"Oh! I beg your pardon!" replied Whiskerandos, regaining his usual brisk manner; "don't you remember old Furry telling us that his reason for quitting China was, that he was afraid of being dished up for the dinner of some mighty mandarin, whose hair hung in a long tail behind him? Amongst the lowest classes in France, and the gypsies in England, we poor rats are known as an article of food; and I have heard that in the islands of the South Seas we were held in so much esteem, that 'sweet as a rat' passed as a proverb." "I don't like such compliments!" exclaimed I, beginning to tremble all over. "Come, Ratto, you must pluck up a little courage, and show yourself worthy of the race of Mus! There is never any use in meeting misfortune half way. To be caught, killed, and put into a pie, is, I grant it, a serious evil; to be always afraid of being so is another. The first we may or we may not escape; but the second-- which is perhaps the worse of the two-- lies in some degree within the power of our own will. We need not make ourselves wretched before the time, about some event which never may happen." Good philosophy this, I believe, but not a little difficult to act upon. When I have seen the younger members of that race which proudly styles itself "lords of creation," trembling, shrinking, nay-- I shame to say it-- even _crying_, at fear of some possible evil, a little disappointment perhaps, or a little pain, I have thought of Whiskerandos and the pies, and fancied that reasoning mortals might learn something even from a rat. I was so terribly afraid of being caught by the sailors, that I confined myself more than usual to the cabin, keeping close to the hole that I had made, that I might always be ready for a start should the blue eyes ever happen to rest upon me; but those books, those famous books, happily gave them other occupation. "Papa," said Neddy to his father one day, "I should rather have gone to some other place than St. Petersburg, I feel such a dislike to the Russians." "Why should you dislike them," said the captain. "Oh! because they were our enemies so long, and killed so many of our fine fellows!" "They were but obeying the orders of their czar-- doing what they believed to be their duty." "But they were horribly cruel, papa." "It would both be ungenerous and unjust to charge upon a whole nation the crimes of a few individuals. It is singular that one of the most striking examples of mercy to a foe of which I have ever heard, was shown by a Russian. The story is given as a fact, and I have pleasure in relating it, not only from its own touching interest, but from the hope that it may teach my son what our conduct should be towards those who, though our foes, are our fellow-creatures still.