d keep harm away from
him?" she asked.

[Illustration: "THE MOUTH THAT WILL NOT OPEN MUST BE MADE TO OPEN"]

Now it was the crocodile that had dragged the boy to the bottom of the
river. He wished to say, "Yes," but he did not dare to open his mouth
for fear of saying, "I did it, I did it," so he said not a word. The
goddess cried, "Did you drag the king's son to the bottom of the river?"
Still the crocodile dared not open his mouth for fear of saying, "I did
it, I did it." Then the goddess was angry. She drew her long sword, and
saying, "The mouth that will not open when it should must be made to
open," she struck the crocodile's mouth with the sword. "Oh, look!"
cried the other animals. The crocodile's mouth had opened; there was no
question about _that_, for it had split open so far that he was afraid
he should never be able to keep it closed.

THE STORY OF THE PICTURE ON THE VASE.

On some of the beautiful vases that are made in Japan there is a picture
of a goddess changing a dragon into an island. When the children of
Japan say, "Mother, tell us a story about the picture," this is what the
mother says:--

"Long, long ago there was a goddess of the sea who loved the people of
Japan. She often came out of the water at sunset, and while all the
bright colors were in the sky, she would sit on a high rock that
overlooked the water and tell stories to the children. Such wonderful
stories as they were! She used to tell them all about the strange fishes
that swim in and out among the rocks and the mosses, and about the fair
maidens that live deep down in the sea far under the waves. The children
would ask, 'Are there no children in the sea? Why do they never come out
to play with us?' The goddess would answer, 'Some time they will come,
if you only keep on wishing for them. What children really wish for they
will surely have some day.'

"Then the goddess would sing to the children, and her voice was so sweet
that the evening star would stand still in the sky to listen to her
song. 'Please show us how the water rises and falls,' the children would
beg, and she would hold up a magic stone that she had and say, 'Water,
rise!' Then the waves would come in faster and faster all about the
rock. When she laid down the stone and said, 'Water, fall!' the waves
would be still, and the water would roll back quickly to the deep sea.
She was goddess of the storm as well as of the sea, and sometimes the
children would sa