[Illustration: "The sparrow again waited until the child had almost reached him."--_Page_ 155.]
A Fable for Children.
BY LILY F. WESSELHOEFT.
_WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY JESSIE McDERMOTT._
[Illustration: Posy]
BOSTON:
LITTLE, BROWN, AND COMPANY.
_Copyright, 1888_,
BY ROBERTS BROTHERS.
UNIVERSITY PRESS:
JOHN WILSON AND SON, CAMBRIDGE.
PUBLISHERS' NOTE.
The lamented author of "Little Women" in her last days read with great delight the manuscript of this little story; and its publication is owing greatly to the interest which she had in it.
[Illustration: MRS. POLLY.]
CHAPTER I.
"LET that sugar-bowl alone, Posy," said Tom, as Posy extracted a lump while they were waiting for Papa and Mamma to come down to breakfast.
"I'm not taking it for _myself_," answered Posy, as plainly as the large lump in her mouth permitted her to speak; "I'm only just getting a lump for Dicky."
"That's a story," said Tom.
"I was only just tasting it to see if it was a real sweet lump," said
Posy very distinctly now, for the lump had disappeared. "I didn't mean to eat it, but it went all to pieces in my mouth."
"You might have known it would," said Tom.
"I guess I'd better pick out a real hard lump next time," said Posy; and she made up her mind not to put that one in her mouth, so she only lapped it a little as she walked towards the canary's cage.
Just then a noise was heard from the china-c…