"After meeting him the Spinning maiden ceased to work, and the bright hues of morning were left to take care of themselves, while the silvery tints of evening hung like ragged fringe on the dark mantle of night. The Sun-king, believing that the Shepherd boy was to blame, banished him to the other side of the Silver River, telling him that only once a year, on the seventh day of the seventh month, could the Spinning maiden come to see him. "The king called together myriads of doves and commanded them to make a bridge over the river of stars. Supported on their wings, the Shepherd boy crossed over to the other side. No sooner had he set foot on the opposite shore than the doves flew away, filling the heavens with their billing and cooing. The weeping wife and loving husband stood awhile gazing at each other from afar, and then they separated, one in search of another flock of sheep, the other to ply her shuttle during the long hours of daylight. "Thus the days passed away, and the Sun-king rejoiced that his daughter was busy again. But when night comes, and all the lamps of heaven are lighted, the lovers stand beside the banks of the starry river and gaze lovingly at each other, eagerly awaiting the seventh day of the seventh month. As the time draws near the Japanese are filled with anxiety. What if it should rain, for the River of Heaven is filled to the brim, and a single raindrop would make it overflow! This would cause a flood, and the bridge of doves would be swept away. "But if the night is clear, then the Spinning maiden crosses over in safety, and meets her Shepherd boy. This she does every year except when it rains. That is why the Japanese hope for clear weather on the 7th of July, when the 'meeting of the star-lovers' is made a gala day all over the country." [Illustration: THE EAGLE.] "Sister, I can see the Spinning-maiden star, and the Shepherd boy, but where is the bridge of doves?" asked Harry. "Across the Milky Way," said Mary. "See the bright star, which is called Altair, and one little star on each side. We call that the Eagle, so if you change the story a little you can say the Eagle takes the Spinning maiden across the Silver River of Heaven." THE STARS AND THE VIOLETS. When the sky was first made and suspended From the far and invisible bars, It enveloped the world, and God fashioned Small windows, and these are the stars. And the bits of the sky, through the evening, Fluttered down to the sod and the dew, And behold! in the morn they had blossomed, And these are the violets blue. THE NIGHTS. Oh, the Summer night Has a smile of light And she sits on a sapphire throne; Whilst the sweet winds load her With garlands of odor, From the bud to the rose o'erblown!