The Junior Classics, Volume 6: Old-Fashioned Tales
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The Junior Classics, Volume 6: Old-Fashioned Tales
Children's literature
The fairy Do-nothing was gorgeously dressed with a wreath of flaming
gas round her head, a robe of gold tissue, a necklace of rubies, and
a bouquet in her hand of glittering diamonds. Her cheeks were rouged
to the very eyes, her teeth were set in gold, and her hair was of a
most brilliant purple; in short, so fine and fashionable-looking a
fairy was never seen in a drawing-room before. The fairy Teach-all,
who followed next, was simply dressed in white muslin, with bunches of
natural flowers in her light-brown hair, and she carried in her hand a
few neat small volumes, which Master No-book looked at with a shudder
of aversion.
The two fairies now informed him that they very often invited large
parties of children to spend some time at their palaces, but as they
lived in quite an opposite direction, it was necessary for their young
guests to choose which it would be best to visit first; therefore they
had now come to inquire of Master No-book whom he thought it would be
most agreeable to accompany on the present occasion.
"In my house," said the fairy Teach-all, speaking with a very sweet
smile and a soft, pleasing voice, "you shall be taught to find
pleasure in every sort of exertion, for I delight in activity and
diligence. My young friends rise at seven every morning, and amuse
themselves with working in a beautiful garden of flowers, rearing
whatever fruit they wish to eat, visiting among the poor, associating
pleasantly together, studying the arts and sciences, and learning to
know the world in which they live, and to fulfil the purposes for
which they have been brought into it. In short, all our amusements
tend to some useful object, either for our own improvement or the good
of others, and you will grow wiser, better, and happier every day you
remain in the palace of Knowledge."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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