and I stood looking at his cold marble
face and his hands clasped together, till hearing Farmer Boult's man go
by, I went to the bells and rung them."

* * * * *

There was in the same parish a Mrs. Williams, who kept a college for
instructing little gentlemen and ladies in the science of A B C, who was
at this time very old and infirm, and wanted to decline this important
trust. This being told to Sir William Dove, he sent for Mrs. Williams,
and desired she would examine little Two-Shoes, and see whether she was
qualified for the office. This was done, and Mrs. Williams made the
following report in her favour: namely, that little Margery was the best
scholar, and had the best head and the best heart of any one she had
examined. All the country had a great opinion of Mrs. Williams, and this
character gave them also a great opinion of Mrs. Margery, for so we must
now call her.

The room in which Mrs. Margery taught her scholars was very large and
spacious, and as she knew that nature intended children should be always
in action she placed her different letters of alphabets all round the
school, so that every one was obliged to get up and fetch a letter, for
to spell a word, when it came to their turn; which not only kept them in
health, but fixed the letters firmly in their minds.

[Illustration]

One day as Mrs. Margery was going through the next village, she met with
some wicked boys who had taken a young raven, which they were going to
throw at. She wanted to get the poor creature out of their cruel hands,
and therefore gave them a penny for him, and brought him home. She
called him by the name of Ralph, and a fine bird he was.

Now this bird she taught to speak, to spell, and to read; and as he was
fond of playing with the large letters, the children used to call them
Ralph's Alphabet.

Some days after she had met with the raven, as she was walking in the
fields, she saw some naughty boys who had taken a pigeon and tied a
string to its legs, in order to let it fly and draw it back again when
they pleased; and by this means they tortured the poor bird with the
hopes of liberty and repeated disappointment. This pigeon she also
bought, and taught him how to spell and read, though not to talk. He was
a very pretty fellow, and she called him Tom. And as the raven Ralph was
fond of the large letters, Tom the pigeon took care of the small ones.

The neighbours knowing that Mrs. Two-Sh