The Bossier banner. [volume] (Bellevue, Bossier Parish, La.) 1859-1952, 1880-11-18

| Since nearer loving angels keep
The1r cradle guard about your sleep.
| Mrs. Clara Doty Bates, in Christian Union.
| Il.
THE MASTERS STORY.
When Master Noble was appointed te
take charge of the Oak Bridge schools
he found, much to his surprise, that in
every grade, from the primary to the
high schools, that there were many pu.
pills who had frequently been promoted
to higher classes, but, failing to get
their lessons during the first term, had,
at examination, been sent back to q
lower grade again.
This had become such common oc-
currence in the schools at Oak Bridge
that the spirit of honest and praise
worthy emulation was lost, and the pu-
pills felt it to be no humiliation or dis
grace to be dropped from higher class
to q lower one. - - -a
Something must be done to impress
upon them the disgrace of such indiffer-
ence, and to arouse their ambition, -
thought the new master, and he forth
with invited all the young folks in the
community to meet him the next Sat
urday afternoon at the town-hall to
listen to story that he would tell.
Ut course the promise of story from
the popular new master, and the fact
that he had recently returned from ex-
tensive travels, called the children and
young people all out, and this is what
they heard: ' ga
at is said that years ago beautiful
little brown sparrow made her home in
the garden of a certain great and re-
nowned magician. She built her nest
IN the grass, and. was, content to hop
ard chirp about In the rose thicket. and
to p very near the ground indeed.
s.6he might have been happy enough
had she not allowed herself to be afraid
OF the robin-redbreast that had nest
In the golden sweet apple-tree, and was
always fluttering down and hop-hop-
hopping across the grass-plot, and peck
ing this way and that at the smaller
birds. l5tzs IL
1.-The wise and tender-hearted maei-
clan. who had been closely watching
proceedings, had so much sympathy for
the timid, trembling little sparrow that
he s.tid, She shall have chance in the
world and he forthwith changed her
into robin. zs,sl :, g e
!" No sooner had she got over the noY-
city of her new situation than she BEGAN
to be afraid of the pigeon-hawk that
came sailing down from the wood near.
by in search of prey. So the magician,
still thinking to make something of
the timorsome little bird which was his
pet, now changed her into a pigeon
hawk.
Immediately she cast affrighted
chances at the big gray owl that lived
IN hollow tree farther back toward the
edge OF the forest, and who came out
on a dead branch at night-fan, and
booted until the hillside rang again
with the unearthly screeches, and all
the smaller birds tucked their heads
under their wings, and put their claws
over their ears to shut out the sound. /,
/. . will persevere.' said the tender
hearted magician; Il may make some
thing of her YETI and straightway the
became an owl, with a
voice equal to any OF. the owls in all
that forest. - ~
s'But now, instead Of making the
most OF her opportunity. and BEING. a
real, vigorous owl she backed into the
old hollow tree, her great staring ewes
round with terror, as she tremblinglv
listened to the terrific screams of mon
strous eagle whose eyrie was on the
mountain-side facing the surise..
50 You shall be a sparrow aoainr i
angrily cried the magician. You have
only the life and heart and spirit of ..
sparrow after all. What is the use of
my trying to make anything else of youp
Had you asserted and kept your posi-
ion as an owl, / would soon have made
you an eagle, and you could have proud
y scared above all the birds of the air.
have done my best to help you along.
out you have not made one effort IN
your own behalf
!" 1t is the same with a boy or a girl.n
continued Master Noble. "If pupils
nave only the heart and the will and !
he intellect of sparrow, they will re-
nam sparrows in spite of all their teach
rs may do to help them on and to en-
courage them. Study and vtA are the
naglcians that help them to maintain
heir promotion, and the public exami-
latlon is the great magician that as
lgns them their advanced positions.
The world over, sparrow-hearted
'eople are getting into eagles nests, but
,een-eyed public opinion is the great
Magician who says, 60 back to the
hicket and to the grass-plot again!
GU have only the heart and the brain
i sparrow; there is no use in trying
make eagles Of YOU"
That is why to this day the names of
hose birds are the symbols of the diff
erent grades in the Oak Bridge schools.
nd Master Noble has never once been
hliged to say, go back and be a spar
o'0 again. HRS Annie a. Preston, IL, F
1drpers Young People. E -, al.
The Boys and the Peaches.
In our neighbours yard there stands q
each tree, the only thriving one for