dy, leaping here,
jumping there, now on the top of his head, now on the tip of his nose,
and never falling to the ground, and always going this game with such
wondrous swiftness, as though there were thirty balls instead of three.
But the feat which pleased them most, and which may be called the
crowning effort of the display, was when Bruin balanced a short stick on
his forehead with a pewter plate on the top of it, which, by some
mysterious agency, was made to spin round and round, and dazzle the
optics of the crowd as it glittered in the sun. At this marvellous sight
there was a burst of admiration! Tom blew at his pipes and hammered at
his drum with the utmost energy. Two well-dressed young dogs, who had
been paying particular attention to a tall young lady with a long
sentimental nose, over which a veil dropped gracefully (she was
evidently one of the aristocratic greyhound family), gaped with wonder
as they stared at the whirling pewter; the young lady herself looked on
with a gaze where surprise and admiration were singularly mingled; and
the curs, who are less accustomed to restrain their feelings, gave vent
to them in vigorous howls. The success was, indeed, complete; and when
Tom went round with the plate, a rich harvest amply repaid the pains
which had been bestowed on the rehearsals.

PROSPERITY.

Herr Schwein, that very learned pig, who had stationed himself in an
unobserved corner of the throng, in order that he might witness the
behaviour of his pupil, was delighted, though not astonished, at his
success, and gave vent to his feelings in as marked a manner as a
philosopher and an animal of his peculiar temperament could be expected
to betray. He even went so far as to beg Bruin to embrace him--an
experiment he was not likely to desire repeated, for that malicious
beast gave him so severe a squeeze, as to cause him an indigestion for
several days after. Piggy's calculations, and the joy which he built on
them, would not have been of so solid a kind, if he had known a little
more of Bruin's disposition; but, though an animal of experience and
knowledge of the world, he was in this case too blinded by his pride to
form his usually correct judgment. He only considered what the bear owed
to him in the way of gratitude for clothing, feeding, and civilising; he
grunted with satisfaction as he revolved in his thoughts the goodly
treasure which Bruin might be the means of his acquiring; for,
philosopher