the inside; then you cut eyes and nose and mouth in it. At night you put a candle inside and carry it out in the dark, and it makes a great grinning face of fire." "But what a curious name! Why is it called so?" "I do not know; but I suppose the name means 'Jack-with-a-lantern,' or 'man with a lantern,' for Jack is used as a sort of nickname for man.” "Oh, Jonas, may I make one out of this green pumpkin?" 'Yes, you may do so. First bring the pumpkin I will mark it for you." to me; Rollo brought the pumpkin, and Jonas, taking out his knife, marked a circle just below and all round the stem. 66 There," said he; "that is for the cap. Now you must get a case-knife and make a deep cut all around this mark; then the cap will come off if you pull it by the handle. Then dig out the inside with an old iron spoon, leaving the shell about as thick as your finger." Rollo got the knife and the spoon. spoon. Then, seating himself on a log in the yard, he proceeded to make his Jack-o'-lantern, while Jonas went off to his work in the garden. Before Rollo had quite completed his plaything he became tired, and concluded to leave it a little while and go and look for Jonas. "Well, Rollo, have you finished the Jack-o'lantern?" you to "No," replied Rollo; "I was tired; so I thought I would come and help you work and ask tell me a story." "I do not think of any story just now, but I can give you some advice." "Very well," said Rollo; "give me some advice." "I will tell you two rules my old schoolmaster used to teach me-one for work and one for play. His rule for work was this: Rollo laughed at hearing this rule, and asked if all the old master's rules were in poetry. "His second rule," continued Jonas, "was for play. It was this: "I think this is an excellent rule," said Rollo; "for children often lose their playthings by leaving them about when they have done playing. I never leave my things lying about." "Where is "Indeed!" said Jonas. your Jacko'-lantern? Have you put that away?" 66 No; but that is not finished yet." "Then you have broken both of my old master's rules. You have left your work unfinished because you were tired of it, and you did not put away your playthings when you had done with them. Now let us go home." They walked toward the house. "Rollo! Rollo! see there!" exclaimed Jonas, as they came in sight of the yard. Rollo looked up and saw the old white cow eating up his Jack-o'lantern. Rollo picked up a stick and ran after the cow, shouting out, "Wheh there! wheh!" as loud and fiercely as he could. The cow seized another large mouthful and ran off, shaking her horns and brandishing her tail. "The ugly old cow!" said Rollo, taking up the remains of the pumpkin. "My Jack-o' lantern is all spoiled. I will get some stones and stone her." "Stone her! Stone what?" replied Jonas coolly. "Stone the cow?" 66 'Yes, of course," answered Rollo; "that ugly old cow! 66 وو Why, what is the cow to blame for?" said Jonas. "To blame! Why, she has been eating up my Jack-o'-lantern." "I do not think the cow is to blame," said Jonas; "but somebody is to blame, and I can tell you who. If you stone anybody, you had better stone him. The person to blame is the boy that left the Jack-o'-lantern on the log, and thus let the cow get at it. "I think," added he, with a laugh, “that if my old schoolmaster had known of this case, he would have made a good story out of it to illustrate his two rules." From "Rollo's Vacation." WYNKEN, BLYNKEN, AND NOD BY EUGENE FIELD Wynken, Blynken, and Nod one night Sailed off in a wooden shoe Sailed on a river of misty light, Into a sea of dew. “Where are you going and what do you wish The old moon asked the three. "We have come to fish for the herring fish That live in this beautiful sea; Nets of silver and gold have we!" Blynken, And Nod. The old moon laughed and sang a song The little stars were the herring fish That lived in the beautiful sea "Now cast your nets wherever Never afraid are we;" you wish |