Two Yellow-Birds
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put saffron into thewater; buds of saffron about his cage; gave him lump? of nice sugar; andspread, every morning, large branches cf fresh chick-weed over his cage;but all to no purpose.
One morning, poor little Pet, for that was the name she gave him, lookedmore sick than ever. She changed the water and the seeds; though theseeds she had put in fresh the day before, had not been touched. Shedressed his case with all the flowers she could find in the month ofMay, and then went to school with a heavy heart. At noon she camehome, and her dear Pet lay on his hack upon the bottom of his cage. Hissufferings were all ended. The little bird was dead!
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Poor Lucy wept bitterly; this was the heaviest affliction she had everknown. She laid down upon her mother's bed, and sobbed aloud. Mrs. Tracyknew that the sorrows of children are not last ing, though they aresevere for the time. She therefore did not, at first, think it best toendeavor to restrain her tears; but she found that if not checked, shewould make herself ill. She would not eat any dinner; and she was unfitto go to school in the afternoon. Her mother, at length, said, "My dearchild, you must not give way thus to your grief for the loss of a bird.I know that you loved Pet very much, and that he gave you a great dealof pleasure; but you must remember, that sorrow for the death of a birdought not to unfit you for every thing. Now, by thus crying, you havebeen obliged to stay from school, and have lost several hours work uponthe little frock you were making for your aunt; besides making your headache so much, that you cannot study your lesson this evening. I feelvery much for your grief; but you are old enough to understand that allsorrow which prevents us from doing our duty, is wrong--it is selfishWhile you were laying upon the bed crying and sobbing, do you think yourfather and I could enjoy our dinner? I assure you we did not. And yourlather went to the store with a very sad countenance. I hope when hecomes home, you will meet him with a smiling face, and let him see,that, though you loved your bird very much, you love him more. And Ihope, my little girl, you will learn a lesson, from this first sorrow,which will be of use to you all your life, viz. not to feel so strong anattachment to any object, that the loss of it will unfit you to do anything that it is your duty to do."
Lucy was in general a good girl: and she loved her parents very much,for they were always kind to her; though they never indulged her in anything they thought wrong. She attended to what her mother said, and wassorry she had grieved them so much. She got up from the bed, washed herface and eyes in cold water, combed her hair smooth, and when her fathercame home, he found her sewing with her mother She was a little sad; butshe cried no more, and answered very pleasantly when any one spoke toher.
A friend of her father passed the evening with them. He saw that Lucywas not so lively as usual, and inquired the cause. He told her he wouldpaint her a likeness of her little bird.
We have said that the bird was not handsome; but he was a very sweetsongster. And we trust all our little readers know, that beauty ofperson alone will never recommend either little birds or little girls,to the affections of their friends.
When Lucy became a woman, though she met with many heavy afflictions,she always kept in mind, that "all sorrow which makes us neglect ourduty to our fellow-beings, is selfish, and of course wrong."
MARIA
|Come, Maria, my dear, said her mamma, let us take a walk, and I willshow you some pretty things.
Maria was quite pleased to hear this, and ran to fetch her bonnet andcloak.
Her mamma then took her by the hand, and led her out at the door, andthen out at the gate, and then they came into the road; and as theywent to the place where her mamma meant to show her little girl thefine things, they saw a number of sheep and lambs sporting in the openfields.
They soon came to the place, and there they saw very fine flowers, whichsmelled so sweetly that little Maria felt quite happy with the sightsand scents.
"Here, my dear," said the lady to her little girl, "this is a rose; whata fine pink hue it has got! Smell it my dear, for I am sure that youwill like it;--did you ever smell any thing so sweet?--There is a bud ofthe rose: see what fine soft moss grows on it, and how close it iswrapped round with green leaves to guard it whilst it is young andtender."
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"That, Maria, is a stalk; it is like a little bush of red flowers, of avery nice scent. It is so fine a one, it looks like a young tree. Thereis a wall flower: some like the smell of them very much, but some thinkthey are too strong.
"There is a pink; it is very sweet to smell of.
"That is a heart's ease: it is a very pretty little flower. What a finepurple color on that leaf; it is like velvet; but it has no scent."
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"Neither has the blue-bell, which you see there, though it looks verypretty."
Maria's mamma shewed her a great many more flowers, and told her thenames of them.
"Oh! what flower is that, mamma," said little Maria, pointing with herfinger to a very tall and large flower.
"That, my dear, is a sun-flower."
"Oh! how large it is," said Maria, "it is like a sun in this fineGarden."
Her mamma then took her all over the garden, and Maria asked her whatthe name of this thing, and what the name of that thing was all thetime they were there.
Her mamma then picked her little girl a very pretty bunch of flowers,which Maria took home with great care, and then put them in one of thevases which was in the parlor, and put water to them, to keep them aliveas long as she could.
Her mamma took home a large bunch for herself, to put into the largeChina jar, to make the room look lively, and smell sweet with the scentof it, and a very fine flower-pot it was.