It does seem that birds and animals are warranted in committing every act of vandalism that they are accused of. They are unquestionably entitled by every natural right to everything of which they take possession. The farmer has no moral right to deny them a share in the product of his fields and orchards; the gardener is their debtor (at least of the birds), and the government, which benefits also from their industry, should give them its protection.--C. C. M. THE PETRIFIED FERN. In a valley, centuries ago, Grew a little fernleaf, green and slender, Veining delicate and fibres tender, Waving when the wind crept down so low; Rushes tall, and moss, and grass grew round it; Playful sunbeams darted in and found it, Drops of dew stole in by night and crowned it; But no foot of man e'er came that way, Earth was young and keeping holiday. Monster fishes swam the silent main-- Mountains hurled their snowy avalanches, Giant forests shook their stately branches, Mammoth creatures stalked across the plain; Nature reveled in wild mysteries, But the little fern was not of these, Did not number with the hills and trees, Only grew and waved its sweet wild way-- No one came to note it day by day. Earth one day put on a frolic mood, Moved the hills and changed the mighty motion Of the deep, strong currents of the ocean, Heaved the rocks, and shook the haughty wood, Crushed the little fern in soft moist clay, Covered it and hid it safe away. Oh, the long, long centuries since that day! Oh, the agony, Oh, life's bitter cost Since that useless little fern was lost! Useless? Dost? There came a thoughtful man Searching Nature's secrets far and deep; From a fissure in a rocky steep He withdrew a stone, o'er which there ran Fairy pencilings, a quaint design, Veining, leafage, fibres, clear and fine, And the fern's life lay in every line. So, methinks, God hides some souls away, Sweetly to surprise us some sweet day. --ANON. WATER AND ANIMALS. To show the importance of water to animal life, we give the opinions of several travelers and scientific men who have studied the question thoroughly. The Camel, with his pouch for storing water, can go longer without drink than other animals. He doesn't do it from choice, any more than you in a desert would prefer to drink the water that you have carried with you, if you might choose between that and fresh spring water. Major A. G. Leonard, an English transport officer, claims that Camels "should be watered every day, that they can not be trained to do without water, and that, though they can retain one and a half gallons of water in the cells of the stomach, four or five days' abstinence is as much as they can stand, in heat and with dry food, without permanent injury."