One summer's night when all was still,
And motionless the wheel,
Some rats ran through the village mill,
And stole a bag of meal.
And hurry-scurry, tooth and nail,
They dragged it to the door,
And then upon their shoulders soon
Away the treasure bore.
But as they hastened from the room,
Along a narrow plank,
The heavy load went in the flume,
And to the bottom sank.
[Illustration]
And downward with the bag of meal,
Ere they could loose their hold,
With many a frightened squeak and squeal.
The thieves together rolled.
[Illustration]
So then for life they had to swim,
But when they reached the shore,
They dried themselves around a fire,
And vowed to steal no more.
[Illustration]
[Illustration: OUR POST-OFFICE BOX.]
When the showers of April
Are falling so fast,
Just think, little dears,
That they soon will be past,
And the grass will be springing,
The birds will be gay,
And soon, little dears,
We'll have flowers and May.
Little hands up! Who has found the darling trailing arbutus? You, little
Susie, and you live in Virginia? What New England girl will report first
about the wild flowers that grow near her home? Which of the boys has
seen the robins building? and who has been working out-doors with
father, doing that hard spring work which will be so well repaid when
summer and autumn come? Here are some more jingles for the wee ones:
Rain, rain, go away,
Come again another day.
A sunshiny shower
Won't last half an hour.
Patter, patter, patter--see the dancing drops!
Clatter, clatter, clatter--and the shower stops.
Twinkle, twinkle, twinkle, there's the sun again!
April is a pleasant month, spite of sudden rain.
* * * * *
I am a boy eleven years old, and my home is in Indiana, a mile from
the State line of Ohio. My papa owns a farm here, and we are
farmers, so that I have plenty to do in the summer-time working in
the garden and around, and evenings and mornings I help to milk the
cows. In the winter I go to school. I like to go first rate,
especially when Miss Y. is our teacher. When we do not go to
school, my brother Elmar and I and some more boys and girls who
live near by go over to my grandpa's an evening or two in every
week, and grandma teaches us. I like to study geography especially.
My brother Elmar is older than I, and we take HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE
together. When we meet at grandpa's, Elmar and I take our YOUNG
PEOPLE along, so that the rest of the children who go can hear the
nice stories in it, and after lessons are recited, grandma reads to
us all. I liked "A Battle of Icebergs" in No. 124; we all did. And
I like the letters in Our Post-office Box, especially where they
write from Europe. I should like to sail on the large steamers to
Europe. I would want to visit Switzerland, where William Tell and
his brave little Albert lived. And I would like to see Lake Geneva,
and the tall white peaks of the Alps reflected in the clear water.
And I think it would be gay fun to go to Berne in their holidays,
and see the people marching around in the streets wrapped in
bear-skins, "playing" they are bears. But we have some good times
here. My grandma wrote a story, and read it to us last week after
lessons. The story was concerning a lady who made a party to please
a lot of young people. When the names were announced at the door,
they were all our own first names. The surnames were changed. I
will ask grandma for the story to send with this letter, and hope
the Postmistress will please print both. If they should be printed
week after next, I would read them for my piece at our exhibition.