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Show Bonner ifLi- JULIUS AND CUCKOO "It's almost time for the cuckoo to come out," said Julius, sitting before be-fore the cuckoo clock. "But, oh, how sleepy I am. "I know I was late in going to bed last night but I don't see why I should be so terribly sleepy. "I do hope I will stay awake to hear the cuckoo come out again." Julius loved to see the cuckoo come out of the clock. The cuckoo in the clock always lives behind a little door over the face of the clock, and when he Is not telling the time he Is In there. But this time, the door did not close when the cuckoo came out, and he stayed out of his little home bobbing and saying, "Cuckoo," many times over, until at last it sounded like, "Julius, Julius, Julius." "Yes," said Julius, "you are calling call-ing me by my right name. How are you, Mr. Cuckoo Bird of the clock?" The little bird was made of wood, PI H li "Tut, Tut," Said the Cuckoo Bird. to be sure, but he seemed so certain of himself and so well satisfied that Julius felt he must be alive. "I am well, thank you kindly," said the cuckoo bird. "But I don't have to ask you." "Why not?" asked Julius. "Becausa I know," said the cuckoo bird. "You are sleepy. And It's not the time to sleep. "Ha, ha, ha, whatever would you do if you were a clock, or if your home was at the top of the clock?" "Well, I am not in a clock," said Julius, "and I am mighty glad of it." "Tut, tut," said the cuckoo bird. "You are getting quite cross, Master Julius. "Too little sleep. Well, well, I suppose sup-pose I must forgive you. But it's a shame you couldn't live In a clock for a time." "What do you mean?" asked Julius, who was quite frightened now. He felt the little cuckoo bird might hop down and pick him right up and put him in the clock. "If you could live In a clock and take my place you would have to be on time. "Six o'clock would mean six o'clock and not half-past. Seven-thirty in the morning would not mean a quarter past eight ! "Ah, no. In the clock we keep good time. We're not late and behind as you are. "We live on the moment, and on the hours and half-hours we come out to tell the people to remember that the time is going by and they mustn't waste it for it is so extremely precious." pre-cious." "Don't you believe in people sleeping?" sleep-ing?" asked Julius. "To be sure, to be sure," said the cuckoo. "But I believe they should sleep at the right time. "They should not choose another time for it, such as the middle of the afternoon, because they sat up too late the night before." Julius was very much ashamed. He felt the cuckoo bird knew that he had been dojng all that and he wished the cuckoo bird would go back in his little home and shut the door. . He was getting more afraid every second that the bird would take him back there. And, oh, dear, how he would hate to live in a clock! "Just suppose," said the cuckoo bird, "that I did things at the wrong time. "Suppose I should come out at six o'clock and tell everyone It was eight? "You can't Imagine it, can you? And why not? Because I have had the training of a clock. "I have had to be an assistant In keeping the time, and if I don't notice no-tice that you think more of the time I will put you back of the clock." The cuckoo bird banged his little door, and Julius, awaking with a start, rubbed his sleepy eyes, and said : "1 shall always do things on time from now on for how dreadful it must be to live back of a clock and have the hours depend so much on you." |