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She took the ribbon from her hair The kitten to bedeck, Then brought its tail between its legs And tied it tail and neck.
She took her dolly to the pump And pinned it on the spout, And then with all her might and main She pumped the water out.
"Oh, little Haynth tho' thelfith,'
She cried, because her cousin {252} Besought one pillow, while she hugged Them all, a half a dozen.
She found a bell that tinkled, And fastened it, for fun, 'Round kitty's neck then clapped her hands, And cried, run! Kitty, run!
She fain would pick the eyes out, Of little baby-brother, "To find the pretty balls like those In fishes' eyes, and other."
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And then she'd fold her little hands So quaintly and demurely, You'd think she must be quite a saint, Or not a sinner, surely.
And thus her pranks from day to day And hour to hour repeated, Would bring the thought, "Tis all for naught, Our aims are all defeated."
Nay, nay, not so, the years roll by, And Ethel's baby-mischief Becomes the power that leads her kind, For by her force she is chief.
_THE SIX SISTERS._
ONE of us e'er lives in dates, One in every peach awaits; One in pine-apple is found, One in orange, bright and round, One in plum, so luscious sweet, And our last in strawberry--treat.
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_THE LITTLE GIRLS' LETTER TO GOD._
Now Susy's such a naughty dirl, And I ain't any better, And so we thought we just would wite The dear dood Dod a letter.
And tell him all about our bad, Betause he'd have to know, Or else he touldn't mate us dood, And so we told him how,
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Once when I spit on Susy's dwess Then Susy spit on me; And when I bwote her dolly's arm She smashed my Twistmas-twee.
Then when I pushed her off the wall, She spattered me with mud; When I pulled up her tolumbine, She snapped my wed wose-bud
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I talled her "old dwanmother Dwill"
And she tailed me "old maid,"-- And then we stwatched each others' eyes Down in the darden shade.
And then my ma and Susy's ma Both said the only way Would be to teep us little dirls Apart in all our play.
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And so the bid, brown date was shut, And that was such a bother,-- 'Tause Susy's yard was on one side And mine was on the other.
But we tould peet thwough all the twats, And tiss us thwough the hole Where the bid, udly knot tame out, As bid as Susy's bowl,
For I love Susy awful much, And Susy she loves me, And so we told the dear, dood Dod We'd twy dood dirls to be.
So now when we just feel the bad A-tomin' in our heart, We both wun home and shut the date And teep ourselves apart.
And in a minute all the dood Tomes bat,--and then our plays Seem nicer yet, and we fordet The naughty,--naughty--ways.
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_GRANDMA'S LESSONS._
"Tis guilt to wear the garb of sin, Though all be innocent within,"
These little girls heard grandma say, And wondered if 'twere half in play.
But when they're wiser, older grown, And when the world to them is known, They'll learn to shun even seeming ill; They'll learn with grace their lives to fill, And thank dear grandma o'er and o'er, For this, and many lessons more.
"'Tis guilt to wear the garb of sin, Though all be innocent within."
"If you do well by others' ills, You'll do right well," she said, When we would come and tell about The naughtiness of Ned.
"Now children, if you shun the bad You may in others find, And never let yourself be rude, Or naughty, or unkind, You'll learn to do by others' ills Right well," dear grandma said, "And in the way that's good and true, Your youthful feet shall tread."
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_MY LITTLE FOUR-YEARS-OLD_
Telling Dolly what she will say to her birthday friends
I'm four years old to-day, and I Can talk enough for ten birth-days, And I shan't rhyme it, neither;-- For little girls can't do it nice.
No matter what they think, and so They needn't try, no, never.
I'm glad you all are here, and now, With all our dollies in a row, I'm sure we'll have good times; And when we have our apples, grapes, And nuts and figs and patty-cakes, Who'll care for silly rhymes!
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