“Oh, papa!” said May; “that horrid thing a fisherman?—­surely you are joking.”

“No, my daughter,” said the fisherman, “it is no joke.  With that queer looking rod and line fastened to its nose it angles for other fishes.  It hides amongst the sea-weed at the bottom of the sea, and the fleshy shreds attached to its nose, floating about in the water, act as natural bait, and attract the unwary little fishes in its neighborhood, but the instant one of them makes a bite at the tempting morsel it is whisked away, and the poor fish is caught in the huge mouth of the fisherman fish, and crushed up by its sharp teeth.”

“Oh, papa!” said May, “what horrid big eyes it has; what a huge mouth, and such awfully sharp teeth!  Ugh!  Put it down, please, papa, for I really believe I am going to be frightened.”

The fisherman laughed heartily, and threw the queer fish into the basket.

[Illustration:  A queer fish.]

A PROUD MONARCH.

Theodore, Emperor of Abyssinia, was raised to the throne from a very humble position in life.  He was one of the proudest of monarchs, was styled “King of Kings,” and boasted a descent from King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba; a fiction devised to flatter the vanity of the royal house of Ethiopia.

When this mighty emperor gave an audience he was surrounded by several large and fierce-looking lions, and he made a great display of his command over the savage creatures; but, notwithstanding their ferocious aspect, the animals were said to be in reality as tame as dogs.  Anyway, they must have made a timid ambassador feel rather nervous when first introduced to the royal presence.

The Abyssinians are very vain, and King Theodore thought himself greater than all the sovereigns in the world, and this led to his fall.  Thinking he was not treated with sufficient respect by the British envoy and other Europeans, he imprisoned them all.  In 1867 an expedition was fitted out under the command of General Napier.  After encountering great difficulties on the march, the British troops stormed and took possession of Magdala without losing a single man; and the Emperor Theodore, seeing that all was lost, slew himself to avoid falling into the hands of the enemy.  The captives were liberated, and for his services in this campaign General Napier received the title of Lord Napier of Magdala.

[Illustration:  A Proud Monarch]

BABY’S ANSWERS.

    “Where did you come from, baby dear?”
    “Out of the every-where into the here.” 
    “Where did you get your eyes so blue?”
    “Out of the sky as I came through.”

    “What makes the light in them sparkle and spin?”
    “Some of the starry spikes left in.” 
    “Where did you get that little tear?”
    “I found it waiting when I got here.”