Harry Leslie lay long awake that night, thinking over the words his father had carelessly enough dropped. “Dog in the manger”—what did that mean exactly? He had heard the phrase more than once, but had never stopped to consider it in any way. Yet it was a plain sort of illustration, carrying its own meaning along with it. Harry had once been staying in the country with some cousins at a farm-house called Clover Hollow, and he remembered them all laughing one day at “Grip,” a little Skye terrier, that had got into one of the mangers in the stable, and kept at a respectable distance the good old pony to which it belonged, barking at him and refusing to allow him the enjoyment of his own breakfast. And Grip could not, of course, enjoy it himself—chopped hay and oats not being at all in his line. Seemingly, the only pleasure Grip derived from this performance lay in keeping “Donald,” the old pony, from having any breakfast! And it was very laughable at the time. Yes; Harry understood the words perfectly. And though it had been laughable enough in the case of Grip, which was only a terrier, still, however clever he might have been thought, Harry felt that it was not quite the same when practised by rational beings. True, he was only keeping that which most clearly belonged only to himself, whereas Master Grip had feloniously seized on the possession of another. There was that difference, certainly. Still, there was something in the thing Harry did not quite like. He was usually a kind, unselfish sort of boy, and he did not enjoy feeling that he was doing something rather miserly now. And then, just that evening, his mother had been reading some verses from the Bible to him, as she usually did, and one of them had been: “Whatsoever ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them.” He had not thought much about the words at the time, but they came back to his memory now.

Early next morning Harry sent for Walter to come and speak to him.

“Wat,” he said very cheerily, “the Rover is going to make its first voyage to-day. Hurrah! Aren’t you glad?”

Walter stared at his friend and wondered if he had grown suddenly worse, and was talking nonsense through feverishness.

“I doubt they won’t let you out to the beach just yet, Hal!” he said soothingly.

“No, indeed!” said Harry, smiling brightly. “But you are going to take the ship down for me, and launch her, and all that. Bobby and Frank will go too, of course, and the girls, if nurse can take them; and then you’ll come back and tell me all about it—won’t you, Wat?”

Harry’s proposal

“Nonsense, Harry, nonsense!” cried his friend. “Why, we couldn’t do it without you; it would be no fun at all. Your own ship too. No, you needn’t say another word about it.”

But Harry kept to his purpose; and in time Walter felt that he was really quite in earnest, and that to refuse would only vex him.

“Well, if you really want me to, Harry,” he said reluctantly. “But won’t you be awfully dull when I take the good ship away from your room? You’ve often said it was quite a companion to you when we’re all out.”

“Not a bit!” cried Harry bravely. “I’m quite tired of seeing the old thing on dry land. I’m wearying awfully to know how it floats, and you’ll come home and tell me all about it. Tell me if there were people looking on, and if the pennons looked well when they were waving out at sea, and all that. I want to hear what everybody says about it, and if they think the Rover as fine a boat as they have ever seen at the Shelf Rock before. So you see, Wat, you must make haste and be off with it, or I’ll be quite put out, and that will be sure to make me worse again. Ask mamma if that isn’t true! I wonder I never thought of this before. It was awfully stupid of me, to be sure!”

His eyes sparkled brightly now, all the brighter, perhaps, because he had just dashed away some childish tears; for he was very young, you must remember, and also weak from illness. He wanted to make his tiny bit of self-sacrifice right bravely and cheerfully, feeling that a grudging manner of giving sadly mars a gift.

Mr. and Mrs. Leslie were greatly pleased at hearing what Harry had planned for the others, especially as it had come entirely from himself. He had certainly not been urged to do it in any way; it had not even been suggested to him.

The “Rover” on a trial trip

Well, a large and enthusiastic crowd of juveniles gathered round the Shelf Rock that afternoon to watch the good ship Rover make her first voyage on the deep. And beautifully indeed did she spread her white sails to the breeze, while, guided by a string secured in Walter’s hand, her graceful form cut the waves or danced lightly over them, her bright red pennons floating gracefully from stern and mast. It was quite a long time before the excitement of this first voyage wore away. Each of the children had in turn to get a “hold” of the guiding-string; and great amusement was caused by one of the wooden-doll sailors which Mrs. Leslie had dressed for Harry’s ship tumbling overboard and bobbing about for a long time among the creeks and crannies of Shelf Rock.

At last “Jack-a-tar” was rescued by means of a hand-net which Walter had for his natural history researches; and the little man was found to be not a whit the worse, except for a drenching of his blue serge suit—for even his well-glued-on hat had survived the fury of the waves.

You can imagine what a grand story all this made to tell poor Harry, lying in his little bed under the skylight, with his back to the sea and all the wonders thereof. And no one was more delighted with the whole affair than Harry himself, feeling quite a weight off his mind, now that he had got quit for ever of that nasty “dog-in-the-manger” sort of feeling. How he laughed about poor Jack-a-tar, and took him into his own hands to be thoroughly restored, while his mother took off the blue suit to dry at the kitchen fire!

Altogether this was one of the happiest days Harry had spent at Kingshaven. Every day now the children took out the Rover, and many happy hours they all spent with it.

Next week a visitor was announced. It was Uncle Jack himself! And along with him came the biggest, bulkiest parcel you could imagine. When it was opened it proved to be a first-rate sort of invalid carriage, capable of being folded up or out in any and every direction—quite an invention of Uncle Jack’s own brilliant genius. Dr. Bell said it was the very thing for his little patient, who would be able for it in a very few days now. Dr. Hammond also was greatly pleased with this new conveyance when he came down.

Various little trial trips were made in this couch, at first only into the front garden, and then into the long strip of bowling-green at the back. And how the little invalid did enjoy the fresh, sweet summer air, fragrant with honeysuckle and sweet-brier, and all the more delightful to him from the whiff of strong salt and even tar corning up from the shore. Harry felt as if he should soon be well and strong again if he were only to have such nice rides as this every day.

At first his knee did pain him considerably even at the least motion; but gradually, as he gained in health and strength, this wore away, and he could be drawn quite a long distance and then left out in some nice sheltered spot, with his book beside him, just to drink in the health-giving breezes.

Uncle Jack’s own strong steady hand was usually the one which drew him about for many days. It seemed to please the kindly sailor to do as much for his little nephew. And no one could pull the chair so well, Harry thought, for he never felt much pain when Uncle Jack was in charge. But by-and-by Walter was allowed to try his skill at it, and very proud and happy he was to try. The best days were those when Harry could be taken right down to the shore and set upon one of the more sheltered rocks; but that was only when the weather was very dry and sunny and there was not too much wind for the patient.

One very fine afternoon, however, quite a large party assembled at the Shelf Rock. There was Harry in his couch, laid snugly in the centre of the group, Bobby and Freddy, Janey and Lucy dancing round him, mamma with a large basket of good things encamped close by, and papa, Uncle Jack, Walter, and good Dr. Hammond, all there to enjoy the family “picnic!” But before the feast was spread the good ship Rover was to be launched once more, and that was done by Uncle Jack’s well-skilled hands, after which he put the guiding-string in Harry’s white little hand and bade him hold it firm. Harry’s eyes sparkled and his colour mounted; for he felt the full pleasure of this moment, free from any mean or selfish thought.

After all this Mr. Leslie began to think it would be best just to let Harry remain all the summer at Kingshaven, so he secured another cottage nearer the sea than their present quarters; and here Harry remained, and the children by turns, with nurse to keep order, and the parents looking down now and again to see that all was right. Walter had, of course, to go back to school, and he was dux every day now since Harry was off the field. However, next year Harry managed quite to make up to him again, being ever so much stronger then; and in due time the two boys went to Rugby together, remaining fast friends as before.

But we are going on too fast.

Let us look back first to the little seaside cottage where Harry is so happy—never wearying of Kingshaven, as indeed he had declared he never would, even when he knew not how long his stay was to be. He is taken out to the beach every day by careful hands, and is gathering strength bit by bit. Often he is carried over to the Shelf Rock, from there to guide with his own hand the beautiful gliding movements of his pretty ship. Harry feels that this past time of trial has been a blessing to him, since it has saved him from growing into a grasping or selfish boy; and he looks back with pleasure on a sight he did not see—the first voyage of

The Good Ship “Rover.”