for to-day.'

THERE ALL THE TIME.

It is told of Dr. Thorold that he was once asked to give away the prizes
at a school belonging to the London School Board.

In the course of his opening address, he gravely asked the children,
'Which was the largest island in the world, before Australia was
discovered?'

When the youngsters gave it up, he told them, in the same grave way,
which made them laugh all the more, 'Why, Australia, of course; it was
there all the time!'

STOP THIEF!

[Illustration: "Stop thief!"]

But yesterday he came, a small
And lively pup--his cheerful face
So innocent, that one and all
Believed him best of all his race.

He crept beneath a chair--'to sleep,'
I thought; 'poor tired little love,'
Quoth I, and quickly stooped to peep--
And caught him chewing up my glove!

Since then he's worried all our mats,
Upset the milk and smashed a cup;
He's chased for miles one neighbour's cats,
And nearly killed another's pup.

Three stockings and a pair of mits
He dragged through all the muddy street;
Besides a muff that lies in bits--
Except the parts I saw him eat.

And now the butcher has been down
To say our puppy is a thief,
Who visited his shop in town,
And ran off with a joint of beef.

Yet here he sits and wags his tail,
With goodness written on his face--
A little dog that could not fail
To be the best of all his race.

THE MUSIC OF THE NATIONS.

VIII.--BAGPIPES OF MANY COUNTRIES.

[Illustration]

I wonder if it has ever occurred to any of the readers of _Chatterbox_
that the bagpipes of the Highland glen, and the mighty organ which peals
through a Cathedral aisle, are one and the same instrument? When they
are reduced to their simplest elements of wind-chest, pipes and reeds,
there is practically no difference between the two.

The Bagpipe in its varying forms may be described as a portable organ,
whether blown by the mouth of the performer or by a pair of bellows. The
instrument is very ancient.

A curious old gem has been preserved, bearing the device of Apollo
carrying a lyre in his arms and a bagpipe slung across his back, which
takes that instrument right back to the days of ancient Greece.

Powerful bagpipes are used amongst the mountain tribes of Hindustan, and
travellers meet with them both in China and Persia. The ancient Romans
patronised this instrument largely, and t