. He did not say a word
until he came close up to Mrs. Oram, when, holding out the boy, he
said, in a low voice that was broken and tender, "Be kind to the poor
child, Mrs. Oram. I will see you about him in the morning," then
merely adding, as he turned to leave, "We found him asleep in the
woods," went out hastily.

There was a new order of things in the village school after that. The
rod fell from Mr. Jonas' hand, never to be lifted again, and he soon
learned that in kindness was greater power than in fear. Neddy was in
his place on the next day, and from that time onward was one of the
most obedient and faithful scholars in school. Mr. Jonas' manner
toward him was kind and gentle, and Neddy felt drawn toward him by a
strange attraction that gave the schoolmaster the power over him of a
wise and loving father. No thought of disobedience crossed the boy's
mind. It was his delight to obey.

All this happened many years ago, and now the boy Neddy has grown to
be a strong, wise, good man, an honor to the position he holds, and
one of the best of citizens. He had the opportunity of doing Mr. Jonas
many kind acts; and when at last the old man grew too feeble to earn
his living, Mr. Oram made his last days comfortable by placing him
above the reach of want.

[Illustration: THE END.]

Transcriber's Note

Archaic spelling is preserved as printed. Variable spelling and
inconsistent hyphenation is preserved as printed across different
pieces, but has been made consistent within pieces if there was a
prevalence of one form. Punctuation and printer errors (e.g. omitted
or transposed letters) have been repaired.

The following amendments have also been made:

Page 133--omitted word 'the' added--""Tell mother we want to
make coffee in the field, too" ..."

Page 341--mud amended to snow, based on the context--"... enable
it to wade through the deep snow, ..."

In the story "How a Good Dinner was Lost" the older sister is named as
both Rosa and Rosy.

Illustrations have been moved where necessary so that they are not in
the middle of a paragraph.

Illustration captions in {braces} have been added by the transcriber
for the convenience of the reader.

End of Project Gutenberg's Happy Days for Boys and Girls, by Various

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