[Illustration: THE GRASSHOPPER STORIES] The Grasshopper Stories BY Elizabeth Davis Leavitt WITH Illustrations by Maude Dewey Doan Copyright 1912 by Elizabeth Davis Leavitt Henderson & DePew PRINTERS JACKSONVILLE, ILL. [Illustration: Heigho! Little girls and boys who are good!] Come, read these tales with me! For the secrets they tell You will understand well If you're good as good can be! THE WISE GRASSHOPPER "Come, Billy!" Billy dropped his tin-soldier on the ground and ran in to help hismother wipe the dishes. She gave him a nice, fresh towel and he began torub the tin plates as fast as he could. He never put one down until hecould see himself in it. As for the tin cups, his mother sometimesthought he would rub them entirely away! But he never did quite that. You see, Billy's mother allowed him to dry only the tin dishes becausehe was so very little, she thought he might break the china ones. Now, on this particular morning, Billy's mother ran to the front gate tobuy the dinner from the vegetable-man. While she was gone, he finishedall the tin dishes on the draining-tray. There was still a beautiful, white, china cup to be dried. "I believe I'll wipe just that one!" said Billy. He reached up, caughthold of the cup and was carefully bringing it down to his other hand, when--"Crash!"--the cup lay on the floor in pieces. Billy was very frightened. He looked out of the door to see if his motherwas coming. But she was still talking to the vegetable-man. Then he dida strange thing. He pushed all the pieces of the broken cup under thetable and ran out the back door to his toys. But he did not play withthem. He sat down on a stone, chin in hand. The little tin-soldierlooked up at him as if to say, "Come on, Billy, let's march!" The littlehorse-and-wagon stood ready to start, as if saying, "Come on Billy, let's go travelling!" The little Teddy Bear, with his head on one side, seemed to say, "Come on Billy, let's have a romp!" [Illustration: "Crash!" the cup lay on the floor, in pieces. ] But Billy did not stir. He just sat there thinking. Suddenly, somethingsaid right out loud, "Why what's the matter, Billy?" Billy jumped. Looking around, he saw a grasshopper sitting on a bladeof grass. [Illustration: "Why, what's the matter, Billy?"] "What is the matter this morning, Billy?" the grasshopper asked. "I'm afwaid--I'm afwaid I'm a bad boy, " answered Billy. "Why, how is that?" exclaimed the grasshopper. "Well--I was going to wipe one of my mother's china cups this morningand it hit the floor and bwoke!" confessed Billy. "What did you do then?" said the grasshopper, putting his head on oneside. Billy turned very red. He hated to tell the grasshopper what he had nextdone. "If you tell me, perhaps I can help you, " said the grasshopper, by wayof encouragement. "Well, " said Billy, "I hid the pieces under the table and came outhere--to think!" "Why do you not go and tell your mother all about it?" asked thegrasshopper. "O, " gasped Billy, "I could not do that! I'm afwaid!" "Why should you be afraid, " continued the grasshopper. "Doesn't yourmother love you?" "O yes, " cried Billy, "a million bushels!" "And don't you love your mother?" said the grasshopper. "O yes, a hundwed million bushels!" answered Billy. "Then go and tell her you broke the cup! You will be happy if you do!" "I can't, " said Billy, "I just can't!" "Mercy on us!" cried the grasshopper, jumping over to another blade ofgrass. "I wouldn't be afraid! What kind of a man do you think you'llgrow up to be?" "Well, " said Billy, "perhaps I will tell her. You wait here till I comeback!" Very slowly he walked to the door. His heart beat so hard he could hearit thumping. As he stood in the door-way, a shame-faced little Billy, his mother looked up and said, "Did you come to help mother shell thepeas?" For that is what she was doing. But Billy did not answer. Hewalked up close to her. "Mother, " he said, "I--I bwoke a cup!" "Yes, darling, " she said, putting her arm around him, "Mother knowsit. She found the pieces. And she's been wondering if her little boywouldn't come in and tell her all about it. " Billy looked up and saw on her face the wonderful smile that he loved. "I thought you would be sorry!" he said. "I am sorry, Billy, that you broke the cup but I am glad--so glad--thatyou were brave enough to tell Mother the truth about it. Mother wantsyou to grow up to be a brave man. " She raised his face and kissed bothhis flushed little cheeks. "I'll be back in a minute, Mother, " he said, as he drew away and ranout of the door. There was the grasshopper, hopping around. When he sawBilly, he stopped. "Didn't I tell you!" he said, for he saw Billy's smiling face and knewhe was happy again. "How did you know?" asked Billy. The grasshopper put his head on one side and said, "Oh, I am a grasshopper, very, very wise! I know about everything underneath the skies!" At that he hopped such a big hop, Billy could not see where he went. So he called out, "Good-bye, Grasshopper!" Then he looked at his sad little toys, lying on the ground, and said, "I'll be back after while to play with you! I am going in to help mymother shell the peas!" And away he ran as fast as his little legs wouldcarry him. A HAPPY DAY Billy was off for a walk. He had kissed his mother good-bye; he hadstood his toys up in the corner; and now, with his little lunch-basketin his hand, he was running down to the gate when somebody said, "Good-morning, Billy! Where are you going?" [Illustration: The grasshopper hopped such big hops. ] He looked around and there sat a grasshopper on a blade of grass. "Good-morning, Grasshopper, " said Billy. "I'm going for a walk. " "I should like to go with you, " said the grasshopper. "May I?" "Of course!" answered Billy. "Shall we run a race?" They were off like the wind, but the grasshopper hopped such big hops, he had to wait for Billy to catch up after each hop. "Stop running!" he called out as he sat waiting. "You might tread onthis ant. " When Billy came up, he saw an ant trying to pull a piece of bread to thedoor of her house. How hard the ant was working! Up hill and down hill, for ridges of earth in the road seemed like great hills to the littleant. "Why don't you help the ant, Billy?" asked the grasshopper. "That's so!" said Billy. "I will!" He brought a green leaf and said, "Now Mrs. Ant, if you will pull the bread on this leaf, I will help youto get it to your home. " "O, thank you!" said the ant. "My babies are very hungry. " So she putthe bread on the leaf and sat down beside it and Billy drew the leaf tothe little hill of sand that he knew was the ant's house. "Thank you!" said the ant. "You are very kind, little boy!" "You are welcome, " said Billy and he and the grasshopper went on theirway. Suddenly they stopped. There, on the edge of the road, was a tinybaby-bird. It was trying to fly, but it was too little. Its wings werenot strong enough. "I believe I'll take it home, " said Billy. "O Billy, " exclaimed the grasshopper, "Don't you hear its mother callingto it? There she is on that branch, flapping her wings and calling. Shewants it in the nest again but she does not know how to get it there. Why don't you put it in the nest for her?" "That's so!" said Billy. "I will!" So they hunted in the bushes and found the nest, low enough for Billy toreach. There were two other little baby-birds in it and when Billy putin the little bird that had fallen, they all began to chirp, "Peep!Peep! Peep!" That meant "Thank you!" Then the mother-bird hopped aroundso gladly and said "Thank you, little boy; you are very kind!" "You are welcome, " replied Billy and he and the grasshopper went ontheir way. Pretty soon they grew hungry. They sat down and opened the lunch-basketand while they were eating the bread and jelly and nuts that Billy'smother had put up for him, a little squirrel hopped out of his hole ina tree. He cocked his head on one side and watched them with brightlittle eyes. "Why don't you give him a nut?" asked the grasshopper. "That's so!" said Billy. "I will!" So he threw a nut on the grass. The squirrel picked up the nut, crackedit with his sharp little teeth and ate it with so much relish that Billythrew him another and another. When everything was gone, the squirrelsaid, "Thank you, little boy. You are very kind!" "You are welcome, " said Billy, and for some reason he felt very happy. As he and the grasshopper were walking along again, they saw abeautiful, big butterfly sitting on a tall, yellow poppy. It was quitestill. So Billy said, "That butterfly is asleep! I'm going to put it inmy hat and take it home!" "He is not asleep!" contradicted the grasshopper. "He has just waked up!He is waiting for his wings to grow strong, so he can fly. Leave himhere in the sunshine. He would be very unhappy if you took him into yourhouse!" The grasshopper hopped way out of sight, for this was the verylongest speech he had ever made. "O, please come back, grasshopper!" called Billy, "and tell me, did thebutterfly sleep on that flower?" The grasshopper was beside Billy before he had finished speaking. "No, no!" he replied to Billy's question. "He slept in the little house thathe made for himself before he went to sleep!" The grasshopper looked atan empty cocoon hanging from a twig of a tree. "Is that his house?" asked Billy, looking at it very curiously, for hehad never seen anything like it before. The grasshopper nodded his headand winked an eye. Just then the butterfly began to move his beautiful yellow and blackwings up and down, very, very slowly. "Why don't you fly?" asked Billy, "I'm not going to take you home withme. " "Thank you for leaving me out in the sunshine, " said the butterfly, "I want to fly up to the blue sky very much indeed and, if I wait andwork my wings, they will grow stronger and then I shall be able to flyever so high. " [Illustration: "Why don't you fly?"] Billy sat down on a stone and the grasshopper perched on a blade ofgrass. "Did you know how to fly before you went to sleep?" asked Billy. "O dear no!" replied the butterfly. "I was only a caterpillar and had tocreep along the earth or on cabbage leaves. " "Only a caterpillar!" gasped Billy. "Then where did you get thosewings?" "They grew in the night, " answered the butterfly, "while I was asleep. " At this the grasshopper began to laugh. He laughed so hard, he had tohold his sides. "Why are you laughing, Grasshopper?" asked Billy indignantly. The grasshopper did not answer him, but said, "Butterfly, do you knowhow long you slept in that little house you made for yourself when youwere a caterpillar?" "How long?" asked the butterfly, who had been working his wings up anddown all this time. "Many days and many nights, all through the cold winter. The wind rockedyou in your little cradle-house; the rain kept your house nice and soft;and now, today, the warm, spring sun has waked you up and soon you willfly!" At these words, the butterfly pressed his wings down and soared up inthe air, over the trees and far away. "Good-bye, " he called out as hedisappeared among the tall trees, "and thank you, little boy!" "You are welcome, " called Billy and then he sat still and silent. "What's the matter, Billy?" asked the grasshopper. "I was wishing that I might fly!" said Billy. "Who knows!" exclaimed the grasshopper. "Perhaps you may some day!" "But I can run!" and Billy was off down the road on his way home. Thegrasshopper overtook him in one hop. "Shall we stop and pick someflowers for your mother?" he asked. "That's so!" said Billy, "we will!" So they went into a field and began to pick flowers. Billy picked adaisy and the grasshopper picked a daisy. Billy picked a clover and thegrasshopper picked a clover. Billy picked a bluet and the grasshopperpicked a bluet. Billy picked a wind flower and the grasshopper picked awind flower. Then the grasshopper gave his flowers to Billy and Billythanked him. "Now, we must go home, " said Billy, so they ran until they came toBilly's door. "I am glad you went with me, Grasshopper, " said Billy. "Shall we goagain some day?" "We will go again, some day!" replied the grasshopper, bowing very low. "Good-bye, " said Billy, as he ran in to give his mother the flowers andtell her all about his walk. As she smiled and listened to Billy, thegrasshopper peeped in at the open window and sang out, "Oh, I am a grasshopper, very, very wise! I know about everything underneath the skies!" THE LITTLE PIECE OF PINK WORSTED Billy sat on his stone in the back yard, his chin in his hand. He hadjust gotten home from kindergarten and his mother had told him to go outin the yard and play with his toys until dinner was ready. But he was not playing with his toys. He had laid his tin-soldier on thegrass, though the little tin-soldier had been sleeping all morning andfelt like a march. He had stood his horse-and-wagon in the shade, thoughthe horse had been resting all morning and felt like a gallop. He hadbraced his Teddy Bear against a tree, though the Teddy Bear had beenleaning against a chair all morning and felt like a romp. They alllooked reproachfully at Billy, but he did not notice them. He seemed tobe thinking deeply. Suddenly he put his hand in his pocket. When he drew it out, it was alittle fist. When he opened the little fist, he gazed lovingly at apiece of pink worsted, all crumpled up! He took an end of it in eachhand and stretched it out as long as he could reach. Then he crumpledit up again and put it in his pocket. [Illustration: "What's that in your pocket?"] "What's that, Billy?" Billy jumped. Looking in the direction of the voice, he saw agrasshopper sitting on a blade of grass. "What's that in your pocket?" asked the grasshopper. "Just a little piece of worsted, " Billy replied, putting his hand in hispocket again to be sure it was there. "Where did you get it?" asked the grasshopper. "At kindergarten, " answered Billy. "Teacher give it to you?" Billy did not answer. "Did she?" persisted the grasshopper. "N--no, " said Billy reluctantly while his face turned very red. "Well, who did?" continued the grasshopper. "Nobody! I found it on the floor!" replied Billy. "Found it on the kindergarten floor, " exclaimed the grasshopper, "andbrought it home with you?" "Well, " Billy defended himself, "'findin's keepin's!'" "O Billy, " cried the grasshopper, "if you lost your little tin-soldier, and another little boy found it, wouldn't you want him to bring it backto you?" "Course!" The grasshopper put his head on one side and looked at Billy. Billylooked at the ground. Finally he spoke. "My teacher has so much worsted!I don't know how many cards you could sew with all she has--all colorstoo!" The grasshopper put his head on the other side and looked at Billy. Billy began to feel very uncomfortable. "Why don't you take it back and tell your teacher all about it?" askedthe grasshopper. "Take it back!" gasped Billy, "and give it to my teacher! I couldn't!I'll take it back and put it on the the floor. " "Mercy on us!" exclaimed the grasshopper, jumping over to another bladeof grass, "Be a man! You will be happier after you have told her. " Now Billy knew that his teacher always stayed at kindergarten, after thechildren had gone, to "straighten up" and his kindergarten was rightacross the street. So he thought a moment and then jumped up. "You waithere till I come back!" And away he ran as fast as his little legs wouldcarry him. But when he reached the kindergarten door, he stopped. Histeacher was sitting with her back to the door, arranging the worsted inthe large, linen worsted-case. She was humming a little song, too. Billy's heart beat fast, for he loved his teacher and thought her themost beautiful lady in all the world next to his mother. He started torun away, but he remembered the grasshopper's words, "Be a man!" So heput his little hand in his pocket and tip-toed into the room, right upto his teacher. "O, " she said, "I thought you were a little mouse, Billy!" She laughedas she said it but Billy looked very grave. He pulled his little fistout of his pocket, held it toward her and opened it. "I bwought this back to you! I found it on the floor. " "And took it home?" asked his teacher, her beautiful eyes wide open. "Yes, " answered Billy, "I didn't think you would want it. " "And when you got home, you thought I would want it?" she asked. Billy nodded. The tears had come to his eyes, though he had tried tokeep them back. "Thank you, Billy, " she said in a low voice as she smoothed out thecrumpled worsted and put it in the case. It was a little soiled but shedid not seem to notice that. She put her arm around Billy and drew himclose to her. "I am glad you brought the worsted back, Billy, " she said, "for it shows me that you are a brave little man! It makes me love youvery much. " Billy looked up at her with shining eyes. "I love you too!" he declared. She kissed his forehead. "Now run home to your dinner!" she said. Billyran as fast as he could until he saw the grasshopper. Then he stopped. "You look very happy, Billy, " said the grasshopper, "I guess you musthave told your teacher all about it!" "I did, " cried Billy, "but how did you know it would make me happy?I did not think it would. " The grasshopper jumped over to another blade of grass, put his head onone side, and sang, "Oh, I am a grasshopper, very, very wise! I know about everything underneath the skies!" With that, he hopped such a big hop, Billy could not see where he went. "Good-bye, " called Billy and then he said to his sad little toys, "justwait till I have had my dinner and helped my mother with the dishes andI will come out and play with you!" and away he ran into the house, thehappiest little boy in the world. * * * * * O ho! Little boys and girls who are good! You've read these tales with me! Their secrets you know For you plainly show That you're good as good can be!