Children's Corner. HOW TOMMY WAS LOST.

Otago Witness, Issue 1522, 8 January 1881, Page 26

Children's Corner. HOW TOMMY WAS LOST.

By S; E., iw the New York Teibttne.

It was quite dark when Mrs Wirt and Dick reached home, only to find the others returned with no news of the missing child. The kind-hearted, outlandish neighboursDanes, Swedes, French, and Germans— had gathered at the house with dogs and lanterns to aid in the search.

We will leave them while they are preparing for a night hunt in the woods, and follow the fortunes of the little wanderer.

Children, insane people, and a few other folks, only look at one side of a question, and Tom, when he slipped into the house and ran to his little room on the first floor, thought of nothing but getting away where he should • bother nobody.' Having a vague idea that people always carried a bundle or something when they ran away, he tied up his little best suit and a few toys in a handkerchief, not forgetting a few slices of bread and some matches from the pantry near by. No one was looking as he ran through the orchard, across the road, and out into the opea meadow. He felt safe when he reached the wooded Band-knobs, for he had thought of those little caves by the lake, not so far from home but that he could go there once in a while to see the twins and all the rest. Orchids, asters, and bright orange or pink asclepias templed him from the path, and, gathering flowers and watching birds, squirrels, and rabbits, he forgot for the time that he had any other object than to amuse himself with the frisky pranks of his beloved wild animals. He was getting weary, so he climbed a high hill to see if he was aot very near the lake. Reaching the top, he could see nothing but still higher knobs around him. He sat down to rest, and felt a cool breeze on his hot face, and that was the last he knew until he felt some one touching his shoulder and heard the words,

' Wake up, little fellow ; you'll be as wet as a drowned rat in a twinkling ' A big drop of rain fell in his faoe as he opened his eyes and saw a tall, bent man with sunken eyes and bearded face standing over him.

' Oh ! Ben, is't you ? I'm going to the lake ; it isn't far now, I guess V The man laughed.

'Too far for you to-night, I reckon. Oome along, my shanty is down here in the hollow.'

Tom followed him, for he bad no fear of the rough-looking man, having aeon bin occasionally at the farm after muk and eggs. Tom opened hi« heart and told him al)

about his trials at home and his plan to 1 ive all by himself where he could ' bother nobody.' , 'Did you have big brothers, Ben, who used to come down on you and tell you everything you did that was wrong to make you feel bad, and was you always doing something you didn't mean to, and so you just come off to live by yourself all alone?' . _ . , A wild, pained look came into Ben s face, but he took the boy's hand gently, for he felt a Btrange kinship with the grieved little heart, saying hoarsely, •I have no brothers— no nothing— l hate everybody, and no one cares for me. There, come in out of the rain.' In the cabin Tom was at first so awed by the tempest, with its vivid lightning and heavy thunderclaps, that he scarcely noticed the desolate, smoke-begrimed room; but, seated at Ben's uninviting supper-table, or rough stand, a sense of loneliness crept over him. Bright, happy faces had always made a part of his evening meal, and thinking of them he could not eat. ' Is it so awful nice, Ben, to live all alone ?' and looking up into Ben's haggard face the child choked with tears. 'Nice enough for me, little boy. You wouldn't like it— you'd want your mamma,' and Ben chuckled. ' There'll be a precious time at the farm whßn It comes dark and one of the chickens is missing.'

♦Oh, what a bad boy I am to frighten mother bo ! Oh ! I must go right home. It isn't far, is it ?' and Tom, seeing the other side of the question, was wild with grief over his wickedness.

' It's good four miles, and you could never find the way ; wait and we'll see,' and Ben cleared away the supper, apparently heedless of the child's sobß of woe.

At the farm the lanterns were lighted, and several parties were just starting out in various directions, when a strange voice was heard at the frontdoor, where lame Batsy had sat looking out into the deepening darkness as if her eyes were magnets that must draw the ohild home.

' Can I see Mr Wirt ?' were the words heard through the open doors.' Lame Betsy was not called to answer Ben's request — for it was his wild form that stood at the door— before the whole family had gathered there. 'My ohild — you have Been him?' and Mrs Wirt was at Ben's side with hiß hand in hers.

' Yes, madam ; he is with me. He stopped out there in thejorohard and sent me to ask you to take him*back, and he will never run away again;' A' great shout went up from all those throats, the big brothers laughed to hide their tears, and Dick turned three somersaults on reaching the orchard, while quiet Father Wirt exclaimed, »■•• Thank God! thank God !' ' Tom was not soolded ; he was hugged and kissed and cried over by each in turn, but he could not speak for* penitent tears. ' Now,' said Mrs Wirt, when they reached the kitchen, ' you two wet mortals Bit right there until I get you some dry clothes and a good warm supper.' ?Oh 1 madam, don't mind me ; I shall get wet again going back,' and' Ben rose r as if tc go. • Going back I Just as if you would leave ns to-night— and you have saved my child from wandering, and starving, perhaps, in those wild woods ; no, I must have you tonight under our own roof.' Strange to say, Ben did stay under that roof that night, and a great many nights .besides : for Mrs Wirt found so many things that' needed to be done, and was sure that Ben could do them better than any one else, that he was obliged to stop and do them, or act rudely to a lady, and Ben was too polite to do that. His ragged, patched clothes were gradually exchanged for better ones ; he began to love the Wirts, and through them to think better of his kind generally, Mrß Wirt had learned, or knew by instinct, that to make one feel at home he must be made to feel that he is needed ; so before long she declared that the house must have another L to make it proportioned right, and Ben, with a carpenter to assist, was set to work at once to build a room for himself, and one for Tom to keep his pet birds and flowers in.

If at any time Ben showed a wandering spirit, Mrß Wirt had only to say, ' * Oh, Ben, what if that Btrange Tom should run away once more !' and he felt that he was needed, and was content; but Tom never ran away again.

THE DUCKLING AND THE PUPPY{Writtenfor tJie Children's Corner.)

One day there was a duckling swimming 1h a pond. A little pup was playing on the bank, and after a time saw the duckling, and as he never saw a duckling before he wondered what it was. The little duck, on' seeing that the puppy was watohing it, dived down into the water. ' This action excited the pup's attention more and more, and nothing would deter him from jumping into the water to look for the duck. But when be found himself in the water he got so frightened that he began to howl dreadfully. This attracted the attention of the mamma duck, and when ehe swam up to the puppy she began to peck at him, and did not leave him until he was nearly dead with fear. When she went away he ventured to spramble from his resting place on the bank, and ran off home. He resolved not to go into water after a duck again. As it was natural, however, for this little re" triever pup to be fond of water he very soon forgot all about the mishap, and a few weeks afterwards was again in the water after a duck which had been shot. He wondered very much how this one had given him no trouble, and thought himself very foolish to have been thrashed by the previous one.

Two eminent Oxford men are likely to go over to Rome, in consequence [of the Jesuit mission just held in the University city. The sermons preached by the Jesuits were largely attended by the graduates at the Protestant University, whioh in these latter days ha* supplied two eminent CardinalsNewman and Manning— to the Holy Roman Phnwh, . '