|Henry, the basket-maker, is sitting at the door of his house. He is
now nearly sixty years of age. With Fido his dog, and Lucy his
granddaughter, he goes from place to place and gets work. Lucy finds
it very tiresome to go every day with her grandfather, but Fido is very
fond of going.
The old man has not seen the sun, or his own face, or the trees, or
anything at all, for more than twenty years. He does not know what Lucy
looks like. He only runs his fingers through her golden ringlets and
calls her his Sunshine.
[Illustration: 5085].
He can make a basket in one morning. He makes it of willow branches
that are of several colors. How does he do that? Why, Lucy puts all the
willow that is of the same color in one pile, and then tells him. He
says Lucy is his eye. Lucy would rather play than sort willow.
[Illustration: 0086]
If Fido could only be taught to know colors, would it not be nice?
There, that basket is done, and off walks the old man, cane in hand, and
the basket on one arm. Lucy leads him, and Fido follows close.
--R. W. LOWRIE.
[Illustration: 0087]
"GO HALVES!"
|Little Fred Mason's father took him to an exhibition of wild animals.
After they had looked at the elephants, lions, tigers, and bears, they
went to see the monkeys. On the way, Mr. Mason bought two large oranges
and gave them to Fred.
There were six cages of small animals. One of them was for the "happy
family." Fred thought the creatures in it must be called the "happy
family" because the dogs, cats, and monkeys were all the time teasing
and plaguing one another. One monkey had a rat in his lap. He tended it
as a mother does her baby. The monkey was happy, but Mr. Mason did not
think the rat liked it very well.
Fred put one orange into his side pocket He could not wait until he got
home to eat the other. As he walked along among the cages he seemed to
care more for the fruit than for the animals. He sucked the orange with
all his might, till he came to a cage with three monkeys in it.
One of them looked very sober and solemn. One opened his mouth and
seemed to be laughing. All of them looked at Fred and held out their
hands. They could not talk; if they could, they would have said, "Go
halves!"
[Illustration: 0088]
The orange was nice and sweet; Fred did not wish to "go halves." he
turned away, for he did not like to be asked for what he was not willing
to give. The monkeys put their hands out for some of the orange, but
Fred looked the other way.
Fred should have looked at the monkeys, for the one nearest to him put
out his long arm and snatched the orange from his hand. Fred tried to
get it again. While he was doing so, the solemn monkey reached down and
took the other orange from his pocket Fred did not think how near he was
to the cage.
Fred began to cry. The laughing monkey had no orange. He was afraid of
the solemn monkey, but he chased the one that had stolen the orange Fred
was eating, all over the cage. He got it at last.
Fred's father bought two more oranges for him, and he did not go so near
the cages again.
--MARY BLOOM.
[Illustration: 0089]