fairy, "that's true. I take such a lot of
trouble to get just the right colours, and it has to be done so
quickly. But I wouldn't mind if they believed in us."

"I wonder what _they_'d do," said the Queen, "if no one believed in
them?"

"They'd go on strike," said the Brown Owl (he was head of the Ministry
of Wisdom). "They always go on strike if they don't like anything."

"Then we'll go on strike," said the Queen with great determination.

They all cheered, except the Flower-fairies.

"But the flowers," they said, "they'll get so dusty with no one to
wash them, and so tired with no one to fold them up at nights."

"I hadn't thought of that," said the Queen. "When _they_ go on
strike," she said to the Brown Owl, "how do things get done?"

The Brown Owl considered for a moment and everyone waited in silence.

"Of course there are sometimes blacklegs," he began.

"I don't know what blacklegs are," said the Queen cheerfully, "but
we'll appoint some." And she did.

"Is that all?" said the Queen.

"Someone ought to have a sympathetic strike with us," said the Brown
Owl. "_They_ always do that."

So a fairy was sent off to the Court of the Birds to request a
sympathetic strike.

"Is _that_ all?" said the Queen.

"You ought to _talk_ more," said the Brown Owl. "_They_ talk ever so
much."

"Yes, but they can't help it, can they?" said the Queen kindly.

And so the strike began that evening.

None of the birds sang except one little blackleg Robin, who sang so
hard in his efforts to make up for the rest that he was as hoarse as a
crow the next morning. The blackleg fairies had a hard time too. They
hadn't a minute to gossip with the flowers, as they usually did when
they flew round with their acorn-cups of dew and thistledown sponges
and washed their faces and folded up their petals and kissed them
good-night.

"But what's the matter?" said the flowers sleepily.

"We're on strike," said one of the other fairies importantly "not for
ourselves, but for posterity."

The Brown Owl had heard _them_ say that.

Meanwhile the rest of the fairies sat silent and rather mournful,
awaiting developments.

Then a Thought-fairy flew in. Thought-fairies can see into your heart
and know just what you think. They get terrible shocks sometimes.

"I've been all over the world," she said breathlessly, "and it's much
better than you think. _All_ little girls believe in us and--" She
paused dramatically.

"Yes?" they s