rom it in the water. The sinewy arms lay powerless and free
from tension then, but they told me that, when they first drew him
from the surf, both hands were grasping a broken oar with such
strength that they were unable to loose his hold, till suddenly the
muscles relaxed, and the arms fell upon the ground. They turned the
body, and a little water ran from the mouth. Then, gently raising it
upon their shoulders, they bore it home.

LAUGHTER.

In some individuals the risibles lie so near the surface that you may
tickle them with a feather. In others, they are so deeply imbedded in
phlegm, or so protected by the crust of ill-humor, that a strong
thrust and a keen weapon are required to reach them.

A laugh is in itself a different thing in different individuals. Some
persons laugh inwardly, unsocially, bitterly. It is a pure grimace on
your part when you join in their merriment, unless you are superior to
the fear of ridicule. On the other hand, there is a laugh of so
contagious a nature, that you are irresistibly moved to sympathy while
ignorant of the exciting cause, or out of the sphere of its
influence. You will laugh loud and long, and afterwards confess that
you had not the least gleam of a funny idea, all the while.

You doubt the power of the sympathetic laugh? Come with me into the
nursery. Here is a rosy little horror, a year and a half old. Sit down
and take him upon your knees. Hold his dimpled hands in yours, and
look steadily into his roguish eyes. Repeat a nursery rhyme, no matter
what, in a humdrum recitative; he is sober, and very attentive.
Suddenly spring a mine upon him with a "Boo!" His "Hicketty-hick!"
follows, and his eyes begin to shine. Repeat the experiment.
"Hicketty-hick!" again, more heartily than at first, with the baby
encore, "Adin!" The same process awakens the rapturous little pearls
again and again, and you are quite in the spirit of the thing
yourself. Now for a more ecstatic burst. You purposely prolong his
suspense; he is all atilt, expecting the delightful surprise. You
drawl out each word; you drone the ditty over and over again, till
every tiny nerve is tense with expectation. "Boo!" at last, and over
he goes, in the complete _abandon_ of baby glee; his cherry lips are
wide asunder, his head hangs powerless back, and the "Hicketty-hicks"
burst tumultuously from his little, beating throat. And _you_, sir;
what are _you_ doing? Laughing, I declare, in full roar, till t