so he has to amuse himself. He
makes railroads and bridges and houses with bits of rock. He has a toy
shovel and a pickaxe and a little axe that will cut. He is very happy
playing with them for hours.

Sometimes he gets tired of his playthings, and says, "Mamma, what shall
I do now?" Then his mamma tells him that he may read his lesson. If he
has been a good boy, she reads some of the stories in "The Nursery" to
him, which pleases him very much.

One day last autumn, his papa and mamma went over on the Neosho River,
in the Indian Territory (you must look on the map and see where that
is), to gather some hickory-nuts and walnuts. Of course they took Albert
with them.

[Illustration]

It was a bright sunny morning when they started off across the prairie.
They saw a great many prairie-chickens, and two big gray wolves, as they
went along. Albert was in great glee; but it was a long ride, and the
little boy was very glad when they came in sight of the sparkling waters
of the Neosho, just as the sun was setting.

Papa had just time to pitch a tent and build a big fire before it was
quite dark. Then they all sat down by the fire, and ate their supper.
Then mamma made up a nice bed with blankets and shawls, and put Albert
into it. They were all glad to go to bed early.

The wolves barked at them several times during the night, but were too
much afraid of the fire to venture very near. Albert slept as sweetly as
if he had been in his own little bed at home, instead of being out under
the starry sky, far away from a house. When he opened his eyes next
morning, it was yet quite dusk; but papa was getting ready to go to a
pond to shoot some ducks for breakfast. Albert wished to go too; and
papa kindly consented. When they came to the pond, papa told Albert to
sit down on a log a little way off, so that he would not scare the
ducks, and wait until he called him.

Albert promised to do so, and waited for a while; but it seemed to him a
very long time, and he began to grow tired and hungry. He called several
times; but no one answered, as papa did not wish to scare the ducks.
Then he thought he would go back to mamma at the camp.

He walked on bravely at first; but by and by, as he saw no sign of the
camp, and the trees seemed to look all alike, he began to be afraid. He
feared lest he might see a wolf or other wild animal; and then he began
to cry, and to call loudly. Some Indians across the river called to him,
and aske