"He prayeth best who loveth best
All things both great and small;
For the dear God who loveth us,
He made and loveth all."
COLERIDGE.

If I can stop one heart from breaking,
I shall not live in vain;
If I can ease one life the aching,
Or cool one pain,
Or help one fainting robin
Unto his nest again,
I shall not live in vain.
EMILY DICKINSON.
Copyright 1890 by Roberts Bros
Little, Brown & Co., publishers.

[Illustration with caption: A BAND OF MERCY.]

WHAT THE CHILDREN CAN DO.

SUGGESTIONS

SPEAK GENTLY. Animals are very sensitive to loud, harsh tones. Listen to the teamsters on the street and you will find that much of their shouting is unnecessary. Watch a boy with his dog and notice the rough, masterful way in which he likes to speak. There is no occasion for these harsh tones. Dogs, cats, and horses are rarely deaf. On the contrary, their hearing is most acute, and a loud tone, even if it is not an angry one, is frequently a cause of positive suffering. Some birds are so sensitive that they have been frightened to death by an angry tone. Let us be courteous whenever we can, not only to each other, but to our dumb friends.

BE KIND TO THE BIRDS. Many birds spend their winters with us, but we rarely stop to think how a heavy snowstorm must fill their small hearts with dismay. If we feed them, they will stay near our houses all winter. Fasten a bark cup for water, and a bone with a bit of meat on it, to some convenient tree-trunk and watch for your visitors. They may not come to you while it is warm, but the first cold storm will bring them in flocks. A flat board, fastened to the top of a clothes-post, will hold seeds and crumbs, and makes a safe dining table for your guests. Keep a cleared space on the ground for those who do not dare to be seen in high places.

[Illustration with caption: MAKING FRIENDS.]

Here you may scatter cracked corn, nuts, and sunflower seeds. See to it in the household that nothing is thrown away that can make a bird's heart glad.

HELP THE HORSES. There are many ways in which this may be done. Sometimes the day is warm, and you can bring a pailful of cool water for some tired traveler. Or it may be cold and the horse-blanket has slipped off. A pair of willing hands can soon fasten it properly. Perhaps the street is icy, and a sprinkling of ashes would make it safe once more. If a horse has fallen, a blanket spread upon the ice will help him to regain his feet. Often kind-hearted boys, going up the hill to school, will carry part of a heavy load, or will put their strong, young shoulders to the wheel. If the hill is long, you can bring a stone or a log of wood to block the wheel, and give the horse a moment's needed rest. Do not get angry even with a cruel driver. Every kind thought, kindly carried out, will not only be an immediate help, but it may lead a thoughtless driver to be careful. If you can do nothing more, you can speak a friendly word, which is never thrown away, even on a horse. Sometimes a little encouragement will help over a hard place.

REMEMBER THE VALUE OF LITTLE THINGS. A cup of cold water to some toiling worker may mean the difference between comfort and misery. Animals, as well as human beings, suffer very much if they cannot get water. Louisa Alcott tells a pretty story of the efforts of two little girls to give water to the thirsty cattle in a dusty cattle-train.

"Full in the hot sun stood the cars, and every crevice of room between the bars was filled with pathetic noses, sniffing eagerly at the sultry gusts that blew by, with now and then a fresher breath from the pool that lay dimpling before them. How they must have suffered, in sight of water, with the cool dash of the fall tempting them, and not a drop to wet their parched mouths!

"I could not hear what the little girls said, but as they worked away so heartily, their little tanned faces grew lovely to me, in spite of their old hats and their shabby gowns. One pulled off her apron, spread it on the grass, and emptying upon it the berries from her pail, ran to the pool and returned with it dripping, to hold it up to the suffering sheep, who stretched their hot tongues gratefully to meet it, and lapped the precious water with an eagerness which made the little barefoot's task a hard one.

"But to and fro she ran, never tired, though the small pail was so soon empty. Her friend meanwhile pulled great handfuls of clover and grass for the cows, and having no pail, filled her 'picking-dish' with water to throw on the poor dusty noses appealing to her through the bars. I wish I could have told those tender-hearted children how beautiful their compassion made the hot, noisy place, and what a sweet picture I took away with me of those two little sisters of charity."

In a foreign city many of the shopkeepers provide dishes of water for the thirsty dogs, cats, and birds who may need it. It is a pretty custom and one easily followed.

Here is a clipping from a Western newspaper:—

"A short time ago, as I was crossing Market Street, near Twenty-second, a boy, not over ten years old, who had been walking just before me, ran into the street and picked up a broken glass pitcher. I supposed he intended the pieces as missiles, since the desire to throw something seems instinct in every boy. Consequently, I was very much surprised when he tossed the pieces into a, vacant lot at the corner and walked quietly on. As he passed me, whistling, I said:—

"'Why did you pick up that pitcher?'

"'I was afraid it might cut some horse's foot,' he replied.

"My next question was a natural one.

"'Are you a Band of Mercy boy?'

"He smiled as he said:—

"'Oh, yes; that's why I did it.'"

The little story may serve to suggest other ways in which children can be of service, not only to the animals and to each other, but to the world of grown-up men and women. Fragments of orange and banana skins make our sidewalks dangerous as well as unsightly; rusty nails and bits of glass may do much harm which the truly helpful child will prevent.

There is a mutual helpfulness among animals which is very beautiful to see. They will come together for defence and to get food, and sometimes help each other in sickness and trouble. A blind swan was fed with fish brought twice a day by other swans from a lake thirty miles away. An English sparrow pluckily rescued his mate from a big snowdrift at the risk of his life. Livingstone tells of a wounded buffalo who was caught up on the strong shoulders of another buffalo and carried to a place of safety. The little mice in the meadow, and the birds upon the marshes, have learned that to be strong they must keep together and help each other. This is the law of all life.

When young people learn to think about the causes of pain and suffering, and to respect the rights of animals, they will soon learn to respect each other's rights and to render this mutual aid.

John Bright, a noted English statesman, said: "If children at school can be made to understand how it is just and noble to be humane even to what we term inferior animals, it will do much to give them a higher character and tone through life."

There are men and women who would be thankful if they could blot out some careless deed of their childhood. We may be sure that we shall never regret the kind things we have done. George Eliot says:—

"It is only a poor sort of happiness that could ever come by caring very much about our own narrow pleasures. We can only have the highest happiness, such as goes along with being a great man, by having wide thoughts and much feeling for the rest of the world as well as ourselves. …If you mean to act nobly and seek to know the best things God has put within reach of men, you must learn to fix your mind on that end and not on what will happen to you because of it."

In many places in this country and in Europe the children are uniting to
do what they can to lessen the suffering that is going on around them.
To aid in this work, they are forming little companies that are known as
Bands of Mercy.

The object of these bands is to encourage brave, generous, and thoughtful deeds. The members do not pledge themselves not to kill any creature, for sometimes that is the kindest thing that can be done, and a wounded bird or insect should be put out of its pain at once.

This is the resolution which the children make:—

"I WILL TRY TO BE KIND TO ALL LIVING CREATURES, AND WILL TRY TO PROTECT THEM FROM CRUEL USAGE."

No fee is needed to belong to such a band. The children should sign the pledge, choose a name, and elect a president and secretary. It is well that the teacher should be president. The meetings may be made very interesting and helpful. Reading, recitations, and anecdotes will give all the children a chance to share in the exercises. Each child should be encouraged to tell the kindly actions he has witnessed, and to suggest ways in which children can help each other and the animals about them.

There are now several hundred thousand children in the United States and in Canada who have pledged themselves to this good work. If these children are faithful to the pledge which they have signed, an immense amount of good will be done. Children who are taught to be kind to animals and to each other make good citizens.