she, and her voice sounded like that of the other beings, so
unearthly in its beauty that no music of ours could reproduce it.

'To the daughters of the air!' answered the others; 'a mermaid has no
undying soul, and can never gain one without winning the love of a human
being. Her eternal life must depend upon an unknown power. Nor have the
daughters of the air an everlasting soul, but by their own good deeds
they may create one for themselves. We fly to the tropics where mankind
is the victim of hot and pestilent winds; there we bring cooling
breezes. We diffuse the scent of flowers all around, and bring
refreshment and healing in our train. When, for three hundred years, we
have laboured to do all the good in our power, we gain an undying soul
and take a part in the everlasting joys of mankind. You, poor little
mermaid, have with your whole heart struggled for the same thing as we
have struggled for. You have suffered and endured, raised yourself to
the spirit-world of the air, and now, by your own good deeds you may, in
the course of three hundred years, work out for yourself an undying
soul.'

Then the little mermaid lifted her transparent arms towards God's sun,
and for the first time shed tears.

On board ship all was again life and bustle. She saw the prince with his
lovely bride searching for her; they looked sadly at the bubbling foam,
as if they knew that she had thrown herself into the waves. Unseen she
kissed the bride on her brow, smiled at the prince, and rose aloft with
the other spirits of the air to the rosy clouds which sailed above.

'In three hundred years we shall thus float into Paradise.'

'We might reach it sooner,' whispered one. 'Unseen we flit into those
homes of men where there are children, and for every day that we find a
good child who gives pleasure to its parents and deserves their love God
shortens our time of probation. The child does not know when we fly
through the room, and when we smile with pleasure at it one year of our
three hundred is taken away. But if we see a naughty or badly disposed
child, we cannot help shedding tears of sorrow, and every tear adds a
day to the time of our probation.'

THE EMPEROR'S NEW CLOTHES

Many years ago there was an Emperor, who was so excessively fond of new
clothes that he spent all his money on them. He cared nothing about his
soldiers, nor for the theatre, nor for driving in the woods except for
the sake of showing off his new c