“Oh, that would be shocking!” said Charles.

“And yet it has sometimes happened,” said his mamma; “there have been brothers too, who have fought against each other, and many persons who were friends before, have become the bitterest enemies.”

“Was there ever a civil war in England, mamma?”

“Yes, my dear, more than once.  The last was because many people thought they should like to have no king at all; I am going to buy you a little history of England, and then you will read about it.”

“I shall like to read about it,” said Charles, “but what did the people do when they thought they should like to have no king?”

“They said the king had done a great many things that were wrong, and so they put him in prison, and at last had his head cut off; do you know, Charles, which king it was who was beheaded?”

“Yes, mamma; it was Charles the first.”

“Well, after Charles the first was beheaded, some of the people declared that his son should be king, and others said they would have no king at all, but that they would have somebody instead to manage the affairs of the country.”

“And I know who that was, mamma,” said Charles, “it was Oliver Cromwell, I know he was not a king, but I did not understand how it was before.”

“And I suppose you also understand now, why this caused a civil war?” said his mamma.

“Of course I do,” replied Charles; “some people fought for the king, and some for Oliver Cromwell.”

“Yes,” replied Mrs. Barker, “and for a long time the country was in a very unhappy state.  The king was obliged to hide himself, for if he had been caught he would perhaps have been beheaded, as his poor father was.  But at last he got away in a ship, and went to Holland, where he lived for some years; but at last his party was victorious, and he came back to England.”

“Then there was a king again,” said Charles.

[Illustration:  Conversations on history:  Charles IInd.]

“Yes, then there was a king again, he was Charles the second; and now every year on the day that he returned, the bells ring, and the guns are fired, it is the 29th of May, and is called king Charles’s restoration.  When May comes, if you listen on that day, you will hear the bells ringing very merrily, and then you will know what it is for.”

“So I shall,” said Charles, “I am glad of that, I like to know things, I wish I knew the history of every country in the world.”

“It is a very good thing to know a great deal of history,” said his mamma; “and the best way of gaining this knowledge, is to read with attention the books that have been written on purpose to teach little boys history; they are the best for you to read now; then, when you are older, you will be able to understand the large books that are in your papa’s book-case, and you may become acquainted with the history of the whole world, if you like.”