Read Ebook: Harper's Young People August 2 1881 An Illustrated Weekly by Various

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When other cats and other pets Around me sweetly rove, When other objects dear to me, Appeal unto my love, At such times then will my heart, In joyful throbbing be, Turned thankfully to Moumouth dead: Oh! I'll remember thee-- Oh! I'll remember, I'll remember thee!

Tune--"Serenade to Ida." Weingand.

Softly shadows creep and linger Where my Moumouth lies asleep; And ye flowers that nod and blossom, Over him your vigils keep. Guard well my slumbering Moumouth; Let no evil harm or pain, And let him but wake from dreaming, To sleep and dream again-- Dream on!

On your knees now bending, Justice shall be fully shown; And my rage sternly descending, You shall for this atone. My heart you've caused to tremble, With anxious fears and doubts assailed: You would have killed my Cat had he Been one-lived as he is one-tailed. Tremble! tremble! Traitor doubly dyed, You shall feel the pressure rare of my angry pride.

PICKING BERRIES.

BY MARGARET SANGSTER.

Away to the hill-side on swift little feet, Trot quick through the meadows in shadow and sun; Broad brims and deep crowns over brows that are sweet, And round rosy cheeks that are dimpling with fun.

And home from the hill-side on slow little feet, With baskets as heavy as faces are bright; And who will be first the dear mother to greet, And see her surprise and her look of delight?

But she never will dream, by the berries they bring, Of the millions they left where the sweet berries grow, Away on the hills where the merry birds sing, And the brook dances down to the valley below.

BLOCKADED BY A LION.

BY DAVID KER.

"Now, monsieur," says old Major De Launay, pointing to the vast jungle of monstrous reeds fringing the African coast far as the eye can reach, as the Tunis steamer heads seaward out of Bona Harbor, "if you want some sport, take a gun and go in among those reeds, and you may be sure of not having long to wait before you find yourself face to face with a lion."

"So they have everywhere else along the coast; but just here, as you see, it's a wild kind of country, and Monsieur Yellowmane has it all his own way. There are plenty of brave fellows among our Arabs here, and we Frenchmen don't consider ourselves cowards; but I can tell you that you won't find a man in all this district, Arab or Frenchman, who would go through those reeds after night-fall--no, not if you were to offer him a thousand francs."

"Wouldn't you do it yourself, then, M. De Launay?" ask I, rather surprised at such an avowal from a man whose reckless courage is a proverb throughout the length and breadth of Algeria.

Some thirty years ago, when I was a good deal nimbler than I am now , a lot of us were quartered at Bona, with nothing much to do except taking charge of some stores; and as always happens with young officers when there's not enough duty on hand to keep them steady, we weren't long in getting into mischief. One day at mess somebody brought up this story of the reed jungle, and how no one dared go into it, and we all began joking each other about who should be the man to face the lions.

"De Launay's the one to do it!" cried Alphonse St. Foix, a young sub-lieutenant. "He's afraid of nothing. Don't you remember how he led the assault at Constantine?"

"It would hardly be a fair trial, though," said our senior Major, in his polite way; "for the lions would undoubtedly let him pass as one of themselves."

"Or if he were to put on a lion's hide," chimed in Claude Latour , "they'd never find him out so long as he didn't bray."

At that there was a general laugh, which put me out so much that I fairly lost my temper.

"Agreed! agreed!" shouted all, clapping their hands, and hallooing like madmen.

But poor Claude looked quite chop-fallen, for he had never intended to push the joke so far, and the moment we rose from table he came up to me and held out his hand.

"For Heaven's sake, Henri," said he, "don't go and get yourself killed just for that foolish joke of mine, which I ought to have bitten my tongue off sooner than utter. I never dreamed you'd take it so seriously, and I'm heartily sorry to have vexed you."

I answered not a word, but just looked him straight in the eyes for a moment, and then turned my back and walked off. Many a time have I been sorry for it since then, for the poor fellow was killed by those rascally Kabyles a few months later; but one always repents of these things too late.

Well, night came at last, and every officer who wasn't on duty turned out to see me start. It had been arranged that I was to set off a little after midnight, and that my comrades were to see me into the jungle at a point close to the sea, and then come to meet me about sunrise at another point farther inland. The whole length of my circuit through the reeds would be only a little over two miles, but this, in a tract where one step was generally supposed to be certain death, was thought quite sufficient.

On I went--on, on, on--until I seemed to have done ten miles instead of two. In fact, I afterward found that I had gone far beyond the prescribed distance; but what could I do, with the reed-tops shutting out the very sky, until sometimes I had hardly any moon to steer by? At last the reeds began to grow thinner, and presently, just as I was getting fairly tired out, forth I came on to the open plain, with the first gleam of daybreak just dawning in the eastern sky.

Then I discovered, to my very great disgust, that instead of striking the point where my comrades were to meet me, I had gone ever so far beyond it.

"Well," thought I, "there's time enough yet, at all events, before sunrise. I'll just sit down and rest for five minutes, and then walk back to the meeting-place."

So down I sat upon a rock, and, as you might expect, was fast asleep directly.

I don't know how long I slept; but I awoke suddenly with that uneasy feeling which you sometimes have when somebody stands by your bedside and looks fixedly down upon you as you sleep. And sure enough somebody was looking fixedly down upon me; for when my eyes opened they rested upon the biggest lion I'd ever seen in my life.

I took in the full horror of the situation at a glance. My gun had slid down over the smooth rock, and was lying fully six feet away, with the beast right between me and it. My comrades, even if they hadn't got tired of waiting and gone home , were too far off to be summoned by any shout. Add to this that I was already parched with thirst, and that the sun was mounting, and making the rock on which I lay hotter and hotter every moment, and you'll have some idea of the nice predicament that I was in.

It's an awkward confession for an old soldier to make, but I must admit that I fairly lost my head. All hope of escaping went out of my mind at once; my only thought was to throw myself upon the lion, and get it over as soon as possible. But as I put my hand behind me to raise myself up, it struck against a big stone.

In a moment, as if some one had spoken it in my ear, I got the idea of a device that might save me yet. I clutched the stone, and keeping it well behind my back , jerked it from me so as to let it fall among the reeds. At the crash that it made, the lion turned like lightning, and gave a spring in that direction, and I gave another, right across the rock to where my gun was lying. I had barely seized it, when the beast turned upon me.

After that it was all like a confused dream. The rush of the huge tawny body, the glare of the yellow eyes into mine, and the hot, foul breath steaming on my face, the flash and crack of my piece, the lion's hoarse, bubbling growl, and the report of my second barrel, seemed all to come together. I remember nothing distinctly until I found myself leaning upon my rifle, sick and dizzy, as if I'd fallen out of a window, with the lion dead at my feet.

"M. De Launay," said he, very gravely, "to risk one's life in the cause of duty is the act of a brave man; to risk it uselessly, for the sake of a mere boast, is that of a fool. Always remember that in future."

RABBITS AS PETS.

As a matter of course all boys and girls love pets, and the number they own is probably only limited by the space which their parents are willing they should devote to such purposes.

But very many boys are too liable, after they have had their pets a few days, and the novelty has worn off, to neglect them, and the little prisoners suffer more from want of care than, when they were first brought to their new home, they did from too much attention.

If your parents have decided that you can keep pets, do not get too many, for fear that they will need more of your time than you will be willing to give; and then be careful that you care for them properly, first learning what they need.

Since rabbits are more easily cared for than almost any other kind of animals, and can be procured more easily and cheaply, repaying their owner for his care by producing a large number of young ones, it may be a favor to many to tell just how these pets can best be kept.

In England, where a great many men keep rabbits, and raise young ones in order to produce as many and as peculiar kinds as possible, one is able to buy all the fancy varieties, each of which is known by the manner in which the ears are carried. One kind is known as the "oar lop ears," another as the "horn lop," and the most expensive as the "real or perfect lop," where the ears hang straight down each side of the face. Then in these fancy varieties of rabbits the chin must be formed in a certain way, and the back must arch so that it is carried at least two inches higher than the head.

In that country very high prices are paid for what is called a perfectly formed animal; but since the habits are the same whether the ears hang down properly, or the back is sloped instead of arched, a pair of common white pink-eyed rabbits will afford quite as much pleasure as an expensive pair which do not look nearly as pretty, except to those who make a study of the animal.

Rabbits can be bought from almost any dealer in pets; but before making a selection the most important thing is to build a house for them, in order to have everything ready for their reception when they arrive.

Some boys seem to think that there is excuse enough for keeping their pets in a small box or barrel if they say that is the only place they have; but it is worse than no excuse, since they should give up the pleasure of owning animals if they can not care for them properly.

Rabbits need plenty of exercise, and that can be given in a limited amount of space provided the house, or hutch, be built in a manner to attain that object. A good one, suitable for from four to six rabbits, can be made by almost any boy who has any idea of using a hammer and saw. Build a box four feet square, three feet high at one side, and three feet six inches high at the other side, which provides for a sloping roof. Make the top nine inches larger all around, in order to have a projection which shall shelter the gimlet holes that are to be made for purposes of ventilation along the top of the sides.

Fasten the top or roof on with a pair of stout hinges at the upper or higher side, which will enable you to look in at the chambers of the house, and also to clean them. Any kind of a fastening may be used to hold it down when closed, and if there is any danger of the inmates being stolen, a staple and padlock serve the double purpose of protection and safety from their various enemies.

The hutch should be divided by a flooring about half way up, in order to give a dining-room and sleeping-room story. The upper portion should be connected with the lower by a hole cut in the floor, about six inches square, with a narrow strip of board laid at as much of an angle as the width of the building will permit. The lower story is to be used as a dining and sitting room, and holes should be bored in the floor, about two inches apart, in order that the water may run off, while a door from six to eight inches square should be made in one corner of the building, to communicate with the yard, which should be built of laths firmly imbedded in the earth. The upper floor is to be divided into four rooms of equal size, each one connected with the others by openings cut through the partitions, about six inches square.

Such a house may be made of rough boards; and with a medium-sized yard, where the rabbits can run during the day, they will be as contented and happy as possible. But their owner may not be quite as happy regarding them, since it will be only possible to see them while they are in the yard or by raising the roof of the house. To obviate this, the entire front of the house can be formed of lattice-work made of planed laths. If this is done, a shutter made like the sides of the house must be provided, so that the building can be closed during a storm or in cold weather.

Fill the chambers half full of hay; have a neat little drinking-trough just outside the door in the yard; and then procure your pets.

If you are anxious to raise young rabbits enough to provide all your friends with pets, get two or three females and one male. It is better that you get pure white ones, since those which are spotted are neither as cleanly nor as nice-looking.

In a day or two after they have been introduced to their new house they will be perfectly at home, and whether they thrive well or not depends entirely on you.

They are by no means dainty as to what they eat, provided it is green or vegetable food. Cabbage, lettuce, or turnip leaves, clover tops, carrots with the tops on, a little barley or oatmeal, corn or hay, makes up the full bill of fare for them.

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