n j ^OF-CAIIFO^ fV /^\ jj i % A\\E-UNIVER% .vlOS-ANCni ft a II S "5 $ % UJ. T s^x 1 ^ ^ HAT a wretched tumble-down old building, that is," said one lady to another as they were visiting among the houses of the poor ; " do you think it possible that any one can live there ?" "I should hardly think so, but we will see," answered her companion. The wretched old shed of which they spoke, overhung the lake, on whose THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 57 bank it stood, and seemed just ready to fall into the water. The door stood half open, and the snow was drifting into the lower part of the shed, which seemed to be too wretched a place for either man or beast to live in. On looking round, the ladies per- ceived a sort of rude ladder, which led to a loft above ; and hearing a slight noise, one of them called out, " Is there any person up there ?" "Yes, ma'am," answered a child's voice, and presently a little boy ap- peared at the head of the ladder. I "Is there any one up there with you ?" asked one of the ladies. 58 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. "No, ma'am, I'm alone now. Mi- chael has gone out." " Who is Michael ?" " My brother, ma'am." "Do you two boys live here all alone ?" "Yes, ma'am; we sleep here at night, and I stay here pretty much all the day." "What have you to sleep on?" " Some straw, ma'am." " Nothing to cover you ?" "No, ma'am." ^ " Where do you get anything to eat ?" "I beg a bit from door to door, THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 59 " And why do you stay up there in the dark and the cold, instead of going out with your brother ?" "Oh, I don't like to go out with Mike, ma'ani." "Why not?" " I don't like to tell you, ma'ani." " What is your name ?" " My name is Frank, ma'am." " Well, come home with me, Frank," said one of the ladies ; and while poor little Frank is seated by her warm kitchen fire, eating some bread and meat, I will tell you something of the history of these two boys. Their father had been an intemper- 60 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. ate and bad man; and their mother, worn down by her efforts to keep her family fed and clothed, had sunk under the power of want and sickness, and with her young baby, had been buried a few Weeks before our story com- mences. Not long after that, the father was found one morning frozen to death, having fallen as he was making his way home very much intoxicated. The poor boys were now turned out from the wretched room where they had lodged with their father, and had taken refuge in the miserable shed where the kind ladies found them. Mike, the oldest boy, slept on the THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 61 straw in the old shed at night, but all day he roamed about with a set of bad boys, who hung about taverns and groceries, and lounged about the rail- road, and every day he grew more idle, and wicked, and wretched. But little Frank remembered his poor mother's instructions, for she had always charged them to keep out of the way of bad boys, and never to lie, or steal, or say wicked words ; and then she told them if they were indus- trious and temperate, they would be sure to get along, and make respect- able men. Poor little Frank tried to get a little 62 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. work to do, but very few would employ so small a boy, and when lie came across the wicked set with whom his brother roamed the streets, they would tease him, and torment him, till he would retire to his little dark loft, and shiver there in the cold all day. One cold day in January, a gentle- man, who was sitting by the window of his parlor, saw a little poor boy standing on the sidewalk near him. He was watching a man who was saw- ing wood at a little distance from him. Every few moments, the little boy's lips would move, as if he was saying something to himself. The gentleman THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 63 who sat by the window had the curi- osity to raise it a little, to hear what the little fellow was saying. The boy was quite near him, but his back was towards the gentleman, and he did not know that any one was listening to him. The first thing the gentleman heard him say was, " Oh, I wish I had a saw !" In a moment or two he said, " Oh, if I only had a saw !" Then he stood still a moment, and looked up and down the street, and then, fixing his eyes upon the wood-sawyer, again he sighed, and exclaimed, " Oh ! how I wish I could get a saw !" 64: THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. Presently lie cast liis eyes upon the ground, and spied there a bright shin- ing silver piece of money. He stooped and picked it up hastily, and a smile stole over his little thin sharp face ; and he said, " I wonder if this would buy me a saw ?" The boy stood for some time with the bright piece of money in his hand ; sometimes he would open his hand a little way and just look at the money and smile, and then shut his hand tight, as if he was afraid he should lose his new found treasure. After a few moments, a little girl came down the street; she had a basket on her arm, THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 65 and, as she walked slowly along, she looked on the ground, first on one side, and then on the other, as if she had lost something, and all the time she was wiping away her tears with her apron. When she came near the little boy, still walking along slowly, and looking on the ground, and wiping away the tears, he said to her, " Little girl, have you lost anything?" "Oh, yes," said she, " I've lost a silver half-dollar." And she sobbed so she-could scarcely speak. "Granny gave it to me," she continued, "to buy some bread, and she said I must bring back every cent 66 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. of the change, and she will whip me so for losing it," " Is this your piece of money ?" said the boy, showing it to her. " Oh, yes," she answered, her face brightening in a moment ; " where did you find it ?" " Just here," answered the boy. "Then I must have dropped it out of my pocket when I tripped over this wood, and fell down," said the little girl. "Oh, thank you! thank you! I am so glad ! Now granny won't whip me !" The little boy looked pleased for a moment, for he had done a right action ; but when he looked at the wood-saw- ^raiMiiiiiUJiiiiiM IF I ONLY HAD A SAW. 68 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. yer again, a shade of sadness came over his face, and he said, " Oh, dear, I shall never be able to get a saw!" and he sat down on the stone door-step of the house. " I must know more of that child," said the gentleman to himself, and closing the window gently, and step- ping to the door, he tapped the boy on the shoulder and called him in. "What is your name, my boy?" " Frank, sir." " Ah, you must be the boy my wife has spoken of." " Yes, sir, the lady here is very kind to me, and gives me cold bits." THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 69 "And why were you wishing for a saw, just now ?" The boy looked surprised that the gentleman knew his thoughts, for he did not know that he had spoken them aloud ; but he answered, "Oh, if I had a saw, sir, I could take care of myself, and I would not have to beg. There is many a poor person would give me wood to saw, because I would work cheaper than the men, but they have no saw them- selves." " Well, Frank, what if I should buy you a saw, and let you pay for it as you can ?" 70 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. " Oh, if you would be so kind, sir, I would be sure and pay you." Seeing that the child was very thinly clothed, the gentleman called his wife, who knew her little friend Frank, as soon as she saw him. He asked her if she could not find some clothes for Frank. She replied that she had given away almost everything, but she sup- posed she must give him a second- hand suit belonging to her oldest little boy, who was nearly the size of Frank. That same evening the cook came up, and told the lady that a little boy wanted to speak to her. It was Frank again. Putting his hand in the pocket THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 71 of the pantaloons, he % said, " I think you did not know, ma'am, that this was in it." And as he said so, he pulled out a shilling. The lady praised him for his honesty, but told him he might keep the shil- ling, to help pay for the saw. Frank was now warmly clothed, and he care- fully laid up all his money, and every second day he brought two or three shillings to the gentleman to pay for the saw. As he said, he got plenty of work, but then he could not work so fast as a man, and he got but little pay. It was not a great while, how- ever, before he had paid for the saw ; 72 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. but though the gentleman thought it best to take the money, he laid it all away for Frank's use at some future time. About this time, the boy who had worked for this gentleman having turned out to be dishonest, he turned him away ; and though Frank was not so large, yet as he was very industri- ous, and had proved himself to be strictly honest, this gentleman took him into his employment. Here he lived happy and well cared for, for many years ; he was taught to read and write well, and he also gained considerable knowledge of arithmetic ; so that when George, his master's old- THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 73 est son, went into business in New York, lie begged his father to let him take Frank to be his head clerk. And where is Frank, now ? He is doing business for himself ; he is mar- ried to a respectable young woman, lives very comfortably, and is becom- ing a wealthy man. Whenever he sees a poor boy standing idle about the streets, he remembers the time when he stood before the gentleman's house, watching the wood-sawyer, and saying, " Oh, if I only had a saw !" and he al- ways stops to say a word to the boy, and if he is willing to work, he finds employment for him. 74: THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. And where is Mike now ? Ah, Mike went on from bad to worse. He and some of his wicked companions were taken up for stealing, and sent to jail ; after being there a few months, they came out much worse than they went in. Mike committed other crimes, and he is now in the state prison, and I shall not be much surprised to hear some day that he is told by a judge, that he must " hang by his neck till he is dead ! dead ! dead !" Which is the best, boys, to be hon- est and industrious, or to be idle, dis- honest, and wicked ? Which pays the best in the end ? Jfje Ti WHY what in the world is the matter with Harry ? He seems so depressed and so silent to-day ; "With his eyes full of tears, and his sweet face so sorry, While others around him are happy and gay, Oh, what is the matter with Harry to-day ? "Why the truth is, that Harry had got his first pocket ; And what to put in it he scarcely could say ; To the closet he went (they'd forgotten to lock it), 76 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. And stole some large lumps of white sugar away ; Oh, Harry, pray what would your kind mother say? Then out of the house Harry flew like a rocket, And over the garden in haste his feet trod ; "With the sugar he stole safely hid in his pocket, And he eat it behind a great pile of sod, And nobody knew it but Harry and God ! But like all little boys, Harry had that within him Which filled him, when naughty, with sorrow and shame ; Which took from the treasure he stole all its pleasure, And made him so sad, can you tell me its name ? It cried out every moment, "Shame, Harry for shame !" THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 77 And it gave him no rest till he went to his mother, And freely confessed all his wickedness there ; She forgave him, but told him there still was another, To whom all his sin he must frankly declare, One who never would turn from a little boy's prayer. Now little boys, take my advice, and don't mock it, Never steal from another so much as a pin, And I beg of all mothers who make a. first pocket, To remember and have something nice to put in, Lest their boys, like poor Harry, are tempted to sin. Jiffie 'AMMA," said little Annie, * did you not say that God will an- swer our prayers, and give us what we ask for ?" " Yes, dear, I said that God will hear the prayer of faith, that is, if we really believe that he is able and willing to give us what we ask for, then if he sees that it is best for us to have it, he will give it to us." THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 79 LITTLE ANNIE'S PRAYER. "But, mamma," said Annie, the tears rolling down her cheeks, " you remem- ber the few pretty beads that Aunt El- len gave me ; well, I wanted some more, and I took the beads into a corner, and laid them down before me, and then I kneeled down, and prayed that God 80 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. would make them a great pile of leads ; and I really believed he would. But when I opened my eyes he had not sent any more beads at all. Then I shut my eyes again, and prayed again, and I did so a great many times, and just see, mamma! he did not answer my prayer at all I" Her mother smiled, and taking little Annie up in her lap, she said, "You remember, darling, how our Saviour made the five loaves and two small fishes feed five thousand men ?" "Yes, ma'am." ""Well, dear, that was a miracle. God does not work by miracles now ; THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 81 he answers prayer in other ways, and often in a very different way from what we expect. Now I will tell you how God answered the prayer of a little boy of whom I read some time ago. " He was a very poor little boy ; his father was dead, and his mother was sick ; and the family depended upon the work done by this little boy for their support. One evening, after he had been out all day looking for work, without find- ing any, he returned to his mother's poor cottage, but he had nothing with him for his little brothers and sisters to eat. He shut the door, and kneel- 82 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. ing down, he clasped his hands and prayed : " ' Father in heaven, give us this day our daily bread !' "While he was yet kneeling, there was a knock at the door, and behold a kind lady had heard of their case, and had sent them a basket of provisions. "And the little boy said, 'See, moth- er, how God has answered my prayer!' " " Yes, I see now, mamma," said An- nie : " if God had sent bread and meat down to them from heaven, it would have been a miracle ; and if God had sent the beads down to me, it would have been a miracle ; but I do wish he THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 83 would send some one to give me some more beads." Her mother put her hand in her pocket, and gave her a few pennies, and little Annie went off perfectly sat- isfied. Jlje WHITE Top-knot was the beauty 'Mid the chickens far and wide, But, sorry am I to confess, Her top-knot was her pride ; And she scorned the other chickens, And she held her head so high, That if any of them spoke to her, She passed them coldly by. There was one wee little gray chick, A homely thing was he, But a kind obliging creature As ever you did see ; THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 85 White Top-knot never noticed Mm, Except by scornful look, And by seizing every dainty bit Thrown to him by the cook. One day the rain in torrents, Came pouring, pouring down, And plashed the muddy water up All over Top-knot's crown ; And her feathers now all muddy, Before her eyes hung low, And she wandered blindly all alone, Not knowing where to go. Neither could Top-knot see one bit, To pick up worms or corn, And the chickens laughed to see her, Whom she'd angered by her scorn ; 86 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. But when the little gray chick saw Her sad and sorry plight, He quickly ran to lend his aid To set the matter right. I " Why what's the matter, Top-knot ? You're in a sorry case, With your beautiful white feathers All matted o'er your face ;" " Oh, come and help me, Gray Chick, If there's aught that you can do, I'm sure I would be glad to be As ugly now as you." Then Gray Chick kindly led her To where a clear brook ran, And when she'd dipped her head in, He patiently began To comb her feathers with his beak ; And when he this had done, THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 87 He bade her stand and shake her head Just where the warm sun shone. And Top-knot soon could see the lighi And now could find her food, And she did not forget to thank The little Gray Chick good ; For she saw that what we most admire May to our ruin tend, And that the ugliest things may be Most useful in the end. is IP* sswfy 6i w A QUESTION ACTUALLY ASKED BY A LITTLE CHILD. "PAPA," said a bright little boy one day, As he jumped on his father's knee, " I've left my books and left my play, To come and ask you one question, and pray, Papa, do answer me. " 'Tis a thing that has troubled my head all day, Whether out with the boys or alone, I am sure that I often have heard you say That there's one God above to whom you pray, And that there is only one. THE CHILD'S QUESTION 90 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. " And is it not so, Papa ? please tell, For I very much wish to know. " 9 "Be sure, my son, you remember well, That one God above, in heaven doth dwell, And he reigns o'er the earth below." ""Well, I can't understand it," the little U-f sighed, " And it puzzles my poor little head ; For there must be more than one, and beside If old Effie says true, there is /" he cried. " Well, tell me, my boy, what she said." "Why papa, I've been with her an hour or more, And such beautiful stories she tells About Santa Glaus and his sleigh and four, And the loads of toys he has in store, And his merry jingling bells. THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 91 " And he rides o'er the roofs with a skip and a bound, And down every chimney he goes, And wherever the good children's stockings are found, He brings down a load, and goes quietly round, And stuffs them quite down to the toes." " And she says that if ever I'm cross and don't mind, Old Santa Claus all will know, And that leaving the toys meant for me all be- hind, To my poor empty stocking his eyes will be blind, And away up the chimney he'll go. " Now please, papa, tell me, pray how can it be, If he can go all abroad, 92 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. And over the land and over the sea, And yet all the time can be looking at me, Why Santa Glaus is not God ?" " Ah, I see now the reason of all that you've said, And I'm not much surprised at the cause Of the trouble there's been in your poor little head, From the foolish stories you've heard and read Of this wonderful Santa Glaus. " My boy, believe me, when I say to you, That these stories all are made By people who have nothing better to do Than to tell children tales, not one word of them true, To please them or make them afraid." " Then, Papa, no such being as Sa*hta Glaus lives, And there is but one God after all ?" THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 93 " Tes, my son, and 'tis he all your benefits gives, And from him every being its mercies receives, And he can look down upon all. " He to one giveth life, and another he kills, And he gives every creature his food ; And to one the sad portion of sorrow he wills, And the cup of another with pleasure he fills, And he doth what to him seemeth good. "Give your heart, then, to him, who gives you life and breath, Let him not give these blessings in vain, And then in the hour of sickness and death, You can look up with hope and rejoice, for he saith That your friend he will ever remain." Jjffle Jtyebe q$ tjei* OWN in a hollow by a brook, there stood a little red house, and in it lived an old woman and her lit- tle grand-daughter. They were very poor, but they were happy, for though they had to work hard, yet they went about their work with cheerful hearts, and they were always kind and affec- tionate to each other. Little Phebe did all that she could 96 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. to help her poor old grandmother, and the old woman was never idle, I can assure you; but in all her spare mo- ments, she was trying to make and mend for Phebe, so that she might be warm and decent. When Christmas was coming, they did not forget it, for though the old woman was so poor that she could not afford to buy toys and candies for Phebe, yet she never forgot to have a Christmas present ready for her. When Phebe got to be six years old, she thought she was old enough to make something for a Christmas pres- ent for her grandmother; and so they THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 97 were both very busy and very secret about their work. After Phebe had gone to bed at night, her grandmother would bring out some gay worsteds, with which she was knitting a beauti- ful warm tippet for her little grand- daughter. And whenever Phebe had a little time to herself, she climbed up the ladder to a little room in the loft, where she had a rag bag filled with bright pieces of flannel and worsted, and here she worked away very busily. When Christmas morning came, Phebe was perfectly delighted with the beautiful gay tippet her grand- 98 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. mother gave her; and what do you think was the present she had ready for her grandmother ? You must not laugh when I tell you. It was an iron-holder, made of bright pieces put together in quarters : it had cotton between, and was nicely bound round the edge ; and the old lady thought it was beautiful; and was so pleased that her little grand-daughter had made it herself for her. Among all the many Christmas pres- ents which were given that day, I verily believe none gave more real pleasure than the gifts exchanged be- THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 99 tween little Phebe and her old grand- mother. It is not the cost of presents which makes them valuable, it is the love and kind feeling they show. A CHRISTMAS gift was sent to Mary Of a pretty bright canary, Wings of brown and breast of yellow, Oh, he was a pretty fellow 1 He was always singing, singing, All day long his notes were ringing, Long before the day was breaking, He his music sweet was making. Lovely songs his throat were tilling, "Warbling sweetly, wildly trilling, THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 101 Oh ! 'twas a delight to Mary, List'ning to her bright canary. But his singing soon was over, For one day he did discover That another bright canary Had been sent to little Mary. !Kow this other birdie's throat Could not raise a single note, And with envy she was filled, "When she heard how sweet he trilled. So whene'er our poor canary Tried to sing a song to Mary, Then he found how hard the fate Of him who has an envious mate. For whene'er his song began, In a rage at him she ran, 102 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. Picked the feathers from his head ; "What a life canary led ! When the warm days came in Spring, Much canary longed to sing, Till at last one sunny day, To his joy he found a way. How rejoiced was little Mary, When again she heard canary ; To the cage she ran in glee, What did little Mary see ? He was singing higher, higher, With his head outside the wire, While his mate in frantic rage, Bustled round and round the cage. Now I'm safe, canary said, For you cannot peck my head ; THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 103 Now I'll sing, and all day long You shall listen to my song." Birdies who would seek a mate, Warning from canary take ; Hen-pecked ones who peace desire, Put your heads outside the wire. h)ij J^ee 6eK|f piece ITTLE Agnes Warner's father was a Jl/1 P oor man. He worked at Ms trade for his daily bread, and lit- tle Agnes had none of those luxuries to which many of my little readers are accustomed. When Christmas eve came, in some houses in the village long rows of stockings were hung up and filled with beautiful gifts, and toys, and candies ; THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 105 in other houses there were Christmas trees lighted up with many wax tapers, and loaded with beautiful presents; while in other houses still Santa Glaus himself, or an image made to repre- sent him, with his back and his pock- ets loaded with toys and good things, stood ready to give up his treasures when they should be demanded of him. But neither Christmas stockings nor Christmas trees, nor Santa Claus him- self, appeared in Robert Warner's cot- tage ; for he, poor man, had too many calls upon him for the money earned by his daily toil, to spend it upon 106 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. things not absolutely necessary for the comfort of his family. His little children, however, were not forgotten, for when Christmas morning came, their mother gave to each of them a nice warm pair of mit- tens of her own knitting, and Robert gave each of them a bright new three cent piece. The children were very happy, for it was not often that a piece of money, even so much as a penny, that they could call their own, came between their little fingers ; and they were busily talking together as to what they THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 107 do with their money when their father called them to prayers. "I'll tell you what I mean to do," said little Robert; "I mean to spend one penny in candy, and one penny in raisins, and one penny in nuts." "And I mean to buy a beautiful bright yellow orange," said Willie. " And I think I shall get a string of beads," said little Emma, " if I can get a string for three cents. What are you going to do with your money, Agnes ?" " Oh, I don't know yet," said Agnes ; "there are so many things I should like, that I have not made up my mind yet. Mother says we may all go down into 108 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. HOW TO SPEND THE MONET. the village after breakfast, and I will see then what I can get." In the midst of this conversation, as THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 109 I said before, their father called them to prayers. The portion of Scripture which Robert read that morning was the parable of the talents, which you will find in the 25th chapter of Mat- thew. Our Lord Jesus Christ is there represented as a man going into a far country, who called together his ser- vants, and gave each of them different talents to use in the best manner pos- sible. TThen he returned he called them before him to account to him for the manner in which they had used the talents he gave them. Those who had done well with them he rewarded, but 110 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. the man who had neglected his talent, or wasted it, he punished. Robert Warner's children always listened very attentively when their father read in the Bible, for they knew he would close the book, and question them upon what he had read. After he had done so on Christmas morning, and in simple language had explained the parable, they all knelt, and Robert prayed to God that they might all im- prove well the talents he had given them. While Agnes was eating her break- fast, her little brain was busy thinking, thinking, thinking, and she was all the THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. Ill time asking herself this question, " Is my three cent piece a talent ?" "I do believe it is a talent," said Agnes to herself, as she ran up the steep narrow stairs to get her bonnet ; " I do believe it is, because father said anything was a talent that we could do good with. Now I think I might do some good with my three cent piece. Let's see, what did the missionary who came here from China say? I forget exactly what ; but I know I wondered to hear him tell how many pages of a tract or a bible could be printed for a penny. And I know my little testa- ment only cost sixpence; so it must 112 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. be that my three cent piece would help a little ; and if it would help, it would not be right for me to spend it in any other way. " And then," she continued, " if I am to give account to God for my talents, what could I say about my three cent piece if it had all gone for candies and such things? for I suppose if I have but few talents, I have no right to waste them. No," said Agnes, laying down her bonnet, " I dare not spend it for candy, or nuts, or raisins; I must give an account for it, and into the missionary box it shall go." Agnes felt much more easy and hap- THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 113 py after her mind was made up, and I doubt not her little three cent piece was accepted by him, who received the poor widow's mite, and said she had given more than all the rich men who had cast their gifts into the treas- ury, because, like little Agnes, she had given her all. How much good might be done in the world, if all the men and women, and all the little boys and girls, used their talents as well as little Agnes "Warner used her three cent piece. fy Jjelr IRS. Brown and Mrs. Green were once talking together about their mutual friend, Mrs. W - , who, it was feared, was falling into habits of intemperance. A little daughter of Mrs. Green's was listening earnestly to the conversation ; . and Mrs. Brown, wishing to caution her friend, said, " Take care, little pitchers have great THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 115 They continued their conversation in a low tone, but presently little Fanny heard her mother say, " Mrs. "W is a very pleasant woman, but there is no doubt that she sometimes has a drop in her eye ;" by which she meant that she sometimes drank liquor, and became intoxicated. The next time Mrs. W called to see Mrs. Green, little Fanny took her station opposite to her, and stared eagerly in her face. At length Mrs. W said to her, " My dear, why do you stare at me so ?" "Because," said little Fanny, "I heard my mamma and Mrs. Brown say 116 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. that you sometimes have a l drop in your eye] and I want to see if it is there now." The lady was very angry of course, and immediately left the house, and never spoke to Mrs. Brown or Mrs. Green again. People should remember that " little pitchers have great ears," and little pitchers should be careful how they use their mouths. fije Ji A WEE little titmouse sat perched on a bough, When down close beside him there lit an old crow, As dark and as black as the night was he, And thus out he spoke to the wee chicakdee ; Quit, quit, little Tit, Your chirping a bit, And answer some questions to me, Little Tit. the first place I should much like to know If for aught you were made but for food to the Crow ; THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 119 'Tis absurd to suppose such a wee thing as you Any good in this wide world of ours can do ; So call up your wit, You wee little Tit, And say why you won't make me a nice dainty bit, Little Tit. The crow looked so black, and he moved up so near, That the heart of the titmouse went pit-pat with fear ; But he thought if his time had come to go, He would speak some plain truths to his cruel black foe ; So said he, " Old Crow, Don't all the birds know What a wicked old fellow you are, Old Crow ? 120 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. " I know, to be sure, I'm a wee little thing, But God made me to play, and be cheerful, and sing; And of some little use he has formed me to be, For I eat up the worms that destroy herb and tree. So ho, old Crow, I'm of some use, I know ; And now let us see what you do, Old Crow. " Why down you come in the farmer's field, When he's scattered the seed which he hopes will yield, And you carry it off in your ravenous maw, And away you fly with your caw, caw, caw 1 So ho, old Crow, Perhaps I don't know What a horrible thief you are, Old Crow ! THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 121 " And down you swoop 'mid the farmer's ricks, And take off young turkeys, and goslings, and chicks ; Never heeding their pain, or their poor mother's fright, But griping them close in your upward night. Ho, ho, old Crow, So you see I know "\Vhat a murderous wretch you are, Old Crow. " And more plain truths I can tell you too, Like all other oppressors a coward are you, For I've seen you make the best use of your wings, At the sight of a bundle of ragged old things. So so, old Crow, You see I know, What a silly old coward you are, Old Crow!" 122 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. The crow turned blacker than ever, and flew At the poor little titmouse to bite him in two ; But just then came the sound of a crack and a bang, And the old crow fell dead, and the chick-a-dee sang, Ho, ho, old Crow ! Down, down you go ; May all tyrants come down like you, Old Crow ! NOTE. Lest I should be supposed to have mistaken the crow for the hawk, I refer the reader to the New York State Natural History, where he will see that the common crow car- ries off and devours young turkeys, goslings, and chickens. JLiffie ^ (A FEMPERASCE STORY IN RHYME.) A LADT at her window sat, And saw a little girl each day, With ragged clothes and tattered hat, Enter a shop across the way. Beneath her arm she always held An empty bottle when she came ; But when she went away, 'twas filled With that which causeth tears and shame. For liquor there was to be sold, And men were ruined every day ; THE SICK FATHER. THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 125 And gave their clothes, and gave their gold, And threw their priceless souls away. The poor child came, and came again, But well I recollect one day, She with her bottle came in vain, ; Twas empty when she went away. For as I guessed by her sad air, The man the liquor did refuse ; Soon she came back, her feet were bare, And in her hand she held her shoes. The lady took her hat and shawl, And quickly went the child to meet ; Determined that she'd stop her there, And learn her story in the street. But when she saw the lady pause, As if she something had to say, 126 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. She hid her bottle 'neath her shawl, And tried to hurry on her way. The lady gently said, " Pray stop, My child, and truly tell me why You come so often to this shop ; What is it that you come to buy ?" The child looked down and seemed distressed, Then raised her head, and said, " I'd rather / Lady, you'd let me quickly pass, 'Tis something I must take to father." The lady said, with accents mild, "Then come to me, my dear, to-morrow." The voice of kindness touched the child, She came, and told her tale of sorrow. LADY. Now tell me, child, why, every day, You seek this shop across the way, THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 127 And why your clothes so ragged are ; Have you no one for you to care ? BESSIE. Lady, I've begged from door to door, 'Till they are tired of seeing me come, And tell me I shall have no more, And roughly bid me to go home. But tell me, tell me, lady kind, What else but begging can I do ? For father's sick, and mother's blind, And cannot see to work and sew. A little work sometimes she gets, By which she may a trifle earn ; Sometimes she for the neighbors knits, And they do work for her in turn. * But then she never could teach me To mend my own and brothers' clothes ; 128 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. For I the oldest am of three, And oh ! we suffer many woes ! And oftentimes we have no bread, And little brothers cry for some, But we must learn to do without, Father, you know, must have the rum. Once, lady, we'd a pleasant home, And father then was good and kind ; But since he took to drinking rum, He beats us and our mother kind. And all our furniture is gone, And our nice house we had to leave ; "We've almost nothing to put on, Our clothes for liquor we must give. I tried to save poor Willie's shoes, For they were very nice and stout, THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 129 And hid them safe till yesterday, When father bade me bring them out. But I took mine and gave the man, He means, I know, to take our all, For only yesterday he came And took off mother's nice warm shawl. And father now is very bad, He screams and wakes us all at night ; Sometimes he says he's going mad, And shrieks with terror and affright. And horrid shapes come round his bed ; He says their burning eyeballs glare, And bids me drive them from his head, But I could never see them there. Poor mother's heart is almost broke, She can do naught but weep and sigh, 130 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. And says that were it not for us, She'd gladly lay her down and die. " Bessie," the lady said, " if you "Will come to me each Sabbath day, I'll take you to the Sabbath school ; You shall be taught to read and pray. " And if to me each day you'll come, I'll gladly teach you how to sew, And make and mend for those at home, That they no more may ragged go." And Bessie now has learned to sew, And of her brothers to take care ; And many household works to do, And all things have a different air. And she has learned quite well to read The Holy Book that God has given, THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 131 Her father from that book has heard That " drunkards cannot enter heaven." "Dear father," little Bessie said, While sitting by his bed one day, " I'll tell you what will cure your head, And drive those horrid shapes away. " If you will sign the temperance pledge, And never touch strong drink again, They'll fly away, and with them all Our sorrow, poverty, and pain." FATHER. Give me the paper, child, I'll sign, I've caused you all enough of woe ; I'll rise and leave this wretched bed, And to my daily work I'll go. And now he brings his earnings home, And places them in Bessie's hand ; 132 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. And every morn and night she conies, And lays the Bible on the stand. She reads a portion of God's word, And then they kneel and pray to heaven, That father's voice in prayer is heard, For strength to keep the pledge he's given. "Will not each little girl and bov, Who may this tale of Bessie read, Try if they cannot give some joy, And do some good as Bessie did ? Hie (FROM THE FRENCH.) QXRISCILLA lost her mother when she was very young; her father was in the East Indies, and the child was carried to the house of her aunt, Mrs. Hamilton, who loved her tenderly, because of the affection which she felt for her brother ; and who brought her up with the utmost care and attention. Her daughters Emily and Lucy did not love their cousin with an equal de- MARTHA AND PRISCILLA IN THE GARDEN. THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 135 gree of attachment. Lucy loved her dearly, but Emily was jealous and en- vious, and could not "bear to see the tokens of affection which were lavished upon her cousin by her mother. Priscilla had an affectionate heart, and she often wept for hours at the idea of having offended her cousin, though she could not imagine how she had done so. In fact, it never entered her mind that any one could have taken a dislike to her, when she had done nothing to displease them; she was far from suspecting that when her aunt praised the sweetness of her tem- per, her lively disposition, her 136 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. tion to her lessons, and progress in all her studies, her gentle manners to- wards the domestics, and her human- ity and kindness towards others ; she never imagined, I say, that these praises could increase the dislike which her cousin had taken to her the moment she entered the house. She supposed, on the contrary, that she would endeavor to imitate her good qualities, and not seek to undervalue them. ?' As they grew older, Emily's dislike to her cousin increased ; and Priscilla constantly endeavored to make Emily think more kindly of her, by taking THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 137 every opportunity to oblige her. If Emily had a piece of work to do of which she was tired, Priscilla always offered to finish it for her ; if she ex- pressed a wish for flowers, Priscilla would search through the whole vil- lage, to find the most beautiful and fragrant flowers, to make a bouquet for her ; but all her trouble was in vain ; the pains which she took to please, seemed only to make her more odious to her cousin Emily. One day Mrs. Hamilton returned from the city, where she had been to buy different things to send to her sis- ter in Scotland. Among these pur- 138 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. chases, a very beautiful work-box, which she intended to send her, was shown to the young ladies, and greatly admired by all three of them. It wae very delicately made, and after the) had sufficiently examined the work- manship, Mrs. Hamilton placed it upon a little table, and gave strict orders that no person should touch it; but, on returning in the evening from the house of one of her friends, with whom she had dined, and thinking that curi- osity might well induce one of the ser- vants to open it, she took it, with the paper which was around it, just as it THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 139 was upon the table, and shut it up in the library. The next day she was very busy put- ting up the articles she had bought for her sister; and as she was about to put cotton in the work-box, to prevent the little winders and other articles from rubbing against each other, she was much astonished to find that the material which covered the box was green, instead of pale crimson, and that the different parts of which it was composed, were entirely unlike those of the box she had bought the evening before. Lucy declared it was not the same 14:0 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. box her mamma had shown her ; Em- ily was of the same opinion, but Pris- cilla reddened and said not a word. " Some one has broken my box, and has replaced it by one not nearly so pretty," said Mrs. Hamilton in great anger. " I expressly commanded every one of you not to touch it, and I will know who has done this mischief!" "I fear," said Emily, pretending to be much impressed with the confusion of her cousin, "that it can be no one but Priscilla, who has had the misfor- tune to break it ; and indeed, mamma, if you will take the trouble to see how she blushes, and that she cannot say THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. one word in her own defence, you will no longer doubt her guilt." Priscilla, in the most sincere and earnest tone, assured her aunt that she had not touched the box since she showed it to her the evening before. Emily said the same for herself, and assured her mother that she had not entered the room from the time she went out till she returned. Mrs. Hamilton being determined to know the truth, asked each of the young ladies what she had done with the guinea which she received on New Year's day, adding that the box cost that sum of money, and that they 142 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. could not have replaced it without paying the same. " Here is mine in my little work- bag," hastily cried Emily. " You know, my dear mamma," said Lucy, " that half of mine has been used in buying gold leaf and drawing-paper, and here's the other half in my purse." "Where is your guinea, Priscilla?" asked Mrs. Hamilton. "What can be the reason that, instead of showing the same haste which your cousins have done, to justify yourself, you only red- den, and hang your head, and say not a single word ?" " I cannot show my guinea," replied THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 143 Priscilla, " but believe me, dear aunt, when I declare to you that I have never touched your box." Emily, who had her reasons for wish- ing that they should not talk any long- er about this matter, though not for any kindness to her cousin, begged her mamma not to endeavor to discover anything farther as to the box, for it only distressed the poor child, and made her tell falsehoods ; but old Mar- tha," the house-keeper, who had been all this time pulling the strings of her apron, or rolling them between her fingers, clasping her hands, and rais- ing her eyes towards heaven, and I4A THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. making other gestures, which showed her impatience, could no longer con- tain her indignation, but asked Emily in a loud tone of voice, how she had the boldness to look her mother in the face, and tell her so many falsehoods, when she ought to know that she was at the same time guilty, not only of a shameful imposture, in accusing an in- nocent person of the fault which she had herself committed, but also of cruel ingratitude for a service which certain- ly merited the greatest praise, and for which she knew vely well she was in- debted to the generosity and kindness of her cousin ? THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 145 She then informed her mistress that, as she was walking with Priscilla around the garden, about half an hour after she left the house, that they ap- proached a window of the parlor, which was open, and there they saw the beautiful work-box broken in many pieces, upon the floor, and Emily, with her back towards them, busy in gather- ing them up ; that Emily had begged her, in a low voice, to say nothing about it, and that, as they continued to ramble, they saw Emily go and throw the pieces into the fish-pond, at the end of the garden, and afterwards run up stairs as quickly as possible. 10 146 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. " Dear Miss Priscilla," continued the old housekeeper, " begged me to do her a kindness, for which she would be grateful all her life, and that was, to go to the city, to the shop where you purchased the work-box, and to buy one with her guinea exactly like it ; and I did it to oblige her, and because I have never been able to refuse her anything she asked of me, although I must acknowledge that Miss Emily did not deserve such kindness. This is, in fact, but one of a hundred falsehoods which she has told about Priscilla, and of the unkind actions with which she has returned her kindness, who has left THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. 14:7 nothing undone to oblige her and to hide her faults. "I thought that the box I bought was so exactly like yours, madam, that you would never know what had hap- pened. Miss Priscilla was delighted that we had spared you the vexation of seeing that the box had been broken, and her cousin the anger which she would have incurred for disobeying your orders. We have, however, failed in our expectation. But Miss Emily must have understood, when her cousin could not show her guinea, the use which she had made of it, and this is the reason why she wished you to dis- 148 THE SILVER LAKE STORIES. miss the subject, for she well knew that unless you did so, her falsehood and deceit would be clearly shown to you." It is almost useless to add, that Em- ily entirely lost the confidence of her mother. Priscilla from that time lived very happily, and was tenderly loved by Mrs. Hamilton, and by her dear cousin Lucy. Old Martha doted on her, and took great pains to tell her friends and acquaintances the story of the work-box, which did so much hon- or to her dear Priscilla, and caused such deep mortification to Emily. O cn UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA LIBRARY Los Angeles This book is DUE on the last date stamped below. 54" 1AY 3 20( C'DYRL fftl L 008 877 733 9 IJrfl Illnr -5 1 3 s * ff S/WJll S SV e^All S , I S i I 1 e g