Mother Stories | Page 6

peep at her,
and the birds of the air, and the butterflies, that looked like enchanted
sunbeams, would circle about her head.
Her father was king of a country; and though she was not so tall as the
tall white lily in the garden, or the weeds that grew outside, she had
servants to wait on her, and grant her every wish, as if she were a

queen.
She was dearer to her father and mother than all else that they
possessed; and there was no happier king or queen or little maiden in
any kingdom of the world, till one sad day when the king's enemies
came upon them like a whirlwind, and changed their joy to sorrow.
Their palace was seized, the servants were scattered, and the king and
queen were carried away to a dark prison-house, where they sat and
wept for their little daughter, for they knew not where she was.
No one knew but the old nurse, who had nursed the king himself. She
had carried the child away, unnoticed amid the noise and strife, and set
her in safety outside the palace walls.
"Fly, precious one!" she cried, as she left her there. "Fly! for the enemy
is upon us!" And the little maiden started out in the world alone.
She knew not where to go; so she wandered away through the fields
and waste places, where nobody lived and only the grasshoppers
seemed glad. But she was not afraid,--no! not even when she came to a
great forest, at evening;--for she carried her light with her.
'T is true that once she thought she saw a threatening giant waiting by
the dusky path; but, when her light shone on it, it was only a pine tree,
stretching out its friendly arms; and she laughed so merrily that all the
woods laughed too.
"Who are you? Who are you?" asked an owl, blinking his eyes at the
brightness of her face; and a little rabbit, startled by the sound, sprang
from its hiding place in the bushes and fell trembling at her feet.
"Alas!" it panted as she bent in pity to offer help, "Alas! the hunters
with their dogs and guns pursue me! But you flee, too! How can you
help me?" But the child took the tiny creature in her arms and held it
close; and when the dogs rushed through the tanglewood, they saw the
light that lighted up her eyes like sunshine and gleamed on her forehead
like a star, and came no further.
Then deeper into the great forest she went, bearing the rabbit still; and
the wild beasts heard her footsteps, and waited for her coming.
"Hush!" said the fox, "she is mine; for I will lead her from the path into
the tanglewood!"
"Nay, she is mine!" howled the wolf; "for I will follow on her
footsteps!"
"Mine! mine!" screamed the tiger; "for I will spring upon her in the

darkness, and she cannot escape me!"
[Illustration: The child took the tiny creature in her arms and held it
close.]
So they quarreled among themselves, for they were beasts and knew no
better; and as they snarled and growled and howled, the maiden walked
in among them; and when the light which made her lovely fell upon
them, they ran and hid themselves in the depths of the forest, and the
child passed on in safety.
The rabbit still slept peacefully on her breast. At last she, too, grew
weary, and lay down to sleep on the leaves and moss; and the birds of
the forest watched her and sang to her, and nothing harmed her all the
night.
In the morning a party of horsemen rode through the forest, looking
behind each bush and tree as if they sought something very precious.
The forest glowed with splendor then, for the sun had come in all its
glory to scatter darkness and wake up the world. The darkest dells and
caves and lonely paths lost their horror in the morning light, and there
were violets blooming in the shadows of the pines.
The leaves glistened, the flowers lifted their heads, and everything was
glad but the horsemen, whose faces were full of gloom because their
hearts were sad.
They did not speak or smile as they rode on their search; and their
leader was the saddest of them all, though he wore a golden crown that
sparkled with many jewels.
They followed each winding path through the forest, till at last they
reached the spot where the little maiden lay.
The rabbit waked up at the sound of their coming, but the child slept till
a loud cry of gladness awakened her and she found herself in her
father's arms.
In the night-time the king's brave soldiers had driven