The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1913-05-14

! find their grandparents and their
brothers and sisters, each one of
whom went away one evening and
never came back. When you see the
misty forest through which the chill
dren must travel to reach the Land
of Memory, you understand just why
it is so difficult to remember back to
things that happened when you were
much smaller. For there, in and
out among the spectral trees, dance
wonderful creatures who spin the
mists as they dance. on purpose to
befog those who are trying to fol-
! low the path of memory.
But Tyltyl and Mytyl keep on try
ing and trying to remember until at
last they drive away the fogs and
see once more the dear old faces of
CATER and Granny Tyl 1t is nice to
see the little brothers and sisters,
the moment they are thought OF,
come trooping out of the cottage,
and II is reassuring to hear CATER
and Granny explain that none of
/ them are dead-only sleeping. Even
Granny's blackbird, that the children
have once loved, comes alive and
bO5tho W oihe liG lilOuutHl lflNl
members to ask about him. The
queer thing is that he has grown as
blue as a blue grass marble-there
in the land of Memory. Not so
queer, perhaps, when one considers
that lots of things seem better when
they are remembered than they real.
ly were at the time, but it seems odd
just at first and of course Tyltyl begs
the bird of CATER and Granny. and
puts him in his cage for the Fairy's
little girl.
Then comes most delicious sup
per, served out in the pretty little
cottage yard, of cabbage soup and
the plum tarts taht no one but Gran
ny has ever known how to make just
right. They are all so gay and noisy
at the table that it seems a pity to
break up the fun, but of course Tyltyl
must keep his promise to Light; and
so off he scampers with Mytyl. and
then you see CATER and Granny and
all the little brothers and sisters
dropping asleep in their chairs. And
then it gets gradually dark and mis-
~ again, and you can no longer see
the beautiful Land of Memory. Some.
where you hear Mylyl asking for
Light and Tylty's regretful little
cry that Germany's bird isn't blue
any longer, and so of course you
know that it can't be the bird the
Fairy wants after all.
Under the starry dome of the sky
is Nights black basalt palace. Above
the steps where she is sitting are
Two great doors. that smolder ano
glow like immense black opals You
hear Cat plotting with Night before
the children come in, and you dis
cover that it is behind those doors
that the Blue Bird lives among the
dream birds that feed on the rays of
the moon. Of course Night wants to
keep the Blue Bird all to herself, and
she and the Cat scheme to terrify
the children so that they will leave
without opening the great central
doors. The palace is so filled with
mystery and gloom that you half fear
, that the conspirators will be success
ful-particularly as the doors them
selves. in spite of their beauty, or
perhaps because of it. seem to sug-
gest eternity and infnity and all the
things that are so uncomfortable to
think about
But after opening various vaults at
the sides and letting out any num-
Der of odd and interesting things,
from a Firehy to a Cold-in-the-Head,
Tyltyl does just what you would have
done in his place-he chokes down
his terror and opens the great smol-
dering doors Then of a sudden Won
see marvellous fairy garden, with
innumerable fountains throwing up
sprays to the moon. and the whole
air is filled with hundreds and hun
dreds of Blue Birds. You see Night
and Cat anxiously watching on the
steps while the joyful children dash
in among the Blue Birds and run of
with their hands full But later the
Blue Birds die in The chi1drenls hands
After Tyltyl and Mytyl have gone.
Mother Night mirsculously brings
them back TO life.
You next see the travellers outside
a silent graveyard. where lie those
who have been dead so long that no
one in the world remembers them.
The little group before the church
yard gate seems thoroughly frighten-
ed. and small wonder II is, for even
the shadows look grim. and the great
dark trees meet far overhead. as II
they were whispering together OF all
the strange sights they have seen
through the centuries Of midnights.
Il isn't bit surprising 10 hear MIX