DAME DUCK'S FIRST LECTURE ON MANNERS.

ANON.

[To be given in a simple, direct way, imitating the quacking of a duck in the last stanza.]

Old Mother Duck has hatched a brood
Of ducklings small and callow;
Their little wings are short; their down
Is mottled gray and yellow.

Close by the margin of the brook
The old duck made her nest

Of straw, and leaves, and withered grass,
And down from her own breast.

And there she sat for four long weeks,
In rainy days and fine,

Until the ducklings all came out-
Four, five, six, seven, eight, nine.

One peeped out from beneath her wing,
One scrambled on her back;
"That's very rude," said old Dame Duck;
"Behave yourselves! Quack, quack!"

AN OLD HEN.

M. M. D.

[Speak as if you were telling a great secret.]

An old hen sat on turtles' eggs,

And she hatched out goslings three;
Two were turkeys with slender legs,
And one was a bumble bee.

"Very odd children for such a mother!"
Said all the hens to one another.

THE OWL AND THE PUSSY CAT.

EDWARD LEAR.

[Give in a comical, descriptive manner.]

The owl and the pussy cat went to sea
In a beautiful pea-green boat;

They took some honey, and plenty of money
Wrapped up in a five pound note.

The owl looked up to the moon above,

And sang to a small guitar

"Oh, lovely pussy! Oh, pussy, my love!
What a beautiful pussy you are!
You are-

What a beautiful pussy you are!"

Pussy said to the owl: "You elegant fowl,
How wonderful sweet you sing!

Oh, let us be married, too long we have tarried,
But what shall we do for a ring?"

They sailed away, for a year and a day,
To land where the Bong tree grows,
And there in a wood a piggy-wig stood
With a ring in the end of his nose!
His nose-
With a ring in the end of his nose!

"Dear pig, are you willing to sell for one shilling Your ring?" Said the piggy, "I will!"

So they took it away, and were married that day
By the turkey who lives on the hill.

They dined on mince and slices of quince,
Which they ate with a runcible spoon,
And hand in hand, on the edge of the sand,
They danced by the light of the moon-
The moon-

They danced by the light of the moon!

A VERY LITTLE BOY'S SPEECH.

ANON.

[Speak as if you were telling a great secret.]

I never spoke before to-day.
The smallest boy am I;

And, as I've nothing much to say,

I'll only say, "Good-by!"

[Bows and scampers off.

A VERY LITTLE GIRL'S SPEECH.

ANON.

I've got three kisses sweet to give,
There's one for mother, kind and true,
And one for father, while I live,
And all the rest I give to you!

[Kisses hand to audience and retires.

JOHNNY'S ESSAY ON "THE TODE."

ANON.

[Give this in a mock pedantic sort of style.]

"Todes is like frogs, but more dignity, and wen you come to think of it frogs is wetter. The warts which todes is noted for can't be cured, for they is cronick; but if I couldn't git well I'd stay in the house. My grandfather knew a tode which somebody had tamed till it new folks. When its master wissled it would come for flies. They ketches 'em with their tung, wich is some like a long red worm, but more like litenin', only litenin ain't got any gum onto it. The fly will be a standin' a rubbin' its hine legs together, and a thinkin' what a fine fly it is, and a tode a settin some distance away like it was asleep. While you are seein' the fly as plain as you ever see anything, all to once it ain't there. Then the tode he looks up at you sollem, out of his eyes, like he said, 'what's become of that fly?' But you know he et it."

COUNTING BABY'S TOES.

MRS. MILLER.

[Speak this simply, counting the fingers of one hand, one after another,

in giving the 2d stanza.]

Dear little bare feet,

Dimpled and white,
In your long night-gown
Wrapped for the night;
Come let me count

All your queer little toes,

Pink as the heart

Of a shell or a rose.

One is a lady,

That sits in the sun;
Two is a baby,

And three is a nun;
Four is a lily,

With innocent breast;
And five is a birdie,
Asleep in her nest!

LONG TIME AGO.

ANON.

[Speak in a lively, animated style.] Once there was a little kitty,

Whiter than snow;

In a barn she used to frolic,
Long time ago.

In a barn a little mousie
Ran to and fro,

For she heard the pussy coming,
Long time ago.

Two eyes had little kitty,
Black as a sloe,

And they spied the little mousie,
Long time ago.

Four paws had little kitty-
Paws soft as dough-

And they caught the little mousie,
Long time ago.

When the teeth bit little mousie,
Little mouse cried "Oh!"
But she got away from Kitty,
Long time ago.

BABY'S LETTER TO UNCLE.

ANON.

[A little boy or girl may speak this as if reading from a letter.]

Dear Old Uncle-I dot oor letter;

My dear mamma, she ditten better;

She every day little bit stronger—
Don't mean to be sick very much longer.
Dear little baby had a bad colic;

Had to take three drops nassy palagolic.
Toot a dose of tatnip-felt worse as ever;
Shan't tate no more tatnip, never!
Wind on stomit, felt pooty bad:
Worse fit of sickness ever I had!
Ever had stomit ate, ole uncle Bill?
Ain't no fun, now, say what oo will.
I used to sleep all day, and cry all night;
Don't do it now, 'cause it ain't yite.
Got a head of hair jess as black as night;
And big boo eyes, yat look very bright.
My mamma say, never did see
Any ozzer baby half as sweet as me.
Grandma come often, aunt Sarah, too;
Baby loves zem, baby loves oo.