wiftly
As the sleds rush down the hill,
And each new one as it cometh
Bringeth more of good than ill.

THE FAIRY'S TOKEN.

Ethelreda, the Fairy of Northland,
Was singing a song to herself,
As she swung from a wreath of soft snow-flakes,
And smiled to another bright elf.

What token shall we send to our darling,
Our name-child, fair Ethel, below
In the house which is down in the valley
All covered and calm in the snow?

Shall we gather our glorious jewels,
And wind them about her lithe form?
They would glitter and glance in the sunshine,
And merrily gleam in the storm.

Shall we clothe her in whitest of ermine,
And robe her as grand as a queen;
Weave her laces of ice and of frost-work,
A mantle of glistening sheen?

She would shudder and cry at the clasping,
She would moan aloud in her woe,
And think the gay robes had been fashioned
By cruelest, bitterest foe.

I will none of these gifts for my darling,
Neither jewels nor laces rare,
Neither diamonds nor pearls of cold anguish--
My gift shall be tender and fair.

Early Ethel awoke Christmas morning,
And found on her pillow that day
A bunch of bright little snow-drops,
From kind Ethelreda, the Fay!

[Begun in No. 1 of HARPER'S YOUNG PEOPLE, November 4.]

THE BRAVE SWISS BOY.

_VIII.--THE REWARD OF FIDELITY._

Walter met with a friendly reception from General De Bougy--a brave old
warrior who had served under Napoleon, and fought at Waterloo, where he
had been severely wounded, and had lost his right foot by a cannon-ball.
His hair was gray, and his countenance weather-beaten; but in spite of
his age and infirmities he enjoyed tolerably good health, and was always
in good humor. Having from long experience become a keen observer of
those around him, it was not long before he recognized the merits of his
new servant, to whom he soon became as much attached as his nephew had
been.

Walter had been about three months in the general's service, and it
seemed to all appearance as if he was likely to become a permanency
there, when a letter arrived from Paris, the reading of which suddenly
changed the customary gayety of the old man into the deepest gloom.

"This is a sad affair," said he to Walter, who happened to be in the
room at the time. "My poor nephew!"

"Mr. Lafond? What is the matter with him?" inquired Walter, earnestly.

"He is ill, d