When it rains here--and it's very apt to rain here every day--it comes
down just as if it was a torrent of water. The other night I hung up my
hammock in my tent and in the middle of the night there was a terrific
storm, and my tent and hammock came down with a run. The water was
running over the ground in a sheet, and the mud was knee-deep; so I was
a drenched and muddy object when I got to a neighboring tent, where I
was given a blanket, in which I rolled up and went to sleep.

There is a funny little lizard that comes into my tent and is quite tame
now; he jumps about like a little frog and puffs his throat out. There
are ground-doves no bigger than big sparrows, and cuckoos almost as
large as crows.



YOUTHFUL BIBLE COMMENTATORS

(To Miss Emily T. Carow)

Oyster Bay, Dec. 8, 1900.

The other day I listened to a most amusing dialogue at the Bible lesson
between Kermit and Ethel. The subject was Joseph, and just before
reading it they had been reading Quentin's book containing the
adventures of the Gollywogs. Joseph's conduct in repeating his dream to
his brothers, whom it was certain to irritate, had struck both of the
children unfavorably, as conflicting both with the laws of common-sense
and with the advice given them by their parents as to the proper method
of dealing with their own brothers and sisters. Kermit said: "Well, I