----------------------------------------
This ebook is dedicated to
EMMY
friend, colleague, mentor, role model,
who fell off the planet far too soon.
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[Illustration: _For all boys and girls who love stories.
Jane Eayre Fryer_]
_Books by Jane Eayre Fryer_
THE MARY FRANCES COOK BOOK
_Or, Adventures Among the Kitchen People_
PRICE $2.00 NET
THE MARY FRANCES SEWING BOOK
_Or, Adventures Among the Thimble People_
PRICE $2.00 NET
THE MARY FRANCES HOUSEKEEPER
_Or, Adventures Among the Doll People_
PRICE $2.00 NET
THE MARY FRANCES GARDEN BOOK
_Or, Adventures Among the Garden People_
PRICE $2.00 NET
THE MARY FRANCES KNITTING AND CROCHETING BOOK
_Or, Adventures Among the Knitting People_
PRICE $2.00 NET
THE MARY FRANCES FIRST AID BOOK
PRICE $1.25 NET
THE MARY FRANCES STORY BOOK
_Or, Adventures Among the Story People_
PRICE $2.00 NET
THE MARY FRANCES BIBLE STORY BOOK
_Or, Adventures Among the Bible People_
PRICE $2.00 NET
THE JOHN C. WINSTON COMPANY
_PUBLISHERS_ 1006-1016 ARCH STREET, PHILADELPHIA
[Illustration: THEY COULD SEE THAT THE PIRATE’S SHIP WAS KEEPING
THE DISTANCE THE SAME AS AT FIRST BETWEEN THEM]
[Illustration]
THE MARY FRANCES STORY BOOK
OR
ADVENTURES AMONG THE STORY PEOPLE
_by_
JANE EAYRE FRYER
ILLUSTRATED BY
EDWIN JOHN PRITTIE
THE JOHN C. WINSTON COMPANY
PHILADELPHIA, PA.
COPYRIGHT, 1921, BY
THE JOHN C. WINSTON COMPANY
_Entered at Stationers’ Hall, London_
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
MADE IN THE
U.S.A.
PREFACE
THE MARY FRANCES STORY BOOK is different from the other Mary Frances
Books. They are part lessons and part story; they teach something
about cooking and sewing, knitting and crocheting, housekeeping and
gardening, and first-aid--and tell a story, too; but THE MARY FRANCES
STORY BOOK is all story.
On a summer afternoon Mary Frances took a holiday and sailed away
across the blue water to an island--an island formed by the top of a
coral mountain resting in a sea of blue; oh, so blue--a brighter blue
than the water in your mother’s bluing tub--not the blue that makes you
feel sad and blue, but the blue that makes you laugh with happiness.
The island itself and the roofs of the houses were coral white, and
the green was the green of the palm and banana and mahogany tree. The
breezes that blew over them were the warm, soft breezes of the southern
sun. This island was the “enchanted island” of the good story-tellers
which Mary Frances was allowed to visit. The story people who lived
there believed in truth and beauty, and courage and kindness, and these
were the theme of their stories. Like all good islands, this island
had enemies, but they came to a bad end, as, in the long run, all evil
persons will; and truth and beauty, and courage and kindness won the
day, as they always must in every land where the searchlight of the sun
flashes its beams.
As may be imagined, when Mary Frances came home she had not only one,
but many stories to tell; and they are written in this book.
J. E. F.
MERCHANTVILLE, N. J.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
For kind permission to use copyrighted and other material, the author
is indebted to the following: Milton Bradley Company, for “The
Closing Door”, from _Mother Stories_, by Maud Lindsay; Little, Brown
& Company, for “Tom Goes Down the Well”, from _Mice at Play_, by Neil
Forest; Presbyterian Board of Publication, for “Gloomy Gus and the
Christmas Cat”, by Alfred Westfall, and “Ann Catches a Thief”, by Daisy
Gilbert; McLoughlin Brothers, for “Patty and Her Pitcher”; The Beacon
Press, for “The Brahmin, the Tiger, and the Jackal”, from _First Book
of Religion_; Cassel & Company, for “Music Bewitched”, by Hartley
Richards; American Baptist Publication Society, for “John and Margaret
Paton Among Savages”, by Grace E. Craig; Bobbs-Merrill Company, for
“Your Flag and My Flag”, from _The Trail to Boyland_, by Wilbur D.
Nesbit, copyright 1904. Acknowledgment is also due to Cassell, Petter,
Galpin & Company, for “The Bubble Story”, “Mischievous Anna and Peter”,
and “The Cat and the Carrots”.
CONTENTS
THE TRIP TO STORY ISLAND
CHAPTER PAGE
I. ON THE SHORE 15
II. THE GOOD FERRY PUTS OUT TO SEA 18
III. THE PIRATE’S CAT 23
IV. THE STORY OF THE LOST STORY 26
V. LAND AHOY 29
VI. THE OLD WITCH AND THE IRON-CHAIN CURTAIN 35
VII. FINDING THE LOST STORY 37
VIII. THE PIRATE CHASES THE GOOD FERRY 42
IX. THE TERRIBLE PUNISHMENT OF THE PIRATE AND THE
OLD WITCH 44
X. THE BUBBLE STORY _Anon._ 47
STORIES TOLD THE FIRST DAY
XI. MISCHIEVOUS ANNA AND PETER _Anon._ 55
XII. DIAMONDS AND TOADS _Macé’s Fairy Tales_ 61
XIII. THE MAGIC NECKLACE _Macé’s Fairy Tales_ 67
XIV. THE CAT AND THE CARROTS _Anon._ 73
XV. THE BRAHMIN, THE TIGER, AND
THE JACKAL _Hindu Folk Tale_ 79
XVI. THE RED DRAGON _Anon._ 82
XVII. TWO POEMS 84
If I Could Crow 84
The Twins 85
XVIII. TINY’S ADVENTURES IN TINYTOWN 87
Tiny Gets Lost 88
Tiny Is Put in the Lock-up 91
Tiny Is Adopted 94
Tiny Discovers a Fire 100
XIX. TINY HAS MORE ADVENTURES 102
Tiny Saves a Baby’s Life 104
Tiny Goes Shopping 107
Tiny’s Mother Finds Her 111
STORIES TOLD THE SECOND DAY
XX. THE MAGIC MASK _Old Tale_--Retold 119
XXI. THE CLOSING DOOR _Maud Lindsay_ 126
XXII. TOM GOES DOWN THE WELL _Neil Forest_ 130
XXIII. GLOOMY GUS AND THE CHRISTMAS CAT _Alfred Westfall_ 139
XXIV. PATTY AND HER PITCHER _Crowquill’s Fairy Tales_ 146
In the Magic Circle 146
The Wonderful Pitcher 147
The Well-dressed Stranger 154
Patty in Trouble 156
The Pitcher to the Rescue 158
THE STORIES OF THE THIRD DAY
XXV. SIR GALAHAD _Sir Thomas Malory_--Adapted 165
King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table 165
Galahad Receives the Order of Knighthood 167
The Adventure of the Sword in the Stone 168
Sir Galahad Sits in the Perilous Seat 170
Sir Galahad Wins the Sword of Balin le Savage 173
The Knights of the Round Table Set Out in Quest
of the Holy Grail 176
Sir Galahad Finds a White Shield with a Red
Cross 178
Sir Launcelot and Sir Percival Attack Sir
Galahad 182
The Adventure of the Gentlewoman, the Mysterious
Ship, and the Sword of the Strange Belt 185
The Gentlewoman Risks Her Life for Another 191
Sir Galahad Meets a Knight in White Armor 193
Sir Galahad Achieves His Quest, and Bears the
Holy Grail Across the Sea 195
The Passing of Sir Galahad, the End of Sir
Percival, and the Return of Sir Bors to
Camelot 200
XXVI. HOW SIR LAUNFAL ACHIEVED THE HOLY GRAIL
_James Russell Lowell_--Retold 203
THE STORIES OF THE FOURTH DAY
XXVII. MUSIC BEWITCHED _Hartley Richards_ 211
Bob’s Three Foes 211
Father Pan’s Revenge 215
XXVIII. ANN CATCHES A THIEF _Daisy Gilbert_ 219
XXIX. JOHN AND MARGARET PATON AMONG SAVAGES
_Grace E. Craig_ 226
XXX. THE STRANGE GUEST _Washington Irving_--
Retold from _The Spectre Bridegroom_ 233
The Wedding Feast 240
The Midnight Music 244
XXXI. ROBERT OF SICILY _Henry W. Longfellow_--Retold 248
XXXII. THE MAN WITHOUT A COUNTRY _Edward Everett Hale_--
Retold 254
XXXIII. YOUR FLAG AND MY FLAG _Wilbur D. Nesbit_ 264
THE LAST DAY ON STORY ISLAND
THE CRICKET ON THE HEARTH, A FAIRY TALE
OF HOME _Charles Dickens_--Adapted 271
XXXIV. CHIRP THE FIRST 271
The Peerybingles 271
The Strange Old Gentleman 274
Caleb Plummer 277
Tackleton 279
Dot is Upset 281
XXXV. CHIRP THE SECOND 285
Bertha, the Blind Girl, and Her Father 285
Tackleton Comes In 288
Bertha’s Eyes 291
The Carrier’s Cart 293
The Party at Caleb’s 298
The Shadow on the Hearth 302
XXXVI. CHIRP THE THIRD 306
John Listens to the Cricket 306
John Blames Himself 308
Caleb Confesses His Deceit 312
The Dead Returns to Life 316
Tackleton Does the Unexpected 321
THE RETURN HOME
XXXVII. GOOD-BY, MARY FRANCES. COME AGAIN! 325
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
THEY COULD SEE THAT THE PIRATE’S SHIP WAS KEEPING THE
DISTANCE THE SAME AS AT FIRST BETWEEN THEM _Frontispiece_
PAGE
MARY FRANCES LEANED DOWN AND CAUGHT HOLD OF HIS FINS 21
“JUST SOME FLYING FISH,” ANSWERED THE CAT 31
SHE FED HIM A LITTLE AT A TIME WITH A MEDICINE DROPPER 39
ON ONE OF THE FLOWERS WAS PERCHED A TINY FAIRY 49
THEY WERE AS HIGH UP IN THE AIR AS THE TOP OF A MOUNTAIN 57
SHE DRANK LONG AND EAGERLY 63
HE THREW THE NECKLACE AROUND CORALIE’S NECK 69
“HAVE YOU NO FEELINGS?” SAID THE CARROT 75
“WOW!” SHRIEKED THE DRAGON 82
JUST AT HER FEET LAY THE TINIEST LITTLE BIT OF A TOWN 89
THE PONY CANTERED ALL THE WAY DOWN THE STREET 99
SHE RAN AS FAST AS SHE COULD AND WAS JUST IN TIME TO DRAG
THE BABY OUT OF THE WAY OF THE WAGON 105
“MOTHER!” SHE CRIED. “OH, MOTHER!” 113
THE MAGIC MASK WAS READY, AND HERLO TRIED IT ON THE
KING’S FACE 123
BUT ALL THE UNITED EFFORTS OF BESS AND BOB AND ARCHIE’S
LEFT ARM COULD NOT RAISE TOM 135
HE SWUNG DOWN THE TRAIL WITH A SPEED THAT MOCKED THE WIND
AT HIS BACK 143
SHE THEN TOUCHED THE PITCHER WITH HER WAND 150
“BE NOT ALARMED, DEAR MISTRESS,” SAID THE PITCHER 157
IMMEDIATELY HE GRASPED THE SWORD BY THE HANDLE, BUT
COULD NOT STIR IT 171
THEN SIR GALAHAD TOOK HIS PLACE IN THE FIELD 175
A MONK LED HIM BEHIND THE ALTAR WHERE THE SHIELD HUNG
AS WHITE AS SNOW, BUT IN THE CENTER WAS A RED CROSS 181
THE DAMSEL RODE AS FAST AS HER HORSE WOULD GALLOP THAT
NIGHT AND ALL THE NEXT DAY TILL THEY CAME IN SIGHT OF
THE SEA 187
SLOWLY SLEEP CAME UPON HIM AND HE DREAMED 205
AWAY WENT THE SCHOOLMASTER’S LEGS, CUTTING SUCH CAPERS
AS THE WORLD NEVER LOOKED UPON BEFORE 217
BEFORE THE DOOR OF A LOW, THATCHED HUT STOOD A FAIR-HAIRED
YOUNG WOMAN 227
ONCE HE THOUGHT HE SAW THEM 237
A TALL FIGURE STOOD AMONG THE SHADOWS OF THE TREES 243
TOWARD THE VERY LAST, ROBERT THE JESTER RODE ON A PIEBALD
PONY 251
HE FLUNG THE BOOK INTO THE SEA 257
YOUR FLAG AND MY FLAG 265
“IF YOU PLEASE, I WAS TO BE LEFT TILL CALLED FOR” 275
THERE WERE HOUSES IN IT, FURNISHED AND UNFURNISHED, FOR
DOLLS OF ALL STATIONS IN LIFE 286
THEY JOGGED ON FOR SOME TIME IN SILENCE 297
THE TRIP TO STORY ISLAND
ON THE SHORE.--THE GOOD FERRY PUTS OUT TO SEA.--THE PIRATE’S
CAT.--THE LOST STORY.--LAND AHOY.--THE OLD WITCH AND THE IRON-CHAIN
CURTAIN.--FINDING THE LOST STORY.--THE PIRATE CHASES THE GOOD
FERRY.--THE TERRIBLE PUNISHMENT OF THE PIRATE AND THE OLD WITCH.--THE
BUBBLE STORY.
THE TRIP TO STORY ISLAND
I
ON THE SHORE
“IF only--” whispered Mary Frances to herself, as she closed the book
she had been reading, “if only one could find the ‘enchanted island,’
and the ‘hidden treasure of stories’--I wish--I wish the story told how
to get there!”
She was sitting on the branches of a tree, which were so bent that they
formed a sort of hammocky rocking chair. The tree was close to the
bank of the river, and away in the distance the whitecaps of the ocean
rolled up and broke upon the beach.
“It’s quite a journey,” said a small voice, “quite a long journey.”
Mary Frances looked all around, but could not find where the voice came
from.
“You see, it’s out at sea,” continued the voice; “and only one boat and
one passenger a year. What’s more----”
This last was uttered with a deep sigh.
“Why, where are you? Who are you?” asked Mary Frances, springing up.
“Here I am, but I won’t be long,” continued the voice. “You’d better
look lively, for I can’t cling to this fence much longer. Besides, I am
almost out of element!”
Then the little girl saw a dolphin sitting on the top rail of the
fence, holding on with one fin.
“Oh!” she cried, “do you really know where the ‘enchanted island’ is?
Will you tell me how to get there?”
“That I will!” said the dolphin. “That I will, if you’ll get me a
little of my element first.”
“What is that?” asked Mary Frances.
“Why, you couldn’t live without yours for one minute! I’ll die if I
don’t get some soon!”
“Oh, dear, what can it be? Whatever in the world is your element? I
don’t want you to die!”
“Be quick!” cried the dolphin, fanning himself with the other fin. “I
feel very faint!”
“I’ll get some water!” Stooping quickly, Mary Frances filled her hat.
Before she could dash it over him, the dolphin ducked his head into the
hatful of water.
“Thank you,” he said, raising his head. “You’re not so dull after all.
Water is my element; air is yours.”
“Of course,” said Mary Frances; but she wondered why the dolphin didn’t
jump back into the water.
“The reason is that it takes me so long to climb a fence!”
“Oh!” said Mary Frances, although she didn’t see why the dolphin had to
sit on a fence to talk.
“So that there’ll be no offense!” said the dolphin, after staring at
her for a while; “but to refer to the trip--have you a ticket?”
“Why, no, I don’t think I have.” Mary Frances searched in her pockets,
and pulled out some ribbon, a doll’s wig, a thimble, and a piece of
paper.
“That’s the ticket!” exclaimed the dolphin, pointing with his fin. “All
you need to do is to sign it. Have you a pencil?”
Mary Frances searched again in her pockets, while the dolphin looked on
anxiously, but couldn’t find one.
“Well, never mind; just pull out one of my whiskers,” he said. “It will
write right well.”
“But I might hurt you!” cried Mary Frances.
“Not if you take that loose one,” he said, pointing with his fin.
Very gently Mary Frances pulled it, and out it came.
“Sign your name!” cried the dolphin excitedly. “Right at the end of the
paper!”
“Excuse me,” said Mary Frances; “my father says that no one should ever
sign a paper without reading it.”
“That’s good reading!” said the dolphin. “Read it!”
And Mary Frances read:
+--------------------------------+
| Good for |
| One First Class Passage |
| to |
| Story Island |
| |
| * * * |
| |
| I Believe in All Good Fairies. |
| Signed ------------ |
| No. 1,234,567. |
+--------------------------------+
“Of course, I’ll sign that!” said Mary Frances, gravely using the
dolphin’s whisker.
At that, the dolphin fell over with a great splash into the water.
“Oh!” screamed Mary Frances, “you’ll be drowned!” But, just at that
moment, up came the dolphin’s head out of the water.
“My element!” he said. Then Mary Frances laughed to think how soon she
had forgotten.
“Hold your ticket and wait right where you are!” the dolphin called
out, swimming away.
Mary Frances watched the splashing tail and shining back flashing in
the sun. Two or three times he leaped playfully in the air, turned
somersaults in the water, and then disappeared from sight in the little
cove near the mouth of the river.
II
THE GOOD FERRY PUTS OUT TO SEA
“OH, my,” thought Mary Frances; “oh, my, I hope he won’t forget!”
After a little while, she caught sight of the dolphin swimming around
the little high peninsula on one side of the cove. He seemed to be
piloting something, for every few seconds he would leap up and look
around as if to make sure that everything was as it should be.
Soon Mary Frances saw a beautiful little sailboat rounding the point.
Surely it was following the dolphin. As it drew nearer she could read
the name in gold letters on the prow, The Good Ferry.
A brisk wind filled the white sails and brought the boat so swiftly
up the river that the dolphin had to swim with all his might to keep
ahead. As she came to anchor in the shallow water near the bank, the
dolphin called out, “Have you your ticket?”
“Yes,” answered Mary Frances, holding it up to view.
“Then step on my back and jump aboard!” said the dolphin.
As Mary Frances placed her foot on the dolphin as on a bridge, he
suddenly arched his back and tossed her aboard.
“Take plenty of time to look the ship over,” he called out; “and don’t
lose your ticket!”
Then the dolphin, with The Good Ferry following in his wake, swam down
the river and put out to sea.
The Good Ferry was a charming little boat, graceful in every line. It
wasn’t any longer than a large rowboat, but it seemed to have every
comfort provided. There was on deck a comfortable deck chair; upon it
was spread a beautiful steamer rug.
“I’ll take a nice nap, after I look the boat over,” thought Mary
Frances.
As she made her way into the cabin, she uttered a cry of delight--and
no wonder. Any girl would have loved it. The walls and woodwork were
ivory white. Soft pink and light blue hangings fluttered at the
windows. A large bowl, filled with pink roses and turquoise blue
larkspurs, stood on the little golden dressing table with its folding
mirrors.
A little ivory-white princess dresser, with its full-length mirror,
stood across one corner, and an ivory-white bed across the other
corner. On the rocking-chair, and bed, and dresser were painted pink
and blue flowers, and the covers of the table, bed and dresser were
embroidered with the same designs.
There was a wardrobe in a corner, and in it Mary Frances found the
loveliest dressing gown of pink crêpe de chine, embroidered with sprays
of light blue forget-me-nots, and white daisies with yellow centers,
and pink roses; and a pair of light blue bedroom slippers and silk
stockings, and a boudoir cap and nightgown, and a big steamer coat and
cap--all just the right size.
“Just like a grown-up young lady,” she thought.
There were two more doors; one led to a pretty white bathroom, and the
other to a little dining-room, lined with mirrors.
“I can’t get lonesome,” thought Mary Frances, “with so many ‘me’s’
about me;” and she laughed, and, just as she laughed, food appeared
on the table. There were chicken soup, and celery, and olives, and
crackers.
“Oh, dear! How hungry I am!” she exclaimed. “I guess this is meant for
me;” and she sat down on the one chair at the table and began to eat
the soup.
“I feel lots better!” said she, finishing the last drop. “It’s not
good table manners to tip this plate,” she thought; “but I guess my
reflections will excuse me,” and she bowed to the pictures of herself
in the mirrors, and laughed.
Then suddenly the soup course disappeared from the table, and in its
place there were roast turkey and cranberry sauce, and roasted sweet
potatoes and apple sauce, and the many other things which go to make an
all-around feast.
“How wonderful!” exclaimed Mary Frances, helping herself to turkey.
“But how stupid to eat by myself, with only myself for company.”
Just then she looked out of the porthole window and saw the dolphin,
swimming ahead of the little ship.
“I’ll go invite the dolphin to dinner,” she thought; and went on deck.
Imagine her surprise to find that there was no land in sight. Neither
was there any ship. The only other thing than the dolphin was the
sea-gulls flying overhead.
“Hallo! Hallo!” shouted Mary Frances, making a trumpet of her hands.
“Mr. Dolphin, Mr. Dolphin, one moment, please!”
The dolphin turned and looked at her. “Yes?” he asked, raising one
eyebrow.
“Please, Mr. Dolphin, do you ever eat? I am lonesome, eating all alone.”
“I eat only fish,” said the dolphin. “They are in my element, you see.
I do not find my food out of my element.”
“Oh, as to that,” replied Mary Frances, “I will fill a bowl with your
element, if you will only accept the invitation.”
“Agreed!” said the dolphin, swimming to the rope ladder hanging over
the side of the ship. Mary Frances leaned down and caught hold of his
fins, when within reach, and helped him up.
When the dolphin reached the deck, she picked up a fire-pail with a
rope attached, threw it overside, and brought up a pail of water. Then
she hastened to the dining-room and brought a bowl.
After that she helped the dolphin to the dining table. The only chair
was clamped in place to the floor, just as on any steamer, and she
could not move it. So she changed her place to the side of the table.
As the chair was a revolving one, like a desk chair, she turned and
turned it until it reached the right height for the dolphin. She placed
the bowl of water, “element” she called it, at the dolphin’s place.
[Illustration: MARY FRANCES LEANED DOWN AND CAUGHT HOLD OF HIS
FINS]
“Is there anything on the table, Mr. Dolphin,” she asked, “which you
would like?”
“Yes,” sighed the dolphin, “I would like some more salt in my element
soup.”
Mary Frances gravely shook the salt-shaker over the bowl for a full
minute. The dolphin tasted the water. “A little more, please,” he said.
So Mary Frances emptied almost all the rest of the salt out of
the shaker into the bowl. The dolphin dipped in his head. “That’s
excellent,” he said, smacking his lips.
“Mercy,” thought Mary Frances, “I do hope he won’t turn into a salt
mackerel.”
“Salt Smackerel is my pet name,” said the dolphin, smacking his lips
again, and wiping them with his fin.
“I hardly dare think,” thought Mary Frances, “yet I can’t help
thinking, can I? What queer table manners he has! I suppose his mother
never taught him not to smack his lips when he eats--just to chew with
the lips closed.”
“I chew all I choose!” exclaimed the dolphin. “My mother never sat at a
table, you see.”
“Oh!” said Mary Frances, “did she stand?”
“Three feet high in her stocking feet,” solemnly declared the dolphin,
which Mary Frances didn’t consider an answer at all; but was too polite
to say anything that might be annoying to a guest.
“I wonder what I can give him for dessert?” she thought.
“If you please,” said the dolphin, and Mary Frances noticed that he
was very pale, “if you please, I do not care for any. You see, I have
deserted my post--that is enough dessert for me, and I shouldn’t wonder
if I’d be punished enough for it in a minute--Oh! Oh! what is that!
It’s the pirate’s cat!” and with a scream, he leaped out of the window
into the water.
III
THE PIRATE’S CAT
“ME-OW! me-ow!” came the cat’s voice from the door.
“Oh, Kitty! Kitty!” cried Mary Frances, running toward it. “Why,
wherever did you come from? I thought I had looked all over the ship.”
“Indeed,” replied the cat, “even if you had, and you have not, you
wouldn’t have found me. The pirate’s been watching a year to throw me
on board The Good Ferry.”
“Oh,” exclaimed Mary Frances, “the pirate--why, I haven’t seen any
pirate!”
“Of course you haven’t,” said the cat; “he’s too smart for that. He’s
been watching for a time when the dolphin had deserted his post.”
“Oh, dear,” thought Mary Frances, “it was all my fault;” but out loud
she said, “Well, no great harm can come of it, anyway. Won’t you have
some dinner?”
“Yes, thank you,” said the cat, looking longingly at the table.
“Take this chair,” invited Mary Frances, pointing to the dolphin’s
place.
The cat leaped up on the chair, and carefully tucked a napkin into
the collar on its neck. Mary Frances filled a plate with turkey and
potatoes and gravy, and set it before the cat, who politely waited for
her to take her place and begin to eat.
“Do not wait for me, Kitty,” said his hostess; “I’ve finished this
course, thank you.”
Soon nothing was left on the plate.
Just as Mary Frances was going to suggest that ice cream might make a
nice dessert, the cat began to tremble. It trembled so that the ship
shook all over.
“Why, what is the matter?” asked Mary Frances. “Are you chilly?”
“Oh, dear, no,” replied the cat, its teeth chattering. “Oh, dear, no;
but I forgot! The pirate will hang me! He will! He will!”
“Why will he hang you?” asked Mary Frances, quite bewildered, and a
little frightened.
“Speak softly,” said the cat. “Come here, and I’ll whisper.” And behind
his upraised paw, he told, “The pirate ordered me to eat the dolphin;
and to bring his right fin to prove that I’d done it. And now I’m too
full of dinner to do it.”
“Eat him, indeed!” said Mary Frances, angrily. “I’d like to see you!”
“Oh, would you?” cried the cat. “If you only hadn’t given me so much
dinner, you might have had the pleasure--that is, if the dolphin had
come aboard again. You see, I can’t do it now; I can’t catch him in
the water. And the pirate said he’d come for me in an hour and nine
minutes. It’s close to that now,” glancing at the clock. “Oh, what
shall I do?”
“Why does the pirate want the dolphin killed?”
“Hush!” exclaimed the cat. “Speak softly! Come here! I’ll whisper the
reason to you. It’s on account of the lost story. He thinks you might
find it, and if the dolphin is destroyed, he can run down The Good
Ferry. He can’t do the work himself, for he is bound in chains on his
own ship, but he has prisoners on board whom he orders about, just as
he did me. He can’t get within miles of The Good Ferry if the dolphin
is guiding her. He was so mad that he didn’t notice when the dolphin
first came aboard that the foam from his mouth was strong soapsuds, and
washed the black decks of the pirate ship snow white.”
“But,” said Mary Frances, “you forget--if the dolphin guides the ship,
the pirate can’t get you!”
At that the cat began to laugh joyously, and it laughed so hard that
Mary Frances laughed too; and suddenly the meat course disappeared off
the table and a huge block of ice cream appeared in its place, and Mary
Frances and the cat--you know what they did.
IV
THE STORY OF THE LOST STORY
“LET’S go on deck,” said Mary Frances, when they had finished, “and
perhaps you can tell me more about the lost story. But first you must
solemnly promise that you will not eat the dolphin.”
“I solemnly promise,” said the cat, with upraised paw.
“Very well,” said Mary Frances, leading the way to the deck chair, on
which she lay down, while the cat curled himself up on a coil of rope
near her head.
“It happened in this way,” began the cat, in a low tone of voice, as he
nervously looked around. “You know the ‘enchanted island’ is Storyland,
and the home of the Story People. The Story King and Queen have ruled
there forever. Well, one day a wicked fellow, who had always said
there were no such things as fairies, somehow got into the ‘enchanted
island’--it has always been a mystery to me how he did it--and stole a
story, and carried it away and hid it. The trouble is that no fairy is
allowed to find it. The boy or girl who takes it back will be the first
person allowed to enter the ‘enchanted island’ since it was lost.”
“Do you know where it is hidden?” asked Mary Frances.
“I have a slight idea,” whispered the cat.
“Is it on board the pirate ship?” she asked.
“It cannot be. I have searched
everywhere--everywhere--everywhere-everywhere--” drowsily replied the
cat. Mary Frances noticed that his eyes were closing.
“Just one thing more before you go to sleep, Puss; just one thing
more,” she said. “Do you know how long it will take to reach the
‘enchanted island’?”
“And they sailed away,
A year and a day,
To the land where the palm tree grew,”
murmured the cat; and, shake him as she might, that was the only answer
Mary Frances could get, until, at length, she could get no answer at
all.
After she was certain he was asleep, she went to the bow of the boat
and called softly to the dolphin.
He swam up close alongside. “Are you all right?” he asked.
“I am, indeed,” replied Mary Frances; “but I want to tell you what the
cat told me. First, I want to say that he will not hurt you because he
is horribly afraid of the pirate, and he knows that he is safe on The
Good Ferry as long as you protect it.”
“That’s right!” said the dolphin. “And now, how about the cat’s tale?”
Then Mary Frances told the dolphin the story the cat had told her.
“Why can’t we search for it now?” she asked.
“Well,” replied the dolphin, “I am not exactly sure about the
cat’s tale myself, and every year I take one person direct to the
island--that’s my orders--that’s my orders. None of them have ever
found the lost story--so I’ve taken them direct home. That’s been my
orders; that’s been my orders. Better go on, I say; better not take
anybody else’s word, I say, I say.”
“All right,” said Mary Frances, “just as you say; but a year’s a pretty
long time.”
“That depends,” replied the dolphin.
“A year is queer
If it’s full of fear,
A year’s a day
If it’s full of play;
And I’ve heard say
A year will leap,
If you’re sound asleep.”
And away it swam.
And then Mary Frances noticed that the sky was getting dark, and she
realized that she was very sleepy. She made her way to the white cabin
and undressed and went to bed, wearing the pretty clothing which she
found in the wardrobe.
“If I waken suddenly, and want to go on deck, I’ll have on my
negligee,” she thought, as she tied the dressing gown in place and
slipped on the boudoir cap.
V
LAND AHOY!
MARY FRANCES awoke with a start, and rubbed her eyes.
“Surely I heard somebody call,” she said.
Again came the call, “Land ahoy! Land ahoy!”
“Why, that is what they called out on Columbus’ ship when they
discovered America!” thought Mary Frances, hurriedly dressing. “I
wonder if we are discovering anything.”
It was just getting light as she ran out on deck. At first she did not
see any living thing except the dolphin, which was swimming ahead of
the boat. She gazed around on the water. It was a deep blue color.
“It looks like the tub of bluing water when Nora rinses the clothes,”
she thought. “I wonder if it will color anything?” She ran to the
railing, dipped up a pailful and dropped in her handkerchief. “Just
clear water,” she said; and hung it up to dry.
“Land ahoy!” came the call once more. Mary Frances looked up at the
sails. There was the cat. He was sitting on the rope ladder, and
holding his forepaws like a telescope. As soon as he saw Mary Frances,
he pointed ahead and shouted, “Land ahoy!” Then she saw a dim outline
of coast.
The cat scrambled down the rigging, and ran up to her. “Story Island!
See!” he said.
“Why,” exclaimed Mary Frances, “why, how long have I been asleep? I
thought you said something about a year!”
“Ha, ha!” laughed the cat. “A year and a day, I said, and that it
nearly is. You have been asleep just three hundred and sixty-five days
and some hours.”
“Have I really?” exclaimed Mary Frances; then hearing a sudden splash
in the water, “Oh, what was that? Was it the pirate?”
“That? That wasn’t anything to be afraid of--just some flying fish,”
answered the cat.
“Do they really have wings?” asked Mary Frances.
“They certainly do. Come, let us look into the water and see if there
are any near the boat,” said the cat.
“Oh, oh, oh,” exclaimed Mary Frances, “what a beautiful fish I see!
It has a tail of gold and a head of blue--turquoise blue. Isn’t it
beautiful! See it, there!”
“Yes, I do,” said the cat; “it is an angel fish.”
“An angel fish! That’s just the right name for it,” said Mary Frances.
“Yes, I believe somebody who tasted one named it that,” said the cat.
“Surely nobody would eat such a beautiful creature,” Mary Frances said.
The cat smiled. “Its beauty is more than skin deep,” he said.
“Well, I wouldn’t eat anything so lovely,” said Mary Frances.
“That reminds me of a rhyme a fish taught me,” said the cat.
“That sounds mighty fishy,” thought Mary Frances, but she did not say
anything.
“Shall I say it for you?” and without waiting to hear, he went on:
“Oh, mother, if you lived down in the sea
And a fish you had to be,
What kind of fish would be your wish?
My own would be--an angel fish.
“With nose of loveliest turquoise blue,
And tail-wings of yellowest golden hue--
I’m sure my most angelic wish
Is to be an angel fish.
“Don’t you suppose when fishes die
Their dream is never toward the sky;
But if they’re good, their dearest wish
Is to be an angel fish?”
[Illustration: “JUST SOME FLYING FISH,” ANSWERED THE CAT]
“That is a pretty angelic wish, I’ll say,” added the cat. “Oh, there
are some of the flying fish,” pointing to a distance from the boat.
“They are not anything like as pretty as the angel fish,” said Mary
Frances.
“Oh, see the whale spouting!” exclaimed the cat, running to the other
side of the boat.
And Mary Frances saw the long fountain of water shooting up in the air.
“My,” said the cat, “if I could just catch that whale, I could feed
every hungry cat I ever heard of.”
“Why, how big is it?” asked Mary Frances.
“It’s twenty times as long as half again, and double the quarter wide,”
said the cat.
“How large is that, if you please?” asked Mary Frances.
“If the length is multiplied by the thickness and then by breadth,
it will give the correct volume,” said the cat; “at least, that’s
according to tickle.”
“Tickle?” asked Mary Frances. “What is tickle?”
“Tickle is short for arithmetickle,” replied the cat.
“Oh?” said Mary Frances, “we don’t call it arithmetickle; we called it
arithmetic.”
“That is nothing like so pretty a name,” said the cat, “and you get the
same result.”
“But the size of the whale--” said Mary Frances, “what is it?”
“Can’t you do a simple little problem like that--when I’ve given you
the rule?” asked the cat.
Mary Frances did not like to say that she had to give it up.
“Let bygones be bygones,” said the cat, “and look up ‘whales’ in the
dictionary when you reach the island.”
“Oh, yes,” exclaimed Mary Frances. “Oh, I can see--I think I can see
some houses! Oh, look, Cat, look! They are pure white!”
“Don’t you know why?” asked the cat.
“I suppose they are painted,” said Mary Frances.
“Painted, me whiskers!” exclaimed the cat. “They are not painted. They
are made of coral.”
“What is coral?” asked Mary Frances.
“Come, I will show you,” said the cat, leading the way to the middle of
the deck.
He lifted a wooden cover. Underneath was a deep box. The bottom of the
box was made of glass.
“Now, you can see the bottom of the sea,” said the cat. “See? See? See
the bottom of the sea?”
“Oh, look at those white trees!” cried Mary Frances, gazing down into
the clear water through the glass.
The cat laughed. “They are not trees,” he said; “they are coral
formations;” and he told her about the tiny coral insects which build
coral growth by fastening their tiny shell bodies to each other.
“Do they know they are making trees?” asked Mary Frances.
“Oh, my, no,” said the cat. “They just grow naturally, like any other
babies. Sometimes they make fan-like forms, or sponge-shaped ones.”
“Did they build the white houses over on the island?” asked Mary
Frances.
“Of course not,” said the cat; “what a curious question. They live only
in the sea. The houses are up in the air--but they built the island.”
“Not that big island!” exclaimed Mary Frances.
“You have not contradicted me before,” said the cat. “If you know all
about it----”
“I beg your pardon,” said Mary Frances, very humbly. “Will you please
tell me the rest?”
“They rest on the bottom of the ocean,” said the cat. “The houses are
made of the coral which is dug out of the cellars,” he went on. “But,
come, let us get ready; we are getting near port,” and he began to wash
his face and smooth back his whiskers.
Mary Frances took the hint, and went into the cabin.
She tidied her hair, and put on a fresh ribbon, and when she went on
deck, she took her pocket mirror with her.
VI
THE OLD WITCH AND THE IRON-CHAIN CURTAIN
“ARE my whiskers straight? Is my fur smooth? Is my face clean, please?”
asked the cat without stopping, as soon as he saw her.
“You may see for yourself,” said Mary Frances, holding the pocket
mirror before him.
“Ah,” he said, giving a sigh of relief. “I look absolutely scrubbed; I
guess I’ll do!”
“Dear me!” said Mary Frances. “I do wonder how it will seem. Isn’t
this a beautiful place? But I wonder why it looks so misty around the
island. Can’t we ask the dolphin?”
“I guess we’d better not,” said the cat. “You see, a pilot doesn’t like
to be questioned.”
“There is a boat coming this way!” exclaimed Mary Frances.
The cat began to shiver. His fur stood up on end. His tail lashed to
and fro.
“It’s the old witch’s boat!” he cried. “She’s the pirate’s wife. I’m
not afraid! I’m not afraid! I’m not afraid, though!” And he kept on
saying, “I’m not afraid!” so often that Mary Frances began to laugh.
“St-stop that laughing!” came the voice of the old witch. “St-stop that
laughing this instant, unless you have the lost st-story!”
“And if we have it, Madam Witch,” called out the cat, “what then?”
By this time the boat was quite near. They could see the old witch
tremble. She turned almost as white as snow. Her two front teeth
chattered.
“If you had it, the curtain would part!” she suddenly exclaimed,
laughing. “I forgot for a moment! Don’t try to fool me, Cat! Away with
you! Away with you! Find it, if you can! Find it, if you can! Ha, ha!
Ha, ha! Haw, haw, haw!” and she waved an oar at the boat.
Then Mary Frances saw that all around the island was stretched an
iron-chain curtain.
“Don’t look at it, S-Sissy,” said the old witch. “It’s so s-strong that
s-steel will not s-saw it. It will remain about St-Story Island, and
will not open until the lost st-story is found; and until it is found
not a boy or girl in the world will hear a new st-story!”
“We will find it!” shouted Mary Frances. “We will find it and bring it
back and open the curtain!”
“Ha, ha!” laughed the old witch, holding her sides. “Ha, ha! it’s well
hid. It’s well hid. You’ll be old and gray before you find it, I’ll
warrant--and as for the cat, he’ll be so old he will sh-shake around in
his s-skin, I’ll warrant. Ha, ha! Be off! Be off!” and, quickly turning
her boat, she rowed away.
VII
FINDING THE LOST STORY
THE cat looked at Mary Frances.
Mary Frances looked at the cat.
“Ha, ha, and ha, ha!” said the cat. “We’ll laugh at her some day!”
“We will!” said Mary Frances, “we will, Puss! Let us call the dolphin.”
The dolphin swam up at that moment.
“Whither now?” it asked. “Where shall we go, Cat?”
“64° 40´ W., 32° 40´ N.,” said the cat; and the dolphin swam ahead,
turned the boat, and soon the island was out of sight.
“Come, I am hungry!” said Mary Frances. “Let us go into the
dining-room.”
“The dolphin has plenty of element soup,” she thought.
There was the table spread with a fine feast, and both she and the cat
enjoyed it.
Just as they were finishing dessert, they heard a pounding noise. They
rushed out on deck. The noise was made by the dolphin hitting the side
of the boat with its tail.
It whispered two words, “Pirate Ship,” and swam ahead again.
The cat made a telescope with his paws, and looked out over the water.
“Sure enough!” he cried, in fear. “Oh, my! Oh, my! and I haven’t eaten
the dolphin!”
“For shame!” exclaimed Mary Frances. “For shame! You have forgotten
that he can’t come very near while the dolphin is at his post!”
“Oh, yes; that is so. Excuse me, please. But what does the pirate mean
by coming, I wonder?”
“Do you suppose he thinks we may be near finding the story?” asked Mary
Frances.
“That’s it!” exclaimed the cat. “I’ll wager my whiskers that’s his
idea. So that if we espy it he’ll get it first.”
“Do you think we’ll find it?” asked Mary Frances.
“My fur feels as though we would,” said the cat. “Please tell me, is it
sending out sparks?”
It was growing quite late in the afternoon, and quite dusky. Mary
Frances, to her astonishment, saw great showers of electric sparks
coming from the cat’s body.
“You look like a sparkler on the Fourth of July, Cat,” she said.
“Oh, isn’t that fine!” said the cat. “You see, it’s this way--the
nearer we get to the story, the more sparklier my fur gets.”
“So we must be quite near,” said Mary Frances; “for I don’t see how you
could get much more sparklier.”
“I forgot to tell you,” said the cat, “that after we find the story,
the dolphin’s power to keep the pirate away is gone. We’ll have to race
like a rocket to beat his boat.”
“Oh, my, what is the matter!” exclaimed Mary Frances, as the cat
suddenly jumped high in the air, sending out a shower of sparks that
fell at her feet on the deck. Over the side of the boat he fell, and
all was dark as a pocket.
“Oh, Kitty, Kitty,” cried the frightened girl, running to look into
the water, but she saw nothing of the cat. Neither could she see the
dolphin. She could see the dim light of the pirate’s ship, and it
seemed quite near.
“Whatever shall I do?” thought Mary Frances. “I really believe I am
going to cry.”
Just at that minute she heard a scratching on the side of The Good
Ferry.
“Who’s there?” she whispered.
[Illustration: SHE FED HIM A LITTLE AT A TIME WITH A MEDICINE
DROPPER]
No answer came. Just another scratching.
“Who’s there?” she asked again.
“Me-ow!” came a faint voice.
Mary Frances could see better now, for her eyes were getting accustomed
to the darkness.
“Is it you, Puss?” she asked, peering down into the water.
When she saw it was the cat, she quickly let down the rope ladder, and
the cat climbed aboard, and fell in a wet heap at her feet.
She lifted him carefully and carried him to the steamer chair. She did
not notice that something dropped from his mouth as she lifted him.
She dried his wet fur, and went to the dining-room to get him a drink
of water. There she saw a bowl of beef tea, which she took to him. She
fed him a little at a time with a medicine dropper which she had found
in the bathroom.
At length he opened his eyes.
“Where is it?” he asked.
“Where is what?” asked Mary Frances.
“The lost story,” whispered the cat. “I carried it in my mouth. That is
why I couldn’t answer you when you asked who was there.”
“I didn’t see it,” said Mary Frances.
“Oh, dear, oh dear!” exclaimed the cat. “It must be on deck! Let us
look for it!”
“You are not able yet,” said Mary Frances. “Lie still! I will look! Was
it a roll or a book?”
“It was a glass bottle,” said the cat, “and it may have rolled back
into the sea--if that is what you mean by ‘was it a roll?’”
Mary Frances went down on her hands and knees.
She crept all over the deck, feeling for it in the darkness. After a
while the cat helped.
They worked all night, but could find nothing. In the morning, as it
grew light, they both saw a dark green bottle caught in the top of the
rope ladder which was fastened to the side of the boat. So lightly was
the bottle held that it might easily have fallen back into the water
and been lost again.
Mary Frances lifted it carefully. It was labeled--THE LOST
STORY.
The bottle was sealed with a cork, and inside was a roll of paper.
“Oh, isn’t it too good to be true!” exclaimed Mary Frances. “Where
shall we hide it?”
“Let’s label it CATSUP and put it on the side table in the
dining-room,” said the cat. “Put the new label right over the old one,”
he added.
“That’s a splendid idea!” cried Mary Frances. “I’ll do it right away!”
VIII
THE PIRATE CHASES THE GOOD FERRY
WHEN Mary Frances came on deck again, The Good Ferry was plowing the
water so fast that a deep furrow of foam followed her. The dolphin was
swimming so fast that it made deep waves with the motion of its tail.
Although going so rapidly, they could see that the pirate’s black ship
was keeping the distance the same as at first between them.
“I believe he is gaining,” at length said the cat, who was using his
paws for a telescope.
Mary Frances looked a little pale, but smiled. “I think we will make
more time in a minute,” she said. “Let’s drop something overboard, and
he may stop to pick it up.”
So they filled a suitcase with paper, and dropped it over the side.
They were delighted when they saw the pirate’s ship stop to pick it up.
They could hear the loud ravings of the pirate when he found nothing
inside.
The rest of the trip was very exciting, for the pirate’s ship at one
time was so close that they heard the pirate say to the cook, “Blast
ye! Blast ye! Why don’t ye jump aboard? Ye can make it in two jumps!”
“Jump yourself!” replied the cook.
Faster and faster swam the dolphin; faster and faster sailed The Good
Ferry. Try as he would, the pirate could not overtake them. They saw
him plainly, half a knot behind, jumping up and down on his deck,
shaking his angry fists. As they reached the island he turned and gave
up the chase in defeat.
When they came to the wharf, there stood the old witch, drinking ink
out of a bottle.
“Ha, ha!” she honked. “S-so ye think ye’ve got the lost st-story, do
ye? Well, ye haven’t; s-so there!”
Then she began to wave her arms about her head, laughing wildly. As
Mary Frances stepped off the boat the old witch tried to snatch the
story bottle out of her hand.
“Oh, you can’t scare me,” said Mary Frances. “Step aside, please,” and
as she pushed past the wild old witch, the great iron-chain curtain
fell with a crash, and before her was Fairyland, or Storyland, which,
as you know, are one and the same.
IX
THE TERRIBLE PUNISHMENT OF THE PIRATE AND THE OLD WITCH
MARY FRANCES heard music and singing. She heard the words:
Who’s the bravest in this land?
She who holds in her right hand
The long lost precious story;
She’s the bravest in this land.
Then Mary Frances remembered, and stepped forward with the story.
She was met by a beautiful young lady, who introduced herself as the
Story Lady, and a small company of story people, who led her to the
castle of the King and Queen of Story Island. They took her into the
court, where the rulers sat in state.
“Welcome!” said the Story King, rising.
“Welcome!” said the Story Queen, rising.
Then the King made a speech.
“You have done us a great service, young friend,” he said; “and we hope
to do something for you to show how much we appreciate it.”
“Sir,” said Mary Frances, handing him the bottle, “if it had not been
for the dolphin and the cat, I never could have found the story.”
“The dolphin has been rewarded,” said the Story King; “he has had his
head cut off----”
“Oh,” cried Mary Frances, “the poor, dear dolphin!”
“And has been turned again into a prince!” added the Story Queen. “He
was the prince who kissed the Sleeping Beauty, and was under the spell
of the old witch outside the chain curtain.”
“And the cat has been rewarded,” said the King. “He has charge of all
the cats and kittens in all the stories ever told, or ever-to-be-told.”
This made Mary Frances happy, for she knew the cat would love that
charge.
“Now,” said the Story King, “if you are not too tired, we will get over
the business of trying the pirate and the witch!”
“I am not tired, thank you,” said Mary Frances, “for I slept three
hundred and sixty-five days and nights on my way here.”
“Good!” said the King. “Please have this seat,” and he led her to a
deep blue velvet chair.
The King then touched a button under the table, and a door opened.
In came a large man with a large beard. Mary Frances knew him at once.
He was Blue Beard. He was trembling terribly.
“Fetch in the pirate, Blue Beard,” ordered the King.
Blue Beard bowed and left the room. Soon there came the clanging of
chains, and Blue Beard led the pirate into the room, all wound up in
a great section of the iron-chain curtain. He was dreadfully pale and
very angry. His mouth was frothing and his breath was coming out of his
nostrils like smoke.
He glowered at Mary Frances as though he would like to bite her, but
she was not afraid.
“Behave!” said the King. “You cannot frighten a person who has been so
brave as to part the iron-chain curtain. If she had been afraid of the
old witch, the curtain would not have parted, and all the children in
the world would have been still waiting for new stories.”
He turned to the Queen. “Have you a fitting punishment, my dear?” he
asked.
“I have,” said the Queen, very solemnly. “It is this: the pirate shall
_never again hear a story or read a story_!”
On hearing his fate the pirate screamed, “Anything rather than that!
Please have mercy!” And he fell down in a dead faint.
Blue Beard dragged him out. Immediately after, the King ordered the old
witch in.
“Tell the story of the lost story,” ordered the King.
“Oh, S-Sir,” stammered the old witch, “Oh, S-Sir, the pirate st-stole
it, and took it on his sh-ship, and I st-stole it from him and put it
in a bottle, and was going to bring it back, but I lost it overboard in
a st-storm. I didn’t want the pirate to know I took it, for he would
have beaten me to death.”
“Why did you try to take it from this young lady?” asked the Queen.
The old witch hung her head. “Because I wanted to keep it for
my-s-self,” she said.
“Well, what shall her punishment be, my dear?” asked the King.
“She shall be punished by never hearing the end of a story,” declared
the Queen. “_Only to the middle of a story shall she hear--never to the
end._”
Then the old witch gave a loud shriek, and ran out of the room as fast
as she could. The King sent a giant after her, and had him lock both
the pirate and the old witch up in big iron baskets, and carry them off
to the end of Snowwhere.
“And now, my dear,” said the King, “what is to be our dear little
friend’s reward?”
“Two rewards shall be hers,” replied the Queen. “One is that she shall
know that all the children of the world can have new stories every day;
and the other is that she can stay with us for a visit and hear all the
stories she wishes to hear.”
“Very good,” said the King. “Let us now hear the lost story.” And all
the Story People sat down to form a double circle.
With that the Story Lady, dressed like a butterfly, came dancing in.
The King opened the green bottle, took out the roll of paper and handed
it to her. She took her place at the end just where the circle closed,
and began to read aloud the lost story, which is entitled “The Bubble
Story.”
X
THE BUBBLE STORY
LILLA walked through the garden, saying--
“I should like to be a princess,” for she had been reading a story
about a princess who had only to say “Come,” and anything she wished
for came at once.
It was a hot summer day, and she sat down on a mossy bank under an elm
tree thinking what she should wish for if she had the power of the
princess. All at once the garden seemed strange to her, and she heard a
voice saying:
“If you take a rose from me
You will then a princess be.”
She looked up and saw an aster growing in a green flower-pot which she
had never seen before; and on one of the flowers was perched a tiny
fairy.