But the little workers were not a bit discouraged, and they began at once to shake the water drops apart. The little particles of water no sooner felt the sunbeams shaking them than they said to each other, “Come, now for a long ride.” And sure enough, up, up, up they sailed in the boats of air, helped on by the sunbeams. But as they rose higher in the air suddenly they began to shiver, for just then Mr. North Wind came rushing along. How the poor little vapor mass shook, and then suddenly began once more to form into drops! And some little children, far down on the earth below, looked up at the sky and exclaimed, “See the dark clouds up there!” while their mamma said, “It is going to rain.”
In a few minutes the little drops felt as if they were being pulled back to earth, and starting from the cloud which was holding them, they said to one another, “Now for a race!” And soon, patter, patter, patter, came the sound of the rain, and the little drops once more were back in their earth home.
Ah! how the flowers lifted their drooping heads and smiled then. If you had been very close, you might almost have heard them sing, “God is good! God is good!”
BRASS BUTTONS.
LITTLE Ruth Cleveland, when she was the baby of the White House, had no very exalted idea of her father’s great office.
Saturday, the weather being balmy and springlike, one of the policemen who guard the private portion of the White House grounds took his little daughter with him to enjoy the pleasant surroundings. The little girl was not quite six years old. While the policeman was pointing out the beauty of the grounds to his little daughter, Ruth and Esther Cleveland, under the escort of their respective nurses, left the mansion for a run.
Ruth ran ahead of her nurse, and on discovering a girl of her own age surveyed her from head to foot. After looking the little girl over Ruth straightened herself up and said: