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, and walk softly across the floor, little children," said the
schoolmaster; and now they walked quietly, and took their places, after
which the schoolmaster went in front of them, and made a short prayer.
Then they sung. The schoolmaster began in a deep bass, all the children
stood with folded hands, and joined in. Oeyvind stood farthest down by
the door with Marit, and looked on; they also folded their hands, but
they could not sing.

That was the first day at school.

#Happy Days#

WHAT THE CAT AND HEN DID

Four little children were playing in their garden one day. There were
Mollie and Jamie and Betty and Teddy.

 [Illustration: "THEY WERE SO BUSY MAKING MUD-PIES THAT THEY DID NOT SEE
 'MRS. TOMKINS.'"]

They were so busy making mud-pies that they did not see "Mrs. Tomkins,"
the old cat, when she came and mewed, and mewed, and put up her paw, and
touched Mollie and Jamie and Betty and Teddy--first one and then the
other, as much as to say, "Do come, some of you, and help me! Do come,
_please_!"

By and by the children's mama came out of the house and saw how queerly
the cat was acting, and said: "Children, Mrs. Tomkins is trying to get
you to go with her and see if her babies are all right."

So the children left their play, and said: "Come, Mrs. Tomkins, we will
go with you now."

The old cat gave a thankful "m-i-e-o-u," and started down the walk
leading to the barn. Every now and then she looked back to see if the
children were really coming. When she got to the stable, she ran and
jumped up on the manger, and looked down into it, and gave a quick,
sharp "m-i-e-o-u," as if to say, "What do you think of that?" And the
children looked in and saw a hen sitting upon the old cat's kittens and
trying to keep them all covered up! When the cat tried to go near them,
the hen would peck at her and drive her away. How the children laughed!
Mollie said: "Did you ever see anything so funny! I am going to ask Mama
to write a funny story about it,--how our old hen 'dopted the kittens."

The hen had been sitting upon some eggs in a nest near where the cat had
set up housekeeping, and when the cat went out, the hen came over and
took the cat's little family under her wings, just as if they had been
so many chick-a-biddies. And when the cat went home again, the hen
wouldn't let her come near the kittens. Mollie took the hen off, and
Mrs. Tomkins was happy.

 [Illustration: "EVERY NOW AND THEN SHE LOOKED BACK TO SEE IF THE
 CHILDREN WERE REALLY COMING."]

The next day she came again, looking as though she said, "I am very
sorry to trouble you, but I _must_." Then she said, "M-i-e-o-u!
m-i-e-o-u!" So the children left their play and went to the stable with
her, and found the hen playing mother to Mrs. Tomkins's kittens again
and trying to make them keep still and stay under her wings. If one of
them poked its head out, she would give it a sharp peck to make it go
back.

The children laughed again, and Mollie said: "Poor Mrs. Tomkins, I would
look for a new house if I were you--you do have such meddlesome
neighbors! Then she took the hen off, and Mrs. Tomkins picked up one of
the kittens.

 [Illustration: "MRS. TOMKINS GAVE A SHARP 'M-I-E-O-U,' AS IF TO SAY,
 'WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THAT?'"]

The children's mama was sitting in the library reading when the old cat
came in, with a kitten in her mouth. She put it softly down, went out,
and soon returned with another. She kept on doing this until she had
moved all her family of five kittens. Then she settled herself in a cozy
corner, and looked at the lady, and purred in this way: "If you only
knew how much trouble I have had with that bad old hen, you would let me
and my children stay here."

The lady laughed and said: "I will see what I can do for you."

Just then the children came in and begged to have the kittens stay. So a
new home was made for them in a box in the woodhouse.

DOT'S BIRTHDAY CAKE

Once there was a little girl called Dot. And she was just five years
old. And she had a fine birthday cake. It was big and round, and it had
five beautiful little pink candles set in pink rosebuds on top.

Dot sat at the big table at dinner that day, and by and by they put a
pretty pink paper cap on her head and then brought in the birthday cake.
And the little candles were all burning bright. And when she saw it she
said, "Oh! oh! how lovely! It is just too pretty to cut!"

But her mama said, "I will cut it for you, dear." So she cut one piece
for Dot, and then she asked Dot, "Will Marie have a piece?" Marie was
Dot's big doll. And Dot looked at her and said, "Marie says, 'No, thank
you.'" And mama said, "Will Fuzzy have a piece?" Fuzzy was Dot's Teddy
Bear. And Dot looked at him and said: "He says, 'No, thank you.'" And
mama said, "Will papa have a piece?" And Dot said, "Oh, yes. Won't you,
papa?" And papa said, "Yes, please." And Dot said, "Mama, you will. You
_must_ have a piece of my birthday cake." And mama said, "Yes, thank
you."

And mama cut the cake and gave Dot a piece and papa a piece and herself
a piece. But she left the parts of the cake where the candles were
burning,--one, two, three, four, five. And Dot's birthday cake lasted
one, two, three, four, five whole days before it was all gone.

NED AND ROVER AND JACK

A boy named Ned had a little puppy-dog named Rover. One day, Ned's papa
gave him a nice new toy wagon. Ned was pulling it around the yard when
he saw Rover. "Come, Rover!" he said, "I will give you a fine ride." So
he took Rover and put him in the wagon and gave him a ride.

But just then Ned saw a boy he knew, named Tom. Tom was running down the
street. Ned called to him but he did not hear. Ned wanted to show Tom
his new wagon. So he ran after Tom as fast as he could go, calling,
"Tom! Tom!" and never thinking of poor little Rover. He was barking with
all his might, "Bow! wow! Bow-wow! bow-wow-wow-wow!" which means "Oh,
stop! stop! I'm going to fall out!" And the next minute Rover went
"bumpity-bump!" out into the road, and ran off home, crying,
"Ow-wow-wow!" He was not hurt much, but he was badly frightened. But he
soon forgot his ride, and he grew and he grew and he grew, till, by and
by, he was a big dog. And then, Ned's little brother, Jack, had a little
wagon. But now Rover was too big to ride in it. So Jack said he would
make Rover pull it and _he_ would ride.

Ned helped him to harness Rover in it like a horse, and Jack climbed in
and took the reins. "Get up!" said Jack, and away they went out into the
yard and on into a big field. But just then a little rabbit started up
in front of them, and the minute Rover saw it, he began to race after
the rabbit. Poor Jack couldn't hold him at all. Round and round they
went, and they ran, and they ran, and they ran! Jack called out, "Whoa,
Rover! Stop, Rover!" But Rover didn't stop. He wanted to catch the
rabbit and he forgot about Jack.

At last the rabbit ran toward a hole under the wall, where Rover could
not get him. But Rover dashed after him as fast as he could 

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