"No, Nel-ly! not to-day, my child!
I can-not let you take it;
This cold March wind, so strong and wild,
Your pa-ra-sol, 'twould break it!"
So said Mam-ma; but Nel-ly thought,
"I will take my new pre-sent:
Tis mine; to please me it was bought;
The wea-ther's bright and plea-sant."
So naugh-ty Nel-ly sli-ly took
What kind Mam-ma had bought her,
And out she went--and, only look!
The wild March wind has caught her!
The silk tore up, the ribs broke out,
In spite of Nel-ly's sway-ing;
And peo-ple laugh-ed at her, no doubt--
That comes of dis-o-bey-ing.
"THE FLOW-ERS AP-PEAR ON THE EARTH."
(SONG OF SOLOMON, ii. 12.)
Now the win-ter cold is past,
And blithe March winds are blow-ing,
In shel-ter-ed nooks we find at last
Bright flow-ers of spring are grow-ing.
Along the hedge-row's mossy bank,
Where ivy green is creep-ing,
We see through weeds and net-tles rank
The dark-blue vi-o-let peep-ing.
And in the sun-ny gar-den beds
Gay a-co-nites are show-ing,
And snow-drops bend their grace-ful heads,
And cro-cus-es are glow-ing.
God makes the buds and leaves un-fold,
All flow-ers are of His giv-ing;
He guards them through the win-ter's cold,
He cares for all things liv-ing.
[Illustration]
[Illustration: WHO TORE IT?]
[Illustration: The E-mu in Aus-tra-lia's found,
Where the wild bush spreads far a-round.]
[Illustration: The ant-lered Elk comes pranc-ing forth
From the pine for-ests of the North.]
[Illustration: The Frog is of-ten-est to be seen
In grassy mea-dows, damp and green.]
[Illustration: The Fly-ing Fish can swim with ease,
Or flut-ter o'er the tro-pic seas.]
[Illustration: THE LITTLE HERO.]
[Illustration: BLOWING BUBBLES.]
[Illustration]