New National Fourth Reader by Charles J. Barnes and J. Marshall Hawkes

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He went to one whom he thought more wise
Than any other beneath the skies:
"Mother,"--O word that makes the home!--
"Tell me, when will to-morrow come?"

"It is almost night," the mother said,
"And time for my boy to be in bed;
When you wake up and it's day again,
It will be to-morrow, my darling, then."

The little boy slept through all the night,
But woke with the first red streak of light;
He pressed a kiss on his mother's brow,
And whispered, "Is it to-morrow now?"

"No, little Eddie, this is to-day;
To-morrow is always one night away."
He pondered awhile, but joys came fast,
And this vexing question quickly passed.

But it came again with the shades of night:
"Will it be to-morrow when it is light?"
From years to come, he seemed care to borrow,
He tried so hard to catch to-morrow.

"You can not catch it, my little Ted;
Enjoy to-day," the mother said;
"Some wait for to-morrow through many a year--
It always is coming, but never is here."

* * * * *

Directions for Reading.--In reading poetry, pupils should notice the
emphatic words, and give them proper force.

Example.

"_Mother_,"--O word that makes the home!--

"_Tell_ me, when will _to-morrow_ come?"

The two dashes in the first line of the preceding example are used
instead of a parenthesis, and have the same value.

When there is no pause at the end of a line (see first line, third
stanza), it should be closely joined in reading to the line which
follows it, thus making the two lines read as one.

* * * * *

LESSON V.

ap'pe tite, _wish for food_.

a muse'ment, _play; enjoyment_.

gaunt, _lean; hungry looking_.

spe'cies, _kind_.

oc curred', _took place; happened_.

en cour'age ment, _hope given by another's words or actions_.

di rec'tion, _way; course_.

dusk'y, _very dark; almost black_.

sin'gu lar, _unusual; strange_.

* * * * *

AN ADVENTURE WITH DUSKY WOLVES.

PART I.

"During the summer and winter, we had several adventures in the
trapping and killing of wild animals. One of them was of such a
singular and dangerous kind, that you may feel interested in hearing
it.

"It occurred in the dead of winter, when there was snow upon the ground.
The lake was frozen over, and the ice was as smooth as glass. We spent
much of our time in skating about over its surface, as the exercise
gave us health and a good appetite.

"Even Cudjo, our colored servant, had taken a fancy for this amusement,
and was a very good skater. Frank was fonder of it than the rest of us,
and was, in fact, the best skater among us.

"One day, however, neither Cudjo nor I had gone out, but only Frank and
Harry. The rest of us were busy at some carpenter work within doors.

"We could hear the merry laugh of the boys, and the ring of their skates
as they glided over the smooth ice. All at once, a cry reached our
ears, which we knew meant the presence of some danger.

"'O Robert!' cried my wife, 'they have broken through the ice!'

"We all dropped what we held in our hands, and rushed to the door. I
seized a rope as I ran, while Cudjo took his long spear, thinking it
might be of use to us. This was the work of a moment, and the next we
were outside the house.

"What was our astonishment to see both the boys, away at the farthest
end of the lake, but skating toward us as fast as they could!

"At the same time, our eyes rested upon a terrible sight. Close behind
them upon the ice, and following at full gallop, was a pack of wolves!

"They were not the small prairie wolves, which either of the boys might
have chased with a stick, but of a species known as the 'Great Dusky
Wolf' of the Rocky Mountains.

"There were six of them in all. Each of them was twice the size of the
prairie wolf, and their long, dark bodies, gaunt with hunger, and
crested from head to tail with a high, bristling mane, gave them a most
fearful appearance.

"They ran with their ears set back and their jaws apart, so that we
could see their red tongues and white teeth.

"We did not stop a moment, but rushed toward the lake. I threw down the
rope, and seized hold of a large rail as I ran, while Cudjo hurried
forward armed with a spear. My wife, with presence of mind, turned back
into the house for my rifle.

"I saw that Harry was foremost, and that the fierce wolves were fast
closing upon Frank. This was strange, for we knew that Frank was by far
the better skater. We all called out to him, uttering loud shouts of
encouragement. Both were bearing themselves manfully, but Frank was
most in danger.

"The wolves were upon his heels! 'O they will kill him!' I cried,
expecting the next moment to see him thrown down upon the ice. What was
my joy at seeing him suddenly wheel and dart off in a new direction."

* * * * *

Directions for Reading.--This lesson should be read with spirit, and
in a full, clear tone of voice.

* * * * *

Language Lesson.--_Presence of mind_ is the power to act quickly when
sudden danger threatens.

_Upon his heels_ means very close to.

_Dead of winter_ is the middle of winter, as that is supposed to be
the quietest or most lifeless time.

Syllabify, accent, and mark sounds of letters in the following words:
_fancy, gallop, prairie, bristling, rifle_.

* * * * *

LESSON VI.

e lud'ed, _got away from; avoided_.

ex cit'ing, _causing deep interest_.

marks'man, _one who shoots well_.

re treat'ing, _going away from_.

en a'bled, _helped; made able_.

sim'i lar, _like; nearly the same_.

pur suit', _following after_.

nim'bly, _with a quick motion_.

com menced', _began_.

* * * * *

AN ADVENTURE WITH DUSKY WOLVES.

PART II.

"The wolves, thus nimbly eluded, now kept on after Harry, who, in turn,
became the object of our anxiety.

"In a moment they were close upon him; but he, already warned by his
brother, wheeled in a similar manner, while the fierce brutes, swept
along by the force of their running, were carried a long distance upon
the ice before they could turn themselves.

"Their long, bushy tails, however, soon enabled them to turn about and
follow in the new direction, and they galloped after Harry, who was now
the nearest to them.

"Frank, in the meantime, had again turned, and came sweeping past behind
them, at the same time shouting loudly, as if to tempt them away from
their pursuit of Harry.

"They heeded him not, and again he changed his direction, and, as though
he was about to skate into their midst, followed the wolves.

"This time he skated up close behind them, just at the moment when Harry
had turned again, and thus made his second escape.

"At this moment, we heard Frank calling out to his brother to make for
the shore, while, instead of retreating himself, he stopped until Harry
had passed, and then dashed off, followed closely by the whole pack.

"Another slight turn brought him nearly in our direction; but there was
a large hole broken through the ice close by the shore, and we saw
that, unless he turned again, he would skate into it.

"We thought he was watching the wolves too intently to see it, and we
shouted to warn him. Not so; he knew better than we what he was about.

"When he had reached within a few feet of the hole, he wheeled sharply
to the left, and came dashing up to the point where we stood to receive
him.

"The wolves, too intent upon their chase to see any thing else, went
sweeping past the point where he had turned, and the next moment
plunged through the broken ice into the water.

"Then Cudjo and I ran forward, shouting loudly, and, with the heavy rail
and the long spear, commenced dealing death among them.

"It was but a short, though exciting scene. Five of them were speared
and drowned, while the sixth crawled out upon the ice and was rapidly
making off, frightened enough at his cold ducking.

[Illustration]

"At that moment I heard the crack of a rifle and saw the wolf tumble
over.

"On turning round I saw Harry with, my rifle, which my wife had brought
down and handed to him, as a better marksman than herself.

"The wolf, only wounded, was kicking furiously about on the ice; but
Cudjo now ran out, and, after a short struggle, finished the business
with his spear.

"This was, indeed, a day of great excitement in our forest home. Frank,
who was the hero of the day, although he said nothing, was no doubt not
a little proud of his skating feat.

"And well he might be, as, but for his skill, poor Harry would no doubt
have fallen a prey to the fierce wolves."

* * * * *

Language Lesson.--Let pupils use other words to express the meaning of
what is given below in dark type.

Again he _changed his direction_.

He then _dashed off_.

He wheeled _sharply_ to the left.

Cudjo and I commenced _dealing death among them_.

Cudjo _finished the business_ with his spear.

Harry would have _fallen a prey to_ the fierce wolves.

Tell the story in your own words, using the points in the following

Analysis.--1. Frank and Harry go to skate. 2. The alarm. 3. The
wolves. 4. The pursuit. 5. The escape. 6. Death of the wolves.

* * * * *

LESSON VII.

craft, _ship; a boat of any kind_.

mew'ing, _crying, like a cat_.

a dopt'ed, _received as one's own_.

ad mir'er, _one who likes another_.

voy'age, _journey by water_.

dain'ty, _nice in form or taste_.

a loft', _on high; in the air_.

wind'ward, _the point from which the wind blows_.

star'board, _the right-hand side of a ship_.

bruised, _injured, hurt_.

* * * * *

OUR SAILOR CAT.

She was a sailor cat, indeed, and it was a sailor who first brought her
on board.

Our steamer was lying at her pier in the North River, at New York,
taking in cargo.

One of our men, who had been ashore, came back with a little
gray-and-white kitten in his arms. She was very poor and thin, and her
little furry coat was sadly soiled with dirt and grease.

But she had not lost all her fun, for she was making play with her tiny
fore-paws at the ends of the sailor's red beard, to honest Jack's great
delight.

"Where did you pick that up, Jack?" asked the third officer.

"Well, your honor," said Jack Harmon, touching his cap with a grin,
"seems to me she must have left her ship and gone to look for another,
for I found her tramping along the pier there, and mewing as if she was
calling out for somebody to show her the road.

"So I thought that, as we have many rats aboard the old craft, she would
be able to pick up a good living there; and I called to her, and she
came at once, and here she is."

Here she was, sure enough; and as Jack ended his story, she chimed in
with a plaintive little "Me-ow," which said, as plainly as ever any cat
spoke yet, "I'm very cold and hungry, and I do wish somebody would take
me below and give me some food!"

She had not long to wait. Half an hour later she was the best-fed cat in
that part of New York City, and that night she lay snugly curled up with
a good warm blanket over her.

Of course, the first thing to do with an adopted cat is to give it a
name, and Jack Harmon, who was a bit of a wag in his way, and a great
admirer of the monster elephant which was just then making such a stir
in New York, called his new pet "Jumbo."

Jumbo soon became the pet of the whole crew, and of the passengers, too,
when they came on board, a few days later, for the voyage back to
England.

Before we were half-way across the ocean, the bits of meat or cake, and
bits of white bread soaked in milk, which were being constantly given
her by one and another, had made her look as round as an apple.

The ladies were never tired of stroking her soft fur and admiring her
dainty white paws, which were now as spotless as snow. The children
romped all day with this new playmate, who seemed to enjoy the sport
quite as much as themselves.

But Jumbo was not content with mere play. She seemed to think herself
bound to do something to "work her passage." Whenever any of the crew
went aloft to take in sail, Jumbo would always climb up, too, as if to
help them.

Jack Harmon was still her favorite, and whenever it came his turn to
stand at the bow and keep watch, there was Jumbo going backward and
forward.

On the eighth night of the voyage, the stars looked dim and
watery, and a low bank of clouds began to rise to windward of us, just
between sea and sky.

The old sailors shook their heads and looked grave, as if they expected
an unusual storm. Suddenly the wind began to blow strongly upon the
starboard quarter, stirring up a cross-sea which tossed the great ship
like a toy.

Nearly all the passengers had gone below, and the few who remained on
deck buttoned their water-proof coats, and held tightly on by any thing
they could seize.

Jack Harmon had shut up his cat below, but poor puss escaped somehow,
for all at once a shrill cry was heard, and there was Jumbo clinging to
a rail, with a great mountain of a wave coming right down upon her.

Several men sprang toward the spot, but Jack was foremost, and he had
just reached his little pet when down came the great wave upon them
both.

Instantly the whole after-deck was one roaring, foaming waterfall, the
flying spray of which blinded one for a moment. But when it cleared,
there stood our brave Jack--dripping, bruised, and bleeding from a cut
on the head.

But his little favorite was safe in his arms, and as he came back with
her, such a cheer went up from all who were on deck, as the old ship had
not heard for many a day.

"Let's send round the hat for him," said one of the passengers.

And the hat was sent around, so successfully that Jack got enough money
to give his poor old mother a happy Christmas, and still have something
left over for himself and Jumbo, who was his mother's pet ever after.

* * * * *

Directions for Reading.--Should this lesson be read with the same tone
of voice as Lessons V. and VI.?

In the first paragraph, do not say _pier rin_ for _pier in; dir' tand_
for _dirt and_.

Point out two other places in the lesson where mistakes similar to those
just given might occur.

* * * * *

Language Lesson.--Syllabify, accent, and mark the sounds of letters in
the following words: _cargo, officer, blanket, passengers, instantly,
bleeding_.

_Work her passage_ means to pay her fare by making herself useful.

Make out an _analysis_ in six parts for this lesson, and use it in
telling the story in your own words.

* * * * *

LESSON VIII.

loi'ter ing, _going slowly, lingering_.

pro tect'or, _one who keeps another from harm_.

throng'ing, _gathering in large numbers_.

wrecked, _dashed to pieces_.

thatched, _covered with straw or twigs_.

bronzed, _brown, darked-colored_.

bleach'ing, _whitening_.

van'ished, _gone out of sight; departed suddenly_.

rapt'ure, _great joy; delight_.

* * * * *

RESCUED.

"Little lad, slow wandering across the sands so yellow,
Leading safe a lassie small--O tell me, little fellow,
Whither go you, loitering in the summer weather,
Chattering like sweet-voiced birds on a bough together?"

"I am Robert, if you please, and this is Rose, my sister,
Youngest of us all"--he bent his curly head and kissed her,
"Every day we come and wait here till the sun is setting,
Watching for our father's ship, for mother dear is fretting.

"Long ago he sailed away, out of sight and hearing,
Straight across the bay he went, into sunset steering.
Every day we look for him, and hope for his returning,
Every night my mother keeps the candle for him burning.

"Summer goes, and winter comes, and spring returns but never
Father's step comes to the gate. O, is he gone forever?
The great, grand ship that bore him off, think you some tempest wrecked her?"
Tears shone in little Rose's eyes, upturned to her protector.

Eagerly the bonny boy went on: "O, sir, look yonder!
In the offing see the sails that east and westward wander;
Every hour they come and go, the misty distance thronging.
While we watch and see them fade, with sorrow and with longing."

"Little Robert, little Rose!" The stranger's eyes were glistening
At his bronzed and bearded face, upgazed the children, listening;
He knelt upon the yellow sand, and clasped them to his bosom,
Robert brave, and little Rose, as bright as any blossom.

"Father, father! Is it you?" The still air rings with rapture;
All the vanished joy of years the waiting ones recapture!
Finds he welcome wild and sweet, the low-thatched cottage reaching,
But the ship that into sunset steered, upon the rocks lies bleaching.

[Illustration]

* * * * *

Directions for Reading.--Read the conversational parts of this poem
like conversation in prose.

Point out the _emphatic words_ in the first line of the last stanza.

* * * * *

Language Lesson.--_Into sunset steering_, means sailing westward.

_The misty distance thronging_, means gathering together in the
distance.

_The still air rings with rapture_, means that the air becomes full of
joyful shouts.

_All the vanished joy of years the waiting ones recapture_, means that
the children regain the happiness lost during their father's absence.

* * * * *

LESSON IX.

impos'ing, _grand looking; of great size_.

glar'ing, _fierce looking_.

lim'its, _space_.

e nor'mous, _very large; huge_.

start'led, _suddenly alarmed; surprised_.

au'dible, _that may be heard_.

maj'esty, _greatness; nobility_.

increas'ing, _growing larger_.

* * * * *

THE LION.

There is, in the appearance of the lion, something both noble and
imposing. Nature has given him wonderful strength and beauty.

His body, when full grown, is only about seven feet long and less than
four feet high; but his large and shapely head, with its powerful jaws,
his glaring eye, and long, flowing mane, give him an air of majesty that
shows him worthy of the name--"King of Beasts."

Yet we are told that a lion will not willingly attack man, unless first
attacked himself or driven by hunger to forget his habits.

On meeting man suddenly, he will turn, retreat slowly for a short
distance, and then run away.

The lion belongs to the cat family, and his teeth and claws are similar
in form and action to those of the house cat.

His food is the flesh of animals; and so great is his appetite, that it
must require several thousand other animals to supply one lion with food
during his life-time.

His strength is so enormous that he can crush the skull of an ox with a
single blow of his powerful paw, and then grasp it in his jaws and bound
away.

Unless driven by hunger to bolder measures, he will hide in the bushes,
or in the tall reeds along the banks of rivers, and spring suddenly upon
the unlucky animal that chances to come near him.

Many lions have been captured, and their habits and appearance carefully
studied. Although there is a difference in color--some being of a
yellowish brown, others of a deep red, and a few silvery gray--the
general form and appearance of all lions is the same.

The mane is of a dark brown, or of a dusky color, and the tail nearly
three feet long, with a bunch of hair at the tip.

The lioness, or female lion, is smaller in every way than the male and
has no mane.

It is in the night-time that the lion goes out from his den to seek for
food, and his color is so dark and his movements so silent, that his
presence is not known even at the distance of a few yards.

These dangerous beasts are no longer found in Europe, although they
lived there in numbers many hundred years ago. It is only in the deserts
and rocky hills of Asia and Africa that they are met with.

Those who have visited a menagerie, and have seen a lion within the
limits of a narrow iron cage, can form no idea of the majesty of the
brute when roaming about freely on his native soil.

The voice of the lion is loud and strong. It is likely to strike terror
to the bravest heart.

"It consists," says a well-known writer, "at times of a low, deep
moaning, repeated five or six times, and ending in scarcely audible
sighs; at other times, the forest is startled with loud, deep-toned,
solemn roars, increasing in loudness to the third or fourth, and then
dying away in sounds like distant thunder."

* * * * *

Directions for Reading.--This lesson should be read a little more
slowly than conversation. When we wish to describe any thing, we must
give time for those who listen to us to get the meaning of what we say.

Do not run the words together when reading. (See Directions for Reading,
page 42.)[03]

Example.--"There is, in the appearance of the lion, something both
noble and imposing."

* * * * *

Language Lesson.--Syllabify, accent, and mark sounds of letters in the
following words: _meeting, require, Europe, idea, terror, measures,
unlucky, narrow, bolder_.

_Air of majesty_ means the noble appearance supposed to belong to
kings.

[03] See Lesson VII.

* * * * *

LESSON X.

ar ti fi' cial, _not real; made by human skill_.

ex er'tion, _great effort; attempt_.

destroyed', _killed; put an end to_.

cleansed, _cleaned; freed from dirt_.

sit u a'tion, _position_.

fa'mous, _much talked of; well known_.

fre'quent ly, _often_.

in'ci dent, _adventure; event_.

nar rat'ed, _told_.

hurled, _thrown with force_.

stu'por, _sleepy feeling_.

* * * * *

ADVENTURE WITH A LION.

The dangers of lion-hunting may be understood from the following
incident, narrated by Livingstone, the famous African traveler:

"The villagers among whom I was staying were much troubled by lions,
which leaped into their cattle-pens and destroyed their cows.

"As I knew well that, if one of a number of lions is killed, the others
frequently take the hint and leave that part of the country, I gave the
villagers advice to that end, and, to encourage them, offered to lead
the hunt.

"The lions were found hiding among the rocks on a hill covered with
trees, and about a quarter of a mile in length. The men circled the
hill, and slowly edged in closer and closer, so that the lions might be
completely surrounded.

"Presently one of the natives spied a lion sitting on a piece of rock,
and fired at him, the ball missing the beast and striking the rock.

"The lion turned, bit like a dog at the spot where the bullet had
struck, and then bounded off to the shelter of the brushwood.

"Soon I saw another lion in much the same situation as the former, and,
being not more than thirty yards from it, let fly with both barrels.

"As the lion was still on its legs, I hastened to reload my gun; but
hearing a sudden and frightful cry from the natives, I looked up and
saw the wounded lion springing upon me.

"I was caught by the shoulder and hurled to the ground. Growling
terribly in my ear, the lion shook me as a dog does a rat.

"The shock produced a stupor, similar to that which seems to be felt by
a mouse after the first shake of a cat.

"The lion then leaped upon one of the natives who had tried to shoot at
him, and then sprang at the neck of a second native who, armed with a
spear, was rushing to the rescue.

[Illustration]

"The exertion was too much for the wounded beast, and so, with his claws
bedded in the spearman's shoulder, he rolled over and died.

"I had escaped, but with a shoulder so broken as to need an artificial
joint, and with eleven teeth wounds in my arm.

"These wounds were less severe than they would have been, had not a
heavy jacket which I had on, cleansed the teeth of the lion in their
passage. As it was, they were soon cured and gave me no trouble
afterward."

* * * * *

Directions for Reading.--Read this lesson in a full and clear
conversational tone of voice.

Those parts of the lesson to which we wish to call attention, should be
read slowly.

Example.--"The men edged in closer and closer, so that the lions might
be completely surrounded."

Should the slow and clear reading be kept up throughout pages 51 and 52,
or should those pages be read more rapidly?[04]

* * * * *

Language Lesson.--Syllabify, accent, and mark sounds of letters in the
following words: _Livingstone, bullet, growling, jacket, offered,
advice, severe_.

_Edged in closer and closer_ means went slowly nearer and nearer.

_Let fly with both barrels_ means fired both barrels of his gun at the
same time.

_Still on its legs_ means not so badly wounded but that it was able to
stand up.

Tell the story in your own words.

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