r, but a man held
him by the head and whispered comfort in his ear. At last, he reached
the deck in safety, and they gave him a place in a breezy nook beside
some other four-footed passengers, and he immediately recovered.

TIDY AND VIOLET; OR, THE TWO DONKEYS.

There was once a little boy who was not very strong, and it was thought
right that he should be a great deal in the open air, and therefore it
was also thought right that he should have a donkey.

The plan was for this little boy to take long rides, and for his mamma
to ride on another donkey, and for his papa to walk by the side of
both.

The two donkeys that were procured for this purpose had belonged to
poor people, and had lived hard lives lately, out upon the common,
because the poor people had no employment for them, and so could get no
money to give the donkeys better food. They were glad, therefore, when
the gentleman said that he wanted to buy a donkey for his little boy,
and that he would try these two for a time, and then take the one he
liked best.

So the gentleman and the lady and the boy took their excursion day
after day with the two donkeys.

Now, one of these was a thin-looking white donkey, and the other was a
stout black donkey; and one was called "Violet" and the other "Tidy."

The little boy liked the black donkey best, because he was bigger and
handsomer, "I like Tidy," he said; "dear papa, I like Tidy."

"Stop!" said his papa. "Let us wait a bit; let us try them a little
longer."

The party did not go out every day; sometimes the gentleman and lady
were engaged, and the donkeys remained idly in the gentleman's field.

And then, when they had done eating, they used sometimes to talk.

"Is not this happiness?" said the meek white donkey. "Instead of the
dry grass of the common, to have this rich, green, juicy grass, and
this clear stream of water, and these shady trees; and then, instead of
doing hard work and being beaten, to go out only now and then with a
kind lady and gentleman, and a dear little boy, for a quiet walk:--is
it not a happy change, Tidy?"

"Yes," said Tidy, flinging his hind-legs high in the air.

"Oh!" said Violet, "I hope you will not do that when the young
gentleman is on your back."

"Why not?" said Tidy.

"Because," said Violet, "you may throw him off, and perhaps kill him;
and consider how cruel that would be, after all his kindness to us."

"Oh," said Tidy, "people always call us donkeys