al-lured, enticed

a-roused, woke up

car-go, ship load

39. THIRSTY RATS.

en-count-er, fight

ev-i-dent, plain

ran-sacked, searched care

de-signs,

plans, inten

fully

crea-tures

quench-ing sau-cers thirst-y

Rats are thirsty creatures, and cannot live very long without something to drink. When they live on board ships they are often in great need of water, and show much skill and cleverness in seeking it; for, although there is plenty of water in the sea, they cannot drink it because of the salt it contains.

The captain of a large ship had a cargo of wheat, which was being devoured by rats. Day and night they were spoiling his wheat and making it unfit for the market. Traps were set, but somehow the rats could not be allured into them. They were so numerous and bold that the ship's cat would not encounter them, and the ship's dog turned tail when he saw them. It was not safe to poison them, for many reasons; and so the captain was pretty nearly at his wit's end to know what to do with them.

Upon the suggestion of an old sailor, he resolved to kill them with thirst. He carefully stowed away his casks of fresh water, and ordered his men to leave nothing about that the rats could drink. As the ship sailed through a tropical climate, the rats soon began to suffer. They came on deck and licked the sailors' clothes that

were drying after being washed. They ran up the rigging to drink the rain-water that had lodged in the folds and creases of the sails. They broke into the store-room and drank the oil. They ransacked the ship from end to end in search of fresh water.

It soon became evident to the crew that the rats were dying of thirst. But it did not suit the designs of the captain that they should die in any part of the ship. They were so numerous, and would creep into every hole and corner to die, that even after death they might become injurious to the ship unless they could be seized and thrown overboard. The captain, to avoid this, ordered several saucers of rum to be left about for them to drink. The rats drank the rum like water, and very soon began to behave very much as drunken men do. They reeled, and staggered, and raced about the deck as long as they could, and when they fell down they were easily caught. The sailors had no difficulty in killing them and throwing them into the sea. The cat and dog belonging to the ship also caught a large number, so that by the time the ship arrived in port there was scarcely a rat to be found.

The first night in port gave the few rats that were left an opportunity of quenching their thirst. They came on deck, and the watchman saw them creeping over the side of the ship and walking along the ropes to the shore. When they had all made the journey, he aroused the sailors, who immediately covered every rope with thorns and prickly gorse, to prevent the rats from returning. Every hole through which they could pass was plugged up, lest another family of them should take up their abode in the ship.

In a crack near a cupboard, with dainties pro

vided,

A certain young mouse with her mother resided; So securely they lived in that snug quiet spot, Any mouse in the land might have envied their lot.

But one day the young mouse, which was given

to roam,

Having made an excursion some way from her home,

On a sudden returned, with such joy in her eyes, That her grey, sedate parent expressed some surprise.

'O mother,' said she, 'the good folks of this house, I'm convinced, have not any ill-will to a mouse; And those tales can't be true you always are telling,

For they've been at such pains to construct us a dwelling.

'The floor is of wood, and the walls are of wires, Exactly the size that one's comfort requires; And I'm sure that we there should have nothing to fear

If ten cats with their kittens at once should appear.

'And then they have made such nice holes in the wall,

One could slip in and out with no trouble at all; But forcing one through such rough crannies as these

Always gives one's poor ribs a most terrible

squeeze.

'But the best of all is, they've provided us well With a large piece of cheese of most exquisite smell;

'Twas so nice I had put in my head to go through,

When I thought it my duty to come and fetch you.'

'Ah! child,' said her mother, 'believe, I entreat, Both the cage and the cheese are a terrible cheat;

Do not think all that trouble they took for our good:

They would catch us and kill us all there if they could,

As they've caught and killed scores; and I never could learn

That a mouse who once entered did ever

return.'

MORAL.

Let the young people mind what the old people.

say,

And when danger is near them keep out of the

way.

Our picture, which represents a ruined abbey with its walls covered with ivy, well deserves our notice. The silvery light of the moon gives great beauty to the picture. As the abbey stands, with its massive walls and carved towers pointing to the skies, it speaks to us of other times, and tells us of great changes in the condition of the people.

Of course, the voice of the abbey is not one that our ears can listen to; it is one that speaks to our minds and hearts. There are other voices besides those which we use every moment in conversation and speech. Some men will pick up a stone and learn from it what has been going on in the earth below for many ages. Others will look into the sky and hear the stars tell of the goodness and wisdom of their great Creator. And so the old ruined abbey has its story to tell. It fills our minds with memories of the past; it carries us back in thought for hundreds of years; and, to those who are patient and willing to learn, it will instruct us in the history of our land.

Most of the old abbeys in this country have been neglected or destroyed. The names of a