THE LITTLE DAISY.

Otago Witness, Issue 2895, 8 September 1909, Page 81

THE LITTLE DAISY.

By Marguerite.

It was night. A. colony of wild daisies that" grew on -a barren hillside were wide awake. The moon was up, and had just sent his beams down to earth, and the little daisies, feeling the glow fronr the tiny lamps they carried, knew that their night-sun had risen. The daisies were not alone. In their midst stood a lovely bush fairy. She was telling them a story, for all the little daisies had their heads bent towards her as if listening intently. « The moonbeams loved the pretty fairy, and as they danced round "her they lightly •touched her pearly gown here and there. They played hide-and-seek about her petaled -wings, th««y dtdged and darted so swiftly from petal to petal that the dainty wings seemed formed of miniature flakes of purest glistening silver. On her head the little fairy -wore a wreath of golden ijnmortelles. This the moonbeams would not leave alone. So close did they dangle their little lamps that every moment it seemed they would set it afire. The fairy took no notice, but went on telling her story.* " And there," she said, " the trees are so iall that they almost touch the .painted sky. Tou could not even see to half their height." The daisies had kept very still before- this, but now many of them began to shake their t>eada 4

f "We can see a great way," they said-; "» tree could not grow as tall as that." i " But still it is true," said ttie fairy. i " There are many beautiful things you have | not seen, and never will, unless you believe !in them. Theie is the great water— the lovely sea — that is paimted a brilliait Blue. It is endless and everlasting, but you ''anno t see it stl though it is quite near." Still the wise daisies murmured, and shoe* their hesds doubtingly. "It would! run away and dry up," they said, as their own little streamlet did when the <pdn was thii&ty. "A«id if it was near we would see it." Some of the daisies who had kept very quiet new began to nod their heads energetically. "It mubt be true ; such a beautiful story must be tcue. But although we believe, how can we see it in reality? " and they sighed and bowed their heads. " Come with me," said the fairy, " and I will show ' you all the wonderful things I have told you oi," and she touched the last speakers with her petaled wings, and helped them draw their roots from the ground. As she was leading them away she heard a, sweet voice asking to be taken too, and, looking down, she noticed a very tiny daisy at her feet, smaller than any of the others. " Yes, wee floweret, you may come too," and 'the fairy helped her up. < Then, with the little daisy added to the | band, once again they started. The moonbeams ran ahead with their tiny lamps to light the way. But it was such a long and weary way, and the little daisy grew so tired. I ' Atr.last they came to the brink of a dark , pool, which the daisies thought must be the sea, • for their eyes could not even take +h^m to the opposite bank. "Wa "must cross here," said the fairy, "to the otbar side. But you cannot- take these with you," and she pointed to their leaves- " They will be no use to you over there: they are too heavy an* 1 cumbersome." Th« tired daisies shuddered, but few remonstrated when the fairy severed their stalks. Just as they stood ready to step into the water the moonbeams hurried away to catch theu parent before li-& slid -do-wxt the mountain side. The little daisy began to cry. "It is so dark, and my stalk ;s; s so sore," she sobbed. " Dip it in the cool water and it will soon be weU," sadd the fairy. But the water was icy cold, so cold that the daisies fell asleep as they stepped into it. They were surprised next morning when they awoke to find themselves lying on a mossy bank and, thi^r day-sun looking down on them a* he used to do. Their petals slowly uncurled, and as they looked at each [ other to their amazement they saw that they were immortelles — beautiful, snowy immortelles; for their flower-heads were twice as large as when they fell- asleep, the petals crisp and with a shining whiteness, like the petals of the fairy's wings, and down *iheir staiks giew tiny, bright, green leaves. The sheet of water that they had taken for the sea lay before them. Their vision carried them to the opposite bank and further, for they coi.ld see the barren land i tliey had left and the stunted trees. As soon i ts the sun's warm rays had restored them 1 sufficiently the bush fairy led them towards her home. How lightly they tripped along now, from boulder to boulder (for the fairy was taking them upstream), how buoyant they felt, and ■ how light the little green leaves wero to carry compared with ihe ones they had left behaid. Presently they came to the en- | trance* of the bush f»ir:es' beautiful home. On either side mighty monarohs were on guard, straining th«*ir heads heavenwards, aa if vicing with each other to touch the blue china above. The 'daisies could s»e now to their topmost branches, for they saw them bend and smile a welcome as they passed. Lithe, merry, little fairies peeped at them through fern leaves «nd round nikau palms. Some skipped along beside them and helped them over the slippery places. j Here the boulders and stones were carpeted : with fairy ferns in delicate shades of green, with tints of brown and gold. Every turn of the fairies' highway disclosed fresh pictures, full of new beauties and surprises for the wonder-eyed daisies. The sylvan folk flitting among Hie bright ferns, or resting on the richly carpeted fairy steppes, gave unimaginable charm- to each scene as it unfold. Just as a fall of crystal water came into sight their guardian fairy stopped and ' pointed to a large" impression on g bed of mo.«s. The teuder 'i"!e ferns were crushed as if some clumsy t,tonc had slipped from ". i the bank above and stumbled there. The ■ fairy bent down, and while lovingly helping them up she s,aid "A giant fairy has stepped here." "Yes," said the little folk, who were rear. " She has, passed up " She walked slowly, and her faoe was sad. and close behind her came that black fairy, Anger. They are seated now by the silver falls! "Look! " and they nointed to where a young girl was sitting, gizing straight before her wvth a very troubled expression Close beside her sat a horrible little black beira with gleaming- eyes and teeth and an ugly scowl on his face. He was very short and broad, squarely built, with muscular arms and legs. He kept grinding his teeth and clasping and unclasping his "sinewy hands in a detestable rnacner. Tne little daisies stood huddled together. They were not so much afraid of the little black demon as •of the giant fairy. They thouaht that those , big eyes might pee them, and then that the bi» hands would pounce upon them and carry then? off. ! " Ycu are fri^hteuod. daisies, dear " said their guardian fairy, " but ther-; is no need That giant fairy 13 partly blind. Until* you take loot you ate as invisible to her as we are " But the snowy immortelles cculd hardly bo convinced. If =he could see the fairy ferns (and shf could, for she was tearing them recklessly from the rocks beside her) why could she not &co the silver folk who were brilliant, full of life, and more beauti- ■ ful even than they Crowds of fairies had ' g-athc-i-ed near looked on with dkmay at the destruction of their lovely carpet One of the boldest of them alighted on the younsr girl's shoulder and whispered something poitly in her ear. At once the hand stopped its destructive work., "What a s-hamci" she 'said, looking de&pon-dentlr at the crumpled moss it held. " I do nothing right." and she bsnt her head still lower, aud burst into passionate weeping. The htt'e black demon shrank further away the bight of tears made him cower. The fairies now formed a ring round the young girl, and swaying their lithe bodies back and forth in perfect time commenoed to dance acd ping. At first they sang very eoftly, but as they felt their united power the:r voices grew fuller and sweeter, until the fallmg water even stopped to list-en. The daisies opened their ©yes wide with wonder; these strains of gong were the swestest sounds they had ever heard. Thesulky little sprit© did not seem to enjoy the

th»i?lfng song" though. *He screwed his ' fingexs into his eais, but as that did not shwi out the sweet notes he twisted himeelf into all sorts of horrible contortions, and ground his teeth harder than ever. The fairies did not tire; their "tinkling voices rose in perfect harmony, and their silvery forms moved with perfect "rhyttan. At last £be little demon could stand it no longer- He clapped hie great hands over his ears,* and darting through the ring he scrambled up the locks and disappeared in the undergrowth. The young girl lifted her head; t-e ugly, sullen' expression had I vanished, and in her eyes was the gleam of victory. Although unconscious of it, she had caught the fairies' retrain, for she i hummed it softly to herself as she walked away. The b^ush fairy came baok to her charges. "Little flowers," she said, "would you not like to stay with us always. ' - ' The bonny immortelles shook their heads ! — thay liked lo do -t to hear the pretty rustle their silvered petals made. "We love the sun,' they said, " and long to see the blue water." . Instead of taking them up or dotvn stream the fairy helped them up ..he steep bank, and led them through the forest straight up 1 the mountain side. The way was rough ' and" steep, but the daisies did not grumble. ! Their leaves were very, lighf to carry now, and their hearts were buoyant and gay, for they knew that the rougher -the path the lovelier the scene it would lead them to. Ab*uf halfway up the little band came upon a colony of orchids, who, because their mother had given -them crimson bonnets to wear, had hidden themselves '"n the bush, where no one might see them. They seemed i very shy, and tried to hide their bright bonnets under their broad green leaves when the snowy daisy heads appeared The daisies would have liked to linger to make friends with these quaint little flowers, who peeped at them so coyly from under their wide .brims, but the fairy hurried them away, for she knew they had a great distance yet -to go. Thft daisies met many curious things— quaintly shaped ferns, velvety mosses, and lovely-coloured lichen— as they toiled up the mountain side. They were beginning to feel jast the least bit weary when fchey saw in front of them a tiny tree, quite covered with delicate, pale-green moss. This silky moss hung in graceful festoons from the slender twigs and branches, weighing them gently down, anbl hiding the little leave* completely m Us soft, clinging folds. "We are near the top now," s »jd the fairy, and as she spoke a vivid patch of blue showed through the trees. The daisies *er e alert, once more and ran past the pretty moss tree in their eagerness to reach the top. In a little while they emerged from the bush and stepped out on to a tiny plateau, with sun-bleached boulders and tussocky grass around them Beyond., below them lay the sea— the lovelypamted eea, in all its wild, entrancing beauty. And beyond it. away fn the hazy distanoe, they could discern other lands. I with enow-capped mountain peaks. The daisies were amazed; they became Tooted j to the 'spot. They, had imagined nothing to j compare with ihe wondrous seen© that lay 1 * before them. As a pacing gift the bush fairy gave them each a satchel of scent of rarest perfume, j At first the daisies used it sparingly, but j after a while they found that the more they used the fuller their satchels became. So ] then they freely wafted it abo'iio, making the ' air. around them deliciously svreet, reminding one of ocean waves and the perfumes of distant shores. One day the young girl climbed to the mountain -peak, and discovered the —snowy immortelles hiding among the tussocks. ' " Just one," she said ; "" only one," and she chose the bonniast and sweetest among them—the little daisy, — and took her away down to the valley below. Poor little daisy! She was plseed on a shelf in a tiny world, ! away from tho sea, -the sun, and the cooling ] mountain, breezes, and where the moonbeams i never came to play with her. At first she j wafted her scent around as freely as she i did on the mountain top, but now her satchel did- not refili. The sweet perfume gradually diminished, till at last the sa-tchel was empty - And with her scent her memory faded too. She forgot all about the sea and the sylvan folk, the trees and the pretty orchids, and the many beautiful things sbe had seen. Poor little immortelle! She was very sad; h«r snowy head drooped and her j petals turned baok. but she did not die. j It was summer, and the days were hot and j close, and she longed for the rain drops to '• cool and moisten hef parched stem and I drooping flower-head. She remembered them, for she always knew when they were near, and wore falling oji the world she had left. Then her petals would revive and resume their natural position, and she would raise her head and "look as sw-eet and bonnie as the day she was picked. " For," thought she, " surely they will come to me, as they used to do." But each time she was disap- ' pointed, and when the raindrops vanished ' from the world outside down would droop ' h«r head <again. One day was exceptionally ' hot, and the windows had been left un- | usually wide open in consequence. The . little daisy was pining more than ever for the cool raindrops when a brisk breeze came ' in at the open window, and without asking her v er *nission lifted her from the shelf and . let her drop gently into a bowl of* water that stood on a table below. The tittle flower was in raptures. Her petals slow'y fluffed out, and then closed up into a hny ball. Once again ahe thought she was going | through the cold stream, but thouarh it wa-s j agony then, now it was bliss, for the water i felt delightfully cool to her parched flower- ' head | Very gradually her memory came back, j In fancy she saw the giant trees once more, ' the lovely glistening fairies flitting among the ferns, the moas-covertd boulders, the j silver falls, and then the sea— the rippling, dancing sea. The lulle daisy saw it all again, and was happy i