Marjy shrieked and threw her arms round Fred, sobbing with terror, while Archy made a violent attack upon the animal, beating at it with his thick stick, blow after blow, while Mousy barked louder than ever. It was a very strong snake; it took a long time to kill; but it was killed at last, and Archy stopped beating the place and panted with excitement. When Marjy could speak, she said,"I think it must be a rattlesnake."

But Fred said,

"No; it is a cobra."

I do not think it was either the one or the other, for it looked very small when it was dead; but Archibald might have been St. George after having killed the dragon, by the way he walked away from the place.

They resumed their search for something to eat, but without finding anything. By this time the bright sky had become overcast, and the wind howled amongst the trees, and the air felt cold, so that poor little Marjy in her thin chintz frock shivered as she walked.

F

"I think we are going to have a storm," said Archibald; "perhaps we had better go back to the cave."

They returned sadly to the place where they had tied the handkerchief, and sat down on the ground in silence.

The wind rose higher and whistled more loudly through the trees, and large drops fell every now and then, so that the children looked about for some more sheltered place to shield them from the coming storm. They had scarcely reached a thicker part of the island, when the thunder burst upon them, and the lightning divided the dark sky, in such fearful flashes, that Marjy screamed and threw herself upon her face upon the ground.

Thunder and lightning storms are much more dreadful than in England out in the Far West, where those children lived. Had Archy and Fred been a little older, they would have known that they were running into more danger by taking shelter under the trees, for trees attract lightning; but they did not think of that. Yet in all this danger in

which they had placed themselves, the lightning did not strike them. How was that? Because the God who made the lightning was taking care of them through all the day. You have heard that a little sparrow cannot fall on the ground without God seeing it, and God loves little children a great deal more than sparrows.

SUNSET.

T length the storm passed off, the lightning and the thunder ceased, and the rain left off falling, but still Marjy lay upon the

ground, and did not speak. Poor Mousy also crouched down in terror at the noise, and whined every now and then. Archy went to his sister and raised her from the ground. Her little frock was drenched with the rain, her tangled hair was fallen over her face, and her eyes were swollen with crying. Both Archy and Fred tried to comfort her, but she still cried and sobbed.

"I am so cold and so hungry; let me lie there, I had rather: oh! I wish we had never come; I wish we were at home again; I am sure it was very wicked of us to get into the boat without leave, and

now we shall be starved and die on the island. Oh, papa and mamma, I wish you would come!"

And still she cried and sobbed, and Archy and Fred could not comfort her.

"If I only had something to give her to eat," said Fred; "I would not so much care for myself."

Suddenly he remembered, and placing his hand in his pocket, drew out the piece of bread which he had put there in the morning, with an exclamation of joy, and gave it to his little sister. Marjy would have shared it with her brothers, but they, like good little fellows, hungry as they were, insisted on her eating it herself, and walked away a little distance that they might not look at the bread too much. It is such little boys who make noble-hearted

men.

It was past their tea-time, and the sun was going down. With all the grief and the fear of the day, Marjy was getting sleepy.

Darker and darker it grew; the sun went quite down, and Archy sighed as he saw him disappear, for they thought they should feel more lonely in the