“Correct,” said Uncle Henry, “that shows you have good eyes. The Arabs used to call that little star ‘the proof,’ because it is a test of good eyesight to see it. The star at the bend of the handle is also called ‘the horse,’ and that faint little star over it ‘the rider.’ You can make the dipper itself with seven pebbles, though. Go ahead and do it, Peter,” Uncle Henry finished, “and take good-sized stones, to show that they’re bright stars.”
When Peter had finished, the smooth patch of sand looked like this in the light from Uncle Henry’s pocket electric torch.
Betty insisted upon adding a tiny stone above “the horse,” to represent her discovery, “the rider.”
“Now,” said Uncle Henry, looking upward, “I’ll help you this much in finding all of ‘the great bear.’ The handle of the dipper is his tail. Everybody try to find the rest of him. Put down a pebble in the right spot for every star; big ones for bright ones, and little stones for faint ones.”
“Ooh,” interrupted Betty, “I got his nose!”
“—and his shoulders!” she added in a moment, putting them in with small pebbles.
“I got his front leg!” announced Paul excitedly, adding three pebbles rapidly.