The Hattiesburg news. (Hattiesburg, Miss.) 1908-1917, 1916-02-28
STORIES
FOR LITTLE
FOLKS
The Fairies Fiddler.

the same. But of all their musicians
they liked their fiddler best. And the
fiddler was big green grasshopper
| Whenever the fairies were going tt
have dance or anything like that the
| queen would send one of her messen
gers to old man Hop-a-do, the very
best grasshopper fiddler in all Fairy
land.
| Old man Hop-a-do would not have a
fiddle like real men have When he
wanted to play for the fairies he had
to sit down and then draw his legs
| across each other. 1t made the most
beautiful music that any of the fairies
| had ever heard.
One night the fairies were having a
| big dance. And old man Hop-a-do was
playing his very best. But suddenly
there was a noise, and before any of
the fairies could do anything old man
HOp-a-dO was whisked away.
The fairy queen was very surprised
at this and sent her policemen fairies
to see what the trouble could be.
While they were trying to find out
what had happened to old man Hop-a-
do, the fairies sat around and talked,
because they had no music to dance
by.
BY and by the captain of the police
men fairies came up to the queen.
Your majesty" he said, I'VE have
found old man Hop-a-ao, but we could
not get him. He was whisked away
by the Goblin Growly-grew for some
COLLINS who are giving a party to
night"
How dare they steal old man Hop
a-do?" said the queen, and she was
very mad. Come here, Meta, and help
me get old man Hop-a-do back"
Meta was the fairy queens favorite
She was a very wise fairy and knew
all about making the COLLINS behave
themselves. When Meta came to the
queen and heard the news she looked
very grave and began to think.
Think hard, Meta" said the queen,
''for we must have old man Hop-a-do
back again"
"You must send your very prettiest
fairies to the goblin party Meta told
the queen. when they get there they
must change themselves into COLLINS
and play with the real COLLINS. Then
when they have made friends with
them they can turn old man Hop-a-do
into a goblin, and he can come back
with them
The queen thought this a very good
idea. So she called some of her very
pTettiest fairies and told them the
play. AS soon as the queen had told
them they got out their wands and
turned themselves into COLLINS. Now
real ones were, but pretty little girl
COLLINS that were just as sweet as
sweet could be-
After they were all turned to COB
Inns they scampered away to the real
COLLINS party. AS soon as the real
COLLINS saw all the pretty little girl
COLLINS coming then went to meet
them. They asked them to come and
play and danced with them and had a
good time.
But the fairies were not going to
forget old man Hop-a-do and what the
queen had told them, although they
were having a very nice time. Soon
one of them went up to old man Hop
ado and told him who she was.
Keep. on playing, old man Hop-a-
do she said e d when you have fin
ished this piece will change you into
a goblin and you must run back to the
just do last you SoA w hCh
we get back we will make you a grass
hopper once more"
So old man Hop-a-do went on play
ing till he had finished the piece.
Then. quick as a flash, the fairy
changed him into a goblin and he ran
back to the fairy queen. Now, the
reason the real COLLINS did not see all
this was because the little fairy COB
Inns were so pretty they were talking
to them and not noticing old man Hop
ado.
But after awhile they did find out
about the fiddler, and were very mad
They were so mad they began to fight
themselves. This gave the |
fairies just the chance they wanted,
so they hurried back to the queen and
changed themselves into fairies once
more. Old man Hop-a-do was changed |
into grasshopper again, and then the |
fairies started to dance and did not |
sfoD until tho SIM hprau tn pnar NJ 4