clean´-ing
piece
can´-vas
soap
oil
em´-er-y
pow´-der
bun´-dle
man´-gle
a-fraid´
brok´-en
sec´-ond
Fri´-day
points
hun´-gry
laugh´-ing
1. The cleaning of the needles came next.
2. A great many were laid side by side on a piece of canvas, and covered
with paste.
'What is the paste made of?' Harry wanted to know.
'Soft soap, my lad,' said the workman, 'and oil, and emery-powder.'
3. He rolled them all up in the canvas, tied string round the bundle,
and put it between the rollers of a thing that looked like a mangle.
4. Dora and Harry opened their eyes wide. 'Think of needles being
mangled! This will be something to tell mother!'
5. When the bundle was unrolled, they were afraid that the needles would
be broken. But they were all right, and they were taken out and washed
in warm soap-suds.
6. 'Now they must be clean!' said Dora.
'Not yet,' said the man; 'they have to be rolled up again with more
paste, and put between those rollers again, and again, and again. It
takes eight days to clean the best needles.
7. 'And it takes six days to clean the second-best,' said the man.
'Then even the second-best won't be done till Friday!' said Harry.
8. 'But we can go and see some needles that have been cleaned,' said his
uncle. 'Let us go up-stairs again.'
9. And they went up into a room where many girls were sitting at a long
table with heaps of bright needles before them. They were putting them
in order, side by side, heads all one way, points another.
Dora was sure that she could not pick them out so quickly.
10. They were going on into another room to see the eyes of the needles
made smooth, when Dora said, 'Oh, uncle, I am so tired!'
'So am I,' said Harry, 'and hungry, too.'
11. 'Come along, then,' said uncle, laughing. 'We all want our dinners,
I think.' He took Dora's hand in his, and away they went.
THE KNIFE.
ro´-ley
po´-ley
thought
morn´-ing
knife
least
blade
han´-dle
aunt´-ie
edg´-es
rath´-er
clock
1. There was not much talking at dinner, till after the second helping
of roley-poley.
2. Then Dora and Harry felt happy again, and began to tell their aunt
all about the needle-making. She had seen it once, but it was a long
time ago, and she thought she should like to see it again.
3. 'But if I had gone this morning,' she said, 'you would not have had
your pudding.'
'That would have been sad,' said Dora.
4. 'What a lot of steel we have seen,' said Harry. 'I never knew there
was so much in the world.'
5. 'You can see some on this table now.'
'Where?'
'What have I cut the pudding with?'
[Illustration]
'Oh, the knife! Yes, I see; that must be steel; at least, that part of
it. What do you call that part?'
'The blade.'
6. 'And what about the handle?'
'I don't know. It is yellow, and smooth, and hard.'
'It is bone,' said his uncle, 'part of an ox-bone. But some handles are
made of wood.'
7. 'May I look at that knife near you, auntie? I mean the clean one.
Thank you!'
8. Then Dora wanted one to look at too; and they felt the edges softly
and found them very sharp. They looked at the blunt backs of the blades,
and then tried to read the maker's name.
9. 'There is no room to put the maker's name on a needle,' said Harry.
'But how do they get it on here?'
'It is stamped on when the blade is red-hot and rather soft.'
10. They could not make out how the handle was put on, so their aunt
went to the knife-box and got out an old knife that had lost its handle.
They saw that the blade had a long thin piece of iron at the end of it.
11. 'A long hole is made inside the handle, and this iron thing is put
into it, and made fast.'
So their uncle said, and then looked at the clock and saw that it was
time for him to go.
THE HEN.
[Illustration: Setting out for the Farm.]
bas´-ket
fetch
friends
fowls
watch
thought
charge
pair
ban´-tams
know
proud
peck´-ing
greed´-y
gray
swal´-lowed
laughed
1. The day after Dora and Harry came home, their mother gave them a
basket and sent them up to the farm to fetch eggs.
2. Rover went with them, and all three were glad to go, for they had
many friends at the farm.
3. There was the great dog, Watch, and there were the cart-horses and
the pony, the ducks and the fowls. And there were five girls and
boys--Mary, Tom, Johnny, Annie, and Kate.
4. When these five, and Watch, saw Harry, Dora, and Rover coming, they
ran down the lane to meet them. They were soon all in the farm-yard,
talking as fast as they could talk.
5. Two had to tell about their visit to Needle-town, and five about the
doings at the farm, so it was some time before the eggs were thought of.
6. Mary had charge of the eggs, and went every morning to look for new
ones.
'Since you went away,' she said, 'I have had a pair of bantams given me,
for my very own. Here they are!'
'What little things! and how very pretty!' cried Dora. 'Do they know
you, Mary?'
7. 'Yes; I feed them every day. Here comes the big black hen. She has
been laying an egg. See how proud she is! She calls out in that way to
let the rest know what she has done.'
8. 'Now she is pecking about for food,' said Harry.
Tom said that fowls were always eating.
'They are greedy things,' said Kate.
9. 'Oh, look at this gray hen!' said Harry, 'she picked up a bit of
stone just now and ate it! Does she know no better?'
10. 'It is not for food,' Mary told him; 'she takes it to grind up the
hard seeds she has swallowed. They all go into a strong little bag, and
the stones rub and press on the seeds.'
11. 'I never heard of such a thing! She keeps a mill inside to grind her
food!'
12. The others laughed, and then Mary went in to get some eggs. After
the basket was filled, the two children said good-bye to their friends,
and went home.
THE SPARROW.
shoots
spar´-rows
steal
fruit
thou´-sand
ba´-bies
build
spoil
beaks
ap´-ple
blos´-som
fruit
clean
thirst´-y
wheat
throw
1. 'Mother,' cried Harry, running in one day, 'Jack Denny says he shoots
sparrows!'
'I am very sorry to hear it. Why does he shoot them?'
'"They steal fruit and corn," he says. He wanted me to throw stones at
them!'
2. 'Well, you can tell him about some silly men who killed the sparrows
and other birds, and the next year their fruit and corn were eaten up by
grubs. Even the leaves on the trees were eaten.'
3. 'Is this true?'
'Quite true. They had to send for little birds from other places to live
in their fields and gardens. Do you know that a sparrow kills four
thousand grubs in one day when her babies are in the nest?
4. 'One wise man who grows fruit says that his best friends are the
sparrows, and he makes holes in the garden-walls for them to build in.
Their sharp eyes see the tiny things that would spoil the fruit, and
their sharp beaks nip them up at once.
[Illustration]
5. 'He loves to see sparrows in an apple-tree in blossom-time; he knows
they are saving the apples for him.'
'But Jack says he has seen them pecking at fruit.'
6. 'Yes, they like fruit, just as you and I do. But there would be no
fruit at all, if the birds did not eat the grubs.
7. 'The man I was telling you about puts nets over his trees when the
fruit begins to ripen. And I heard only the other day that it is a good
plan to put pans of clean fresh water close to the trees and bushes.
Then the birds will not go so often to the fruit. They are thirsty and
hot, poor things!
8. 'And there would be no corn, if the birds did not kill the
wheat-fly's grubs.'
9. When Harry heard all this, he made up his mind not to throw stones at
the sparrows, as Jack wanted him to do.
A DAY IN THE COUNTRY.
but´-ter-flies
mer´-ry
gath´-ered
broth´-er
flow´-ers
o-bliged´
roamed
scoured
pleas´-ant
cheese
hedge
ease
brook´-let
crys´-tal
thrush
mus´-ic
1. Where the bees and butterflies
Skim the grassy down,
Four merry little children
Gathered from the town;
2. Ragged little Johnnie,
And his brother Ben,
With wild-flowers are laden,
These merry little men.
Kate and Mat have posies
Of colours bright and gay,
For Tim, their tiny brother,
At home obliged to stay.
3. They have roamed the meadow,
They have scoured the wood,
Seeking nuts and blackberries,
For their pleasant food.
With their nuts and blackberries
And bits of bread and cheese,
On a mossy hedge-bank,
Now they take their ease.
4. Drinking from the brooklet
'Neath the hawthorn tree,
Clear it runs as crystal,
Fresh and bright and free.
And the thrush sings loudly
On the hawthorn spray,
And the brooklet ever
Makes music on its way.
[Illustration]
SOME HERBS.
stream
through
grav´-el
mar´-ket
tea
lett´-uce
tongue
mus´-tard
pow´-der
sprin´-kled
flan´-nel
car´-ried
pars´-ley
thyme
herbs
sage
1. A little stream ran through one of the farmer's fields. The water was
so clear that you could see the sand and gravel at the bottom, and in it
there grew plenty of water-cress.
[Illustration: Water-cress.]
2. Harry went one afternoon to help Johnny and Tom to pick it for
market, and brought a big bunch home for tea.
3. His mother had picked a lettuce from the garden, and some mustard and
cress, and they were all put on one plate.
'They bite my tongue,' said Dora, 'all but the lettuce. I like it best.'
4. 'And I like the biting,' said Harry. 'Why is this called mustard,
mother?'
'Because the yellow mustard comes from it. The seeds are ground to
powder.'
'And we eat the leaves. It is a useful plant.'
[Illustration: Lettuce.]
5. After tea, mother took some cress-seed and mustard-seed out of two
little packets. Then she cut up one or two corks, put them into a deep
plate, filled it with water, and sprinkled seed on the cork.
6. 'This is for you, Harry,' she said. 'You will soon have a little crop
of mustard and cress. And here is one for Dora!'
In Dora's plate she laid a bit of flannel, poured water on it, and sowed
seed. The children carried off their plates to a safe place, and thought
it would be fine fun to see roots and leaves come out of the tiny seeds.
7. Then mother called them into the garden to see her parsley. She told
them that hares and rabbits would come a long way to feed on a
parsley-bed if they could get at it.
8. Close by grew mint, sage, and thyme. 'All these are herbs,' she said.
'They are not like trees, are they?'
'No; they have no bark, no hard wood, and they are so small.'
[Illustration: Leaves of Mint, Parsley, Thyme, and Sage.]
9. Dora picked a mint-leaf, a parsley-leaf, a thyme-leaf, and a
sage-leaf, and laid them side by side. She wanted to see if they were
like each other. But when she looked at them she found that they were
not alike.
COFFEE.
cof´-fee
beans
kneel´-ing
chair
win´-dow
bus´-y
stock´-ings
ket´-tle
rat´-tled
coun´-try
cher´-ry
to-geth´-er
blos´-som
cov´-ered
cloths
ber´-ries
1. 'What is coffee, mother dear? Does it grow?'
2. It was Dora who asked this. She and Harry were putting away some
things that had come from the shop, and she was now filling a tin with
coffee-beans.
3. She was kneeling on a chair by the table in the window. Her mother
was busy mending stockings, and the cat and the dog were both asleep.
The kettle was singing, and all was cosy.
4. The coffee-beans rattled into the tin, and Dora picked one out and
looked at it.
When Harry heard Dora asking about it, he also put his hand in and took
a coffee-bean. It smelt very nice, he thought. So did Dora.
5. They found that it had a flat side and a round side.
'It humps up,' said Dora.
'See, I can put the flat side of mine against the flat side of yours,'
said Harry.
'They grew like that,' said mother.
'Oh, then, they did grow? They were alive once?'
[Illustration: Coffee branch with Berries.]
6. 'Yes; they were seeds of a plant that grows in a warm country, far
away from here. They once lived inside a berry.
'The berry was red like a cherry, and the seeds inside were held
together in a little bag.'
7. 'There must have been a flower before the berry came,' said Harry,
thinking of the pea-flower and its pod.
[Illustration: Coffee-flower.]
[Illustration: Berry.]
[Illustration: Seeds in Berry.]
'A very pretty white flower,' said his mother. 'They say that a
coffee-garden looks lovely in blossom-time, just as if it were all
covered with snow.
8. 'In two or three days the snow-like blossoms are gone, and the fruit
is left. When it is ripe, men put cloths under the trees, and shake it
down.'
9. 'I wish I could go and help!' said Harry. 'What comes next?'
'They pick up the berries, dry them in the sun, and get the beans out.
Then they send the beans over the sea in a ship. And here they are!'
[Illustration: Dora and Harry tearing up the old papers.]
PAPER.
un-hap´-py
should
tea
heels
per-haps´
clean
school
clean´-ing
hearth
laugh
jok´-ing
in-deed´
tear
boil
through
clev´-er
1. 'It is such a wet day, I don't know what to do!' said Harry, looking
very unhappy.
2. 'Are you tired of your drawing and painting?' asked his mother.
'Oh yes! And we have played at houses, and had the bricks out on the
floor, and now there is nothing to do, and it is not nearly tea-time
yet. Will you read to us, mother?'
3. 'Not just now. But if you would help me a little I should get on
faster, and then we might have a nice time before tea.'
'Jolly!' cried Harry; and he ran to the foot of the stairs and called
Dora.
4. Down came Dora very fast, with her doll in her arms, and the dog at
her heels.
5. 'What I want you to do,' said mother, 'is to tear up these old papers
and put them into this sack. The man is coming soon to take it to the
paper-mill.'
6. 'Why is it taken to the paper-mill?' asked Harry.
'To be made over again into paper. Perhaps it will come back to us some
day, all clean.
7. 'Or it may be made into a newspaper, and father may bring it home in
his pocket.'
'Or we may get it in copy-books at school.'
'Yes; or it may come from the shop with rice in it.'
8. 'It may never come at all,' said Dora. 'Perhaps it will go to some
other house.'
'That is quite likely,' said mother, who was now cleaning the hearth.
9. They went on putting the paper into the sack for a long time, and
then Harry asked:
'How was paper made before there was old paper to make it of?'
10. 'Oh, it is not made of paper only. It is made of old rags, old
ropes'----
Harry and Dora began to laugh.
'And straw, and wood, and a kind of grass'----
'Now, are you joking, mother?'
11. 'No, indeed! They cut the wood and straw into tiny bits, and they
cut and tear the rags and boil them.'
'And what do they do with the grass?'
'They cut it up, boil it, and mix clay with it. Then it is put through a
very clever machine, which makes it into paper.'
A FLY.
[Illustration]
spilt
won´-der
e-nough´
fel´-low
thirst´-y
mouth
su´-gar
teeth
ceil´-ing
ei´-ther
win´-dow
pane
won´-der-ful
straight
count´-ed
friend
1. 'Just look here, Harry!' Dora called out.
A little milk had been spilt on the table, and two flies had found it
out.
'We won't wipe it up! Let us wait and see if they can take it all. See,
it is getting less! I wonder how they do it.'
2. 'There! one fly has gone. He has had enough. But this old fellow is
very thirsty. He does not look as if he were drinking, and yet the milk
goes. That long thing must be his mouth. Is it, mother?'
[Illustration: Enlarged view of Head of Fly showing Trunk.]
3. 'It is called his trunk. The mouth is at the end of it. He is very
clever with it. Do you know that he never eats? He only drinks.'
4. 'But I have seen him eating sugar.'
'No; I don't think you have. He has no teeth and no jaws. He can't bite
anything. What he does is to wet the sugar with his mouth and melt it,
and then suck it up.'
5. 'Well, that is clever! I wonder how he found out how to do it. And I
know something else that he is clever at.'
6. 'What is it, Harry?' asked Dora.
'Something you can't do! He can walk on the ceiling.'
'You can't do it either,' said Dora.
'How does he hold on, mother? We can see one up there now! He walks
about as if he were on the table.'
[Illustration: Enlarged view of Fly's Foot.]
7. 'He has something like gum inside his feet, and, when he wants to
stand or walk upside down, he presses this out, and it helps him to
stick on. Here is another fly walking up the window-pane.'
'I have often seen flies on the window-pane.'
8. 'How wonderful it is! The glass, you see, is smooth and hard, and it
stands straight up. We could not go up a hill like that, could we?'
9. They watched him go up and down, counted his six legs, and saw that
his wings were very pretty. Their mother told them a very strange thing,
that his eyes could see all ways at once!
10. Then they had to say good-bye to him, for out he went into the
garden. When they turned to the table, they found that their other
friend had gone too--and so had the milk.
THE WASP.
wasp
bus´-y
win´-ter
ground
pass´-age
loose
per-haps´
fence
pow´-der
spread
brown
comb
pil´-lars
cell
hatched
crawl´-ing
1. There was a great stir at dinner one day. A wasp came in, begging for
sugar and plum-tart. Harry and Dora ran this way and that.
2. At last their father got the wasp out into the garden, and, when all
was quiet again, he asked if they would like to hear its story.
'Oh yes, father!' said Dora.
3. Harry was busy with his plums, but he nodded, as much as to say, 'I
shall be glad to hear it too!'
4. So the father began:
'All last winter the wasp was asleep, but when spring came she waked up
and set out to look for a home. I am not quite sure where she found it,
but it was in the ground, I think.
5. 'She began to dig in the soft earth, and she dug on till she had made
a long passage. She had to carry out all the loose earth herself. Then
she made a little room at the end of the passage.
6. 'Next she looked about for some old wood, and found it in a tree,
perhaps, or post, or bit of fence. She rubbed away at it with her jaws
till she got some of it off in powder.
7. 'She made this powder into a paste with a sort of gum which came out
of her mouth, and off she went with it to her room.'
8. 'What did she do with it?'
'She spread it out in sheets of thin brown paper, and with these she
made a comb like a bee's.'
[Illustration: Wasp's Nest.]
'She made paper of it.'
'Only a bee's is made of wax. I know that!' said Harry.
9. 'She put many layers of paper on the top to keep the rain out, and
pillars under it to hold it up. Then she laid an egg in each cell. When
the eggs were hatched'----
'Little wasps came flying out,' said Dora.
'No; little grubs came crawling out!
10. 'The wasp was now more busy than ever. She fed each baby in turn,
and as they all grew bigger she had to get more and more food for them.'
THE SUNFLOWER
blue
buzz´-ing
set´-tled
watched
sun´-flow-er
course
warmth
in-stead´
star´-ing
spar-row
stopped
crowd
cush´-ion
mid´-dle
gar´-den
know
1. It was very hot, the sky was blue, and the air was full of the
humming and buzzing of bees and flies. A white butterfly flitted by, but
soon went away over the garden-wall.
2. Bee after bee, and fly after fly, settled on the sunflowers and
hunted for honey. Dora and Harry watched for a long time.
3. 'The sunflower is like a little sun,' said Dora.
'And it loves the sun,' said her mother, who was snipping off dead roses
close by; 'it always turns to look at it. See, its face is towards the
sun now. And if you look again before sunset you will find the flower
turned to it still.'
4. 'How strange!' said Dora.
[Illustration: Sunflower.]
'And it has such a strong stalk,' said Harry. 'You would not think that
it could turn round. It must be alive!'
'Of course it is alive!'
'But, I mean, it must feel, or why should it turn and turn to get the
light and warmth?'
5. 'How ragged all the stalks and leaves are!' said Dora. 'I wish they
would make themselves tidy instead of always staring at the sun. Why are
there so many holes in the leaves?'
6. 'Grubs have been eating them. Our friend Mr Sparrow must have been
away lately!'
7. Here mother stopped snipping at her rose-trees, and came up to one of
the sunflowers.
8. 'There is something I want you to see,' she said. 'You think this is
one big flower, but it is really a crowd of little flowers. Look! Can
you think of another flower that is something like it?'
9. Harry and Dora shook their heads.
'It is very small,' mother went on, 'with a cushion in the middle like
this, and rays standing out all round like these.'
10. 'Does it grow on a tree?'
'No.'
'In this garden?'
'No.'
'In the fields?'
'Yes.'
'Oh, I know!' cried Harry. 'It is the daisy.'
MERRY WORKERS.
wheels
bus´-y
i´-dle
brook´-lets
ripp´-ling
sky´-lark
lis´-ten
hon´-ey
mer´-ri-ly
hum´-ming
e-nough´
wea´-ry
1. Tell me what the mill-wheels say,
Always turning night and day;
When we sleep and when we wake,
What a busy sound they make!
Never idle, never still,
What a worker is the mill!
2. What is it that the brooklets say,
Rippling onward day by day?
Sweet as skylark on the wing,
Ripple, ripple--thus they sing.
Never idle, never still,
Always working with a will!
3. Listen to the honey-bee,
Flying now so merrily
Here and there with busy hum--
Humming, drumming, drumming, drum.
Never idle, never still,
Humming, drumming--hum it will!
4. Like the mill, the brook, the bee,
May it now be said of me
That I'm always busy too,
For there's work enough to do.
If I work, then, with a will,
It will be but playing still;
Ever merry, never weary,
It will be but playing still.
THE ROSE.
bas´-ket
wo´-man
vil´-lage
sweet´-ly
cab´-bage
be-cause´
stooped
smile
thorns
yel´-low
a-greed´
win´-ter
1. Mother went back to her roses, and soon called for a little basket,
saying that Dora and Harry should take a few to an old woman who lived
in the village.
2. 'Poor granny,' she said, 'is so fond of roses, and she can never get
out now to see them. Which shall we pick for her?'
3. 'Some of these white ones,' said Dora.
'I think she would like these red ones,' said Harry, 'they smell so
sweetly.'
4. Mother cut one or two of each, and then a moss-rose, which looked as
if it had moss growing round it, and then a pink cabbage-rose.
5. 'What has it to do with cabbage?' asked Harry.
'It is only called cabbage because it is so big and round.'
6. 'I like it the best of all,' said Dora, and stooped to smell it,
putting her nose far down into the sweet, deep cup: 'it is such a nice
rose!'
[Illustration: Wild Rose.]
[Illustration: Garden Rose.]
7. 'Yes, I am very fond of it, and of all roses,' said mother, looking
at her bushes with a smile, 'but I almost think I like the wild ones
best. Do you know that the wild rose is the mother of all these? Once
upon a time all roses were wild.'
8. Harry and Dora did not think that wild roses were very like garden
roses. 'But they both have thorns,' they said.
9. 'Look at them as you go along. There are some bushes not far from the
bottom of the lane, after you turn round to go to the village. I don't
think you will find many roses left, but you will see their fruit. They
are the birds' fruit-trees.'
10. 'What can mother mean?' they asked as they went along.
But they soon found out. The bushes were covered with hips; some green,
others yellow, one or two quite red.
11. They agreed to leave them for the birds. Dora said 'They would be
sure to want them in the winter.'
[Illustration]
WOOD.
[Illustration: Making the Doll's House.]
min´-er-al
cop´-per
zinc
chalk
gummed
climbed
knees
eve´-nings
tools
dead
thought
oak
beech
birch
wil´-low
build´-ing
1. The little mineral box was made, and Harry and Dora put in the lumps
of lead, iron, copper, tin, zinc, chalk, and slate. Father wrote the
names on tiny slips of paper and gummed them on.
2. Then he said that he was going to make Dora a doll's house. On
hearing this, Dora first jumped about for joy, and then climbed up on
her father's knees to kiss and hug him.
3. The doll's house was not made all at once. It had to be done bit by
bit in the evenings after father had come home from work and had his
tea.
4. Dora and Harry always helped him, or stood by and talked, played with
bits of wood, and turned over the tools in the box.
5. They said that saw-dust should be called wood-dust; and they found
out that wood was called tree when it was alive, and tree was called
wood when it was dead. They thought this very funny.
6. They also learned that there were as many kinds of wood as there were
trees.
'Some wood is hard,' said their father, 'some is half-hard, and some is
soft.'
'Soft wood!' cried Dora.
7. 'Well, not soft like butter! But softer than oak, beech, birch, and
elm'----
'The trunk of an oak-tree is lying where the rabbits live,' said Harry,
in a great hurry. 'We often play on it. I know that it is hard. What
sort of wood are you making the doll's house of?'
8. 'Soft wood. It is a bit of pine. So is the box that holds the
minerals. I should find it hard work to cut oak.
'Now, there is one kind of wood so soft that you can bend it. It is
called willow, and baskets are made of it.
'But oak was once used in building the great strong ships.'
COAL.
PART 1.
win´-dow
shov´-el
spade
coal
tum´-bled
con-tent´
won´-der-ing
earth
cage
stretch´-ing
en´-gine
doz´-en
1. 'Here comes the coal,' said Harry, looking out of the window.
'Mother, may we help Jim to get it in? I can have the big shovel, and
Dora the little one. I should like to see the cart upset! What fun it
will be!'
2. Crash came the coal on the ground. Then the coal-man drew his horse
and cart away, and set to work with a spade to fill the little
coal-place.
3. The dog jumped, and got in every one's way. He wanted to help, too,
but did not know how. Dora tumbled over the heap and bumped her head, so
she thought she would be content with watching Jim and Harry. But Harry
was soon tired, and Jim was left to go on alone.
4. 'Where does coal come from, Jim?' he asked.
'Out of the ground, my lad.'
'Does it? Do you dig for it?'
'I don't. But I know somebody who does.'
5. 'If I were to dig for it, should I find any, Jim?'
'Not you! Why, you have to go down ever such a long way before you can
even begin to dig.'
6. 'How do you get down?'
'You go down in a thing they call a cage. You can't walk down, you know.
It is like going down a deep pit. They call it a mine.'
7. 'Oh, I have heard of coal-mines!'
Dora was taking up one little lump of coal after another, and wondering
why it was so shiny if it had really come out of the earth.
8. Harry went on. 'How do they let the cage down? Have you ever been
down?'
[Illustration: Coal-miners going down to work.]
'I have been down once,' said Jim, stopping in his work and stretching
himself. 'This is the way. There is an engine at the top of the
shaft'----
'What is the shaft?'
9. 'The pit I told you about. The engine is fixed there and it lets
down the cage and pulls it up again. Half-a-dozen men or so can go in it
at a time.'
'It must be very strong.'
10. 'Yes, it is, and it has strong chains to hold it. It goes up and
down all day long, bringing up the coal.'
COAL.
PART 2.
re´-al-ly
eas´-i-ly
slic´-es
straight
knife
be-tween´
met´-al
fetched
pic´-tures
an´-i-mal
whole
for´-ests
thou´-sands
piec´-es
to-geth´-er
puz´-zles
1. Next day the children asked their mother to tell them what coal
really was. Harry did not think it was a stone, because he had broken
two or three lumps with a hammer. He found that it broke much more
easily than stone.
2. Besides, it did not fly all into sharp bits, but came off in slices;
and he saw that it had straight lines along it. When he poked his knife
in between these lines, he could take off a slice of coal at once!
3. Dora did not think it was a metal, because she had learnt that iron
would melt in a fire and flow like water. 'Coal does not melt,' she
said, 'every one knows that!'
4. She took a small lump out of the coal-box, and Harry did the same.
Mother then fetched some pictures, and one or two other things, and the
talk began.
5. 'It is no wonder that you can't guess what coal is! It does not look
at all like what it was at first. It was not always in the ground; it
used to live on the top and get the air and sunshine.'
6. 'It must have been alive,' said Harry. 'Was it an animal?'
'No.'
'Then it was a plant!' cried Dora.
7. 'Well, it is all that is left of many plants and trees, whole forests
of plants and trees, that grew long, long ago.'
'Before you were born, mother?'
8. 'Yes, long before that! It was hundreds and thousands of years ago.
It was so far back that the trees were not like the trees we have now.
Many of them were big ferns. Think of a fern grown up to be a tree! And
many were great horse-tails. You know what a horse-tail is?'
9. 'Oh yes,' said Dora, 'we find them in the ditch down the lane. It is
such fun pulling them to pieces and putting them together again--like
puzzles!'
[Illustration: Horse-tail.]
10. 'Those trees must have been very strange,' said Harry. 'They would
not be nice to climb. But there were no boys in those days, so it did
not matter.'
[Illustration]
FIRE.
min´-er-al
coal
fen´-der
prop´-er
walk´-ing
laugh´-ing
grate
cru´-el
Lon´-don
smoke
al-read´-y
flame
blaze
beast
cage
pic´-tures
1. 'Don't you think,' said Harry, 'that a bit of coal would be a good
thing for our mineral box?'
2. 'I do,' said his father. 'Get a little lump, and put it in. And, by
the way, we want more coal on the fire. I must get some.'
3. 'How nice a fire is on a cold day!' said Dora, sitting down on the
fender, to be as near to it as she could.
'Very nice,' said her mother, 'in its proper place--in the grate.'
4. 'Ah, we should not like it to come walking about the room!' said
Harry, laughing. 'There would soon be no room'----
'And no house!' said Dora, shaking her head. 'And then what should we
do?'
5. Father came back with the coal, and put some into the grate, saying:
'Fire is a good servant but a bad master. If it gets its own way it is a
cruel thing. It would burn a town down. It once burned big London.'
6. Harry was looking at one of the lumps that had been put on the fire.
Smoke was coming out of it already. A flame burst out in front, and soon
the whole lump was in a blaze.
7. 'It seems such a pity that it should all be burned up,' said Harry,
'when it took so long to make.'
'That is the way of fire,' said father, 'it eats up everything, and when
it has nothing more to feed on it comes to an end--it goes out, we say.'
8. 'We don't want it to go out, and so we keep on feeding it,' said
mother. 'It is like a wild beast in a cage.'
'Now look at the coal!' said father.
9. By this time the lumps were red and very hot. The children went down
on their knees to look for pictures in the fire. They soon saw what
looked like men and dogs, rocks, hills, and trees, and at last a great
cat with red-hot eyes and a very curly tail.
OBJECT LESSONS.
THE CAT. [_Page 7._
1. The cat lives in and about our homes; so we call it a domestic
animal.
2. It belongs to the same tribe of animals as the lion and tiger. They
are savage--puss is tame. Like them, it is a beast of prey--that is, it
catches and eats other animals. They cannot hear it coming with its
soft, padded feet.
3. The cat leaps upon its prey. It sticks its strong, sharp claws into a
mouse, and soon kills it with its sharp teeth.
4. Puss is covered with fur; she has five claws on each fore-paw, and
four on each hind one. She draws them into little sheaths when not
angry.
5. With its rough tongue the cat can lap up milk, and also clean its
fur. It likes to be clean. It opens its eyes wider in the dark, and can
see to run about at night. On each side of its head are long whiskers,
with which it feels its way.
_Write and learn:_
Cats have--
Padded feet.
Sharp claws and teeth.
Rough tongues.
Good sight at night.
Cats like--
Milk.
Meat.
Mice and rats.
Birds and fish.
Cats are--
Domestic.
Tame.
Useful.
Cleanly.
THE DOG. [_Page 12._
1. The dog is larger and more active than the cat. It is also of more
use to man, for it guards the house, minds the sheep, and will not allow
any one to harm its master.
2. There are many kinds of dogs. All are of some use--from the large
Newfoundland dog to the little fox-terrier.
3. Dogs are like cats in some things. They have padded feet and strong
claws. But their claws are blunt. They cannot draw them into sheaths as
puss does; so they make more noise in walking.
4. The dog is also a beast of prey. But it is not so fierce as the wolf
or the fox, which belong to the same tribe of animals. It likes meat and
bones, but will also eat bread and vegetables. Its teeth are very strong
and sharp.
5. Most dogs have keen scent, pointed noses, and quick sight.
_Write and learn:_
Dogs have--
Blunt claws.
Sharp, strong teeth.
Keen scent.
Quick sight.
Dogs--
Bark.
Watch.
Jump.
Hunt.
Dogs are--
Useful.
Faithful.
Friendly.
Wise.
BUTTERCUPS. [_Page 15._
1. Buttercups grow wild. They are of a golden yellow colour. Each flower
has five yellow leaves growing out from the middle of five smaller green
ones.
2. The flowers are something like a cup in shape, with a little tuft of
grass-like threads standing in each one. In the green ball in the middle
there are tiny seeds from which other buttercups will grow if they fall
into the ground.
3. Buttercups come in spring. They grow on taller stems than daisies.
They have no nice scent such as violets or roses have.
_Write and learn:_
Buttercups--
Grow wild.
Come in spring.
Buttercups have--
Five yellow leaves.
Five green ones.
Buttercups are--
Pretty and shiny.
Eaten by cattle.
WHEAT. [_Page 20._
1. Wheat is a plant of the _grass_ kind, but grows higher than common
grass. It is grown from seed, which is grains of wheat kept until hard
and dry.
2. Ruts are made in the soil by a plough, and into these the seed is
cast. Then the soil is covered over them by a harrow, drawn by a horse.
3. Rain and warm sunshine help the grains to grow. They grow into tall,
jointed stems, and soon the ears of wheat appear. They are green at
first, but the sun ripens them and turns them yellow.
4. Then the wheat is cut, and the new grains are threshed out from the
husks which are called chaff. The tall stems make straw. The grains are
ground into flour by the miller. We use flour for making bread, cakes,
and puddings.
_Write and learn:_
Wheat is--
A grass plant.
Grown from seed.
Green at first.
Yellow when ripe.
Wheat has--
A tall stem.
Graceful leaves.
An ear.
Grains.
Wheat makes--
Flour.
Foods.
Chaff.
Straw.
SLATE. [_Page 26._
1. Slate is a kind of stone. Rocks, and even mountains, are sometimes
made of slate. The great hole made in the rocks by getting it out, is
called a quarry. It is got out in very large blocks. Sometimes gunpowder
is used to crack the rocks before the blocks can be got out.
2. Slate is very hard and brittle. It is used for many purposes. Houses
are roofed with slates. Sometimes it is used for pavements. It can be
made so smooth that we use it for writing upon. Slate-pencil is made
from soft slate-stone.
_Write and learn:_
Slate is--
A kind of stone.
Very hard.
Brittle.
Slate is found in--
Cumberland.
Wales.
Cornwall and Devon.
Slate is useful for--
Roofing houses.
Making pavements.
Writing upon.
CHALK. [_Page 31._
1. Like slate, chalk comes out of the hills. It is white and soft. It is
used for many purposes. The farmer puts it on the fields sometimes, to
make the soil better. It holds water and keeps the soil moist.
2. We get lime and whiting from chalk. We use it in these forms for
making our ceilings and walls clean. It is used, too, for writing on the
blackboard. Chalk is found in many parts of England. Kent and Hampshire
have most. Chalk-pits are often seen in the hills.
3. Chalk is formed of thousands of tiny shells.
_Write and learn:_
Chalk is--
White.
Soft.
Crumbly.
Chalk is found in--
Hampshire.
Kent.
Isle of Wight.
Chalk makes--
Lime.
Whiting.
Chalk-pencils.
THE MOUSE. [_Page 36._
1. The mouse is a very small animal, with pointed nose and long tail. It
has large bright eyes, large ears, strong sharp teeth, and is very
timid.
2. The mouse gnaws through the walls and floors of our houses with its
sharp, strong teeth. It makes a little nest in a hole. It comes out when
all is quiet to look for crumbs, or anything left about that it can eat.
It gets into the pantry sometimes.
3. Some mice live in fields and woods. The tiny harvest-mouse makes its
nest on a wheat-stalk. It often does great harm to the wheat.
4. But for puss there would soon be so many mice that we should not know
what to do.
_Write and learn:_
Mice have--
Long tails.
Sharp teeth.
Large ears.
Bright eyes.
Mice like--
Bread.
Meat.
Cheese.
Milk.
Mice are--
Very small.
Very timid.
Very quick.
Very quiet.
THE RABBIT. [_Page 41._
1. The rabbit is about the size of the cat, and is covered with short
fur. It burrows a hole in the ground and makes a nest there for its
young.
2. Rabbits have long ears and large eyes. They can hear a very slight
sound, and can see _behind_ as well as before them.
3. Their hind-legs are longer than their fore-legs; so they do not run,
but leap.
4. Rabbits like to live where there is plenty of furze, which they eat
for food. They do much mischief in corn-fields by eating the young corn.
They also eat the bark off young trees, and so spoil them.
_Write and learn:_
Rabbits have--
Long ears.
Large eyes.
Long hind-legs.
Warm fur.
Rabbits eat--
Grass.
Roots.
Leaves.
Bark.
Rabbits--
Burrow.
Make nests for their young.
Leap.
Play.
IVY. [_Page 43._
1. Ivy is an evergreen, climbing plant. It grows on old walls, houses,
and churches, and sometimes on trees.
2. There are several kinds of ivy. The leaves of each kind are of a
different shape. All ivy leaves are very pretty.
3. The leaves have little marks called veins, crossing them in all ways.
These veins are full of sap, or moisture, which the roots of the plant
suck up from the earth.
4. Some ivy flowers, and bears berries.
_Write and learn:_
Ivy is--
An evergreen.
A climber.
Ivy has--
Different forms of leaf.
Many veins.
Ivy grows--
On old buildings.
Sometimes round trees.
A TREE. [_Page 47._
1. There are many kinds of trees. The oak, elm, and beech are very
common.
2. Trees have roots, trunks, branches, leaves, and often flowers and
fruit. The brown covering of the trunk is called bark. This keeps the
tree warm and dry.
3. Their leaves fall off in autumn, except those of evergreens like the
holly and the laurel.
4. Trees are both beautiful and useful. They provide us with timber and
firewood, and give shade and shelter to our houses and gardens.
_Write and learn:_
Trees have--
Roots.
Branches.
Leaves.
Trees--
Shed leaves.
Live long.
Trees give us--
Timber.
Fruits.
Shade and shelter.
BRICKS. [_Page 50._
1. Bricks are made of clay. The clay is very damp and heavy when it is
dug out of the ground.
2. It is put into moulds to make bricks, and slowly baked in a kiln.
Then the bricks are dry and not so heavy as the clay was. They are
porous.
3. Most bricks are of oblong shape. This is the shape used for building
houses, schools, walls. Sometimes they are made into very pretty shapes,
are glazed and used for floors and other things.
_Write and learn:_
Bricks are--
Made of clay.
Shaped in moulds.
Baked in a kiln.
Bricks are--
Not so heavy as stone.
Hard.
Oblong.
Bricks are used--
For building.
For ornament.
THE DONKEY. [_Page 53._
1. The donkey is a useful animal when well treated. It is cheaper to buy
and to keep than a pony.
2. The donkey has hoofs like the horse, and wears shoes. It is very
patient and gentle, and can do with coarse food.
3. The donkey's coat is rough, and its mane short. It has a black stripe
down its back and across its shoulders. Its head and ears are very long.
4. The donkey can climb high rugged paths better than the horse. It can
also carry heavy loads up hill, because it is strong and sure-footed.
_Write and learn:_
The donkey has--
Hoofed feet.
Long ears.
A shaggy coat.
A short mane.
The donkey is--
Strong.
Sure-footed.
Gentle.
Patient.
The donkey likes--
Hay.
Grass.
Thistles.
Carrots.
SHEEP. [_Page 55._
1. Sheep live mostly in the fields. They often climb very high hills.
Their feet are not like the donkey's; they are cloven, like the cow's.
2. Their legs are so slender that their bodies seem almost too large for
them. The thick wool which grows upon them makes them look large.
3. Sheep eat grass. They tear it off, as the cow does. They cannot bite,
since they have no front teeth in the upper jaw.
4. They are very timid, gentle creatures. They do not like to be alone.
They live in flocks. They make a great noise when bleating.
5. Sheep are very useful. Their flesh gives us mutton; their wool makes
clothing; their skin makes leather.
_Write and Learn:_
Sheep have--
Cloven hoofs.
Slender legs.
Thick wool.
Sheep are--
Gentle.
Timid.
Climbers.
Sheep give us--
Food.
Clothing.
Leather.
TURNIPS. [_Page 59._
1. Turnips are grown both in fields and gardens. The tops are green. The
turnip is almost round; but it tapers towards the bottom. Most of the
turnip grows under ground; but we can see part of it above ground when
nearly ripe.
2. Turnips are good for food. Sheep and cattle are fond of them. Animals
eat them raw. We boil them. Raw turnips are not good for us. Pigs will
eat the rinds which we peel off.
3. Turnips are white or yellow, sweet, juicy, wholesome.
_Write and learn:_
Turnips are--
White or yellow.
Sweet.
Wholesome.
Turnips have--
Roots.
Green tops.
Thick rinds.
Turnips are eaten--
By man.
By animals.
Mostly in winter.
GREEN PEAS. [_Page 62._
1. The pea is a climbing plant. We put tall sticks in the garden for the
peas to climb. They grow from seeds which are dried peas.
2. As they grow, tendrils shoot out and take hold of the sticks. Pretty
green leaves grow too. Then come the dainty white flowers.
3. When the flowers wither, they leave little green pods. Inside the
pods are little green peas. Peas and pods grow larger each day until
ripe.
4. Peas are very good for food. Pigs like the husks.
_Write and learn:_
Peas have--
Roots.
Tendrils.
Flowers.
Peas--
Climb.
Grow from seed.
Hold by tendrils.
Peas grow--
In gardens.
In fields.
In summer.
IRON AND METAL. [_Page 67._
1. Metals are made from ores which are dug out of the earth. These ores
are found in many parts of the world. Iron is the most common, as well
as the most useful metal.
2. Many things we use are made of it. The _steel_ of which our knives,
tools, and other things are made, is made from iron. Iron is largely
used for making bridges, railings, fire-grates, hammers.
3. Lead, copper, tin, and zinc are metals also. So are silver and gold.
4. Men must dig deep down into the earth to find them. The holes and
passages which they make are called mines.
5. All metals are heavy. All will melt in great heat, and all can be
hammered out into thin sheets or drawn out into wire.
_Write and learn:_
Metals are--
Heavy.
Useful.
Plentiful.
Metals can be--
Melted.
Hammered out.
Polished.
The common metals are--
Iron.
Lead.
Tin and copper.
NEEDLES. [_Page 71._
1. Needles are made of steel wire. In a needle-factory there are
hundreds of coils of wire. Some of the wire is thick enough for
darning-needles; some very thin for making sewing-needles.
2. The wire is cut by a machine. The needles are pointed on a
grindstone. The eyes are punched by another machine. Then the needles
are filed to make them smooth.
3. To make them hard, the needles are made white-hot, and put into cold
water until quite cool. They are then cleaned and polished.
4. They must be very dry before put into packets, or they will rust.
5. Many boys and girls, as well as men and women, work in
needle-factories.
_Write and learn:_
Needles are--
Smooth.
Bright.
Pointed.
Needles have--
Eyes.
Shanks.
Points.
Needles are used--
For sewing.
For darning.
For other work.
THE KNIFE. [_Page 80._
1. A knife is most useful for cutting. The blade is made of steel; the
handle of ivory, bone, or wood.
2. The blade and handle are fastened together by a long, thin piece of
iron which goes into the handle. The blades have to be heated as needles
are, to make them hard.
3. A knife is blunt on one edge; sharp on the other. The grinder
sharpens it on a huge stone which goes round and round. The blades are
polished before being put into the handles, as well as after.
4. There are many kinds of knives. Pocket-knives have a spring to make
them shut tightly. A table-knife is rounded at the end; the
carving-knife has a sharp pointed blade.
_Write and learn:_
Knives are--
Sharp.
Bright.
Useful.
Knives have--
Blades.
Handles.
Springs.
Knives are made--
In Sheffield.
THE HEN. [_Page 83._
1. The hen is a domestic bird. Some are white; some black; others many
colours. The hen finds much of its own food in the fields. It is fed
with barley, bread, potatoes, and other things from the house.
2. The hen has a small head with eyes at the sides. Its bill is strong
and sharp.
3. The hen sleeps on a perch on one leg. It never falls off; its foot is
made for grasping.
4. Hens are useful for the eggs they give us; and they are also good for
food. Their feathers, too, are useful.
_Write and learn:_
The hen has--
A small head.
A strong bill.
A grasping foot.
The hen is--
A domestic bird.
A percher.
Useful.
The hen gives us--
Eggs.
Food.
Feathers.
THE SPARROW. [_Page 86._
1. The sparrow is a small bird with brown and gray feathers. It builds
its nest on our houses, and sometimes in the pipes which carry the rain
off the roof. A sparrow's nest is seldom found in a tree. It lays five
or six eggs which are spotted with brown.
2. Farmers often kill sparrows because they steal the corn and fruit.
But they are really good friends to the farmer. They eat the worms and
grubs, which would destroy _all_ the fruit.
3. The sparrow is a very bold little bird, and is to be found in the
streets of the largest towns as well as in the country.
_Write and learn:_
The sparrow has--
Brown and gray feathers.
Sharp claws.
A long tail.
The sparrow is--
Small.
Bold.
Useful.
The sparrow eats--
Grain.
Worms.
Fruit.
HERBS. [_Page 90._
1. Herbs are plants or vegetables with soft stalks or stems. Some grow
wild, others we grow in our gardens.
2. We use some for eating, such as mustard and cress. Others, such as
parsley, mint, sage, and thyme, we use to flavour our food. Many are
used as medicine.
3. Most herbs have a nice scent. They are very plentiful, and very
useful.
_Write and learn:_
Herbs have--
Soft stems.
Nice scent.
Strong flavour.
Herbs are--
Plentiful.
Useful.
Grown from seeds.
Herbs are used--
For eating.
For flavouring.
For medicine.
COFFEE [_Page 93._
1. We get coffee from the coffee-tree. It is an evergreen, something
like our bay-tree. It bears a pretty white flower.
2. When the flower falls it leaves a red berry, something like a
cherry. The two hard, oval seeds inside it are what we call coffee
beans. They are of a pale colour in the berry, but are roasted to make
them brown.
3. Coffee is good to drink, but it is not so cheap as tea. It grows in
warm countries far away--in Arabia and the West Indies chiefly.
_Write and learn:_
The Coffee-tree--
Is an evergreen.
Has white flowers.
Has a red berry.
Coffee is--
Good to drink.
Warming.
Not so cheap as tea.
Coffee grows--
In Arabia.
In the West Indies.
In Brazil.
PAPER. [_Page 96._
1. Paper is one of the most useful things we have. It is made of old
rags which are torn to pieces by a machine. Lime is put in to make them
white.
2. The pulp, as it is called, is then formed into sheets and pressed. It
is then covered with _size_, and pressed again to make it smooth and
glossy.
3. Blotting-paper and other kinds not used for writing upon, are not
sized. Brown paper is made of old canvas and sacking.
4. Before paper was made, people used to write upon the inner bark of
trees, and the thin skins of animals made sweet and dry, and called
parchment.
_Write and learn:_
Writing-paper is--
Smooth.
Glossy.
Fine.
Blotting-paper is--
Soft.
Unglazed.
Porous.
Brown paper is--
Coarse.
Strong.
Used for parcels.
THE FLY. [_Page 99._
1. The fly is a wonderful little insect. It has six legs, with such
curious feet that it can walk on the window-panes or the ceiling.
2. It has a funny little round head. Its eyes stand out so that it can
see round about it. It cannot move its eyes as we do. Neither can it
bite its food--it sucks it.
3. The fly teases us in summer. It gets into our sugar, milk, treacle,
and honey. Then it makes marks upon our windows and other things.
4. Its wings are very pretty. When they get wet it cannot fly. The noise
flies make is called buzzing.
_Write and learn:_
Flies have--
Six legs.
Curious feet.
Fixed eyes.
Flies--
Buzz.
Lay tiny eggs.
Suck their food.
Flies like--
Sugar.
Honey.
Milk.
THE WASP. [_Page 102._
1. A wasp is a very pretty insect, black and yellow in colour. There are
several kinds. Some burrow in the ground and make their nests there.
Others build their nests in trees.
2. Wasps live together in large numbers. They are very busy. Some lay
eggs; some are masons, and build the nest; others are soldiers, and
guard the home; whilst others carry away all the rubbish, and keep
everything clean and tidy.
3. The wasp's sting has poison in it. This is why it gives us such pain
if we get stung.
4. The wasp is something like the fly in shape, only much larger. It
preys upon other insects.
_Write and learn:_
The Wasp has--
Six legs.
Four wings.
A sharp sting.
The Wasp--
Makes a nest.
Works hard.
Sleeps all winter.
The Wasp likes--
Insects.
Meat.
Sweet things.
THE SUNFLOWER. [_Page 104._
1. This flower is called _sun_-flower because it always turns its face
to the sun. It turns as the sun goes round.
2. The sunflower grows on a strong, tall stalk. It is something like a
daisy in form.
3. The deep-yellow leaves stand out in rays from the dark-coloured
middle of the flower, which is called the _disk_. This disk is made of a
large number of tiny flowers closely packed together.
4. The seeds of this flower are large and oblong, and contain oil.
5. Bees and flies visit sunflowers, to gather honey.
_Write and learn:_
The sunflower has--
A strong stalk.
A large disk.
Many rays.
The sunflower--
Grows from seed.
Contains honey.
Turns to the sun.
The sunflower has--
Small flowers in its disk.
Oblong seeds.
Oily seed.
THE ROSE. [_Page 108._
1. Roses are of many kinds and many colours. Most of them are
sweet-scented. Some rose-bushes do not grow very high. Others grow up as
high as our houses.
2. Roses have thorns on their stems. Wild roses have many thorns. Wild
roses are small--have only five leaves--but they are very pretty.
3. When they die they leave berries, called hips, which make good food
for the birds in winter. There are seeds in them.
_Write and learn:_
The rose has--
A sweet scent.
Sharp thorns on its stem.
Soft, smooth leaves.
The rose is--
Sometimes white.
Sometimes yellow.
Sometimes red.
The wild rose--
Grows in hedges.
Has five leaves.
Has berries called 'hips.'
WOOD. [_Page 111._
1. Wood seems to be almost as useful as iron. Hundreds of years ago,
houses were built of wood. All the houses in London were. There is much
wood in our houses now.
2. There are many kinds of wood--each comes from a different tree. Oak
is a very hard wood. Pine is softer. Willow is very soft; its thin
branches will bend easily. It is used for making baskets.
3. When the trunk of a tree is sawn into planks we can see the grain or
marks in it. Some are very prettily marked. Oak and walnut are. Wood can
be highly polished.
_Write and learn:_
Wood grows--
In most countries.
In forests.
Plentifully.
Wood is--
Very useful.
Mostly hard.
Grained.
Wood is used for--
Building purposes.
Furniture.
Fires.
COAL. [_Page 113._
1. Coal is dug out of the earth. Coal and iron are found together. But
coal is not a metal as iron is. It will not melt. We call it a mineral.
2. It is found in many parts of the world. There is a very large
quantity in our own country.
3. It is a black, shiny, opaque, and brittle mineral. Men have to go
deep down into the earth, into mines, to get it. They are in great
danger.
4. Coals were once forests, which sank lower and lower into the earth
hundreds and thousands of years ago. They became mixed with other
things, and in time were changed to coal. We can see the grain in some
of the coal, as we see it in wood.
_Write and learn:_
Coal is--
A Mineral.
Black.
Opaque.
Brittle.
Coal is--
Buried forests.
Got from mines.
Heavy.
Grained.
Coal is used for--
Fuel.
Smelting metals.
Making gas.
Making tar.
FIRE. [_Page 119._
1. Fire is useful but dangerous. A spark from it might set a house on
fire. We ought to be very careful about it. Children should never play
with fire.
2. It is so useful that we should not be able to have many things we
have, if we had no fire.
3. When England was covered with forests, hundreds of years ago, people
used to have fires of wood, instead of coal. Wood-fires are not so smoky
as those made of coal, but they are not so hot.
_Write and learn:_
Fire is--
Useful.
Dangerous.
A good servant.
A bad master.
Fire--
Burns.
Smokes.
Makes flame.
Gives heat.
Fire--
Warms our houses.
Cooks our food.
Makes water into steam.
Makes soot.
THE END.
Edinburgh:
Printed by W. & R. Chambers, Limited.
End of Project Gutenberg's Chambers's Elementary Science Readers, by Various