The Portland daily press., 1891-06-08
OUR BOYS.
Seeing and obsarxIna.

E. IL. u, In HarperS Young People.1
On fine summer evening two boys were
walking along a country road. One of them,
Walter, was the son of the clergyman of the
village. Frederick's father was wealthy
farmer. They were particular friends, and
were often found In each others company.
1t was bright moonlight, and the shadows of
the trees were sharply distinct on the ground
| How bright the moon ST." said Frederick,
standing still to look at it. "And how round !!
1t looks like ball.'
| "Yes," assented Walter. "How large do
| you think the moon is, Fred?" Walter was
little inclined to be priggish.
| 'I-don' t-know," replied Frederick. He
had never thought about it. 81 should think
1t must be about as large-as a good. sized
| milk.panp
"Ha! hal hal" laughed Walter. "a milk
pan indeed! Why, Fred, it's as big as the
| whole United States"
Nonsense! don't believe it," declared
Frederick. stoutly. sit couldn't be. Who
told you so?"
"Father told me. That is, he said so in a
| lecture he gave the other day. A milk-pan n
81 didn't know you were so ignorant.
| Frederick" returned Walter.
How dare you"
Frederick was just ON the point of flying
1 lutU u rage, WHICH,, tOOkluR uUWu tL6 IOduf ub
| happened to see Harold walking toward
| them.
| Harold was no older than either of the
| other boys. He had not been at school any
| longer. His father had little time to give
| him lectures on astronomy, but he had taught
| Harlod to observe and remember what he
| saw.
Harold" called Frederick, 'Walter is
trying to make me believe one of his Won
| derful yarns"
"What's the trouble?" asked Harold.
| Why" said Frederick. who by this time
had got within talking distance. she says
that the moon is as big as the whole United
States. DID you ever hear such ridiculous
Harold looked at the moon minute be-
fore he answered "How big do you say it
why, should think it was as big as a
very large milk-pan. WelP''-seeing Harold
MnUe Gns99 sa.ss s RsfsP H"t ths
looked contemptuously at Walter, who only
WELL" began Harold, slowly, 81 don't
know Just how big the moon really is. but it
Frederick. The spire o, our ehnrch % forty
feet high; that Is the width of my fathers
i housateld see how small it looks, just be.
cause 1t is SO far up in the air. Now, the
be at any rate great deal larger than this
town perhaps twice as big; it must be al
least that
Harold spoke timidly. lie did not posi-
lively know anything about the moon, and
only compared it with other things, as he
was In the habit Of doing.
Both the other boys laughed and jeered al
him. Walter was amused because Harold
thought it so small, and Frederick shouted
because Harold thought 1t so big; and they
were both so much entertained with Harold's
stiffness that they made up their quarrel and
went home together
As for Harold, he hastily resolved to find
out just how large the moon really was be-
fore he was a day older. But which of the
three boys showed the most intelligence?
A Home Made Volcano.
An easy, cunning trick, forsoothl In,
structiye besides for our little ones, who
learn in school of the e-uptions of the yolca
noes and have no idea what they look like.
A tolerably good sized glass vessel il
needed and little mound of plaster of Paris
but this mound must be left open in the rear
(See sectional CUT Into this hollow space
is placed small bottle of claret. and fine
vertical hole is bored through the center Of
| the nnrk