inter's cold."

While the old nurse was relating the tale of the giants I could not but
wonder whether there was not some relation between that and the
Brobdingnagians I had read about in my youth. But I was not given much
time to think. This seemed to have been a story day, for the nurse had
hardly finished the tale till the child said:

"Now tell me about the country of the little people," and she related
the story of

THE LAND OF DWARFS.

"The country of the little people is in the west, where the sun goes
down.

"Once upon a time a company of Persian merchants were making a journey,
when by a strange mishap they lost their way and came to the land of
the little people. They were at first surprised, and then delighted,
for they discovered that the country was not only densely populated
with these little people, who were not more than three feet high, but
that it was rich in all kinds of precious stones and rare and valuable
materials.

"They discovered also that during the season of planting and
harvesting, they were in constant terror lest the great multitude of
cranes, which are without number in that region, should swoop down upon
them and eat both them and their crops. They soon learned, however,
that the little people were under the protecting care of the Roman
Empire, whose interest in them was great, and her arm mighty, and they
were thus guarded from all evil influences as well as from all danger.
Nor was this a wholly unselfish interest on the part of the Roman
power, for the little people repaid her with rich presents of the most
costly gems,--pearls, diamonds, rubies and other precious stones."

I need not say I was beginning to be surprised at the number of tales
the old woman told which corresponded to those I had been accustomed to
read and hear in my childhood, nor was my surprise lessened when at his
request she told him how

THE SUN WENT BACKWARD.

"Once upon a time Lu Yang-kung was engaged in battle with Han Kou-nan,
and they continued fighting until nearly sundown. The former was
getting the better of the battle, but feared he would lose it unless
they fought to a finish before the close of day. The sun was near the
horizon, and the battle was not yet ended, and the former, pointing his
lance at the King of Day caused him to move backward ten miles in his
course."

"When did that happen?" inquired the child.

"The Chinese say it happened about three thousand years