My Boyhood and Touth 



particular to call to mind any special bird or 



animal, the songs we sang were widely varied, 



such as 



" The whale, the whale is the beast for me, 

 Plunging along through the deep, deep sea." 



But the best of all was "Lord, dismiss us with 

 Thy blessing," though at that time the most 

 significant part I fear was the first three words. 

 With my school lessons father made me learn 

 hymns and Bible verses. For learning " Rock of 

 Ages" he gave me a penny, and I thus became 

 suddenly rich. Scotch boys are seldom spoiled 

 with money. We thought more of a penny 

 those economical days than the poorest Amer- 

 ican schoolboy thinks of a dollar. To decide 

 what to do with that first penny was an ex- 

 travagantly serious affair. I ran in great excite- 

 ment up and down the street, examining the 

 tempting goodies in the shop windows before 

 venturing on so important an investment. 

 My playmates also became excited when the 

 wonderful news got abroad that Johnnie Muir 

 had a penny, hoping to obtain a taste of the 

 [ lo 1 



