| MILTON. |
| THE MESSENGER BOYS AT THE CAPITOL. |
| A HERO OF CHIVALRY. |
| TOBY TYLER; |
| THE YOUNG TIN-TYPERS. |
| WILD BIRDS IN THE COUNTRY. |
| MILDRED'S BARGAIN. |
| THE TWO BEARS. |
| OUR POST-OFFICE BOX. |
| Vol. II.—No. 63. | Published by HARPER & BROTHERS, New York. | Price Four Cents. |
| Tuesday, January 11, 1881. | Copyright, 1881, by Harper & Brothers. | $1.50 per Year, in Advance. |
MILTON.
John Milton was a blue-eyed, yellow-haired Saxon boy, the type of theEnglish race. He was somewhat short, stout, and healthy; his eyes werebright and sparkling in his youth, before he became blind. But heinherited weakness of sight from his mother. He was born 1609, in apleasant house in Bread Street, London, almost under the shadow of BowBells. It was back in a court. His father, who had made a fortune as ascrivener, was fond of music, books, and literature, and his son wascarefully educated at St. Paul's School. Milton relates that hefrequently studied in the house in Bread Street until after midnight,and his head ached and his sight grew dim with these late vigils. He wasthen about twelve years old.
When he was six years old he may have seen Shakespeare and Ben Jonsonpass on their way to the Mermaid Tavern, which was in Bread Street, notfar from his father's house. He was one of the best scholars at St.Paul's School, and loved study as most boys like play. He was eager toknow how men lived and acted in Greece and Rome, what they thought of,and what they had discovered. He studied the rise and fall of empiresand republics, and became a republican in the midst of kings andprinces. He was always fond of poetry, and