The weekly Ottumwa courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1857-1872, 1865-03-09
" ON ''our Young Pelks -
4 How Margcry Wondered.


One bright morning late 10 March, little
Margery put on her hood and her Highland
plaid shawl, and went trudging across the
beach. It was the first time she had been
trusted out alone. for Margery wssa little
girl; nothing about her was large, except
her round gray eyes, which had yet scarce.
opened upon half dozen springs and
summers.
There was pale mist on the iar-of sea
and sky, and up around the sun were white
clouds edged with the hues Of pinks and
violets. The sunshine and the mild air
made Margery's very heart feel warm, and
she let the soft wind blow aside her High.
land shawl, as she looked across the waters
at the sun. and wondered
For. somehow, the sun had never looked
before as It did ay;-it seemed like
great golden flower bursting out of its pearl.
lined calyx,-a flower without stem Or
was there strong stem away behind it in
the sky. that reached down below the sea,
to roos, nobody could guess where9
Margery did not stop to puzzle herself
about the answe, to Ter question, for now
the tide was coming in, and the waves, little
at first, but growing larger every moment
were crowding up. along the sand and peb
bles, laughing, winking, and whispering, as
they :umbled over each other, like thous-
ands of children hurrying home from some
where, each with its own precious little Sc
c-et to tell Where did the wave come from9
Who was down there under the blue wall
of the horizon, with the hoarse, hollow
voice, urging and pushing them across the
beach to her feet? And whatsecret was II
they were lisping to'Sach other With their
pleasant voices ? , what was there beneath
the sea, and beyond the sea. so deep, 50
brt al, and SO dim. ton, away OF where the
white ships, that looked smaller than sea
birds. were gliding out and in?
But while Margery stood still for sae'
ment on dry rock, and wondered, there
came low. ripping warble to her ear from
a cedar-tree on the cliff above her It had
been long winter, and Margery had for.
gotten that there were birds, and that birds
could sing. So she wondered again what
the music was. And when she saw the
bird perched on yellow brown bough, she
4 wondered yet more. 1t was only blue.
bird, but then it was the first blue-bird
Margery had ever seen. He fu.tered among
the prickiy twigs. and looked as IT, he had
grown out OF them. as we'll as the cedar-ber.
ries, which were dusty blue, the color OF his
coat. But how did the music get into his
throatf And after it was in his throat
how could it untangle itself, and wind itself
off So evenly ? And where had the blue
bird flown from. seross the hanks
down to the shore Of the blue sea? Tht
waves sang welcome to him. and he sang
a welcome to the waves; they seemed Il
know each other well and the ripple and
the warble sounded so much alike, they mus
both lave learned their music Of the sam,
teacher. And Margery kept on wondering
as she stepped between the song Of ths
bluebird and the echo of the sea, and climb
ed ssopias bank, just turning family greer
in the spring sunshine.
The grass was surely beginning to grow
There were fresh. juicy blades. running ri
among rhe withered blades Of last year, y
fin hopes Of bringing them back to life
and closer down, she saw the sharp point.
Of new spears pssping from their sheaths
And scattered here and there were small
dark green leaves, hiding bads which wer,
shut up 80 tight that no eyes bat those which
had watched them many times could tel
what Aovsrs were TO be let out Of their safi
prisons by and by. So no one could bism,
Margery for not knowing that they wer'
only common blossoms, dandelioas, snt
cinquefoil nor for stopping over the tiny
buds, and wondering.
What made the grass come up SO greer
out Of the black earth, And how did The
buds kaov when It was time to take Of
their little green hoods, and see what ther'
was ia the world around themi And how
came they % be buds 1t all Did theJ
bloom in aaother world before they sprung
up in this,--apd did they know, themselves
what kind Of flowers they should blossom
iIto? Had flowers souls, like little girls
that would live in another world when they
had died here! Yar
Margery thought she should like to sit
down on the bank and va,t beside the buds
until they opened (; perhaps they would ten
hes their secret u the very 6rst thing they
saw Was her eyes watching them. One bud
was beginning to unfold !: was streaked
with yellow in little stripes that she could
imagine became wider every minute. But
she woald not touch It. for 1t seemed slmos'
as much alive as herself. So she Only won.
dered, and wondered!
But the dash Of the waves grew louder
and the huebwd had not stopped singing
vet, and the sweet sounds drew Margery's
feet down to the beach again, where shs
played ~ith tho shiuius pebblcs, and siited
the Sand through hsr plump fingers, stop