to carry home to his poor father, when the gambler said to
him, "You foolish boy, why won't you play longer, and double your
dollar? You may as well have two or three dollars as one."
Henry played again, and lost not only what he had won, but the few
pence he had when he came upon the ice.
Henry was fortunate enough that day, after this occurrence, to sell
a few pretty canes, and so had some money to carry to his father;
but still he went home with a heavy heart, for he knew that he had
done a very foolish thing.
He had learned, by this most fortunate ill luck, what gambling was;
and he made a resolution then, which he faithfully kept through his
whole after life, never to allow any poverty, any temptation
whatever, to induce him to gamble.
Henry continually improved in his manufacture of canes, and he often
succeeded in getting money enough to pay for his writing lessons.
There were Jews in the city, who sold canes as he did, and he would
often make an exchange with them; even if they insisted upon having
two or three of his for one of theirs; he would consent to the
bargain, when he could get from them a pretty cane; and then he
would carry it home, and imitate it, so that his canes were much
admired; and the little fellow gained customers and friends too
every day.
The bad boys in the city he would have nothing to do with; he
treated them civilly, but he did not play with them, nor have them
for his friends. He could not take pleasure in their society.
Henry was a great lover of nature. He spent much of his life out in
the open air, under the blue skies; and he did not fail to notice
what a grand and beautiful roof there was over his head. The clouds
by day, the stars by night, were a continued delight to him. The
warm sunshine in winter, and the cool shade of the trees in summer,
he enjoyed more than many a rich boy does the splendid furniture and
pictures in his father's house.
One beautiful summer afternoon he was going, with his canes on his
shoulder, through the public promenade on the banks of the little
bay around which was the public walk. The waves looked so blue, and
the air was so delicious, that he was resolved he would treat
himself to a row upon the sparkling waters; so he hired a little
boat, and then got some long branches from the trees on the shore,
and stuck them all around the edges of his boat, and tied them
together by their tops, so as to make an arbor in the boat, and got
in
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