rosebush, and we'll give it light and bring it round. Nothing can live without light. People need it as much as flowers do, for people need the light of loving-kindness and truth."

Try putting one plant in the dark for a week and one in the light. What would happen if we had no sun? Would flowers grow? fruit? grain? Does everybody need sun? Did you ever see a thunderstorm? What did it look like? Was the sky clear? Did you ever see a person look cross? Did he look like a sunny day? If every one were cross to us, should we be happy? Who is kind to us? Who loves us? What kind things does our mother do? What kind things does our father do? What kind things can we do?

Christmas Presents. Plan the making of presents for the family. Is it fun to get presents? Is it fun to give presents? Do people look happy when you give them a Christmas present? What kind does your mother like best? Something you have made?

Learn: "All Things Bright and Beautiful," by John Keble.

THE STORY OF CHRISTMAS

Far, far away, and two thousand years ago, a carpenter named Joseph and Mary his wife were traveling away from the country where they lived, to the town of Bethlehem. And while they were in Bethlehem, away from their home in Nazareth, a baby boy was born to them. It was a hot country in which they lived, and even in December people could live out of doors. As they had found that it was too crowded in the inn, Joseph and Mary had their little baby sleep in a manger in a low shed, near where the cows and oxen were kept. Read Luke, Chap. ii, verses 8 to 21.

JANUARY: CLEANLINESS

Read: "The Pig Brother," in the book of the same name, by Laura E. Richards (Little, Brown & Co.).

Questions: Where do pigs live? Have you seen any? Were they clean? Where do squirrels live? Are they dirty? Which looks the prettier? Why does a cat wash itself? If you had a piece of white paper and put your fingers down on it hard, would it leave a mark? If your hands had just been washed, would it leave a mark? Did the child in the story wash his hands after he came home? If it is a muddy day, do your feet leave a mark in the entry? What does your mother have to do? How can you help?

After the children have repeated the story accurately, you can reinforce its application by letting six children act it. (1) Angel. (2) Dirty child. (3) Squirrel. (4) Wren. (5) Tommy Cat. (6) Pig.

If any child acts poorly, ask another child how he thinks the squirrel would act.

TOM, THE CHIMNEY-SWEEP 1

Once upon a time there was a little chimney-sweep, and his name was Tom. He lived in a great town in the North country where there were plenty of chimneys to sweep. He could not read nor write, and did not care to do either, and he never washed himself, for there was no water up the court where he lived.

Tom and his master, Mr. Grimes, set out one morning for Harthover Place, where they were to sweep the

1 From The Water Babies, by Charles Kingsley.

chimneys. Mr. Grimes rode the donkey in front, and Tom and the brushes walked behind.

Tom had never been so far into the country before. He longed to get over a gate and pick buttercups, but Mr. Grimes was a man of business, and would not have heard of that.

Soon they came up with a poor Irish woman, trudging along with a bundle at her back. She had a gray shawl over her head, and a crimson petticoat. She had neither shoes nor stockings, and limped along as if she were tired and footsore; but she was a very tall, handsome woman, with bright gray eyes, and heavy black hair hanging about her cheeks.

She walked beside Tom, and asked him where he lived, and all about himself, till Tom thought he had never met such a pleasant-spoken woman.

Then he asked her where she lived; and she said far away by the sea that lay still in bright, summer days, for the children to bathe and play in it. And Tom longed to go and see the sea and bathe in it.

At last they came to a spring, bubbling and gurgling, so clear that you could not tell where the water ended and the air began. There Grimes stopped, got off his donkey, and clambered over the low road-wall, and knelt down, and began dipping his ugly head into the spring; and very dirty he made it.

Tom was picking the flowers as fast as he could. The Irish woman helped him. But when he saw Grimes actually wash, he stopped, quite astonished; and when Grimes had finished, and began shaking his ears to dry them, he said,

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My, master, I never saw you do that before."

"Nor will you again, most likely. 'T was n't for cleanliness I did it, but for coolness. I'd be ashamed to want washing every week or so, like any smutty collier-lad,"

"I wish I might go and dip my head in," said poor little Tom. "It must be as good as putting it under the town-pump, and there is no beadle here to drive a chap

away.

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Thou come along," said Grimes. "What dost thou want with washing thyself?"

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Grimes was very sulky, and he began beating Tom. Are you not ashamed of yourself, Thomas Grimes?' cried the Irish woman, over the wall.

Grimes seemed quite cowed, and got on his donkey without another word.

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Stop," said the Irish woman. "I have one more word. Those that wish to be clean, clean they will be; and those that wish to be foul, foul they will be. Remember."

How many chimneys Tom swept at Harthover Place, I cannot say, but he swept so many that he got quite tired, and lost his way in them; and coming down, as he thought, the right chimney, he came down the wrong one, and found himself standing on the hearth-rug in a room the like of which he had never seen before.

The room was all dressed in white; white windowcurtains, white bed-curtains, white chairs, and white walls, with just a few lines of pink here and there.

The next thing he saw was a washing-stand with ewers and basins, and soap and brushes, and towels; and a large bath full of clean water. And then looking toward the bed, he held his breath with astonishment.

Under the snow-white coverlet, upon the snow-white pillow, lay the most beautiful little girl that Tom had ever seen. Her cheeks were almost as white as the pillow, and her hair was like threads of gold spread all over the bed.

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She never could have been dirty," thought Tom to himself. And then he thought, "Are all people like that when they are washed?" And he looked at his own

wrist, and tried to rub the soot off, and wondered whether it ever would come off. "Certainly I should look much prettier, if I grew at all like her."

And looking round, he suddenly saw, standing close to him, a little, ugly, black, ragged figure, with bleared eyes, and grinning white teeth. He turned on it angrily. What did such a little black ape want in that sweet young lady's room? And behold, it was himself reflected in a great mirror, the like of which Tom had never seen before.

And Tom, for the first time in his life, found out that he was dirty, and burst into tears with shame and anger. He turned to sneak up the chimney again and hide, and upset the fender, and threw the fire-irons down, with a great noise.

Under the window spread a tree, with great leaves and sweet white flowers, and Tom went down the tree like a cat, and across the garden towards the woods.

The under-gardener, mowing, saw Tom, and threw down his scythe, and gave chase to poor Tom. The dairy-maid heard the noise, jumped up and gave chase to Tom. Grimes upset the soot-sack in the new graveled yard and spoilt it all utterly; but he ran out and gave chase to Tom.

The ploughman left his horses at the headland, and one jumped over the fence, and pulled the other into the ditch, plough and all; but he ran on and gave chase to Tom. Sir John looked out of his study window, and he ran out and gave chase to Tom. The Irish woman, too, was walking up to the house to beg; she must have got round by some by-way; but she threw away her bundle and gave chase to Tom likewise.

Tom ran on and on, and when he stopped to look around, he said, "Why, what a big place the world is"; for he was far away from Harthover, having left the