ould hear all the
children were saying; and he whispered to his mother, "Isn't Harry a
funny fellow? The idea of one ear, and a great-toe firing a gun!" and
he laughed again a sweet, low laugh; and Clara, who was sitting
nearest, took his small thin white hand and kissed it, and patted it,
and murmured, "Oh, Charley, I'm so glad you are happy; I'm so glad
that cruel pain has gone away."

All this time they had been passing many beautiful villages and
elegant country mansions, half buried in luxuriant foliage. They were
now leaving the Tappaan Sea; and soon after the little mother showed
the children Sunnyside, the lovely home of the great Washington
Irving.

"He does not live there any more," said she; "his home is now 'Eternal
in the Heavens;' but his fame, and goodness, and renown will live in
every land for many, many years; and I hope the beautiful Sunnyside
will never fall into neglect or decay as long as his memory lasts."

The children looked with mournful interest at the beautiful place;
but when their mother pointed out the spot where Major Andre was
captured, there was quite a difference of opinion; the boys were glad
that he, the spy, was taken and hung by the great Washington, while
the more tender-hearted girls wished he could have escaped: and
Minnie said, "General _Wassingter_ ought to have forgiven him, because
he would not like to be hung himself--would he?" which, _I_ think, was
_the golden-rule way_ of putting the case.

And now the banks seemed to close in, and great dark mountains rose on
either side.

"There's Anthony's nose," said the little mother.

"Where? where?" cried the children, and looked with eager interest,
as the profile of a great Roman nose was pointed out on the edge of a
mountain. They were also delighted with Sugar-loaf Mountain, and
wished it had really been made of sugar, for they thought they would
like to eat a hole through it. As they were eagerly gazing at the
splendid view which had now darkened and deepened with twilight
shadows, a saucy puff of wind came round a jutting point, and in an
instant blew off Minnie's round hat.

"Oh! my hat! my hat!" she screamed; "get it! get it! quick! before it
goes across the Atlantic Ocean, and runs up the big mountains. Oh! get
it! get it!"

How everybody around did laugh, as George jumped after the hat, which
Minnie thought would walk on the Atlantic Ocean; and how Minnie
jumped and laughed when he caught it just as it was fly