Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-10-23

upon 1t to rest. Along came house
martin, the kind of swallow that has a
white band across his back, flying very
low. and only just above the grass
The swallow flew to and fro, not far
from Bevis, who asked the bird to
come closer. But the swallow said:
II shall not come any nearer, Bevis
Don't you remember what you did last
year, sir?
Don't you remember that another
boy put a ladder against the wall and
you climbed up the ladder and put
your hand, all brown and dirty, into
my nest and took my egg? And you
made us very unhappy, and my mate
said we would never come back any
more to your house, Bevis."
"But you have come back, swallow
eyes, we have come back-just once
more; but if you do it again we shall
go away forever"
"But l will not do it again. Do come
near" So the swallow came little
nearer, and flew back and forth, and
Bevis could hear the snap of his beak
as he caught the flies.
Gust a little bit nearer STILL" said
he; t'let me stroke your lovely white
back"
Oh, no, can not do that. don't
think you are quite safe, Bevis. Why
don't you gather the cowslips?"
Bevis looked up and saw that the
field was yellow with cowslips.
81 will picn every one" said he,
land carry them all back to my sister,
for she loves cowslips, too"
You can not do that said the swal.
low, you win not try long enough"
Then Bevis began to gather the
cowslips and kept on till both hands
were full. There was a rustic in the
hedge, and looking up he saw his dog
come out, all brown with sand. Pan
shook ..,mself, and sent the sand fly
ing from his coat in cloud, just as
he did with the water when he came
out of re pond. He looked at Bevis
wagged his tail, cried "Yowp!" and
ran back into the hedge again.
Bev.s rushed to the spot. and saw !:
large hole in the ground. Pan had
worked his way SO far into this hole
that lnere was nothing of him visible
but his hind legs and tail. Bevis could
hear him painting, and tearing with his
teeth at the roots to make the hole
bigger. Dropping his cowslips, Bevis
clapped his hands and urged the dog
on.
The sand came flying out behind
Pan, and he worked harder and harder
as if he would tear the mound to
pieces. Bevis sat down on the grass
on the shadow Of the oak by maple
bush, and taking a cowslip began to
count the spots inside of it. 1t was al.
ways five-fiv, little brown spots in
every cowslip. He was sure Of that
because he knew he had five fingers
on each hand.
He lay down full length on his back
and looked up at the sky through the
boughs of the oak The sky was very
very blue, and very near to him. With
a long ladder,he thought he could have
got up there easily.
Dear sky" said Bevis, IT love you
because you are SO beautiful"
Then turning little on one side to
watch Pan, who was still working hard
to get the RABBIT, in an instant he fell
fast asleep.
Pan put his head out of the hole tc
breathe, and seeing that Bevis was
asleep went back to work again. Two
butterflies came fiuttering along to.
gether The swallow returned, and
flew low down along the grass neal
Bevis. The wind came now and then
and shook shower of white and pink
petals from crab apple tree in the
hedge. BY and by squirrel, climbing
from tree to tree, reached the oak, and
stopped a moment to look at Bevis in
the shade beneath. He knew exactly
how Bevis felt-just as he did himself
when he went to sleep.-Richard JEFF
fries, from wood Magic"