Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1877-07-13
= PLEASANT Story.
THE WATER-KELPIE.

Once there lived under the earth
race Of FAIRIES called gnomes. They were
strange little beings. with dull eyes anc
harsh voices but they did no harm, ant
lived in peace.
They never saw the sun; but they
had lamps much brighter than our gas
light, which burned night and day, yeal
after year.
They had music; but it was the tink.
ling of silver bells and golden harps-
not half SO sweet as the singing of birds
and the bablings of brooks
Flowers they had none, but plenty o
gems-"the stars of earth" There wer,
green trees in the kingdom but tn
leaves were hard emeralds; and tn,
fruit, apples of gold or cherries of ruby
and these precious gems the gnome'
ground to powder, and swallowed witt
much satisfaction.
They heaped up piles of gold ant
diamonds as high as your head anC
never was there gnome so poor as tc
build house of anything whit coarsel
than jasper or onyx You would have
believed yourself dreaming, if you could
have walked through the streets of theil
cities. They were paved with rosy altman.
dine and snowy alabaster and the
palaces glittered in the gay lamplght
like million stars.
These gnomos led, for the most part
rather dull lives. Like their cousins
the water-spirits, or undines, they were
roguish and shrewd, but had no higher
views of life than our katydids ant
crickets. Indeed, they hardly cared fol
anything but frisking about, eating anc
sleeping. But, after all, what can b.
expected from creatures without souls
One sees, now and then, stupid human
beings, whose eyes have thoughts il
them. and Nlose souls socm to be sound
asleep. Such Jumps of dullness might
almost as well be gnomes, and slip int
the earth and done with it.
The underground fold have grca
horror of our world The knew al
aboutit for one of them had peeped GU
and taken birds eye view He wen
up very bravely, but hurried back with
such strange accounts, that his friends
considered him little insane.
Listen !" said the gnome, whose
name was Clod "The earth has a sof
carpet, Of new kind Of emerald over
head is blue roof, made of turquoise
but am told that there is a crack in it
and sometimes water comes pouring dowr
in torrents. But the worst plague of al
is a great glazing eyeball of fire, whicl
mortals call the sun"
When Clod told his stories of the
earth, he always ended by saying
"Believe me, it is bad luck to have thu
sun shine on you. 1t nearly puts my eyei
out; and have had the headache evei
since"
Now there was young girl named
Moneta, who listened very eagerly tt
the old gnome's stories of the earth, anC
thought she would like to sec it for her
self She was kind little maiden, as
playful as a kitten and her friends wert
not willing she should 90. But Monet'
had somewhere heard that fairies who
marry mortals receive the gift Of hui
man soul so, in spite Of all objections,
she was resolved to take the journey
for she had in her dark mind some in-
SEPARATIONS after higher state Of being.
Then the gnome- family declared that,
if she once went away, they would never
allow her to return for they highly
disapproyed Of running backward and
forward between the two worlds, gossip
ping
"Have you no love for country 'cried
they, "that you would willingly cast
your lot among silly creatures who look
down upon your race p
The old gnome, who had Travelled,
took the romantic maiden one side, and
said
"My dear Moneta, since you wW 60
/ must tell you secret; for you remem-
Der have seen the world, and know all
about IT, Mortals are a higher race
than ourselves, it is true; but that is
only because they live on atop o the
earth, while we are under their feet -
They mkac a great parade about their
little tinkling jewel they call Conscience,
but, after all they will any Of them sell
it for one Of our earrings! assure you
they love money better. than their own
souls and would adNlse you, as a