had relieved in the morning, carried upon the shoulders of the blind
man whom he had helped out of the pond. "There, my little dear!" said
the sailor. "God be thanked! we have come in time to do you a service
in return for what you did us in the morning. As I lay under a hedge I
heard these villains talk of robbing a little boy that from the
description I concluded must be you; but I was so lame that I should
not have been able to come time enough to help you if I had not met
this honest blind man, who took me upon his back, while I showed him
the way." The little boy thanked them very gratefully for thus
defending him, and they went all together to his father's house, which
was not far off, where they were all kindly entertained with a supper
and bed.
The little boy took care of his faithful dog as long as he lived, and
never forgot the importance and necessity of doing good to others if
we wish them to do the same to us.
II
THE ILL-NATURED LITTLE BOY
There was once a little boy who was so unfortunate as to have a very
bad man for his father, who was always surly and ill-tempered, and
never gave his children either good instruction or good example. In
consequence of this, this little boy, who might otherwise have been
happier and better, became ill-natured and quarrelsome, and
disagreeable to every one. He very often was severely beaten for his
impertinence by boys that were bigger than himself, and sometimes by
boys that were less; for though he was very abusive and quarrelsome,
he did not much like fighting, and generally trusted more to his heels
than his courage when he had engaged himself in a quarrel. This little
boy had a cur dog that was the exact image of himself; he was the most
troublesome, surly creature imaginable, always barking at the heels of
every horse he came near, and worrying every sheep he could meet with,
for which reason both the dog and the boy were disliked by all the
neighborhood.
One morning his father got up early to go to the ale-house, where he
intended to stay till night, as it was a holiday; but before he went
out he gave his son some bread and cold meat and sixpence, and told
him he might go and divert himself as he would the whole day. The
little boy was very much pleased with this liberty, and as it was a
very fine morning he called his dog Tiger to follow him, and began his
walk.
He had not proceeded far before he met a boy that was driving a flock
of sheep towards a gate that he wanted them to enter. "Pray, master,"
said the little boy, "stand still, and keep your dog close to you, for
fear you frighten my sheep." "Oh yes, to be sure," answered the
ill-natured little boy. "I am to wait here all the morning till you
and your sheep have passed, I suppose! Here, Tiger, seize them, boy"!
Tiger at this sprang forth into the middle of the flock, barking and
biting on every side, and the sheep, in a general consternation,
hurried each a separate way.
Tiger seemed to enjoy this sport equally with his master, but in the
midst of his triumph he happened unguardedly to attack an old ram that
had more courage than the rest of the flock. He, instead of running
away, faced about and aimed a blow with his forehead at his enemy with
so much force and dexterity that he knocked Tiger over and over,
butting him several times while he was down, and obliged him to limp
howling away.
The ill-natured little boy, who was not capable of loving anything,
had been very much diverted with the trepidation of the flock of
sheep, but now he laughed heartily at the misfortune of his dog, and
he would have laughed much longer had not the other little boy, his
patience provoked at this treatment, thrown a stone at him, which hit
him full upon the temples and almost knocked him down. He immediately
began to cry in concert with his dog, when, perceiving a man coming
towards them, whom he fancied might be the owner of the sheep, he
thought it most prudent to escape as speedily as possible.
But he had scarcely recovered from the smart which the blow had
occasioned when his former mischievous disposition returned, which he
determined to gratify to the utmost. He had not gone far before he saw
a little girl standing by a stile, with a large pot of milk at her
feet. "Pray," said the little girl, "help me with this pot of milk. My
mother sent me out to fetch it this morning, and I have brought it
alone a mile on my head; but I am so tired that I have been obliged to
stop at this stile to rest me, and if I don't return home presently we
shall have no pudding to-day, and, besides, my mother will be very
angry with me."
"What," said the boy, "you are to have a pudding to-day, are you,
miss?" "Yes," said the girl, "and a fine piece of roast beef, for
there's Uncle Will, and Uncle John, and grandfather, and all my
cousins, to dine with us, and we shall all be very merry in the
evening, I can assure you; so pray help me up as speedily as
possible." "That I will, miss," said the boy, taking up the jug, and
pretending to fix it upon her head. Just as she had hold of it he gave
it a little push, as if he had stumbled, and overturned it upon her.
The little girl began to cry violently, but the mischievous boy ran
away, laughing heartily, and saying: "Good-by, little miss! Give my
humble service to your Uncle Will, and grandfather, and the dear
little cousins."
This prank encouraged him very much indeed, for he then felt that now
he had certainly escaped without any bad consequences; so he went on
applauding his own ingenuity, and came to a farm where several little
boys were at play. He desired leave to play with them, which they
allowed him to do. But he could not be contented long without exerting
his evil disposition, so taking an opportunity when it was his turn to
fling the ball, instead of flinging it the way he ought to have done,
he threw it into a muddy ditch. The little boys ran in a great hurry
to see what was become of it, and as they were standing all together
upon the brink he gave the outermost boy a violent push against his
neighbor; he, not being able to resist the violence, tumbled against
the next, that against the next, and that next against another, by
which means they all soused into the ditch together.
They soon scrambled out, although in a dirty plight, and were going to
have punished him for all his ill behavior; but he patted Tiger upon
the back, who began snarling and growling in such a manner as made
them desist. Thus this little mischievous boy escaped a second time
with impunity.
The next thing he met with was a poor jackass feeding very quietly in
a ditch. The little boy, seeing that nobody was within sight, thought
this was an opportunity of plaguing an animal that was not to be lost,
so he went and cut a large branch of thorns, which he contrived to fix
to the poor beast's tail, and then, setting Tiger at him, he was
extremely diverted to see the fright and agony the creature was in.
But it did not fare so well with Tiger, who while he was baying and
biting the animal's heels receive so severe a kick upon his head as
laid him dead upon the spot.
The boy, who had no affection for his dog, left him with the greatest
unconcern when he saw what had happened, and, finding himself hungry,
sat down by the wayside to eat his dinner. He had not long been there
before a poor blind man came groping his way out with a couple of
sticks. "Good morning to you," said the boy. "Pray did you see a
little girl come this road with a basket of eggs upon her head,
dressed in a green gown, with a straw hat upon her head?" "God bless
you, master!" said the beggar, "I am so blind I can see nothing,
either in heaven above or in the earth below. I have been blind these
twenty years, and they call me 'poor old blind Richard.'"
Though the poor old man was such an object of charity and compassion,
yet the little boy determined, as usual, to play him some trick, and
as he was a great liar and deceiver, he spoke to him thus: "Poor old
Richard, I am heartily sorry for you with all my heart. I am just
eating my breakfast, and if you will sit down by me I will give you
part, and feed you myself." "Thank you with all my heart!" said the
poor man; "and if you will give me your hand I will sit by you with
great pleasure, my dear good little master."
The little boy then gave him his hand, and, pretending to direct him,
guided him to sit down in a large heap of wet mud that lay by the
roadside. "There," said he, "now you are nicely seated I am going to
feed you." So, taking a little of the dirt in his fingers, he was
going to put it into the blind man's mouth; but the man, who now
perceived the trick that had been played him, made a sudden snap at
his fingers, and getting them between his teeth bit them so severely
that the wicked boy roared out for mercy, and promised never more to
be guilty of such wickedness. At last the blind man, after he had put
him to very severe pain, consented to let him go, saying as he went:
"Are you not ashamed, you little scoundrel, to attempt to do hurt to
those who have never injured you, and to want to add to the suffering
of those who already are sufficiently miserable? Although you escape
now, be assured, sir, that if you do not repent and mend your manners,
you will meet with a severe punishment for your bad behavior."
One would think that this punishment would have cured him entirely of
this mischievous disposition, but, unfortunately nothing is so
difficult to overcome as bad habits that have been long indulged. He
had not gone far before he saw a lame beggar that had just made a
shift to support himself by the means of a couple of sticks. The
beggar asked him to give him something, and the mischievous little
boy, pulling out his sixpence, threw it down before him, as if he
intended to make him a present of it; but while the poor man was
stooping with difficulty to pick it up, the wicked little boy knocked
the stick away, by which means the beggar fell down upon his face; and
then snatching up the sixpence, the little boy ran away laughing very
heartily at the accident.
This was the last trick this ungrateful boy had it in his power to
play, for seeing two men come up to the beggar and enter into
discourse with him, he was afraid of being pursued, and therefore ran
as fast as he was able over several fields. At last he came into a
lane which led to a farmer's orchard, and as he was preparing to
clamber over the fence a large dog seized him by the leg and held him
fast. He cried out in an agony of terror, which brought the farmer
out, who called the dog off, but seized the boy very roughly, saying:
"So, sir, you are caught at last, are you? You thought you might come
day after day and steal my apples without detection; but it seems you
are mistaken, and now you shall receive the punishment you have so
long deserved." The farmer then began to chastise him very severely
with a whip he had in his hand, and the boy in vain protested he was
innocent, and begged for mercy. At last the farmer asked him who he
was and where he lived; but when he heard his name, he cried out:
"What! are you the little rascal that frightened my sheep this
morning, by which means several of them are lost? and do you think to
escape?" Saying this he lashed him more severely than before, in spite
of all his cries and protestations. At length, thinking he had
punished him enough, he turned him out of the orchard, bade him go
home, and frighten sheep again if he liked the consequences.
The little boy slunk away crying very bitterly, for he had been very
severely beaten, and now began to find out that no one can long hurt
others with impunity; so he determined to go away quietly home, and
behave better for the future.
But his sufferings were not yet at an end, for as he jumped down from
a stile he felt himself very roughly seized, and, looking up, found
that he was in the power of the lame beggar whom he had thrown upon
his face. It was in vain that he now cried, entreated, and begged for
pardon; the man, who had been much hurt by his fall, thrashed him very
severely with his stick before he would part with him.
He now again went on crying and roaring with pain, but at least
expected to escape without any further damage. But here he was
mistaken, for as he was walking slowly through a lane, just as he
turned a corner he found himself in the middle of the very troop of
boys that he had used so ill in the morning. They all set up a shout
as soon as they saw him, their enemy, in their power, without his dog,
and began persecuting him in a thousand various ways. Some pulled him
by the hair, others pinched him, some whipped his legs with their
handkerchiefs, while others covered him with handfuls of dirt. In vain
did he attempt to escape; they were still at his heels, and,
surrounding him on every side, continued their persecutions.
At length, while he was in this disagreeable situation, he happened to
come up to the same jackass he had seen in the morning, and, making a
sudden spring, jumped upon his back, hoping by this means to escape.
The boys immediately renewed their shouts, and the ass, who was
frightened at the noise, began galloping with all his might, and
presently bore him from the reach of his enemies.
But he had little reason to rejoice at this escape, for he found it
impossible to stop the animal, and was every instant afraid of being
thrown off and dashed upon the ground. After he had been thus hurried
along a considerable time the ass on a sudden stopped short at the
door of a cottage, and began kicking and prancing with so much fury
that the little boy was presently thrown to the ground, and broke his
leg in the fall.
His cries immediately brought the family out, among whom was the very
little girl he had used so ill in the morning. But she, with the
greatest good nature, seeing him in such a pitiable situation,
assisted in bringing him in and laying him upon the bed. There this
unfortunate boy had leisure to recollect himself and reflect upon his
own bad behavior, which in one day's time had exposed him to such a
variety of misfortunes; and he determined with great sincerity that if
ever he recovered from his present accident he would be as careful to
take every opportunity of doing good as he had before been to commit
every species of mischief.
THE PURPLE JAR
By MARIA EDGEWORTH
Rosamond, a little girl about seven years old, was walking with her
mother in the streets of London. As she passed along she looked in at
the windows of several shops, and saw a great variety of different
sorts of things, of which she did not know the use, or even the names.
She wished to stop to look at them, but there was a great number of
people in the streets, and a great many carts, carriages, and
wheelbarrows, and she was afraid to let go her mother's hand.
"Oh, mother, how happy I should be," she said, as she passed a
toy-shop, "if I had all these pretty things!"
"What, all! Do you wish for them all, Rosamond?"
"Yes, mamma, all."
As she spoke they came to a milliner's shop, the windows of which were
decorated with ribbons and lace, and festoons of artificial flowers.
"Oh, mamma, what beautiful roses! Won't you buy some of them?"
"No, my dear."
"Why?"
"Because I don't want them, my dear."
They went a little farther, and came to another shop, which caught
Rosamond's eye. It was a jeweler's shop, and in it were a great many
pretty baubles, ranged in drawers behind glass.
"Mamma, will you buy some of these?"
"Which of them, Rosamond?"
"Which? I don't know which; any of them will do, for they are all
pretty."
"Yes, they are all pretty; but of what use would they be to me?"
"Use! Oh, I am sure you could find some use or other for them if you
would only buy them first."
"But I would rather find out the use first."
"Well, then, mamma, there are buckles; you know that buckles are
useful things, very useful things."
"I have a pair of buckles; I don't want another pair," said her
mother, and walked on.
Rosamond was very sorry that her mother wanted nothing. Presently,
however, they came to a shop, which appeared to her far more beautiful
than the rest. It was a chemist's shop, but she did not know that.
"Oh, mother, oh!" cried she, pulling her mother's hand, "look, look!
blue, green, red, yellow, and purple! Oh, mamma, what beautiful
things! Won't you buy some of these?"
Still her mother answered, as before, "Of what use would they be to
me, Rosamond?"
"You might put flowers in them, mamma, and they would look so pretty
on the chimney-piece. I wish I had one of them."
"You have a flower-pot," said her mother, "and that is not a
flower-pot."
"But I could use it for a flower-pot, mamma, you know."
"Perhaps if you were to see it nearer, if you were to examine it you
might be disappointed."
"No, indeed, I'm sure I should not; I should like it exceedingly."
Rosamond kept her head turned to look at the purple vase, till she
could see it no longer.
"Then, mother," said she, after a pause, "perhaps you have no money."
"Yes, I have."
"Dear me, if I had money I would buy roses, and boxes, and buckles,
and purple flower-pots, and everything." Rosamond was obliged to pause
in the midst of her speech.
"Oh, mamma, would you stop a minute for me? I have got a stone in my
shoe; it hurts me very much."
"How came there to be a stone in your shoe?"
"Because of this great hole, mamma,--it comes in there; my shoes are
quite worn out. I wish you would be so very good as to give me another
pair."
"Nay, Rosamond, but I have not money enough to buy shoes, and
flower-pots, and buckles, and boxes, and everything."
Rosamond thought that was a great pity. But now her foot, which had
been hurt by the stone, began to give her so much pain that she was
obliged to hop every other step, and she could think of nothing else.
They came to a shoemaker's shop soon afterwards.
"There, there! mamma, there are shoes; there are little shoes that
would just fit me, and you know shoes would be really of use to me."
"Yes, so they would, Rosamond. Come in."
She followed her mother into the shop.
Mr. Sole the shoemaker, had a great many customers, and his shop was
full, so they were obliged to wait.
"Well, Rosamond," said her mother, "you don't think this shop so
pretty as the rest?"
"No, not nearly; it is black and dark, and there are nothing but shoes
all round; and, besides, there's a very disagreeable smell."
"That smell is the smell of new leather."
"Is it? Oh!" said Rosamond, looking round, "there is a pair of little
shoes; they'll just fit me, I'm sure."
"Perhaps they might; but you cannot be sure till you have tried them
on, any more than you can be quite sure that you should like the
purple vase exceedingly, till you have examined it more attentively."
"Why, I don't know about the shoes, certainly, till I have tried; but,
mamma, I am quite sure that I should like the flower-pot."
"Well, which would you rather have, a jar or a pair of shoes? I will
buy either for you."
"Dear mamma, thank you--but if you could buy both?"
"No, not both."
"Then the jar, if you please."
"But I should tell you, that in that case I shall not give you another
pair of shoes this month."
"This month! that's a very long time, indeed! You can't think how
these hurt me; I believe I'd better have the new shoes. Yet, that
purple flower-pot. Oh, indeed, mamma, these shoes are not so very,
very bad! I think I might wear them a little longer, and the month
will soon be over. I can make them last till the end of the month,
can't I? Don't you think so, mamma?"
"Nay, my dear, I want you to think for yourself; you will have time
enough to consider the matter, while I speak to Mr. Sole about my
clogs."
Mr. Sole was by this time at leisure, and while her mother was
speaking to him, Rosamond stood in profound meditation, with one shoe
on, and the other in her hand.
"Well, my dear, have you decided?"
"Mamma!--yes,--I believe I have. If you please, I should like to have
the flower-pot; that is, if you won't think me very silly, mamma."
"Why, as to that, I can't promise you, Rosamond; but when you have to
judge for yourself you should choose what would make you happy, and
then it would not signify who thought you silly."
"Then, mamma, if that's all, I'm sure the flower-pot would make me
happy," said she, putting on her old shoe again; "so I choose the
flower-pot."
"Very well, you shall have it; clasp your shoe and come home."
Rosamond clasped her shoe and ran after her mother. It was not long
before the shoe came down at the heel, and many times she was obliged
to stop to take the stones out of it, and she often limped with pain;
but still the thoughts of the purple flower-pot prevailed, and she
persisted in her choice.
When they came to the shop with the large window, Rosamond felt much
pleasure upon hearing her mother desire the servant, who was with
them, to buy the purple jar, and bring it home. He had other
commissions, so he did not return with them. Rosamond, as soon as she
got in, ran to gather all her own flowers, which she kept in a corner
of her mother's garden.
"I am afraid they'll be dead before the flower-pot comes, Rosamond,"
said her mother to her, as she came in with the flowers in her lap.
"No, indeed, mamma, it will come home very soon, I dare say. I shall
be very happy putting them into the purple flower-pot."
"I hope so, my dear."
The servant was much longer returning home than Rosamond had expected;
but at length he came, and brought with him the long-wished-for jar.
The moment it was set down upon the table, Rosamond ran up to it with
an exclamation of joy: "I may have it now, mamma?"
"Yes, my dear, it is yours."
Rosamond poured the flowers from her lap upon the carpet, and seized
the purple flower-pot.
"Oh, dear, mother!" cried she, as soon as she had taken off the top,
"but there's something dark in it which smells very disagreeably. What
is it? I didn't want this black stuff."
"Nor I, my dear."
"But what shall I do with it, mamma?"
"That I cannot tell."
"It will be of no use to me, mamma."
"That I cannot help."
"But I must pour it out, and fill the flower-pot with water."
"As you please, my dear."
"Will you lend me a bowl to pour it into, mamma?"
"That was more than I promised you, my dear; but I will lend you a
bowl."
The bowl was produced, and Rosamond proceeded to empty the purple
vase. But she experienced much surprise and disappointment, on
finding, when it was entirely empty, that it was no longer a purple
vase. It was a plain white glass jar, which had appeared to have that
beautiful color merely from the liquor with which it had been filled.
Little Rosamond burst into tears.
"Why should you cry, my dear?" said her mother; "it will be of as much
use to you now as ever, for a flower-pot."
"But it won't look so pretty on the chimney-piece. I am sure, if I
had known that it was not really purple, I should not have wished to
have it so much."
"But didn't I tell you that you had not examined it; and that perhaps
you would be disappointed?"
"And so I am disappointed, indeed. I wish I had believed you at once.
Now I had much rather have the shoes, for I shall not be able to walk
all this month; even walking home that little way hurt me exceedingly.
Mamma, I will give you the flower-pot back again, and that purple
stuff and all, if you'll only give me the shoes."
"No, Rosamond; you must abide by your own choice; and now the best
thing you can possibly do is to bear your disappointment with good
humor."
"I will bear it as well as I can," said Rosamond, wiping her eyes; and
she began slowly and sorrowfully to fill the vase with flowers.
But Rosamond's disappointment did not end here. Many were the
difficulties and distresses into which her imprudent choice brought
her, before the end of the month.
Every day her shoes grew worse and worse, till as last she could
neither run, dance, jump, nor walk in them.
Whenever Rosamond was called to see anything, she was detained pulling
her shoes up at the heels, and was sure to be too late.
Whenever her mother was going out to walk, she could not take Rosamond
with her, for Rosamond had no soles to her shoes; and at length, on
the very last day of the month, it happened that her father proposed
to take her with her brother to a glass-house, which she had long
wished to see. She was very happy; but, when she was quite ready, had
her hat and gloves on, and was making haste downstairs to her brother
and father, who were waiting for her at the hall door, the shoe
dropped off. She put it on again in a great hurry, but, as she was
going across the hall, her father turned round.
"Why are you walking slipshod? no one must walk slipshod with me. Why,
Rosamond," said he, looking at her shoes with disgust, "I thought that
you were always neat; no, I cannot take you with me."
Rosamond colored and retired.
"Oh, mamma," said she as she took off her hat, "how I wish that I had
chosen the shoes! They would have been of so much more use to me than
that jar: however, I am sure, no, not quite sure, but I hope I shall
be wiser another time."
THE THREE CAKES
By ARMAND BERQUIN
"There was a little boy named Henry," said Mr Glassington "about your
age. His parents had but lately fixed him at a boarding-school.