furry creatures all the way
Came popping out and said "Good-day."
But when we reached the little bend
Just where the village houses end
He seemed to slip into the ground,
And when I looked about I found
The rain was suddenly all over
And the sun shining on the clover.

R.F.

* * * * *

PAROCHIAL HUMOUR.

"CHURCH OUTING.--All arrangements for the outing were made by the Hon.
Sec., and we are grateful to him for a very happy day. A walk to ----
Church, cricket, tea and a game of bounders formed the programme."--
_Parish Magazine._

* * * * *

"PRONUNCIATIONS IN THIS PAPER.

Bona fides ... Boner-fy-dees.
Grasse ... Grar."--_The Children's Newspaper._

The idear!

* * * * *

[Illustration: _Enlightened Yokel_ (_explaining the picture in a hoarse
whisper_). "THE BLEW BE THE ZEE, JEM, AN' THE YALLER BE THE CORN, SURE
NUFF. AN' THE BIT O' BROWN IN THE CORNER--BUST ME, THAT MUST BE TH' OL'
GEYSER 'ERSELF!"]

* * * * *

MIRIAM'S TWO BABIES.

That last morning at Easthaven, Miriam, alone of us three, preserved her
equanimity. I had arisen with the lark, having my own things to pack, to
say nothing--though nothing was not the only thing I said--of Billie's pram
and Billie's cot and Billie's bath. I wished afterwards I had let the lark
rise by himself; if I do heavy work before breakfast I always feel a little
depressed ("snappy" is Miriam's crude synonym) for the remainder of the
day.

As to Billie, his first farewells went off admirably. He blew a kiss to the
lighthouse, that tall friend who had winked at him so jovially night after
night. And it was good to see him hoisted aloft--pale-blue jersey,
goldilocks and small wild-rose face--to hug his favourite fisherman, Mr.
Moy, of the grizzled beard and the twinkling eyes.

But when the time came for Billie to say good-bye to the beach he refused
point-blank.

"Billie wants to keep it," he vociferated.

Miriam, woman-like, was all for compromise. Billie should fill his pail
with pretty pebbles and take them to London in the puffer-train. I
demurred. The fishermen already complained that the south-easterly gales
were scouring their beach away. Moreover, as I explained to Miriam, ere
long it would devolve upon me to carry the dressing-case, Billie himself
and--as likely as not--the deck-chair