Chimney sweeps -- Juvenile fiction; Fairy tales -- England
“I am going, Ellie!” said Tom. “I am going, if it is to the world’s end.
But I don’t like going at all, and that’s the truth.”
“Pooh! pooh! pooh!” said the fairy. “You will like it very well indeed,
you little rogue, and you know that at the bottom of your heart. But if
you don’t, I will make you like it. Come here, and see what happens to
people who do only what is pleasant.”
And she took out of one of her cupboards (she had all sorts of mysterious
cupboards in the cracks of the rocks) the most wonderful waterproof book,
full of such photographs as never were seen. For she had found out
photography (and this is a fact) more than 13,598,000 years before
anybody was born; and, what is more, her photographs did not merely
represent light and shade, as ours do, but colour also, and all colours,
as you may see if you look at a black-cock’s tail, or a butterfly’s wing,
or indeed most things that are or can be, so to speak. And therefore her
photographs were very curious and famous, and the children looked with
great delight for the opening of the book.
And on the title-page was written, “The History of the great and famous
nation of the Doasyoulikes, who came away from the country of Hardwork,
because they wanted to play on the Jews’ harp all day long.”
In the first picture they saw these Doasyoulikes living in the land of
Readymade, at the foot of the Happy-go-lucky Mountains, where flapdoodle
grows wild; and if you want to know what that is, you must read Peter
Simple.
They lived very much such a life as those jolly old Greeks in Sicily,
whom you may see painted on the ancient vases, and really there seemed to
be great excuses for them, for they had no need to work.
Instead of houses they lived in the beautiful caves of tufa, and bathed
in the warm springs three times a day; and, as for clothes, it was so
warm there that the gentlemen walked about in little beside a cocked hat
and a pair of straps, or some light summer tackle of that kind; and the
ladies all gathered gossamer in autumn (when they were not too lazy) to
make their winter dresses.
They were very fond of music, but it was too much trouble to learn the
piano or the violin; and as for dancing, that would have been too great
an exertion. So they sat on ant-hills all day long, and played on the
Jews’ harp; and, if the ants bit them, why they just got up and went to
the next ant-hill, till they were bitten there likewise.
[Picture: Woman surrounded by fairies]
And they sat under the flapdoodle-trees, and let the flapdoodle drop into
their mouths; and under the vines, and squeezed the grape-juice down
their throats; and, if any little pigs ran about ready roasted, crying,
“Come and eat me,” as was their fashion in that country, they waited till
the pigs ran against their mouths, and then took a bite, and were
content, just as so many oysters would have been.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account