left the barn door open, so that the pony could run about in the yard.

Now, the barnyard gate was open, too. Jo ran back to the house to tell his father.

They found Bob at last, at the blacksmith's shop, tied before the door. He had a new shoe, and this is what the blacksmith said:

"When I opened my shop doors this morning, the pony was waiting outside in the street.

"While I was looking up and down the street to see who had brought him, he limped into the shop and raised his foot.

"I knew what he wished me to do. The foot told me that. So I started a fire and made a new shoe in place of the one he had lost.

"When the last nail was in, what do you think he did? You could not guess. He placed his foot on the floor and pawed as hard as he could.

"He looked at me, too, with his big eyes.

"You did not fasten the other shoe well,' the eyes said. "This time I shall try your work before I leave the shop.'

"Paw! paw! paw! went the iron shoe on the floor. When he found that the shoe would not come off, he turned to leave the shop. I was afraid he might not find his way home, and so I tied him here until you should come."

"Good pony!" said Mr. Gray, patting Bob's brown coat. "If he knew enough to ask for the shoe, he knew enough to go back to the barn. You might have trusted him that much, Mr. Blacksmith."

The Queen of Hearts, she made some tarts

All on a summer's day;

The Knave of Hearts, he stole the tarts,

And took them quite away.

The King of Hearts called for the tarts,
And beat the Knave full sore;

The Knave of Hearts brought back the tarts,
And vowed he'd steal no more.

Once upon a time a fox asked a stork to his house, to dinner.

When the stork reached the fox's house, dinner was ready. It was soup, in a flat dish.

"Help yourself, Friend Stork," said the fox. "You have come a long way and must be hungry. There is soup enough for both. Help yourself. Please do."

The stork tried and tried, but could not take up the soup in her bill. The dish was too flat. The fox ate all the soup, and the stork had to fly home hungry.

The next day the stork asked the fox to take dinner at her house.

When the fox reached the stork's house, he found the dinner in a pitcher. The pitcher had a long, narrow neck

The stork reached down into the pitcher with her long, narrow bill and ate.

"Help yourself, Friend Fox. Please do," said she. "There is food enough for both. You have come a long way and must be hungry."

The fox put his sharp nose into the pitcher. He reached his long tongue as far as he could, but he could not touch the food.

The fox had to go home still hungry for dinner. He knew how hungry the stork must have been the day before.

-ESOP.