t led them in a way of peace and safety. To see
how true this is, you have only to recall such stories as those of Noah,
Abraham, Joseph, Moses, Job, Caleb and Joshua, Samuel, David and
Jonathan, Elijah and Elisha, Hezekiah, Jeremiah, Daniel and his three
companions, &c., &c., with those told you in the Book of Acts, not to
mention the history of Jesus Christ, the perfect example for us all.

That you, my dear children, may be "followers of those who through faith
and patience now inherit the promises," and thus be "followers of God as
dear children," is the constant prayer of your mother, and of your
father,

NORMAN MACLEOD.

CONTENTS.

PAGE
CHAPTER I.

THE WANDERER--WOLF THE SWINEHERD, 1

CHAPTER II.

THE ROBBER'S TOWER, 12

CHAPTER III.

THE JOURNEY HOME--THE BIRD WITH THE GOLD EGGS--TRIALS
AND DIFFICULTIES, 23

CHAPTER IV.

THE GREAT LION--THE LITTLE SQUIRREL--AN OLD FRIEND--THE
BLOODHOUND--THE LAST TEMPTATION, 35

CHAPTER V.

THE GREEN ISLAND OF THE LAKE, AND THE RETURN HOME, 51

THE

GOLD THREAD.

CHAPTER I.

THE WANDERER--WOLF THE SWINEHERD.

[Illustration]

Once upon a time, a boy lost his way in a vast forest that filled many a
valley, and passed over many a hill, a rolling sea of leaves for miles
and miles, further than the eye could reach. His name was Eric, son of
the good King Magnus. He was dressed in a blue velvet dress, with a gold
band round his waist, and his fair locks in silken curls waved from his
beautiful head. But his hands and face were scratched, and his clothes
torn with the briars, as he ran here and there like one much perplexed.
Sometimes he made his way through tangled brushwood, or crossed the
little grassy plains in the forest, now losing himself in dark ravines,
then climbing up their steep sides, or crossing with difficulty the
streams that hurried through them. For a long time he kept his heart up,
and always said to himself, "I shall find it, I shall find it;" until,
as the day advanced, he was wearied and hungry; and every now and then
he cried, "Oh, my father! where is my father! I'm lost! I'm lost!" Or,
"Where, oh, where is my gold thread!" All day the forest seemed to him
to be very sad. H