ted with the
warm fire, the clean floor and hearth, and they stayed there all night
and enjoyed themselves greatly. In the morning, on leaving, they left a
bright new shilling on the hearthstone for the woman. Night after night,
they spent in this woman's cottage, and every morning she picked up a new
shilling. This went on for so long a time that the woman's worldly
condition was much improved. This her neighbours with envy and surprise
perceived, and great was their talk about her. At last it was noticed
that she always paid for the things she bought with new shilling pieces,
and the neighbours could not make out where she got all these bright
shillings from. They were determined, if possible, to ascertain, and one
of their number was deputed to take upon her the work of obtaining from
the woman the history of these new shillings. She found no difficulty
whatever in doing so, for the woman, in her simplicity, informed her
gossip that every morning the coin was found on the hearthstone. Next
morning the woman, as usual, expected to find a shilling, but never
afterwards did she discover one, and the Fairies came no more to her
house, for they were offended with her for divulging the secret.

This tale is exactly like many others that may be heard related by old
people, in many a secluded abode, to their grandchildren.

A lesson constantly inculcated by Fairy tales is this--Embrace
opportunities as they occur, or they will be lost for ever. The
following stories have reference to this belief.

_The Hidden Golden Chair_.

It is a good many years since Mrs. Mary Jones, Corlanau, Llandinorwig,
Carnarvonshire, told me the following tale. The scene of the story is
the unenclosed mountain between Corlanau, a small farm, and the hamlet,
Rhiwlas. There is still current in those parts a tale of a hidden golden
chair, and Mrs. Jones said that it had once been seen by a young girl,
who might have taken possession of it, but unfortunately she did not do
so, and from that day to this it has not been discovered. The tale is
this:--

There was once a beautiful girl, the daughter of poor hardworking
parents, who held a farm on the side of the hill, and their handsome
industrious daughter took care of the sheep. At certain times of the
year she visited the sheep-walk daily, but she never went to the mountain
without her knitting needles, and when looking after the sheep she was
always knitting stockings, and she was