THE LITTLE BROWN BOAT

Sun (Auckland), Volume III, Issue 762, 7 September 1929, Page 31

THE LITTLE BROWN BOAT

A TALE OF AN ELFIN ISLE Ever since they could remember. Jack and Doris had lived on the seashore and had used the vast expanses of sparkling sea and smooth sands as a playground. Every part of the high cliffs had been scaled by them and every -cave explored until, growing tired of exploring the same place continually, their eyes turned to a little island just out of reach of their swimming powers. Day by day, as their old playground grew more familiar, the children’s longing to explore that island grew, but their parents would not trust them alone in a boat, and were themselves too busy to ferry the children across. Often the two children v ’ : climb a cliff and from the cliff-top gaze longingly at the little island, covered in green foliage, that glittered distantly in the bright sunshine. One day, while thus admiring the islet, Doris espied a tiny boat floating from the green shores straight toward them. Hurriedly, they* scrambled down the cliff and ran across the beach to where the incoming tide lazily lapped the sand. The little boat floated nearer, so that the children could see its sole occupant, a tiny mannikin, wearing a blight cap of green and a suit of the same colour. They could see now that the boat floated with neither oars nor engine, but was blown by gentle puffs of wind. The mannikin. who had a merry face haloed by elfin curls, stood up in his boat and beckoned to the children.

Full of wonderment, the children waded into the sea to meet the boat. When they reached it. the little man invited them to board liis craft and float with him to the isle of their dreams. Without a moment’s hesitation the two climbed in and. with the merry little elf as pilot, sailed across the water to the green shores of the sunny island they longed to visit. On reaching the island, they disembarked and were welcomed by many other happy little elves all dressed in various shades of green. Later, the children found that the island was vastly populated with these green-clad elves. From beneath every fern-frond and leaf a little elf emerged and laughingly showed the children over every nook and cranny of their beautiful island home. Each elf seemed to be trying to out-do all the others in courtesy and hospitality to the children, who were at the topmost height of joy with their elfin guides. At last it was time to leave, and the elf who had brought the children across floated back with them. When they reached the shore ho pressed into each child’s band a small parcel, then he bade them good-night, as the breeze bore him lightly back to his island home.

The children found their parcels to contain something not unlike a browned and withered leaf, which, however, when floated on the water became similar to the fairy boat that had transferred them to the place they wished to explore. Soon they found that these withered, leaf-like boats could carry them to any fair isle which they cared to imagine and, unlike mortal boats, could not be wrecked or capsized by any stormy sea other than the dark, rebellious waters of disbelief. —DULCIE RIQDEN, aged 14.