ADVENTURES OE BUD AND PETAL.

Waikato Times, Volume 107, Issue 17982, 29 March 1930, Page 4 (Supplement)

ADVENTURES OE BUD AND PETAL.

wonder Bud and Petal gazed ' with astonishment when Knowall helped them alight from the Flying Cloud. Before them was the great pink glass wall that surrounds Rainbow City. Twenty feet high and ten feet wide is this city wall. It is made of glass, so that the wicked elves of the City of Darkness cannot climb over it when they attack Rainbow City, and pink is the colour that hurts their eyes so much, in the middle of the wall the twins saw a huge black gate, which proved to be made of ebony. As they approached Knowall played a tune on his flute; the gate opened and a number of soldiers came forth to meet the new arrivals; but surely such strange soldiers had never been seen before;, they were so tiny—only three feet tall—their uniforms were purple and they carried what appeared to be water pistols. You know the king of Rainbow City controls the Winter Weather, and in his city are stored the , snow and frost, the hailstones and the rain, the thunder and the lightning, and all the cold winter winds. In battle the soldiers shoot hailstones from their pistols and smother their enemies "with 1 snow. The officer in charge knew Knowall, and so our travellers had no difficulty in entering the city gate. Then the twins saw what a beautiful place Rainbow City is. The Rainbow Fairies live in little houses made of coloured clouds—every house is of a different colour. The Rainbow Fairies are very .bright; they love bright colours and dress gaily. They are very vain, and everywhere there are huge mirrors—in the streets, in the fairy shops, and of cours<j in the houses. Some of the houses have the inside walls made of mirror, and the ballroom of the palace is all mirror—ceilings, walls and floor. The soldier knew that Knowall was Oberon’s secretary, and he took him straight to the Rainbow Palace. Of course you all know that Oberon is the king of all Fairyland, but he appoints fairies to rule different parts, and these fairies are kings, over the different portions of Fairyland. The Rainbow king went with Knowall and the twins to see the sights, and lie assured Knowall that the Winter Weather was in good order and repair, and would be ready for use when the time came. Know'all told him that they were on their way to Starland to get some lamps for the Fairy Queen’s new ballroom, and that he had come to Rainbow City chiefly to allow Bud and Petal to see the wonderful Rainbow Bridge. After seeing the great stores of snow’ and the huge balloons of winter wind, the great cellars of hail and the huge tanks of rain, Bud and Petal were showm the ammunition stores, w’hero the awful bolts of thunder and the huge sheets of plain and the terrible stacks of forked lightning, are kept, and which are used by the Rainbow fairies in war, the twins were shown the Rainbow Bridge. They crossed the bridge. Every colour ever known is in it; it is made of all the hopes, all the good deeds and kind thoughts, all the ideals of mortals, and thousands of Rainbow faiires work on it all the time; year after year, century after century, they go on adding to its length, strengthening it still more with the fresh hopes and good deeds, the new ideals and kind thoughts of the new’ generations of mortals. All along the entire length of one side of Rainbow Bridge

(By “Calliope.”)

(Continued from last week.) Part 11.

is a mirror, but this mirror has a use. The Rainbow is God’s promise that the wurld will not be destroyed again byflood, so whenever much rain has fallen the fairies working on the bridge work a lever, the mirror swings over the bridge, and we mortals see the Rainbow Bridge reflected in the sky; then we remember the promise and we do not fear the world will be swept away by floods again. After crossing the bridge Knowall and the twins bade lying 'Rainbow farewell, the soldier who had met therri at the city gate escorted them on their departure, and soon they were on their way to Starland.

“Are we very far from Starland?” asked Petal as they flew along. “No,” answered Knowall. “We have only to travel to the end of the Milky Way.” . Up and up, on and on, they flew, until they oame to the Milky Way. Now the Milky Way is also called the Silver Stream of Heaven, but it is more a river than a stream. When the Flying Cloud came to Star Meadow, through which the Silver Stream flows, Knowall again landed. “We will go across by boat,” he said to the twins. “The Guardian of the Stars does not like aeroplanes, because they disturb the Silence of the Ages. Do you know that all the Silence is kept in Starland?” “Will we see it?” asked Bud. “I will see what I can do,” said Fairy Knowall. Bud and Petal followed Knowall toi the bank of the Silver Stream of Heaven, and there they found a number of boats waiting to ferry passengrs across the Milky Way. These little boats were Stars, and they glittered and shone like silver fire. Each little boat was rowed by a Star Fairy, dressed in a mother o’ pearl suit. Knowall and the twins stepped in, and the Star Fairy started off. At first Bud and Petal were very quiet—-it was all so cool and silent —but Knowall explained that it is always so in Starland —always twilight—and there is no noise, because no one . dares to break the Silence of the Ages. On arriving at the other side of the Milky Way the travellers left the Star Boat and walked up a flight of mother o’ pearl stairs. Here the twins had their first glimpse of the busy life the Star Fairies lead. All the fairies here were dressed in bright moon-rays, and the geenral occupation was the cleaning and polishing of the stars. The stars have to be kept well polished or they would lose their brilliance, and so they would be of no use.

Knowall went to the Castle of the Guardian of the Stars and told him of the Fairy Queen’s desire to have two Star Crystal lamps for her new ballroom. The Guardian said that there were two new stars just being made, and if the twins and Knowall would wait till evening he would take them to the Palace of the Queen of Night and see if she would give orders' for the completion of the two new stars to be hurried forward. "In the meantime, ! said the Guardian of the Stars, “you may like to show Bud and Petal the sights of Starland.” Next week 1 will tell you about the beauties of Starland and the things the twins saw there, how they returned with the lamps, and how the Fairy i Queen sent them on another and more j exciting mission right down into the j depths of the earth.