FOR THE CHILDREN.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVI, Issue 14017, 24 March 1909, Page 9

FOR THE CHILDREN.

.-- :— '-+*. . THE COBBLERS AND THE ~ CUCKOO. Once upon a time there stood in the midst I of * bleak moor, iutho North' Country, a certain village; all its inhabitants were poor, for their fields were barren, and they had little trade.. But .the, poorest of , them all ■ were two brothers ; called Scrub 'and Spare, who followed ~ the cobbler's craft,', and had but one stall .' between them. It was a hut built of clay , - and wattles. There they worked in meet brotherly friendship, though with little encouragement. The people of that village were not ex-travagant-in shoes, and better cobblers than ■ : Scrub and Spart might be " found. Never- : , ■ theless, ■" Scrub and Spare managed to live between their own trade, a small barley field, and a cottage garden, till one unlucky day/when a new cobbler arrived, in the village.' He had lived in the capital city of the kingdom, and, by his own ;-. account, '■■■■;. cobbled for the queen, and the princesses. ; His awls were sharp, his lasts were new; ] he set up his stall in a neat cottage with ■ two windows. i The villagers soon found out that one j patch of his would outwear two of the ! > brothers'. In short, all. the mending left : Scrub and Spare, and went to the • new ' . cobbler. So the brothers were poor that winter, and when Christmas' caitfe they had nothing ,to ; feast on but a barley, loaf,' a -' piece of musty bacon, and some small beef | of r their own brewing. But«they made a,! . great fire of logs, which crackled and blaz- ; '.' ed, with, red embers, and; in high glee the';' cobblers'sat down to their beer and bacon- ! The door was shut, for there was nothing .' but cold moonlight and ,show ottteide; but : the hut, strewn with fir boughs, and orpa- i .- mented with holly, looked cheerful as the ■;•...' ruddy blaze 'flared- ups and rejoiced : their !; Warts * '-..■, '-' Long life and good fortune to ourselves, ! brother!' said Spare. "I hope you will ! " drink that toast, and'may we■.never'have- a I worse fire on Christmas—but what » that?" ,'!' ' '■. i- Spare set /down theli drinking-horn, and ; the brothers listened astonished,, for out of ;.';'• the blazing root they heard "Cuckoo! cuckoo as plain "as ever the , spring bird's >,' voice came over the-moor on May morn- > , ing. - ■ .-• ; ■' ." ; ' "It is something bad," said Scrub, ter- :.!.; ribly frightened. .;-;:" Maybe not," said Spare. And out of the-deep hole at the side j •which the fire had not reached flew a large:,. grey • cuckoo, and lit on the table, before them. Much as the cobblers had been eur- ! prised, they were still more so when the • bird began to speak. "Good gentlemen," it said; slowly, "can ! - you tell me what season' 1 this iB?" • "It's Christmas," 'answered Spare. . "Then a merry Christmas to you!" said ; the cuckoo. "I went to sleep in the hoi- :...' low of that old root one evening last-Bum-'.,' C mer, and never woke till the heat of your : fire made me think it was flariuner again; ,] bat now, since yon.' have burned my lodg- '.'\ ing, let me stay in your but "till the spring.! . comes round—-I only want a hole to sleep in i. —and when Igoon my travels next summer > bo assured that I will bring you some pre- -■: sent for your trouble" -"Stay,-and welcome, said Spare. r ""Til ; make you a' : good warm Holer in the thatch, j But you must be hungry after ' that long ! sleep; Here in a slice of barley bread, ; Come, help us to keep Christmas!" . The cuckoo ate up the slice, drank water from the brown jug-^-for he would take no beer—and flew into a snug hole which Spare * ]}. scooped for "Aim in the thatch of the hut. So the snow melted, the heavy rains came, f the; cold grew loss, the day?.lengthened, and one 3unny morning the brothers were awakened by the cuckoo shouting its own '. cry to let them know. that at last the eprinj bad come. ' f .; "Now," /said the bird, "I am going on j my Travels over the world to tell men of j' ; the spring. . There is' no country where t trees bud or flowers,bloom that I will hot \ : ? cry in before the year goes round. Give j me another slice of barley bread to keep .roe',;,,; on my journey, and tell me whati present I 1 shall" bring you at the end of the 32 .' months." . ' ' -,';^fc| "Good Master , Cuckoo." said 'Scrub, "a. diamond-or pearl would help such poor men as my brother and I to provide something better than barley bread for your next entertainment." ... 8 "I know nothing of diamonds or pearls," ; said the cuckoo "they are; in the hearts of $ rocks and the sands of ' rivers. ': My ' knowledge is only of that which grows on 'the earth. But there are two trees hard by the well that lies at the world's end. One' of them is called the golden tree, for its leaves are all of beaten gold. As for the other, : it' is ■ always 'green, * like ''"»■■' laurel. *?; Soino 1 call it the wise, and some the merry tree, ' j:{ Its leaves never fall, but they that get one ; j of them keep a blithe heart in spite of all • j misfortunes, and - can make \ themselves as merry in a poor hut as in a handsome; j palace." ' ! " Good Master Cuckoo, bring mo a leaf off that tree cried Spare. :,;' "Now, brother, don't be ' foolish!" said Scrub. "Think of the leaves of beaten \ gold! Dear Master Cuckoo, bring me one I of them." j , Before another word could be spoken, the j cuckoo had flown. '.;". The brothers were poorer than ' ever that. , year; nobody would send them a singlei % shoe to mend. "The new cobbler. said, in i scorn, they should come to be his apprentices and; Scrub and Spare would have, left the village but for their barley field, their cabbage r garden^Vand '.. a';.' mind-called {i ; ; Fairfeather, whom: both the j cobblers had 1 1 1 courted for more than seven years. . " •, At the end of the winter Scrub and . Spare had grown so poor and ragged that » Fairfeather thought them beneath*, her . notice. , Old ' neighbours forgot to • invite them to wedding feasts or merry-makings . and they thought! the cuckoo had' forgotten them too; when lat daybreak, on the first of , : April, they heard a hard beak , knocking at;;'; ;• their door, and "a voice/crying::;.-"•' " Cuckoo! cuckoo! Lot me in. (To be concluded next Wednesday.) ' *• '■ ,-''"*

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