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The St. Nicholas League

[Jan.

A Welcome.
By Edith J. Minaker (age 13.)
(Gold Badge.)

The ragged mountains, grand, sublime,With rocky sides none e’er could climb,And snowy peaks above the sky,Where some old eagle. soaring high,May nearly reach the lofty height,And then descend with strong, swift flight;

The boundless stretch of prairie grassWhich waves and rustles as you pass,And whispers to the roving breeze,Or to the birds and flowers and trees,Or to the river deep and blue,That winds the fertile prairie through;

These call across the land and sea:“A welcome waits, mankind, for thee;Though you will rob our prairies wide,The rocky mountain’s rugged side,And hew away the forests grand,And shear the beauty from the land,

Yet we will yield you golden grain,Helped by the sunshine and the rain;And we are rich in mineral store,Our bounties on you we will pour.We ’ll help you better lives to live,For what were living but to give?

“School-days—The Runaway.” By Katharyn Bingham, age 10. (Silver Badge.)

Welcome.
By Lewis S. Combes (age 8.)
(Gold Badge.)

Welcome to the New Year, Good-by to the old;Bring us some more good times Coasting in the cold.

Welcome to the springtime, With the birdies fair;You will hear them singing, Flying in the air.

Welcome to the summer, With vacation play:Running, jumping, swimming, All the sunny day.

Welcome to the autumn; Jack Frost comes at nightShaking down the chestnuts, Painting leaves so bright.

Welcome, welcome, welcome! All the pleasant year;Thank you for the good things That have brought us cheer.

“School-days.” By Gertrude M. Holland, age 12. (Honor Member.)

The Heroism of Yoshida Shoin.
By Mary Budd Pepper (age 11.)
(Silver Badge.)

During the administration of President Fillmore the United States wished to open commerce with Japan, So war-ships were sent under command of Captain Perry, carrying a gold box with a letter in it, asking for the ports to be open to the United States.

On April 8, 1854, the American squadron, the Susquehanna leading, entered Yedo Bay. The people were panic-stricken, but they soon found that the errand of the ships was a peaceful one.

It was while the squadron lay in Yedo Lay that, one morning, about two o’clock, the officer of the mid-watch on the Mississippi heard voices beside the boat, and, looking down, he saw two young boys climbing up the ladder.

Without understanding a word they said, he knew they wanted to remain on board the ship, so he took them to the commander of the flag-ship.

The boys told him that they wished to be taken to America and (a learn more about the world. He was friendly with the government of Japan, and although he would have liked to take the boys with him, he knew the Japanese were not allowed to leave their country, and it would be considered an unfriendly act. So, in spite of the protests of the boys, who said they would be beheaded, they were sent back.

The boys were put in prison and sentenced to be beheaded in five years. One of the boys, whose name was Yoshida Shoin, was turned over to the lord of his clan to be cared for.

He was friendly to the boy, and gave him a cottage under the pines, where he gathered together all the boys of his clan, and taught them, or, as one of the boys afterward said: “He did not exactly teach us, but he gave himself out to us.”