The Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1877-1885, 1882-01-14

Once upon time 'sall on sum
mer' day''-a small white bundle might
have been seen half lying on a grassy
bank, in certain garden in the north
erns part of Germany. We all know that
appearances is ;deeeitful;' but this
small white bundle certainly looked
nothing moro nor less than baby's pill
low q good deal trimmed with lace and
ON which was tied with two
or three straps of scarlet ribbon, Ger
man fashion, something that looked very
like a baby. 1t looked very ike baby,
and it cried very like baby. | suppose
You would have called it, baby.
It was a pretty little thing, whatever
you would have called it. The small
pink face shown forth from da1ntlly
embroidered cap. 1t had two great eyes
as blue as pirnpernels, q pair OF the,
sweetest dinples in the world, and
perfect little rosebud of mouth, that
could open into full-blown rose at the
shortest notice, as you will see before
this story is done.
Tt was all alone in the garden. I do
not know whether the baby knew she
was all alone in the garden or not, but
she seemed very happy and contented.
She sat perfectly still, much engaged,
apparently, in watching some long viii
loW-branches that went swaying back
and forth in the lazy breeze. l5I
ssC6ysD! Gaze! Car ~ screamed
hoarse black crow overhead. There was
q sswhir-r-r'' in the air, and down
swooped the crow, lighting where
do you think? Right on top of that baby
shall always maintain that she be-
haved very well under the circumstances.
She did not so much as open her lips
till the bold creature began pecking at
the scarlet ribbons. You can hardly
blame her for giving such scream then
that the unwelcome visitor flew OF In q
hurry.
A stork that happened 10 be passing
heard the connection, and felt obliged
to stou. and see what was the matter. So
she flew down to the garden, and 1t was
not long before she too spied the little
white bundle sitting there under the
trees.
The baby had stopped crying by this
time, and, all being quiet, Mrs. Stork
stepped cautiously forward, every min
ute stepping nearer and nearer, till at
| last she could look straight down into
the pair of blue eyes.
| Gravely the stork surveyed the baby,
| and cravely the baby surveyed the stork.
| Neither seemed to know quite what to
make of the situation, although soon 1T
BEGAN to dawn upon Madame Longlegs
| that maybe she had the best OF it, and
giving her head a toss, her wings a gem
/ tie flap, and opening wide her bill, she
said softly to herself:
Murray! this is lucky day for you'
Mother Storkf'
Casting another glance at the baby,
! who still did not offer to resent all this
Familiarity on the part of a stranger,
Mrs. Stork, like Master Grow, next con-
cluded to try taste of those gay red
ribbons.
The pimpernels shut up in a twink
ling. The rosebud kept opening wider
and wider And alas! the harder the
baby cried this time, the more dehghted
/ the visitor seemed to grow.
! .sAhem; it's real baby and no mis-
take.'' whispered the stork, dancing on
one leo in high glee and making noise
I enough with her wings to have been
dozen of her sisters and brothers; ''hur'
ray! hurray!"
The sound of voices could now bt
heard in the distance. If the children
only needn't have dawdled for once! L
the butterflies hadn't led them such
chase through the fower-beds! lii
if But then there would have beer
, no story to tell.
And as usual the children did dawdle
They ran from one rosebush to anothe
in pursuit of yellow butterfly; they
, held buttercups under their chins to Sc
whether they liked butter or not; the.
!. stopped for peep at their silly httI
faces in the clear waters OF the foun
tain. and meanwhile Mrs. Stork ha'
been making up her mind to grea
things. She had snatched up the littl
!, white bundle, and serenely sailed OF
through the bright summer sky
J 4*My baby! my baby! why, that Wach
[ ed. aUicked creatures got my baby!
5 was the agonized cry that rose 1ro1
r the garden.
IF Mother Stor6 heard, she did nc
heed On she flew with her burden
never resting once till she came. to he
own home-nest on top of high bar
in n village ever so many miles away
AS for the three young storks, the
were very much fiuttered indeed at tn
| SIGHT OF such an unexpected CUES
The first thing they did was to hop OF
of the nest as fast as they could !; an
having arranged themselves GRACEFUL
= on one leo in sen1i-circle, they gaze
soIemniy down at their mamma bl
. prize. while that delighted lady, wisi
| mo to show off all its beauties and a
, accomplishments. began peeking again
I the scarlet ribbons.
n For the third time that day the bat
|. cried. She cried with such a viii thu
the viIlage-sexton forget to play, h
usual hynln-a thing he had not dol
in the course of sixty years.
= Now you must know that they we
! all very good pious people who live
= in the village And ever since II
u church had been built, as regularly
= two o'clock came round, come raj
4 come shine, the sexton had climbed Il
y tower-stairs, and there on the lit
\ balustrade had played q hymn in God
praise. And on this particular afte
. I noon the sexton was just in the act
& raising the old brass trumpet to b
lips when for the third time that Oh
!. the baby cried.
Il The sexton was old. and he was rat
er deaf. but he heard her; he was oil
and he was rather blind, but he So
her-the little white bundle, cryIl
n away among the storks. His preclo
. . trumpet dropped from his fingers
. seized the rope of the alarm bell penn
), him, and pulled with all his might.
J, The baby told the sexton.
And the sexton tolled theb bell
o Well, the people came running out
= their houses in terror. The cry OF II
" was spreading up and down the -qui
L street Men hurried out OF the bar
/ ~ g rvs,4e M