The Magicians Show Box and Other Stories

The Magician's Show Box and
Other Stories

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Title: The Magician's Show Box and Other Stories
Author: Lydia Maria Child
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THE MAGICIAN'S SHOW BOX,
AND
OTHER STORIES.
BY
LYDIA MARIA CHILD
The Author of "Rainbows for Children."

CONTENTS
THE MAGICIAN'S SHOW BOX
THE VIOLET FLAME
FLORIBEL
THE LADY INTELLETTA
VENUS'S DOVE
THE GALA-DAY
EARNING ONE'S OWN LIVNG

THE MAGICIAN'S SHOW BOX.
There was once a boy, named Gaspar, whose uncle made voyages to
China, and brought him home chessmen, queer toys, porcelain vases,
embroidered skullcaps, and all kinds of fine things. He gave him such
grand descriptions of foreign countries and costumes, that Gaspar was
not at all satisfied to live in a small village, where the people dressed in
the most commonplace way. At school he was always covering his

slate with pictures of Turks wearing turbans as large as small mosques,
or Chinese with queues several yards long, and shoes that turned up to
their knees. Then he read every story he could find of all possible and
impossible adventures, and longed for nothing so much as to go forth,
like Napoleon or Alexander, and make mincemeat of the whole world.
One day he could bear it no longer; so, taking with him an oaken
dagger which he had carved with great care, off he started on his
conquering expedition. He walked along the sunny road, kicking up a
great dust, and coining to a milestone, threw a stone at a huge bullfrog
croaking at him from a spring, and made it dive under with a loud
splash. Pleased with his prowess, he took a good drink at the spring,
and filled his flask with the sparkling water. At the second milestone he
threw a pebble at a bird, singing in a tree. Off flew the bird, and down
fell a great red apple. "Ah, how fine!" he exclaimed, picking it up; "and
how the bird flies! I wish I had such wings." On the third milestone sat
a quiet-looking little man, cracking nuts; so Gaspar stopped to crack
nuts, and have a chat with him.
The man was very entertaining, and Gaspar listened and listened to his
wonderful stories until he saw the milestone shadow stretching far
along the bank. Then he jumped up and was going to walk on, but hop
went the little man quite across the road. Gaspar went the other side;
hop came the little man back again; and so they dodged about, hither
and thither, until Gaspar's patience was quite exhausted.
"He is only a small fellow, after all," he thought; "I can take a good run
and jump over him." He took the run and gave the jump, but the little
man shot up high into the air, and he might as well have tried to jump
over the moon.
"It is a most singular thing!" said Gaspar to himself; "a little gray man,
not much larger than I am, and yet he seems to be every where at once,
like sheet lightning. There is no getting by him, and all the time he
looks at me with those bright eyes and that quiet smile, as if he were
really very much amused. Well, he must go to sleep by and by, and
then I can step over him and walk off."
So he lay down, pretending to sleep, and the little man lay down also,
with his face turned to the sky. When Gaspar thought him fast asleep,
he arose very softly, believing he could