deceiving me; you are telling them all this in some secret way.' 'Oh, no,' said Mr. Arnold, 'I never make use of signs or the finger alphabet; and if I did, I am truly happy to say my pupils wouldn't understand me: besides, see, my hands are behind my back.' He went on, 'What colour are the horses?' 'One is brown, with a white face, and the other is grey.' Mr. Merian jumped up, saying, 'This is very curious,' looking from Mr Arnold to the boy who had last spoken, and appearing puzzled. 'This is really very curious; one might easily be deceived into fancying that the child was really thinking.' Mr. Arnold, without answering, went on, 'Why does Mr. Merian ride in his own carriage, instead of walking or going by cart, as we do?' 'Because Mr. Merian is a very rich man, and can afford to ride in his carriage.' 'Why, Arnold, the child is thinking, I declare!' cried out the gentleman. 'Of course he is,' replied Mr. Arnold, quietly; 'they all think and express their ideas as you and I do. True, not in such finished language, because at present their vocabulary, like that of all children, is limited; but I hope, by the time they are confirmed, they will be able to express themselves in as perfect language (if not more so) as do their parents and relatives.' 'Well, put some more questions,' said Mr. Merian. This was done, and after half-an-hour he said, 'Arnold, why didn't you tell me about this before? Why did you leave me under such an erroneous impression?' 'My good friend,' answered Mr. Arnold, 'if I have told you once, I have told you a hundred times.' 'Yes, but you should have explained the matter properly to me, so that I could have understood it. But, there, I will come and see your school again to-morrow. I feel
