PLAYING AT THE SEA-SHORE
Reading edition
Were you ever at the sea-shore?
Did you play in the sand?
All children like to play in the fine, white sand.
One summer Louis was down at the sea-shore.
His mother gave him a little wooden spade.
All day he played on the shore with his nurse.
He liked to dig holes in the sand.
“See, Nursie!” he would call. “See what a deep hole I have made!
I shall dig more holes.”
So he would dig and dig with his wooden spade.
“O Nurse! I have so many holes.
But they are all empty like a cup.
I don’t want empty holes.
I want to put something into them.
Shall I fill them with water?”
“Not now, laddie,” Nurse answered.
“It is time to go home to tea.
To-morrow we will see about filling your holes.”
Next morning Nurse and Louis came back to the sea-shore.
“Look, look, Nursie!” called the child.
“Someone has filled all the holes I made.
Now, they look like wells.
Who could have done it?
Some other little boy, I think.”
“No, laddie,” Nurse replied.
“No other little boy filled the holes.
Last night, when you were sleeping, the sea came up.
It filled the holes till they could hold no more.”
“Does the sea come up every night, Nursie?”
“Yes, laddie.”
“Then every day I will dig more holes.
I will make them deep and empty like a cup.
Every night the sea will fill them all.
I shall call them my sea wells.”
