i6o 



Charley s Wonderful Journey. 



tracts for 300 skins a day, for liis trade 

 with France; Ohio Valley, 5,000 skins. AVe 

 might add pages of such facts. It is rather 

 the fashion in England to say that these 

 American figures are of no interest. But 

 most of the birds are killed in America in a 

 great measure for export to England, and 

 thus the destruction of bird life is kept up 



by English women. Existence to the Balti- 

 more oriole and our robin redbreast is 

 equally enjoyable, why cut it short? A 

 bird-skin stuffed, wired, and supplied with 

 eyes, lasts a few weeks and is then thrown 

 aside as "out of fashion." The excuse for 

 taking a life is, indeed, mean and paltry. — 

 Sdhonie Society Letters. 



CHARLEY'S WONDERFUL JOURNEY. 



IV. 



'r^ OT you at last,' 



exclaimed Charley, 

 as he felt a vigorous pull at his line. 

 The fish only jerked out a yard or two of 

 line and then stopped. Charley was afraid 

 it had got away when he began to reel up 

 without feeling any strain, but the fish was 

 only swimming toward the boat, and when 

 Charley had reeled in short he saw the fish 

 alongside and lifted it into the boat, when 

 it let go and dropped quietly into the bot- 

 tom. Charley examined the hook — the 

 worm was all right, so he made another 

 cast. 



He fished away so long without even get- 

 ting a nibble that at last he got tired, and 

 nearly lost all patience. Every now and 

 then he lifted the hook to see if the bait 

 was gone, but the worm was all right 



"You'll never catch a nice fish with that 

 horrid little worm," said a voice behind him. 



" Why, I caught you with it," said Charley, 

 looking around, somewhat surprised. 



" Me! " said the mermaid, for it was a 

 mermaid sitting on the stern seat. "You 

 don't suppose I put that nasty dirty worm 

 in my mouth, do you ? I only took hold of 

 the line and let you lift me in, because I 

 was tired of the water so cold and damp, 

 and wanted to come into the boat with you 

 for company." 



"Oh, well, I didn't know," said Charley, 

 "but what else can we get for bait? I have 

 nothing but earthworms." 



"Fish would be better," said she. 



"Yes, but I can't get one," said Charley. 



"I'll tell you what," said the mermaid. 

 " You just help me off witli my tail. I don't 

 want it any more now, and that will do to 

 catch a big one." 



She showed Charley how to lay hold of 

 the tail, then she held on to the seat, and 



they tugged and tugged until the tail came 

 off like a boot, and set free her pretty little 

 feet. 



Then she jumped down and helped Char- 

 ley to bait the hook, and dropped it over- 

 board and let it drift down with the current. 



After a while something came and took 

 the bait, and the reel began to go round 

 like mad. It was a long line, there must 

 have been more than a mile of it. 



"Give him the butt," said the mermaid, 

 when the line was nearly all run out. " O, 

 Charley, whatever you do give him the 

 butt." 



