ou, all of which
makes it very pleasant.--Your constant reader,

H.R.

* * * * *

Baltimore, Md.

DEAR ST. NICHOLAS: I would like to know why it is that the wife of
General George Washington is called Lady Washington? I do not think
that we have ever had any lords or ladies in our country; so if you
know the reason why, I would like to know.

E.M.

Can any of our boys and girls answer this question?

* * * * *

Somerville, N.J.

DEAR ST. NICHOLAS: As I wish to contribute a little to the
"Letter-Box," I will send you a little poem written by my sister
Allie when she was nine years old.

OUR BABY.

Little Bertha is my sister,
And she is two years old,--
A cunning little darling,
Whom I love to hold.

You ask her whom she loves best,
And she'll say "Papa Lou."
You ask her whom she loves next,
And p'r'aps she will say "You."

You ask her what her name is,
And she'll say "Bertie Lou."
But then, she's sometimes naughty,
And sometimes so are you.

Little Bertha is my sister,
And she's as cunning as she can be;
With a dimple in each cheek,
And a dimple in each knee.

And I guess most people love her,
For she's as cunning as she can be;
But then, sometimes she is naughty,
And that's the way with you and me.

My darling little sister
Always sleeps at night with me;
And, as I said before,
She's as cunning as she can be.

A.C.H.

* * * * *

Roseville, N.J.

DEAR ST. NICHOLAS: We thought perhaps you would like to hear about
our pet sparrow "Bob." We have had him since last July, and he is
just as cunning as he can be. He was so young at first, he could
not fly, and slept in a little box, with a piece of flannel over
him; but now he roosts on a nail in the sitting-room bay-window. We
do not keep him in a cage, but he goes all over the house, and does
just as he pleases. He has had plenty of chances to fly out, but
seems to be happy and contented, and makes himself perfectly at
home. When we are eating, he helps himself to anything he wants,
and is not a bit bashful. He loves honey, and will eat all he
wants, and then wipe his bill on any one's dress or on the
table-clot