the people on the river weren't
as quick at hearing the voice of the man in trouble as the horse was.

When this talk was over, the president called for some stories of
foreign animals.

Another boy came forward, made his bow, and said, in a short, abrupt
voice, "My uncle's name is Henry Worthington. He is an Englishman, and
once he was a soldier in India. One day when he was hunting in the
Punjab, he saw a mother monkey carrying a little dead baby monkey. Six
months after, he was in the same jungle. Saw same monkey still carrying
dead baby monkey, all shriveled up. Mother monkey loved her baby monkey,
and wouldn't give it up."

The boy went to his seat, and the president, with a queer look in his
face, said, "That's a very good story, Ronald--if it is true."

None of the children laughed, but Mrs. Wood's face got like a red poppy,
and Miss Laura bit her lip, and Mr. Maxwell buried his head in his arms,
his whole frame shaking.

The boy who told the story looked very angry He jumped up again. "My
uncle's a true man, Phil. Dodge, and never told a lie in his life."

The president remained standing, his face a deep scarlet, and a tall boy
at the back of the room got up and said, "Mr. President, what would be
impossible in this climate, might be possible in a hot country like
India. Doesn't heat sometimes draw up and preserve things?"

The president's face cleared. "Thank you for the suggestion," he said.
"I don't want to hurt anybody's feelings; but you know there is a rule
in the band that only true stories are to be told here. We have five
more minutes for foreign stories. Has any one else one?"

* * * * *

CHAPTER XX

STORIES ABOUT ANIMALS

A small girl, with twinkling eyes and a merry face, got up, just behind
Miss Laura, and made her way to the front. "My dranfadder says," she
began, in a piping little voice, "dat when he was a little boy his
fadder brought him a little monkey from de West Indies. De naughty boys
in de village used to tease de little monkey, and he runned up a tree
one day. Dey was drowing stones at him, and a man dat was paintin' de
house druv 'em away. De monkey runned down de tree, and shook hands wid
de man. My dranfadder saw him," she said, with a shake of her head at
the president, as if she was afraid he would doubt her.

There was great laughing and clapping of hands when this little girl
took her seat, and she hopped right up agai