"I pulled it from the stone," replied the youth. "Was there aught strange in that? It came out easily enough.'

"Were there no knights about?”

"None, sir."

"Back to the churchyard!" called Sir Ector. "Here is a mystery that must be explained."

So the three rode swiftly back to the churchyard. "Can you put the sword back again?" inquired Sir Ector.

"I can try," said Arthur.

And he lightly thrust the sword back into the stone again.

Then Sir Ector and Sir Kay tried with all their strength to pull it out. But the sword yielded not. "Now you shall try, Arthur," said his father.

So Arthur seized the hilt, and behold, the sword came out in his hand. And Sir Ector and his son Sir Kay marveled greatly.

"Hail, King of England!" cried Sir Ector, kneeling before him.

"I? Wherefore I?”

When but Only Merlin, I have tried

"It is the will of God," replied Sir Ector reverently. "Know now, Arthur, I am not your father. an infant you were left in my charge. the magician, knows whose son you are. to fulfill my trust."

"May I fulfill mine as faithfully, if ever I wear England's crown," replied Arthur.

And Sir Kay knelt down too.

Soon all the knights and barons heard of the wonderful deed, and they proclaimed Arthur king over all England.

-Adapted.

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PLAYING THE STORY

Act the story in four scenes.

take part in working out the play.

The entire class may

Let the first scene present the arrival of Sir Ector and his two sons at the tournament grounds.

Let the second represent Arthur's search for Sir Kay's sword, and his seizure of the magic sword.

Let the third represent Arthur's arrival at the tournament with the magic sword.

The fourth will show how Arthur obtained the sword.

After Arthur became king, his knights rode far and near, helping the weak, and performing brave deeds.

Every young man in those days wished to become one of King Arthur's knights of the Round Table. Each one, however, must first prove himself worthy.

And so it happens that even to this day we call a man or a boy who does brave deeds, or who sacrifices and suffers for others, a knight.

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LEARNING TO COPY

I made them lay their hands in mine and swear

To reverence the King, as if he were

Their conscience, and their conscience as their King,
To break the heathen and uphold the Christ,
To ride abroad redressing human wrongs,
To speak no slander, no, nor listen to it.

-Tennyson.

In this poem, King Arthur tells of the vow which he made his knights take.

Copy the stanza, studying it carefully.

To-morrow you may take a sheet of paper and see how much of this vow you can write.

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A STORY

A LITTLE KNIGHT

He looked rather funny as he climbed the car steps. His legs were very short, and he could get no help from his hands, for one carried his dinner-bucket, and the other held something squeezed up tight.

A little friend of his, Jenny Hunt, who had evidently been crying, was sitting at the other end of the car. John made his way up to her. "Hello, Jenny!" he said in his cheerful voice.

I

"O John," said Jenny, "I've lost my dime! think it's down here on the floor. Now I can't go to the show. I've looked and looked for it."

"Can't you get another?" asked John, looking sharply at the floor.

"No. We are such a big family, you see, and I am in the middle of it. People in the middle of families don't ever get any extras. They always take what's left."

"Yes, I've noticed that," said John. "I'm in the middle, too, and things are always too big or too little for me. I got my dime running an errand for grandma," he added, opening his squeezed-up hand and showing it. "Jenny, you take mine."

"No, indeed, I won't take yours," Jenny said, firmly. "I guess I know about boys and shows. I've saved

this dime for the longest time, and I was so glad when the man said the school children could come for ten cents. Just suppose he'd said fifteen! But now-"

The tears were coming again, and John dropped down to look for the coin.

He hunted for some minutes, and a sharp-eyed woman saw him drop his dime down in the straw, then pick it up. Then he rose. "Here you are, Jenny!" he said.

"O John, thank you, thank you!" cried Jenny, beaming. "I never can find things."

When they got off at the schoolhouse, the sharpeyed woman got off, too.

And that may have explained the fact that John's teacher at recess handed him a square envelope. In it were a ticket to the show, a bright silver dime, and a tiny slip of paper on which was written, "For the good knight, John." John did not understand that very well. But he understood the dime and ticket, and he beamed like a small freckled sun.

Youth's Companion, January 18, 1900.

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-L. E. Chittenden.

RE-TELLING THE STORY

Read the story silently. Close your books. Several of you may tell the story as you remember it. Listen carefully to see if the story your classmate is telling is the same story as that in your book.

Who has told the story exactly?

Now some one may come to the front of the room and tell the story as Jenny told it to her best friend.

She might begin in this way:

Just think, May, I almost missed the show, for I dropped my ten cent piece in the street car and could not find it. But John

Tell the story as John told it to his mother.

Vote for the best story.

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TALKING ABOUT KNIGHTS

Perhaps some of you know a story about one of Arthur's knights. Tell it to your classmates.

Perhaps your teacher will read you a story about Sir Galahad or Sir Gareth. Re-tell this story.

Why did the lady in the story A Little Knight call John a knight? What should knights of to-day do? Have you ever seen a boy or a girl on the street do a kind act to an older person?

Have you ever seen a boy scout do a courteous act in the street car?

Have you ever seen a boy perform a knightly deed on the playground; in a crowd; crossing the street? Tell about one of these knightly deeds.

Why might you call your story A Knight of To-day?

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BUILDING A VOCABULARY

In each of the blanks in the story use one of the words from the list below. If you can think of a better word than one in the list, you may use it.