surprise, addressed her thus:

"Great Queen, if you will condescend to be conducted by a humble
crab, I will lead you to a Fairies' palace and your wish shall be
fulfilled."

"I would certainly come with you," replied the Queen, "but I am afraid
that I cannot walk backwards."

The crab smiled, and transforming herself into a beautiful little old
woman, said:

"Now, madam, it is not necessary to go backwards. Come with me, and
I beg of you to look upon me as your friend." She then escorted the
Queen to the most magnificent palace that could possibly be imagined,
it was built entirely of diamonds.

In this superb place dwelt six Fairies who received the Queen with
the greatest respect, and each one presented her with a flower made of
precious stones--a rose, tulip, an anemone, a columbine, a violet, and
a carnation.

"Madam," they said, "we have pleasure in telling you that soon you
will have a daughter whom you will name Desiree. Directly she arrives,
do not fail to call upon us, for we will bestow all sorts of good
gifts upon her. You have only to hold this bouquet, and mention each
flower, thinking of us, and be assured that we shall at once appear in
your chamber."

The Queen, transported with joy, and overcome with gratitude, threw
herself upon their necks, and warmly embraced them; she then spent
several hours admiring the wonders of the palace and its gardens, and
it was not until evening that she returned to her attendants, who were
in a serious state of anxiety at the prolonged absence of Her Majesty.

[Illustration]

Not very long afterwards, when the Queen was once more at home in her
Royal Palace, a baby Princess was born, whom she named Desiree. Then
taking the bouquet into her hand, the Queen, one by one, pronounced
the names of the flowers, when there immediately appeared, flying
through the air in elegant chariots drawn by different kinds of birds,
the six Fairies who entered the apartment, bearing beautiful presents
for the little baby. Marvellously fine linen, but so strong that it
could be worn a hundred years without going into holes, lace of the
finest, with the history of the world worked into its pattern, toys
of all descriptions that a child would love to play with, and a cradle
ornamented with rubies and diamonds, and supported by four Cupids
ready to rock it should the baby cry. But, best of all, the Fairies
endowed the little Princess with beauty, and virtue, and health, and
every g