this amusement he gave up all his time; but yet he was never satisfied. All the exertions of all his courtiers were in vain; the more he heard, the more he wanted to hear. At last he made a proclamation, that, if any man would tell him a story that should last for ever, he would make him his heir, and give him the princess, his daughter, in marriage; but, if anyone should pretend that he had such a story and should fail-that is, if the story should come to an end he was to have his head chopped off.

For such a prize as a beautiful princess and a kingdom, many candidates appeared; and dreadfully long stories some of them told. Some lasted a week

some a month-some six months: poor fellows! they all spun them out as long as they possibly could, you may be sure; but all in vain; sooner or later they all came to an end; and, one after another, the unlucky story-tellers all had their heads chopped off.

At last came a man who said that he had a story which would last for ever, if his Majesty would be pleased to give him a trial.

He was warned of his danger; they told him how many others had tried and lost their heads; but he said he was not afraid, and so he was brought before the king. He was a man of a very composed and deliberate manner of speaking; and, after making all requisite stipulations for time for his eating, drinking, and sleeping, he thus began his story :

'O, King! there was once a king who was a great tyrant, and, desiring to increase his riches, he seized upon all the corn and grain in his kingdom, and put it into an immense granary, which he built on purpose, as high as a mountain.

This he did for several years, till the granary was quite full up to the top. He then stopped up doors and windows, and closed it up fast on all

6

But the bricklayers had, by accident, left a very small hole near the top of the granary; and there came a flight of locusts, and tried to get at the corn; but the hole was so small that only one locust could! pass through it at a time; so one locust went in and carried off one grain of corn, and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and: then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn, and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn

He had gone on thus from morning to night (except while he was asleep, or engaged at his meals) for about a month, when the king, though a very patient king, began to be rather tired of the locusts, and interrupted his story with, 'Well, well, we have had enough of the locusts; we will suppose that they have helped themselves to all the corn they wanted; tell us what happened afterwards.' To which the story-teller answered very deliberately, 'If it please your Majesty, it is impossible to tell you what happened afterwards, before I have told you what happened first.' So he went on again,' And then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn, and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another

grain of corn.' The king listened with unconquerable patience six months more, when he again interrupted him with: O, friend! I am weary of your locusts! How soon do you think they will have done?' To which the story-teller made answer, 'O, king! who can tell? At the time to which my story has come, the locusts have cleared away a small space, it may be a cubit each way round the inside of the hole; and the air is still dark with locusts on all sides; but let the king have patience, and no doubt we shall come to the end of them in time.'

Thus encouraged, the king listened on for another full year, the story-teller still going on as before: And then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn; and then another locust went in and carried off another grain of corn-' till at last the poor king could bear it no longer, and cried out: O, man, that is enough! Take my daughter!-take my kingdom !-take anything everything! only let us hear no more of your abominable locusts !'

And so the story-teller was married to the king's daughter, and was declared heir to the throne, and nobody ever expressed a wish to hear the rest of his story, for he said it was impossible to come to the other part of it till he had done with the locusts. The unreasonable caprice of the foolish king was thus over-matched by the ingenious device of the wise man.-Letters from an Officer in India, edited by Rev. S. A. Pears, B.D.

THE TOY OF THE

GIANT'S CHILD.

Al-sace', an old province in the per-chance', perhaps

site, situation

west of France

lone, lonely

de-light', pleasure

idly

peas'-ant, a countryman

till (v.), to dig and plant the ground ker-chief, a little shawl to cover the head

saun'-ter (v.), to wander about strug'-gling, striving for freedom

Burg Niedeck is a mountain in Alsace high and strong,

Where once a noble castle stood-the giants held it long;

Its very ruins now are lost-its site is waste and lone

And, if you seek for giants there, they all are dead and gone.

The giants' daughter once came forth the castle gate before,

And played, with all a child's delight, beside her father's door;

Then sauntering down the precipice, the girl did gladly go,

To see, perchance, how matters went in the little world below.

With few and easy steps she passed the mountain and the wood;

At length, near Huslach, at the place where mankind dwelt, she stood;

And many a town and village fair, and many a field

so green,

Before her wondering eyes appeared, a strange and curious scene.

And as she gazed, in wonder lost, on all the scene around,

She saw a peasant at her feet, a-tilling of the ground; The little creature crawled about so slowly here and there,

And lighted by the morning sun, his plough shone bright and fair.

Oh, pretty plaything!' cried the child, I'll take thee home with me;'

Then with her infant hands she spread her kerchief on her knee,

And cradling horse, and man, and plough, all gently on her arm,

She bore them home with cautious steps, afraid to do them harm!

She hastes with joyous steps and quick (we know what children are),

And spying soon her father out, she shouted from afar

'O, father, dearest father, such a plaything I have

found;

I never saw so fair a one on our own mountain ground.'

Her father sat at table then, and drank his wine so mild,

And, smiling with a parent's smile, he asks the happy child,