people point out the place where he threw a stone across the Rappahannock River, a thing no one else had ever done; and they say he threw a stone to the top of the Natural Bridge, which is two hundred feet high.

His brother Lawrence had been to school in England, and had been a soldier in a war between England and Spain. He told George all about his life at sea and on board of an English man-of-war.

George was so delighted with what he heard that he made up his mind to become a sailor. His clothes were all packed ready to go, but he gave it up because his mother wished it.

He went back to school and began to study surveying. When he had fitted himself for this work, his brother Lawrence took him to Mount Vernon to do some surveying for him. There he met an English gentleman, who liked him so much and was so pleased with his work that he sent him to survey a large tract of land which he owned about one hundred miles away in the wilder

ness.

George Washington, who was now sixteen years old, and another young man set off to do this work. All day they worked in the woods, shooting wild turkeys or other game for their food, cooking it on a forked stick over the camp-fire, and using a chip for a plate from which to eat it. At night they slept wrapped in their blankets before the fire.

At one time they came upon a band of Indians who had been upon the war-path. Their faces were painted, and they were having a war-dance around their great camp-fire.

They leaped and yelled and danced as if mad, while one of them pounded upon a drum made

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by drawing a deer-skin over a pot half filled with water.

This wild life taught George Washington the ways of the woods and of the Indians, and fitted him, when a little older, to do great and brave deeds for his country.

GOODNESS.

Whatever any one does or says, I must be good; just as if the gold, or the emerald, or the purple were always saying this, "Whatever any one else does, I must be emerald and keep my color."

MARCUS AURELIUS.

THE CAT AND THE CROWS.

A pair of crows built their nest in a tree near a house. At the house lived a cat who liked to catch birds. The crows were afraid for their young ones, and so the cat never came near the tree in which they had built their nest without the crows trying to drive her away. Battles

between the cat and the crows took place every day.

One morning the battle was fiercer than ever, and the cat had to run under the hedge to get away from the crows. They watched her but could do nothing more. After a while one of them flew to the ground and came back to the tree above the hedge with as large a stone as she could carry in her bill. The cat crept along under the hedge; but the crow saw her and kept just above her by flying from tree to tree. At last the cat left the hedge and ran across the open toward the house. The crow flew after her, and when just over her, let the stone drop upon her back.

THE FROG PRINCE.

In old times when wishing was having, there lived a king, whose daughters were all beautiful; but the youngest was SO very beautiful that that the the sun himself, who had seen so much, was filled with wonder, whenever he looked upon her face.

Near the palace of the king there was a great, dark wood, and in the wood under an old lindentree was a well.