“[We hope soon to have a new story from Mr. Wiggins, Helen.  We wish we could see your cat.  He seems a very sensible cat.—­Editor Nursery Days.]”

II.

“CANADA.

I am a little girl nearly ten years old, and as I like your paper very much I thought you would like a letter from me.  Here is a cow’s head I drew.  It is not very good, but I wanted to see if I would get a prize or not.  I have two little sisters; their names are Jennie and Fanny.  I hope I will see my letter in print.  The stories I like best are Bolivar Wiggins’s story about ‘Solemn Sophy’ and his other one about ‘Bertie’s Balloon.’  Have you any more stories by him?  I must close now, so good-bye.

  “LILLIAN JAMES.

“[Several, Lillian.  Your cow is beautiful, and perhaps some day it will appear in this column.  Watch carefully, and maybe you will see it.—­EDITOR Nursery Days.]”

“Ah!” said Partington, softly, as he read these effusions.  “That is why Bolivar Wiggins is permitted to cover so much space, eh?  The children like his stories well enough to write letters about him—­or perhaps Bolivar himself—­ah!”

The second “ah” uttered by Partington indicated that a thought had flashed across his mind—­a thought not particularly complimentary to Bolivar Wiggins.

“Perhaps,” he said, slowly, “Bolivar writes these letters to the editor himself—­and if Bolivar, why not I?”

It was a tempting—­alas, too tempting—­opportunity to supply the editor of Nursery Days with the needed evidence that stories of the “Tommy and the Huckleberry-tree” order were the most popular literary novelty of the day, and to it, in a moment of weakness, Partington succumbed.  I regret to have to record the fact that he passed the balance of the night writing letters from fictitious “Sallies, aged six,” “Warry and Georgie, twins, aged twelve,” and others dwelling in widely separated sections of the country, to the number of at least two dozen, all of which, being an expert penman, Partington wrote in a diversity of juvenile hands that was worthy of a better cause.  Here are two samples of the letters he wrote that night: 

I.

“NORWICH, CONNECTICUT.

“I have taken the Nursery Days for one year, and think it is a very nice paper.  For pets I have two cats, named Lady Tompkins and Jimpsey.  I have tried to solve the ’Caramel Puzzle,’ but think one answer is wrong.  I go to school, and there are forty-four scholars in my room.  My little kitty Jimpsey sleeps all day long, and at night she is playful.  She wakes me up in the morning, and then waits till I get up.  Who is Mr. Smithers who wrote that beautiful story about ‘Tommy and the Huckleberry-tree’?  Everybody of all ages, from baby to my grandmother, likes it and hopes you will print more by that author.

“SARAH WINKLETOP.”