You can imagine how astonished and happy little Jack was when he returned from his work and found all the good things his kind benefactor had brought.  Grandma Horner was herself so delighted that she caught the boy in her arms, and hugged and kissed him, declaring that his brave rescue of the gentleman had brought them all this happiness in their hour of need.

“To-morrow is Christmas,” she said, “and we shall have an abundance with which to celebrate the good day.  So I shall make you a Christmas pie, Jack dear, and stuff it full of plums, for you must have your share of our unexpected prosperity.”

And Grandma Horner was as good as her word, and made a very delicious pie indeed for her darling grandson.

And that is was how it came that

    “Little Jack Horner sat in a corner
    Eating a Christmas pie;
    He put in his thumb and pulled out a plum
    And said, “What a good boy am I!

And he was—­a very good boy.  Do n’t you think so?

The Man in the Moon

The Man in the Moon

    The Man in the Moon came tumbling down,
    And enquired the way to Norwich;
    He went by the south and burned his mouth
    With eating cold pease porridge!

What!  Have you never heard the story of the Man in the Moon?  Then I must surely tell it, for it is very amusing, and there is not a word of truth in it.

The Man in the Moon was rather lonesome, and often he peeked over the edge of the moon and looked down upon the earth and envied all the people who lived together, for he thought it must be vastly more pleasant to have companions to talk to than to be shut up in a big planet all by himself, where he had to whistle to keep himself company.

One day he looked down and saw an alderman sailing up through the air towards him.  This alderman was being translated (instead of being transported, owing to a misprint in the law) and as he came near the Man in the Moon called to him and said,

“How is everything down on the earth?”

“Everything is lovely,” replied the alderman, “and I would n’t leave it if I was not obliged to.”

“What ’s a good place to visit down there?” enquired the Man in the Moon.

“Oh, Norwich is a mighty fine place,” returned the alderman, “and it ’s famous for its pease porridge;” and then he sailed out of sight and left the Man in the Moon to reflect upon what he had said.

The words of the alderman made him more anxious than ever to visit the earth, and so he walked thoughtfully home, and put a few lumps of ice in the stove to keep him warm, and sat down to think how he should manage the trip.

You see, everything went by contraries in the Moon, and when the Man wished to keep warm he knocked off a few chunks of ice and put them in his stove; and he cooled his drinking water by throwing red-hot coals of fire into the pitcher.  Likewise, when he became chilly he took off his hat and coat, and even his shoes, and so became warm; and in the hot days of summer he put on his overcoat to cool off.