me carry her home this very day, I will tell father of you, and he
will turn you out of the cottage."

When Giles's mother heard Charles say so, she came out of the house,
and said: "Pray, Giles, let Master Charles have the rabbit."

"Dear mother," said Giles, "Master Charles has a pony and a dog, and a
great many fine toys to play with, and I have only my pretty Snowball;
and it will break my heart to part with her."

"Then," said his mother, "would you rather see your mother and sisters
turned out of doors than part with your rabbit? You know, Giles, that
I had so many expenses with your poor father's illness and death that
I have not paid the rent due last quarter-day; and you know it is in
our landlord's power to turn us into the streets to-morrow."

"Well, mother," cried Giles, bursting into tears, "Master Charles must
have the rabbit. But oh!" continued he, "he does not love you as I do,
my pretty Snowball; he will not feed and take care of you as I have
done, and you will soon die, and I shall never see you again." And his
tears fell fast on the white head of his little pet as he spoke.

Clara was quite grieved, and begged her naughty brother not to
deprive poor Giles of his rabbit; but Charles was a wicked and
covetous boy; he therefore took Snowball from Giles, and carried her
home in his arms, and put her in a box. He went into the fields and
gathered some green herbs for her to eat, and said: "I am glad I have
got Snowball; now I shall be quite happy."

But how could Charles be happy when he had broken God's holy
commandment, which says, "Thou shalt not covet?" Nurse and Clara told
him so, and begged him to give Snowball back again to Giles. But
Charles said he would not, for he meant to keep her all his life; but
the next morning, when he went into the stable to look at her, he
found her stretched at the bottom of the box. He called her, but
Snowball did not stir; he then took her out of the box to see what
ailed her; but she was quite cold and dead.

Oh dear! how Charles did cry! But it was of no use. He had better not
have taken her away from Giles, for he did not know what to feed her
with, and had given her among the greens he had gathered a herb called
hemlock, which is poisonous and will kill whatever eats of it; and it
had killed poor Snowball.

The coachman told Charles so when he saw how swollen she was, and
Charles cried the more. Giles cried too when he heard what a sad death
poor Snowba