THE NAUGHTY ELF

Evening Post, Volume CXII, Issue 22, 25 July 1931, Page 18

THE NAUGHTY ELF

QUEEN Fairiel sat upright on her tall, flower-spangled throne, and survoyed her court sternly. V "Bring in the prisoner," she commanded, and her usually sweet voice .yfus deep and "firm. ;;'■' Immediately thoro was a fearful bustling and craning of necks among the fairies. The next .moment two ■stalwart fairy nicn-at-arins cntorcd, j 1 dragging between them a merry -faced -Jittle elf shouting and struggling. ,' Theme pulled him to tho : Queen's throne and then stepped •smartly back, leaving the littlo elf [standing there. Queen Fairiel looked calmly at his excited littlo face, and then said: "Norti Elf, do you know 'this is tho third timo you have been naughty since last May Day? Twice . you have been naughty before, and I have forgiven you. You know if a 'fairy is guilty of thrco offences ho jnust be banished from Fairyland." ■ "O-o-o-oh!" went up from all the Sairies liko a .big sigh. But no one flared say a word. Queen Fairiel's ■word was law. And as for Norti Elf, suddenly all the naughtiness vanished from his face like magic, and he looked for all tho world liko a sorry baby. His lips trembled and then fxc began to sob broken-heartodly. The Fairy ladies-in-waiting felt isuro they saw tears gathering in Queen Fairiel's eyes. "Take him awaylV she said, and, ierying and sobbing, Norti Elf was led off. Norti Elf .was always loved by the fairies, in spite of his badness. The men-at-arms marched him to tho Ybig gates of Fairyland and left him sitting on a big mushroom outside. "Oh dear! Oh deary mc!" sobbed the littlo fellow sadly. "Whatever shall I do? I don't know where to go—l really don't!" And so he fell asleep. "A-a-a-tish-shoo-o-o!" Norti Elf \yoko with a start, for somebody had given a mighty sneeze. "Bother this cold," said a croaky Voice, and then it added: "But to go back to the subject. I've heard that the Queen and her court are at present in Daisy-Dell. Now if our plan works we might have them all prisoners by to-night, and then we shall bo rulers of Fairyland." Norti Elf sat bolt upright. He knew now that they were two wicked magicians who were nlways trying to work harm on the fairies. Like a flash Norti Elf jumped off tho mushroom and flew towards tho gates. Through them rushed the little elf, on, on, till he reached Daisy-Dell. He made straight for the palace. "I must see the Queen! I must see the Queen!" he shouted to the guards. As they tried to stop him, he flew _p the palace steps and almost bumped into Queen Fairiel, who was coming -to see what all the noise was about. •Norti Elf poured his tale into her astonished ears. "You must leave here at once," said Norti Elf, and in less than two fairy minutes the whole court was in readiness to depart to tho Queen's stronghold right in the heart ,_£ the mountains, when tho Queen _irned and asked eagerly, "Norti Elf, is ho?" Nobody answered. "Norti Elf! Norti Elf!" rang out Queen Fairiel's silvery voice through -Khe dell, and then quite suddenly she fame upon a forlorn littlo figure fiuddlcd up against a bunch of forget-me-nots. It was Norti Elf, and oh, how sad and miserable he looked. "Norti Elf," said Queen Fairiel gently. The little elf arose at once and stood before her with folded wings. "Where are you going?" Hsked Queen Fairiel gently. Norti Elf gave a choky sob. "Please, your Majesty, I was going out of Fairyland again," he said. Queen Fairiel smiled a wonderfully feweet smile, and her voice sounded more fairy like than ever. "You needn' 1 do that, Norti Elf. Wouldn't you rather come with us?" Norti Elf gave a cry of delight, and leaping forward he fell on his knees and kissed her hands. • "You shall bo my very own bodyguard," she went on. "That is," she wagged her finger, "if you promise to be very good and not tie any more spiders up in their own cobwebs or tell baby sparrows the wrong way home." Norti Elf promised that he would ■be good, and so he was the happiest elf in Fairyland. "BOBBIN" (14). City.