which are bringing treasure to the shore. It is the beautiful amber
we admire so much.

"The women and children are waiting on the sands, and as the men
bring in their nets, the contents are given into their hands. They
separate the precious lumps of amber from the weeds to which they are
clinging."

Their father stopped to fill his pipe, and the children thought he
had come to the end of the story.

"But you haven't told us yet what amber is," said Bertha.

"Be patient, my little one, and you shall hear," replied her father,
patting her head. "As yet, I have not half told the story. But I
will answer your question at once.

"A long time ago, longer than you can imagine, Bertha, forests were
growing along the shores of the Baltic Sea. There was a great deal
of gum in the trees of these forests. It oozed out of the trees in
the same manner as gum from the spruce-tree and resin from the pine.

"Storms arose, and beds of sand and clay drifted over the forests.
They were buried away for thousands of years, it may be. But the
motion of the sea washes up pieces of the gum, which is of light
weight.

"The gum has become changed while buried in the earth such a long,
long time. Wise men use the word 'fossilized' when they speak of
what has happened to it. The now beautiful, changed gum is called