SILL

This poem is an allegory. In reading it try to get
a clear picture of the scene described, and at the
same time remember that everything in it has a
hidden meaning; to understand it fully, you must
find out what the pictures represent. The title
gives you the necessary key.

This I beheld, or dreamed it in a dream:--
There spread a cloud of dust along a plain;
And underneath the cloud, or in it, raged
A furious battle, and men yelled, and swords
Shocked upon swords and shields. A prince's banner 5
Wavered, then staggered backward, hemmed by foes.
A craven hung along the battle's edge,
And thought, "Had I a sword of keener steel--
That blue blade that the king's son bears,--but this
Blunt thing!" He snapped and flung it from his hand, 10
And lowering crept away and left the field.
Then came the king's son, wounded, sore bestead,
And weaponless, and saw the broken sword,
Hilt-buried in the dry and trodden sand,
And ran and snatched it, and with battle shout 15
Lifted afresh, he hewed his enemy down,
And saved a great cause that heroic day.

1. What do the following represent: the battle; the
swords; the craven; the king's son; the broken
sword buried in the sand? Express the meaning of
the allegory in a sentence of your own.

2. Define an allegory, a fable; a parable. Most
allegories are long. Bunyan's _Pilgrim's Progress_
is a very famous one.

BOY WANTED

BY DR. FRANK CRANE

Dr. Frank Crane is an American writer whose little
essays you often see in newspapers and magazines.
This description of the right sort of boy is put in
the form of a "Want ad" in a newspaper. While you
read it, consider whether the boy you are best
acquainted with could apply for the job.

(Used by special permission of the author.)

A boy who stands straight, sits straight, acts straight,
and talks straight.

A boy who listens carefully when spoken to, who asks
questions when he does not understand, and does not ask
questions about things that are none of his business. 5

A boy whose finger nails are not in mourning, whose
ears are clean, whose shoes are polished, whos