y if I can write a few fairy tales of the genuine
"uninstructive" type by following out my theories in reference to the
old traditional ones. Please _don't_ let out who writes them (if you
put them in, and if any one cares to inquire!), for I am very anxious
to hear if they elicit any comments from your correspondents to
confirm me in my views. In one sense you must not expect them to be
original. _My aim is_ to imitate the "old originals," and I mean to
stick close to orthodox traditions in reference to the proceedings of
elves, dwarfs, nixes, pixies, etc., and if I want them to use such
"common properties of the fairy stage"--as unscrupulous foxes, stupid
giants, successful younger sons, and the traditional "fool"--with much
wisdom under his folly (such as Hans in Luck)--who suggests the court
fools with their odd mixture of folly and shrewdness. _One_ of my
theories is that all real fairy tales (of course I do not allude to
stories of a totally different character in which fairy machinery is
used, as your Fairy Godmothers, my "Brownies," etc., etc.), that all
real "fairy tales" should be written as if they were oral traditions
taken down from the lips of a "story teller." This is where modern
ones (and modern editions of Grimm, _vide_ "Grimm's Goblins,"
otherwise a delicious book) fail, and the extent to which I have had
to cut out reflections, abandon epithets, and shorten sentences, since
I began, very much confirms my ideas. I think the Spanish ones in
_Aunt Judy's Magazine_ must have been so obtained, and the contrast
between them and the "Lost Legends" in this respect is marked. There
are plenty of children who can appreciate "The Rose and the Ring,"
"The Water Babies," your books, and the most poetical and suggestive
dreams of Andersen. But (if it can be done) I think there is also a
strong demand for new combinations of the Step-mother, the Fox, the
Luck Child, and the Kings, Princesses, Giants, Witches, etc. of the
old traditions. I say combinations advisedly, for I suppose _not_ half
of Grimm's Household Stories have "original" plots. They are palpable
"_rechauffees_" of each other, and the few original germs might, I
suspect, be counted on one's fingers, even in fairy-lore, and then
traced back to a very different origin. Of course the market is
abundantly stocked with modern versions, but I don't think they are
done the right way. This is, however, for the Editorial ear, and to
gain your unbiased criticism.