in a beautiful island that lies in the southern seas , where chains of gay orchids bind the trees together . the days and nights are equally long and nearly equally hot . there once lived a family of seven sisters . their father and mother were dead , and they had no brothers , so the eldest girl ruled over the rest . they all did as she bade them . one sister had to clean the house . a second carried water from the spring in the forest . a third cooked their food , while to the youngest fell the hardest task of all . she had to cut and bring home the wood which was to keep the fire continually burning . this was very hot and tiring work . when she had fed the fire and heaped up in a corner the sticks that were to supply it till the next day , she often threw herself down under a tree , and went sound asleep . one morning , however , as she was staggering along with her bundle on her back , she thought that the river which flowed past their hut looked so cool and inviting . she determined to bathe in it , instead of taking her usual nap . hastily piling up her load by the fire , and thrusting some sticks into the flame . she ran down to the river and jumped in . how delicious it was diving and swimming and floating in the dark forest , where the trees were so thick that you could hardly see the sun ! but after a while she began to look about her . her eyes fell on a little fish that seemed made out of a rainbow . so brilliant were the colours he flashed out .
their father and mother were dead , and they had no brothers .
why did the eldest girl rule over the other sisters ?
why did the eldest girl rule over the other sisters ?