FOR THE CHILDREN.

Auckland Star, Volume LV, Issue 248, 18 October 1924, Page 22

FOR THE CHILDREN.

AN ENCHANTED ISLAND

' (TL"I MOLESWORTH.) One sunny day two smnll children strolled along tjia beautiful ocean beach at. Mount Maunganui talking of fairies. : They paused near thn queer old Blow Hole Dock, and gazed at the gloomy, rooky sides, and Betty said at onec: — "Oh, Frank, surely no fairies could live in such a dreary place, we won't j play here!" ISo on they went until they were just opposite Babbit Island. a quaint little, green spot of land , about a quarter of a mile I from shore. The children stood at the edge of the breakers and gazed across the narrow stretch of green rippling i waves, at the beautiful little island that I was so near and yet so far. j "If only we coiild pet across. Betty. I! am sum wo would find fairies there," said Frank longingly. Hetty clapped her hands with delight, when suddenly, to the children's amazement, a tiny elf stood on the dancing waves at tlieir feet. He was dressed all iri sea green, and looked as light as foam. and had a voice like n silver bell. He and his name was Sea-foam, and had answered the children's summons. It appeared that when Betty clapped her hands she innocently gave the exact number of claps the fairies give when they want Sea-foam's services. "Wlmt do you wish, mortal children?" said he. "Speak and you will be obeyed." "We were both wishing we could get across lo Kabbit Island." said Frank, "it looks an enchanted place, and we I thought there may be fairies living there." The elf gave a little call like a seabird, and immediately a host of tinyj fairies, as beautiful and light as sunbeams, made a ring around the children and swiftly carried them across to tin; island. They alighted on the top of a high cliff, which was as smooth and soft as green velvet, and the trees were bright with wonderful flowers and fruit, some of which the children had never seen before. Here and there, amongst the trees and flowers, they caught glimpses of fairy forms flitting about, and they were wondering what would happen next, when a number of glittering creatures danced toward them. One fairy, whose name was Sunbeam. stepped towards the children and said in a sweet voice: "Her Majesty, the Fairy Queen, has invited you to attend her court this afternoon.' , Frank and Betty suddenly felt shy, but their desire to see the. fairy palace soon overcame their feelings, and Frank told Fairy Sunbeam they would be delighted to accept tlieir invitation. A number of fairies led the way across the velvety grass, and the children thought tlieir feet bad never felt so light before. They soon reached the entrance. I to .the palace, and a gate, made entirely I of flowers of every colour, opened at a | word from Sunbeam, and the children entered gazing in wonder. They certainly found everything more wonderful than their best dreams: the path leading to the palace was made of the rarest sea shells, and the gardens had, as well as land flowers, trees of pink and white coral, and sea flowers of every kind. The palace itself was made of mother-of-pearl, which glowed with a hundred colours as the sun shone on it, and Betty said afterwards that the fairies must have taken their colours from the palace as they too shone and sparkled. , Sweet, soft music seemed to welcome them in, and at last the children saw the Fairy Queen. Nautilla, herself. She was even more beautiful than anything they had seen before, and her voice was so kind and gentle that they did not feel at all afraid. She was dressed in silvery robes, which sparkled like the waves on a summer's day, and her throne was a wonderful snow-white nautihis. Large r.carls decked her hair, which hung in a gol.lvM cloud to her knees. Rising from her throne she held out I both hands and said: "Welcome little mortals to the Enchanted Island. Others have visited this island, but you are the only ones who have entered by the gates of fairyland. Now you shall be my guests, and see all the beauties of my kingdom." The children went with the queen from room to room, each more wonderful than the last. They were taken deep down into shining caves under the island, and saw the wonderful machinery that keeps the sea for ever rolling. One dark cave, with a heavy iron door, made the children shudder, it was there the Storm King lay sleeping. Afraid of waking him they crept silently away. They followed the queen along a snow-white passage that led to j a cave, much larger than any of the I others, where lives a little old man, too I busy to even bow to the queen. He was turning a great handle of a mill which ground the salt for the sea. They watched him for a while, then Queen Nautilla led them tip a golden staircase to the throne room, where, on a silver table a meal was awaiting them, and the children ate fairy fruit and drank glasses of dew, and they declared they I had never tasted anything so good.

Suddenly Frank noticed the sun sinking behind the blue hills winch lay hpvoncl Tauranga, and said to his sister '•Mother will be anxious if w. do not ! <ro home. We must go at once. I" Very unwillingly they said good-bye, and thanked Queen Nautilla and her kind fairies, and they did not forget to ; thank Sea-foam the elf. i The fairies again made a ring around I the children, and swiftly earned them i back to Ibe shore, and waving »a™"?» to the fairies and the wonderful Enchanted Island, the children hurried | home to tell mother of their great I adventure. THE KING OF THE FOREST'S SPELL In a far-off country there lived two lords One of them lived in a castle ot jrrev stone, and so he was called the Lord of the Grey Castle.. The other one lived in a castle of white stone, and so he was called the Lord of the White Castle. . One when the Lord of the White Castle was visiting at the Grey Castle, and the two were sitting at a there was a knock at the door, and a beggar asked for food. The Lord of the Grey Castle promised the beggar food if he would tell them about the most wonderful thing in the world he had ever seen. The beggar told them of a cottage at the side of a wood, and in the cottage sat an old woman spinning day and night, weaving her 'own hair into the loom.' The more she cut off, the more it grew 1 . On and on she weutr-and never The Lord of the Grey Castle and the Lord of the White Castle could not rest until I hey had seen the wonderful old woman; and so it was not long before both had started s>" tne journey. Before they went they ordered that special care was to be taken of Rosemary, the little daughter of the Lord of the Grey Castle, and Rowan, the little son of the Lord of the White Castle. Several months passed, and the lords did not return. The two chief stewards became restless and tired, and so they decided to he lords in their places. One of the stewards had a daughter and the other had a son. Their fathers dressed them in Rosemary's and Rowan's silk clothes and put them in their places, while Rosemary and Rowan were dressed in rags and sent to feed the pigs and clean the. stables. One day, when Rosemary and Rowan were getting very unhappy, and they had sat under a tree to try and comfort each other, they saw a most wonderful lady approaching them. She asiced them what they were doing in the wood, and when they told her they had been turned out uf their fathers' palaces while their fathers were away and made to look after pig?, she was very sorry for them, and told them that perhaps tho King of the Forest had laid a spell on the two lords and prevented them returning home. She told them that if they followed a path which lay straight before them, at the end of the path they would lind another path, which was sprinkled with black feathers. If they followed the black feathers until they stopped, they would be led to the King of the Forest's garden, and, perhaps, they would find their fathers working there. If they could make their fathers stop working they would break the spell. Rosemary and Rowan thanked the wonderful lady, and soon they were following ihe path on their way to find their fathers. After some days, when they were feeling very hot and tired, they heard voices in the distance, and in between the trees they saw their fathers digging, and planting acorns. Rosemary and Rowan wanted to rush to their fathers at once, but they remembered that the wonderful lady of the forest had told them that they must ■ break the spell gently. So. at sunset, when the two lords were getting tired of digging, Rosemary and Rowan stepped up quietly beside them and started to tell the tale of the unkind stewards and their wicked plan, and how they had been turned out to mind the pigs in the forest. Gradually the two lords ceased to be so intent on their work, and. after some time, the two spades dropped from their hands in amazement at the story they were told. Rowan picked up the two spades and flung them in a stream, and at last the spell was broken. 'The Lord of the Grey Castle and the Lord of the White Castle, with the help of Rosemary and Rowan, soon found their way back to their castles; and when Rosemary and Rowan grew up they married, inherited the two castles, and lived happily ever after.

FAIRY TREASURE.

Buttercups In meadow*; Rroom upon the wold. Celandines and cowslips: This is fairy gold. Mists upon the moorland Moonlight on the lakeThis Is fairy silver That no thief can take. Maple leaves and beech leaves, Woods of autumn tint, This is fairy copper Coined from Nature's mint.