Came and caught him Rob and Bess,
    Quick as flash,
  Dressed him up in Dolly’s dress,
    And her sash.

  Froggy gave a frantic leap,
    And in three springs
  Took into the water deep
    All Dolly’s things.

HOW TO KEEP A JOURNAL.

BY W. S. JEROME.

Autumn is as good a time as any for a boy or girl to begin to keep a journal.  Too many have the idea that it is a hard and unprofitable task to keep a journal, and especially is this the case with those who have begun, but soon gave up the experiment.  They think it is a waste of time, and that no good results from it.  But that depends upon the kind of journal that you keep.  Everybody has heard of the boy who thought he would try to keep a diary.  He bought a book, and wrote in it, for the first day, “Decided to keep a journal.”  The next day he wrote, “Got up, washed, and went to bed.”  The day after, he wrote the same thing, and no wonder that at the end of a week he wrote, “Decided not to keep a journal,” and gave up the experiment.  It is such attempts as this, by persons who have no idea of what a journal is, or how to keep it, that discourage others from beginning.  But it is not hard to keep a journal if you begin in the right way, and will use a little perseverance and patience.  The time spent in writing in a journal is not wasted, by any means.  It may be the best employed hour of any in the day, and a well-kept journal is a source of pleasure and advantage which more than repays the writer for the time and trouble spent upon it.

The first thing to do in beginning a journal, is to resolve to stick to it.  Don’t begin, and let the poor journal die in a week.  A journal, or diary, should be written in every day, if possible.  Now, don’t be frightened at this, for you do a great many things every day, and this isn’t a very awful condition.  The time spent may be longer or shorter, according to the matter to be written up; but try and write, at least a little, every day. “Nulla dies sine linea”—­no day without a line—­is a good motto.  It is a great deal easier to write a little every day, than to write up several days in one.

Do not get for a journal a book with the dates already printed in it.  That kind will do very well for a merchant’s note-book, but not for the young man or woman who wants to keep a live, cheerful account of a happy and pleasant life.  Sometimes you will have a picnic or excursion to write about, and will want to fill more space than the printed page allows.  Buy a substantially bound blank-book, made of good paper; write your name and address plainly on the fly-leaf, and, if you choose, paste a calendar inside the cover.  Set down the date at the head of the first page, thus:  “Tuesday, October 1, 1878.”  Then begin the record of the day, endeavoring as far as possible to mention the events in the correct order of time,—­morning, afternoon and evening.  When this is done, write in the middle of the page, “Wednesday, October 2,” and you are ready for the record of the next day.  It is well to set down the year at the top of each page.