manner, and was instructed by the very best teachers in all that was good and useful.

This extraordinary change had been brought about in a very simple manner. After Augustus had awoke, under the beech, and had rubbed his eyes, he set off immediately into the wood, to seek again for beech-nuts, and had soon nearly half filled his little basket. At length he came to where there were no longer any beech-trees, and went on and on till at last he came out of the wood on the side bordering the river. A large boat lay on the shore there. The boat had only lain-to here to wait for some passengers that it had to take up. The other passengers, who were in part very rich people, and in part families of the middle class, had all come on land. The elder persons walked up and down the green and meadow-like banks for a little exercise, and the children amused themselves by looking for bright-coloured pebbles among the gravel on the shore. Presently the children saw the little Augustus, and then came up to him and peeped into his little willow-basket, to see what he had in it. The pretty brown beech-nuts, with which they were unacquainted, delighted them.

"They are very queer nuts!" said the little Antonia, a lovely child, somewhat younger than Augustus, and who was dressed as prettily as a lady: "such little three-cornered chestnuts I never saw before!"

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"Nay," said Augustus, who had never heard of chestnuts, they are not such odd things as you say; they are beechnuts, and one can eat them." He divided whole handfuls among the children, and they made a great rejoicing. It gave the good little Augustus the greatest pleasure to find such a

a child

many merry children all together: such a happiness as this was very rare, for it was not often that he saw even from the village. He joined himself to the children, and they gave to him of all that they had, pears and plums.

Augustus was now very curious to see the boat nearer: it was the first large boat that he had seen near. The floating house upon it, a great deal larger than his cottage, appeared to him very wonderful. The children took him with them into the boat. Antonia led him into the papered room, which was appointed for the use of the higher class of passengers.

"Eh!" cried Augustus, in astonishment, "there is in this house a prettier parlour than we have at home!"

Antonia and his other new play-fellows shewed him now their toys. Augustus was enraptured by the sight of all these splendours, and thought no more about going home. In the meantime the boat, without the boy being the least aware of it, put from the land, and floated majestically down the

river.

Nobody in the boat had paid any particular attention to Augustus. The passengers who had been longest in the boat supposed that he belonged to some of the new-comers; and the new-comers imagined that he belonged to those already there. It was only when the evening approached, and the poor child began to cry aloud, and ask for his mother, that people discovered that a strange child was on board. They were not a little astonished, and no small disturbance arose in the boat. Many lamented and pitied both mother and child; others laughed at the unbidden little travelling companion: the boatmen scolded, and threatened to throw the boy in the water.

At that moment the master of the boat came up, and examined him. "Tell me now, little fellow," began the grave, fat man, "from what city or village came you?"

"I am from no city, and from no village," said Augustus. "That is strange," said the master; "yet you must have a home somewhere."

"My home," replied he, "stands in the wood, not far from the village."

"Good, now," said the master; "what is the name of the village?"

"Ha!" said Augustus; "what should it be called but the village? My mother never called it anything else. She used to say, now they ring the bell in the village for dinner, or, to-morrow you shall go with me into the village to buy bread." "What, then, is the name of your parents?" asked the

master.

"My father," answered the boy, "is dead, and my mother is called the fisher-wife Dora."

"Then," said the master, "she is named Theodora; but what is her surname?"

"She has no other name but Dora," said the little one; "she has often said to people, that they need not call her anything else."

The master saw very well, that from an inexperienced child, who had no notion even of a surname, but little information would be obtained. He grew very angry, and said: "I wish that the cuckoo had brought you anywhere rather than into my boat."

The good little one, whose eyes were full of tears, answered, quite simply, and without passion, "The cuckoo has not

brought me here: I have never once seen him, but in spring I have often heard him."

Everybody in the boat laughed, but the master was in great perplexity. Here, unfortunately, the Danube flowed through an uninhabited woody region, and far and wide no open space could be seen. In a while, however, as the sun was about setting, they discerned a distant church tower. "I will leave the child in that village," said the master, "that the people there may take it back to its mother; and there, since we cannot go much further to night, will we sleep."

But Mr. Wahl, the father of Antonia, would not consent to this. He was a rich merchant, who was taking several chests full of gold and treasure with him, for he, like the rest of the boat's company, were fleeing before the enemy, it being during the time of the Thirty Years' War which laid waste Germany.

The

"I wish with all my heart," said Mr. Wahl, "that the distressed mother could, without delay, have her dear child back with her. But at this moment it cannot be done! enemy is advancing, and is approaching the Danube; a delay of a few hours might endanger our falling into the hands of the enemy, and losing all that we possess. In Heaven's name proceed!"

Mr. Wahl, who had great cause for anxiety, insisted also that the boat should travel through the whole night, considering that it was the time of full moon. They said that this was against their custom: but as he promised a great sum of money both to the master and the boatmen, they consented at last, and proceeded in the clear bright moonlight onward through the whole night.