The Project Gutenberg EBook of The House of Toys, by
Henry Russell Miller

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Title: The House of Toys

Author: Henry Russell Miller

Illustrator: Frank Snapp

Release Date: February 13, 2008 [EBook #24603]

Language: English

Character set encoding: ASCII

*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE HOUSE OF TOYS ***

Produced by Al Haines

THE HOUSE OF TOYS

By

HENRY RUSSELL MILLER

_Author of_

THE MAN HIGHER UP, HIS RISE TO POWER
THE AMBITION OF MARK TRUITT

WITH FRONTISPIECE BY

FRANK SNAPP

[Transcriber's note: Frontispiece missing from book]

INDIANAPOLIS

THE BOBBS-MERRILL COMPANY

PUBLISHERS

COPYRIGHT 1914

THE BOBBS-MERRILL COMPANY

CONTENTS

CHAPTER.

I THE PLANS
II THE WITCH
III ON THE SANDS
IV TO THE RESCUE
V GOOD FAIRIES
VI SPELLS
VII SANCTUARY
VIII CERTAIN PLOTS
IX A NEW HOUSE
X AT THE DOOR
XI THE WITCH LAUGHS
XII WHICH HOUSE?
XIII THE HAPPY ENDING

THE HOUSE OF TOYS

CHAPTER I

THE PLANS

This is not a fairy tale, although you will find some old friends here.
There is, for example, a witch, a horrid old creature who tricks the best
and wisest of us: Circumstance is one of her many names, and a horde of
grisly goblins follow in her train. For crabbed beldame an aunt, who
meant well but was rich and used to having her own way, will do fairly
well. Good fairies there are, quite a number; you must decide for
yourself which one is the best. But the tale has chiefly to do with a
youth to whom the witch had made one gift, well knowing that one would
not be enough. Together with a girl--a sunflower who did not thrive in
the shade, as Jim Blaisdell has said--he undertook to build, among other
things, a house of love wherein she should dwell and reign. But when it
was built he met another girl, who was--say, an iris. There are white
irises, and very beautiful flowers they are. From her--

But that is the story.

He was, then, tall, as well favored as is good for a young man, with
straight-gazing though at times rather dreamy gray-green eyes, kinky
brown hair and a frank friendly manner that was very engaging.