Various

“ I should like to be an animal. Not an insect, of course, nor a snake, but a nice kind of animal, like an elephant or a dog with a good master.
Animals are awfully intelligent, but they haven't any souls. There was once an elephant in a circus, and one day a boy said to him, "Want a lump of sugar, old fellow?" The elephant he nodded, and felt real grateful, for elephants are very fond of lump-sugar, which is what they live on in their native forests. But the boy put a cigar instead of a lump of sugar in his mouth. ”

“ There is one that looks for all the world like a swan, with its long curved neck; there is a beautiful butterfly with spotted golden wings; over yonder stands a scarlet flamingo, in a meditative attitude, on one red leg. ”

“ If you strike the ball very low, cutting it with the racket held with the face slanting, it will give a twisting movement to the ball, so that the return will not come off at the usual angle, but in a very unexpected manner. This makes it very difficult for the other player to know where to place himself to receive the stroke. The French, who are great racket-players, have a saying, "La balle cherche le bon joueur" (the ball seeks the good player) . In point of fact, the really good player, the moment a ball is struck, places himself so that the ball comes to him. ”

“ The skillful cook keeps her fire raked clear of ashes from beneath. She never heaps coals up so high that they over-brim the fire-chamber and rattle against the lids, and she does not let her heat go up the chimney when it ought to be baking her biscuits. ”

“ This tube is a single flower leaf curled over to make a tunnel, and through this tunnel is the only path to the honey pouch. When a butterfly feels like taking a drink, and one of these orchids is near, he lights on the lower lip of the tube, and pushing his long proboscis or trunk through it into the pouch, sucks up the honey. ”

“ Some plants get along perfectly well if this partnership is entirely a family affair, and the pollen of a flower falls on its own pistil, and makes a union with its own ovules, but this is not always the case. Certain plants require that the pollen shall be from another plant if the seed is to be sound and healthy. Orchids require this cross-fertilization, as it is called, and without the help of insects it could not be effected.
Bees and butterflies, it has been found out, always go in a single excursion from one flower of a kind to another of the same kind. They do not mix their drinks. ”

“ But if you take the racket you will find it is not so easy as it looks. There are several tricks in the game, the object of which is to make your opponent's return difficult if not impossible. Thus, sometimes a player will volley a ball—that is, strike it before it has bounded—and, playing it downward just a few inches above the wood, it will bound downward, and touch the floor where it can not be reached, or a player will strike very low, so as to produce the same effect. ”

“ The next instant a zigzag flame lit up the darkened heavens with its awful light, followed by a succession of thunder-claps, which sent Jamie back under the deck with a heart that nearly failed him as he realized how helpless he was. ”

“ All seat themselves but one, who is called the lady's-maid, and who stands in the centre. When the maid calls for any article of dress, the one who has that name instantly rises, repeats the word, and seats herself again directly. ”

“ The flowers always have a little pouch somewhere about them in which they keep a stock of honey on hand. Their beautiful colors and delicious smell attract, by day and night, bees, butterflies, and moths. ”

“ Good cooking is an important element in home life and happiness. Health depends upon it, for nobody can be well and strong who suffers from indigestion, and nothing causes indigestion sooner than ill-cooked food. ”

“ It was better, she said, to be the wife of a chief, and have plenty to eat and little hard work to do.
"But about Rita?"
"If you had your mine, now, and your great droves of horses—"
"What could I do?"
"Do, Señor Murray? Why, you could buy half the young squaws in the village if you had husbands for them. But you are poor now. I suppose it can not be done."
It was no wonder he had not thought of it before. It was so strange a thing to propose. That a father should buy his daughter!
He turned from her and strode back to his own lodge to see what Steve would say. ”

“ This instinct not only serves to keep the honey stored by the bees pure, but it enables the insects to carry the pollen just where it will be useful. The pollen of a morning-glory would die if put on the rose pistil. It must be placed on a flower of the same family as the one it came from, or very nearly related to it, or it will do no good. ”

“ One of the things you must learn if you wish to cook successfully is the management of your fire. A range is a splendid servant if under proper control; but unless you understand dampers and draughts, you will probably have no end of trouble with your ovens. ”

“ There are extensive coal mines about eight miles from us. Some of them are very deep under-ground, but others are not, but the coal is brought up a slope in wagons on wheels. I was up last winter, and saw the men and boys that work in the mines. They were terribly black with coal dust. Each of them carries a safety-lamp, which gives but a feeble light in such dark places. I was up two winters ago, and saw one of the places for myself. At one of the largest mines, about two years ago, there was an explosion, which killed forty men, and ruined the mine. ”

“ In baking bread, which is, I think, the real test of a cook's merits, a great deal depends on the kneading. You can not knead bread too long or too often, and the more it is kneaded, by which I mean rolled over and pounded with the clinched fist, the finer and closer-grained it will be. ”

“ Many a poor butterfly goes through life having its proboscis loaded down with the glued-on pollen cases (Fig. 5) . It is one of those business arrangements which does not work equally well for both parties. ”

“ You know, when there's a circus in town everybody comes from all around to see it, an' it wouldn't do to have a place where they couldn't all get in;" and Toby spoke as if there could be no doubt as to the crowds that would collect to see this wonderful show of theirs. ”

“ We think we would like your woolly dog much better, Joe, than we do a woolly one which belongs to a young lady we know, and keeps us awake at night by howling while his mistress is absent at a party or concert. ”

“ One player on one side serves until he is put out, and then his partner serves until he is put out. Then the other side goes in, and so on. The non-strikers are bound to get out of the way. If they in any way embarrass a striker, it is called a "let," and counts for nothing.
The Spring Handicap Championship games were lately held at the Racket Club. There were thirty-eight entries, divided into first and second class, with a prize for each class. In order to make the chances of the good and the bad players as nearly equal as possible, the good ones gave odds to the bad ones. ”

“ Bob was perfectly willing to talk about a circus—so willing, that, almost before Toby was aware of it, he was laying plans with the others for such a show as could be given with the material at hand.
"You see, we'd have to get a tent the first thing," said Toby, as he seated himself on the saw-horse as a sort of place of honor, and proceeded to give his companions the benefit of his experience in the circus line. "I s'pose we could get along without a fat woman or a skeleton; but we'd have to have the tent anyway, so's folks couldn't look right in an' see the show for nothin'." ”

“ He's got a pair of clappers; an' Mrs. Doak's goin' to show him how to play on the accordion with one finger, so's he'll know how to make an awful lot of noise," said Reddy, as he gave up the task of extracting the sawdust, and devoted his entire attention to the scheme.
"An' we can have some animals," said Bob, with the air of one who adds the crowning glory to some brilliant work.
Toby had been surprised at the resources of the town for [Pg 355] a circus, of which he had not even dreamed; and at Bob's last remark he left his saw-horse seat, as if to enable him to hear more distinctly. ”

“ They do not feed on the juices of the trees, as parasites like the mistletoe do; they only want a standing-place, something to push against as they grow, and water. In the greenhouse they are usually planted in pots filled with bits of stone and damp moss, or they grow attached to the parent plant, as you may see in Fig. 2, and send their roots out into the air for food. A few of them—the Indian moccasin, for instance—grow like common plants in the ground.
It would almost seem as if the orchids had an eye to business in their imitation of insects. ”

“ Annie M.—School-girls make a great mistake, dear, in wishing to be young ladies too soon. If they could see how perfectly charming their lives look to older persons, and if they realized what delightful times they are having, they would not be in such haste to grow up. ”

“ To be a good cook, girls, one needs a light, firm hand, an accurate eye, and a patient temper. One needs, too, a few rules and a trustworthy receipt-book. We have all seen the easy way in which a good cook makes a cake. ”

“ I'd much rather be a cat, for I'm so fond of singing on the back fence." And the end of it was that she had to give him a tremendous pile of money before he'd consent to be changed back into a boy again.
Boys can play being animals, and it's great fun, only the other boys who don't play they are animals get punished for it, and I say it's unjust, especially as I never meant any harm at all, and was doing my very best to amuse the children. ”

“ Bob nodded his head to show he was convinced Reddy could do just as he had promised; but Toby was anxious for more particulars, and insisted on knowing where this very necessary portion of a circus was coming from.
"You see, a tent is a big thing," he said, seriously, "an' it would cost more money than the fellers in this town could raise if they should pick all the strawberries in Uncle Dan'l's pasture." ”

“ Little friends who send us puzzles will please remember that they must always send the answers at the same time they inclose puzzles. Little folks who find our puzzles out must not omit their names, as we like to give them credit for their clever wits.
C. Y. P. R. U.
My Lady's Toilet.—This is a pretty game for a number of children to play some rainy day at recess when they can not go out of doors. To each of the performers is given the name of an article of dress. Chairs are placed for all the party except one, so as to leave one chair too few. ”

“ The air manages to supply them with food, but they have to depend upon getting drink in some other way. Plants are a good deal like people in that respect; they can manage to get along somehow with very little food, but they soon die of thirst if deprived of water. ”

“ For days and days you could see great clouds of smoke rising toward the skies from where we live. Our town is not large; there are only 4000 people in it. But we have some fine houses and public buildings. ”

“ The ice is now about one foot thick, and carries horses and sleds with large loads of coal. It is marked in many directions with long rows of trees not very far apart, which were put into holes in the ice when it was about four inches thick, and having frozen there, they stand quite firmly. They are for guiding people on stormy days and nights, when they can not see from shore to shore. ”

“ So while we will not trouble these little ones who put them there and enjoyed it, no doubt, as it helped to amuse and keep them from fretting while sick, we will work all the harder; we who can run, jump, and play heartily out-of-doors will try and think more of these little ones, ill and suffering, many of whom will never again be able to run, or play, but may have to suffer pain as long as they live. ”

“ Many people think that while a girl must go to school for years to acquire a knowledge of her own and foreign languages, and must have masters for this and that accomplishment, she may be safely left to pick up an acquaintance with cooking after she has a household of her own. ”