He found the nautilus-boat lying on the sand, and Laughing Sapphire sitting on a rock talking to the sea-anemone. The fairies nodded to each other.

"This," said Laughing Sapphire to the sea-anemone, "is the fairy I was speaking of. He declares that it is better to live on land than on the sea. Of course I know better than that! So we have each brought three treasures to show you, that you may decide which of us is right."

The sea-anemone answered in a very sleepy, drawling voice: for when you spend all your life fastened to the same rock your mind moves rather slowly.

"Very well," he said, "go on."

Then Laughing Sapphire showed them his mother-o'-pearl sh.e.l.l.

"This sh.e.l.l," he said, "is lined with a bit of rainbow."

The sea-anemone waved all his arms about wildly to show that he was pleased.

"And this," said Laughing Sapphire, unrolling the crimson seaweed, "is a bit of the ribbon that mermaids use for tying their hair."

"Beautiful!" murmured the land-fairy.

"And this," went on the sea-fairy, showing them the pearl, "is one of the lanterns that the moonlight-fairies use when they dance on the sea."

"Beautiful--beautiful!" said the sea-anemone and the land-fairy together.

Then Laughing Sapphire turned to the land-fairy with an air of triumph.

"Let us see your treasures now," he said a little contemptuously.

Sweet-of-the-Mountain held out a flower-cup with the drop of honey in it.

It was so sweet that the sea-fairy could not help exclaiming: "Oh, how delicious!"

"That," said the land-fairy, "is the sweetness of the garden."

Then he showed them the little green feather of moss.

"That," he said, "is the quietness of the woods."

Then he threw down the sprig of heather.

"That," he said, smiling, "is the glory of the hills."

The two fairies looked at each other silently. Each felt certain that his own treasures were the best.

The sea-anemone's arms were all waving furiously. He was very much excited, because he knew that the time had come for him to decide which of the two fairies had brought the most beautiful things; and as I told you before, he was not very quick in making up his mind.

"Well?" said Laughing Sapphire impatiently. "What do you think? Is it best to live on the sea or on the land?"

"I think," said the sea-anemone very slowly, "that the sea is the best place for a sea-fairy."

"Yes, yes," said the sea-fairy, "of course it is!"

"But then, you know," the sea-anemone went on, "I can't help thinking that the land is the best place for a land-fairy."

Then he drew in all his arms and became a little k.n.o.b of red jelly.

"It is possible," said Sweet-of-the-Mountain thoughtfully, "that there is some sense in what he says. And yet"--he sniffed happily at his cup of honey--"and yet I don't believe you have anything at sea as sweet as this."

"It is certainly a very nice scent," agreed Laughing Sapphire, "but I do think it would be improved by a little salt."

_PRINCESS ORCHID'S PARTY_

A fairy whose name was Hedgeflower once lived in a wild rose at the corner of a field. One day he went out to search for adventures, for most fairies have a great wish for adventures.

He wandered on for a long time, sometimes walking and sometimes flying, and sometimes stopping to talk to friends, for the wild-rose-fairies have a great many friends. He crossed several fields in this way, and then he came to a high hedge. He was just thinking of going home when he heard a great buzzing of voices on the other side of the hedge, and as the voices were fairy-voices he was interested at once. Perhaps, he thought, he would find the adventure he was looking for on the other side of the hedge. So he spread his pink-and-white wings and flew over.

It was not surprising that he had heard a great many fairy-voices, for he found himself in a beautiful garden, and all beautiful gardens are, as you know, full of fairies. In this garden there were not only the sorts of fairies that one meets every day, such as rose-fairies and lily-fairies and the quiet little ones that live in mignonette, but there were also all kinds of smartly dressed fairies belonging to strange and splendid flowers. They all seemed to be getting on very well together, for they were all talking loudly about something that interested them very much.

As Hedgeflower dropped down into the middle of the group he felt a little shy. But fairies are as a rule kind and friendly, so a good many voices called out Good-morning to him as he sat down under the shade of a large purple pansy. Then a b.u.t.terfly whom he had met once or twice before came rustling up to him and began to talk.

"I like this place," said the b.u.t.terfly. "One meets so many different kinds of fairies. But don't sit there. Come and let me introduce you to some of my friends." Then as they moved away he lowered his voice and went on--

"Those little pansy-fairies are good little things, but they are a bit too thoughtful for me. I find them just a trifle dull, you know. But here is a cousin of yours; I must introduce you."

Hedgeflower looked round and saw that a beautiful rose-fairy was standing near. She wore flowing robes of two shades of pink, and her appearance was full of dignity.

"Madame La France," said the b.u.t.terfly, "may I introduce to you a cousin of your own?"

"A very distant cousin, I am afraid, Madame," said Hedgeflower, bowing low.

Madame La France smiled kindly and asked Hedgeflower if he had often been in the garden before. He told her that this was his first visit.

"Then," she cried, "you must come to the party--you must certainly come to Princess Orchid's party. She lives over there in the gla.s.s house, and she has asked all the fairies in the garden to a party this afternoon.

We have been talking about it all day. You must come with me; the Princess will be glad to see any cousin of mine."

Hedgeflower was delighted. He thought it would be great fun to tell the fairies at home all about it: Meadowsweet, and that cheeky little Eyebright, and b.u.t.tercup who stared at everything one said, and all the honeysuckle-fairies, who were such friends with the wild-rose-fairies because their families had lived close together for so long. Hedgeflower thought that to go to a Princess's party with his beautiful cousin was a nicer adventure than anything he had expected when he set out for his walk.

Meanwhile all the fairies in the garden were making their way towards the gla.s.s house.

"You must keep close to me," said Madame La France kindly. "The flower in which the Princess lives is some way from the door, and you might be lost in the crowd."

In another moment Hedgeflower found himself in a scene of the greatest splendour. The gla.s.s house was full of flowers, and every flower had of course its own special fairy, and nearly all of them were magnificently dressed and were quite different to any fairies that Hedgeflower knew.

The greatest crowd was of course round the beautiful flower in which the Princess Orchid lived, and Hedgeflower and his cousin found it quite difficult to get near the Princess without crushing their wings. They were obliged to walk so slowly that Hedgeflower had plenty of time to look about him. He saw numbers of his cousins the rose-fairies, and tall lily-fairies, and fern-fairies dressed all in green. The pansy-fairies were there too, with their sad little faces and their splendid purple-and-gold dresses. Quite close to him there was a fuchsia-fairy, dressed in a stiff white petticoat with a pointed overskirt of scarlet; and standing beside her were several fairies whose crimson tunics were so fine that Hedgeflower asked who they were.

"They are the young Prince Begonias," said Madame La France. "The Princess, being a foreigner herself, has a great many foreign friends.

The Begonias think a good deal of themselves, but I think myself that our own family has more reason to be proud. But come, we can speak to the Princess now."

Princess Orchid was standing on a drooping petal of the beautiful flower in which she lived. Her long robes of mauve and white swept over the flower as if they were themselves petals. Her hair was golden, and her face was the loveliest that Hedgeflower had ever seen. She smiled at him very graciously when he was introduced to her, and after he had seen that smile he took no interest in anything else that was going on. He never glanced again at any of the fairies who had seemed to him so splendid a short time before: he just sat down in a nice shady clump of ferns and watched Princess Orchid. He had been to a great many parties in his own hedge where the wild-roses grew, but he had never seen a fairy or even a b.u.t.terfly receive her guests with so much sweetness and graciousness. He sat there for a long time and wished it could be for ever. Then he remembered that perhaps he would never see Princess Orchid again, and that made him sad.