* 35

TWO AND ONE.

Two ears and only one mouth have you:
The reason, I think, is clear:

It teaches, my child, that it will not do
To talk about all you hear.

Two eyes and only one mouth have you :
The reason of this must be,

That you should learn that it will not do
To talk about all you see.

Two hands and only one mouth have you;
And it is worth repeating,

The two are for work you will have to do,
The one is enough for eating.

*36*

FROM THE GERMAN.

LORD AND LADY ROBIN.

"CHIRP! chipper! twitter! trill!"
All on the morn of May

Lord and Lady Robin were out,

1

So brave in their scarlet and gray,

Fain to spy 2 what spot might be best

For building their palace that we call a nest.

"Chirp chipper! twitter! trill!"

"Here, oh, here let it be! White blossoms and red fruit

Will come to the cherry-tree."

1 brave, bold, fearless; here, showy, beautiful. 'fain to spy, glad to see or find.

"There, oh, there, in yon maple high!
Near, so near, to the bright blue sky!"
"Chirp! chipper! twitter! trill!"
Loud and fast and long;
Sweetest wrangle ever heard,

For it was all in song.

And the spot Lord and Lady Robin liked best, You will know by and by, when you see the nest.

* 37 *

THE MICE.

EMILY A. BRADDOCK.

THE merry mice stay in their holes,
And hide themselves by day;
But, when the house is still at night,
The rogues come out to play.

They climb upon the pantry shelf,
And taste of all they please;

They drink the milk that's set for cream,
And nibble bread and cheese.

But, if they chance to hear the cat,
Their feast will soon be done:
They'll scamper off to hide themselves
As fast as they can run.

Some tiny mice live in the fields,
And feed on flies and corn;1

And in a pretty hanging-nest
The little ones are born.

1 corn, here means "grains of wheat, rye, barley," etc.

When winter comes, they burrow holes,
And line them soft with hay;

And, while the snow is on the ground,
They sleep the time away.

All living creatures like to be

As free as you and I:

They love the fields, the woods, and hills,
They love the sweet blue sky.

* 38 *

WHAT THE WINDS BRING.

"Which is the wind that brings the cold?" "The North wind, Freddy, and all the snow; And the sheep will scamper into the fold When the North begins to blow.”

"Which is the wind that brings the heat?" "The South wind, Katie; and corn will grow, And peaches redden, for you to eat,

When the South begins to blow."

"Which is the wind that brings the rain?"
"The East wind, Arty; and farmers know
That cows come shivering up the lane
When the East begins to blow."

"Which is the wind that brings the flowers?" "The West wind, Bessy; and soft and low The birdies sing in the summer hours

When the West begins to blow."

EDMUND C. STEDMAN.

* 39 *

CHOICE STANZAS.

Do you know how many children

1

Go to little beds at night,
Sleeping there so warm and cosey
Till they wake with morning light?
God in heaven each name can tell,
Knows them all, and loves them well.

LET all your work be early done:

2

By lazy sloth no prize is won,

And time and tide will wait for none.

THE moments fly, a minute's gone;
The minute's fly, an hour is run;
The day is fled, the night is here;
Thus flies a week, a month, a year.

1

SPEAK the truth, and speak it ever,
Cost it what it will:

He who hides the wrong he did
Does the wrong thing still.

cosey, comfortable.

2 sloth (from slow, and pronounced 'slōwth'), laziness.

KIND hearts are the gardens,
Kind thoughts are the roots,
Kind words are the blossoms,
Kind deeds are the fruits.

I WOULD not be a cruel boy
For all that this world gives,
I would not take a single joy
From any thing that lives.

WHATEVER brawls disturb the street, There should be peace at home; Where sisters dwell, and brothers meet, Quarrels should never come.

Do something for each other,
Though small the help may be;
There's comfort oft in little things,
Far more than others see.

WHEN Work comes into a house to stay,
Then Want will speedily flee away;
But let Master Work once go to sleep,
And Want will in at the window peep.