No More Learning

Down in the woods, not far away from the
home of Chanty, lived a smart red fox; he was
young and called a very handsome fellow, and
old Mother Fox smiled with approval when she
aaw her son going off rigged in his finest suit, his
hat perched on one side, Vvdth a turkey feather
sticking in it, and his sharp pointed knife shin-
ing in his belt.
One night this young fox bade good-bye to
his mother, gathered up the bag that always
hung back of the door, and started off towards
the farm-yard. You can guess his purpose, per-
haps -- Chanty's shrill crow had reached his ears,
and he made up his mind in an instant that he
would like the rooster in a pot-pie much better
than strutting around the barnyard.
Fate had been kind to Chanty this time, and
when Master Fox reached the place, all he could
see of the rooster was his tail feathers sticking
through the stable door, and the farmer's man
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? 122 Fido, the Shepherd Dog.
had made the door fast with lock and key. The
fox grabbed the tail feathers, but Chanty was
safe, though woefully frightened, and, we hope,
wiser, content to go his way through life with-
out making himself so evident
Fido, the Shepherd Dog.
PiDO was a tiny black pup when he came to
live on the farm. He was born in a great big
place, called a kennel, where lots of other dogs
lived. One day, just after he had finished his
saucer of milk and had made up his mind to en-
joy a good long nap, a boy, who was always
poking around where he was not wanted, came,
and with no gentle hand grabbed him up and
carried him far away from the other dogs. Fido
shut his eyes and growled, as he thought, quite
savagely. Then he heard the boy say, "This is
a beauty, and I can promise you he will turn out
a fine dog. " Somebody took him away from the
boy then, and Fido liked the way he stroked his
head, so gentle, and called him "a. pretty little
fellow," and he liked the pleasant way in which
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? Fido, the Shepherd Dog. 123
this somebody laughed when he, Fido, began
licking his hand.
'Til take him," he heard the stranger say, and
W
then, without another word, Fido was tucked
away into the pocket of the man's great coat. It
seemed such a long while to Fido before he
heard the farmer say "Whoa" to his horses, and
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? 124 Fido, the Shepherd Dog.
then he heard a little childish voice say, '*T)id
you bring him, Father? " and Fido knew bhe
meant him, for the farmer reached into his
pocket, hauled him out, and replied, "Here he
is, little I^an; give him something to eat, for he
must be hungry after his long ride. "
"Oh, Father, what a darling he is," and she
hugged Fido so tight that he really had to squeal
to himself from being choked to death. Little
Nan could hardly allow Fido time to lap his
milk, she was so wild with delight over him, and
when he had finished she gathered him in her
chubby arms and rocked him jusi as she had
seen mother rock the baby, singing to him softly
one of baby's bye-low songs. Fido felt so happy
that it was not long before he was sound asleep
and snoring like a good fellow. AVhen mother
called JSTan to go to bed, she put Fido in the box
that father had built for him, and Fido was so
sleepy he could hardly wag his curly tail to show
his pleasure.
The next morning Fido wakened bright and
early, and gazed with wonder at the new w^orld
into which he had come. Nan brought him his
breakfast of bread and milk, and then off they
started for a jolly scamper. Such fun as these
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? Fido, the Shepherd Dog. 125
two had together. Wherever Nan went, Fido
followed, and Xan was such a kind, loving little
mistress that he loved her dearly.
Fido grew bigger and stronger every day, and
he certainly made good the boy's promise of his
becoming a fine dog. He found out by and by
that life was not all play, for the farmer carried
him off one day to teach him to mind the sheep.
It was not long before Fido knew all about it,
and the farmer told little Xan that he was the
best shepherd dog he had ever had.
Now the old wolf, who lived in the woods
back of the pasture lot, had found out w^hat a
good shepherd Fido was, for try as he might,
not once could he find him napping. One day
this w^olf thought he would be very cunning and
get the best of Fido, so he went carefully out to
the corn field one night, and robbed the scare-
crow of his clothes and rigged himself in them,
thinking that Fido would not know him.
The moon was shining brightly, and as the
wolf came across the field, Fido pricked up his
ears and looked at him suspiciously. He knew
that he did not belong in the field any way, and
so he kept pretty close watch over him. Closer
and closer came the wolf, and Fido waited
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? 126
Fido, the Shepherd Dog.
quietly for him, and then, with one long, know-
ing look, leaped upon him. It was too bad, but
Fido had grabbed the coat and not the wolf, so
that Mr, Wolf slipped out of his covering and
was off in the woods as fast as his legs could
carry him, and never again, as far as we know,
has he tried to play any tricks on Fido.
But for Fido, ! Nan's father might have lost
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? The Bicycle Race. 127
many of liis valuable sheep, and he could not be
grateful enough to the faithful dog for his good
service.
Nan was very proud of her Fido when her
father told of the way in which he looked after
the flock, and said she was quite sure nothing
would ever harm them as long as he was around.
Quite often Fido would go with Nan's father,
and help him drive his sheep to market, and he
was always so faithful and trusty that Nan's
father was never sorry that he stopped that day
and got the little fellow.
The Bicycle Race.
The glorious Fourth had proclaimed itself all
day long. Bang! Bang! Bang! went the cannons,
Bang! Bang! Bang! echoed the crackers, and
Bang! Bang! Bang! sounded the torpedoes small
and great Gunpowder made the air heavy and
oppressive, and the clouds gathering in the sky
made one very uncertain as to whether or not the
rain would put an <<end to all the fun. Large
posters in red and blue letters had notified the
people that the most beautiful fireworks they
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? 128 The Bicycle Race.
liad ever seen would be put off back of tlit O^f^re
house -- so do you wonder that the sly was
watched most anxiously?
Now the people of the to^vn were not alone in
wishing for a clear night. The young folks who
dwelt in the woods were watching the clouds
with just the keenest interest, even the tiniest
speck of blue sky was hailed with shouts of de-
light. Were they, too, going to celebrate this
day of Independence? Why, to be sure they
were. They were not going to send off rockets
and bombs. Roman candles and pin-wlieels were
not part of their fun. These forest folks had in-
vited all their friends to witness a bicycle race.
The bear, the wolf, the fox, the rabbit, the
porcupine and the catamount were to take part,
and as no bicycle race had ever been ridden in
these parts, the greatest interest vras taken in it
by all the animals in the country round.
For weeks they had been practicing. Early
and late you might see these four-footed fellows
mounted on their wheels, and pushing them
along just as fast as ever they could. It was not
all fun either, for tires v/ould slip off the rims,
nuts constantly became loose, and sometimes it
happened that a stone or a twig or something of
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? The Bicycle Race. 1*9
the sort sent the rider off his wheel, and then
bent handle-bars must be straightened, or worse
still, bruised heads must be tied up -- but all
these woes were part of the undertaking, so no
one dared complain, but must go to work and try-
again.
Well, all these trials were over now, and the
evening had come when fate should decide to
whom the honor belonged. What a crowd had
gathered to see them. The squirrels sat chatter-
ing together up in the trees; the crickets and
katj-dids tried to outdo each other in their lively
chirrup, and the nightingale raised her sweet
voice and poured forth the loveliest music.
One! UygI three! croaked the frog, and off
they started. The rabbit was first. "Three
cheers for Bun! '' shouted the crowd. "Bruin is
ahead! Three cheers for Bruin. " "It's the Fox
this time! " "Xo, he has lost his place. Bruin is
ahead again! " "Oh, what a shame, the wolf has
fallen off! No use trying again, poor wolf, the
others are far ahead. "
First it was one and then another, until at last^
just as the goal was reached, little Bun wath one
mighty effort came in first. How the crowd
cheered, and what a happy fellow Bun was. It
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? I30 The Jolly Chinee.
was hard for the others, but as some one must
win, all felt satisfied that it should be the little
rabbit Then the lion, who- was judge, awarded
the prize, which was the nicest bicycle ever
made, and little Bun went home very happy.
The Jolly Chinee.
We Wo Wang was a "Jolly Chinee. '' From
the time lie opened his funny almond-shaped
eyes in the morning until sleep closed tkem for
him at night, he laughed and chatted, and sang
the merriest kind of songs. He liked the sun,
because it always seemed so bright and happy --
lie loved to be out in it. He liked all sorts of
flowers, the gayer the better for him; he liked
bis clothes the brightest; everything must be
brilliant and sparkling to please We Wo Wang,
the "Jolly Chinee. ''
We Wo Wang had two sisters, who bad funny
almond-shaped eyes just like his, and long,
straight, black hair, like his also. But they did
not wear a pigtail as We Wo Wang did; they
piled their hair on top of their heads, and dressed
it beautifully, they thought, with fancy pins and
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? The Jolly Chinee. 131
tiny fans. They wore queer little shoes, that
were so tight they pinched their toes dreadfully,
and made them sway from side to side as they
walked along. One day We Wo Wang said to
his sisters, "My dears, I am sure, if I tried J
might walk down
those balusters. I
think I might do
it gracefully, too;
know just how
would balance my-
self. ^' His sisters
were horrified at the
idea, and begged him not
to try, but We Wo Wang
was determined. He mount-
ed the rail, opened his fan,
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? 132 The Jolly Chinee.
fluttered it from side to side, and commenced
the descent.
The servants hearing of their master's doings,
hurried from all parts of the house to see the
sight. But alas! for poor We Wo Wang; his
foot slipped, and he came crashing down to the
floor. Away flew his hat, away flew his fan.
Servants rushed to pick him up, and his two
little sisters came hobbling down the stairs as
fast as ever they could, expecting to see We Wo
Wang battered to pieces. There were no bones
broken, and arnica and court plaster soon made
him pretty comfortable. But there was some-
thing hurt past healing, and that was We Wo
Wang's pride. It gTieved him to think his ser-
vants had seen his failure. It was bad enough
for his sisters to have been witnesses, but it was
dreadful to have these chattering servants laugh
and joke over his downfall. He made up his
mind to punish them for having so much curios-
ity, so he had one of them carry him into the
hall, prop him up with pillows, and then he
ordered them to walk down the ballusters, one
after the other, while he sat and w^atched their
defeat just as they had witnessed his.
The
servants were greatly terrified whon they heard
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? The Jolly Chinee. 133
this command, but of course they all had to try,
because they dared, not disobey their master's
^ " ^ v^^>><(^M,
command. One after another they mounted the
stairs, and took their positions to descend, but
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? 134 A Chinese Adventure.
not in the way We Wo Wang intended. Off
they tumbled, one after another, bruising their
poor bodies and wishing they had kept out of the
way, and not been so curious. We Li Ho came
very near coming down in safety, but near the
bottom his foot slipped, and he too fell down.
As We Wo Wang sat and watched them, he
laughed hard enough to split his sides, for no
one was able to accomplish the feat
A Chinese Adventure.
We Wing Wo was a little yellow Chinaman.
He belonged to one of the best families, as any
one could tell from his red and yellow girdle.
That he never worked a day in his life might also
be told by the great length of his finger nails, of
which he was wonderfully proud. He was also
proud of his round, plump figure, for Chinamen,
you know, like to be fat. Like the rest of his
countrymen, he had almond-shaped eyes, and
wore his shiny black hair in a long, carefully
combed pig-tail.
We Wing Wo was very fond of good thinga
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? 136
A Chinese Adventure.
to eat, and lie thought no one could cook these
good things as well as his servant, Ho Che Lee.
How old We Wing Wo would smile with de-
light when the bird's-nest soup was set before
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? A Chinese Adventure. 137
him; and then, again, how merrily he would
chuckle- over a dish of shark's fins or deer's
sinews, and the never-forgotten pearly white
rice! "VYe Wing "VYo could make his chop sticks
fly when all these dainties graced his table. But
above all things, "We "Wing Wo loved a cup of
good, strong tea. It seemed to drive away all
cares and troubles. Ho Che Lee always kept
some ready in a funny brown tea-pot.
We Wing Wo had never been to sea, and he
was siezed with a wild dt<<ir(C) to try a trip on the
briny deep. One day he called his faithful Ho
Che Lee to him, and telling him his wish, bade
him pack a hamper with eatables, hunt up a
boat, and prepare to take the journey with him.
Poor Ho Che Lee shook with fear at such a
prospect, but he dared not question his master's
order, and so went away to do his bidding.
When all was ready, Ho Che Lee suggested that
it might be better to take with them somebody
who knew a thirg or two about a boat. We
Wing Wo agreed to this; a fellow was found,
and the three set sail.
All went well at first, but by and by poor We
Wing Wo wished ho was on shore, for he was
growing sicker every minute.
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? 138
A Chinese Adventure.
'TLet's go home," said he. "Sailing is no pleas-
Tire at all. "^
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? The Eagle's Christmas. 139
It was easy enough to say, go home, but try
as they might, neither the sailor nor He Che Lee
could manage the boat.
"Throw out a line," said We Wing "Wo, "and
see how deep it is. " Out went the line, and out
went luckless Lee; not to drown, however, for
after much pidling he was landed safely in the
boat.
How all of them longed for shore, and how
very small their chances of getting there did
seem! But fate is sometimes kind, and so she
proved herself this time.
Some men had been watching the boat from
the shore, and had seen the poor fellows' sorry
plight; so they tied a rope round the waist of
one good-hearted Chinaman, and sent him to the
rescue. He swam out to them, fastened the rope
to the bow, and with many long, strong pulls
We Wing Wo was hauled to shore.
The Eagle's Christmas.
On the top of a high mountain a mother
eagle had built a nice, soft nest She did not
build where some eagles do, in the cleft of the
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? I40 The Eagle's Christmas.
rocks, but in top of a large tree. In the nest she
laid four eggs, and there, day after day, she sat
on the nest, keeping the eggs warm, until one
day she heard a gentle rap-rap against the shell.
The knocking grew louder and louder, and a bit
of the shell fell off the end of the egg, and slowly
a little head came out, and then a little body,
and in the course of a few hours the old Mother
Eagle found herself with four little ones to look
after. It kept her very busy indeed, supplying
all their wants, and she had to make a good many
trips to the valley to get them the food they
wanted.
All babies must have a name, and so the old
Mother Eagle put on her thinking cap, and tried
to find a name for each child; but, like all mam-
mas, none was good enough. At last she de-
cided to call them Tim, Sam, Chirp and Baldy.
They were a funny looking lot of creatures,
to be sure, with their big heads, and mouths al-
ways open, and we would not think them at all
pretty; but they seemed beautiful to their
mamma, and she was always trying to think up
ways of making them happy. 'No children ever
spent more happy days than these little eagles.
Strange to say, they never quarreled. If Sam
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? The Eagle's Christmas. 14I
felt cross, and was likely to scold, the other little
ones would creep awav, and leave him to himself
until he was good-natured once more. They
loved one another very dearly, and each one was
ready to do as the others wished. They never
said, "I won't play, if you do that," as some little
boys and girls do.
They were still quite young, so young that
they had not yet learned to fly, when the glad
Christmas time rolled around. The snow had
been falling for several days, and the mountain
tops were covered with a beautiful white blanket.
On the fir trees just near the eagle's nest, the
snow glistened like diamonds in the morning sun.
Sam and Tim, Baldy and Chirp were up early
that Christmas morning, for, like all little folks,
they wanted to see if Santa Claus had brought
them anything. All the week they had been
wild with excitement, for, although they had
never had a Christmas, their mamma had told
them all about it, and it seemed as if they could
never wait for the day to come. Each tiny eagle
had written do^^Ti just what he wanted, and
mamma had a long list when she started off that
morning to get the gifts and the Christmas
dinner. Santa Claus was so busy supplying the
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? 142 The Eagle's Christmas.
wants of the children down in the valley, that he
did not have time to visit the nest, but he met
the Mother Eagle one day as he was driving over
the mountain, and he had promised to leave a
lot of nice toys for the little ones hidden in the
hollow tree at the foot of the mountain, where
she could get them. Santa Claus has such a
good, kind heart that he could not bear to think
that even little eagles should be forgotten on this
glad day, when all of God's creatures should be
happy.
All day the little eagles sat on the branches of
the tree which was their home, craning their
long necks and straining their eyes to catch the
first sight of their mother as she flew homeward.
They did not even take time for tlieir mid-day
nap, and if they had not been so anxious to see
what their mamma would bring, I fear they
would have dropped asleep and perhaps would
have fallen out of the tree to the ground below.
It was nearly twilight when the mother came
home, and how joyfully the little ones greeted
her, and how delighted they were with her well-
filled basket. They chattered and chirped in
their own language until their poor mother
was almost wild with their noise, but she
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? The Eagle's Christmas. 143
was also very much pleased to see them all so
happy.
What a nice Christmas dinner they had. True,
their turkey was not roasted or garnished, as ours
is, but they liked it all the better. Tirst there
was the nicest, sweetest fish you ever saw, served
up in true eagle style. Then a nice rabbit, two
young pigeons and some fat ducks. When the
youngsters had finished their dinner, their
mamma brought out a bag of yellow com and a
lot of rosy cheeked apples, which she had stolen
from a farmer's wagon. My, how those little
eagles did eat It was a great wonder they did
not all die.
Wlien the feast was over, and the horns and
drums, the bright picture books, and the other
pretty toys were distributed, they all decided
that Christmas was the happiest time imaginable.
^Well, really," said little Baldy, "I wish Christ-
mas came oftener. " And all the others cried,
*^So do we. "
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? Tale of the Ostrich Hunter.
Did you ever hear of a bird tliat could not
fly? That seems odd, does it not? But a bird,
called the ostrich, belongs to this family. Its
wings are so tiny that they are of little use to
him, except that while running they spread out
and catch the air. If the ostrich has not the
power of flying, which other birds possess, he
is gifted with the ability to run at a wonderfully
swift pace. To help him in this direction, he is
provided with strong, long legs, that carry him
across the country as rapidly as the swiftest
horse. The long neck of this bird is covered
with soft, downy plumage, but its body is cov-
ered with the beautiful, graceful plumes that are
used for trimming our hats and bonnets.
The home of the ostrich is in the hot, sunny
desert land of Africa. It is a very tall bird,
measuring six feet, and sometimes eight. Its
lood is principally grass and grains, but it picks
up and devours sand and pieces of stone and
bone. It will also eat insects, small birds and
snakes. Large numbers of them wdll feed to-
gether; in fact, they live in flocks, often of great
size. The mother bird, before laying her eggs,
144
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? Tale of the Ostrich Hunter.
145
scratches a hole in the ground, thus making her
nest. She lays ten or twelve eggs in the same
place. In the daytime she allows the heat of the
sun to hatch them^ but at night she sits on them
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