Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1873-09-11
A Tale Of Two Kingdoms.

hurry to finish up the worlds work. the
inhabitants of these two kingdoms
we're on the most intimate terms. The
airy people often came up in the sun
hiny morningf to spend long days
With their friends, the children; while
he children, on their part, were never
weary of talking about them and watch
ng for them. The older people en-
outraged this friendship, and some-
lines the fairies came to see them too.
Now everything is changed. The
world has become so crowded with
truths aud realities that it has no room
'or fancies. Time hurries on, with
ong strides, for fear the Millennium
will overtake him before he has got the
world ready for it. Severe, uncom-
promising truth long ago banished the
fairies from their haunts by woods and
streams, leaving the places bare and
desOlate. But even now there are
few good children who love the fairy
folk just as we'll, and believe in them
just as firmly as ever. Only little |
while ago one of these saw real live |
fairy, who told her long story about
Down in the Fairy Land, though
is perfectly beautiful, and
though nothing ever decays and no
body ever dies, strange as it may seem,
everybody is not happy. The fairy
folk have trials just as great for them
rs ours are for us. In the first place,
there is work to be done and as soon
as one of them has broken any of the
Queens laws, or done anything con.
trary to their code of morals, he is
obliged to 60 to work.
The sun climbs in the morning from
FAIRY Land, and, after he has rested
for moment on the mountains, be-
gins to ascend the sky. All over the
sky are ilmy ladders, so fine and so far
off that they cannot be seen by mortal
eyes, and on some one of these the
sun climbs up. When he reaches the
middle of the ladder he stops to rest
again and look around him, and then
begins to go down to the other side of
the world. He is very glad to get
through his long days work, and slips
quietly down to Fairy Land again. He
is usually so tired that he goes directly
to sleep in his chair; and . million or
more of fairies, who have been sen.
fenced by the Queens Prime Minister,
harness themselves to his chair by cob
web traces, and draw him across Fairy
Land to the place where he wants to
be the next morning. When the sun
is climbing up the sky the fairies have
their night, although it is never very
dark there bat when we have night
the sun makes glorious day for them.
Since Fairy Land is as large as this
world, and the fairies are so much
smaller than we are, there must be 8
vast number more in order to fill NJ
their world; so there are always q
plenty to be found to draw the sun,
although it is pretty hard work, and
they would gladly escape it if they
could.
They always try to have everything
ready for the sun when he comes, and
little fairy had been set to watch TO,
him one day. He seemed long time
in coming, and the poor little fellows
eyes were very heavy, for he had been
awake all night singing songs under
his lady4love's window !; and, the first
thing he knew, there was the sun with
very red face, stamping on the
ground before him, demanding furi.
ously if nobody expected him, and why
his chair was not ready.
The whole kingdom was soon in con.
fusion and dismay. Not one wink oil
sleep would the angry old sun take
that night, but kept the whole million
running hither and thither, to bring
him bis pipe, or bis coffee, or his slip.
pcis, or whatever he wanted, scoldine
soundly all the time.
It was rather the worse for the world
the next day, too ;; for he was sleepy,
as. you may imagine. and kept noddine
lower and lower, till at last the moon,
with a sly wink at the stars, crept
round and held both her hands be.
fore his face. He was sound asleep by
this time, so it did not disturb him :
and after the moon had grown tired OF
strpding still, she threw a fine, thick
veil OF woven moonbeams over his
mead and left him. It was two OF
three hours before he was wide awake
raough to take it off, so at high noon
the earth was all darkness; the birds
flew to and fro in distress, and the
people came out to look up at the sky
and i've wise explanations of the suns
singular appearance-these good PEG.
pie, who were too wise to believe in
fairies
Well, as soon as the sun was fairly
out OF sight, our poor little fairy was
taken before the Prime Minister and
there sentenced to help in drawing the
sun every night for ten years.
He bore it very we'll for fov months,
but at last he grew quite desperate
and the ten years seemed like ten agct
IN prospect. At last he made bold
resolution. One morning, when the
sun was in hurry about going up
ne Just held on by his cobweb harness
till his feet touched tho mountain top
and then quietly slipped off without
the SUMS having had an idea of his
strange passenger.
The fairy, left alone on the grca,
earth, felt sudden sense of freedom
and dignity, and drawing himself up e
his full height, looked about him. Th,
mountain top was rocky and covered
with thorny bushes; but farther dow1
toward the valley grew lovely wild
flowers. After a long and wearisomt
walk through briars and brambles and
over stones, he reached the valley an(
threw himself on turf of wet greer
moss to rest.
He soon fell asleep, and wal
only awakened by q large rain dror
which fell on his head, nearly suffocat.
ing him. Opening his eyes, be saw the
SKY all black with clouds, and knew
that the King of Cloud Land was hav
ing grand review of his forces. The
Cloud King is very warlike, and is con
stantly encroaching on the rights OF al
neighboring sovercigns, PARTICULAR,
those of the Fairy Queen.
When our little wanderer saw hi
enemies, the rain drops, coming dow
in great numbers, he screamed on
with terror. In Fairy Land they cal
never do any harm, for the earth keep
off all rain, but here was a rare chance
SO they danced gleefully about him
strangling him with the water the,
poured into his mouth, and peltins
him till he was almost stunned. HI
looked around for place of refuge
and saw lurge tield-lily, into which
he crept, AMI was secure for the time
from the rain drops but now a new
enemy appeared.
A butterfly, with her wings drsnohed