CHILDREN'S CORNER.

Evening Star, Issue 13090, 24 October 1908, Page 4

CHILDREN'S CORNER.

AT StWSET. [iy Enmt iCowss, Goro.i ,v A tiny pool lay loSmjg up at the doudflecked sky. His watfer-spiders and ineectbaibies wont about thrir eager' Impresses beneath surface, ■but bo tookliltk notice of them. His thoughts were busy with the clouds so far above him; a’F-day he was longihg to be witlrtheni. Tho evenin* came! The clouds' ftorked round the setting sub, and lurried gold and !; crimson ■ns the wonderful hgh)|; ' Then the little pool longdd more than ever to 'be with' them. “If : that could only be my life,” he sighed. “To live in the blue sky and to ).e made beautihd! ,,:! A passing wiad his words and repeated them to the clouds. They told the kindly ean, and he sant a message by his sunbeams to comfort th4‘ little pooh “ Yon shall come np day,” he bade them say; “but yoiimkve many‘duties to Bnrform before you (3d? be a sunset cloud, o well ybur present 1 riork and wait with patience.”’ c Then the’pool rejoiced. Day after day he did his lowly with infinite care, nourishing his flowers and rushes and tiny water-cnatures, and ‘iuiiiing a bright and patient face to the sky. and bis loved clouds. j ' One hot day the w<?p<jlerful change came. The sun looked down,; saw the work so well done, and gently gifted him through the air to tit© sky, . This was glorious, pe was a fluffy white cloud, sailing over thq sky and joining the other clouds in their games and dances. In the morning they;,played shadow-flight across the hills of thajj earth; in the afternoon they danced slow dances high above the sea. ' Then the time of sunset came,, and the new cloud wished to go.with the others to be made beautiful. But they said : “ No, little brother, that is not possible till you have done some of your ckmd work.” So he was left lonely and, white in the east, untouched by tho sou’s lovely light. In the night came his old friend the wind. “ You are to go down again to the earth,” was tho message it brought, and it b.ew its cold breath on the little cloud till he shivered and fell in' a tiiousand drops of rain upon tho earth. There the drops lay till morning, amongst The' grateful flowers and grasses, giving them fresh life, and hoaxing bravely the disappointment of being sent down to earth again. The sun looked down in the afternoon and. raised him up, and once more ho floated joyfully across the sky. The fierce storm I wind came and froze him with its icy breath. Down he fell again upon the 'earth, this time as I clattering hailstones. ’ “This is all very j trying,” he said; “but it seems to be my work, so I must not grumble.” Again he was drawn up. Then the I snow-wind came and silently froze him into feathery snowflakes, and drove him down upon a mountain side. Here he lay for many days, till at last ho was drawn up once more. Now the sun said: “ You have done weE and waited patiently, little cloud. To-night you shall have your reward.” So when 'the time of sunset came the ■ little cloud sailed into the west with the ; others, and the sun smiled at him and j shone so gloriously on him that he turned golden and red, and glowed more brightly than any there. BEDTIME. Three little dollies, and three little girls, Paces all smiles, and noddles all curls, . Cheeks set with dimples, so rosy, and red, All of them just trotting off up to bed. Three little mothers, and babies so sweet. Under the bedclothes, cosy and neat, Eyelids, so heavy, will soon shut up tight, So we will wish the wee darlings “Coed night!” THE STORY OF A BOY AND A SLATE. Roger was w'alking in the garden, one summer morning, wondering what be should do. when he saw his sister Nellio put her •date down on a table under the kitchen window and run indoors. “Ha! ha!” said Roger to himself, “she has been doing her sums, and I daresay they are all wrong. I’ll go and see.” Ho waited till Nellie was out of sight, and then stole softly up to the table. Taking tho slate in his hands, he sat down on the stool his sister had left, and began looking over the suras. They were all quite right. ( "I know what I’ll do,” thought Roger, “I’ll alter just for fun, and make them all wrong.” But at that very moment, before he had time to rub out a single figure, something, happened. Nellie hud run into the house to water the window flowers, and just as she leached them ]>ccpcd out to see Roger take up her slate. “ Now he is going to do something naughty,” thought Nellie, “but I’ll stop him.” So she quietly held the watering pot out of the window, and the next moment down went the slate, and up leapt Roger in'a great fright. “ Whatever was that?” he cried, turning round, while the water streamed from his hair. Nellio leaned out of the window, looking as solemn as she could, and shaking one finger at hex brother she said : “ What were you going to do tp my sums?” Roger saw that he was caught, so told the truth, and said with a laugh that the next time ho wanted a shower bath he would not get it by meddling with someone rise’s elate.—‘ Infant Magazine.’ THE LAND OF THUS-AND-SO. “ How would Willie like to go To the Land of Thus-and-So? Everything is proper there ; All the children comb their hair, Every face is clean and white As a lily washed in light— As the cherry blossoms blow In the Land of Thus-and-So. “ Little children never fall Down the stairs, or cry at all; Doing nothing to repent, Thoughtful and obedient; Ne'er hungry or in haste, Tidy shoestrings always laced Just exactly right, you know, In the Land of Thus-and-So. “And the little babies there Give no one the slightest care; r-ever litter round the grate, .Nor at lunch or tea are late; Never any household din Peals without or rings within; Just great hushes to and fro Pace the Land of Thus-and-So. “ Oh, this Land of Thus-and-So! Isn’t it delightful,' though?” “ Yes,” lisped Willie, answering me Somewhat slow and doubtfully; “Must be very nice, but I Rather wait till by-and-bye. Oh!”—the troubled little face Closer pressed to my embrace—- “ Mummie, don’t let’s never go To tho Land of Thus-and-So.” BIRDS. Birds are blithely singing On the glist’ning spray; Liquid music fliffging To the opening day; Wordless wisdom weaving Into potent spell; Stoutest natures?-, cleaving, . Making sick hearts well! How their little • breasts are Heaving withj-dclight; ; Where their cosy nests are Hidden from;'tho sight; Breathing balm 'for sorrow, Shedding o’er harm; Heralding each,,morrow With a vocal;, charm! Midst the leaves; they flutter Li a joyous ,fout; Golden truths jihey utter. Flitting in aiM. dut; Buoyantly ’midibeauty, Li their leafy! dell, * Prompt they mpn to duty, And to do it yell! —Prof. Harris-Bickford. The children were,,, having an,, objectlesson on the heron. The master/called attention to its short&tail, saying; “Tho bird has no, tail to e&pk of.” : The nest day he asked the children to write an essay on the bird,, iand one little girl concluded her essayriby saying :> The heron has a tail, but it must not be talked o&h ,