Page:Little Ellie and Other Tales (1850).djvu/126

Rh cut out hearts with little ladies dancing in them; flowers he could cut out, and castles with doors that would open. He was a very charming youth.

“Why do these flowers look so faded?” asked she again, showing him a withered nosegay.

“Don’t you know what ails them?” answered he; “your flowers have been all night at a ball, and that’s the reason they all hang their heads.”

“Flowers cannot dance!” exclaimed little Ida.

“Certainly they can! When it is dark, and we are all asleep, then they dance about right merrily. They have a ball almost every night!” said the youth.

“May children go to the flowers’ ball too?” asked little Ida.

“Yes,” answered the youth. “Little tiny daisies, and lilies of the valley.”

“Where do the prettiest flowers dance?” asked little Ida.

“Have you never been to the large castle, just outside the gates, which is the King’s