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“Be off, you bundle of mischief!” I stormed Jones, while his face relaxed in | to a manifest smile, for he and Wildcat also were excellent friends, and he was convinced by the other’s officious pity that the tea, although for the present concealed, would soon be forthcoming. “Be off, and bring back my cup. You know where it is ; I see it in your eye.” “Cup too much big to be in my eye,” Wildcat replied, at the same time pulling down his lower eyelids with his fingers. “Tea not in here ; tea too much hot.” “Nobody said that the tea was in your eye, though I will put some sand there I if you do not bring back my cup,” Jones threatened, grasping, as he spoke, a handful of sand. Wildcat pretended to be dreadfully alarmed, and fled to Thomp son for protection ; then whispering in his ear, “Fight him for me,” ho slipped around to Magruder, obtained the missing § cup, glided noiselessly to the rear of Jones, who was warding off some witti glcism of Thompson’s, and put down the i: cup near Jones’ heels, saying: “ Ecs-ta had-kin* must take care ! Tea $ will burn his foot!” Gladly did Jones turn at this hint, to find his tea lying close within reach ; and ■ finding also that it was now cooled down if to the exact temperature he liked best, ho sipped it with great complacency; then looking at Wildcat’s smoking cup, he resumed his old question, and asked— “ How docs the Ees-ta chat-tees drink his hot tea from a tin cup ?” “So,” replied Wildcat, taking from his pouch a joint of reed, open at both ends, and with great comfort sipping the hot 1 tea through it. “That joint of reed,” said Jones, look ? ing with admiration upon his little friend, | “ is a perfect wonder in that boy’s hands. I have seen him get water with it, where p' without it you could get none ; I have seen him drink through it when the water | was so muddy or so wormy that without | it you could drink none; J have seen him | kindle a fire with if, when without it you could kindle none; and I have seen him Ifind game with it, when without it you £ could find none.” Jones’ enthusiasm produced a laugh, is, 1 0,7 I but lie continued : “I am telling you the 1 truth. I saw him use it one day as a ■turkey call; he put it between his lips and made a quick jerking noise through Igit that soon brought a gobler strutting ■towards us from the bushes. I saw him Base it again for a blowpipe; we had only a spark of fire that we were afraid would ■ | *AYhi to man. K 1 Red man, or Indian. BURKE’S WEEKLY. go out, but he put the spark between two dead coals, and blew upon it through his reed until both coals were in a glow. I saw him use it to obtain water one day on the beach when we were fishing; our canteens had given out, and the sand was so spongy that, although there was fresh water in it, we could not separate it from the sand. lie took that same reed, tied a thickness or two of woollen cloth around the end, buried that end in the sand, and then sucked the pure water through it. In the same way lie used it as a filter, when the water was full of wiggle-tails, or full of mud or moss.” “It is a wonderful reed,” said Thomp son, stretching his eyes wide as if in great admiration, “and some of these days I think I shall get it and put it to another wonderful use, as the stem of my pipe.” “Pipe stem!” said Simpson, “I’m a wantin’ one na-ow,” and he stretched out his hand and clutched at it, but his mo tion was not quick enough for the nimble boy, who suddenly withdrew himself be yond reach, and with a murmured “Catch me first,” went to sj£ his .tea at another part of the semi-circle. They thus amused themselves until 9 o’clock, when Tomkins ordered tattoo ; soon after which every man, except the sentinel, was wrapped in his blanket, and most of them wrapped also in slumber; though several were to bo observed toss ing restlessly about, being kept awake long after a soldier’s hours by the com bined influences of moonlight and green tea, co-operating with the effects of the preceding merriment. Temperature of Sleeping Rooms. It is better to sleep in a room com fortably warm than it is to sleep in a very cold room, provided there is good ventil ation, for the reason that less clothing is required to keep comfortable. The less clothing, consistent with comfort, the better, whether awake or asleep. Warm air is just as good as cold air, and ventil ation is more easily secured when there is a difference of temperature between the air in the room and that outside. The best way of warming and ventilating sleeping rooms is to have an open grate fire and open windows. A certain distinguished clergyman of the present day is said to have been such a gay and mischievous rogue when he was a boy at school, that when he ven tured to play truant one day for the pur pose of attending a menagerie in a neigh boring town, the school was so quiet that his absence was at once detected and brought him a sound flogging. AN EASTERN STORY. BIIERE was a horse in the tribe of Neggdeh -whose fame was spread far and near, and a Bedouin of another tribe, by name of (sired extremely to possess ng offered in vain for it Is and his whole wealth, t hit upon the following device, by which he hoped to gain the object of his desire : He resolved to stain his face with the juice of an herb, to clothe himself in rags, to tie his legs and neck together, so as to appear like a lame beggar. Thus equip ped, he went to wait for Nabar, the own er of the horse, Avho was to pass that way. When he saw Nabar approaching on his beautiful steed he cried out in a ■weak voico: “ I am a poor stranger; for three days I have been unable to move, from this spot to seek food. lam dying; help mo, and Heaven will reward you.” The Bedouin kindly offered to take him up on his horse and carry him home. But the rogue replied : “ I cannot rise; I have no strength left.” Nabar, touched with pity, dismounted, led his horse to the spot, and with great difficulty set the seeming beggar on his back. But no sooner did Daher feel him self in the saddle, than ho set spurs to the horse and galloped off, calling out as he did so, “It is I, Daher. I have got the horse, and am off with it.” Nabar called after him to stop and lis ten. Certain of not being pursued, he turned, and halted at a short distance from Nabar. “ You have taken my horse,” said the latter. “ Since Heaven has willed it, I wish you joy of it; but Ido conjure you never to tell any one lioav you obtained it.” “And why not?” asked Daher. “Because,” said the noble Arab, “an other man might be really ill, and men would fear to help him. You would be the cause of many refusing to do a chari table act, for fear of being duped as I have been.” Struck with shame at these words, Daher was silent for a moment, then springing from the horse, returned it to his owner, embracing him. Nabar made him accompany him to his tent, where they spent a few days together, and be came fast friends flbr lifts.— Lamartine. useful and the beautiful aro not far asunder. 47