Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1911-12-10

the terrace.
"Oh, dear. no! The mosquitoes are so
thick Besides. the-the crying
"For the crying of the little children could
Some of them complained, saving that it kept
them awake at night; but Others said Non
sense Why don't you close the windows on
that side of the house? All children cry
Still, those whom it troubled were sure
that these children cried more than they
ought; certainly more than the Hill chill
dren ever did. They thought something
ought to be done.
"But in the main the Hill people had
very little to trouble them. The air was
fresh and clear, and the lawns stretched
mile on mile like green velvet, and every
body had plenty to eat and great gardens
full of flowers, and the children always
played. Nobody dreamed of letting them
work. They said that work was not good
for little children. Yet-in the Wilderness
but that was different, of course.
There were some men and women, how
ever. who did not close their windows on
the Wilderness side, and had not such Gull
tivated taste for sunsets that they were able
to disregard the annoyances of the swamp.
And they kept on listening and worrying,
until they said, This is uncomfortable! If
the Wilderness is as old as the race, then it
is older than it should be, and the race is
too old to endure such folly any longer!' and
they went down. and drained swamps, and
fought with beasts and worse, and saved
little children. and let in light and air where
men and women were working.
But they grew very tired, and the Will
derneSS was bigger and wilder than they
thought and-they died. But there were
4 few little patches of wholesome, firm land
where they had drained the swamps, and
some of the monsters were dead.
at was so little, though, that the people
on the Hill hardly realized that any work
had been done at ALL They were still an
noyed by the mosquitoes. We must under
drain the whole tract, cut down the jungle,
and make park there, they said, as they
drank their after dinner coffee and cognac
on the terraces. But if any were present of
those who had been down there themselves,
they shook their heads silently.
THESE three sister Processes talked a
great deal among themselves as they
sat by their window at sunset.
THAT morass is as black and wide as the
ocean, said the eldest, and YOU can no
more make an impression on it than on the
ocean I'm not going to sit here any more.
shall take a room on the other side of the
palace, and attend to the matters that be-
long to my own life
THE second one wrrng her hands and
wept. I'm going down-I'm going down!
can't stand it any longer! And without
changing her delicate gown and her satin
slippers she rushed away, crying hysteric-
ally, to see what good she could do. They
tried to stop her; but could not. People
who really want to go down there can seldom
be stopped. 1t is enchantment.
so the eldest one took her suite of rooms
toward the east where the morning light
was cheerful. and she practised her music,
and embroidered, and entertained herfriends
and was very happy. And by and by a most
delightful Prince came and married her. and
they moved to a place quite out of hearing
of the Wilderness suppose they were
happy ever after.
The poor, unhappy Princess who had
gone down TO help was rescued by the people
she had gone to save, and brought home;
but she was quite i'll and weak, and when
she got back her strength she cut off her
hair and put veil upon her head and went
into 4 cloiSter to pray that other people
might do the things she had wanted to dc
and couldn't. SO only the youngest sister
was alone with the old King. Once he came
upon her sitting at the western window, and
saw the tears in her eyes.
"'WOl1ldn I YOU like to read in nv bOOkS2