Christmas Hamper: Full of Pictures and Tales

</td><td align="left"><h2><SPAN name="Not_Such_Fun_as_it_Seemed" id="Not_Such_Fun_as_it_Seemed">Not Such Fun as it Seemed.</SPAN></h2> </td></tr> </table></div> <div> <ANTIMG class="drop-cap" src="images/i013drop-cap.jpg" width-obs="58" height-obs="100" alt="I" /></div> <p class="drop-capi">“ISN’T it fun, Dolly?” asked Eric, as he and his little sister ran along the sea front as fast as their sturdy legs could carry them.</p> <p>Eric was the jolliest little boy imaginable, but, unfortunately, a little bit too fond of mischief, and Dolly was generally only too eager to join in her brother’s pranks.</p> <div class="figright"> <ANTIMG src="images/i013b.jpg" width-obs="400" height-obs="233" alt="pail and shovel" /></div> <p>Just now they were running away from nurse, who was down on the sands with baby. They waited until her head was turned away, then off they ran.</p> <p>“We’ll go out to the rocks and play at being shipwrecked sailors,” Eric went on. “I’ve got some biscuits in my pocket, and I’ll dole them out, piece by piece, and pretend we shan’t have any more food unless a boat takes us off.”</p> <p>Poor Eric! his play very soon became earnest, for he and Dolly waded out to a big rock in a very lonely part of the coast, and so interested were they in their game that they never noticed the tide coming in until it had surrounded them, and there was no getting back.</p> <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i014.jpg" width-obs="458" height-obs="600" alt="" /> <div class="caption">ALONG THE SEA FRONT.</div> </div> <p>They waited on and on, hoping some one would come for them, and fearing every moment that the sea would cover the rock, and that they would be drowned.</p> <p>It was long past dinner-time, and they were wet through and hungry and wretched when at last a fisherman, who had been sent out to search for them, spied the two forlorn little figures, and rescued them.</p> <p>They went home hand in hand, very solemn and silent, expecting to get a good scolding; but instead of that, mother burst into tears of relief, and both Eric and Dolly felt so thoroughly ashamed of themselves for having frightened their darling mother so terribly that it was a very long, long time before they got into mischief again.</p> <div class="figcenter"> <ANTIMG src="images/i015.jpg" width-obs="400" height-obs="292" alt="playing along the beach" /></div> <hr class="chap" /></div> <div style="break-after:column;"></div><br />