THE GOLDEN WORD BOOK

THE GOLDEN GOOSE

It was granted to a good man, when he died, to be born again as a golden goose. So he flew to the top of the house where he had lived, and there were his wife and daughters, now very poor, and having a hard time to get along.

The goose said, "I am your father, my daughters, and you may take this golden feather, sell it, and buy food."

At

This he did day after day, and the golden feathers kept the family in comfort. last the wife said:

"Children, who can depend upon a goose? Any day he may fly off, and we shall see him no more. I will take all his feathers the next time he comes, and pluck him clean, and so be sure of them."

But the feathers were of gold only when they were pulled out with the consent of

the goose.

So now when the woman held the goose and plucked him, the feathers were only common ones. And the goose flew away, and was never seen again.

Retold from "The Jātāka."

FATHER WILLIAM

You are old, Father William," the young man cried;

"The few locks which are left you are

grey;

You are hale, Father William, a hearty old

man;

Now tell me the reason, I pray."

"In the days of my youth," Father William replied,

"I remember'd that youth would fly fast, And abused not my health and my vigor at first,

That I never might need them at last."

"You are old, Father William," the young man cried,

"And pleasures with youth pass away;

And yet you lament not the days that are

gone;

Now tell me the reason, I pray."

"In the days of my youth," Father William replied,

I remember'd that youth could not last; I thought of the future, whatever I did, That I never might grieve for the past."

ROBERT SOUTHEY.

BILLY'S PRIZE ESSAY

AUNT BESS had followed Billy's course from the time when he had entered the schools, until finally he had reached the seventh grade. She felt that her nephew had received so much from the schools that she wanted to show her gratitude by making some sort of return. So she decided to give some money to the Library Fund, the interest on which could be used to purchase new books that might prove interesting and helpful to both teachers and pupils. She resolved, also, to establish a prize of fifty dollars to be awarded each year to the pupil

of the seventh grade who should write the best essay on a subject assigned by the teacher of the grade.

The first year in which it was offered a number of boys and girls were eager to win the prize. Of course, it would be regarded as a great honor to be the successful competitor, and fifty dollars seemed a large sum of money, so that the competition bade fair to be very sharp.

Billy thought the matter over carefully and made up his mind to compete for the prize. He felt sure that Aunt Bess would be pleased, and, of course, he wanted both the honor and the money. He soon learned that ten others were going to enter the contest. All were anxious to learn what subject would be selected to write upon. Charlie Kimball hoped that Miss Jennings would choose an historical subject. He was sure that he could do his best with such a theme. Grace Elkins preferred to write a description of a journey or of a place noted. for beautiful scenery. She liked to describe things. Billy wanted to write about some famous leader, - -a soldier or a statesman,