here. It was just a sly trick to hide the truth, that Skye had found out that the walk would be too far for him; for as soon as he thought his mas-ter had got out of sight, Skye set off to walk home by him-self. But his mas-ter saw him for all that, and Skye was found out in his want of truth."

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Oh, what a sly dog!"

Yes, he was a sly dog, and he did his trick in such a sly way too, that you could not but laugh to see him hunt for the rat, though all the time you knew, and he knew, that there was no rat there at all."

FRIENDS.

"Look at that dog. See how he flies at the cat, and barks, and the cat puts up her back, and spits. Why is it that a dog hates a cat, and a cat hates a dog so much?"

"It would not be so if they were not made to hate each o-ther when they are young. It is the fault of the boys and the men who set the dogs on to kill the cats. I can tell you a tale of a cat and some dogs who were the best friends in the world."

"Oh, do tell me! I should like to hear."

"A friend of mine had a cat sent to her. It was a fine white cat of five months old. It came from a long way from her own home, and it came in a bas-ket, with nice soft wool for the cat to lie down on.

"Now, my friend had three dogs, and she thought to her-self,

"I hope my dogs will not bite the cat. What shall I do to make my dogs love the cat?'

"And when the cat came, my friend was in great fear, for she thought,

"What shall I do if the dogs fly at the

cat?'

I

"If she had known all, she need have had no fear at all.

"As she un-did the lid of the bas-ket, out came the cat-such a fine, large, soft, white cat. And what did she do but walk up to the dog, who stood still to look at her, and then she put up her nose to the nose of the dog, and gave it a rub, as much as to say,

"How do you do?

do? I am glad to see you. I hope you will love me as much as I will try to love you.'

"And the dog gave a short, kind bark, as much as to say,

"What a sweet white cat you are! If you will love me, I am sure I shall love you.'

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And on went the cat to the next dog, and she gave his nose a rub, and, in her way, said the same words; and the dog, in his way, seem-ed just as glad to see her; and then on went the cat to the third dog, and just the same thing took place; and from that day the dogs and

the cat were such great friends! They would eat their meat out of the same plate, and drink their milk out of the same cup, and, what is more, one of the dogs and the cat had the same bed. They would lie down side by side, and my friend would put a rug on them both to keep them nice and warm, and she told me it look-ed so nice to see them lie there side by side, and they would lie there so still, and sleep the night through.

"Then there was one strange thing the cat would do. When she had lick-ed her own skin and made it all nice and soft, she must have said to her-self,

"I like to have my fur all nice, and soft, and clean. I should think my friend the dog would like his coat to be as nice and soft as mine. I will make it all soft for him.'

So, as the dog sat on a stool quite still, the cat jump-ed on his back, and the dog did not

move. He seem-ed to know the cat had come