The true northerner. [volume] (Paw Paw, Mich.) 1855-1920, 1884-03-13

MAUI Morleu. Inc yOun8eeS was nclSnor
handsome nor proud, and her name was
Tristc. Triste. as you know, means sad or
afflicted, and this Triste was named for her
condition. She mad once had prettier name
-Rosabel, in fact,--but everybody now called
her Tristc tho Sad. She stayed I'm . small
room, without windows, at the very top of
tho castle, as far away as she could possibly
get from the singing and laughing, and music
and oil the good times that were continually
going on in tho gardens and rooms below,
where her sisters lived. Here In this little
dark room, when IL was morning, poor Triste
would always say, "Would God tt were even
ingr'' and when IL was evening she would
always say, "would God 1t were morning!"
and these two remarks were all the remarks
she ever made.
Once an Evil Eye had looked hard upon
Triste and made her ugly and deformed. She
had punches and swellings, she was limpy
and trembling, and her face-well, IL you
looked at 1t once you did not care to look
again. As for the aches and pains that
darted and criscrossed and zigzaged through
her, one would not suppose that little thin
body like hers could make room for SO many.
So Triste stayed in her dark room, and
made hcr morning and her evening remark
day after day, while Mary Maud and Maud
Marian went to the balls and the tournaments
and the feasts. Whenever the sounds OF
mirth and music from below where loud
enough to reach Triste's room at the top of
the castle, she would throw her face into her
hands and weep, and the weeping and the
making her two remarks were all the amuse-
ments she had.
But after while something wonderful
happened. One morning as Triste was sitting in
her room wishing 1t was evening, she heard
new sound. IL was not the mirth and music,
it was not the clumsy-footed servant bring
ing up the dreadful gruels, IL was something
coming up the winding-stairs with u rap
tapping noise. The taps came on, and finally
Triste's door opened and a little, old, bent
over woman with walking-stick came in.
The little old woman's face was white and
wrinkled, her hair was white as snow, but
eyos were black and SO very bright that they
lii up space around her like q couple of
candles and made Triste's dark room quite
light. The little old woman tapped three
times on the floor with her walking stick and
looked round the room. ~ am your god
mother" she said, when she saw Tristc up in
the corner; "you don't remember me, but
remember you; i didn I forget you, my poor
child"
"Oh, would God IL were EVENING" said
Triste, trying TO be sociable, and meaning,
perhaps, "Good-morning," or "How do you
dor or something like that.
"Hark ye, goddaughter," said the god
mother, "do you want TO go to the tourna-
ment with your sisters? Do you want TO sit
down at the feasts? Do you want to have
the brave young knights and princes, with
their snow-white plumes and their coal-black
chargers, come riding TO WOO you as they
come TO WOO your sisters? DO you want to
sr.. Do you want to laughS Do you want
TO dan rey'
Then Triste put her bend into her hands
and began to cry by way of varying the 80
ciability.
"Stop your crying goddaughter," said the
godmother, tapping her three taps on the
floor again, and as Tristc raised her head she
shone upon her with her beautiful eyes and
dried up the tears, and while her eyes were
shining she went OH talking:
IL was your godmother when You were
christened Rosabe When the Evil Eye struck
you and cursed you, and you were turned
into Triste the Sad, did not desert you like
the others. | have been wandering over the
world ever since to find the Fairy that could
take of the curse Of that Evil Eye. / have
wandered, wandered-oh, how l have wan
dered i was handsome, and straight as
poplar tree; 1 am old and crooked, but do
not care.-I have found the Fairy. 1t ran
from me, 1t few, il hid, IL went up and down,
1t was never there when put my hand on it,
but l got IL ut last" And the godmother
tapped her three taps, and laughed three
merry laughs, that ran round the wrinkles in
her face like strcaks ef quicksilver. ~
found IL, put 1t into bottle and corked II
down tight; have brought 1t to YOU"
The godmother drew from under the travel
tattered cloak n bottle, in which was a white
Fairy, dimpling and sparkling. and making
funny little fairy bows and gestures. The
godmother laughed her three merry, quick
silvery laughs again as she held IL up and
looked ut IL. at Is meek and quiet enough
now" she said. when a Fairy is once
caught it gives up. II will perform its mis-
sion. DO as 1t bids you and it will take of
the curse OF that Evil Eye
The godmother pressed the Fairy into
Triste's hand, and before Triste had got over
being perfectly dazed Mt the gift, the god
mother was tapping down the windingstair
with her walking stick, and Triste was left
alone with the bottled Fairy.
How long IL took her 10 get over being
daZed; how soon she released the Fairy from
tho bottle; what IL said and what IL did, first,
second, and last, we can all put into fairy
history for ourselves. However and what.
ever the ways and means. il is certain that
those frolicsomc aches and pains, which had
made OF Triste their exercise grounds and
camping places, were routed out, hip and
thigh, little and big. She stopped making
her two remarks and learned some new ones
And she began TO tire OF her room without
windows; and she got so Grave and strong
that she would sometimes a. niQht, when the
garden was still and dark, wrap herself al
round and steal down the winding stair, &c
walk under the trees, and TO look ut the star:
and the moon.
u
wanted 10 look ut the sun. And one glad
day. right In the very brightest sunshine
Tristc walked boldly into the garden. The
birds were singing, the flowers were bloom
ing. the lakes, the trees the fountains-cvery
thing was glorious and wonderful. She
walked on with strange brightness and cast
| ness. and so happy she did not know wheth
or IL WAS the birds she heard singing, or some
kind OF music within hcrscl'. She stopped
beside n fountain ""d as she diamond IN. the
SILVER wntcr smiled back 10 her with fresh,
| happy face-such a fresh, happy face. so
| free from those old deformit.cs and marks of
| the Evil Eye, that Triete cried out for Joy;
! and yet such a wonderful change it was, she
| did not half believe IL was he. own reflection
! she saw I'm the water.
She did not half believe 1t until the old
| godmother camc from behind some shrub
berry. laughing her quicksilvory laughs fast
| and loud, and saying, "Hol hol no! Rosabs |!
| Rosabeil'' whenever the got chance be-
| tween the laughs. And Mary Maud and Maud
| Marian, who happened to be walking In the
| garden, heard the laughing and came to the
| fountain, and when thcv saw and understood
! they pressed Tristc i'm their arms, crying for
| 10Y over Der. and calling her their beautiful
| Rosa.
| And so IL was ever afterwards, Mary Maud,
| Maud Marian, and Rosabcl were the three
| sisters that lived in the castle. Triste the
Sad was never more heard from. The little
! room ut the top OF the castle was locked up,
| and the KEY lost for, or. When Rosabel
went up to take a last look at her old room
| she found that the dear little Fairy had de-
parfpf btIt n hp la tad hnffla Ind loft a