Emma came back softly into the room where the fire burned so comfortably.  Baby Paul was still crying softly to himself.

“The Brown baby is dreadfully sick,” said Emma softly.  “Oh, dreadfully!  Lizzie Brown was crying when I telephoned to her.  They don’t know whether the baby will live.”

Ralph and Emma looked at baby Paul.  Both children had the same thought.  Emma ran to baby Paul, and hugged him.

“Oh, baby darling!” cried Emma.  “Baby darling, I couldn’t stand it if you were sick!”

“Goo!” said baby Paul, looking at Emma’s face.  That ugly something that was in her face awhile ago was not there now.  Baby Paul smiled.  If big sister’s face was all right what was there to cry about?

Ralph went to the window and looked toward the Browns.  Then Ralph went to baby Paul and hugged him.  Baby Paul crowed for joy.  Big brother’s and sister’s faces were all right!

“You darling!” cried Emma.  “Let’s play menagerie for him, Ralph.”

So pretty soon the little elephant and the fuzzy rabbit and the wooden dog and the lop-eared donkey were being hurried about at so lively a rate that baby Paul crowed and shouted for joy.  What fun it was to be a well baby, when big sister and big brother smiled at him!  And the rain just poured outdoors!  But everybody was happy.

LIKE WASHINGTON.

     “I wish that I could be as great
      As Washington,” said Joe. 
     “You can, my dear,” his mother said,
      “If you but will it so.”

     “But how?” urged Joe.  “I cannot do
      The things he did—­to be
     As great as he was would just mean
      A General, you see.”

     “A General, my little lad,
      You can be if you will. 
     A climbing boy can always reach
      The summit of tho hill.

     “But to be great, we first must be
      Brave, kind and good and true;
     And Washington was all of these,
      Though but a boy like you.”

     “Perhaps,” said Joe.  “I’d better try
      To be just good, and when
     I am as old as Washington
      I may be like him then.”

—­Written for Dew Drops by Helen M. Richardson.

A SCHOOLROOM SWEEP.

The girls at Dorothy’s school—­the little ones as well as the big ones—­had to do something that very few schoolgirls have to do nowadays, and that is to sweep the schoolroom—­a large room that had to be swept every day after the closing hour.

Do you think that you would like such a task?  Well, some of the big girls at Dorothy’s school didn’t like it either; but little Dorothy and most of her little mates thought it was a great honor, and they liked to have their turn come to sweep.

Dorothy had not been to school for quite one year, and the teacher had never appointed her to be one of the sweepers.  Dorothy wondered why.  She swept the porches at home, and mother said she did it well, too.  She did so want to sweep the schoolroom when Amy Brown did, for there were always two of the small girls, each sweeping half of the room.