A Kindergarten Story Book Part 10

"Oh, Chicker Ricker!"

"Who told you, Chicker Ricker?"

"Oh, Fox Lox!"

"Who told you, Fox Lox?"

"Oh, I heard it and I felt it and it came thump upon my crown! Run down hill with me where you will be quite safe," said Fox Lox.

"That I will!" cried Dove Love.

So they ran and they ran and they ran; and when Chicker Ricker and Hen Ren and c.o.c.k Lock and Duck Luck and Drake Lake and Goose Loose and Gander Lander and Turk Lurk and Dove Love reached the bottom of the hill, they were going so fast that they could not stop and they ran straight into Fox Lox's hole.

"Now I have you! Now I have you!" cried Fox Lox. And he gobbled them all up.

THE WEE, WEE WOMAN.

Once upon a time there was a wee, wee woman who lived all alone in a wee, wee house.

One night this wee, wee woman lighted her wee, wee candle, crept softly up her wee, wee stairs, got into her wee, wee bed, and fell fast asleep. Soon this wee, wee woman was awakened by a noise. She jumped out of her wee, wee bed, lighted her wee, wee candle and looked behind her wee, wee door, but there was nothing there. Then she looked under her wee, wee bed, but there was nothing there.

So this wee, wee woman took her wee, wee candle in her wee, wee hand, crept softly down her wee, wee stairs and, when she reached the room below, she looked under her wee, wee chair, but there was nothing there. Then she looked into her wee, wee cupboard, but there was nothing there. Then she looked behind her wee, wee stove, but there was nothing there. Then she looked under her wee, wee table, but there was nothing there.

So this wee, wee woman took her wee, wee candle in her wee, wee hand, crept softly up her wee, wee stairs, got into her wee, wee bed and fell fast asleep. Soon this wee, wee woman was awakened by a noise. She jumped out of her wee, wee bed, lighted her wee, wee candle and looked behind, her wee, wee door, but there was nothing there. Then she looked under her wee, wee bed, but there was nothing there.

So this wee, wee woman took her wee, wee candle in her wee, wee hand, crept softly down her wee, wee stairs, and, when she reached the room below, she looked under her wee, wee chair, but there was nothing there. Then she looked into her wee, wee cupboard, but there was nothing there. Then she looked behind her wee, wee stove, but there was nothing there. Then she looked under her wee, wee table, but there was nothing there.

So this wee, wee woman took her wee, wee candle in her wee, wee hand, crept softly up her wee, wee stairs, got into her wee, wee bed and fell fast asleep. Soon this wee, wee woman was awakened by a noise. She jumped out of her wee, wee bed, lighted her wee, wee candle and looked behind her wee, wee door, but there was nothing there. Then she looked under her wee, wee bed, but there was nothing there.

So this wee, wee woman took her wee, wee candle in her wee, wee hand, crept softly down her wee, wee stairs, and, when she reached the room below, she looked under her wee, wee chair, but there was nothing there. Then she looked into her wee, wee cupboard, but there was nothing there. Then she looked behind her wee, wee stove, but there was nothing there. Then she looked under her wee, wee table and out jumped--BOO!!!

THE LITTLE LONG TAIL.

As a cat and a mouse ran over a rail The cat bit off the mouse's tail.

The little mouse cried, "Cat, Cat, give back my little long tail again!"

"That I will if you'll give me milk!" said Cat.

The little mouse ran to Cow and cried, "Cow, Cow, give me milk, that I may give Cat milk, that Cat may give back my little long tail again!"

"That I will if you'll give me hay!" said Cow.

The little mouse ran to Barn and cried, "Barn, Barn, give me hay, that I may give Cow hay, that Cow may give me milk, that I may give Cat milk, that Cat may give back my little long tail again!"

"That I will if you'll give me key!" said Barn.

The little mouse ran to Smith and cried, "Smith, Smith, give me key, that I may give Barn key, that Barn may give me hay, that I may give Cow hay, that Cow may give me milk, that I may give Cat milk, that Cat may give back my little long tail again!"

"That I will if you'll give me coal!" said Smith.

The little mouse ran to Miner and cried, "Miner, Miner, give me coal, that I may give Smith coal, that Smith may give me key, that I may give Barn key, that Barn may give me hay, that I may give Cow hay, that Cow may give me milk, that I may give Cat milk, that Cat may give back my little long tail again!"

"That I will!" cried Miner, and he gave the mouse coal. The mouse gave Smith coal and Smith gave him key. The mouse gave Barn key and Barn gave him hay. The mouse gave Cow hay and Cow gave him milk. The mouse gave Cat milk and Cat gave back his little long tail again.

THE BROWNIES.

ADAPTED FROM MRS. EWING.

Such wonderful stories as grandmother told Johnnie and Tommy! Stories of ghosts and hob-goblins, of dwarfs and fairies; and once she told them about a brownie that was said to have lived in their own family, long ago,--a brownie who did all manner of wonderful and useful things.

He was a little fellow no larger than Tommy, she said, but very active and very shy. He slept by the kitchen fire, and no one ever saw him; but, early in the morning, when all the family were in their beds, this brownie would get up, sweep the room, build the fire, spread the table, milk the cow, churn the cream, bring the water, scrub and dust, until there was not a speck of dirt anywhere to be seen.

The children liked this story very much, and oh! how they did wish such a brownie would come to live in their house now! Over and over again they said: "Was there really and truly a brownie, grandmother, and did he really help all the people as you say? How we wish he would come back again! Why, he could mind the baby and tidy the room and bring in the wood and wait on you, grandmother! Can't we do something to get him back again?"

"I don't know, my dears," said the grandmother; "but they used to say, in my young days, that if one set a bowl of bread and milk or even a pan of clear water for him over night he would be sure to come, and would do all the work just for that."

"Oh! let us try it!" said both the boys; and one ran to get a pan, and the other to fetch fresh water from the well, for they knew, poor hungry lads, that there was no bread or milk in the house. Their father, who was a poor tailor, could scarcely earn money enough to buy food for them all. His wife had died when the baby was born and he could not make as many coats as before, for he must now do all the work of the house. Johnnie and Tommy were idle and lazy and too thoughtless to help their father, although they were fine grown lads of five and seven.

One night Tommy had a wonderful dream. He thought he went down in the meadow by the old mill pond, and there he saw an owl who shook her feathers, rolled her great eyes, and called: "Tuwhit, tuwhoo! Tuwhoo, whoo-o-o-o! Tommy, what are you doing way down here this time of night?"

"Please, I came to find the brownies," said Tommy; "can you tell me where they live, ma'am?"

"Tuwhoo, tuwhoo!" screamed the old owl; "so it's the brownies you are after, is it? Tuwhoo, tuwhoo! Go look in the mill pond. Tuwhoo, tuwhoo! Go look in the water at midnight, and you'll see one. By the light of the moon a brownie you'll see, to be sure, but such a lazy one! Tuwhoo, tuwhoo!" screamed the old owl; and, flapping her wings, she went sailing away in the moonlight.

"The mill pond, at midnight, by moonlight," thought Tommy. What could the old owl mean? It was midnight then, and moonlight, too; and there he was right down by the water. "Silly old thing," said Tommy, "brownies don't live in the water." But for all that Tommy went to the bank and peeped in. The moon was s.h.i.+ning as bright as day; and what do you suppose he saw? Why, just a picture of himself in the water, and that was all. "Humph! I'm no brownie," said he to himself; but the longer he looked the harder he thought. At last he said:

"Am I a brownie? Perhaps I am one, after all. Grandmother said they are about as large as I, and the old owl said that I would see a very lazy one if I looked in the water. Am I lazy? That must be what she meant. I am the brownie myself." The longer he thought about it the surer he was that he must be a brownie. "Why," he said, "if I am one, Johnnie must be another; then there are two of us. I'll go home and tell Johnnie all about it."

Off he ran as fast as his legs could carry him, and just as he was calling, "Johnnie, Johnnie! We are brownies! The old owl told me!" he found himself wide awake, sitting up in bed, rubbing his eyes, while Johnnie lay fast asleep by his side. The first faint rays of morning light were just creeping in at their chamber window. "Johnnie, Johnnie, wake up! I have something to tell you!"

After telling his brother all about his strange dream, Tommy said: "Let us play we really are brownies, John, even if we are not; it will be such fun for once to surprise father and grandmother. We will keep out of sight and tell about it afterwards. Oh, do come! It will be such fun!"

So these two brownies put on their clothes in a great hurry and crept softly down to the kitchen, where at first there seemed enough work for a dozen brownies to do. Tommy built up a blazing fire, and, while the kettle was boiling, swept the untidy floor, while Johnnie dusted, placed his grandmother's chair, got the cradle ready for the baby and spread the table. Just as everything was in order they heard their father's footstep on the stairs. "Run!" whispered Tommy, "or he will see us." So the boys scampered away to their bed in the loft and pretended to be fast asleep when their father called them to breakfast.

The poor tailor was fairly beside himself with delight and astonishment, and believed that the brownie he had heard so much about in his childhood had really come back again. The old grandmother was delighted, too, and said: "What did I tell you, son Thomas? I always knew there were real brownies."

Although being brownies was fun for the boys, it was hard work, too, and they sometimes thought they would leave off; but then they would think of their hard-working father and would grow quite ashamed.

Things were so much better at home than they used to be. The tailor never scolded now, the grandmother was more cheerful than of old, the baby was less fretful, the house was always tidy; and because the tailor had more time for his work, now that the brownies helped, he could make more coats and could get more money, and the boys did not go hungry to bed as they used to do; but there was always bread and milk enough, and a great bowlful to spare that they set each night for the brownie.

At last the tailor said, "I am going to do something for that brownie.