The Cheerful Cricket and Others | Page 4

at
certain hours Stingy went quietly off, and one day Greenie followed
him. There down in the meadow under a big apple tree he found Stingy
together with five other spiders. They were arranged in a row before
Silken Web, more often called Silkie, whom they were courting, and
Silkie was waiting, ready to accept the spider who did best. Out danced

the first spider. The shining hairs all over his body glistened in the sun,
now he seemed silver, now jet black, now crimson as he whirled,
jumping lightly into the air. Silkie looked for a second and then turned
her head away. It was plain she would have none of him. Off dejectedly
crawled the first spider.
Greenie watched, fascinated by this bright colored little spectacle under
the blossoming apple tree. Then his eyes grew dark and angry. He had
to work when he was hungry. He had not had a single holiday for over
a month, he had been spoken to crossly, his Family Tree had been
scoffed at, he--well, he had had enough of this!
The last fine cobweb Stingy spun it was Greenie's business to fold and
put away carefully in the centre of a buttercup. He would get it and be
back before it was time for Stingy to dance. He measured his way
quickly over to the buttercup, his little back fairly popped into the air
every other half second as he went furiously humping himself along.
He found the cobweb covered with the gold dust of the buttercup, and
taking it up hastily he hurried back. He knew just the spot where Stingy
would dance before Silkie, beside a tall piece of Timothy Grass.
The fifth spider was finishing his dance as Greenie reached the bottom
of the Timothy Grass stalk. Out came Stingy with a fierce and
self-confident air which plainly said, "All the other five have failed,
now I am about to succeed." He looked at Silkie, then began to dance.
First he whirled round madly, and so swift and light was he that he
seemed to have wings. His broad back and thin, tufted legs shone with
dusky, golden colors. After whirling around he hopped several times
lightly into the air.
In the meantime Greenie climbed the stalk and was waiting. Stingy was
just about to do a sideways-hop, when over him fell inches and inches
of his own gold dusted cobweb. Down he tumbled, his legs all tangled
up in the web. Fiercely he fought to get out, while off scuttled the other
spiders leaving him to his Fate. For a minute, the little green hairs on
Greenie's back stuck up straight with merriment. Then complacently he
measured his way home to his own Family Tree. Mrs. Cricky as she
passed him heard him muttering: "It's a long worm that has no turning,
a very long worm that has no turning!"
"Well," said Mrs. Cricky, "that may be true, but it is none of a cricket's
business; it is just as well not to take part in other people's quarrels.

Your Father says the Cricket Rule is the best precept for living he has
ever known, and your Father, children, is a very wise cricket. I dare say
Greenie has had a hard time, but then, lazy worms often do. Now let us
sing a little song about these flowers we've been hopping about in; it's
pleasanter. Chirp, don't sing too loud, Chirk, not too fast, and Chee,
don't mumble your words:"
Golden Flowers
Fast "Everywhere you go You see them dancing, Flowers dancing In
the sunlight.
"Nodding heads are shining Like the dew-drops, Sparkling dew-drops,
Shining gayly."

THE MEAN SPIDER
Old Stingy sat in the midst of his spider-web, as some old Giant used to
sit in his fortress waiting to pounce upon innocent people to kill them
and eat them. Stingy's shoulders were all humped up, and his eight
claws looked very ugly. He had already tangled up one Noisy Fly, and
now he sat waiting for another. Everybody hated him; even Toadie
Todson went out of his way to give a lazy snap at Stingy.
All day long Stingy spun webs, caught noisy flies and even other
spiders, and yet nobody ever knew what he did with his webs or with
the flies he caught. Stingy had never been heard to say one word, and
when he wanted exercise, he hung by his leg to a thin cobweb and
dangled up and down. But if he saw anything coming he gave a jump,
and back he went again into his web. There he would sit with his
shoulders humped and his big mean black eyes fairly popping out of his
head.
For once in his life Stingy was feeling a little sleepy the evening that
something