Part 3

“I am going to tell you about the little bird Elizabeth has. Her daddy gave him to her several weeks ago, and he is just as tame as tame can be,” said daddy. “She has named him Bubsie, and he knows his name too, for whenever she calls ‘Bubsie!’ he replies with a little ‘Peep, peep!’

“Every morning, bright and early, he wakes up and begins to sing the most beautiful songs. He sings so steadily that Elizabeth says it is a surprise to her that he doesn’t burst his little throat.

“After Elizabeth gets up she always gives him a little piece of apple before she begins her breakfast. She puts it on her finger between two wires of the cage, and he hops right over on his little bar and takes it from her finger.

“The next thing is his bath, which he takes soon after breakfast. He loves that. He spatters the water about and has just the best time in the world. He acts as if it were the most wonderful game. After his bath he has a treat of delicious lettuce to eat, and then he sits in the sun and smoothes down his feathers.

“In his cage there is a swing, and he swings on it and hops from one perch to the other. In fact, he has a fine romp. He usually does this right after his bath, for then he feels so energetic.

“In the afternoon Elizabeth lets him out of his cage. Of course she sees first that there are no windows up or doors ajar before she opens the door of the cage. When the cage door is open Bubsie flies out and makes a tour of the room. How he does enjoy flying around and perching back of the different pictures and on the window-sill. The thing he likes more than anything else is to play with Elizabeth. He perches on her shoulder and walks around on her hand. And he loves to tease her too, for if there are any flowers in the room he will fly over to them, peck at them and begin munching at them. Then he won’t let Elizabeth catch him. He thinks this a huge joke, and he always flies to some high spot in the room and begins to sing which is his favorite trick of all.”

JANUARY 18: Little Carry’s Birthday

“Carry was nine years old,” daddy said. “A few minutes before eleven Carry’s little brother came to her, ringing a large bell. ‘Come to the celebration for the queen of the day!’ he shouted and all the family joined the procession.

“In the center of the room was a table. And such a marvelously covered table! But, first of all, they seated Carry in a big rocking-chair at the head of the table. They were all dressed up in funny costumes which they always wore for birthday celebrations. The table was full of presents, and in the center was a cake with nine lighted candles on it. ‘Many happy returns of the day!’ they all cried together.

“She opened her presents one by one. She had lovely pink knitted bed-room slippers from her mother, a beautiful doll from her daddy, a workbag from her granny, a paint box from her auntie and a big box of candy from her brother, which he’d bought with his very own saved-up money, and which to Carry was the best present of all!”

JANUARY 19: Maggie’s Meals

“There was once a little girl whose name was Maggie,” said daddy, “and how she did love meals! Now, one evening when Maggie had gone to bed along came a fine looking creature very handsomely dressed.

“‘Who are you?’ asked Maggie.

“‘I’m the Dream King and I’m going to take you to a party.’

“So Maggie went with the Dream King and they visited such interesting and hospitable people.

“They went to a huge city which seemed to be made of delicious things to eat and which, as soon as people ate from the city, the food grew or was cooked back again!

“It was all very marvelous. And to Maggie’s surprise she saw Duke Ice Cream take up a spoon and scoop a huge mouthful right off his very arm. And in another few minutes his arm was as before.

“The Duke told her he liked the cold weather and that he always lived in the coldest part of the city.

“Lady Lettuce was followed everywhere by her pages, the Vinegar and Oil boys. And sometimes she had friends to call on her like the Tomato Twins and the Cucumber Cousins and the Potato Pals. Maggie also met Apple, the queen of all the Pies.

“Maggie had the very best time in the world and when the Dream King told her he must be taking her back Maggie said:

“‘And you’ve not told me I was wrong to enjoy my meals so much.’

“‘I gave you a surprise, in not scolding you, eh?’ asked the Dream King. ‘Well, you’re never greedy or selfish and if you like your food I think it is fine. Good-night!’”

JANUARY 20: Winter Trees

“All the winter things,” said daddy, “such as the cold Winds, the Snow and the Ice told the Pine Trees and the Fir Trees and the Spruce Trees how much they liked them.

“‘I will tell you a secret,’ said the Pine Tree.

“‘Yes,’ said the Snow, as it nestled closer to the branches of the big tree.

“‘Years and years and years ago, I talked to my family about dropping off in the Winter-time. We never got any further than talking about it, for just as I had said, “Well, and what do you think of the scheme?” some of the Snow Flakes came and rested on our branches. “Oh,” they said, “you’re so much nicer than the branches without any leaves. There we have to fill up the corners, but with you we can nestle down.”

“‘The North Wind told us,’ continued the Pine Tree, ‘that it was such a joy to have a good strong tree around that wouldn’t feel hurt if he played about and had a good time. And so we discovered how much the North Wind liked us.

“‘Then,’ said the Pine Tree, ‘we heard the Grown-Ups. They said what a comfort it was to have some green trees in the Winter and they said how horrible it would be if every tree were quite bare and ugly. And then came the Children. They walked through the woods one snowy day and they stopped to look up at us. “Ah, how tall those trees are. And how warm it is in these woods. Our favorite trees are the Winter Trees—the Spruce Trees, the Fir Trees, the Pine Trees.”

“‘Now do you understand how we have to be as fine looking in the Winter as in the Spring?’ And the Snow understood.”

JANUARY 21: Poor Prunes

“My life is a sad one,” said the stewed prune.

“How is that?” asked the orange, near by.

“Oh, dear, no one loves me. People usually eat me when they can’t get anything else.”

“But I saw them eat you, and buy you, of course I mean members of your illustrious prune family, when a member of my family was around.”

“Once in a while that happens,” said the prune, “but it is very, very seldom. One morning,” continued the prune, “some one at the breakfast table apologized and said, ‘I’m sorry, but we only have prunes this morning.’

“Wasn’t that sad? Enough to break the poor heart of a prune.”

“You haven’t a heart, prune, dear; you only have a stone as your heart—heart of stone—that means hard-hearted, and so forth,” said the orange.

“Ah, but that’s wrong,” said the prune. “I felt dreadfully to think that such a thing should be said of us. ‘Sorry, but we only have prunes.’ You’d have thought she had said, ‘Sorry, but we only have bricks for breakfast,’ from the tone in which she said it.

“And then what was our joy and a thing the family has never forgotten nor ever will forget when in reply the person at the table said she actually and really liked prunes.

“That event will be put down as the greatest event that has happened in a long time.

“And following that great event are a number of others, and we plan to erect a monument made of prune stones and made only of those stones left by people who’ve enjoyed the prunes!

“Isn’t that a good idea?”

“Yes, indeed,” said the orange.

Just then the orange was called for and the prune with its brothers and sisters stayed behind.

“Poor prunes,” cried the prune who had been talking, “our great monument may not go up so fast as for a moment I had hopes that it would.

“Ah, well, we have the ever-ready prune juice to receive the sad tears of the prunes.” And then they sang this ditty:

“Poor prunes, poor prunes, how sad is your lot; Some people like you, but, alas, most do not. But you’re really, poor prunes, you’re really good food, And those who say not, are, I fear, very rude.”

JANUARY 22: Molly’s Piano Recital

“Molly,” began daddy, “was very musical and ever since she had been a little girl, so little that she had to be lifted to the piano stool, she had been able to play anything she heard.

“Her family were far from being well off, but they strove to give Molly a musical education.

“One day it was decided that Molly was so talented she could give a concert. So the evening for the concert was decided upon. Molly practiced and practiced the pieces she was to play.

“She was not at all nervous. She was very proud of her pretty new dress, for she had always before had the dresses of her older sisters cut down and made smaller for her. Unknown to her, Molly’s teacher had invited an old friend of his to the concert. This gentleman was very rich and fond of music. He liked to help along any one he felt deserved it. He was so delighted with Molly’s playing that he rushed up to the little girl, saying: ‘I shall send you and your mother abroad. There you’ll have the finest music teachers in the world. You will come back making us all very proud of you.’”

JANUARY 23: Goblins’ Secrets

“One night, not long ago, Peter Goblin went a-calling,” said daddy. “From house to house he went, and in every house he went to the bedsides of the little boys and girls and invited them to go on the greatest coasting party of the year.

“‘We’re going to coast,’ said Peter, ‘down the hill of Dreams.’

“They all put their sleds together and down the hill of Dreams they went until they reached the valley below.

“‘Down this valley all the dreams come,’ said Peter Goblin. ‘Then our Goblin Dream Workers must tie them up into little packages, for every nice dream must be saved. It must be made to come true some day or some time—that is, if it’s all for the very best that it should come true. For the Goblins are wise little Creatures!’ And as the Children watched the Goblin Dream Workers they certainly decided they looked very bright indeed.

“‘They tie the dreams into the little packages and then the Goblin Visitors take them back to the land of Children and drop them in their bedrooms at night as they sleep.’

“‘But,’ said the Boys and Girls, ‘we’ve never seen packages like these.’

“‘No,’ said Peter Goblin. ‘In one of these packages a good many dreams will come true, and so the contents of the package are dropped,—some parts in the corners, some around the ceiling. And one by one they come out into the room later on when they’re COMING TRUE!

“‘So on our way back tonight,’ said Peter, ‘a lot of us will lead you to your little rooms and we’ll drop the contents of the packages of dreams which will sometime come true. But now we must be off for more coasting, hurrah, hurrah!’”

JANUARY 24: In the Fish Bowl

“There was once a little girl named Susan,” said daddy, “who had in her room a great big glass bowl which held some helleries.”

“What are helleries?” of course asked Evelyn.

“They are fresh-water fish that live in climates where the water is sure always to be very warm. Susan also kept some snails in the water with the helleries.

“The helleries are about the size of minnows, but of a different shape, being more round than the minnows are.”

“One day Susan saw the big hellery daddy trying to chase the mother hellery around so that she could not get hold of any of the little ones. Susan grabbed the mother hellery and put her quickly into a glass of water that was standing near by. The next thing Susan did was to count the little helleries and, to her delight, she found that all the twenty were quite alive. But they had evidently been very much frightened, for they were all in a corner of the bowl, as near to the daddy hellery as possible, and the big daddy hellery was quiet and seemed to be much relieved that the danger was over. The snails, as you can imagine, were only too glad to rest once more. Susan gave them all some delicious fish food to comfort them.

“And she kept the mother hellery in a separate bowl until the little ones were grown up, and then she was welcomed back.”

“Why was she kept in a separate bowl?” asked Jack.

“Because the mother hellery doesn’t care for her children until they are big, and she might harm them. But the daddy loves them, even when they are little bits of things!”

JANUARY 25: Mac, the Dog

“There was a dog named Mac,” said daddy, “a beautiful Airedale dog and he belonged to two young girls named Janet and Mildred. They were much excited for their daddy was to have a birthday.

“At last came the birthday.

“Mac thought to himself that he wouldn’t be much pleased with the presents their daddy received, a pipe, tobacco, a necktie. Mac had been dressed up in a beautiful ribbon on a number of special occasions but he didn’t think much of neckties. There were some candies, though, and they were all right. Candies were really a sensible present.

“Mac knew that there were going to be more festivities. He sat about and waited.

“‘It’s time for the birthday cake,’ they called at last.

“Up got Mac. ‘It’s rude to be late,’ he said to himself, ‘and I’ll show them that an Airedale dog doesn’t forget his manners.’

“After it was all over and Mac was about to go to bed, he smiled to himself:

“‘Well, it was foolish to have all those candles but the cake was good, mighty good!’”

JANUARY 26: The Three Horses

In a barn there were three horses and their names were Danny and Fanny and Prince. Somehow Bobbie, who was the farmer’s youngest son, always liked it when the horses had their ears up though he couldn’t have quite told you why. They seemed to be so very, very friendly then.

Bobbie had been having a very fine day, and as he tumbled into bed he hardly had time to whisper to his old friend the Dream King. He used to say, just before he went off to sleep, “Please, Mr. Dream King, send me nice dreams.”

If he did not feel so dreadfully, dreadfully sleepy he would make his little speech longer and would say, “Your gracious majesty, Mr. Dream King, will your royal highness do a poor, humble subject like myself the great and noble and wondrous honor of sending me most royal and noble dreams?”

This evening all he said was, “Nice dreams, please.”

Soon, oh, so soon, it seemed as though he saw Danny and Fanny and Prince walking into his room. And then they stood at the end of the bed, all in a row.

“Hello, Bobbie,” they said.

“Hello, Danny and Fanny and Prince,” said Bobbie.

“We’ve come to tell you something,” said Fanny.

“It’s something you’ve always wanted to know,” said Danny.

“And because I’m the oldest horse, they’ve given me the honor of telling it to you,” added Prince.

Then the three horses neighed, looked at each other, smiled their horse smiles and then looked at Bobbie.

“You’ve always wanted to know why we put our ears straight up when you’ve come around,” said Prince.

“Oh yes,” said Bobbie, “I’ve always wanted to know if there was any special reason for it.”

“There is,” said Prince, “and I will tell it to you. When we put our ears up it’s to tell you we’re feeling pleasant and friendly. When horses put their ears way back it means they’re cross and that perhaps they’ll bite. But we have never put our ears back on our heads when you’ve been around, Bobbie, so it means we always, always like to have you with us.”

And the next morning when Bobbie got up he went out to his three friends and kissed them and said, “I know a secret of yours.”

JANUARY 27: In the Kitchen

“One evening,” commenced daddy, “when the house was quiet and still, and every one was sleeping soundly, the tins and pans began to talk in the kitchen.

“‘I think I am to be congratulated more than any of you,’ said the egg beater. ‘You see my name means that I beat eggs. But not only do I beat eggs. I beat cream and all other things they wish to whip into a fine fluffy state.’

“‘True enough,’ agreed the other pans and tins.

“‘But you see,’ said the egg beater, ‘the wonderful part is that I am not cross. Imagine being used only as a beater. Imagine forever whipping everything that comes near you. Isn’t that enough to make an egg beater cross? But am I cross?’

“And all the pots and pans creaked and said, ‘No.’

“‘Then,’ said the egg beater, ‘it only goes to show that my disposition is quite perfect. Even whipping and beating everything that comes my way doesn’t make me cross.’

“‘Listen to me,’ said the cheese grater. ‘Think of what my name means!’

“What?’ asked the others.

“‘It means I am greater than anything else. No other pot or tin or pan is named by my name.’

“‘Oh,’ chuckled the gravy spoon, a big, good-natured, easy-going spoon, ‘you don’t understand at all.’

“‘What don’t I understand?’ asked the cheese grater.

“‘You see I help the gravy at the table and I hear the grownups and children talk. They say that greater means something finer, bigger, stronger, more noble than something that is merely great. Now greatest means the best of all. You see the way they spell your name is quite different from the way they spell the word that means great.’

“‘And what difference does that make?’ asked the cheese grater, who was feeling sad.

“‘All the difference in the world,’ said the gravy spoon. ‘It means something quite different.’

“‘The very idea of making such a mistake,’ said the cheese grater sadly.

“‘Never mind,’ said the egg beater. ‘I have a really bad name and I rise above it. I do the best I can and don’t complain. You must do the same.’

“‘I will,’ said the cheese grater. ‘But I am so disappointed.’

“So the rest of the talk between the tins, pots and pans was not upon their names and the meanings of them.”

JANUARY 28: The Little Needle

A little girl named Jinny in crossing the street one day saw a needle shining very brightly in the center of the crossing. She picked it up because, as she said to herself, some horse might get it in his foot and have it hurt dreadfully. She stuck the needle in her fur and walked on.

Soon after she was home she went to bed and soon she was sound asleep. The bright needle in the fur seemed to grow brighter and brighter. It looked like something alive, it was so bright, and, sure enough, it was talking!

“I came over from Italy with a very poor girl who was a sewer. She did most wonderful fancy work. Her beautiful work brought ever so much more money than it formerly did, and after a time she was never worried any more.

“Well, after a while she succeeded so well that she bought a little house and no longer had to work.

“To-day she was carrying her workbag to a friend’s house to sew a little for amusement. But there was a hole in the bag, and I fell out. Then you came along and picked me up. I’ll help you sew if you like, Jinny, for my kind mistress doesn’t need me now.”

When Jinny awoke there was the needle on her fur, and she put it in her workbag with such pleasure.

JANUARY 29: Real Dogs

Lucifer and his mistress went for quite a long drive one day. On their way home his mistress stopped to make a call. Lucifer stayed alone in the wonderful carriage.

Some common dogs passed by. They were barking and playing and seemed to be having a very good time. Lucifer looked at them as if he sometimes longed to be a real dog and to play as other dogs did. But of course there was his family to be thought of and his background! He could not disgrace it. He must not try anything different. He must just stay at home, doing nothing but wear a big bow of ribbon and hear his mistress tell of what a fine breed he was.

But the other dogs did fill him with envy. He had a strange longing to be out playing, too. What a stupid life he led! No fun at all. And he would like to see more of the world. No matter where he went with his mistress, the world always seemed the same.

He wondered to himself if the dogs would play with him. He barked and they looked at the victoria and at the poodle dog with the blue bow. They seemed to be laughing at him, and for the first time his family tree didn’t seem of any use. It was simply that the dogs were judging him for what he was—they didn’t care a bit about his father or his grandfather.

“Could I join you?” he asked.

“Well, you don’t look as though you amounted to much,” they said, “but come along. We’ll try to be kind to you.”

“Oh,” said Lucifer, as he ran along, “I do amount to a great deal. You don’t know. I have more of a background than any of you.”

“What?” they all asked, with their ears and eyes showing that they could not believe what they had heard. “Tell us what a background is,” they asked. “Is it another name for life-saving?”

“No,” said Lucifer, “it means that I needn’t do anything but live up to my family name. For years and years our family have been of noble, aristocratic line. I am a dog of wonderful breeding.”

“You’re only snobbish,” they said, and Lucifer felt very badly. “Why, you poor little dog, we feel sorry for you,” said one bright looking fox terrier. “Our friends have saved children from drowning this summer, some have saved lives in fire, and we all try to amount to something. Pooh, you can’t be your grandfather. Try to be yourself and amount to something!” And Lucifer joined the dogs to be taken on a regular dog’s trip.

JANUARY 30: The Little Old Man

“There was once a very strange old man,” said daddy, “who decided he would live at the top of the mountain. He liked to hear all the rumbling sounds and thought he’d like to help make them. He loved pine trees, too, of which there were plenty on top of the mountain. He told his family about his desire, and the next day they started off.

“At last they reached the top, and there were so many of them it did make a merry party.

“But it was almost dark, and they were all eager for supper.

“The grandmothers and mothers arranged the supper, and they had a most delicious meal too.

“They had moss soup, a salad of pine needles chopped up very fine, big berry pies and nuts, for they all wanted to eat mountain food at once. They sat on low stumps of trees while they ate.

“After they’d finished eating they all felt quite energetic, and so the old grandfather, who was the leader in everything, said:

“‘Let’s help with this storm which is coming on.’ And I should say they did!

“All the older ones bellowed at the tops of their lungs so that it sounded almost like roaring. The younger ones whistled and sang. The people who lived at the foot of the mountain shivered and said: ‘Oh, what a terrific storm! Listen to the sound of the wind!’

“But the old man and his family thought it fine fun.”

JANUARY 31: The Fussy Cat

“A white cat named Snow,” said daddy, “and a black dog named Coal were the greatest of friends.

“‘I am so glad to-day is wash-day,’ said Snow. ‘I saw the soiled clothes being scrubbed so hard and hung out on the line to dry. To-morrow they will iron the clothes and then put them back in the basket all nicely folded. Later they will go in the linen room! Ah, such joy.’ And Snow purred happily.

“‘Now what in the world do you talk about wash-day and ironing-day for?’ asked Coal. ‘I can understand it when you talk about mice because I have never known any creature so fond of them. But what do you care for clean clothes? You don’t wear them. You can wash yourself and comb your hair by yourself.’

“‘But I like to lie in clean clothes. Nothing gives me the joy that the basket of clean clothes does! At least it is one of the joys of my life. As for the linen closet—well, when they leave the door open I am happy. I love to lie among the white napkins and pillow covers and sheets.’

“‘That’s the queerest thing I’ve ever heard,’ said the dog.