FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   >>  
that made Fancy dance with delight, charmed Aunt Fiction, and softened Uncle Fact's hard face in spite of himself. "Very well, very well, indeed: you have a good voice. I'll see that you have proper teaching; and, by and by, you can get your living by giving singing-lessons," he said, turning over the leaves of his book, to look for the name of a skilful teacher; for he had lists of every useful person, place, and thing under the sun. Lorelei laughed at the idea; and Fancy thought singing for gold, not love, a hard way to get one's living. Inquiries were made; but nothing more was discovered, and neither of the children would speak: so the strange child lived with Fancy, and made her very happy. The other children didn't care much about her; for with them she was shy and cold, because she knew, if the truth was told, they would not believe in her. Fancy had always played a good deal by herself, because she never found a mate to suit her; now she had one, and they enjoyed each other very much. Lorelei taught her many things besides new games; and Aunt Fiction was charmed with the pretty stories Fancy repeated to her, while Uncle Fact was astonished at the knowledge of marine plants and animals which she gained without any books. Lorelei taught her to swim, like a fish; and the two played such wonderful pranks in the water that people used to come down to the beach when they bathed. In return, Fancy tried to teach her friend to read and write and sew; but Lorelei couldn't learn much, though she loved her little teacher dearly, and every evening sung her to sleep with beautiful lullabies. There was a great deal of talk about the curious stranger; for her ways were odd, and no one knew what to make of her. She would eat nothing but fruit and shell-fish, and drink nothing but salt water. She didn't like tight clothes; but would have run about in a loose, green robe, with bare feet and flying hair, if Uncle Fact would have allowed it. Morning, noon, and night, she plunged into the sea,--no matter what the weather might be; and she would sleep on no bed but one stuffed with dried sea-weed. She made lovely chains of shells; found splendid bits of coral; and dived where no one else dared, to bring up wonderful plants and mosses. People offered money for these things; but she gave them all to Fancy and Aunt Fiction, of whom she was very fond. It was curious to see the sort of people who liked both Fancy and her friend,--p
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   112   113   114   115   116   117   118   119   120   121   122   123   124   125   126   127   128   129   >>  



Top keywords:
Lorelei
 

Fiction

 

children

 

plants

 

people

 
wonderful
 
friend
 

curious

 
played
 

things


taught

 

charmed

 
living
 

singing

 
teacher
 

clothes

 
flying
 
delight
 

couldn

 

beautiful


evening

 

dearly

 

lullabies

 

softened

 

stranger

 

Morning

 

mosses

 

People

 

offered

 

matter


weather

 
plunged
 

allowed

 

return

 

lovely

 
chains
 

shells

 
splendid
 

stuffed

 
turning

strange
 

lessons

 
teaching
 
proper
 

giving

 

leaves

 
laughed
 

thought

 
person
 

discovered