Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-07-01
Why the Butterfly is
Not a Flower

pitcher at the spring.
That was a short way to 1ly, thoush
it was long way to walk from tle
garden across the long field where
Queen Anne's- lace grew in nodding
white clusters 1t was long way to go
even though the way was made gay
with fitting yellow and white butter
flies. But beyond the stone wall was
the bluebird field where hundreds OF
bluebirds lived. One had only to climb
| over the stone wall and to sit down IN
| the meadow beside the spring, when the
whole field was alive with song and
bluebirds. And I think that the bluebird
| who came to the garden had, no doubt,
seen the Little Girl in the bluebird field
| and liked her So every day he came to
| the garden where she played and sang
story to her. 1t may have been the
magic of the sunlight that helped her
understand the story. y
"there he is" she said And while
| the breeze swayed the leaves on the
branches where he perched we listened
| to the story. 1t was about the garden
| and the flowers 1t was about the but
| terflies in the field beyond the garden.
| 1t was about the fairies and the magic
| of the clovers. Here Is the story that
| the bluebird sang--it is an old, old
story. Perhaps it Is legend Of the gar
den.
| Once upon a time there lived in
garden a little grubhy brown caterpil-
! lar, and all he did, from morning TIL
| night, was just to crawl among the
flowers and wish that he could be a
flower, too. Il don't want to be little
grubby, brown caterpillar" he insisted.
| Tell me how can change myself into
a flower"
He asked the shiny beetles-and they
didn't know: he asked the curly black
garden worms-and they didn't know
he asked the b,'sy bees and the Solomon
| Spder-but non" of them knew; and
when he asked the busting wise ants,
| they had no patience with such wishes
and so they did not tell him, but turn
ed their backs.
| The hop0y toad ard the snails on the
garden patl-thev didn't know. The
| gra sshopper-he didn't know. The snail
she didn't know at all So the little
| gruhhy brown caterpillar dee ided to ask
the flowers.
He crawled up on the stem of the red
rose bush and asked her: but he had to
GRO wi riqht down again. because she
fjGn'F know. Fl CraW,cd Up the stem OF
tho tinrrinCn pink: but he had to
cravy! rtG,'t down a~ain. fer she didn't
know: aud Re had to crawl right Gown
a~~'-, after NED been up the stem of the
mi ron tte fer shc didn't know. either!
.1-st after he had "s'ied the holyhocll
ran bump into a little te6ny weeny elf
mn.
| 20 Fifm1r" crie1 t'>a little grubby
brown caterpillar. co1 10" tc'l mo how
can change myself into 4 flower?'
And TIE title te"nywsenv Gilman
answered in Surprised and little teeny
weenv voice. "Oh &C SO memo, l
cannot. You'd better go to TIE Four
Leaf-Clovcr Fairy. Ter throne is red
clover blossom in the huttcrcun field.
She sits there wishing wishes all the
time"
SO the little grubby brown caterpillar
said, II thank you very much indeed.
and he hurried as fast as his little feet
could go straight to the buttercup field
to find the Four-L eaf-ClOver fairy.
She was sitting on her throne wishing
wishes, of course. but she stopped long
enough to say. How do YOU do, little
grubby brown caterpillar" And the lit
tie grubby brown caterpillar replied
that he did very i'll and that he want
ed to change himself into a flower.
The Four Leaf-Clover Fairy said that
it might not be as easy as it might seem
to change him into flower, but she
first have to find a magic clover and
bring to her so that she could wish
him wishes with 1t.
So the little grubby brown caterpillar
hunted-and he hunted-and he hunt
ed. (You know yourself how hard 1T is
to find four leaf clover when you
want one, dearest. Well he hunted
and he hunted till finally after a long
while, he found one-so all was we'll
and he carried it back to the fairy
"Now." said she. you must work
hard and weave yourself wishing bas-
ket-but ] can't tell YOU how to do that.
You will have to think hard and when
you have made your wishing basket.
curl up and go to sleep to dream of
waking up a flower. But one thing
must caution you about-when you
wake You must remember that flowers
are always quiet and still.
? Don't move except as the flowers do
when they are blow in their stems in
the breeze.
And she promised to bring seven
. fairies with her and dance about him
when the wishing web was finished and
he had gone to dream. That was the
fairy spell-three times round and once
l more for luck They were to dance
about the little grubby brown 'caterpil-
lar and wish him changed to a flower
while he was dreaming.
So it all happened as it should dear
est; the little grubby brown caterpillar
worked. and he worked-and he wished
and he wished-and he made himself a
warm little woven covering to lie down
in and dream. (You have seen a cater
pillars wishing blanket ever so many
times, though most people call it a
"cocoon.D And the fairies came tC
, dance their spell-three times round
, and once more for luck The Four .ea1
Glover Fairy called. "One two. three al
t wish together" And all the fairies
}, wished that the little grubby brown
Y caterpillar might be changed into 6
0 flower. But the funny thing about /,
n was that they hadn't agreed before
e hand lust what kind Of flower tc
= make him, so, when each wished. each
thought Of a different kind of flower
a from what the other seven were think
t ing about. One thought Of the lily tina
e is white: one thought of the dahlia tina
a is brown: one thought of the purple
s violet. and another Of the deep crimson
r poppy; one thought Of the dull greer
e mignonette. and another of the blacl
d and gold coreopsis; one thought Of tn
n bright yellow buttercup, and another o
| the sapphire blue Of the gentian. and 81
the wishing magic was made