Second Grade Read Aloud Banquet

Songs for December

The Land of Story-Books

At evening when the lamp is lit,
Around the fire my parents sit;
They sit at home and talk and sing,
And do not play at anything.

Now, with my little gun, I crawl
All in the dark along the wall,
And follow round the forest track
Away behind the sofa back.

There, in the night, where none can spy,
All in my hunter's camp I lie,
And play at books that I have read
Till it is time to go to bed.

These are the hills, these are the woods,
These are my starry solitudes;
And there the river by whose brink
The roaring lions come to drink.

I see the others far away
As if in firelit camp they lay,
And I, like to an Indian scout,
Around their party prowled about.

So when my nurse comes in for me,
Home I return across the sea,
And go to bed with backward looks
At my dear land of Story-Books.

	Monday	Tuesday	Wednesday	Thursday	Friday	Saturday	Sunday
Week 44	Bewildered from The Little Lame Prince by Dinah Maria Mulock	Maximilian and the Goose Boy from Fifty Famous Stories Retold by James Baldwin	Farewells and Welcomes from The Burgess Bird Book for Children by Thornton Burgess	AIR: THE FIRST STORY from The Forge in the Forest by Padraic Colum Saint Martin and the Honest Man from The Forge in the Forest by Padraic Colum	The West Indies from The Discovery of New Worlds by M. B. Synge	The Black Gully (Part 1 of 2) from The Bears of Blue River by Charles Major	Saint Martin from In God's Garden by Amy Steedman
	The Story of Roanoke from Richard of Jamestown by James Otis The Crowning of Powhatan from Richard of Jamestown by James Otis Preparing for the Future from Richard of Jamestown by James Otis	Swallows on the Wires (Part 1 of 3) from Outdoor Visits by Edith M. Patch	The Lion, the Bear and the Fox from The Aesop for Children by Milo Winter	I See a Strange Sail from Robinson Crusoe Written Anew for Children by James Baldwin	The Story of Li'l' Hannibal from Merry Tales by Eleanor L. Skinner	Farmer Brown's Boy Chops Down a Tree from The Adventures of Unc' Billy Possum by Thornton Burgess	The Stowaway Story from The Sandman: His Sea Stories by Willliam J. Hopkins
	The Land of Story-Books by Robert Louis Stevenson	How the Leaves Came Down by Susan Coolidge		The Fairies' Shopping by Margaret Deland	Alone by Walter de la Mare	The Fir-Tree by Edith M. Thomas	The Chestnut Burr, Anonymous

The Aesop for Children by Milo Winter

The Dog, the Cock, and the Fox

A Dog and a Cock, who were the best of friends, wished very much to see something of the world. So they decided to leave the farmyard and to set out into the world along the road that led to the woods. The two comrades traveled along in the very best of spirits and without meeting any adventure to speak of.

At nightfall the Cock, looking for a place to roost, as was his custom, spied nearby a hollow tree that he thought would do very nicely for a night's lodging. The Dog could creep inside and the Cock would fly up on one of the branches. So said, so done, and both slept very comfortably.

With the first glimmer of dawn the Cock awoke. For the moment he forgot just where he was. He thought he was still in the farmyard where it had been his duty to arouse the household at daybreak. So standing on tip-toes he flapped his wings and crowed lustily. But instead of awakening the farmer, he awakened a Fox not far off in the wood. The Fox immediately had rosy visions of a very delicious breakfast. Hurrying to the tree where the Cock was roosting, he said very politely:

"A hearty welcome to our woods, honored sir. I cannot tell you how glad I am to see you here. I am quite sure we shall become the closest of friends."

"I feel highly flattered, kind sir," replied the Cock slyly. "If you will please go around to the door of my house at the foot of the tree, my porter will let you in."

The hungry but unsuspecting Fox, went around the tree as he was told, and in a twinkling the Dog had seized him.

Those who try to deceive may expect to be paid in their own coin.