The San Francisco call., 1901-12-15
Illustrations Copyright, 1901, Davis
& Company.

q" LIZABETH. QUEEN OF RoUMA-
II MA, better known by her pen
name. Carmen sylvia, has written a
A4 new book of fairy stories, which is
v published by Davis g. Co., Chicago.
These stories will charm all young lovers
Of beautiful tales. They are delightfully."-
written In theme and in style they re-
veal the work Of an experienced writer
endowed with a wealth of imagination.
While in no sense sermons, they yet teach
as their most important lesson the neces-
sity Of a boundless love toward all crea-
lures which expresses itself in acts Of
kindness and self-denial. These fairy tales
differ from some Of the old-fashioned sort
IN that they avoid dwelling upon descrip-
tlons OF the horrible and the groteSQue;
though they DO not fail TO offer a variety
OF incidents as original as they are pic
lureSQue. As an example of the pretty
tancies sketched in the stories is the one
which forms the theme OF Hans Adven-
lure With the Shadows" Hans is a lad
who for some time wonders in vain what
becomes Of shadows when the sun goes
down. The replies which his mother gives
MIN DO not satisfy him. Finally 10 his
QOesuonlngs comes the answer from the
shadows themselves. They stop 10 talk 10
idans one night az they are leaving the
world, They oier 10 take Hans with them
mat ne may see the ShadOWland. where
aii the shadows dwell when they are sup
posed 20 have vanished from existence.
hans has "a series OF interesting adVen-
lures among these ethereal beings, and
comes back 10 earth all the better Tor the
Anowleoge ne has gained OF those repii-
cas- of ourselves
Beautiful IN conception and treatment Is
lhe story told Ia "A Festival ia
Heaven; of the Joyous receptiOn ac-
corded some sorrow3ng souls when they
gourntyed 90 heaven from the world which
tad used them SO ill.
one ot the stories which shows best Car
men SNlNa's style and the peculiar play OF
ner Fancy a. Carma. the Harp Girl" IL
All along the banks OF one or the long
narrow lniets which the lake throws out
in an directions into the woodlands
around band of joyous children were
hurrNing. shouting for glee. "Carma is
coming! Carma Is comnEt''
And in little boat that kept appearing
and disappearing between the tall forest
trees sat a girl. whose sweet girlish face
Was framed in a wealth OF curly brown
hair tied lightly back by red ribbon. Her
oeep-blue eyes. blue as the waters of the
lake. had strange brightness. as though
they were lighted up by an unseen ray:
there was unge Of sadness in them. too
an times, as they looked out from under
The high arched brOws and from behind
the fringe OF long. dark lashes whose
shadows swept her cheek. Her soft, vel
Ncty skin was slightly Sunburned, her lips
were Of the richest red her teeth milk
white; her small hands held a harp, a
source Of glad expectancy to the impa-
ient little crowd that escorted her boat
The bOatman who rOwed ii seemed to be
an old friend: she had many A word and
smile for him, and pointed out the chill
Cren 10 him they drew near. ThereuDo1
ne lay down his oars. and while the boat
Rlided smoothly onward she began TO tune
her harp. and at the sound the birds
fiOcked around and fitted from bough 10
hough. listening with their little heads on
one side for the voice Of the one singer
who alone among the children of men a.
most surpassed themselves in the sweet
ness and inexhaustible variety of her
songs.
And now the boat touched shore and +ba
children formed a circle on the grass.
while song after song poured from the
singers throat stirring and lifting UP
their little hearts. She sang of the KNIGHTS
Of Old and how they fought: she sang Of
elves and fairies. OF lordly castles and fair
damsels dwelling therein, OF terrible mon
sters Of the seas and the woods and the
bees and the birds she sang too of al
that passes in the minds Of little children
ull her small hearers glanced at one an
other in astonishment. wondering where
Carma could have learned all these things
Of which they had never spoken to s1v
But then Carna was just like = cb,ld
herself-little taller than themselves. thai
was all. She felt as a little child feels.
she only knew that she had come into the
world 10 make others happy-she knew
nothing more. That was all that bad
ever been told her. She thought she coI,iJ
remember still how an angel had CARRIED
her down from heaven in his arms. onIS,
not like other children TO a good hornc
and loving parents, but to a l-oSeL,,,st,
under which she was found bV the srooJ
folk who brought her up They were 5-eI,S-
poor, this good couple. and often had
enough TO do 10 earn their daily breod
but they could not find il in their hosrt-
10 leave this poor little thing 10 ne-iei,
with cold and hunger under the T,oseb,,SI,
especially a s they thought that II co,5i-5i
not have been without a purpose that fba
angel placed II in their path Thev 1,ero
much amazed TO find that the LITTLE .bir,,
could already speak, and told them how,
the angel had flown down with II .ra
had comforted II on the way by feIlino -
mat II was coming down there to helm
make the world more beautiful. thai 4,
was for this reason that it was sent bv
God.
She was to make the world more bo.,,
tiful- The good couple wondered e-reatI,-
what that could mean They sax- 1-ei,
enough that she was very beautiful bnt
then there are many beautiful children IA
the world for whom. il seemed to them
the world is not always so much the bef,
tor But they soon perceived that this
child was S lOvable s she was beaufi
ful; not only had she a voice like Silver
flute and a temperament as JOYOUS as
That Of the young skylark, but her soul
WAS as pure as a dewdrop through which
he sun shines, and she could neither
say nor hear an unlkind word said Of any
one. Everything that was said to her she
thought was meant in kindness, and this
trusting disposition won ali hearts. so
that folks Wed with each other in shower
ing upon her ali that she might stand IN
need of-fruit nd flowers and pence And
parents more than she could ever have
h9ped for.
Where Go Tcu ieafa al those songs?"