CHAPTER II.

CHARLEY'S PLAN.

THE next day, Mr. Bryant walked into a large bookstore in the city where he lived. There were shelves of books for men and women, and shelves for children, filled with prettily bound volumes.

Mr. Bryant was not a stranger in the store, and he walked at once to this part of the room. The clerk knew him, and asked,—

"What can I sell you, sir?"

"I want a book about animals," the gentleman answered; "something that will be useful and interesting for a child of eight years."

The clerk took down a neat box, saying,—

"There is just the thing for you, sir. There are six volumes full of anecdotes of the dog, cat, horse, sheep, etc., besides a natural history of the animals."

"Capital! Let me see," taking out his watch; "yes, I have fifteen minutes, and I'll examine them."

He sat down on a high stool, and the clerk laughed as he saw him sitting there an hour after. Then the gentleman rose in a great hurry, saying, as he paid for the books,—

"I'm afraid your dog stories have made me lose a valuable customer. I quite forgot how the time was passing."

Mrs. Bryant did not forget Charley. She often told her daughter Ida about the little fellow. She also told her of Oscar Russel, though at that time she did not know his name, and how much better it was to be polite like Charley, than rude like Oscar.

"I want to see Tarley," lisped Ida; "I love dood boys."

In a few weeks, Mr. Bryant told his wife he had ordered a horse for a ride into the country, and should take the opportunity to make a call on their polite friend.

"May I do, too, papa?" eagerly asked Ida.

"Yes, dear. Don't forget to put in the books, wife."

When they came in sight of the house, Abel was at work on the sidewalk. He had finished the avenue, and it looked very nice, indeed; but Charley was nowhere to be seen.

Mr. Bryant gave his wife the reins, got out, and went through the gate to the front door. This was wide open; and, as he put up his hand to ring the bell, he heard the sound of a child's voice crying, up the stairs.

"Is Charley Monson at home?" he asked of the girl who came to answer his ring.

"Yes, sir; but he is in bed. I'll call his mother, sir."

She showed him to the parlor, and presently a lady, with the very brightest of blue eyes, came down the stairs into the room.

Mr. Bryant told her he was Charley's friend, and was very sorry to hear of his illness. "I told my little girl how polite he was, and she is very anxious to see him."

The lady then explained that her boy was not ill; he was in bed, in consequence of a blow he had received on his head from a bad boy, named Oscar Russel; that the doctor had been there and wanted to have them send a constable after Oscar, who was quite a nuisance in the town.

"I remember the boy very well," Mr. Bryant said; "and I hope you will have him punished."

Charley's mother smiled. "We shall try to prevent him from hurting any one again," she said. "My boy and I have a plan; but wont your little girl come in? Charley will be delighted to see her."

Cannot you imagine how pleased our little friend was when his mother ushered Mr. and Mrs. Bryant and Ida into the chamber? His face, to be sure, was very pale; but his eyes sparkled, and he held out his hand cordially to welcome them.

Ida looked very solemn when she saw the bandage around the boy's head. At first she could not be persuaded to go near the couch, but clung to her mother, saying, softly, "I want to go home."

But in less than five minutes she was chatting away as if she had known the sick boy all her life.

Oh, how prettily the color flashed over Charley's thee, when he saw what his friends had brought him!

He looked at the pictures, and kept saying, "Thank you," ever so many times.

Mrs. Monson thanked them, too, and said, "Nothing could have pleased Charley more, because he is so fond of hearing about animals."

By and by Mrs. Bryant said it was time for them to go; but her husband told Charley he wanted to know the plan about Oscar Russel first; for it was very certain that he must be prevented from throwing stones, and doing such things injurious to himself and others.

Charley blushed and glanced at his mother.

She encouraged him by a smile, and then he said, eagerly,—

"Nobody loves Oscar, and that's the reason he does so. His father drinks rum, and his mother scolds him whenever he goes into the house, and so—"

He hesitated, and the gentleman said, "That does not excuse him for hurting you."

"Oh, I don't think he meant to hurt me and, if he did, he didn't know how much I pitied him. He has real bad clothes; and all last winter he didn't wear shoes. When I get well, mother's going to send for him; and we'll fix him up real nice. Mother says he isn't half as much to blame as if he had good parents to teach him."

"And do you really forgive him for making that big bump on your head?"

Charley's eyes were wide open now; but he said, earnestly and very frankly,—

"Of course I forgive him. You know the prayer says, 'Forgive us as we forgive our debtors.' Mother says that means that, if I don't forgive those who injure me, I ask God not to forgive my sins; and that would be awful, you know."

"And you ask God to help you, I suppose?"

"I'm going to when I say my prayers. I know he will, because he loves to have boys grow good."

"Well, Charley, I feel sure you will succeed. But you must not forget to thank God for giving you a good mother."