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 are full and his rooms are large.
You ought to be glad to marry so well," she ended.

"Was there no escape from the underground home?" little Thumbelina
wondered.

The wedding-day came. The mole arrived to fetch his little bride.

How could she say good-by forever to the beautiful sunshine?

"Farewell, farewell!" she cried, and waved her little hands toward the
glorious sun.

"Farewell, farewell!" she cried, and threw her tiny arms round a little
red flower growing at her feet.

"Tell the dear swallow, when he comes again," she whispered to the
flower, "tell him I will never forget him."

"Tweet, tweet!" What was that Thumbelina heard? "Tweet, tweet!" Could it
be the swallow?

The flutter of wings was round her. Little Thumbelina looked. How glad
she was, for there, indeed, was the little bird she had tended and cared
for so long. She told him, weeping, she must not stay. She must marry
the mole and live underground, and never see the sun, the glorious sun.

"Come with me, come with me, little Thumbelina," twittered the swallow.
"You can sit on my back, and I will fly with you to warmer countries,
far from the tiresome old mole. Over mountains and seas we will fly to
the country where the summer never ends, and the sunlight always
shines."

Then little Thumbelina seated herself on her dear swallow's back, and
put her tiny feet on his outstretched wing. She tied herself firmly with
her little sash to the strongest feather of the bird.

And the swallow soared high into the air. High above forests and lakes,
high above the big mountains that were crested with snow, he soared.

They had reached the warm countries now.

On and on flew the swallow, till he came to a white marble palace.
Half-ruined it was, and vine leaves trailed up the long slender pillars.
And among the broad, green leaves many a swallow had built his nest, and
one of these nests belonged to Thumbelina's little swallow.

"This is my home," said the bird, "but you shall live in one of these
brilliant flowers, in the loveliest of them all."

And little Thumbelina clapped her hands with joy.

The swallow flew with her to a stately sun-flower, and set her carefully
on one of the broad yellow petals.

But think, what was her surprise! In the very heart of the flower stood
a little Prince, fair and transparent as crystal. On his shoulders were
a pair of delicate wings, and he was small, every bit as small as
Thumbelina. He was the spirit of the flower.

For you know in each flower there is a spirit--a tiny little boy or
girl, but this little Prince was King of all the flower spirits.

The little King thought Thumbelina the loveliest maiden he had ever
seen. He took off his golden crown and placed it on the tiny head of the
little maid, and in a silvery voice he asked, "Will you be my bride,
little Thumbelina, and reign with me over the flower spirits?"

How glad Thumbelina was!

The little King wished to marry her. Yes, she would be his little Queen.

Then out of each blossom stepped tiny little children. They came to pay
their homage to little Thumbelina.

Each one brought her a present, and the most beautiful of all the
presents was a pair of wings, delicate as gossamer. And when they were
fastened on the shoulders of the little Queen, she could fly from flower
to flower.

And the swallow sat on his nest above, and sang his sweetest bridal song
for the wedding of little Thumbelina.

THE FOX AND THE LITTLE RED HEN

Once upon a time there was a little red hen. She lived in a little white
house and she had a little green garden. Every day she worked in the
house and garden.

Near her home lived a family of foxes. One day Mamma Fox said to Papa
Fox, "I want a fat hen to eat." There was nothing in the pantry for the
baby foxes, so Papa Fox started out to find something for them all.

He ran down the road until he came to the woods. "Surely I will find
something here," he said, but he found nothing to eat in the woods. As
he came near the little green garden he said, "Oh, I smell fresh cake!
Oh, I smell a little red hen!"

Sure enough, there was the Little Red Hen eating her cake.

Papa Fox stole up softly behind her and grabbed her and put her into the
bag on his back; then he ran quickly off down the hill toward his home.

The Little Red Hen was so frightened that she could only whisper, "Oh,
dear! Oh, dear! Oh, dear!"

Just then she had to sneeze, and when she put her claw into her pocket
for her handkerchief, she felt her little scissors. Quick as a flash she
took them out and cut a little hole in the bag. Peeping out she saw a
great hill just ahead, all covered with stones. As Papa Fox stopped to
rest on his way up the hill, with his back turned toward her, she cut a
big hole in the bag, jumped out and quickly put a big stone in the bag
in her place.

As Papa Fox kept on up the hill, he thought the bag was pretty heavy,
but he said, "Never mind, she is a fat little red hen."

Mamma Fox met him at the front door with all the baby foxes.

"The water is boiling," said she. "What have you in your bag?" asked the
Baby Foxes.

"A fat little red hen," said Papa Fox.

As he held the bag over the pot, he said to Mamma Fox, "When I drop her
in, you clap on the lid." So he opened the bag. Splash! went the boiling
water. It spilled all over Papa Fox and Mamma Fox and the Baby Foxes.
Never again did they try to catch the Little Red Hen.

THE SHOEMAKER AND THE LITTLE ELVES

BY THE BROTHERS GRIMM

There was once a shoemaker, who, from no fault of his own, had become so
poor that at last he had nothing left, but just sufficient leather for
one pair of shoes. In the evening he cut out the leather, intending to
make it up in the morning; and, as he had a good conscience, he lay
quietly down to sleep, first commending himself to God. In the morning
he said his prayers, and then sat down to work; but, behold, the pair of
shoes were already made, and there they stood upon his board. The poor
man was amazed, and knew not what to think; but he took the shoes into
his hand to look at them more closely, and they were so neatly worked,
that not a stitch was wrong; just as if they had been made for a prize.
Presently a customer came in; and as the shoes pleased him very much, he
paid down more than was usual; and so much that the shoemaker was able
to buy with it leather for two pairs. By the evening he had got his
leather shaped out; and when he arose the next morning, he prepared to
work with fresh spirit; but there was no need--for the shoes stood all
perfect on his board. He did not want either for customers; for two came
who paid him so liberally for the shoes, that he bought with the money
material for four pairs more. These also--when he awoke--he found all
ready-made, and so it continued; what he cut out overnight was, in the
morning, turned into the neatest shoes possible. This went on until he
had regained his former appearance, and was becoming prosperous.

One evening--not long before Christmas--as he had cut out the usual

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