ht that the
dog amused himself by barking. So he brayed all night. When the
day dawned, the owner of the ass thought the poor animal had been
suffering from some disorder. Therefore he sent for the village
doctor, and laid the case before him.

The doctor examined the animal closely, and said, "Friend, you must
brand this ass forthwith, else he will soon go into fits and die."

The ass said, "I assure you nothing is wrong with me; I simply amused
myself last night."

"Oh, no," said the inexorable leech; "I know what the wily brute
means. He would rather die, and make you the loser, than be branded
and recover his health."

So they bound the ass with ropes, and branded him all over with
red-hot irons. Some time after the ass moved out to see how the
village had fared during his illness. The dog asked why he had been
branded. The ass narrated the story. Quoth the dog, "_He that
mistakes work for amusement must pay for his error_."

* * * * *

THE LARK AND ITS YOUNG ONES

A child went up to a lark, and said, "Good lark, have you any young
ones?"

"Yes, child, I have," said the lark; "and they are very pretty ones
indeed!" Then she pointed to them, and said, "This is Fair Wing, that
is Tiny Bill, and that other is Bright Eye."

The child said, "Yes, at home, we are three--myself and my two
sisters, Jane and Alice; and mamma says we are pretty little children,
and that she is very fond of us."

To this the little larks replied, "Oh yes, mamma is very fond of us
too."

Then the child said, "Good lark, will you send home Tiny Bill to play
with me?" Before the lark could reply, Bright Eye said, "Yes, if you
will send little Alice to play with us in our nest."

The child said, "Oh, Alice will be so sorry to leave home, and come
away from mamma!"

Bright. Eye said, "Tiny Bill will be so sorry to leave our nest, and
go away from mamma!"

The child was abashed, and went home, saying, "_Ah, every one is fond
of home_!"

* * * * *

THE TWO GEMS

A despot in the East once said to his fawning courtiers, "He that goes
round my kingdom in the shortest possible time shall have one of these
two gems."

A courtier went round the King, and said, "Sire, may I have the prize?"

"How so?" said the King.

"Why, you are the kingdom, are you not?" said the courtier.

The despot was so well pleased with the courtier that he gave him both
the