For Boys And Girls

OX'T let the door ■ stand open, but shut it with much care, Without a bang, without a whang'; yes, shut it, fair and square. Without a slam without a jam, without a slat or jerk; And if you've left it open, go shut it, and don't shirk! No Christian man or woman, no welltrained chick or child, Will let a door swing idly, to make weak nerves run wild When chilly winds are blowing, and some are taking: cold, And the open door is creaking and muttering like a scold. Haste makes but waste, remember; so plenty take of time; Don't leave the door half open- a fault almost a crime; And if you've ever done this, don't do so any more; Whatever else you fail to do, don't fail to shut the door! Yonthfnl King and Rebel. An amusing incident, said to have occurred during the last parade of the child regiment recently formed for the entertainment of the little King Alfonso, of Spain, is told in the London Illustrated News. His majesty was so delighted with the efficiency of his mimic warriors that immediately after the parade he promoted sorae to be officers, and presented' many of the others with bonbons, and all were invited to breakfast. Unfortunately the invitation alone did not seem to satisfy the little Emmanuel Garcia. Furious, he left the ranks, threw his musket away, and cried: "I iiave had no bonbons given to me, and have not been made an offlcer. I shall not play any more." All attempts to soothe the little rebel proved ineffectual. "No! no!" cried he. 'Til become a revolutionist! Hurrah for the republic!" He then began to howl so plteously that the king"s heart was touched, and going up to the mutinous soldier, he said: "Don't be cross. I will give you also a box of bonbons and a large piece of cake." This act of kingly tact bore fruit; the small revolutionist again shouldered his musket, and the review passed off without further disturbance. Why He Was Advanced. A business firm once employed a young man whose energy and grasp of affairs soon led the management to promote him over a faithful and xusted employé, sa.ys a writer in the Popular Science Monthly. The old clerk feit deeply hurt that the younger man should be promoted over him, and complained to the manager. Feeling that this was a case that could not be argued, the manager asked the old clerk what was the occasion of all the noise in front of their building. The clerk went forward, and returned with the answer that it was a lot of wagons going by. The manager then asked what they were loaded with, and again the clerk went out and returned, re.porting that they were loaded with wheat. The manager then sent him to ascerain how many wagons there were, and he returned with the answer that there were sixteen. Finally he was sent to see where they were from, and he returned saying they were from the city of Lucena. The manager then asked the old clerk to be seated, and sent for the young man, and said to him: "Will you see what is the meaning of that rumbling noise in front?" The young man replied: "Sixteen wagons loaded with wheat. Twenty more will pass tomorrow. They belong :o Romeo & Co., of Lucena, and are on heir way to Marchesa, where wheat s bringing one dollar and a quarter a bushei for hauling." The young man was dismissed, and' he manager, turning to the old clerk, said: "My friend, you see now why the younger man was promoted over you." Bluebirds. What is more cheery than the early spring notes of the bluebird, "our beaueous messenger of spring?" When the time had come for us to be looking for him, one sunshiny morning, I was sure I heard the welcome song. I went in search of "orni," and we roamed the place over and at last heard him again and spied him. Was there ever á more intense blue? He looks so tropical in hls beautiful plumage, and yet he comes while everything is cold and winterish. The round holes in the old apple trees in our yard were homes for the bluebirds, but that disagreeable quarrelsome alien, the English sparrow, has driven them all away. We cannot Iove the English sparrow. I could not cali any bird common, but he is a flehting, bad fellow. The bluebirds come early from their southern home, but are at once under shelter, for year after year they come and make their home in the same hollow tree, and there, with a few soft matenals loosely put together, nestle themselves and lay their small, lightblue colored eggs and raise their young VIOLET DALli. Concernlng Top-Splnnlng. All over the country an immense interest is growing over the various kinds of tops- pig tops and plain, polished and smooth, big and little. All the top shops whlch children patronize for their cheap toys, in which they delight at each recurring season, are laying in stocks of tops of .different kinds, together with the latest and best sorts of cords for spinning the same. And all this in anticipation oí the demands of their small customers for the very best kinds of tops to be had at the price. And the customers? Wel], the customers, boys and girls, are preparing to spin tops according to the latest spring style. Now, no one must start aghast at the word " girls." And let no young gentleman dare to crush the rising tlon of i the old remark "Ghis For inning to spin tops and fli isement and exercls in t]i is too late, boys, to teil thcm i't" or they "can't.' When you Tight-eyed, lively pleasant }ii". ■ r'-iulen wind the cor (and she uys the best kind around lui top ín the most scientiflc Btyle, and tl'en, Ith a deft twist of her little wrisi send it .ff spinning on the walk and make it twirl Ionger and hum faster than her hoy comrade is able to do - when this happens a great many times over - you say to yourself: . "Well, the pleásant, jolly little giris of today have a good right to this or any other amusement which they have found to be healthy, proper and good sport." So long life to the latest spring fashlon-i-top-spinning for girls ! To ünr Voung Gardeners. I wonder how many of our boys anc girls have Iittle gardens of their owt and take care of them and watch things grow? l'm going to find out by asking you to teil me all about them. I know some of you live in states where the snow will linger for some time yet while othprs, and luc,ky Iittle folks you are too, have your homes where under sunny ski es green things grow much earlier. Well, I want to hear from our boys and girls, no matter where they live. If your gardens are already under way, teil me all about them, how big they are, what flowers or vegetables yon planted, how you take care of them and that the other boys and girls will like to know, for the best letters will be printed, there inay find useful hints in the letters, so you see you can help one another. Some of you can tell what success you had last year, and how much money you earned from your vegetables. Then too, I want to hear from the Iittle gardeners who live in colder climates. Even if the ground is still frozen I know you are planning what you will raise, so I want to hear all about your plans. If you are first going tn have a showy bed of flowers we would like to know all about these flowers. or K you are thrifty, market gardenerp, teil us of the vegetables you ralse. Do not write more than 150 words, and send in all your letters before May 1, 1M)5. Then to the girl who has written the neatêst, most helpful and best letter, there will be given a delightful book, and to the boy who writes the neatest and best letter, an extra two-bladed jackknife. Do not forg-et to put your name and address at the top of the first sheet, and write on only one side of the paper. Now, read these directions over very carefully, put on your thinking cnps, and teil us about your gardens.- Miss Merrythought. Stories oí Chililren. He is young and a materialist. Nearly every child is that, however. They do not take much of anything ]or granted; they want proof. This child had been disobedient and had got into trouble, and his mother was to impress upon him the naughtiness of his conduct. She told him about God who knew everything and could see everything. "Tou may hide something from me " she said, "but God sees it all." "Can He see me now?" he asked "Yes." "Rig-ht here in this room'" "Yes." He studied the ceilir.g intently for a minute and then said: "Well, if you think He can I wish you'd show me the hole in the roof that He peeks throug'n." Another little materialist - a girl this time- objected to going to bed alone "But you're not alone," explained her mother. "God is with you all the time and then you have your dolly besides " She examined her doll critically before replying. "I don't want them," she said at last. I want somebody with a skin face." Uncooked Cream Candy. This candy will take the place of fondant as a foundation in all varieties of cream candies, but it cannot be melted for the process. Put the white of one egg and an equal quantity of rum-arabic water into a bowl. Beat the two till perfectly mixed, then add the flavoring, and then gradually about one and one-quarter pounds of confectioner's sugar. The amount of sugar varies according to the size of the egg, but the Jaste thus made must be stiff and elastic. When you have made any or all of these candies, put your dishes soakng in warm water as soon as you are through with them. They will then wash clean easily. If you have bits of fondant or the uncooked cream left, roll them in;o balls or odd shapes, and make orginal candies or some fanciful trines íor younger ones, who are eager for ust a taste. If the fondant will granúlate, make it into a taffy, add a few nuts, and you will have an acceptable candy. A Japanese Story. The Japanese relate a story to thcir chlldren of a certain petty nobleman who, having eaten up his fortune, took rooms next door to a famous restaurant in order that he might enjoy the odors of the cooking viands in which he could no longer indulge himself. The proprietor, hearing of this after some time, presented a bilí, wherein he charged two yen fifty sen for the vapors of food inhaled by the poor nobleman during the month. Whereupon the ex-gourmand, calling for his old cash box, which now held but a few copper coins, shook it violently in the ear of the proprietor, and replied: "As you charge me for the fumes of your food I pay you with the sound of my money." A Great Scherae. I wish I owned a parrot that Had some intelligence, To learn my lessons every day, Would It not be immense? To hide him in my pocket where My teacher couldn't see, And let him answer questions that Proved much too hard for me? A Gnod Snbstitute. If my little dog should lose his tail, I'd buy him a small sand bag To take his place; 'twould be very sad If he'd nothing at all to wag.