gathered in my arms, where she clung closely, growing quiet and relaxing her nerves in the feeling of sweet safety. Then she made herself limp and quiet as a thing without life, which is a cat's 5 way of showing entire confidence in the one who holds her. Pussy White, sitting thoughtful and grave in a corner, looked at us, and got a new idea in her jealous little head: that she, who from one year's end to another, had lorded it over our 10 house and grounds, and had driven away all other cats, must somehow endure this ugly little pet of mine, since I held her so tenderly. My surprise and admiration were great to see them, an instant after, pass each other calmly and civilly, as if 15 nothing had happened. And in all their lives they never quarreled again.

One fine day, with no reason that we could see, the tolerance of Pussy White for Pussy Chinese changed to friendship. She came up to Pussy 20 Chinese and rubbed noses with her, which is the way that cats give a kiss. Sylvester and I were present at the scene. "Do you see," said I, “the kiss of peace?" "Oh, no, sir," said Sylvester, with his air of superior knowledge about animals,

"it is simply that Pussy White wishes to find out whether Pussy Chinese has been stealing her meat."

But Sylvester was mistaken for once. From that hour the two cats were firm friends. They sat in the same chair, ate the same food from the 5 same plate, and every morning greeted each other by rubbing together the tips of their two soft noses, the one yellow, the other pink.

Adapted from PIERRE LOTI: Lives of Two Cats.

im pōs'ing, handsome, distinguished; re lax', to loosen so as to put to rest.

Written Composition.

Write a description of your favorite

cat or dog, following this outline:

1. Size and color.

2. Movements.

3. Food.

4. Interesting ways.

Punctuation. Notice the use of the comma in these sen

tences:

1. Good morning, merry sunshine.

2. George, what is your address?

3. Come along, Mr. Lobster, or you'll be caught.

4. It is time to go to school, Helen.

5. Boys, do you play ball to-day?

You see that each sentence is spoken to some person or persons, and that the name of the person spoken to is set off by

commas.

Written Exercise. In the last stanza of The Pied Piper, p. 146, in The Pet Lamb, Lesson 37, and in Lucy Gray, p. 280, you will find sentences which illustrate this use of the comma. Copy at least five such sentences, being sure to use the comma correctly.

26

THE PIED PIPER OF HAMELIN

A CHILD'S STORY

(Written for, and inscribed to, W. M. the Younger.)

[Macready the actor's eldest son, when a child, was confined to the house by illness, and Browning wrote this poem to amuse the child and give him a subject for illustrative drawings.]

I

HAMELIN Town's

in Brunswick,

By famous Hanover

5

city;

The river Weser,

deep and wide,

Washes its walls on the southern side;

A pleasanter spot you never spied;

But when begins my ditty,

Almost five hundred years ago,
To see the townsfolk suffer so

From vermin, was a pity.

Rats!

II

They fought the dogs and killed the cats,

And bit the babies in the cradles,

And ate the cheeses out of the vats,

And licked the soup from the cooks' own ladles, 5 Split open the kegs of salted sprats,

Made nests inside men's Sunday hats,

And even spoiled the women's chats
By drowning their speaking
With shrieking and squeaking
In fifty different sharps and flats.

III

At last the people in a body

To the Town Hall came flocking:

""Tis clear," cried they, "our Mayor's a noddy;
And as for our Corporation-shocking
To think we buy gowns lined with ermine
For dolts that can't or won't determine
What's best to rid us of our vermin!

10

15

To find the remedy we're lacking,

Or, sure as fate, we'll send you packing!"

20

5

At this the Mayor and Corporation

Quaked with a mighty consternation.

IV

An hour they sat in council;

At length the Mayor broke silence:

"Oh, for a trap, a trap, a trap!"

Just as he said this, what should hap

At the chamber door but a gentle tap?

"Bless us," cried the Mayor, "what's that?"

*

V

"Come in!" the Mayor cried, looking bigger: 10 And in did come the strangest figure! His queer long coat from heel to head Was half of yellow and half of red, And he himself was tall and thin, With sharp blue eyes, each like a pin, 15 And light loose hair, yet swarthy skin, No tuft on cheek nor beard on chin, But lips where smiles went out and in There was no guessing his kith and kin

;