James is five years old now. His father is a worker and his mother works in a shop. They live outside the town. His parents go to work in the morning and come back in the evening. The boy has to stay at home alone. There are more than ten children around his house, but some of them are too young and the others have to go to school. So the boy has few friends and he feels sad.
Last month the Hunts moved to the house next to theirs. James went to visit them on the first day. Mr. and Mrs. Hunt were kind to him and they have a four-year-old daughter named Kate. The boy made friends with her at once and her parents were happy. The two children play together when their parents are at work. And James no longer feels lonely.
It was cold yesterday. It snowed hard and the children couldn't play outside. And they stayed in Kate's room. At first they looked at the picture—books and then Kate found a coin in a box. They began to play with it. The girl put it into her mouth and she swallowed (吞) it. After half an hour Mrs. Hunt called her husband at once and then took the girl to the hospital.
"The Hunts must be poor, I think." James said to his parents after supper.
"Oh? Why?"
"Kate swallowed a coin and they tried to get it out!"
