Johnnie Jones soon formed the bad habit of crying about every little thing that did not please him, until at last it was difficult to live with him.  His father and mother were greatly distressed, and tried in every way to help Johnnie Jones.  They told him that they were ashamed to have a cry-baby for a son, but that only made him cry more than ever.

Finally Mother said that something must be done, for Johnnie Jones had reached the point where he was almost always crying.  He would come home crying from kindergarten, he would come in from play with tears in his eyes, and worst of all, every few minutes, he would find some excuse for crying at home.

“I think he must be ill,” Mother said to Father, one day, “and I am so worried that I shall take him to the doctor.”

Father agreed, so in the afternoon, Mother and Johnnie Jones paid Dr. Smith a visit in his office.

Dr. Smith was a great friend of Johnnie Jones’s and was sorry to hear of the crying spells.  He examined the little boy very carefully, but could find nothing wrong with him.  Then he said that he was sure Johnnie Jones was not ill, and that he cried so often just because he had formed a bad habit.

“It is a very disagreeable habit,” he continued, “and I know you want to overcome it, so I’ll write you a prescription for some medicine.  Doctors usually do not prescribe for people unless they are ill, but I think if you take a spoonful of this medicine every time you cry, you will soon be cured of the habit.  You try it, anyway.”

He gave the prescription to Mother, who, after thanking him, left the office with Johnnie Jones.  On the way home they stopped at the drug-store and bought the medicine, which mother took into the house with her, while Johnnie Jones ran out to play.

There wasn’t a child in that neighborhood who was not fond of Johnnie Jones, but since he had become a cry-baby none of them cared to play with him, because he would often spoil the best game by stopping to cry.  No one enjoys playing with a tearful boy or girl.

All the children were playing in the snow when Johnnie Jones joined them.  They had built a snow fort, which half of the children were trying to destroy with snowballs, and which half were defending.  They were having the merriest sort of a time.  Occasionally some one would be struck by a ball, but he would just laugh and send back another, for it was all in fun.

Johnnie Jones began to play, too, and was enjoying himself very much, when unfortunately a stray ball struck his cheek.  It did hurt, but not nearly enough to cry about, for all the balls were soft.  Johnnie Jones, however, began to cry, called the children “unkind,” which was foolish, and ran away home.

As soon as he entered the house, Mother gave him some of the medicine.  Never was anyone more surprised than Johnnie Jones, when he tasted it!  The only other medicine he had ever taken had been sweet, but this was dreadfully bitter.  He had no sooner swallowed it than he began to cry again.  Mother immediately poured more of it from the bottle.