They sat and talked and sang, but they did not play

at anything.

There at night I lay in my hunter's camp until bedtime had come.

These places were my hills and woods.

At the river's brink the roaring lion came to drink.

I had seen the others lying in the firelit camp.

When the nurse came I went to bed and looked backward at my land of Storybooks.

I prowled about as they by the camp-fire.

For example: They lit the lamp. He has lit the lamp. He has lighted the lamp.

STUDY 20

THE KNIGHTS AND THE SHIELD

A long time ago, a statue of the Goddess of Victory stood at a point where four roads met. The tall figure held a spear in one hand, and the other hand rested upon a shield. This shield was finely wrought, one side in gold and the other side in silver.

One day two knights, one clad all in black, the other all in white, came riding from opposite directions. They reached the statue at the same time and both stopped

to admire the beauty of the figure and to read the words on the shield.

After a few moments the Black Knight said, "This golden shield—”

But the White Knight interrupted him: "Golden shield! why, if I have eyes, it is silver!"

"You have eyes, but can not see," replied the Black Knight. "The shield is gold."

"I can see that this shield is silver!" said the White Knight angrily. "Would one dare to expose a golden shield upon a public highway? A silver one might be a strong temptation for some people who pass this way."

Now the Black Knight did not like the way this was said, and his reply was not gentle. The dispute quickly ended in a challenge.

Each knight rode back some distance. Then turning and couching their spears, they rushed at each other with such force that both were unhorsed.

As they lay on the ground, stunned and bleeding, a wise physician came that way. With healing balms he revived them. Then he asked the cause of their quarrel. The Black Knight spoke first. "This man declares that yonder shield is silver."

"He says it is gold!" cried the White Knight.

The wise man sighed. "You are both right, friends,

and you are both wrong. If either of you had taken time to look at the other side of the shield, all of this bloodshed might have been spared.

"But the evil that has come to you should teach you a lesson. Never begin a quarrel until you have looked on both sides."

Exercises

1. Read the story carefully, so that you may be able to read it well in the class.

The parts that represent the conversation are preceded and followed by little marks called quotation marks (""). How have you used quotation marks in other lessons?

Where are capital letters used in this story?

Explain what the White Knight meant when he asked, "Would one dare to expose a golden shield upon a public highway?" What do you understand by: "The dispute quickly ended in a challenge"? What is the meaning of "couching their spears"? Explain "with healing balms he revived them."

Tell the story.

The expression, "There are always two sides to a shield," is often used. What do you think it means?

Write and read in class a short paragraph about it, showing its meaning.

2. Treat this story as a dialogue and let three boys act it.

3. Spell in class and give the meaning of the following homonyms:

Now hide the flowers beneath the snow,
And Winter shall not find them;
Their safety nooks he can not know;
They left no tracks behind them.

The little brooks keep very still,
Safe in their ice-homes lying;

Let Winter seek them where he will.
There's no chance for his spying.