es an excellent place to fly from."

"Oh, thank you," said Maya, "I can fly from anywhere."

"That's where you have the advantage over me," replied Peter.
"I have some difficulty in unfolding my lower wings." He shook
her hand and held the last curtain aside for her.

"Oh, the blue sky!" rejoiced Maya. "Good-by."

"So long," called Peter, remaining on the top petal to see Maya
rise rapidly straight up to the sky in the golden sunlight and
the clear, pure air of the morning. With a sigh he returned,
pensive, to his cool rose-dwelling, for though it was still
early he was feeling rather warm. He sang his morning song to
himself, and it hummed in the red sheen of the petals and the
radiance of the spring day that slowly mounted and spread over
the blossoming earth.

Gold and green are field and tree,
Warm in summer's glow;
All is bright and fair to see
While the roses blow.

What or why the world may be
Who can guess or know?
All my world is glad and free
While the roses blow.

Brief, they say, my time of glee;
With the roses I go;
Yes, but life is good to me
While the roses blow.

[Illustration]

[Illustration]

CHAPTER III

THE LAKE

"Dear me," thought Maya, after she had flown off, "oh, dear me,
I forgot to ask Mr. Peter about human beings. A gentleman of his
wide experience could certainly have told me about them. But
perhaps I'll meet one myself to-day." Full of high spirits and
in a happy mood of adventure, she let her bright eyes rove over
the wide landscape that lay spread out below in all its summer
splendor.

She came to a large garden gleaming with a thousand colors. On
her way she met many insects, who sang out greetings, and wished
her a pleasant journey and a good harvest.-- But every time she
met a bee, her heart went pit-a-pat. After all she felt a little
guilty to be idle, and was afraid of coming upon acquaintances.
Soon, however, she saw that the bees paid not the slightest
attention to her.

Then all of a sudden the world seemed to turn upside down. The
heavens shone _below_ her, in endless depths. At first she was
dreadfully frightened; she thought she had flown too far up and
lost her way in the sky. But presently she noticed that the
trees were mirrored on the edge of the terrestrial sky, and to
her entrancement she realized that she was looking at a great
serene basin of water which lay blue and clear in the peaceful
mor