THE STORY OF THE SPARROWS.   E are little English sparrows. We have been two years in America. We were brought over by Mr. Wakefield's gardener. He let us loose in the grove; and there we have been ever since. Mr. Wakefield has built little houses for us, and put them on the boughs of the trees. We go into these houses when it rains hard or blows. Once the doors of our houses were all blocked up with snow. The winters here are much... more...

EBONY AND LUCY.   BONY is the name of Lucy's black dog. I will leave you to guess why he is so called. On a bright, cold winter day, when no wind was stirring, and the ice of the pond was smooth as glass, Lucy went out, followed by Ebony. Such joyful barking as there was! Her father knew that the good dog would pull her out of the water, if the ice should break through. But the day was so cold, there was little danger from thin ice. A... more...

"CHRISTMAS PRESENTS MADE HERE."   BOUT a year ago, Edwin had a Christmas present of a jig-saw. If Santa Claus brought it, then Santa Claus did a good thing for himself; for last Christmas his pack was loaded down with presents of Edwin's manufacture. Nice little brackets to set up against the wall, nice little bedsteads, book-shelves, toy-houses, frames for pictures, card-baskets,—these are but a few of the great variety of things... more...

THE BIOGRAPHY OF A BUBBLE.   HE papa who writes this biography of a bubble never wrote a biography before in all his life. This is his first printed work. Perhaps some old person will criticise it severely. "Why use such big words as 'biography' and 'criticise'?" this old person may ask. "Are you not writing for little people? Is not your subject a poor little bubble that could not have lived longer than three or four seconds?" To which... more...

THE MORNING AFTER THE PARTY. MARY (angrily).   Tommy, you deceiver!You've turned a regular thiever:I've let the light in on your deeds,You needn't sneak away.You thought it mighty pleasantTo devour that dainty pheasant;Which cook and I for breakfast meantTo have this very day. TOM (calmly). Miss Mary, I assure youYou're entirely mistaken:I was finishing my supper—Don't call me thief or brute,But please be so obligingAs to broil a... more...

"CLEAR THE COAST!" C LEAR the coast! clear the coast!" cried Albert and Frank, as they came down hill swiftly on Frank's new sled. "Look out for that woman!" cried little Harry, who was standing at the top of the hill. A poor German woman was crossing the road. She had a large basket full of bundles, which she carried on her head. In her right hand she had an umbrella and a tin pail, and on her arm another basket. Truly, seeing that the... more...

A DAY AT THE BEACH.   HERE are few of the little readers of "The Nursery" who could not tell of pleasant days spent among green fields and woods, or on the seashore. But in almost every large city, there are many children who have never been out of sight of brick walls. Their homes are in close rooms in narrow streets, and there they live from one year's end to the other. In winter they are often pinched with cold. In summer they suffer... more...

THE MOTHER'S PRAYER.   NCE there was a good mother whose chief prayer for her little boy in his cradle was that he might have a loving heart. She did not pray that he might be wise or rich or handsome or happy or learned, or that others might love him, but only that he might love. When that little boy, whose name was Edward, grew up, it seemed as if his mother's prayer had been answered, and that, in making it, she had been wiser than she... more...

TIRED OUT.   NE day Miss Lily Macnish heard the door-bell ring. She put down her spelling-book, and asked, "Who can that be, mamma?" Before mamma could give an answer, Jane the housemaid entered, and handed her a note. "Why, this is not for me: it is for you, my dear," said Mrs. Macnish, giving the note to Lily. "For me!" said Lily, while her cheeks flushed; for it was the first note she had ever received. "Please read it for me,... more...

"WHY DID ELFRIDA GO TO SLEEP?"   HAT was the question, "Why did Elfrida go to sleep?" She had been sent to the grocer's in the village; and the grocer's was only half a mile off from Brook Cottage, where she lived with her aunt and five cousins. She had been sent to buy a pound of sugar, half a pound of coffee, and five small rolls of bread. Usually she would go to the shop and return in less than half an hour. Now a whole hour went by,... more...