LESSON 68 A FAIRY WENT A-MARKETING

A FAIRY WENT A-MARKETING

1. A fairy went a-marketing—

She bought a little fish;

She put it in a crystal [1] bowl

Upon a golden dish;

An hour she sat in wonderment

And watched its silver gleam,

And then she gently took it up

And slipped it in a stream.

2. A fairy went a-marketing—

She bought a coloured bird;

It sang the sweetest, shrillest song

That ever she had heard;

She sat beside its painted cage

And listened half the day,

And then she opened wide the door

And let it fly away.

3. A fairy went a-marketing—

She bought a winter gown

All stitched about with gossamer [2]

And lined with thistledown;

She wore it all the afternoon

With prancing [3] and delight,

Then gave it to a little frog

To keep him warm at night.

4. A fairy went a-marketing—

She bought a gentle mouse

To take her tiny messages,

To keep her tiny house;

All day she kept its busy feet

Pit-patting to and fro,

And then she kissed its silken ears,

Thanked it, and let it go.

—ROSE FYLEMAN

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[1] crystal: Clear like glass.

[2] gossamer: Something thin and airy like cobwebs.

[3] prancing: Jumping about, leaping.