1.It was a clear，sunshiny day，and out on thegreat，wide，open sea there sparkledand thousands of water-drops.
2.One of these was Dewdrop，a merry little fellow who danced on the silve backs of the fishes as they darted to and fro in the water.Sometimes the waves threw him up in the air，but he always came down again plump into his mother’s lap.
3.His mother，you know，was the Ocean ；and very beautifulshe looked that summer.day in her dark blue dressand white ruffles .
4.By-and-by the happy water-drop tired of his play.Looking up to the clear sky above him，he thought he would like to have a sail on one of the white floating clouds.
5.After looking and wishing for a long while，he gave a jump from the Ocean‘s arms，and begged the Sun to catch him up and let him go on a journey to see the earth.
6.The Sun said “Yes，”and took ever so many other drops too，so that Dewdrop might not be lonely on the way.Dewdrop did not know this，however，for they all had been changed into fine mist or vapour.
7.Do you know what vapour is？You have seen steam coming from the spout of a kettle of boiling water，and perhaps you know that this steam is made up of very small particles of the hot water.
8.Now vapour is made from water in the same way as steam，only the particles small that you cannot see them.
9.The water-drops had been changed into vapour，because drops are too big and heavy to sail up in the air.Higher and higher they sailed，GRAMMAR EXERCISE1.Give six nouns in the lesson with verbs connected.
2.Name six adjectives in the lesson with nouns connected.
1.Poor little Dewdrop could not help being frightened，for every minute it grew darker and colder.It would soon be too dark for him to find his way home again.
2.But he thought he would like to get back to the earth；so he slipped away down through the cool，quiet air.
3.All his brothers now began to do the same；and as they fell lower and lower，they grew bigger and heavier，until they became little round，bright drops of water again.
4.But they were now far away from mother Ocean，and when they came down to the earth again they found themselves in a beautiful garden.
5.When morning came the birds began to wake up，and the flowers opened their leaves.Dewdrop saw the great Sun once more，and he called out，“Please，dear Sun，take me and my brothers up with you again.”
6.So the Sun caught them up a second time，and together they flew through the air till noon-time.It grew warmer and warmer，and there was not even a blade of grass to shade them.
7.But just as Dewdrop cried out，“Please，King Sun，let me go back to the dear mother Ocean，”the Wind took pity on him.She came with her cool breath and changed him and his brothers into a cold gray cloud.
8.She then told them to join hands and hurry away to the earth.Down they all went，rolling and tumbling over each other，till with a patter and clatter and spatter they danced on the ground；and the people cried，“It rains.”
GRAMMAR EXERCISE
1.Write the verbs in section 9.
2.Write the adjectives ending in -er in the lesson.
1.Some of the drops fell on a mountain side，Dewdrop amongthem；and down the rocky cliffhe ran，leading the way for his brothers.They all plunged into a mountain brook，which camefoamingand dashing along，leaping over rocks and rushing down the hill-side.
2.When they reached the valley below，they heard a strange clattering noise.Beside the brook stood a flour-mill，and at the door a man whose clothes were gray with dust.
3.Inside the mill were two great stones，oneof which kept whizzinground and round on the top of the other，faster than a boy’s top could spin.It was worked by the big wheel outside.These stones ground the wheat into flour and the oats into golden meal.
4.But what giant was it that turned that huge wheel，and made that heavy stone go round？No giant at all：it was no one but the tiny little water-drops themselves，who sprang on the wheel by hundreds and thousands，and whirled it round and round！
5.Then the brook flowed into a quiet pool，where ducks and geese were swimming.On theedge lived some fat frogs；and in the water were spotted trout，tiny minnows，and other fishes.
6.Dewdrop liked this place so much that he stayed a good while，sailing on the ducks‘backs for ships and riding on the frogs for horses.But after a time he grew tired of this，and he andhis brothers floated out over a waterfalland under a bridge.When they had gone a long，long distance，they saw another brook tumbling down a hill-side.
7.“Come，let’s join hands！”cried Dewdrop.
So the two brooks joined hands，and dashed on together till they came to a gently-flowing river，which opened its arms to them.
8.With the help of Dewdrop and his brothers，the beautiful river grew broad and deep，though，not long before，it was only a little rill，through which a child could wade，or over which he could step.
9.On，ever on，the river went，seeking the Ocean.There was always something new and strange to be seen-busy cities，quiet little towns，buzzing saw-mills，and stone bridges.
10.But Dewdrop did not stay long in any place.
As the river grew wider and wider，and came nearer and nearer its end，he could almost see the mother Ocean to whose arms he was joyfully running.Soon little Dewdrop was safe at home again.
11.In warm，still summer evenings，if you take a walk on the sea-beach，you will hear the gentle rippling noise of the waves.Some very wise people think it must be the voices of Dewdrop and his brothers telling each other about their wonderful journey round the world.
GRAMMAR EXERCISE
1.Name the first twelve verbs in the lesson.
2.Make sentences with mountain ，green ，and stone as nouns and as adjectives.
THREE LITTLE CHICKS
1.Three little chicks Got into a fix：
Would you like to know what about？
Well，listen a minute，There‘s something in it ’Tis well for you all to find out.
2.Hear the old hen say，In an old hen‘s way，That each little chick understood，“O dear，O dear ！
I dreadfully fear You are all very naughty and rude！”
3.But they stretched up their necks And went on with their pecks，As they wickedly fought with each other；And the hen saw beside herA hairy，fat spider，And then she knew what was the bother.
4.It hung by a thread From the rafter o’erhead，And Whity and Speckle and Gray Each wanted the bite；And you see how the fight Began in the usual way.
5.Whity pushed away Speck，And he gave Gray a peck，And said，“Go away；it is mine！”But Speckle and Gray Said each of them，“Nay；I am bound on that spider to dine！”
6.And now would you see Which one of the threeSecured the prize he was after？
While they were all fighting，And scratching and biting，The spider went home to the rafter.
7.So in vain was their fight，For they got not a bite，And the spider might chuckle and say，“Ha，ha，my fine chicks，This is one of my tricks，And I gain while you lose in this way！”
8.The old mother hen Turned soberly then，And said to her children three，“You may see，if you choose，How you always will loseBy acting so selfishly.
9.”You go hungry to bed，Each with a sore head，While the spider sits up on the rafter；He enjoys your defeatWhile taking his meat，And he‘s shaking all over with laughter.“10.From this little fable I am sure you are ableTo learn what you all ought to know-That selfish contention，As I hardly need mention，Will never a good thing bestow.
SOMETHING FOR CHILDREN
1.There’s enough for you children to do in the house To keep you as busy as any old mouse.
So，children，don’t shirk，But do what you can；You‘ll be glad when you’re grown To a woman or man.
2.There‘s enough for you children to do out of doors；If you look out for jobs，you will find them by scores：
Little things to attend，Little tasks without end，You will find you can do if you just make a start.So，children，be smart，And do what you can：
You’ll be glad when you‘re grown To a woman or man.
3.There’s enough for you children to do anywhere；So hurry around，and each do your full share.
And just see how bright You will feel，when at nightYou can think you have done what is honest and fair.So，children，take careTo do what you can；You‘ll be glad when you’re grown To a woman or man4.And，children，whatever you do，do it well.
People always，in looking it over，can tell If you hurry right through Whatever you do，Not caring at all if it‘s done ill or well.So，whatever you do，Do the best that you can；You’ll be glad when you‘re grownTo a woman or man.