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"In the wood under the moss are hidden a thousand pearls lost by the king's daughter. Whoever can find them all in one day before the sun goes down will free the castle from its spell. But if he should search and not succeed before sunset, he will be turned to stone."

The eldest brother read these words and decided to try. He looked all day, but at sunset he had found only a hundred pearls, and was therefore turned into stone.

In spite of this, the second brother made an attempt and began his task in the evening, so that he looked all night. By sunset next day he had found only two hundred pearls and was turned to stone like his brother.

At last the simpleton had to look for the pearls, but he was very unhappy at having to do it, for he thought that he was so much stupider than his brothers that if they had failed, of course there could be no chance for him.

As he sat thinking about it, he saw coming toward him the ant king, whose life and house he had saved. He had brought with him five thousand of his ants, and it was not long before they had found all the pearls, and piled them up in a large heap. Then they went home, hardly waiting for his thanks. They had been glad to help him and thus show their gratitude.

When the simpleton went back to the castle with the pearls, he was given another task to do. It was to bring from the bottom of the lake where it was sunk, the key of the princess's sleeping room.

Of course, he could not possibly hope to do this by himself, but when he went down to the lake he found there the very ducks that he had saved from being killed. They knew him at once, and when they heard what he wanted, they quickly dived to the bottom of the lake and got the key for him.

Now the third thing he had to do was the hardest of all. He had to go into the room where the king's three

daughters were sleeping, find out which was the youngest, and wake her. They all looked so much alike that he could not tell them apart. The only difference was that before going to sleep the eldest had eaten barley sugar, the second a little syrup, and the youngest a spoonful of honey. But how could he tell which had eaten the honey? Just as he was wondering what he should do about it, in came the queen bee he had seen the day before. She quickly flew to each of the sisters, and lit on their lips as if they were flowers. And, of course, she knew all about honey because she made it herself, so she could tell which one had eaten the honey.

She remained sitting on the mouth of the youngest. Then the boy knew which sister to waken. The castle was freed from its spell in a moment, and every one who had been turned to stone was changed back again.

You may be sure the older brothers no longer thought their younger brother was a simpleton.

OCTOBER: KINDNESS TO ANIMALS

For the Teacher:

THE DIVINE IMAGE

WILLIAM BLAKE

To Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love,
All pray in their distress,
And to these virtues of delight
Return their thankfulness.

For Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love,
Is God our Father dear;

And Mercy, Pity, Peace, and Love,
Is man, his child and care.

Suggestions for morning talks

How should you treat your dog, if you want him to love you?

Pat him kindly.

Speak to him gently.

Why does pussy dislike to have you pull her tail? Why

does she purr when you stroke her fur the right way? What three things must you remember every day if your pets are to be glad they are yours?

To feed them at the right time.

To give them plenty of clean, fresh water to drink. To give them a good warm bed at night.

Did you ever think how much the toads and frogs and turtles and birds must suffer when they are frightened and hurt?

How can you try to be a friend to every animal you see? How can you help the birds?

In summer by keeping shallow pans of water for them to drink from and bathe in.

In winter by fastening a suet bag to a tree. Watch for the chickadees, woodpeckers and juncoes. Some of them will find it.

Poems to read to children

"Hiawatha's Childhood," Longfellow. R.L.S. No. 13-14. Houghton Mifflin Co.

"Piccola," Celia Thaxter. See Grade II, p. 60.

"I Love Little Pussy," Jane Taylor, in Three Years with the Poets, Hazard. Houghton Mifflin Co. "Thank You, Pretty Cow," Jane Taylor, in Three Years with the Poets, Hazard. Houghton Mifflin Co. "Mary's Lamb," S. J. Hale, in Poetry for Children. Houghton Mifflin Co.

"Who Stole the Bird's Nest," Lydia Maria Child. Graded Poetry Selections. Educational Publishing Co. "The Little Ladybird," Caroline B. Southey. Nature in Verse, for Children. Silver, Burdett & Co.

"The Lamb," William Blake. R.L.S. No. 59. Houghton Mifflin Co.

"A Night with a Wolf," Bayard Taylor. See Grade III, p. 89.

"St. Francis to the Birds," Longfellow. Voices for the Speechless. Houghton Mifflin Co.

"Playing Robinson Crusoe," Kipling, Just So Stories. Doubleday, Page & Co.

THE OX WHO WON THE FORFEIT1

Long ago a man owned a very strong Ox. The owner was so proud of his Ox, that he boasted to every man he met about how strong his Ox was.

One day the owner went into a village, and said to the men there: "I will pay a forfeit of a thousand pieces of silver if my Ox cannot draw a line of one hundred wagons.

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The men laughed and said: "Very well; bring your Ox, and we will tie a hundred wagons in a line and see your Ox draw them along."

So the man brought his Ox into the village. A crowd gathered to see the sight. The hundred carts were in line, and the strong Ox was yoked to the first wagon.

Then the owner whipped his Ox, and said, "Get up, you wretch! Get along, you rascal!"

But the Ox had never been talked to in that way, and he stood still. Neither the blows nor the hard names could make him move.

At last the poor man paid his forfeit, and went sadly

1 From Jataka Tales, Ellen C. Babbitt. The Century Co.

home. There he threw himself on his bed and cried: "Why did that strong Ox act so? Many a time he has moved heavier loads easily. Why did he shame me before all those people?"

At last he got up and went about his work. When he went to feed the Ox that night, the Ox turned to him and said: "Why did you whip me to-day? You never whipped me before. Why did you call me 'wretch' and 'rascal?' You never called me hard names before."

Then the man said: "I will never treat you badly again. I am sorry I whipped you and called you names. I will never do so any more. Forgive me."

"Very well," said the Ox. "To-morrow I will go into the village and draw the one hundred carts for you. You have always been a kind master until to-day. Tomorrow you shall gain what you lost."

The next morning the owner fed the Ox well, and hung a garland of flowers about his neck. When they went into the village the men laughed at the man again. They said: "Did you come back to lose more money?"

"To-day I will pay a forfeit of two thousand pieces of silver if my Ox is not strong enough to pull the one hundred carts," said the owner.

So again the carts were placed in a line, and the Ox was yoked to the first. A crowd came to watch again. The owner said: "Good Ox, show how strong you are! You fine, fine creature!" And he patted his neck and stroked his sides. At once the Ox pulled with all his strength. The carts moved on until the last cart stood where the first had been.

Then the crowd shouted, and they paid back the forfeit the man had lost, saying: "Your Ox is the strongest Ox we ever saw." And the Ox and the man went home, happy.

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