THE YOUTH’S CABINET.

ewer. “What do you do there!” the
prince asked again, “I take care of
chickens,” said the parrot. The prince
Jaughed, and said, “ You take care of
chickens!” “ Yes, I do,” the parrot an-
swered, “and I know well enough how to
do it.’ And immediately he commenced
clucking, in imitation of the hen, when
che wishes to call her chickens together.
He made a noise exactly as the hen does.
It would have taken a wise chicken to
tell the difference.

There is an Eastern story of a person
who taught his parrot to repeat only the
words, “ What doubt is there of that?”
He carried it to the market for sale, fixing
the price at one hundred rupees. A
Mogul asked the parrot, “ Are you worth
a hundred rupees?” ‘The parrot answer-
ed, “ What doubt is there of that?” The
Mogul was delighted, and bought the

bird. He soon found out that this was.

* all it could say. Ashamed of his bargain,
he said to himself, “I was a fool to buy
this bird” The parrot exclaimed, as
usual, “ What doubt is there of that?”

A gentleman in Harrisburg, Pennsyl-
vania, had a eanary bird, and it was a fine
singer. A parrot, in a cage, was brought
by some one into the same room, but as
soon as Poll struek up. her harsh notes,
the other bird ceased to sing, and contin-
ued silent for a considerable time, and
even until it was removed to a part of the
house where the parrot could not be heard.
After a while it began to sing again. The
parrot was then brought into the room ;
but, as before, when she uttered her cry,
the canary ceased; and was never heard
to sing from that time to its death, which
occurred in two or three months afterward.
Let noisy children remember this.— Wood-
worth's Stories about Birds.

 

 

 

Water is best.

o you doubt it, little friend? Is
there in your mind a shadow of a
suspicion that brandy, rum, gin,
wine, and that sort of drink will

do. you good? Then I want you to com-
mit to memory the lines which follow,
and get yourself
the spirit of them.
you ask. I don’t know. I only know.
they are good, and that it would delight
me to hear them said or sung by every

thoroughly filled with
“ Who wrote them ?”

man, woman and child, in the’ circle of
my acquaintance. |

Water is best for the man of health,
"Twill keep his strength secure ,
Water is best for the man of wealth,

"Twill keep his riches sure.

Water is best for the feeble man,
‘Twill make his health improve ;

Water is best for the poor, I ken,
"Twill make his wants remove.

Water for those who are growing old,
‘Twill keep them hale and strong ;
Water is best for the young and bold,
‘Twill make their moments long.

Water is best for the man of toil,
"Twill make his labor light ;

Water is best for the “loafers,” who soil
Not a hand from morning till night.

Water is best for the man of strife,
"Twill make his anger slow ;

And for him who leads a peaceful life,
"Tis the very best drink I know.

Water is best for the man of state,
Twill make his judgment true;

Water is best for those who wait
His high commands to do.

Water, pure water, ’s the drink for man,
Its fountains are full and free! |
Others may drink “fire waters” who can,
Pure water ’s the nectar for me!
*