Western Reserve chronicle and weekly transcript of the times. [volume] (Warren, Ohio) 1854-1855, 1855-02-07


the present, and rejection if she sen
The sack or basket back, gave rise to ou
vulgar English expression, give thu
sack, and the corresponding German
expression, give the basket. Swanhild'
saw her image gradually buried behinC
piles of her own baskets, while th'
knights ate or drank, and the good win'
and rich viands came up through the
floor at an amazing pace, disappearing
again from the table in way that was
quite supernatural. Swanhilda, being
very angry, was about to scold, when
she found to her dismay her voice was
gone.
There was a whispering and giggling
at the bedside. To see what that meant,
Swanhilda moved aside the silken cur
tains-and peeped over on two little crea-
lures in blue and green clothing, with
yellow hats, who laughed and talked to-
gether. She could Just hear what they
said. She picked up from their discourse
that she was being punished by the
fairies generally for having turned her
girlhoOd into manhood; but particularly
for one act that had brought her royster-
ing acts painfully under the notice of the
fairy queen. On a certain festival occa-
sion, grand fairy assembly had been
held, a monster orchestra was establish
ed in the wood, the queen with her whole
court was present, and the entire fairy
world was there collected, crowding
every flower with so much eagerness
that the more adventurous had even
climbed to the top of the highest fox
gloves to look down on the imposing
spectacle. In the midst of the music
the ground shook, and there was heard
a distant thunder; directly afterwards
the Amazon on her great Barbary horse
dashed through the bushes. One hoof
came down into the middle of the orches-
ira, crushing, -overthrowing, breaking
heads and arms and legs, so that the fes-
tival field looked afterwards as ghastly
as field of battle. The queen vowed
that she would tame Swanhilda. Al
ready the fairies were at work, eating
her out of house and home. Swanhilda,
hearing all this, turned round in the bed
with a great thump. "Did you feel
that 90 said one of the little creatures.
4" Was not that an earthquake" The
other was the cellarer who went occa-
10 and fro to fetch up wine.
" No." he replied, " that beast of girl
must be awake and kicking about in her
bed with anger" "But then," said the
other one, .'I think she would get up
and scold at us roundly.' "No," said
cellarer, "our queen has taken thought
of that. If she awoke she was to be
tongue tied, and to lie awake till cock
crow looking at u.s. "Fine amusement
that would be-" grnmbled Swanhilda to
herself. "I was right" said the cellar
er laughing tremendously, ''the beast as
awake" "Pretty manneas, thought
"I am beast, am |! Oh
wish l could speak"
"Ah my young lady" said the cellar
er, answering her thoughts, " it is well
for our ears that you cannot. You see, "
he added to his friend, L" the immense
destruction of property she has occasion
ed is not to be made good to US, the
queen says until this creature has mar
ried one of her rejected suitors, and
made handsome presents to all the 9TH
ers. Before she can do that she must
catch fish for her living.
A little before cockcrow the feasting
ended, and the table being broken up
the fairies disappeared. Then she got
up and went to her wash-stand. There
was no water in the basin and falling
at once into a great rage, she called her
maid. "How is this 2" she said 10 her
''No water l'' The maid was sure that
she had put water, but she went for
more. Presently she returned, looking
much frightened. "There is no water"
she said, Gin the tub, none in the pump,
none In the cistern' Swanhilda thought
directly Of the fairies, and said, "Never
mind. Get me my breakfast. will
take sausage, and two breasts of Pom
eranian goose" Oh Mss" the SER
want answered, "there's no sausage, and
no goose, and no food of any kind, and
every cask in the cellar is empty, and
the cask are rotten, and the furniture S
gone out of the house, and the cattle out
of the stalls, and your Barbary courser's
gone, and the hay is all mould in the
manger, and the litter's rotton, and all
the fruit gone off the trees and the trees
are dead, and the grass and every bit of
the country round is withered up-Only
look out of the window, miss-and the
have all gone, and on if you
please, miss, am going" Swanhilda
went out and found that all was true
the fairies had really consumed all her
substance. 81 won't be forced into mar
rying," she said, "and won't fish. |
don't care. | know what I'll do. I'll
starve myself She kept to this resolu-