"Take my advice," said Crafty, "and let the cheese alone. Many a fine young rat has been cut off in the flower of his youth by snatching at the first good thing that happened to be put in his way. That safe is what men call a trap, and it is a very unsafe thing for you to meddle with." A few nights after, the two friends started out once more, and in the middle of the cellar they found a nice barrel of meal. Simple was on the point of jumping right into it; but old Crafty stopped him again. "Don't you know better than that, you greenhorn?" said he. "Never jump into a barrel in that way. Look here." And, crawling on the rim of the barrel, he flapped his long tail into the meal. "Splash, splash!" Right under the meal there was water. "Ho, ho, Farmer Rural!" said Crafty, "that's your game, is it? You can keep this meal for your own eating." But the next time that the two rats went out together, poor Simple did not come off so well. In spite of his friend's advice, he went after some bread-crumbs that were scattered on the top of what seemed to be a harmless wooden box. It was a trap, of course. Simple was caught, and Crafty had to go back to his hole alone. ALFRED SELWYN. [Illustration] [Illustration] A FUNNY LITTLE BOY. A FUNNY little chin, A funny little nose, A funny little grin, Ten funny little toes, Two funny little eyes, And funny little hands: How funnily he tries To give his wee commands. A funny little chat With funny little bees, A funny little cat, And funny toads and trees, A funny little dress, A funny laugh of joy: May Heaven ever bless My funny little boy! A funny little sigh, A funny little head That funnily will try To miss the time for bed, A funny little peep From funny eyes that gleam, A funny little sleep, A funny little dream. GEORGE COOPER. THE ROMAN PIGEON. IN the famous city of Rome I once lived in a house which had been a palace. It had secret closets and trap-doors, and all such queer things. There was one long, dark entry that we called a tube. We were obliged to go through this entry often, as it was the only passage-way between our rooms. It was so narrow that one could touch both side-walls at the same time. I had often, in going through it, felt that I was not alone: the movement of something always startled me. It was not like the motions of a human being, and I was too old to have visits from fairies. A dog would bark; a kitten would mew; a parrot would say "Pardon!" Then what was it? I could not tell.