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? (Itt) THE.
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Our Boys
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BABY'S LAUGH.
By Carolyn Wells.
Baby's face is like a flower,
Baby's smile's divine;
Baby's hair is a golden shower.
His eyes are stars ashine.
Baby's charms all seem to be
Like to treasures rare;
Rll* lintn who* nn lan/1 r.?
Can Baby's laugh compare?
Like roses set to rhyme,
Like bluebells all achime.
Like rippling rills, and tinkling trills, and flowers
of sunny clime.
Like bird-notes clear and free,
Like muimurs of the sea,
Like purling streams, and happy dreams, Is
Baby's laugh to me.?Ex.
THE MINSTRELS SONG.
BY MAUD LINDSAY.
Once, long, long ago, there lived in a country
over the sea a king called Rene, who married
a lovely princess whose name was Tmogen.
Imogen came across the seas to the king's beautiful
country, and all his people welcomed her
with great joy because the king loved her.
"What can T do to please thee to-day T" the
king: asked her every morning; and one day the
queen answered that she would like to hear all
the minstrels in the king's country, for they were
said to be the finest in the world.
As soon as the king heard this, he called his
heralds and sent them everywhere through his
land to sound trumpets and call aloud:
"Hear ye, minstrels! King Rene, our gracious
king, bids ye come to play at his court on May
day, for love of the Queen Imogen."
The minstrels were men who sang beautiful
songs and played on harps; and, long ago, they
went about from place to place, from castle to
castle, from palace to cot, and were always sure
of a welcome wherever they roamed.
The could sing of the brave deeds that the
knights had done, and of wars and battles, and
could tell of the mighty hunters who hunted in
the great forests, and of fairies and goblins, better
than a story-book; and because there were no
story-books in those days, everybody, from little
children to the king, was glad to see them.
So, when the minstrels heard the king's message,
they made haste to the palace on May day,
and so it happened that some of them met on the
way and decided to travel together.
One of these minstrels was a young man named
Harmonius; and while the others talked of the
songs that they would sing, he gathered the wild
flowers that grew by the roadside.
"I can sing of the drums and battles," said
the oldest minstrel, whose hair was white and
whose step was slow.
"I can sing of ladies and their fair faces,"
said tne youngest minstrel; nut iiarmonius
whispered, "Listen, listen!"
"Oh, we hear nothing but the wind in the
treetops," said the others. "We have no time
to stop and listen.'
Then they hurried on and left Harmonius.
and he stood under the trees and listened, for he
heard something very sweet. At last he knew
that it was the wind singing on its travels
through the wide world; telling how it raced over
the blue sea, tossing the waves and rocking the
white ships, and hurried on to the hills, where
the trees made harps of their own braches, and
then how it blew down into the valley, where all
the flowers danced gayly to the tune. Iiarmonius
eon Id understand every word:
kr . : ' .
PRESBYTERIAN OF THE SO
and Girls j
4 4 Nobody follows me where I go,
Over the mountains or valleys below;
Nobody sees where the wild winds blow,
Only the Father in heaven can know."
Thta was the chorus of the wind's song,
riarmonius listened until he knew the whole
song from beginning to end, and then he ran on
and soon reached his friends, who were still taking
of the grand sights that they were to see.
"We shall see the king and speak to him,"
said the oldest minstrel.
"And his golden crown and the queen's
jewels," added the youngest, and Harmonius
had no chance to tell of the wind's song, although
he thought about it time and again.
Now, their path led them through the wood,
and as they talked, ITarmonius said, "Ilush,
listen!" But the others answered, "Oh, that
is only the sound of the brook trickling over the
stones. Let us make haste to the king's court."
But Harmonius stayed to hear the song that
the brook was singing, of journeying through
mosses and ferns and shady ways, and of tumb
ung over xne rocKs in snining waterfalls on its
way to the sea.
"Rippling and bubbling through shade and sun.
On to the beautiful sea I run;
Singing forever, though none be near.
For God in heaven can always hear,"
sang the little brook. Harmonius listened until
he knew every word of the song, and then hurried
on.
"When he reached the others, he found them
talking of the king and queen, so he could not
tell them of the brook. As they talked, he heard
something again that was wonderfully sweet, and
he cried, "Listen, listen !"
"Oh, that is only a bird!" the others replied.
"Let us make haste to the king's court."
But Harmonius would not go, for the bird
sang so joyfully that ITarmonius laughed aloud
when he heard the song.
Tt was singing a song of green trees, and in
every tree a nest, and in nest, eggs. Oh. the bird
was so gay as it sang:
"Merrily listen to me,
Flitting and flying from tree to tree,
Nothing fear I by land or sea,
For God in heaven is watching me."
"Thank you, little bird," said narmonins,
I I 1 i 1. L l? A-J ' *
,rv?u nave inugiii me a sung. ana ne maae
haste to join his comrades, for by this time they
were near the palace.
When they had gone in they received a hearty
welcome, and were feasted in the great hall before
they came before the king.
The king and queen sat on their throne together.
The king thought of the queen and the
minstrels, but the queen thought of her old home,
and of the butterflies she had chased when she
was a little child.
One by one the minstrels played before them.
The oldest minstrel sang of battles and drums,
just as he said he would; and the youngest minstrel
sang of ladies and their fair faces, which
pleased the court ladies very much.
Then came Ilarmonius. And when he touched
his harp and sang, the song sounded like the
wind blowing, the sea roaring, the trees creaking;
then it grew very soft and sounded like the
trickling brook dripping on stones and running
J 4V. !-- J
uyci nine [/cuuicn j aim rvinio me Kiu^ anil queen
and all the court listened in surprise, Harmonniua'
song grew sweeter, tweeter, sweeter. It
\
U T H [ January 31, 1912
was as if you heard all the birds of spring. And
then the song was ended.
The queen clapped her hands, and the ladies I
waved their handkerchiefs, and the king came
down from his throne to ask Harmonius if he
came from fairyland with such a wonderful
song. But narmonius answered: '
"Three singers sang along our way,
And I learned the song from them to-day."
Now, all the other minstrels looked up in sur
prise wnen flarmonius said this; and the oldest
minstrel said to the king; "Ilarmonius is
dreaming! We heard no mnsie on our way today."
7
And the youngest minstrel said: "TTarmonius
is surely mad! We met nobody on our way
to-day."
But the queen said: "That is an old, old song.
I heard it when I was a little child; and I can
name the singers three." Can yout?Christian
Standard.
A BOY'S RELIGION.
If a boy is a lover of the Lord Jesus Christ,
though he can't lead a prayer-meeting or be a
church officer or preacher, he can be a godly boy
in a boy's way and in a boy's place. He need
not cease to be a boy because he is a Christian.
He ought to run, jump, climb and yell just like
a real boy. But in all he ought to be free from
vulgarity and profanity. Tie ought not use tobacco
in any form, and should have a horror of
intoxicating drinks. He ought to be peaceable,
gentle, merciful and generous. He ought to
take the part of small boys against large ones.
He ought to refuse to be a party to mischief,
to persecution, to deceit. And, above all things,
he ought now and then to show his colors, ne
should not always be interrupting a game to say
that he is a Christian, but he ought not to be
ashamed to say that he refuses to do something
because he fears God, or is a Christian. He
ought to take no part in the ridicule of sacred
things, but meet the ridicule of others with a
bold statement that for things of God he feels
the deepest reverence.?Ex.
HONEST LITTLE DICK.
In all my life I never saw so honest a little
cat as our Dick. He not only never stole himself,
but he would not allow any other cat to steal if
1 1 J 1- _ 1 ? ' i m* v
ue tuuiu neip 11. ine dear little tellow, however,
was strongly tempted once, and came very
near losing his ^ood name.
One day the cook carried out a pail of nice
little frost-fish, and set it down in the yard.
Dick was there. Dick always was near-by when
there were good things to eat. The cook went
back into the house, and Dick sat down to wait
for her return; and two or his especial friends
were at the window upstairs looking down to see
what "honest Dick" would do.
The cook was a long time coming back to dress
the fish; and all the while Dick kept watch?
now on the pail, now on il.? kitchen door. At
last he went somewhat nearer io the pail, then
nearer, then nearer. Ah! trost-firsh smell so
good. Dick's little nose almost touched them.
And then he sat down and cried at the tnr? nf hi?
voice for cook to return quickly and save him
from being a thief.
But she did not come. At last Dick put his
fore-paws on the edge of the pail. Then he looked
at the kitchen door and cried again. But the
door did not open. So slowly, softly a paw
reached down in the pail. But it came back with
a jerk, empty, and its owner ran around the
corner of the house where he would not see or
smelt those nice frost-fish any more. Tie did not
want to be a thief, and we believe the little
fellow never came so near it again.?Little Folks.
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