6.  A soldier in India, who had frequently carried an elephant some arrack, being one day intoxicated, and seeing himself pursued by the guard whose orders were to conduct him to prison, took refuge under the elephant.  The guard soon finding his retreat, attempted in vain to take him from his asylum; for the elephant vigorously defended him with his trunk.

7.  As soon as the soldier became sober, and saw himself placed under such an unwieldy animal, he was so terrified that he scarcely durst move either hand or foot; but the elephant soon caused his fears to subside by caressing him with his trunk, and thus tacitly saying, “Depart in peace.”

8.  A pleasing anecdote is related of an elephant which was the property of the nabob of Lucknow.  There was in that city an epidemic disorder, making dreadful havoc among the inhabitants.  The road to the palace gate was covered with the sick and dying, lying on the ground at the moment the nabob was about to pass.

9.  Regardless of the suffering he must cause, the nabob held on his way, not caring whether his beast trod upon the poor helpless creatures or not.  But the animal, more kind-hearted than his master, carefully cleared the path of the poor, helpless wretches as he went along.  Some he lifted with his trunk, entirely out of the road.  Some he set upon their feet, and among the others he stepped so carefully that not an individual was injured.

Definitions.—­l.  Quad’ru-ped, an animal having four feet.  Pen’du-lous, hanging down.  Com’merce, trade, Pro-bos’cis, snout, trunk. 3.  Strat’a-gem, artifice.  Doc’ile, teachable. 6.  Ar’rack, a spirituous liquor made from the juice of the cocoanut.  A-sy’lum, a refuge. 7.  Un-wield’y, heavy, unmanageable.  Tac’-it-ly, silently. 8.  Ep-i-dm’ic, affecting many people.  Na’bob, a prince in India.

LXVII.  DARE TO DO RIGHT. (183)

Adapted from “School Days at Rugby,” by Thomas Hughes, an English writer well known through this book, and its sequel, “Tom Brown at Oxford.”  The author was born in 1823, and died in 1896.

1.  The little schoolboys went quietly to their own beds, and began undressing and talking to one another in whispers:  while the elder, amongst whom was Tom, sat chatting about on one another’s beds, with their jackets and waistcoats off.

2.  Poor little Arthur was overwhelmed with the novelty of his position.  The idea of sleeping in the room with strange boys had clearly never crossed his mind before, and was as painful as it was strange to him.  He could hardly bear to take his jacket off; however, presently, with an effort, off it came, and then he paused and looked at Tom, who was sitting at the bottom of his bed, talking and laughing.

3.  “Please, Brown,” he whispered, “may I wash my face and hands?” “Of course, if you like,” said Tom, staring:  “that’s your wash-hand stand under the window, second from your bed.  You’ll have to go down for more water in the morning if you use it all.”