Advice.
"Well, Rollo," said his father, one evening, as he was sitting on hiscricket before a bright, glowing fire, late in the autumn, after all hisfruits were gathered in, "you have really done some work this summer,haven't you?"
"Yes, sir," said Rollo; and he began to reckon up the amount of peas, andbeans, and corn, and other things, that he had raised.
"Yes," said his father, "you have had a pretty good garden; but the bestof it is your own improvement. You are really beginning to get over someof the faults of _boy work_."
"What are the faults of boy work?" said Rollo.
"One of the first is, confounding work with play,--or rather expecting thepleasure of play, while they are doing work. There is great pleasure indoing work, as I have told you before, when it is well and properly done,but it is very different from the pleasure of play. It comes later;generally after the work is done. While you are doing your work, itrequires _exertion_ and _self-denial_, and sometimes the sameness istiresome.
"It is so with _men_ when they work, but they expect it will be so, andpersevere notwithstanding; but _boys_, who have not learned this, expecttheir work will be play; and, when they find it is not so, they get tired,and want to leave it or to find some new way.
"You showed your wish to make play of your work, that day when you weregetting in your chips, by insisting on having just such a basket as youhappened to fancy; and then, when you got a little tired of that, goingfor the wheelbarrow; and then leaving the chips altogether, and going topiling the wood."
"Well, father," said Rollo, "do not men try to make their work as pleasantas they can?"
"Yes, but they do not continually change from one thing to another inhopes to make it _amusing_. They always expect that it will be laboriousand tiresome, and they understand this beforehand, and go steadily forwardnotwithstanding. You are beginning to learn to do this.
"Another fault, which you boys are very apt to fall into, is impatience.This comes from the first fault; for you expect, when you go to work, thekind of pleasure you have in play, and when you find you do not obtain it,or meet with any difficulties, you grow impatient, and get tired of whatyou are doing.
"From this follows the third fault--_changeableness_, or want ofperseverance. Instead of steadily going forward in the way they commence,boys are very apt to abandon one thing after another, and to try this newway, and that new way, so as to accomplish very little in any thing."
"Do you think I have overcome all these?" said Rollo.
"In part," said his father; "you begin to understand something about them,and to be on your guard against them. But you have only made a beginning."
"Only a beginning?" said Rollo; "why, I thought I had learned to workpretty well."
"So you have, for a little boy; but it is only a beginning, after all. Idon't think you would succeed in persevering steadily, so as to accomplishany serious undertaking now."
"Why, father, _I_ think I should."
"Suppose I should give you the Latin grammar to learn in three months, andtell you that, at the end of that time, I would hear you recite it all atonce. Do you suppose you should be ready?"
"Why, father, that is not _work_."
"Yes," said his father, "that is one kind of work,--and just such a kindof work, so far as patience, steadiness, and perseverance, are needed, asyou will have most to do, in future years. But if I were to give it to youto do, and then say nothing to you about it till you had time to havelearned the whole, I have some doubts whether you would recite a tenthpart of it."
Rollo was silent; he knew it would be just so.
"No, my little son," said his father, putting him down and patting hishead, "you have got a great deal to learn before you become a man; butthen you have got some years to learn it in; that is a comfort. But now itis time for you to go to bed; so good night."
THE APPLE-GATHERING.
The Garden-House.
There was a certain building on one side of Farmer Cropwell's yard whichthey called the _garden-house_. There was one large double door whichopened from it into the garden, and another smaller one which led to theyard towards the house. On one side of this room were a great manydifferent kinds of garden-tools, such as hoes, rakes, shovels, and spades;there were one or two wheelbarrows, and little wagons. Over these were twoor three broad shelves, with baskets, and bundles of matting, and ropes,and chains, and various iron tools. Around the wall, in different places,various things were hung up--here a row of augers, there a trap, and inother places parts of harness.
Opposite to these, there was a large bench, which extended along the wholeside. At one end of this bench there were a great many carpenter's tools;and the other was covered with papers of seeds, and little bundles ofdried plants, which Farmer Cropwell had just been getting in from thegarden.
The farmer and one of his boys was at work here, arranging his seeds, anddoing up his bundles, one pleasant morning in the fall, when a boy abouttwelve years old came running to the door of the garden-house, from theyard, playing with a large dog. The dog ran behind him, jumping up uponhim; and when they got to the door, the boy ran in quick, laughing, andshut the door suddenly, so that the dog could not come in after him. Thisboy's name was George: the dog's name was Nappy--that is, they alwayscalled him Nappy. His true name was Napoleon; though James always thoughtthat he got his name from the long naps he used to take in a certain sunnycorner of the yard.
But, as I said before, George got into the garden-house, and shut Nappyout. He stood there holding the door, and said,
"Father, all the horses have been watered but Jolly: may I ride him to thebrook?"
"Yes," said his father.
So George turned round, and opened the door a little way, and peeped out.
"Ah, old Nappy! you are there still, are you, wagging your tail? Don't youwish you could catch him?"
George then shut the door, and walked softly across to the great doorleading out into the garden. From here he stole softly around into thebarn, by a back way, and then came forward, and peeped out in front, andsaw that Nappy was still there, sitting up, and looking at the door veryclosely. He was waiting for George to come out.
Jolly.
George then went back to the stall where Jolly was feeding. He went in anduntied his halter, and led him out. Jolly was a sleek, black, beautifullittle horse, not old enough to do much work, but a very good horse toride. George took down a bridle, and, after leading Jolly to ahorse-block, where he could stand up high enough to reach his head, he putthe bridle on, and then jumped up upon his back, and walked him out of thebarn by a door where Nappy could not see them.
He then rode round by the other side of the house, until he came to theroad, and he went along the road until he could see up the yard to theplace where Nappy was watching. He called out, _Nappy!_ in a loud voice,and then immediately set his horse off upon a run. Nappy looked down tothe road, and was astonished to see George upon the horse, when hesupposed he was still behind the door where he was watching, and he sprangforward, and set off after him in full pursuit.
He caught George just as he was riding down into the brook. George waslooking round and laughing at him as he came up; but Nappy looked quitegrave, and did nothing but go down into the brook, and lap up water withhis tongue, while the horse drank.
While the horse was drinking, Rollo came along the road, and George askedhim how his garden came on.
"O, very well," said Rollo. "Father is going to give me a larger one nextyear."
"Have you got a strawberry-bed?" said George.
"No," said Rollo.
"I should think you would have a strawberry-bed. My father will give yousome plants, and you can set them out this fall."
"I don't know how to set them out," said Rollo. "Could you come and showme?"
George said he would ask his father; and then, as his horse had donedrinking, he turned round, and rode home again.
Mr. Cropwell said that he would give Rollo a plenty of stra
wberry-plants,and, as to George's helping him set them out, he said that they mightexchange works. If Rollo would come and help George gather hismeadow-russets, George might go and help him make his strawberry-bed. Thatevening, George went and told Rollo of this plan, and Rollo's fatherapproved of it. So it was agreed that, the next day, he should go to helpthem gather the russets. They invited James to go too.
The Pet Lamb.
The next morning, James and Rollo went together to the farmer's. Theyfound George at the gate waiting for them, with his dog Nappy. As the boyswere walking along into the yard, George said that his dog Nappy was thebest friend he had in the world, except his lamb.
"Your lamb!" said James; "have you got a lamb?"
"Yes, a most beautiful little lamb. When he was very little indeed, he wasweak and sick, and father thought he would not live; and he told me Imight have him if I wanted him. I made a bed for him in the corner of thekitchen."
"O, I wish I had one," said James. "Where is he now?"
"O, he is grown up large, and he plays around in the field behind thehouse. If I go out there with a little pan of milk, and call himso,--_Co-nan_, _Co-nan_, _Co-nan_,--he comes running up to me to get themilk."
"I wish I could see him," said James.
"Well, you can," said George. "My sister Ann will go and show him to you."
So George called his sister Ann, and asked her if she should be willing togo and show James and Rollo his lamb, while he went and got the littlewagon ready to go for the apples.
Ann said she would, and she went into the house, and got a pan with alittle milk in the bottom of it, and walked along carefully, James andRollo following her. When they had got round to the other side of thehouse, they found there a little gate, leading out into a field wherethere were green grass and little clumps of trees.
Ann went carefully through. James and Rollo stopped to look. She walked ona little way, and looked around every where, but she saw no lamb.Presently she began to call out, as George had said, "_Co-nan_, _Co-nan_,_Co-nan_."
In a minute or two, the lamb began to run towards her out of a littlethicket of bushes; and it drank the milk out of the pan. James and Rollowere very much pleased, but they did not go towards the lamb. Ann let itdrink all it wanted, and then it walked away.
Then James ran back to the yard. He found that George and Rollo had goneinto the garden-house. He went in there after them, and found that theywere getting a little wagon ready to draw out into the field. There werethree barrels standing by the door of the garden-house, and George toldthem that they were to put their apples into them.
The Meadow-Russet.
There was a beautiful meadow down a little way from Farmer Cropwell'shouse, and at the farther side of it, across a brook, there stood a verylarge old apple-tree, which bore a kind of apples called _russets_, andthey called the tree the _meadow-russet_. These were the apples that theboys were going to gather. They soon got ready, and began to walk alongthe path towards the meadow. Two of them drew the wagon, and the otherscarried long poles to knock off the apples with.
As the party were descending the hill towards the meadow, they saw beforethem, coming around a turn in the path, a cart and oxen, with a large boydriving. They immediately began to call out to one another to turn out,some pulling one way and some the other, with much noise and vociferation.At last they got fairly out upon the grass, and the cart went by. The boywho was driving it said, as he went by, smiling,
"Who is the head of _that_ gang?"
James and Rollo looked at him, wondering what he meant. George laughed.
"What does he mean?" said Rollo.
"He means," said George, laughing, "that we make so much noise andconfusion, that we cannot have any head."
"Any head?" said James.
"Yes,--any master workman."
"Why," said Rollo, "do we need a master workman?"
"No," said George, "I don't believe we do."
So the boys went along until they came to the brook. They crossed thebrook on a bridge of planks, and were very soon under the spreadingbranches of the great apple-tree.
The Harvesting Party.]
Insubordination.
The boys immediately began the work of getting down the apples. But,unluckily, there were but two poles, and they all wanted them. George hadone, and James the other, and Rollo came up to James, and took hold of hispole, saying,
"Here, James, I will knock them down; you may pick them up and put them inthe wagon."
"No," said James, holding fast to his pole; "no, I'd rather knock themdown."
"No," said Rollo, "I can knock them down better."
"But I got the pole first, and I ought to have it."
Rollo, finding that James was not willing to give up his pole, left him,and went to George, and asked George to let him have the pole; but Georgesaid he was taller, and could use it better than Rollo.
Rollo was a little out of humor at this, and stood aside and looked on.James soon got tired of his pole, and laid it down; and then Rollo seizedit, and began knocking the apples off of the tree. But it fatigued himvery much to reach up so high; and, in fact, they all three got tired ofthe poles very soon, and began picking up the apples.
But they did not go on any more harmoniously with this than with theother. After Rollo and James had thrown in several apples, George came andturned them all out.
"You must not put them in so," said he; "all the good and bad onestogether."
"How must we put them in?" asked Rollo.
"Why, first we must get a load of good, large, whole, round apples, andthen a load of small and wormy ones. We only put the _good_ ones into thebarrels."
"And what do you do with the little ones?" said James.
"O, we give them to the pigs."
"Well," said Rollo, "we can pick them all up together now, and separatethem when we get home."
As he said this, he threw in a handful of small apples among the good oneswhich George had been putting in.
"Be still," said George; "you must not do so. I tell you we must not mixthem at all." And he poured the apples out upon the ground again.
"O, I'll tell you what we will do," said James; "we will get a load oflittle ones first, and then the big ones. I want to see the pigs eat themup."
But George thought it was best to take the big ones first, and so they hadquite a discussion about it, and a great deal of time was lost before theycould agree.
Thus they went on for some time, discussing every thing, and each wantingto do the work in his own way. They did not dispute much, it is true, forneither of them wished to make difficulty. But each thought he mightdirect as well as the others, and so they had much talk and clamor, andbut very little work. When one wanted the wagon to be on one side of thetree, the others wanted it the other; and when George thought it was timeto draw the load along towards home, Rollo and James thought it was notnearly full enough. So they were all pulling in different directions, andmade very slow progress in their work. It took them a long time to gettheir wagon full.
When they got the load ready, and were fairly set off on the road, theywent on smoothly and pleasantly for a time, until they got up near thedoor of the garden-house, when Rollo was going to turn the wagon round soas to back it up to the door, and George began to pull in the otherdirection.
"Not so, Rollo," said George; "go right up straight."
"No," said Rollo, "it is better to _back_ it up."
James had something to say, too; and they all pulled, and talked loud andall together, so that there was nothing but noise and clamor. In the meantime, the wagon, being pulled every way, of course did not move at all.
Subordination.
Presently Farmer Cropwell made his appearance at the door of thegarden-house.
"Well, boys," said he, "you seem to be pretty good-natured, and I am gladof that; but you are certainly the _noisiest_ workmen, of your size, thatI ever heard."
"Why, father," said George, "I want to go right up to th
e door, straight,and Rollo won't let me."
"Must not we back it up?" said Rollo.
"Is that the way you have been working all the morning?" said the farmer.
"How?" said George.
"Why, all generals and no soldiers."
"Sir?" said George.
"All of you commanding, and none obeying. There is nothing but confusionand noise. I don't see how you can gather apples so. How many have you gotin?"
So saying, he went and looked into the barrels.
"None," said he; "I thought so."
He stood still a minute, as if thinking what to do; and then he told themto leave the wagon there, and go with him, and he would show them the wayto work.
The boys accordingly walked along after him, through the garden-house,into the yard. They then went across the road, and down behind a barn, toa place where some men were building a stone bridge. They stopped upon abank at some distance, and looked down upon them.
"There," said he, "see how men work!"
It happened, at that time, that all the men were engaged in moving a greatstone with iron bars. There was scarcely any thing said by any of them.Every thing went on silently, but the stone moved regularly into itsplace.
"Now, boys, do you understand," said the farmer, "how they get along soquietly?"
"Why, it is because they are men, and not boys," said Rollo.