II Within, in the little garret, lived a poor woman, who went out in the day to clean stoves, chop kindling wood small, and to do other hard work of the same kind, for she was strong and industrious too. But she always remained poor; and at homes in the garret lay her only daughter, a half-grown girl, who was very delicate and weak. For a whole year she had kept her bed, and it seemed as if she could neither live nor die. "She is going to her little sister," the woman 10 said. "I have had only the two children, and it was not an easy thing to provide for both, but the good God provided for one of them by taking her home to himself. Now I should be glad to keep the other that was left me; but I suppose they are 15 not to remain apart, and my sick girl will go to her sister in heaven." She But the sick girl remained where she was. lay quiet and patient all day long, while her mother went to earn money out of doors. It was spring, 20 and early in the morning, just as the mother was about to go out to work, the sun shone mildly and pleasantly through the little window, and threw its rays across the floor; and the sick girl fixed her eyes on the lowest pane in the window. "What may that green thing be that looks in 5 at the window? It is moving in the wind.” And the mother stepped to the window, and half opened it. "Oh!" said she, "on my word, that is a little pea which has taken root here, and is putting out its little leaves. How can it have got 10 into the crack? That is a little garden with which you can amuse yourself." 15 And the sick girl's bed was moved nearer to the window, so that she could always see the growing pea; and the mother went forth to her work. “Mother, I think I shall get well," said the sick child in the evening. "The sun shone in so warm upon me to-day. The little pea is growing finely, and I shall grow stronger too, and get up, and go out into the warm sunshine." 20 God grant it," said the mother, though she did not believe it would be so; but she took care to prop with a little stick the green plant which had given her daughter the pleasant thoughts of life, so that it might not be broken by the wind. She tied a piece of string to the window-sill and to the upper part of the frame, so that the pea might have something around which it could twine, when it shot up; and it did shoot up, indeed one could 5 see how it grew every day. "Really, here is a flower coming!" said the woman, one day; and now she began to cherish the hope that her sick daughter would recover. She remembered that lately the child had spoken 10 much more cheerfully than before, that in the last few days she had risen up in bed of her own accord, and had sat upright, looking with delighted eyes at the little garden in which only one plant grew. A week afterward the invalid for the first time sat 15 up for a whole hour. Quite happy, she sat there in the warm sunshine. The window was opened, and outside before it stood a pink pea blossom, fully blown. The sick girl bent down and gently kissed the delicate leaves. This day was like a 20 festival. "The Heavenly Father himself has planted that pea, and caused it to prosper, to be a joy to you, Cherish the hope means to let oneself hope, to keep hoping. Of her own accord without being helped or urged. 1. How did the peas get out into the world? 2. What did they all want to do? 3. What became of them? 4. Which had the best fortune? 5. What did it become? 6. What good did it do? SWEET PEAS Here are sweet peas, on tiptoe for a flight; JOHN KEATS. THE UGLY DUCKLING I It was beautiful summer time in the country; the wheat was yellow, the oats were green, the hay was stacked up in the green meadows. The sunshine fell warmly on an old house surrounded by deep canals. From the walls down to the5 water's edge there grew large burdock leaves, so high that children could stand upright among them without being seen. The spot was as wild as the thickest part of the wood, and on that account a duck had chosen to make her nest 10 there. She had been sitting on her eggs a long time, and had few visitors; for the other ducks preferred swimming on the canals to sitting among the burdock leaves and gossiping with her. 15 At last the eggs began to crack. "Tchick! tchick!" All the eggs were alive, and one little head after another peeped forth. "Quack! quack!" said the duck, and all got up as well as they could. They peeped about from under the 20 |