Library Collections: Document: Full Text

Antipodes are people who live on the opposite side of the globe from each other. The hottest part of the earth is at the equator. The heat is greatest there, because the sun is more nearly overhead all the time. The climate grows colder as we go from the equator towards either of the poles. There are five zones. They are north frigid, north temperate, torrid, south frigid and south temperate. The frigid zones have but two seasons, a long winter and a short summer. The temperate zones have four seasons, winter, spring, summer and autumn. The torrid zone has two seasons, the dry and wet, equally long. The days and nights at the equator are nearly equal throughout the year. As we leave the equator and go towards the poles, the nights and days are more and more unequal. In the summer the days are the longest in the temperate zones. The day at the poles is six months long, and the night is the same.

HELEN KELLER.

When asked which country she liked best, Helen replied instantly, "France!" and gave this as her reason: "The French people are so gay and have such beautiful fancies." After a moment she added: "They must be the happiest people in the world! Are they?"

She has been fortunate in meeting many persons who have travelled extensively, and are glad to answer her eager inquiries about the countries and people they have seen. As she rarely forgets anything she has been told, she has gathered a rich harvest of information in this way.

By the following letter we can see how Helen thought about foreign lands, and expected some day to visit them: --

INSTITUTION FOR THE BLIND, SOUTH BOSTON.

MY DEAR MR. MURRAY: -- I thank you for your kind letter, and for your love. It gives me very great pleasure to know that good friends in far-away countries think of me and love me. I was so glad to hear about your dear little girls. I should be delighted to receive a letter from them some time. You did not think to tell me their names. I hope if they write to me, they will tell me something about Montreal, and I should be pleased to know what they study in school.

Boston is a beautiful and very large city. I like to live here very, very much. I learn many new things every day. I love all of my studies greatly. Geography tells me about the beautiful earth, and the countries which are upon it. Arithmetic tells me about numbers, and I like it exceedingly. Botany tells me interesting things about the flowers that I love so dearly. I miss my flowers very much. I have none to take care of here. Do your little girls have a pretty garden? Zoölogy tells me very curious things about animals. I think my dogs and kitties will laugh when I tell them that they are vertebrates, mammals, quadrupeds, and that a long time ago they were wild, like the wolf and the tiger. They will not believe it, I am sure. I am studying French, too. Je pense a vous, et a votre bonne petites filles! When I go to France I shall speak French to my new friends. J'ai une belle petite soeur. Elle s'appelle Mildred.

Now I must say au revoir. Please kiss the little girls for me, and write to me again some day.

With much love and a kiss, from your little friend,

HELEN A. KELLER.

In another of Helen's dreams, written in October, 1890, may be seen how vivid was my pupil's perception of the studies she pursued.

A DREAM.

I had a very amusing dream last night. I thought I was in England, but it was a great many hundreds of years ago; and I was puzzled, because I could not remember that I had been in a ship, or anything about crossing the ocean; but there I was, so I thought I would look around, and see all the curious things in this strange country. When I asked somebody -- I think it was a soldier, because he wore a helmet, a shield, and a long sword at his side -- what the name of the place was, he seemed much surprised, and said, Kent! and asked me where I had come from. I replied that I was a little American, from way across the sea, and that I would like to see King Ethelbert. He said he had never heard of America, but he would take me to the king's palace. He told me we should have to ride, because it was too far to walk; and so we got two beautiful horses, -- the war-horses the Britons loved so much, -- and drove very fast ; for the roads which the Romans had made, when they were in Britain, were still very good. Nearly all the people we passed on our way were Saxons. I asked my companion where the Britons were, and he told me that the Saxons had driven them into Wales, Cornwall and Devonshire. I was very sorry for the brave Britons, who had defended their little island home so long and courageously against the Romans. I thought the Saxons were very unjust to take the Briton's country from them. Prince Vortigern did not think they would do such a thing, or he would not have invited Hengist and Horsa to help him keep out the Scots and Picts; and I am sure he never would have married the beautiful Rowana.

At last we reached the palace. The king received us in a great hall. He was seated upon a throne, and wore very costly robes, trimmed with gold and precious stones, and upon his head be wore a crown. All around him stood his courtiers and the wise men of his kingdom. Augustine, the monk from Rome, was telling King Ethelbert about Christ and the Christian religion. The king believed all that the monk told him, and was converted. Then his courtiers and wise men believed also, and in a short time Kent became a Christian kingdom. The king gave Augustine permission to build a little church, close to the palace, on the spot where the beautiful cathedral of Canterbury now stands. He also told his nephew, Prince Cebert, to build two churches, one where there was a temple to Apollo, and the other where there was a temple to the goddess Diana. The first was where Westminster Abbey now stands, and the second was where Saint Paul's Church stands now.