her nephew would do when he became a man, she
would not have thought he was wasting his time.

When James Watt grew up, he was as much interested in steam and its
wonderful power, as he had been as a boy. He was sure it could be made
of great service to men. It was already used for driving engines, but
the engines were not good, and it cost much money to work them. Watt
thought they could be improved, but it was long before he found out the
way to do this. Often, he sat by the fire watching the lid of the kettle
as it was made to dance by the steam, and thinking of many plans; and at
last a happy thought came to him. His plan enabled great improvements to
be made in the working of engines, and now steam drives our trains and
ships, our mills and factories, and is one of our most useful servants.

[Illustration: WATCHING THE BOILING KETTLE]

=Queen Victoria and her Soldiers=

Queen Victoria was always proud of her brave soldiers. In time of war,
she gave orders that news of them was to be sent to her every day, and
when the generals returned home, they were commanded to visit her, and
to tell her of the bravery of the troops.

During the long war with the Russians in the Crimea, the British
soldiers suffered greatly from the freezing winds, and rain, and snow,
of that cold land. When Queen Victoria heard of this, she and her
children worked with their own hands to make warm clothing for them. A
great many of the wounded and sick men were sent home in ships, to be
nursed in the English hospitals, and the Queen paid several visits to
the poor fellows as they lay there. Moving from one bed to another, she
cheered them with hopeful words, and listened gladly to their stories of
the battles in which they had fought. When she saw that the hospitals
were crowded, and not very comfortable, she told Parliament that better
ones ought to be provided, and after a time this was done, and the fine
hospital of Netley was built, of which the Queen laid the first stone.

Once, Queen Victoria herself gave medals to some wounded and disabled
soldiers who had fought very bravely. Some of these men could not raise
their arms to salute their queen; some could not walk, but had to be
wheeled in chairs to her side; but all were proud to receive their
medals of honour from her hands.

"Noble fellows," she wrote of them afterwards, "I feel as if they were
my own children."

[Illustration: QUEEN VICTORIA VISITS HER WOUNDED SOLDIERS