as much." - -Toby could not agree exactly with that opinion, neither did he think it -wise to disagree, more especially since he was going to ask the very -great favor of being discharged; therefore he nodded his head gravely, -and began to stir up what it pleased Mr. Lord to call lemonade, so that -the last addition might be more thoroughly mixed with the others. - -Two or three times he attempted to ask the favor which seemed such a -great one, and each time the words stuck in his throat, until it seemed -to him that he should never succeed in getting them out. - -Finally, in his despair, he stammered out: - -"Don't you think you could find another boy in this town, Mr. Lord?" - -Mr. Lord moved around sideways, in order to bring his crooked eye to -bear squarely on Toby, and then there was a long interval of silence, -during which time the boy's color rapidly came and went, and his heart -beat very fast with suspense and fear. - -"Well, what if I could?" he said at length. "Do you think that trade is -so good I could afford to keep two boys, when there isn't half work -enough for one?" - -Toby stirred the lemonade with renewed activity, as if by this process -he was making both it and his courage stronger, and said, in a low -voice, which Mr. Lord could scarcely hear: - -"I didn't think that; but you see I ought to go home, for Uncle Dan'l -will worry about me, an', besides, I don't like a circus very well." - -Again there was silence on Mr. Lord's part, and again the crooked eye -glowered down on Toby. - -"So," he said--and Toby could see that his anger was rising very -fast--"you don't like a circus very well, an' you begin to think that -your uncle Daniel will worry about you, eh? Well, I want you to -understand that it don't make any difference to me whether you like a -circus or not, and I don't care how much your uncle Daniel worries. You -mean that you want to get away from me, after I've been to all the -trouble and expense of teaching you the business." - -Toby bent his head over the pail, and stirred away as if for dear life. - -"If you think you're going to get away from here until you've paid me -for all you've eat, an' all the time I've spent on you, you're mistaken, -that's all. You've had an easy time with me--too easy, in fact--and -that's what ails you. Now you just let me hear two words more out of -your head about going away--only two more--an' I'll show you what a -whipping is. I've only been playing with you before when you thought you -was getting a whipping; but you'll find out what it means if I so much -as see a thought in your eyes about goin' away. An' don't you dare to -try to give me the slip in the night, an' run away; for if you do, I'll -follow you, an' have you arrested. Now you mind your eye in the future." - -It is impossible to say how much longer Mr. Lord might have continued -this tirade, had not a member of the company--one of the principal -riders--called him one side to speak with him. - -Poor Toby was so much confused by the angry words which had followed his -very natural and certainly very reasonable suggestion that he paid no -attention to anything around him, until he heard his own name -mentioned, and then, fearing lest some new misfortune was about to -befall him, he listened intently. - -"I'm afraid you couldn't do much of anything with him," he heard Mr. -Lord say. "He's had enough of this kind of life already, so he says, an' -I expect the next thing he does will be to try to run away." - -"I'll risk his getting away from you, Job," he heard the other say; "but -of course I've got to take my chances. I'll take him in hand from eleven -to twelve each day--just your slack time of trade--and I'll not only -give you half of what he can earn in the next two years, but I'll pay -you for his time if he gives us the slip before the season is out." - -Toby knew that they were speaking of him, but what it all meant he could -not imagine. - -"What are you going to do with him first?" Job asked. - -"Just put him right into the ring, and teach him what riding is. I tell -you, Job, the boy's smart enough, and before the season's over I'll have -him so that he can do some of the bare-back acts, and perhaps we'll get -some money out of him before we go into winter-quarters." - -[Illustration: TOBY AND THE LITTLE BOY CUSTOMERS.] - -Toby understood the meaning of their conversation only too well, and he -knew that his lot, which before seemed harder than he could bear, was -about to be intensified through this Mr. Castle, of whom he had -frequently heard, and who was said to be a rival of Mr. Lord's, so far -as brutality went. The two men now walked toward the large tent, and -Toby was left alone with his thoughts and the two or three little boy -customers, who looked at him wonderingly, and envied him because he -belonged to the circus. - -During the ride that night he told old Ben what he had heard, -confidently expecting that that friend at least would console him. But -Ben was not the champion which he had expected. The old man who had been -with a circus, "man and boy, nigh to forty years," did not seem to think -it any calamity that he was to be taught to ride. - -"That Mr. Castle is a little tough on boys," old Ben said, thoughtfully; -"but it'll be a good thing for you, Toby. Just so long as you stay with -Job Lord, you won't be nothin' more'n a candy boy; but after you know -how to ride, it'll be another thing, an' you can earn a good deal of -money, an' be your own boss." - -"But I don't want to stay with the circus," wailed Toby; "I don't want -to learn to ride, an' I do want to get back to Uncle Dan'l." - -"That may all be true, an' I don't dispute it," said Ben, "but you see -you didn't stay with your uncle Daniel when you had the chance, an' you -did come with the circus. You've told Job you wanted to leave, an' he'll -be watchin' you all the time to see that you don't give him the slip. -Now, what's the consequence? Why, you can't get away for a while, -anyhow, an' you'd better try to amount to something while you are here. -Perhaps after you've got so you can ride, you may want to stay, an' I'll -see to it that you get all of your wages, except enough to pay Castle -for learnin' of you." - -"I sha'n't want to stay," said Toby. "I wouldn't stay if I could ride -all the horses at once, an' was gettin' a hundred dollars a day." - -"But you can't ride one horse, an' you hain't gettin' but a dollar a -week, an' still I don't see any chance of your gettin' away yet awhile," -said Ben, in a matter-of-fact tone, as he devoted his attention again to -his horses, leaving Toby to his own sad reflections, and the positive -conviction that boys who run away from home do not have a good time, -except in stories. - -The next forenoon, while Toby was deep in the excitement of selling to a -boy no larger than himself, and with just as red hair, three cents' -worth of pea-nuts and two sticks of candy, and while the boy was trying -to induce him to "throw in" a piece of gum because of the quantity -purchased, Job Lord called him aside, and Toby knew that his troubles -had begun. - -"I want you to go in an' see Mr. Castle; he's goin' to show you how to -ride," said Mr. Lord, in as kindly a tone as if he were conferring some -favor on the boy. - -If Toby had dared to, he would have rebelled then and there, and refused -to go; but as he hadn't the courage for such proceeding, he walked -meekly into the tent, and toward the ring. - -[TO BE CONTINUED.] - - - - -THE NATIONAL FLOWER OF JAPAN. - -BY WILLIAM ELIOT GRIFFIS. - - -[Illustration] - -The cherry blossom is the national flower of Japan, as the rose is of -England, the lily of France, the thistle of Scotland, and the shamrock -of Ireland. On the Mikado's flags, papers, and carriages, and on the -soldiers' caps and uniform, you will see the open chrysanthemum. But -the flower of the people and of the nation is the flower of the -blossoming cherry-tree. - -"Do not all cherry-trees blossom?" you will ask. - -Yes; but the Japanese cultivate all over Japan, by the millions, the -sakura-tree, which is valued only for the beauty of its blossoms. -Botanists call it _Prunus pseudocerasus_. From an entire tree you could -not get ripe cherries enough to make a pie; but the blooms are massed -together on the boughs like clouds, and the blooms are often as large as -a rose. Picnics in Japan are called, "Going to see the flowers." In -June, millions of the people go out to sing and sport and laugh and play -under the cherry-trees, or to catch "the snow-showers that do not fall -from the skies." There are tens of thousands of stanzas of poetry about -the cherry-tree. Some of the people become so enchanted with the lovely -blossoms that they actually say their prayers under them, or even -worship the famous old trees. Here is an instance, which the artist has -told by his pencil. A sacred cherry-tree has been carefully surrounded -by a fence of bamboo, and two old gentlemen are worshipping the tree, -while one young fellow is snickering at them from around the corner, and -the other's mouth is wide open with astonishment, and he is probably -saying, "Naru hodo" (Well, I declare!). - - - - -PUSSY WILLOW. - -BY MARIAN DOUGLAS. - - - The brook is brimmed with melted snow, - The maple sap is running, - And on the highest elm a crow - His big black wings is sunning. - A close green bud the May-flower lies - Upon its mossy pillow; - And sweet and low the South Wind blows, - And through the brown fields calling goes, - "Come, Pussy! Pussy Willow! - Within your close brown wrapper stir; - Come out and show your silver fur; - Come, Pussy! Pussy Willow!" - - Soon red will bud the maple-trees, - The bluebirds will be singing, - And yellow tassels in the breeze - Be from the poplars swinging; - And rosy will the May-flower lie - Upon its mossy pillow, - But you must come the first of all. - "Come, Pussy!" is the South Wind's call-- - "Come, Pussy! Pussy Willow!" - A fairy gift to children dear, - The downy firstling of the year-- - Come, Pussy! Pussy Willow! - - - - -THE ANTS AT HOME. - -BY CHARLES MORRIS. - - -The brook that ran merrily by the garden of Woodbine Cottage, prattling -like a happy child on a holiday, grew sober and quiet further down, -spreading into a broad sheet of gleaming water, through whose liquid -surface glistened the silvery sands that adorned its bed. - -Here the soft green verdure spread like a rich carpet, and Harry and -Willie Mason lay buried in the deep grasses until only their heads -appeared above the waving blades. On the bank of the brook sat their -uncle Ben, his kindly face turned with a pleasant smile to the -questioning boys. - -"So you want to hear some more queer stories about ants?" he said. "Why, -I thought we were well done with the subject." - -"But you said, you know, that there was a lot more of odd things," -replied Harry, "and Willie wants ever so much to hear them. Don't you, -Willie?" - -"I guess _you_ does," retorted Willie, with a sly gesture. - -Uncle Ben laughed heartily. "So it is one word for Willie, and two for -yourself," he said. "But what shall I tell you about? Shall I describe -that strange tree which keeps up a standing army of ants to preserve it -from injury, while it in return finds the ants in food and shelter?" - -"A tree!" cried Harry, with a shout of laughter. "It must be a thinking -tree, then." - -"I suppose so--in its way. Not just in our way, of course. One can -hardly believe such things of a tree." - -"_I_ don't b'lieve it," said Willie, sturdily. - -"What a born critic you are!" replied his uncle, with a quizzical look -at the little doubter. "It is true, nevertheless. The tree in question -is called the bull's-horn acacia. A species of ants lives upon it, and -protects it from insects which would injure its foliage, such as slugs -and caterpillars. But the odd thing is the mode in which the tree -manages to provide for these ant soldiers." - -"Is they the soldiers you kept talking 'bout?" asked Willie. - -"Oh no; those were soldier ants who went out in armies, and fought -battles with other ant armies, or attacked the nests of the negro ants -and carried off their young to bring them up as slaves. These soldiers -only fight for the good of the tree." - -"Which takes care of them in return?" asked Harry. - -"Precisely. There are certain cavities in its outer surface which serve -as barracks for these regiments of ants. But the most curious feature is -the mode in which the tree provides food for its defenders. When the -leaves are young, and in danger from insects, there opens a little gland -at their base, which is filled with a honey-like liquid. The ants are -very fond of this, and lap it up greedily. They run from one gland to -another, and are thus kept constantly about the young leaves. And these -little chaps bite shrewdly, so that no other creeping thing dares to -venture near the leaves." - -"Well, that is certainly very curious," said Harry, raising himself on -one arm half out of his grassy bed. - -"But that is only part of the provision," continued his uncle. "The leaf -is what is called a compound leaf, consisting of a number of leaflets on -one stem. When this compound leaf first unfolds, there appears at its -base a little yellow fruit-like body, attached by a fine point to the -leaf. It is a beautiful object through the microscope, looking like a -little golden pear. It is not quite ripe when the leaf first opens, and -the ants may be seen busily running from one to another to see if any -are ripe. Whenever one is found to be ripe, the ant bites it off at the -small point of attachment, and carries it eagerly away to its nest. But -they do not ripen all at once, so that the ants are kept about the -leaves until these are old enough to be out of danger." - -"Well, I never heard anything quite so queer about trees!" exclaimed -Harry. - -"There are many strange instances of trees being aided by insects," -remarked Uncle Ben; "but I doubt if there is any stranger than this. -There is one tree, of the genus _Triplaris_, whose trunk, limbs, and -even its smallest twigs, are hollow. If any person happens to break or -even to shake one of these twigs, he might well imagine that the tree -was alive, for he will instantly find it covered with multitudes of -creeping brown creatures, which bite furiously. It is, in fact, -inhabited by myriads of ants, which occupy the whole interior, and which -protect the tree from its enemies by their vicious bite." - -"I hardly think I would like to break switches from that tree," laughed -Harry. - -"I's mighty sure I wouldn't," said Willie. - -"There is another tree, called the trumpet-tree," continued their uncle. -"This has a hollow stem, divided by partitions, like the reeds which -grow on our river shores. Ants get into this tree by boring a hole from -the outside. They then bore through the partitions, and get the run of -the whole interior. Every cell made by the partitions serves them as a -separate apartment, some being devoted to eggs, and some to their young -in different stages of growth. One cell is kept as the home of the -queen, this royal lady having an apartment of her own." - -"Do the ants protect this tree too?" asked Harry. - -"Oh yes; they rush out in millions if the tree is shaken, and are very -apt to make things uncomfortable for intruders." - -"Don't feed 'em on pears, does it?" asked Willie. - -"Not exactly; they do not get their living directly from the tree; but -they feed on it indirectly. The fact is, this species keeps a kind of -ant cows. These are minute insects, which attach themselves to the -interior of the tree, and live on its juices. They give out a honey-like -liquid, of which the ants are very fond, and lap up with great -eagerness. You see thus that there are various ways in which plants feed -the ants which protect them from other insects." - -"Are there any other ants that live on trees?" asked Harry. - -"Yes, indeed. Ants are very apt to take possession of hollow trees. They -build thin partitions, which divide the interior of the tree into halls, -galleries, and saloons, and they live there thoroughly sheltered from -the weather. The Ethiopian ants hollow out long galleries, and use the -finely powdered wood which has fallen to the bottom of the tree to stop -up every chink in the floors, to make partitions, and to fill up useless -apartments. There are also yellow ants which construct entire stories of -this decayed wood. They mix it with a little earth and spider's web, and -thus make it into a sort of _papier-maché_." - -"Don't think that's so awful smart," protested Willie. "Jess don't the -wasps an' the hornets make paper nests too?" - -"Very true," replied his uncle. "There is another curious ant, though, -which makes its nest out of leaves. These are large, strong leaves, but -the little creatures somehow draw their edges together, and gum them -fast, so that they make themselves a close, roomy shelter inside. They -have been seen at work, thousands of them tugging away for dear life at -the edges of the leaves. If they are startled, and made to loose their -hold of the edge, it flies back so strongly that it is a marvel how they -ever drew it in." - -"Don't they sometimes build very large nests on the ground," asked -Harry--"much larger than the little ant-hills we see about here?" - -"I should think so, indeed! Why, the common red ant of England builds a -nest of any rubbish it can find, such as straw, leaves, and bits of wood -mixed with earth, often as large as a small hay-cock. But this is a -trifle, compared with some tropical ant-hills. Travellers in Guiana -describe ant-hills which are fifteen or twenty feet high, and thirty or -forty feet wide at the base. You might well fancy they were houses for -elephants, instead of for ants." - -"I should imagine they must be elephantine ants," remarked Harry. - -"Not at all. There is a very small ant in New South Wales whose hills -are eight or ten feet high. But this is not all; these great mounds are -only the upper part of the ant city. It extends as deeply under-ground. -There is one ant described that builds a nest of forty stories, twenty -above and twenty under ground. These stories are divided into numerous -saloons and apartments, with narrow galleries, and inclined planes for -stairways. The partitions are usually very thin, but the ceilings are -often supported by pillars and buttresses, just like our great halls." - -"It must take the ants a long while to build such nests as that," -remarked Harry. - -"I guesses so," said Willie. "I's seen 'em, many and many a time, -running up with their wee little bits of dirt, and I knows they'd jess -be ever and ever so long." - -"But you do not stop to think what can be done by keeping at it," said -Uncle Ben. "They are the very hardest of hard workers. They never seem -to tire or lie down to rest, so that it is astonishing what progress -they make. It is said that they will finish a complete story to their -nest, with all its rooms, galleries, vaulted roofs, and partitions, in -seven or eight hours. They use wet clay in the work, and put it together -very rapidly." - -"I suppose these big nests are built just like the little ones we have -here," said Harry, with a questioning look. - -"Yes, on much the same principle. In fact, our little mason ants are -very expert builders. Some of them only build while it is raining, or -while the ground continues wet. If it gets so dry that the earth will -not stick together, they pull down their unfinished walls, and heap the -earth over the finished portions. The ash-colored mason is very curious -in his ways. He begins by bringing a quantity of earth, which he heaps -on the roof of his old home. Then he goes to work upon this, excavating -galleries, just as a laborer will dig ditches across a field. Finally he -roofs over these galleries. But if he should begin a roof before the -walls are high enough, he will carefully take it down, and build the -walls higher before proceeding with his roof." - -"Why, what smart little chaps they are! They must think, anyhow. Don't -you believe so, Uncle Ben?" - -"One would fancy so, at any rate. They may not be able to think like -philosophers, but they certainly think like builders. I could give you -other evidences of it. If you saw them carefully closing the doors of -their nests at night or in wet weather, and opening them again in the -morning, and carrying their young out-of-doors to enjoy the sun on -bright days, and a dozen other shrewd habits, you might well imagine -they thought it all out. Among the strangest of these ant-philosophers -are the driver ants of West Africa, a species which can not endure the -hot suns of that region. If they are caught by the fierce rays of the -sun when out travelling, they at once build themselves a covered archway -of clay--a long tunnel whose sides and roof are cemented by some gummy -material from their own bodies. Under this they travel safe from the -sun. It is said of the same ants that when they are obliged to cross a -stream in their journeys, they will ascend a tree, and run out on a low -limb that hangs over the opposite side. From this they drop a line of -ants to the earth, each clinging firmly to the one above it. Over this -living line the whole army passes. Other travellers relate that if they -can not cross the stream in this way, they will drop a line of ants to -the water, from which a horizontal line, supported on the water, runs to -the other side; forming a living bridge, over which the whole army -marches. For my part, I hardly know what to think of these stories, -since the driver ants are entirely blind." - -"I guesses that's 'nough," said Willie. "Let's go play, Harry. Ants -can't do that, anyway. They doesn't do nuffin but work all the time." - -"Indeed you are very much mistaken, my young friend," replied his uncle. -"They are just as fond of play as you are. They will wrestle with one -another, and ride on each other's backs, as if it were the greatest fun -in the world. And they have been seen practicing gymnastic sports, -climbing, hanging down by one leg, and letting themselves fall from a -distance, as if they enjoyed it hugely. In fact, they are up to almost -as many pranks and capers as young boys. I doubt, however, if they get -into mischief as often. But go on; I won't detain you any longer from -your play." - -"Maybe you's glad 'nough to get rid of us," said Willie, slyly, as he -snatched Harry's cap and ran away with it. In an instant the ants were -forgotten, and there was a hot chase across the grassy meadow. - - - - -[Illustration: ABDULLAH AND HIS FRIENDS.] - -AN EGYPTIAN BOOT-BLACK. - -BY L. M. F. - - -I am only a poor Egyptian boot-black, but, for all that, I do not -consider myself the inferior of any living being, and feel very proud to -own that I am a descendant from one of the most ancient nations existing -on the face of the earth. I was born in Cairo, Egypt; so were all my -ancestors, and no other land bears the imprints of the soles of their -feet, for they lived and died in this sunny land. - -My name is Abdullah (_i. e._, servant of God). I am an orphan; my -parents died before I was five, leaving me a waif trusting to the mercy -of the world at large. Having no home, and no kith or kin to claim me, I -was thrown into the streets to hunt up my own living. I used to wander -up and down begging for a para, a piece of bread, or anything with which -I could satisfy the pangs of hunger. Thus I passed about four years of -my life living on beggary, till one day I noticed a boy blacking an -Englishman's boots, and he paid the boy one piastre for doing it. I at -once resolved to earn my living that way, and begged the boy to instruct -me. He first refused, but on my telling him I was an orphan, he at once -taught me how to handle the brushes, and gave me a couple of old ones -which he had in his box. I gratefully accepted them. Hastening to one of -the stores, I begged for an empty little box, and fastening it to a -piece of rope I had found on a dust heap, I slung it across my shoulder -proudly, in imitation of all boot-blacks. How could I get some blacking? -was my next thought. I entered a grocery store, and said to the owner, -"Ya sidi" (_i. e._, my lord), "I will black your boots for a couple of -figs." - -"You don't look like a boot-black," he responded. - -"I can black boots better than ten boot-blacks," said I, confidently. - -"All right," said he, seating himself, and presenting me his foot; -"black away." - -I tremblingly opened my box, and taking out my brushes hesitatingly -said: - -"Ya sidi, my blacking is not very good; it is rather dry. If you let me -use your blacking, I could make your shoes like a mirror." - -"Very well," he unsuspectingly said, handing me a large box of blacking -from a well-filled shelf over his head. "I guess mine is fresher; but -make them fine, for I want to go to a wedding." - -"Halla rassi" (_i. e._, on my head), I replied, setting to work. It -being a very hot day, this gentleman was dressed in a long spotless -white caftan touching his ankles. I worked vigorously, and in my -eagerness to do the thing well, I got the blacking smeared over my -hands, which left large black marks on his ankles, and, worst of all, I -had a nice sprinkling of black dots all over his white suit. - -"Oh, you young rascal!" he exclaimed, hurriedly, glancing at his -condition, "what have you done?" - -He was just about dealing me a blow, when I grasped my box and brushes -and made my escape. Exasperated that he had missed me, with an oath he -flung the box of blacking after me, which hit me on the shoulder. I -joyfully clutched the blacking, and ran into another street as fast as -my legs could carry me. Breathless, I sat down on a door-step to -contemplate my next undertaking, whereupon four professional boot-blacks -roughly accosted me, asking how long I had been a boot-black, and to -what district I belonged. I replied that I did not belong to any; upon -which they began roughly pushing me, and wanted to take away my brushes -and blacking; but I fought manfully and desperately for them. - -"Hafarêm" (_i. e._, well done), said one. "You are a ghadah" (_i. e._, -fine fellow). "You can fight well; and as you have no one, we will take -you in our company, provided you divide your earnings with us." - -Of course I acceded with great pleasure. - -The Egyptian boot-blacks have a regular constitution and set of laws; -not written out or printed, but not the less enforced. - -1. The city of Cairo is divided into about a dozen boot-black districts. - -2. The strongest boot-black in his district shall be the Sheik, or -chief, until some stronger boy whips him; then the strongest boy takes -his place. - -3. Every boot-black must obey his Sheik. - -4. Always stand by a boot-black, even if from another district. - -5. Only Mohammedans are allowed the privilege of being boot-blacks. Any -other sects taking up the trade must be put down. - -I soon learned all these rules, and followed them closely. The -Mohammedans, with the exception of the military men and those in the -Viceroy's service, never have their boots blackened. A true Mohammedan -looks on blackened boots as on something sacrilegious, so that we -boot-blacks are regarded with scorn by our pious neighbors. The -boot-black trade is in the European part of the city; that is where we -mostly get our customers. We charge no regular price, but take just what -we can get. Our worst customers are the military officers and policemen, -for they often fail to pay us a single para; and if they are in a good -humor, thereby refraining from giving us a kick, they will occasionally -throw us the end of a cigar, and we are obliged to submit to this -treatment with all humility. The European and American tourists are our -genii, for they often give us a franc for polishing their boots. The -Christians and Jews who reside in the city do not pay us well. Some of -the richer ones give twenty paras (equal to two cents); while others, -such as grocery men, pay us in an orange, or a few figs, or a handful of -dates. Thus we barely make a living among a population of four hundred -thousand inhabitants. Our voices are heard among the first sounds of the -early morning, calling, "Boyâ! boyâ! boy-â-â-â!" (_i. e._, blacking). We -frequent the streets where most customers are to be found, and often -have a fight with some boot-black from another district who is trying to -obtain the best custom. - -Once in the year there is a gathering of the faithful followers of -Mohammed for a pilgrimage to Mecca. The streets are filled with gay -processions escorting the pious pilgrims. All the boot-blacks on that -day unite in full force, every Sheik marching at the head of his company -brandishing a stick; our boxes are slung across our shoulders to -designate our trade; and we all heartily join in making as much noise as -possible, shouting, "Boyâ! boyâ-â-â!" as we lead a camel richly -harnessed through the streets of the city. There are hundreds of such -other camels in this grand procession, led by various parties. Slowly we -file through the streets, amid the hearty cheers of the citizens, and -wend our way toward the desert, where we leave our camel to the charge -of some faithful pilgrim, and return back again to our daily routine of -boot-blacking. - -I have been a successful boot-black for five years, and I am now the -Sheik of my district, which position I gained by being the strongest and -most able fighter, and best story-teller, consequently, as a badge of -honor, I wear a small turban around my cap. The four boys who first -patronized me are my best friends. After a hard day's work, we often -resort to some quiet spot on a door-step, and, seating myself, my -friends cluster round me for a thrilling tale from the _Arabian Nights_. -Ali sits on my left, resting his weary arm on my knee, for he is the -best boot-polisher in the city, and works very hard. Mustapha, on my -right, has his only brother Hassan's head resting in his lap. Mahmud is -the youngest, and is rather restless. He is fond of standing up, brushes -in hand, and trying to see if he can not chance to spy some customer -wanting his boots blackened, for he is ambitious to make as much money -as possible, as he has an old grandmother, whom he loves dearly, to -support. - -Not long ago a kind American lady, who seems to have taken an interest -in us poor boot-blacks, started an evening school for us. As she had -been good to me, and had once helped me out of a serious difficulty, I -used all my power as Sheik of my district to make the boys attend. At -first it seemed rather dull work to spend two evenings every week in -school, but our kind friend made it so pleasant for us that we gradually -grew to like it, and now think our school evenings the pleasantest of -the week. I am trying hard to learn what is taught us, and hope some -time to be something better than an Egyptian boot-black. - - - - -[Illustration: THE FAITHFUL SENTINEL.] - - - - -AN AWFUL SCENE. - -BY JIMMY BROWN. - - -I have the same old, old story to tell. My conduct has been such -again--at any rate, that's what father says; and I've had to go up -stairs with him, and I needn't explain what that means. It seems very -hard, for I'd tried to do my very best, and I'd heard Sue say, "That boy -hasn't misbehaved for two days good gracious I wonder what can be the -matter with him." There's a fatal litty about it, I'm sure. Poor father! -I must give him an awful lot of trouble, and I know he's had to get two -new bamboo canes this winter just because I've done so wrong, though I -never meant to do it. - -It happened on account of coasting. We've got a magnificent hill. The -road runs straight down the middle of it, and all you have to do is to -keep on the road. There's a fence on one side, and if you run into it, -something has got to break. John Kruger, who is a stupid sort of a -fellow, ran into it last week head first, and smashed three pickets, and -everybody said it was a mercy he hit it with his head, or he might have -broken some of his bones, and hurt himself. There isn't any fence on the -other side, but if you run off the road on that side, you'll go down the -side of a hill that's steeper than the roof of the Episcopal church, and -about a mile long, with a brook full of stones down at the bottom. - -The other night Mr. Travers said-- But I forgot to say that Mr. Martin -is back again, and coming to our house worse than ever. He was there, -and Mr. Travers and Sue, all sitting in the parlor, where I was -behaving, and trying to make things pleasant, when Mr. Travers said, -"It's a bright moonlight night let's all go out and coast." Sue said, "O -that would be lovely Jimmy get your sled." I didn't encourage them, and -I told father so, but he wouldn't admit that Mr. Travers or Sue or Mr. -Martin or anybody could do anything wrong. What I said was, "I don't -want to go coasting. It's cold and I don't feel very well, and I think -we ought all to go to bed early so we can wake up real sweet and -good-tempered." But Sue just said, "Don't you preach Jimmy if you're -lazy just say so and Mr. Travers will take us out." Then Mr. Martin he -must put in and say, "Perhaps the boy's afraid don't tease him he ought -to be in bed anyhow." Now I wasn't going to stand this, so I said, "Come -on. I wanted to go all the time, but I thought it would be best for old -people to stay at home, and that's why I didn't encourage you." So I got -out my double-ripper, and we all went out on the hill and started down. - -I sat in front to steer, and Sue sat right behind me, and Mr. Travers -sat behind her to hold her on, and Mr. Martin sat behind him. We went -splendidly, only the dry snow flew so that I couldn't see anything, and -that's why we got off the road and on to the side hill before I knew it. - -The hill was just one glare of ice, and the minute we struck the ice the -sled started away like a hurricane. I had just time to hear Mr. Martin -say, "Boy mind what you're about or I'll get off," when she struck -something--I don't know what--and everybody was pitched into the air, -and began sliding on the ice without anything to help them, except me. I -caught on a bare piece of rock, and stopped myself. I could see Sue -sitting up straight, and sliding like a streak of lightning, and crying, -"Jimmy father Charles Mr. Martin O my help me." Mr. Travers was on his -stomach, about a rod behind her, and gaining a little on her, and Mr. -Martin was on his back, coming down head first, and beating them both. -All of a sudden he began to go to pieces. Part of him would slide off -one way, and then another part would try its luck by itself. I can tell -you it was an awful and surreptitious sight. They all reached the bottom -after a while, and when I saw they were not killed, I tried it myself, -and landed all right. Sue was sitting still, and mourning, and saying, -"My goodness gracious I shall never be able to walk again. My comb is -broken and that boy isn't fit to live." Mr. Travers wasn't hurt very -much, and he fixed himself all right with some pins I gave him, and his -handkerchief; but his overcoat looked as if he'd stolen it from a -scarecrow. When he had comforted Sue a little (and I must say some -people are perfectly sickening the way they go on), he and I collected -Mr. Martin--all except his teeth--and helped put him together, only I -got his leg on wrong side first, and then we helped him home. - -This was why father said that my conduct was such, and that his friend -Martin didn't seem to be able to come into his house without being -insulted and injured by me. I never insulted him. It isn't my fault if -he can't slide down a hill without coming apart. However, I've had my -last suffering on account of him. The next time he comes apart where I -am, I shall not wait to be punished for it, but shall start straight for -the North Pole, and if I discover it the British government will pay me -mornamillion dollars. I'm able to sit down this morning, but my spirits -are crushed, and I shall never enjoy life any more. - - - - -[Begun in HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE No. 66, February 1.] - -PHIL'S FAIRIES. - -BY MRS. W. J. HAYS, - -AUTHOR OF "PRINCESS IDLEWAYS," ETC. - -CHAPTER VI. - -THE FAIRY'S STORY. - - -"I promised you a story," said the little voice, close to his ear again. - -"Yes, I know you did; can you tell it now?" - -"To be sure I can, if I only have time. I did not bring any of my people -to-night; they are helping some of the herb elves. It is a little late -in the season, and some blossoms have been slow in opening, so that we -have to urge them." - -"How?" asked Phil. - -"By coaxing and persuasion for some of them; others we have to blow upon -quite forcibly." - -"I am ready for the story when you are," said Phil. - -"It is a wild affair, and one that all children might not care to hear; -but to you, I fancy, nothing comes amiss." - -"No, I like almost everything," said Phil. - -"I shall begin just as my grandmother used to. Once upon a time, in the -days of enchantment, there was a dreadful old ogre--" - -"Do not make him too dreadful, or I shall have bad dreams," interrupted -Phil. - -The fairy laughed and flapped her little wings. "Now you must not be -afraid; it will all come out right in the end. When I said the ogre was -dreadful, I meant he was ugly-looking: we fairies like everything -beautiful. Shall I go on?" - -"Oh yes, and please forgive me for stopping you." - -"This ogre was ugly, with a shaggy head, a shaggy beard, and fierce -eyes, and he lived all by himself in a great stone castle on the shore -of a large lake. His principal pleasure consisted in tormenting -everything and everybody he came near; but if he had any preference, it -was for boys; to tease and ill-use them had the power of affording him -great happiness. Lazy, loitering little fellows were in especial danger, -for he would catch them quite easily by throwing over their heads the -nets he used in fishing, drag them off to his castle, and keep them in a -dungeon until there would be no chance of discovery, and the boys' -parents would think them lost forever. Thus he would gain a very useful, -active set of laborers for a stone wall he was building, for so afraid -were they of his displeasure, and so fearful that they might be starved, -since the only food they received was dried and salted fish, that these -boys worked like bees in a hive, only it was a sullen, painful sort of -working, for they never sang or shouted, whistled or talked, and they -were thin and wretched, and more like machines than boys. - -"Now in this lake, on the shore of which was the ogre's castle, was an -island, where lived a Princess whom the ogre had bewitched, but who had -also regained her liberty, and near whom the ogre could never again -come; even to land on her island or bathe in the water near would at -once change him into a shark. - -"This Princess, passing the ogre's castle in her beautiful swan-like -sailing-boat, had seen the unhappy little boys at work on the stone -wall; her sympathies had been aroused at so sad a sight, and she -determined to wait her chance, and do what she could to relieve them. -The chance came one day when the ogre had gone on a fishing excursion, -from which he would not return till night. He had given the boys their -rations of salt fish, and had commanded them in the gruffest tones to be -sure and do an unusual amount of work in his absence, or they should all -have chains on again; for when they were first caught he always chained -them for fear they might try to escape; but they so soon lost all spirit -and all desire for freedom that their chains were removed to enable them -to work more easily. - -[Illustration: APPROACH OF THE SWAN-LIKE BOAT.] - -"He had no sooner disappeared in his great clumsy craft laden with -seines and harpoons, and baskets and jugs, than a whispering began among -the boys, a sad sort of sighing and crying, almost like the whispering -of wind in the tree-tops, which changed again to looks and glances of -surprise as a beautiful vessel with silken sails floated up to the -wharf, and a lovely gracious-looking lady clothed in white stepped from -the boat, and came rapidly toward them. - -"'Boys,' said she, addressing them in a very soft sweet voice, 'I have -come to release you from this cruel bondage; will you trust me, and go -with me?' - -"'Yes, yes,' came from more than a dozen little tongues. - -"'Come, then, at once. Drop your work, get into my boat, and we will be -off. We have no time to lose, for your cruel master might possibly -change his course and overtake us; then we should be in great danger.' - -"The boys crowded about her, and with a wild cry followed her to her -little vessel, and almost tumbled into it in their delight. It was with -some difficulty that she kept them balanced, and prevented their falling -out; but once packed, there were so many of them that they could not -move. The vessel seemed to start of itself; its sails swelled out and -spread themselves like wings, and away they dashed over the rippling -waves, which rose and fell, and hurried them on their way. The ogre's -castle was quickly left far behind, and the tired boys breathed more -freely as it disappeared entirely from their view. In another minute -they fell fast asleep, and did not waken till the motion of the boat -ceased, and they found themselves gliding into a quiet harbor, fringed -on each side with lovely shrubs that dipped their beautiful flowers into -the calm water. Then the lady bade them follow her as she stepped from -the boat on to the soft grass, and led them past fruits and flowers, and -winding walks and fountains, up to the dazzling crystal palace in which -she lived. Here the boys were halted while she made them this little -speech: 'Boys, this is my home, these are my gardens; for a while you -will have to remain here. We may have trouble with the ogre, but I want -you to have no trouble among yourselves. Kindness, good-humor, pleasant -looks and words, must prevail. There must be no envy, no selfishness, no -desire to get the better of each other in any way. I demand obedience; -if I receive it, all will be well; if I do not, you will have to suffer -the consequence. Now I have said all that I need. These flowers, these -fruits, are yours to enjoy in moderation.' - -"As she ceased speaking, she clapped her hands, and a troupe of servants -appeared. They led the boys to marble baths, where waters gushed and -flowed in liquid beauty, and groves of orange-trees made a dense thicket -about them. Here each boy was made sweet and clean, and provided with a -suit of white clothes. When they emerged from the baths, they saw before -them on the lawn tables filled with the most tempting food--roasted -meats, broiled birds, pitchers of milk and cream, biscuits and jellies -and ices. - -"The utmost order prevailed. Starved as the poor boys were, the grace -and beauty of their surroundings made them gentle and patient. At each -plate was a tiny nose-gay held in the beak of a crystal bird, the body -of which was a finger-bowl. Every plate was of exquisite workmanship. -Some had birds of gay plumage; some had fierce tigers' heads or -shaggy-maned lions; others bore designs of tools or curious instruments; -but that which most delighted the boys was a dish of crystal, an exact -imitation of the _Swan_--the _Fairy Swan_--in which they had sailed to -this lovely island. It was laden with choice fruits. While the boys -feasted as they had never before done in their lives, strains of sweet -music became audible; and they could also hear the soft splash of the -waves on the shore, or the dripping and tinkling of fountains, as the -waters sparkled and fell in their marble basins. - -"After they had feasted, the boys wandered off in most delightful -idleness to all parts of the island. They climbed the trees, which bore -blossoms, fruits, and nuts, all at the same time; they fished in the -little coves; they waded in the shallow basins; and nothing would have -marred their happiness had not one tall boy, with unnaturally strong and -keen vision, declared that he saw the ogre's sail coming in the -direction of the island. - -"This was terrible, and had the effect of bringing all the boys together -from their various amusements, just as chickens run from a hovering -hawk. Together they crowded for a moment in mute dismay, unable to -speak, to even hide, waiting the approach of their cruel foe. - -"Nearer came the sail, and now they could all discern it. Its great -clumsy shape, its heavy lumbering action, were not to be mistaken. - -"What should they do? - -"'Run for the Princess,' said one. - -"'Too cowardly, that,' said another; and indeed their good abundant meal -had begun to put strange courage in their little hearts. - -"'Let's meet him, and fight him,' said one. - -"'Let's upset his boat,' said another. - -"'How?' - -"'By pelting him with stones when he comes near enough.' - -"'Good!' cried they all; and they began gathering all the bits of rock -and pebbles they could find. - -"Now came a roar of ogreish rage from the boat as it neared them. - -"'I'll have ye again!' screamed the ogre. - -"Then began the attack--a volley of small stones, nuts, fruits, anything -they had in their pockets. - -"One of the ogre's eyes was closed, so certain had been the aim of the -tall boy who acted as leader. - -"But the boat came nearer, and they were very much afraid the ogre would -leap from it, when one of the boys whispered: - -"'I'll go out to tempt him. Once get him in the water, and he's a goner. -He'll be bewitched.' - -"So he off with his jacket, and out he waded, while the others looked on -in breathless admiration. - -"The ogre looked with his one eye in eager derision; then forgetting his -danger, and regarding the boy much as he might do an unwary fish that he -would gobble up, he sprang from his boat into the shallow water, -preparing not only to snatch the one boy, but to seize them all in a -great seine he dragged after him, when suddenly the waves from the -centre of the lake began hissing and seething, a tremendous swell set in -toward the shore, driving the brave little fellow who had gone out to -tempt the enemy completely off his legs, and obliging him to swim to the -land, which he had no sooner reached than a great shout from all the -boys made him look back, when, lo and behold! there was no ogre, only a -great shark, with open jaws and a shining row of teeth, floundering -about, and dashing himself in angry transports against the sides of the -ogre boat, which he vainly attempted to board. And now could be seen -swarms of little fish attacking the great one, darting hither and -thither, now at his head, now at his tail, but keeping well away from -his open jaws. And the waves began to be colored with the shark's blood. -At last, wearied and wounded, with an angry snap of his jaws he dived -down, and was seen no more. - -"Then the boys gave another loud huzza, when, like a broad flash of -sunshine, the lovely Princess came among them. - -"'Boys,' said she, 'you have proved yourselves brave youngsters. The -ogre can never again trouble you. He will be a shark for three thousand -years, and he will not care to stay in these waters, with so many -enemies about him. Now when you have regained your good looks and -strength, I will take you all home. Here is the key of my sweetmeat -closet. Run off, now, and have a good time.' - -"The sweetmeat closet was a large inclosure where grew sugar-almond -trees, candied pears, candied plums, and where even the bark and twigs -of trees and bushes were of chocolate. In the centre was a pond of -quivering jelly. Mounds and pyramids of jumbles and iced cakes abounded. -They were too tempting to be long looked at without tasting, and the -boys helped themselves gladly. - -"A long sweet strain from a bugle called them away from this delightful -spot, and on a broad smooth field they found bats and balls, ten-pins -and velocipedes--in short, everything a boy could want to play with. - -"After this they supped in simple fashion, each boy with only a great -bowl of bread and milk. Then to more music they were marched to their -beds--downy white nests in a great room arched with glass, through which -they could see the moon and stars shining, and where the dawn could -waken them with its early light. - -"Such was their life for two of the most happy weeks of their lives, and -never did boys thrive better. They grew fat and rosy; they sang, they -danced, they played. Every time the Princess came among them they -shouted with glee, and nearly cracked their young throats in doing her -honor. But all fine things come to an end some time. Once more they were -packed in the _Fairy Swan_, and away they sailed for the land of reality -and for home. The Princess gave them each a beautiful portrait of -herself, of the island, and of the _Swan_. And each boy promised that -whenever he had a chance to perform a kind action he would do it in -remembrance of the gentle courtesy of the Princess. And so ends my fairy -story. Good-night, Phil." - -"Good-night. Oh, how nice it was! I thank you so much!" and sleepy Phil -turned to see the little white butterfly wings skimming out of the -window, while a long sweet sigh came from his wind harp, sounding like -"Good-night--good-night," again. - -[TO BE CONTINUED.] - - - - -[Illustration] - -CHILDREN AT TEA. - -BY S. B. - - - I am very anxious, children dear, - That you should quiet be, - And take care to behave quite well - While I pour out the tea. - - Matilda Jane, I need not scold, - For you behave so well; - You sit so straight, and try your best - To please me, I can tell. - - But oh, Belinda, what a sight! - See how she sits awry; - I can not make that child obey, - No matter how I try. - - Her hair is always in a furze; - Her dress and sash untied; - She drops her shoes, turns in her toes, - I know not what beside. - - But now for once, Belinda dear, - I trust you will behave; - Not spill the milk, nor spoil your dress-- - My trouble try to save. - - And then you both shall have a cup - Of most delicious tea, - A piece of cake, perhaps some jam, - And then go out with me. - - - - -[Illustration: A WISE DOG.] - - - - -[Illustration: OUR POST-OFFICE BOX] - - - ST. JOHN, NEW BRUNSWICK. - - I wish to tell the little readers of the Post-office Box about our - pony. He is a dear little fellow, and just like a playful kitten. - Sometimes Dexter--the pony--will not go the way you want him to. - The other day I was going for Eddie, my brother, and down at our - gate Dexter wanted to go one way, and I the other. As he is very - hard on the mouth, he turned round to go home again. In doing so he - upset the little sleigh, and the box came off, and away went Dexter - up the drive and into the carriage-house. - - When mamma saw it all through the window, she thought I was hurt, - and she sent the man down to the gate. When he got there, all he - could see was a heap of buffalo-robes, cushions, seats, and other - things, with a pair of legs sticking out from under them. I was - not hurt, and as soon as I could get up I went to the house to be - brushed off. I am twelve years old. - - FREDDIE L. T. - - * * * * * - - TROY, NEW YORK. - - I can hardly wait until I get YOUNG PEOPLE. I think the story of - "Toby Tyler and Mr. Stubbs" is just splendid. One wet day two - little friends came to play with me. Bertha was the fat woman, and - I was Toby. I wish you could have seen Allie as our Living - Skeleton. We found out that Mr. Treat knew what he was talking - about when he said it was much easier to get a fat woman than a - skeleton. We had great fun playing tableaux. - - MORTON B. - - * * * * * - -The following letter is not written in Chinese, nor in Sanskrit, nor in -any other uncommon language, but is simply a "Baby Letter," written by -little four-year-old Bertha S., to Our Post-office Box. Bertha's mother -writes that the little girl is sure her letter will be printed, and that -the circle in the lower left-hand corner is a kiss for the editor. After -that, it wouldn't do to disappoint her, would it? - -[Illustration] - - * * * * * - - MONTGOMERY, ALABAMA. - - My father brings me YOUNG PEOPLE every week. I keep my papers in my - wall-pocket that grandma gave me Christmas. I got a beautiful doll - for a present, too. - - Christmas week we had snow here, and we had a fine time - sleigh-riding and snow-balling. - - I am going to New Orleans with papa and mamma for _mardi gras_. - - NELLIE O. - - * * * * * - - NEWPORT, RHODE ISLAND. - - I have already received a sufficient supply of German stamps, and - have sent away all my Swedish and Swiss stamps in exchange, and - have no more to give. - - I will try to answer all the letters I have received, but there - are so many it will take me some time. - - I think YOUNG PEOPLE is lovely, and I would not like to be without - it. - - ALICE V. SMITH. - - * * * * * - - BUFFALO, NEW YORK. - - Mamma takes YOUNG PEOPLE for me, and I like it very much, - especially the story of "Toby Tyler." Poor little fellow, I feel so - sorry for him! - - I have a mud-turtle that I like about as well as Toby did Mr. - Stubbs. I brought it from the country last August. Its shell is - about as large as a silver half-dollar. We keep it in a glass dish - of water, with sand and pretty stones at the bottom, and a piece - of quartz for it to sun itself on. It has refused food ever since - last October, until yesterday, when we gave it some raw beefsteak, - and it ate it greedily. In the summer we feed it on wiggles and - flies. I have named it Topsy, and it is very tame. It has slept a - good deal of the time this winter. - - CARRIE O. - - * * * * * - - SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA. - - DEAR YOUNG PEOPLE,--The Sacramento River has broken the levee - entirely. I am five years old, and mamma has taken me away from - school because I am sick, and I have forgotten how to read. - - In Sacramento there are lots of flowers. Only one rose-bush is in - bloom in the back yard. There are little fingers on the bushes - that make them hold to the lattice. - - I went down to see the big river with my papa. I stood on a - steamboat. I thought the boat was moving, but it was only the big - drift and the water passing us. I saw the great, enormous chains - that the anchors are fastened to. They made me think of the great, - enormous squids that pull down the boats to the bottom of the - ocean. That's all. [The above was written by Ottie's mamma from - dictation, without change of a word.] - - HENRY OSCAR B. - - * * * * * - - If any of the readers of HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE will send me a - collection of United States postage stamps, I will send in return a - collection of Java postage stamps. - - A. VAN HEEL, - Samarang, Java. - - * * * * * - - We were at Avon Springs last summer, and while there we found some - petrified shells and other fossils. We dug them from under a - stratum of rock five or six feet below the surface of the earth, - where they had lain for ages. I will exchange some of them for any - kind of ore, sea-shells, or other curiosities. - - EMMA HUNT, - 59 South Ninth Street, Brooklyn, E. D., N. Y. - - * * * * * - - I want to tell you what a nice time I had one day in January. It - was a very stormy Monday. I went to school; and although it is a - very large school, only about one hundred scholars came, and in my - room there were only eight. We did not have any classes, but spent - the time in guessing words; that is, the letters of a word were - given out all mixed up, and we had to guess the word they would - spell. One easy one was oobk, which spells book. This is a very - nice game. - - I will exchange fifteen Connecticut postmarks (no duplicates), for - fifteen of any other State except Michigan, Wisconsin, and New - Jersey. - - WILLIE E. HILL, - 32 Pratt Street, Hartford, Conn. - - * * * * * - - A few days ago we went into a beautiful cave that is on the farm of - one of our neighbors, and got a great many nice stalactites and - stalagmites. One of the stalactites is almost transparent, and in - all of them there are beautiful crystals. We saw some stalagmites - over twelve inches high. In one place the roof of the cave is - covered with fossil shells. We tried to break some off, but could - not get any whole ones. - - We have a large collection of curiosities, and would be glad to - exchange with any of the readers of YOUNG PEOPLE for relics, - minerals, or curiosities of any kind. - - HARRY R. BARTLETT and BROTHER, - P. O. Box 8, Greensburg, Green County, Ky. - - * * * * * - - I am trying to make a scrap quilt, and I would like to have scraps - from different parts of the United States. If any little boy or - girl will send me a nice package of silk scraps, I will send in - return Texas mosses, grasses, forest curiosities, six different - kinds of acorns, or snail-shells. - - NINON G. HARE, - Lynchburg, Harris County, Texas. - - * * * * * - - I am trying to get a collection of postage stamps. I have a scroll - saw, and can make many pretty things. If any one will send me - twenty-five foreign stamps, I will send in return two easels I have - made. - - E. M. WRIGHT, - Bremen, Marshall County, Ind. - - * * * * * - - I have some postmarks, some silver ore, some shells from Florida, - and a pretty stone--I do not know where it came from--which I would - like to exchange for coins. - - FREDERICK PFANS, - 11 Beaver Street, Newark, N. J. - - * * * * * - - I have a few Greek newspapers which I would like to exchange for - Indian arrow-heads and relics. - - CHARLES WARREN, - 1577 Atlantic Avenue, Brooklyn, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - I live three miles from nine Indian mounds, and I have a great many - arrow-heads, and twenty-seven spear-heads. I will exchange a rock - from Missouri for one from any other State, and my brother will - exchange an Indian stone hatchet for six stone arrow-heads or - spear-heads. - - WILLIAM REEL, - Baden P. O., St. Louis, Mo. - - * * * * * - - I have just been reading YOUNG PEOPLE. A friend of mine and I take - it together. We live near each other, and often go to the beach to - gather shells and mosses. In the spring we have a great variety of - wild flowers. I would like to exchange pressed wild flowers, - sea-mosses, and shells from the Pacific coast for a moss-agate, a - bunch of cotton just as it is picked with the seeds in it, or any - other curiosity from the Central or Southern States, or the - Atlantic coast. - - CAROLINE BALDWIN, Santa Cruz, Cal. - - * * * * * - -The following exchanges are also offered by correspondents: - - German postage stamps, for minerals, fossils, or ores. - - P. C. HENNIGHAUSEN, - 143 Sharp Street, Baltimore, Md. - - * * * * * - - Foreign postage stamps, for Chinese and South American stamps, or - for coins. - - KEARNY MASON, - 2119 Pine Street, St. Louis, Mo. - - * * * * * - - Twenty-five foreign postage stamps (no duplicates), for ten United - States department stamps. - - W. W. BRADEN, - 445 East One-hundred-and-eighteenth Street, - New York City. - - * * * * * - - Foreign postage stamps, for curiosities. - - LEWIS PIERSON, - 57 Third Place, Brooklyn, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Postage stamps, for minerals. Correspondents are requested to label - all specimens. - - R. T. ANDREWS, - 214 Clermont Avenue, Brooklyn, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Cowries, scallops, cockle-shells, Chinese coins, stamps, and - postmarks, for quartz crystals, gypsum, hematite, copper, lead, or - graphite. Correspondents will please label specimens. - - E. V. SHEERAR, - Wellsville, Allegany County, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Stamps, for minerals, ores, Indian relics, or old and rare American - coins. - - JOHN E. HODGES, - 153 South Paca Street, Baltimore, Md. - - * * * * * - - Stamps from Egypt, Iceland, Ceylon, St. Helena, Persia, Ecuador, - and other foreign countries, for United States stamps. - - JOHN L. CASPAR, - P. O. Box 8, China Grove, Rowan County, N. C. - - * * * * * - - Stuffed birds. - - HARRY GREENE, - 8 Myrtle Street, Boston, Mass. - - * * * * * - - Two Cape of Good Hope stamps, for two Mexican stamps. - - EMMA K. GRIFFIN, - Fond du Lac, Wis. - - * * * * * - - A stone from Massachusetts or New Jersey, for one from any other - State except Missouri; soil of New Jersey, for soil of any other - State; or specimens of mica, for any kind of ore. - - F. L. FOSTER, - Fairmount Avenue, Elizabeth, N. J. - - * * * * * - - Postmarks and stamps, for stamps. - - WILLIAM M. WHITFIELD, - 235 West Thirty-fourth Street, New York City. - - * * * * * - - Old issues of United States postage stamps and postmarks, for - foreign stamps. - - EDITH L. SMITH, - Glenburn, Lackawanna County, Penn. - - * * * * * - - Foreign postage stamps, shells, and other curiosities, for others. - - G. H. SMITH, - Care of Mr. J. B. Wright, - Columbus, Muscogee County, Ga. - - * * * * * - - Stones from Missouri, New Jersey, or Pennsylvania, for stones from - any Southern or Western State excepting Georgia, Illinois, - Colorado, and Minnesota. - - FRED P. HALL, - 238 Warren Street, Jersey City, N. J. - - * * * * * - - Rare Indian relics, for minerals and stamps. - - NELLIE SUGDEN, - 49 West Fifty-third Street, New York City. - - * * * * * - - United States and foreign postmarks, for stamps. - - SAMUEL J. LUTZ, - Circleville, Pickaway County, Ohio. - - * * * * * - - Twenty-five postmarks, for two foreign postage stamps. - - FRANK RIGGS, - P. O. Box 107, Watseka, Iroquois County, Ill. - - * * * * * - - United States revenue stamps and postmarks, for foreign stamps; or - a stone from Kentucky, for one from any other State. - - HARRY PULLIAM, - 275 West Broadway, Louisville, Ky. - - * * * * * - - A printing outfit, for a scroll saw or a good printing-press. - - FRANK RAWIE, - Canton, Stark County, Ohio. - - * * * * * - - Postage stamps. - - STAFFORD R. SOUTHWICK, - 131 East Seventy-ninth Street, New York City. - - * * * * * - - Foreign postage stamps and foreign and United States revenue - stamps, for old United States or rare foreign stamps. - - BRYANT WILLARD, - Newport Barracks, Newport, Ky. - - * * * * * - - Fifteen Michigan postmarks and eight of other States, for one - Chinese postage stamp. - - ARTHUR K. WILLYOUNG, - 147 Park Street, Detroit, Mich. - - * * * * * - - Two specimens of California wood, for every set of twenty-five - postmarks. - - H. M. H., - 60 West Rutland Square, Boston, Mass. - - * * * * * - - Postage stamps. Swedish and Danish stamps especially desired. - - WILLARD FRANCIS, - 258 Market Street, San Francisco, Cal. - - * * * * * - - Asbestos and United States internal revenue stamps, for fossil fern - and gold ore. - - LYMAN NEWELL, - Slater National Bank, Pawtucket, R. I. - - * * * * * - - Sandwich Island or Canadian stamps, for other foreign stamps. - - M. D. AUSTIN, - 1199 Main Street, Buffalo, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Stamps of British Guinea, Newfoundland, France, Norway, and - Hong-Kong, for stamps of Honduras, Peru, Persia, Brazil, and - Mexico. - - FRANK H. NICHOLS, - 341 East Indiana Street, Chicago, Ill. - - * * * * * - - Minerals, forest woods, stamps, and sea-shells, for new specimens - of the same. Minerals preferred. - - CHARLES R. FLETCHER, - 144 Cambridge Street, East Cambridge, Mass. - - * * * * * - - Postmarks and foreign postage stamps. - - LILLIE W. HOUSE, - 85 Whitney Place, Buffalo, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Postage stamps. - - CHARLES UHLER, - Mechanicsburg, Cumberland County, Penn. - - * * * * * - - United States postmarks, for stamps. - - EDDIE EARL, - P. O. Box 714, Leominster, Mass. - - * * * * * - - Ocean curiosities, for soil from any State excepting Pennsylvania - and New Jersey. - - HARRY LEWIS, care of J. W. Barton, - Northwest Corner of Front and Market Streets, - Philadelphia, Penn. - - * * * * * - - Stones from the Great Lakes, for foreign postage stamps. - - WAT H. T. MAYO, - Hague, Westmoreland County, Va. - - * * * * * - - Ten rare foreign stamps, for ten Brazilian stamps. No duplicates. - - IKE HAMMOND and FRED CROSE, - Lock Box 152, Greencastle, Putnam Co., Ind. - - * * * * * - - Old United postage stamps, for foreign stamps, Indian arrow-heads, - or other curiosities. - - ELBERT E. HURD, - Lempster, Sullivan County, N. H. - - * * * * * - - Foreign stamps, old United States copper one-cent and half-cent - coins, for foreign coins, postmarks, and curiosities. - - CHARLES GRUNER, - 79 Park Avenue, Brooklyn, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Soil from Massachusetts, for soil of Ohio. - - EVERETT CRANE, - Weymouth, Norfolk County, Mass. - - * * * * * - - Foreign postage stamps, for minerals and Indian relics. - - GARRY B. POST, care of George R. Post, - New Britain, Hartford County, Conn. - - * * * * * - - Minerals, for sea-shells, agates, and curiosities of all kinds; or - lichens, moss, pressed ferns and flowers from Illinois, for moss, - ferns, and flowers from other States and Canada. - - MARY LOWRY, - Elizabethtown, Hardin County, Ill. - - * * * * * - - Spar, fossils, stamps, and postmarks, for ocean curiosities. Thirty - varieties of foreign stamps, or twenty stamps and twelve foreign - postmarks, for a box of sea-shells and a star-fish. - - OSCAR RAUCHFUSS, - Golconda, Pope County, Ill. - - * * * * * - - American copper coins. - - ED SWEET, - Wellsville, Allegany County, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Postage stamps, for stamps, curiosities, and Indian relics. - - FRANCIS B. WHEATON, - 55 Park Street, Providence, R. I. - - * * * * * - - Asbestos and mica, for foreign stamps, especially from Nova Scotia, - Prince Edward Island, or Newfoundland. - - WILLIE BOGARDUS, - 1455 Lexington Avenue, New York City. - - * * * * * - - A stone from Illinois, for a stone from any other State or - Territory. - - BLYTHE HENDERSON, - 101 Third Street, Peoria, Ill. - - * * * * * - - Foreign and United States War Department stamps, for rare and old - coins, a ten-cent piece of 1879, stamps, shells, copper or zinc - ore, or stones and soil from any State except Wisconsin. - - CLARE B. BIRD, - Jefferson, Jefferson County, Wis. - - * * * * * - - United States postage stamps, for the same or foreign stamps. - - CLINTON F. HICKS, - Pine River, Waushara County, Wis. - - * * * * * - - Twenty-five rare and old postmarks, for twelve foreign stamps. - - BAKER BROS, - P. O. Box 5, Comstocks, N. Y. - - * * * * * - - Soil of Ohio, for that of any other State. - - HARRY LAURIMORE, - Lock Box 6, Greenville, Darke County, Ohio. - - * * * * * - -CARRIE E.--The book you inquire about is not contained in the "Franklin -Square Library." The only answer possible to your other question was -given in HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE No. 15, February 10, 1880. - - * * * * * - -T. H. P.--The line, "Tall oaks from little acorns grow," occurs in a -poem entitled "The School-boy's Address," which is given in old Readers. -The following paragraph in reference to the authorship of this poem has -been kindly written by Mr. Benson J. Lossing, with whose name the -readers of YOUNG PEOPLE are familiar: - - "'The School-boy's Address,' in Bingham's _Columbian Orator_, - beginning, 'You'd scarce expect one of my age,' was written by - David Everett, principal of the New Ipswich (New Hampshire) - Academy, in the winter of 1791, previous to his entrance to - Dartmouth College. It was written for a favorite pupil, Ephraim - Hartwell Farrer, and was spoken at a school exhibition at the - academy that same winter. - - "At the centennial celebration of the founding of New Ipswich, in - 1850, Mr. Farrer, then a white-haired man sixty-six years of age, - was called upon to respond to the toast, 'Rev. Stephen Farrer, the - first pastor of New Ipswich: The memory of the just is blessed.' - Mr. E. H. Farrer was a son of the venerable pastor. When he arose - to respond, his first words were, - - "'You'd scarce expect one of my age - To speak in public on the stage.' - - "These words he had spoken just fifty-nine years before." - - * * * * * - -ALICE B.--You will find a description of a very simple way to make -snow-shoes in a letter from May C. T. in the Post-office Box of HARPER'S -YOUNG PEOPLE No. 65. The best snow-shoes are a light frame-work covered -with a netting of stout thongs, but these would be difficult for you to -obtain, and you could not make them yourself. - - * * * * * - -F. S. K.--The poet Longfellow was born in Portland, Maine, on February -27, 1807. He studied at Bowdoin College, in Brunswick, Maine, graduating -in 1825. Nathaniel Hawthorne, John S. C. Abbott, and some others who -afterward became distinguished literary men, were his classmates. After -leaving college he spent several years in Europe, and on his return, in -1829, became Professor of Modern Languages at Bowdoin College. In 1835 -he again visited Europe, and one year later became Professor of Modern -Languages and Literature at Harvard University. He made his home in the -historic Cragie House, once Washington's head-quarters, which he soon -purchased. Longfellow resigned his position at Harvard in 1854, but -still continues to reside in the historic mansion in Cambridge. Honorary -degrees have been conferred upon him by the Universities of Oxford and -Edinburgh, and his name is dear to the heart of every American. - - * * * * * - -I. CHASE.--The letter from your Prince Edward Island correspondent -published in the Post-office Box of YOUNG PEOPLE No. 62 probably -explains your trouble. - - * * * * * - -C. U.--A five-kreutzer German stamp is worth about two cents, United -States currency. - - * * * * * - -Correct answers to puzzles have been received from Jimmie F. Burns, Lila -Baker, A. E. Cressingham, Richard Owen C., C. D. Chipman, W. K. -Crithens, R. H. Davidson, Linda and Susie Egbert, Philip S. Gillis, -Jesse S. Godine, Carrie and George Hall, Frank H. H., Charles Jefferson, -Norman D. Lippincott, William A. Lewis, Andrew E. P., "Red Lion," -"Starry Flag," Louis K. Sayre, "L. U. Stral," I. W. Trotter, "The Dawley -Boys," Eva J. Turner, Howard J. Van Doren, Bennie C. Woodward, Edith M. -Wetmore, J. Anthony Walker, Willie F. Woolard, "Young Solver." - - * * * * * - -PUZZLES FROM YOUNG CONTRIBUTORS. - -No. 1. - -ENIGMA. - - My first in old, but not in new. - My second in toll, not in curfew. - My third in enemy, not in foe. - My fourth in pack, but not in stow. - My fifth in quarrel, not in fight. - My sixth in heavy, not in light. - I am renowned in ancient song - For something most absurdly long. - - T. H. - - * * * * * - -No. 2. - -NUMERICAL CHARADES. - - 1. I am a famous place in the Western part of the United States, - composed of 14 letters. - My 3, 7, 13, 5 is a twig. - My 7, 2, 14 is a trifle. - My 5, 2, 11, 8 is a small burrowing animal. - My 9, 4, 6, 12 is a curtain. - My 1, 10, 5 is a tropical vegetable. - - WILLIAM A. L. - - 2. I am an English bird composed of 8 letters. - My 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 is one of the cereals. - My 6, 7, 8 is a part of the body. - - CARRIE E. - - 3. I am a flower composed of 6 letters. - My 2, 5, 1 is a verb. - My 3, 6, 4 is a boy's name. - - W. I. T. - - * * * * * - -No. 3. - -CHARADE. - - My first is to be disordered in mind. - My second is a letter of the alphabet. - My third is an illuminating agent. - My fourth is a public conveyance. - My whole is found on the map of the Eastern Hemisphere. - - WILLIE L. K. - - * * * * * - -No. 4. - -DOUBLE ACROSTIC. - -An East Indian tree. Worthless. The ancient name of a country in Europe. -A fish. A river in Germany. Birds belonging to the thrush family. -Primals and finals spell the name of a country. - - HUGH. - - * * * * * - -No. 5. - -ENIGMA. - - First in mend, not in patch. - Second in knob, not in latch. - Third in boat, not in raft. - Fourth in brig, not in craft. - Fifth in sail, not in mast. - Sixth in second, not in last. - My whole is a Southern city gay, - Upon the shore of a lovely bay. - - C. P. M. - - * * * * * - -ANSWERS TO PUZZLES IN No. 68. - -No. 1. - - D A C T Y L - A D O R E - C O Z Y - T R Y - Y E - L - -No. 2. - - C O N T R O V E R S Y - I N D E L I B L E - O M N I B U S - F A V O R - D E N - B - A R T - G U A V A - G A R N I S H - I N V E C T I V E - T H O U G H T L E S S - -No. 3. - -Leadville. - -No. 4. - -A Valentine. - -No. 5. - -Mango. - - - - -WIGGLES. - - -On the following page are a few of the best ideas of Wiggle No. 17, -given in No. 65. We hope that our young contributors whose Wiggles are -omitted will not be greatly disappointed at not seeing their names -published, as has been customary. More than five hundred answers to this -Wiggle were sent in, and to publish all the names would require more -than a column of the Post-office Box space. Therefore the editor has -decided that hereafter no names shall be published save those whose -Wiggles are used. Three "Wigglers"--Joe Ulmer, Ada Allen, and -O. M. W.--hit upon our artist's idea, and sent in correct answers to -Wiggle No. 17. If these three will send their full names and addresses -to the editor, they will hear of something pleasant from him. Will "B," -who gave a correct answer to Wiggle No. 16, also send his or her name -and address? - - - - -HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE. - - -SINGLE COPIES, 4 cents; ONE SUBSCRIPTION, one year, $1.50; FIVE -SUBSCRIPTIONS, one year, $7.00--_payable in advance, postage free_. - -The Volumes of HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE commence with the first Number in -November of each year. - -Subscriptions may begin with any Number. When no time is specified, it -will be understood that the subscriber desires to commence with the -Number issued after the receipt of the order. - -Remittances should be made by POST-OFFICE MONEY-ORDER OR DRAFT, to avoid -risk of loss. - - HARPER & BROTHERS, - Franklin Square, N. Y. - - - - -[Illustration: SOME DRAWINGS OF WIGGLE No. 17, OUR ARTIST'S IDEA, AND -NEW WIGGLE, No. 18.--SEE PAGE 303.] - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's Harper's Young People, March 8, 1881, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE, MARCH *** - -***** This file should be named 44981-8.txt or 44981-8.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/4/4/9/8/44981/ - -Produced by Annie R. McGuire - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions -will be renamed. - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no -one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation -(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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