The San Francisco call., 1910-05-22

faggotS after having handled diamonds
but she knew now that she must obey.
The sprites were mischievous and
saucy and would unite her bundles of
twigs when she had them all nicely
done up. Then, when she was so tired
that she thought she could not bend
down for another stick a dear old
woman came along and she too was
picking faggots Give her a bundle2
cried the chief Of the sprites. and Alice
lifted one of the bundles to the old
woman's arms.
THANK you, dear child" said the
old woman with so sweet a voice that
it rested Alice wonderfully and she
went back to her work, hoping that
another would come needing help. But
the chief of the sprites told her to
pick no more. "The banshees want
you now" he said.
Alice shuddered but went with the
closely shrouded figures and they took
her to the church yard Polishing the
cold marble slabs with sand and wisps
of grass was harder than even faggot
picking. When it became so monot-
onous that she was ready to fall down
and cry an old man came to a grave
and his face was drawn with grief
and his eyes wet with tears. my boy,
my boy" he sobbed. Alice wiped the
tears away and pressed her warm face
against his cold one. You are through
here. Go with the elves" walled the
banshee
To turn from the drying of sad eyes
to the gathering of grubs and worms
for hungry mouthed birds was hard
enough, but Alice obeyed. And soon
she found how cute the little wrens
and robins were in their nests and
how hard the mother birds worked to
keep them fed So she went eagerly
to hunting for more and larger worms;
but the elfin leader said, go you to the
giants house." And she was lifted by
etw I. fJ,n 81 4
pines to the great home of the giants
in the mountain.
That was hard work. indeed. Every
thing was so big that she seemed just
a mite. She had to climb up on a
ladder to dust a chair and it took her
ever so long to wipe Off the cushion,
which was an elephants hide. Then
she heard baby giant cry, and it
sounded like fog whistle Tend to
that child" commanded the master, and
she climbed carefully up into it's crib
The baby had a pin sticking into it.
just like ordinary babies have, but
this pin was as big as spike Alice
found it and removed it, and the baby
began to crow. 1t had chubby soft
hands and Alice patted them and sang
to it the songs that her mother had
sung to her. ITO the mermen," roared
the giant, and he picked Alice up and
set her down a rock beside the sea.
norman on each side of her, with
two mermaids swimming in front of
her, and a score of little merchildren
crowding about her, took Alice to her
last tasks. Soon they dived and down
through water that was green and
transparent. past fishes that opened
their mouths in surprise, letting out
strings of bubbles; past seaweed COW
cred wrecks of ships that had gone
down years before; past oyster shells
and nautiluses they went, till they
came to cave beneath the sea- where
the merpeople lived. You will tend
the seahorses and milk the seacoWs
and watch the sea urchins," Alice was
instructed, and she began her work.
The seacows were stupid beasts and
the seahorses were swimming around
so that it was hard to keep her eyes
on them, and the sea urchins were
like other urchins, very troublesome.
She had much rather play with the
giant baby, or dry the eyes of the old
sad man, or give worms to the little
birds. or faggots to the dear old woman.
or pick up diamonds in the mine. But
she went bravely to her task, for she
hoped something pleasant might come
from the work, and she swan after the
seahorses and MIXED the seacows and
fed the milk to the sea urchins And
something pleasant did come for she
found that she was enjoying it all,
even though it was hard work The
norman who was the head OF the
family came out and watched her for
time. and he went back and told
his wife something which made her
smile. She went to the door of the
cavern and called, "Come here, Alice"
ooh! II is not time to stop work yeti"
Alice cried in surprise. for the time
had seemed so short.
"The queen wishes you" said the
mermaid.
Alice does. not remember how
she came back to the strawberry
patch at the foot OF the mountain, but
she thinks she flew. Anyhow, the sun
was still up and her pail OF berries
was just as she left it, few only at
its bottom. She filled il, and she smiled
all the time she worked, because She
thnnght of al the nlnn s1lI.n. LL.4 -.