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Nature Myths and Stories for Little Children - Flora J Cooke · The Odyssey

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  Speaker 1: Nature. Myths and Stories for Little Children by Flora J. Cook.
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  Speaker 1: This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
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  Speaker 1: the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
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  Speaker 1: visit LibriVox dot org. Preface, Feeling the great need of
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  Speaker 1: stories founded upon good literature, which are within the comprehension
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  Speaker 1: of little children, I have written the following stories, hoping
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  Speaker 1: that they may suggest to primary teachers the great wealth
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  Speaker 1: of material within our reach. Many teachers who firmly believe
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  Speaker 1: that reading should be something more than mere word getting
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  Speaker 1: while the child's reading habit is forming, are practically helpless
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  Speaker 1: without the use of a printing press. We will all
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  Speaker 1: agree that myths and fables are usually beautiful truths clothed
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  Speaker 1: in fancy, and the dress is almost always simple and transparent.
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  Speaker 1: Who can study these myths and not feel that nature
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  Speaker 1: has a new language for him, and that though the
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  Speaker 1: tales may be thousands of years old, they are quite
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  Speaker 1: as true as they were in the days of Homer.
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  Speaker 1: If the trees and the flowers, the clouds in the
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  Speaker 1: wind all tell wonderful stories to the child, he has
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  Speaker 1: sources of happiness of which no power can deprive him,
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  Speaker 1: and When we consider that here too is the key
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  Speaker 1: which unlocks so much of the best in art and literature,
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  Speaker 1: we feel that we cannot rank too highly the importance
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  Speaker 1: of the myth. In the primary school room, for instance,
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  Speaker 1: the child has been observing, reading, and writing about the sun,
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  Speaker 1: the moon, the direction of the wind, the trees, the flowers,
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  Speaker 1: or the forces that are acting around him. He has
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  Speaker 1: had the songs, poems, and pictures connected with these lessons
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  Speaker 1: to further enhance his thought, interest and observation. He is
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  Speaker 1: now given a beautiful myth. He is not expected to
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  Speaker 1: interpret it. It is presented for the same purpose that
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  Speaker 1: a good picture is placed before him. He feels its beauty,
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  Speaker 1: but does not analyze it. If through his observation or
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  Speaker 1: something in his experience, he does see a meaning in
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  Speaker 1: the story, he has entered a new world of life
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  Speaker 1: and beauty. Then comes the question to every thoughtful teacher.
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  Speaker 1: Can the repetition of words necessary to the growth of
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  Speaker 1: the child's vocabulary be obtained in this way? This may
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  Speaker 1: be accomplished if the teacher, in planning her year's work,
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  Speaker 1: sees a close relation between the science, literature and number work,
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  Speaker 1: so that the same words are always recurring and the
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  Speaker 1: interest in each line of work is constant and ever increasing.
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  Speaker 1: The following stories are suggested in the standard books of
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  Speaker 1: Mythology and Poetry, and have been tested and found to
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  Speaker 1: be very helpful in the first and third grades. A
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  Speaker 1: full list of myths, history, stories and fairy tales for
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  Speaker 1: the children in the different grades can be found in
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  Speaker 1: Emily J. Rice's Course of Study in History and Literature,
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  Speaker 1: which can be obtained of a Flanagan number two sixty two,
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  Speaker 1: Wabish Avenue, Chicago, end of preface Nature Myths and Stories
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  Speaker 1: for Little Children by Flora J. Cook. This LibriVox recording
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  Speaker 1: is in the public domain. Animal Stories, The Donkey and
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  Speaker 1: the Salt. One time a merchant went to the seashore
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  Speaker 1: for a load of salt. There were many hills and
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  Speaker 1: streams to cross on the journey. As the path was
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  Speaker 1: narrow and rocky, the man made his donkey carry the
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  Speaker 1: salt in large bags upon his back. It was a
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  Speaker 1: warm day, and the donkey did not like his heavy load.
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  Speaker 1: He hung down his head and went as slowly as
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  Speaker 1: he could. After a while, they came to a stream
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  Speaker 1: which had only a footbridge over it. The donkey went
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  Speaker 1: through the water splash, splash, splash. In the middle of
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  Speaker 1: the stream was a large stone which he did not see.
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  Speaker 1: He stumbled and fell, and the water ran over the
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  Speaker 1: bags of salt. Soon the donkey was glad that he
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  Speaker 1: had fallen, for he found his load much lighter. They
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  Speaker 1: came to another stream, but though donkey did not stumble,
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  Speaker 1: this time, he lay down in the middle of the brook.
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  Speaker 1: He was a wise donkey. This time he lost so
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  Speaker 1: much salt that his master was angry, for he was
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  Speaker 1: obliged to go back to the seashore for another load.
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  Speaker 1: As they were walking along, the merchant laughed to himself.
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  Speaker 1: He thought he knew a way to cure the donkey
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  Speaker 1: of this trick. When they came to the seashore, he
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  Speaker 1: filled the bags with sponges and started for home. The
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  Speaker 1: donkey thought, what a light load I have, and trotted
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  Speaker 1: gaily along over the rough road. Again they came to
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  Speaker 1: the brook, ah, thought the donkey, I will make my
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  Speaker 1: load still lighter. He lay down in the middle of
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  Speaker 1: the brook. This time he found his load so heavy
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  Speaker 1: that he could scarcely rise. His master kindly they helped him,
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  Speaker 1: but the donkey was not happy. The water ran down
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  Speaker 1: his sides and made him more miserable. Oh, thought he,
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  Speaker 1: I will never lie down in the water again. Once more,
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  Speaker 1: his master led him back to the seashore. He filled
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  Speaker 1: the bags with salt. The donkey was wiser now and
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  Speaker 1: carried the salt safely home. The end The Fox and
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  Speaker 1: the Stork. A fox met a stork and invited him
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  Speaker 1: to dinner with all my heart, friend, said the stork.
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  Speaker 1: When they arrived at the home of the fox and
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  Speaker 1: dinner was served, he was not so happy. The fox
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  Speaker 1: had fine hot soup, but he served it in shallow plates.
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  Speaker 1: The poor stork could only stand by and watch the
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  Speaker 1: fox eat. The fox seemed to think that it was
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  Speaker 1: a very good joke. The next day, the stork met
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  Speaker 1: the fox and invited him to dinner. The stork brought
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  Speaker 1: out fine hot soup in a high, narrow necked bottle,
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  Speaker 1: but the fox could not see the joke at all.
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  Speaker 1: The stork said, friend, Fox, enjoy your dinner. I hope
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  Speaker 1: that the soup is as well flavored as yours was yesterday.
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  Speaker 1: As he said this, he poured out half of the
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  Speaker 1: soup into a bowl and set it before the fox.
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  Speaker 1: The cunning old fox felt so ashamed that he has
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  Speaker 1: never looked anyone straight in the face since that day,
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  Speaker 1: the end the grateful Foxes. It was springtime in Japan,
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  Speaker 1: and the blossoms hung thick on the cherry trees. Butterflies
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  Speaker 1: and dragonflies fluttered over the golden cals of in the fields.
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  Speaker 1: The rice birds chirped merrily. Everything seemed to say how
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  Speaker 1: good it is to live in days like these. A
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  Speaker 1: beautiful princess o'haro San sat at the bank of a stream,
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  Speaker 1: gaily pulling the lilies. All the maidens of her court
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  Speaker 1: were with her. Along the river bank came a troop
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  Speaker 1: of noisy, laughing boys carrying a young cub fox. They
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  Speaker 1: were trying to decide who should have its skin and
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  Speaker 1: who its liver. At a safe distance from them, in
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  Speaker 1: a bamboo thicket, father fox and mother Fox sat looking
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  Speaker 1: sadly after their little cub. The Princess's heart was filled
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  Speaker 1: with pity, and she said, boys, pray lose the little fox.
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  Speaker 1: See his parents weeping in the rocks. The boys shook
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  Speaker 1: their heads. We shall sell the fox's skin, they said.
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  Speaker 1: The liver, too, if well powdered, will be used to
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  Speaker 1: cure fevers in the fall. Listen cried, o'hrew san, it
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  Speaker 1: is springtime and everything rejoices. How can you kill such
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  Speaker 1: a small soft beast? See here is twice your price.
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  Speaker 1: Take it all, And she drew copper money and silver
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  Speaker 1: money from her girdle. The boys placed the little frightened
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  Speaker 1: animal in her lap and ran away. Please to be
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  Speaker 1: so rich, the cub felt the touch of her soft
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  Speaker 1: hand and trembled no longer. She loosened carefully the knot
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  Speaker 1: and noose and string. She stroked the red fur smooth again,
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  Speaker 1: and bound up the little bleeding leg. She offered it
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  Speaker 1: rice and fish to eat, but the black eyes plainly said,
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  Speaker 1: this is very nice, But I hear my parents grieving
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  Speaker 1: near yonder beanstraw stack. I longed to go and comfort them.
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  Speaker 1: She set the little fox gently on the ground, and,
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  Speaker 1: forgetting its wounded leg, it leaped through the bushes in
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  Speaker 1: one happy bound. The two old foxes gravely looked it
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  Speaker 1: over neck and breast. They licked it from its bushy
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  Speaker 1: tail to its smooth brown crown. Then, sitting up on
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  Speaker 1: their haunches, they gave two sharp barks of gratitude. That
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  Speaker 1: was their way of saying, we send you, thinks sweet maid.
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  Speaker 1: As she walked home by the river side. All the
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  Speaker 1: world seemed more beautiful to o'haroo San. The summer time came,
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  Speaker 1: and the blossoms upon the cherry trees became rich, ripe fruit,
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  Speaker 1: But there was no joy in the emperor's house. His daughter,
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  Speaker 1: the gentle O'hou's son, was ill. She grew paler and
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  Speaker 1: weaker each day. Physicians came from far and near and
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  Speaker 1: shook their wise heads gravely. When the emperor's magician saw her,
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  Speaker 1: he said, no one can heal such sickness. A charm
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  Speaker 1: falls upon her every night, which steals away her strength.
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  Speaker 1: He alone can break the spell. Who with sleepless eyes
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  Speaker 1: can watch beside her bedside until sunrise. Gray haired nurses
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  Speaker 1: sat by her until morning, but a deep sleep fell
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  Speaker 1: upon them at midnight. Next four score maidens of the court,
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  Speaker 1: who loved her well, kept bright lights burning all the night,
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  Speaker 1: yet they too fell asleep. Five councilors of state watched
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  Speaker 1: with her father at the bedside, though they propped their
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  Speaker 1: eyes open with their fingers. Yet in the middle of
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  Speaker 1: the night, slumber overcame them. All believed that the gentle
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  Speaker 1: maid must die. The emperor was in despair, but Io,
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  Speaker 1: a brave soldier, said, I shall not sleep. Let me
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  Speaker 1: one night guard the sweet Oharu San. Her father led
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  Speaker 1: him to the chamber just at midnight. I too felt
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  Speaker 1: his eyes grow heavy. He rose and held his sword
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  Speaker 1: above his head. Rather will I die than sleep, he said.
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  Speaker 1: Then came a great struggle. Often his head nodded, but
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  Speaker 1: by his love and strength, Io conquered sleep. Suddenly he
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  Speaker 1: heard a voice which said, great foxes livers in the
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  Speaker 1: princess's rice broth, and all her ills will disappear. The
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  Speaker 1: next morning, the hunters searched far and near for foxes.
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  Speaker 1: They knew that to the Emperor a fox was worth
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  Speaker 1: its weight in gold. All day and night they were
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  Speaker 1: in the woods, without food or rest. At last they
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  Speaker 1: came sadly back to their homes. They brought no fox.
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  Speaker 1: All the foxes know, they said, and had hidden themselves away.
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  Speaker 1: The Emperor, in grief and anger, cried, must my child perish?
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  Speaker 1: Shall a princess die for the lack of one poor fox?
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  Speaker 1: She was never willing that one should be slain, and
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  Speaker 1: this is her reward? Ito said, I will get the fox.
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  Speaker 1: He started out with knife and ned to seek it.
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  Speaker 1: At the entrance of the town, he met a woman
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  Speaker 1: dressed in strange garments, very small and stooped. She seemed
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  Speaker 1: to Itto. She carried a jar in her arms. She
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  Speaker 1: bowed low before Itto and said, what you seek is
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  Speaker 1: in the jar. I have brought it from Afar. Here
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  Speaker 1: is gold, said Ito, what is the price? The woman
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  Speaker 1: pulled the blue hood farther over her face and said
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  Speaker 1: another time will do I can wait. Hasten now to
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  Speaker 1: the princess. Gladly. Itto obeyed. They made the broth in
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  Speaker 1: a bowl of beaten gold and fed it to Oharu's san.
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  Speaker 1: Immediately she was well, and all was joy in the
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  Speaker 1: emperor's house. The Emperor said, Ito, is she who brought
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  Speaker 1: this blessing? Paid Ito answered yonder, she waits at the
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  Speaker 1: entrance of the town. The Emperor himself, in his great joy,
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  Speaker 1: went with Ito to meet her, but they found only
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  Speaker 1: a dog fox dead around his neck. They read this message,
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  Speaker 1: This is my husband here for his child. He gives
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  Speaker 1: his liver to the princess. Dear, I, his very lowly wife,
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  Speaker 1: have brought it. The end how the spark of fire
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  Speaker 1: was saved long ago. When fire was first brought to earth,
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  Speaker 1: it was given into the care of two beldoms at
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  Speaker 1: the end of the world. The ka Roque Indians knew
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  Speaker 1: where it was hidden. They needed fire and were always
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  Speaker 1: planning ways to get it. They went at last to
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  Speaker 1: the wise coyote. That is simple enough, said he, I
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  Speaker 1: will show you a way to get it. Fire is
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  Speaker 1: a great blessing and should be free to all people.
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  Speaker 1: The coyote knew every inch of the road to the
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  Speaker 1: beldum's hut. Along the path leading to it, he stationed beasts,
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  Speaker 1: the strongest and best runners nearer the hut, and the
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  Speaker 1: weaker ones farther off. Nearest the guarded din. He placed
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  Speaker 1: one of the sinewy Caroque men. Then he walked boldly
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  Speaker 1: up to the door of the hut and knocked. The Beldums,
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  Speaker 1: not fearing a coyote in the least, invited him in.
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  Speaker 1: They were often lonely and living so near the end
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  Speaker 1: of the world. When the coyote had rested before the
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  Speaker 1: fire for some time, he said, the caroke nation need fire.
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  Speaker 1: Could you not give them one small spark? You would
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  Speaker 1: never miss it here it is of no use. The
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  Speaker 1: Beldams answered, we do not love it, but we dare
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  Speaker 1: not give it away. We must guard it while we live.
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  Speaker 1: The coyote had expected them to say this. He sprang
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  Speaker 1: to the window, and instantly outside were heard such sounds
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  Speaker 1: that the Beldams rushed out to see what the frightful
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  Speaker 1: noise could be. Each animal in the line was sounding
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  Speaker 1: the watchword of fire in his own way. The wild
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  Speaker 1: horse neighed, the mountain lion roared, the gray wolf howled,
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  Speaker 1: the serpent hissed, the buffalo bellowed, and every small animal
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  Speaker 1: did it part equally well. Indeed, it is no wonder
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  Speaker 1: that the Beldams were frightened nearly to death. The kiroke
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  Speaker 1: Fin brought water and told them not to fear for themselves.
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  Speaker 1: The coyote seized a half burned brand and was off
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  Speaker 1: in an instant. The Beldams sprang after him and followed
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  Speaker 1: him closely over hill and valley, Faster than the wind
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  Speaker 1: they flew. They were stronger than he, and though he
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  Speaker 1: put all his wild wood nerve to the strain, they
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  Speaker 1: steadily gained. Soon the race must end, but Puma, the
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  Speaker 1: monstrous cat, was watching, and leaped up just in time
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  Speaker 1: to save the brand. Each animal was in its place,
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  Speaker 1: and the good fire passed on. It came at last
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  Speaker 1: to the Cairoke nation, and was afterwards free to all
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  Speaker 1: people under the sun. There were only two mishaps in
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  Speaker 1: all the race. As the squirrel turned a corner of
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  Speaker 1: stumps and boulders, his beautiful tail caught fire, and a
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  Speaker 1: brown track was burned up over his back to his shoulders,
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  Speaker 1: and the curl has remained in his tail to this day.
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  Speaker 1: The frog had a harder fate. He was the last
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  Speaker 1: one in the line of beasts. When the brand reached him,
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  Speaker 1: it was smaller than the smallest coal in the grate.
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  Speaker 1: He seized it carefully and jumped forward as fast as
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  Speaker 1: he could, But the hand of the foremost beldom caught
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  Speaker 1: him and held him fast. How his heart beat, his
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  Speaker 1: eyeballs bulged out of his head, and he has looked
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  Speaker 1: ever since much in the same scared way. He did
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  Speaker 1: not lose his courage. However, he swallowed the coal and
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  Speaker 1: sprang into the water, sad to tell the Beldam still
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  Speaker 1: held in her hand his special pride and care his tail. Henceforth,
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  Speaker 1: only the tadpoles could wear tails. The frog sought a
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  Speaker 1: log and sat down upon it, to think, I did
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  Speaker 1: my duty, even if I lost my beauty. He thought,
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  Speaker 1: that is enough for a frog. This spark must be saved.
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  Speaker 1: After much choking, he spat the swallowed spark well into
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  Speaker 1: the bark. The gift came in this way to all men,
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  Speaker 1: For in even the wettest weather, if you rubbed two
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  Speaker 1: sticks together, fire is sure to come. Because we know
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  Speaker 1: how the frog hurt his throat that day, we like
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  Speaker 1: to listen to his hoarse voice when we hear him
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  Speaker 1: singing to his children in the spring. The end, how
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  Speaker 1: the chipmunk got the stripes on its back? Do you
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  Speaker 1: all know the little striped chipmunk which lives in our woods.
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  Speaker 1: He has a cousin in far off India called the Gheluree.
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  Speaker 1: It is said the stripes came on the back of
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  Speaker 1: the Gheluree in a wonderful way. One day the Great
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  Speaker 1: Siva saw a little gray chipmunk on the sea shore.
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  Speaker 1: He was dipping his bushy tail into the sea and
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  Speaker 1: shaking out the water on the shore twenty times a minute.
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  Speaker 1: He dipped it into the ocean in wonder. Shiva said,
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  Speaker 1: what are you doing, little foolish gray Khiluree. Why do
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  Speaker 1: you tire yourself with such hard labor? The Guilooree answered,
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  Speaker 1: I cannot stop, Great Shiva. The storm blew down the
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  Speaker 1: palm tree where I built my nest. See the tree
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  Speaker 1: has fallen seaward, and the nest lies in the water.
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  Speaker 1: My wife and pretty children are in it. I fear
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  Speaker 1: that it will float away. Therefore, all day and all
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  Speaker 1: night I must dip the water from the sea. I
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  Speaker 1: hope soon to bail it dry. I must save my darlings,
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  Speaker 1: even if I spoil my tail. Shiva stooped and with
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  Speaker 1: his great hand stroked the little squirrel on the guiloure's
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  Speaker 1: soft fur. From his nose to the end of his tail,
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  Speaker 1: there came four green stripes. They were the marks of
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  Speaker 1: Siva's fingers, placed there as signs of love. Shiva raised
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  Speaker 1: his hand, and the water rolled back from the shore,
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  Speaker 1: safe among the rocks and seaweeds. The palm tree lay
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  Speaker 1: on dry land. The little squirrel hastened to it. His
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  Speaker 1: tail was now high in the air. He found his
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  Speaker 1: wife and children dry and well in their house of
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  Speaker 1: woven grass blades. As they sang their welcomes to him,
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  Speaker 1: the Guiloui noticed with delight that each smooth little back
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  Speaker 1: was striped with marks of Sheva's fingers. This sign of
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  Speaker 1: love is still to be seen upon the back of chipmunks.
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  Speaker 1: That is the reason why in India good men never
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  Speaker 1: kill them. A man who loves both children and chipmunks
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  Speaker 1: says when he tells the story, Perhaps our squirrels, though
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  Speaker 1: Siva never stroked them, would be grateful if we left
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  Speaker 1: them unharmed to play in the maples in our woods.
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  Speaker 1: The end an Indian story of the mole. An Indian
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  Speaker 1: once saw a squirrel sunning himself in a tree top.
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  Speaker 1: The squirrel saw the hunter and leaped upon a passing cloud.
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  Speaker 1: He had escaped into cloud land before an arrow could
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  Speaker 1: reach him. The Indians set a trap for him, hoping
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  Speaker 1: that he would soon return to the tree for food.
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  Speaker 1: The sun happened to be coming that way and was
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  Speaker 1: caught in the trap. Suddenly, in the middle of the
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  Speaker 1: day it became dark. The Indian was frightened and said,
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  Speaker 1: ah me, what have I done? I have surely caught
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  Speaker 1: the sun in my trap. He sent many animals up
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  Speaker 1: to set it free, but all were instantly burned to ashes.
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  Speaker 1: At last, the mole said, let me try. I shall
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  Speaker 1: bore through the ground of the sky and gnaw off
• 24:57
  Speaker 1: the cords which hold the trap. He did this, but
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: just as he loosened the last chord, the sun sprang forth,
• 25:07
  Speaker 1: and the bright light shone full in his eyes. The
• 25:12
  Speaker 1: poor mole dropped to the earth, and though his friends
• 25:15
  Speaker 1: were able to save his life, he was blind. You
• 25:20
  Speaker 1: need not pity me, he said, I prefer to live
• 25:23
  Speaker 1: under ground, where really there is no use for eyes.
• 25:28
  Speaker 1: All the moles were so proud of this hero mole
• 25:32
  Speaker 1: that they tried to be like him in every way.
• 25:35
  Speaker 1: They too, went to live in a dark hole in
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: the earth. Their eyes, which they did not need to use,
• 25:43
  Speaker 1: became so small that they were entirely hidden by their fur. Indeed,
• 25:49
  Speaker 1: it is now so hard to find them that many
• 25:53
  Speaker 1: people think the entire mole family is blind. The end
• 25:59
  Speaker 1: and Animal Stories, Nature Myths and Stories for Little Children
• 26:08
  Speaker 1: by Flora J. Cook. This LibriVox recording is in the
• 26:11
  Speaker 1: public domain. Bird Stories an Indian story of the Robin.
• 26:18
  Speaker 1: When an Indian boy was eleven years old, he was
• 26:21
  Speaker 1: sent into a forest far away from his home. He
• 26:25
  Speaker 1: had to stay there all alone and fast for seven
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: days and nights. The Indians thought that at this time
• 26:34
  Speaker 1: a spirit came into the youth, which helped him to
• 26:37
  Speaker 1: become a great chief and warrior. The spirit also told
• 26:41
  Speaker 1: the boy what his name should be in the tribe.
• 26:45
  Speaker 1: Once there was a fierce Indian war chief who had
• 26:49
  Speaker 1: only one son. The little boy was not strong, but
• 26:54
  Speaker 1: his father loved him more than anything else on earth.
• 26:58
  Speaker 1: When this boy was eleven years old, the chief went
• 27:01
  Speaker 1: out into the forest and built a small lodge for
• 27:04
  Speaker 1: him to stay in. In it, he placed a mat
• 27:08
  Speaker 1: of reeds, which his good squaw had woven with great care.
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: By the side of the mat he laid a bow,
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: some arrows, and his own great tomahawk. Next, he painted
• 27:22
  Speaker 1: pictures upon the trees along the path leading from the
• 27:25
  Speaker 1: wigwam to the lodge. He did this that the little
• 27:30
  Speaker 1: boy might easily find his way home. When everything was ready,
• 27:34
  Speaker 1: he sadly sent his son away into the forest. He
• 27:38
  Speaker 1: missed him so much that he went every morning to
• 27:41
  Speaker 1: look at him. Each day he asked him if the
• 27:45
  Speaker 1: spirit had not come to him. Each day, the little
• 27:48
  Speaker 1: boy shook his head without opening his eyes. On the
• 27:53
  Speaker 1: fifth day, his son said to him, father, take me home,
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: or I shall die. No spirit will come to me.
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: The old chief's pride was greater than his pity, and
• 28:05
  Speaker 1: he said, no, my son, you must not be a coward.
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: You shall be as wise as a fox and as
• 28:12
  Speaker 1: strong as a bear. Better that you should die than
• 28:16
  Speaker 1: that boy and squaw should cry shame upon your father's son.
• 28:21
  Speaker 1: Be patient. I will come in two days and bring
• 28:23
  Speaker 1: you food. The sixth day came, and the little boy
• 28:27
  Speaker 1: lay upon the mat, white and still. On the seventh,
• 28:31
  Speaker 1: when the chief came with the son's first rays, his
• 28:35
  Speaker 1: son was not in the lodge, nor about it. Above
• 28:39
  Speaker 1: the door set a bird with brown coat and red breast,
• 28:44
  Speaker 1: which until this time had been unknown to man. Sadly,
• 28:49
  Speaker 1: the chief listened to the bird and understood its message.
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: Mourn me not, great chief, it sang, I was once
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: your son. I am happy, be now and free. I
• 29:01
  Speaker 1: am the friend of man, and shall always live near
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: him and be his companion. I shall bring the tidings
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: of spring, when the maple buds shoot and the wild
• 29:13
  Speaker 1: flowers come. Every child in the land shall know my voice.
• 29:18
  Speaker 1: I shall teach how much better it is to sing
• 29:21
  Speaker 1: than to slay. Chief. Listen, Chief, be more gentle, be
• 29:28
  Speaker 1: more loving. Chief, teach a chief. Be not fierce, Oh,
• 29:34
  Speaker 1: be not cruel. Love each other love each other the
• 29:40
  Speaker 1: end how the robin's breast became red. Long ago in
• 29:47
  Speaker 1: the far north, where it was very cold, there was
• 29:50
  Speaker 1: only one fire. A hunter and his little son took
• 29:55
  Speaker 1: care of this fire and kept it burning day and night.
• 30:00
  Speaker 1: They knew that if the fire went out, the people
• 30:02
  Speaker 1: would freeze, and the white bear would have the northland
• 30:06
  Speaker 1: all to himself. One day, the hunter became ill, and
• 30:10
  Speaker 1: his son had the work to do. For many days
• 30:13
  Speaker 1: and nights, he bravely took care of his father and
• 30:17
  Speaker 1: kept the fire burning. The white bear was always hiding near,
• 30:21
  Speaker 1: watching the fire. He longed to put it out, but
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: he did not dare, for he feared the hunter's arrows.
• 30:30
  Speaker 1: When he saw how tired and sleepy the little boy was,
• 30:33
  Speaker 1: he came closer to the fire and laughed to himself.
• 30:37
  Speaker 1: One night, the poor boy could endure the fatigue no
• 30:40
  Speaker 1: longer and fell fast asleep. The white bear ran as
• 30:44
  Speaker 1: fast as he could and jumped upon the fire with
• 30:47
  Speaker 1: his wet feet and rolled upon it. At last, he
• 30:51
  Speaker 1: thought it was all out, and went happily away to
• 30:54
  Speaker 1: his cave. A gray robin was flying near and saw
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: what the white bear was doing. She waited until the
• 31:02
  Speaker 1: bear went away. Then she flew down and searched with
• 31:06
  Speaker 1: her sharp little eyes until she found a tiny live coal.
• 31:12
  Speaker 1: This she fanned patiently with her wings for a long time.
• 31:16
  Speaker 1: Her little breast was scorched red, but she did not
• 31:20
  Speaker 1: stop until the fine red flame blazed up from the ashes.
• 31:25
  Speaker 1: Then she flew away to every hut in the Northland.
• 31:29
  Speaker 1: Wherever she touched the ground, a fire began to burn. Soon,
• 31:34
  Speaker 1: instead of one little fire, the whole north Country was
• 31:38
  Speaker 1: lighted up. The white bear went further back into his
• 31:42
  Speaker 1: cave in the iceberg and growled terribly. He knew that
• 31:47
  Speaker 1: there was now no hope that he would ever have
• 31:51
  Speaker 1: the Northland all to himself. This is the reason that
• 31:56
  Speaker 1: the people in the North Country love the robin and
• 31:59
  Speaker 1: are never tired of telling their children how its breast
• 32:03
  Speaker 1: became red. The end the red headed woodpecker. There was
• 32:10
  Speaker 1: an old woman who lived on a hill. You never
• 32:13
  Speaker 1: heard of any one smaller or neaterer than she was.
• 32:17
  Speaker 1: She always wore a black dress and a large white
• 32:20
  Speaker 1: apron with big bows behind. On her head was the
• 32:24
  Speaker 1: queerest little red bonnet that you ever saw. It is
• 32:29
  Speaker 1: a sad thing to tell, but this woman had grown
• 32:32
  Speaker 1: very selfish. As the years went by, people said this
• 32:37
  Speaker 1: was because she lived alone and thought of nobody but herself.
• 32:41
  Speaker 1: One morning, as she was baking cakes, a tired, hungry
• 32:45
  Speaker 1: man came to her door. My good woman, he said,
• 32:49
  Speaker 1: will you give me one of your cakes? I am
• 32:52
  Speaker 1: very hungry. I have no money to pay for it.
• 32:55
  Speaker 1: But whatever you first wish for, you shall have. The
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: old woman looked at her cakes and thought that they
• 33:02
  Speaker 1: were too large to give away. She broke off a
• 33:05
  Speaker 1: small bit of dough and put it into the oven
• 33:08
  Speaker 1: to bake. When it was done, she thought this one
• 33:11
  Speaker 1: was too nice and brown for a beggar. She baked
• 33:15
  Speaker 1: a smaller one, and then a smaller one, but each
• 33:19
  Speaker 1: one was as nice and brown as the first. At
• 33:22
  Speaker 1: last she took a piece of dough only as big
• 33:25
  Speaker 1: as the head of a pin. Yet even this, when
• 33:29
  Speaker 1: it was baked, looked as fine and large as the others.
• 33:34
  Speaker 1: So the old woman put all the cakes on the
• 33:36
  Speaker 1: shelf and offered the stranger a dry crust of bread.
• 33:40
  Speaker 1: The poor man only looked at her, and before she
• 33:43
  Speaker 1: could wink her eye, he was gone. She had done wrong,
• 33:48
  Speaker 1: and of course she was unhappy. Oh I wish I
• 33:51
  Speaker 1: were a bird, she said, I would fly to him
• 33:54
  Speaker 1: with the largest cake on the shelf. As she spoke,
• 33:59
  Speaker 1: she felt herself growing smaller and smaller, until the wind
• 34:03
  Speaker 1: whisked her up the chimney. She was no longer an
• 34:07
  Speaker 1: old woman, but a bird, as she had wished to be.
• 34:12
  Speaker 1: She still wore her long black dress and red bonnet.
• 34:16
  Speaker 1: She still seemed to have the large white apron with
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: the big bows behind, because from that day she pecked
• 34:25
  Speaker 1: her food from the hard wood of a tree. People
• 34:28
  Speaker 1: named this bird the red headed woodpecker. The end End
• 34:35
  Speaker 1: of Bird Stories, Nature Myths and Stories for Little Children
• 34:45
  Speaker 1: by Flora J. Cook. The Slibrivox recordings in the public
• 34:48
  Speaker 1: domain Cloud Stories. The palace of ali Quinos, on a
• 34:55
  Speaker 1: high plain covered with flowers, once lived good King Alikis
• 35:00
  Speaker 1: and his gentle people, the Faiachaeans. They were great sailors
• 35:06
  Speaker 1: and went about in silver ships without rudders or sails.
• 35:12
  Speaker 1: These wonderful ships went slowly or very fast, just as
• 35:17
  Speaker 1: the sailors wished. For many years, the Phaiakians were peaceful
• 35:22
  Speaker 1: and happy. Though they were as brave as they were gentle,
• 35:27
  Speaker 1: They hated war. Far below the Phaiakians. In a valley
• 35:33
  Speaker 1: lived a people larger, darker, fiercer than themselves. These dark
• 35:39
  Speaker 1: people cared for nothing so much as war and conquest.
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: When they saw the silver ships with the golden prows,
• 35:49
  Speaker 1: they wanted them for their own. They armed themselves and
• 35:53
  Speaker 1: made ready for a great battle. To be sure of victory,
• 35:58
  Speaker 1: they borrowed the thunder and light from Zeus. The day
• 36:02
  Speaker 1: came and all was ready for the dark people to advance.
• 36:07
  Speaker 1: They reached the land of the Phaiakians in the morning,
• 36:12
  Speaker 1: and King Aliquinos came forward to meet them. They soon
• 36:18
  Speaker 1: saw that he alone was more powerful than their entire army.
• 36:23
  Speaker 1: He was dressed in armor so bright that it dazzled
• 36:27
  Speaker 1: their eyes to look at it. It was covered with
• 36:30
  Speaker 1: millions of golden arrows tipped with diamonds. The king showed
• 36:36
  Speaker 1: the frightened people how he could shoot the arrows in
• 36:39
  Speaker 1: all directions at the same time. The dark people trembled
• 36:45
  Speaker 1: with fear, but King Alikenos smiled at them, and then
• 36:50
  Speaker 1: he and his people sailed slowly away toward the west.
• 36:55
  Speaker 1: On and on they went until they came to a
• 36:58
  Speaker 1: great soul for a sea. Here they stopped and built
• 37:03
  Speaker 1: a palace for their king. This palace was made of
• 37:07
  Speaker 1: silver and gold and precious stones. Its towers were rose
• 37:13
  Speaker 1: color and shone with a wonderful light. Its steps were
• 37:18
  Speaker 1: of pure gold. On each side of the silver gates
• 37:22
  Speaker 1: were huge dogs which guarded the palace. There were boys
• 37:27
  Speaker 1: in the halls dressed in white, holding burning torches. There
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: were girls weaving wonderful curtains and painting pictures upon the walls.
• 37:38
  Speaker 1: There were mountains and fountains, and rivers and lakes. There
• 37:43
  Speaker 1: were singing birds and flower gardens, and little children everywhere.
• 37:49
  Speaker 1: Even to this day, the great King often sits in
• 37:52
  Speaker 1: his palace in the west when his day's work is done.
• 37:57
  Speaker 1: He loves to see the people glide about upon on
• 38:00
  Speaker 1: the silver Sea in their ships without rudders or sails.
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: The fierce dark people still go to war. They seldom
• 38:10
  Speaker 1: let the gentle kings see them fighting. Yet often after
• 38:15
  Speaker 1: a brave battle, Ala Chinos comes out of his palace
• 38:19
  Speaker 1: and smiles brightly upon them. The dark people plush and
• 38:23
  Speaker 1: seem to smile at the king. You must find out
• 38:27
  Speaker 1: how much good these dark people do, and how the
• 38:31
  Speaker 1: King of the Phayachaeans helps them in their work. If
• 38:35
  Speaker 1: you wish to understand their friendship the end the swan Maidens.
• 38:43
  Speaker 1: A long long time ago, there was born in the
• 38:47
  Speaker 1: east a wonderful king. He was called the King of
• 38:51
  Speaker 1: the Golden Sword. Every day he came in his golden chariot,
• 38:57
  Speaker 1: scattering heat, light and happiness among his people. Every day
• 39:02
  Speaker 1: he passed from his palace in the east far over
• 39:07
  Speaker 1: to his throne in the west. He never missed a day,
• 39:11
  Speaker 1: for he wanted to see that every one had a
• 39:14
  Speaker 1: full share of his gifts. Throughout the kingdom, the birds
• 39:18
  Speaker 1: sang and the flowers bloomed. The sky was full of
• 39:22
  Speaker 1: beautiful pictures, which were constantly changing. The king had many daughters,
• 39:28
  Speaker 1: who were called swan maidens. They were as graceful as
• 39:32
  Speaker 1: swans and usually wore white, featherlike dresses. The swan maidens
• 39:38
  Speaker 1: loved their good father, and each one longed to help
• 39:41
  Speaker 1: him in his work. Sometimes the king saw that the
• 39:45
  Speaker 1: grass was brown or the buds were not coming out.
• 39:48
  Speaker 1: Then he called the swan maidens to him and said,
• 39:51
  Speaker 1: my children, this must not be. There is nothing more
• 39:55
  Speaker 1: beautiful in the kingdom than the green grass in the trees.
• 40:00
  Speaker 1: They need your care. Gladly. Each maiden changed her dress
• 40:05
  Speaker 1: and set out at once on her journey. Often they
• 40:08
  Speaker 1: could not all work upon the grass and the buds.
• 40:12
  Speaker 1: Some of them ran off to play with the stones
• 40:15
  Speaker 1: in the brook. The best ones went down to feed
• 40:18
  Speaker 1: the roots and worms, and worked out of sight. When
• 40:22
  Speaker 1: their tasks were finished, they always hurried back to their father,
• 40:26
  Speaker 1: the king. They went so noiselessly and swiftly, that for
• 40:31
  Speaker 1: a long time their way of traveling was a mystery.
• 40:36
  Speaker 1: In the fall, the king called the bravest swan maidens
• 40:39
  Speaker 1: to him. He told them they must go away for
• 40:43
  Speaker 1: a long time. The swan maidens wrapped themselves in white
• 40:48
  Speaker 1: feathery blankets and came softly down to the shivering flowers. Gently,
• 40:54
  Speaker 1: they placed a white spread on the earth, and left
• 40:58
  Speaker 1: no small seed uncovered. At last, when the kings smiled
• 41:03
  Speaker 1: and their work was done, they stole away so softly
• 41:08
  Speaker 1: and happily that no one missed them. The end. End
• 41:15
  Speaker 1: of Cloud Stories, Nature Myths and Stories for Little Children
• 41:25
  Speaker 1: by Flora J. A. Cook. The slibrivox recording is in
• 41:28
  Speaker 1: the public domain. Flower Stories. Clytis Clytie was a beautiful
• 41:36
  Speaker 1: little water nymph who lived in a cave at the
• 41:39
  Speaker 1: bottom of the sea. The walls of the cave were
• 41:42
  Speaker 1: covered with pearls and shells. The floor was made of
• 41:46
  Speaker 1: sand as white as snow. There were many chairs of
• 41:51
  Speaker 1: amber with soft mossy cushions. On each side of the
• 41:56
  Speaker 1: cave opening was a great forest of coral. Back of
• 42:00
  Speaker 1: the cave were clyties gardens. Here were the sea anemonies, starfish,
• 42:07
  Speaker 1: and all kinds of seaweed. In the garden grotto were
• 42:12
  Speaker 1: her horses. These were the gentlest goldfish and turtles. The
• 42:18
  Speaker 1: ocean fairies loved CLYTII and wove her dresses of softest
• 42:23
  Speaker 1: green as sea lace. With all these treasures, CLYTII should
• 42:29
  Speaker 1: have been happy, but she was not. She had once
• 42:33
  Speaker 1: heard of a mermaid seeing of a glorious light which
• 42:36
  Speaker 1: shone on the top of the water. She could think
• 42:40
  Speaker 1: of nothing else but longed day and night to know
• 42:44
  Speaker 1: more of the wonderful light. No ocean fairy dared take
• 42:49
  Speaker 1: her to it, and she was afraid to go alone.
• 42:52
  Speaker 1: One day, she was taking her usual ride in her
• 42:56
  Speaker 1: shell carriage. The water was warm, and the turtles so
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: slowly that Clytilli soon fell asleep. On and on they
• 43:06
  Speaker 1: went straight towards the light until they came to an island.
• 43:13
  Speaker 1: As the waves dashed the carriage against the shore, Clytilli awoke.
• 43:18
  Speaker 1: She climbed out of the shell and sat down upon
• 43:21
  Speaker 1: a large rock. She had never seen the trees and flowers.
• 43:26
  Speaker 1: She had never heard the birds chirping or the forest
• 43:30
  Speaker 1: winds singing. She had never known the perfume of the flowers,
• 43:35
  Speaker 1: or seen the dew on the grass. In wonder, she
• 43:39
  Speaker 1: saw a little boy and girl near her, and heard
• 43:42
  Speaker 1: them say, here it comes, here it comes. As she
• 43:46
  Speaker 1: looked away in the east, she saw the glorious light
• 43:49
  Speaker 1: that she had so longed for in its mist in
• 43:55
  Speaker 1: a golden chariot, said a wonderful king. The king smiled,
• 44:00
  Speaker 1: and instantly the birds began to sing, the plants unfolded
• 44:04
  Speaker 1: their buds, and even the old sea looked happy. Clytie
• 44:10
  Speaker 1: sat on the rock all day long and wished that
• 44:13
  Speaker 1: she might be like the great kind king. She wept
• 44:17
  Speaker 1: when he entered the land of the sunset, and she
• 44:20
  Speaker 1: could see him no longer. She went home, but she
• 44:24
  Speaker 1: could scarcely wait until the morning. Very early the next day,
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: her swiftest goldfish carried her to the rock After this,
• 44:33
  Speaker 1: she came every day wishing more and more to be
• 44:37
  Speaker 1: like the great kind King. One evening, as she was
• 44:41
  Speaker 1: ready to go home, she found that she could not
• 44:43
  Speaker 1: move her feet. She leaned out over the sea and
• 44:48
  Speaker 1: knew that she had her wish. Instead of a water nymph,
• 44:53
  Speaker 1: a beautiful sunflower looked back at her from the water.
• 44:58
  Speaker 1: Her yellow hair had been come golden petals, her green
• 45:02
  Speaker 1: lace dress had turned into leaves and stems, and her
• 45:07
  Speaker 1: little feet had become roots, which fastened her to the ground.
• 45:12
  Speaker 1: The good King the next day sent her into many countries,
• 45:17
  Speaker 1: into dry and sandy places, that the people might be
• 45:21
  Speaker 1: made happy by looking at her bright face so like
• 45:26
  Speaker 1: his own. The end golden Rod and asked her golden
• 45:35
  Speaker 1: hair and blue eyes lived at the foot of a
• 45:38
  Speaker 1: great hill. On the top of this hill, in a
• 45:42
  Speaker 1: little hut, lived a strange, wise woman. It was said
• 45:47
  Speaker 1: that she could change people into anything she wished. She
• 45:51
  Speaker 1: looked so grim and severe that people were afraid to
• 45:56
  Speaker 1: go near her. One summer day, the two little girls
• 46:00
  Speaker 1: at the foot of the hill thought they would like
• 46:02
  Speaker 1: to do something to make everybody happy. I know, said Goldenhair.
• 46:08
  Speaker 1: Let us go and ask the woman on the hill
• 46:11
  Speaker 1: about it. She is very wise and can surely tell
• 46:14
  Speaker 1: us just what to do. Oh yes, said blue eyes,
• 46:19
  Speaker 1: and away they started at once. It was a warm
• 46:23
  Speaker 1: day and a long walk to the top of the hill.
• 46:27
  Speaker 1: The little girls stopped many times to rest under the
• 46:30
  Speaker 1: big oaks which shaded their pathway. They could find no flowers,
• 46:36
  Speaker 1: but they made a basket of oak leaves and filled
• 46:38
  Speaker 1: it with berries for the wise woman. They fed the
• 46:42
  Speaker 1: fish in the brook and talked to the squirrels and
• 46:45
  Speaker 1: the birds. They walked on and on in the rocky path.
• 46:50
  Speaker 1: After a while, the sun went down, the birds stopped singing,
• 46:56
  Speaker 1: the squirrels went to bed, the trees fell asleep. Even
• 47:01
  Speaker 1: the wind was resting. Oh how still and cool it
• 47:06
  Speaker 1: was on the hillside. The moon and stars came out,
• 47:11
  Speaker 1: the frogs and toads awoke, the night music began. The
• 47:16
  Speaker 1: beetles and fireflies flew away to a party. But the
• 47:20
  Speaker 1: tired little children climbed on towards the hilltop. At last
• 47:25
  Speaker 1: they reached it. There at the gate was the strange
• 47:29
  Speaker 1: old woman, looking even more stern than usual. The little
• 47:35
  Speaker 1: girls were frightened. They clung close together, while brave golden
• 47:39
  Speaker 1: hair said, we know you are wise, and we came
• 47:44
  Speaker 1: to see if you would tell us how to make
• 47:48
  Speaker 1: everyone happy. Please let us stay together, said timid blue eyes,
• 47:54
  Speaker 1: as she opened the gate for the children. The wise
• 47:58
  Speaker 1: woman was seen to smile in the moonlight. The two
• 48:01
  Speaker 1: little girls were never seen again. At the foot of
• 48:04
  Speaker 1: the hill. The next morning, all over the hillside people
• 48:09
  Speaker 1: saw beautiful waving golden rod and purple asters growing. It
• 48:16
  Speaker 1: has been said that these two bright flowers, which grow
• 48:20
  Speaker 1: side by side, could tell the secret if they would,
• 48:24
  Speaker 1: of what became of the two little girls on that
• 48:28
  Speaker 1: moonlight summer night. The end end of Flower Stories, Nature
• 48:40
  Speaker 1: Myths and Stories for Little Children by Flora J. Cook.
• 48:44
  Speaker 1: This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Insects Stories
• 48:50
  Speaker 1: a Rockney. A Rockney was a beautiful maiden and the
• 48:55
  Speaker 1: most wonderful weaver that ever lived. Her father was famed
• 48:59
  Speaker 1: throughout the land, and for his great skill in coloring.
• 49:03
  Speaker 1: He dyed a Rockney's wolves in all the colors of
• 49:05
  Speaker 1: the rainbow. People came from miles around to see and
• 49:09
  Speaker 1: admire her work. They all agreed that Queen Athena must
• 49:14
  Speaker 1: have been her teacher. A Rockney proudly said that she
• 49:19
  Speaker 1: had never been taught to weave. She said that she
• 49:23
  Speaker 1: would be glad to weave with Athena to see which
• 49:26
  Speaker 1: had the greater skill. In Vain, her father told her
• 49:30
  Speaker 1: that perhaps Athena, unseen guided her hand. A Rockney would
• 49:37
  Speaker 1: not listen and would think no one for her gift,
• 49:41
  Speaker 1: believing only in herself. One day, as she was boasting
• 49:46
  Speaker 1: of her skill, an old woman came to her. She
• 49:49
  Speaker 1: kindly advised her to accept her rare gift humbly. Be
• 49:53
  Speaker 1: thankful that you are so fortunate a Rockney. She said,
• 49:58
  Speaker 1: you may give great happines as to others by your
• 50:01
  Speaker 1: beautiful work. Queen Athena longs to help you, but I
• 50:06
  Speaker 1: warn you she can do no more for you until
• 50:09
  Speaker 1: you grow unselfish unkind. A Rockney scorned this advice and
• 50:16
  Speaker 1: said again that nothing would please her so much as
• 50:19
  Speaker 1: to weave with Athena. If I fail, she said, I
• 50:23
  Speaker 1: will gladly take the punishment, but Athena is afraid to
• 50:27
  Speaker 1: weave with me. Then the old woman threw aside her
• 50:31
  Speaker 1: cloak and said, Athena is here. Come, foolish girl. You
• 50:36
  Speaker 1: shall try your skills with hers. Both went quickly to work,
• 50:41
  Speaker 1: and for hours their shuttles flew swiftly in and out. Athena,
• 50:46
  Speaker 1: as usual, used the sky for her loom, and in
• 50:50
  Speaker 1: it she wove a picture too beautiful to describe. If
• 50:54
  Speaker 1: you wish to know more about it, look at the
• 50:57
  Speaker 1: western sky when the sun is setting. A Rockney's work,
• 51:02
  Speaker 1: though her colors were in harmony and her weaving wonderfully fine,
• 51:07
  Speaker 1: was full of spite and selfishness. When the work was finished,
• 51:12
  Speaker 1: A Rockney lifted her eyes to Athena's work. Instantly she
• 51:17
  Speaker 1: knew she had failed. Ashamed and miserable, she tried to
• 51:22
  Speaker 1: hang herself in her web. Athena saw her and said,
• 51:26
  Speaker 1: in pity, no, you shall not die. Live and do
• 51:30
  Speaker 1: the work for which you are best fitted. You shall
• 51:34
  Speaker 1: be the mother of a great race, which shall be
• 51:37
  Speaker 1: called spiders. You and your children shall be among the
• 51:41
  Speaker 1: greatest spinners and weavers on earth. As she spoke, a
• 51:46
  Speaker 1: Rockney became smaller and smaller, until she was scarcely larger
• 51:52
  Speaker 1: than a fly. From that day to this, A Rockney
• 51:57
  Speaker 1: and her family have been faithful spinners. But they do
• 52:01
  Speaker 1: their work so quietly and in such dark places, that
• 52:06
  Speaker 1: very few people know what marvelous weavers they are the
• 52:10
  Speaker 1: end Aurora and Tothonis, the beautiful youth. Tothonis loved Arora,
• 52:21
  Speaker 1: the Queen of the Dawn. He was the first one
• 52:24
  Speaker 1: to greet her each day as she drew back the
• 52:27
  Speaker 1: purple curtains of the east. He made his bed on
• 52:31
  Speaker 1: the green grass in the meadow that he might not
• 52:33
  Speaker 1: miss her coming. Aurora grew to expect his welcome and
• 52:38
  Speaker 1: to love the youth. Dearly one morning when she came
• 52:42
  Speaker 1: to Thonis was not in his usual place. As she
• 52:45
  Speaker 1: looked anxiously around, she saw him with pale face and
• 52:49
  Speaker 1: closed eyes, lying upon the ground. She darted down to
• 52:53
  Speaker 1: earth and carried his almost lifeless body to Zeus. She
• 52:58
  Speaker 1: begged the great king to that to Thonis should never die,
• 53:04
  Speaker 1: But alas in her haste she forgot to ask that
• 53:08
  Speaker 1: he might forever remain young. Therefore he grew old and
• 53:13
  Speaker 1: bent and could no longer walk. In misery, he begged
• 53:17
  Speaker 1: to go back to the cool grass in the meadow
• 53:20
  Speaker 1: where he had been so happy. Aurora, and pity said,
• 53:25
  Speaker 1: you shall go, my Tothonis. To make you happy is
• 53:28
  Speaker 1: my dearest wish. You shall be free from all care.
• 53:33
  Speaker 1: You shall not be a man, lest you be compelled
• 53:36
  Speaker 1: to work for your food. In your old age, you
• 53:40
  Speaker 1: shall be a grasshopper, free to dance in the meadow
• 53:43
  Speaker 1: grass all the long summer days. I have prepared a
• 53:47
  Speaker 1: dress for you which shall protect you well. Then she
• 53:51
  Speaker 1: gave to Thonis the wonderful grasshopper coat of mail, which
• 53:54
  Speaker 1: had been unknown on earth until this time. She tinted
• 53:58
  Speaker 1: it a soft green, so that he might not be
• 54:01
  Speaker 1: noticed in the grass t Thonis went that day to
• 54:05
  Speaker 1: live in the meadow, and there any summer day you
• 54:08
  Speaker 1: may find him and his family hopping merrily about in
• 54:12
  Speaker 1: the sunshine. The end, King Solomon and the Ants. One morning,
• 54:21
  Speaker 1: the Queen of Sheba started back to her home in
• 54:23
  Speaker 1: the south. King Solomon and all his court went with
• 54:27
  Speaker 1: her to the gates of the city. It was a
• 54:30
  Speaker 1: glorious sight. The King and queen rode upon white horses.
• 54:36
  Speaker 1: The purple and scarlet coverings of their followers glittered with
• 54:41
  Speaker 1: silver and gold. The king looked down and saw an
• 54:45
  Speaker 1: ant hill in the path before them. See yonder, little people,
• 54:50
  Speaker 1: he said, Do you hear what they are saying? As
• 54:54
  Speaker 1: they run about so wildly? They say, here comes the king, men,
• 55:00
  Speaker 1: call wise and good and great. He will trample us
• 55:05
  Speaker 1: under his cruel feet. They should be proud to die
• 55:08
  Speaker 1: under the feet of such king, said the queen. How
• 55:11
  Speaker 1: dare they complain? Not so, great, queen, replied the king.
• 55:17
  Speaker 1: He turned his horse aside, and all his followers did
• 55:20
  Speaker 1: the same. When the great company had passed, there was
• 55:24
  Speaker 1: the ant hill unharmed in the path. The queen said, happy, indeed,
• 55:29
  Speaker 1: must be your people, Wise King, I shall remember the lesson.
• 55:34
  Speaker 1: He only is noble and great who cares for the
• 55:37
  Speaker 1: helpless and weak. The end the wise King and the bee.
• 55:46
  Speaker 1: Long ago there lived in the east, the greatest king
• 55:49
  Speaker 1: in the world. It was believed that no one could
• 55:53
  Speaker 1: ask him a question which he could not answer. Wise
• 55:57
  Speaker 1: men came from far and near, but they were never
• 56:00
  Speaker 1: were able to puzzle King Solomon. He knew all the
• 56:03
  Speaker 1: trees and plants. He understood the beasts, fowls, and creeping
• 56:09
  Speaker 1: things almost as well as he did people. The fame
• 56:14
  Speaker 1: of his knowledge spread into all lambs. In the south,
• 56:18
  Speaker 1: the great Queen of Sheba heard of the wonderful wisdom
• 56:22
  Speaker 1: of Solomon, and said, I shall test his power for myself.
• 56:27
  Speaker 1: She picked some clover blossoms from the field, and bad
• 56:30
  Speaker 1: a great artist to make for her in wax flowers,
• 56:35
  Speaker 1: buds and leaves exactly like them. She was much pleased
• 56:40
  Speaker 1: when they were finished, for she herself could see no
• 56:43
  Speaker 1: difference the two bunches. She carried them to the king
• 56:46
  Speaker 1: and said, choose a wise one, which are the real flowers?
• 56:52
  Speaker 1: At first King Solomon was puzzled, But soon he saw
• 56:55
  Speaker 1: a bee buzzing at the window. Ah, he said, here
• 57:00
  Speaker 1: is one come to help me in my choice. Throw
• 57:04
  Speaker 1: open the window for my friend. Then the Queen Nasheba
• 57:08
  Speaker 1: bowed her head and said, you are indeed a wise king,
• 57:13
  Speaker 1: but I begin to understand your wisdom. I thank you
• 57:16
  Speaker 1: for this lesson. The end end of Insects Stories, Nature
• 57:28
  Speaker 1: Methicen's Stories for Little Children by Flora J. Cook. This
• 57:32
  Speaker 1: LibriVox recording is in the public domain. The Mineralogy Stories
• 57:38
  Speaker 1: The story of Sissyphus. Little white Cloud was the Ocean's daughter.
• 57:44
  Speaker 1: The ocean loved her and wished always to keep her
• 57:46
  Speaker 1: near him. One day, when her father was asleep, white
• 57:50
  Speaker 1: Cloud went out to walk alone. The son saw her
• 57:54
  Speaker 1: and said, come, white Cloud, I am your king. I
• 57:58
  Speaker 1: will give you a ride upon my bright rays. White
• 58:02
  Speaker 1: Cloud had often longed for this very thing. So she
• 58:05
  Speaker 1: went loudly, and soon found herself among the fleecy clouds
• 58:09
  Speaker 1: in the sky. When the ocean awoke, he called his
• 58:13
  Speaker 1: little daughter. She did not answer. He called again and again, louder,
• 58:20
  Speaker 1: and still louder, until the people said, listen, it is thundering.
• 58:26
  Speaker 1: But the ocean only heard the echo of his own
• 58:29
  Speaker 1: voice from the shore. He rushed high up on the
• 58:33
  Speaker 1: beach and moaned aloud. He ran into all the caves,
• 58:37
  Speaker 1: but White Cloud could not be found. Everyone had loved
• 58:42
  Speaker 1: White Cloud, so by this time all the water was
• 58:45
  Speaker 1: white with the crusts of the weeping sea nymphs. A
• 58:50
  Speaker 1: great giant was sitting upon the shore near the sea.
• 58:54
  Speaker 1: His name was Sissiphus. He felt sorry for the ocean
• 58:58
  Speaker 1: and said, listen, freendo ocean. I often watch you carrying
• 59:02
  Speaker 1: the great ships, and wish that I too had a
• 59:05
  Speaker 1: great work to do. You see how dry it is
• 59:09
  Speaker 1: on the side of the mountain. Few people come this way.
• 59:13
  Speaker 1: You are not even now as lonely as I. Yet
• 59:17
  Speaker 1: I want to help you. Promise me that you will
• 59:20
  Speaker 1: put a spring upon this mountain side, where all the
• 59:24
  Speaker 1: tired and thirsty people may drink. And I'll tell you
• 59:27
  Speaker 1: where white Cloud is. The ocean said, I cannot put
• 59:32
  Speaker 1: a spring upon the mountain, but if you will follow
• 59:36
  Speaker 1: my sun river, he will take you to a spring
• 59:39
  Speaker 1: where he was born. The giant told the ocean how
• 59:43
  Speaker 1: the sun ran away with white Cloud. The sun heard
• 59:46
  Speaker 1: him and was angry. He placed Sissyphis in the sea, saying,
• 59:52
  Speaker 1: you are far too strong to sit idly here upon
• 59:55
  Speaker 1: the shore. You say you want a great work to do,
• 1:00:00
  Speaker 1: you shall have it. You shall forever use your strength
• 1:00:04
  Speaker 1: to push these stones upon the shore, and they shall
• 1:00:08
  Speaker 1: forever roll back upon you. The giant began his work
• 1:00:13
  Speaker 1: at once and has worked faithfully every day since that time.
• 1:00:18
  Speaker 1: Many people do not yet know what his work is.
• 1:00:21
  Speaker 1: Do you do you know what Sissyphus is making? The
• 1:00:26
  Speaker 1: end the story of the pudding Stone. Once upon a
• 1:00:32
  Speaker 1: time a family of giants lived upon the high mountains
• 1:00:35
  Speaker 1: in the west. One day, the mother giant was called
• 1:00:38
  Speaker 1: away from home. She arose early in the morning and
• 1:00:42
  Speaker 1: made ready the bread and butter for the little giants
• 1:00:44
  Speaker 1: to eat while she was gone. When she had finished
• 1:00:48
  Speaker 1: her work, it was not yet time to start upon
• 1:00:51
  Speaker 1: her journey. She said to herself, my children are the
• 1:00:55
  Speaker 1: best children in the world, and they shall have a treat.
• 1:00:59
  Speaker 1: I have many plums left from the Christmas feast. I
• 1:01:03
  Speaker 1: will make them a plum pudding for a surprise. The
• 1:01:07
  Speaker 1: good woman brought together the plums, which it had taken
• 1:01:11
  Speaker 1: her many days to prepare with the help of all
• 1:01:14
  Speaker 1: of her children. Indeed, she had emptied several mountain lakes
• 1:01:18
  Speaker 1: to get water enough to wash them all. She now
• 1:01:22
  Speaker 1: mixed these wonderful plums into a pudding and put it
• 1:01:25
  Speaker 1: into an oven to bake. The mixing took so long
• 1:01:30
  Speaker 1: that she had to hurry, and she quite forgot to
• 1:01:33
  Speaker 1: say anything about the pudding to the little giants. She
• 1:01:37
  Speaker 1: had intended to tell them about it just before she
• 1:01:40
  Speaker 1: left them. It was afternoon when the giant children found
• 1:01:44
  Speaker 1: the pudding. It was badly burned upon the top. By
• 1:01:47
  Speaker 1: this time, they had already eaten the bread and butter
• 1:01:51
  Speaker 1: and were not hungry. One little giant said to the others,
• 1:01:55
  Speaker 1: let us make balls of the pudding, and see who
• 1:01:58
  Speaker 1: can throw the farthest. You know that giants are very strong,
• 1:02:02
  Speaker 1: and away went the pudding up into the air. The
• 1:02:06
  Speaker 1: little giants made little balls, and the older giants threw
• 1:02:09
  Speaker 1: pieces as big as a house many pieces went over
• 1:02:14
  Speaker 1: the mountains and fell down into the valley beyond. Indeed,
• 1:02:18
  Speaker 1: this wonderful pudding was scattered for miles over the whole land,
• 1:02:24
  Speaker 1: for the giants did not stop throwing as long as
• 1:02:28
  Speaker 1: there was any pudding left in the pan. When the
• 1:02:31
  Speaker 1: sun had shone upon it many days and dried and
• 1:02:34
  Speaker 1: hardened it, people called it pudding stone. You may find
• 1:02:39
  Speaker 1: it today thrown all over the land, full of the
• 1:02:42
  Speaker 1: plums which the good woman washed with the waters of
• 1:02:45
  Speaker 1: many lakes. The end. End of Mineralogy, Stories, Nature Myths
• 1:02:58
  Speaker 1: and Stories for Little Children by Flora J. A. Cook.
• 1:03:01
  Speaker 1: This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. Sun Myths Balder.
• 1:03:08
  Speaker 1: The people in the north once believed that high above
• 1:03:10
  Speaker 1: the clouds was the beautiful plain of Asgard. Odin, ruler
• 1:03:15
  Speaker 1: of Asgard, Mighty Thor, and many other heroes lived on
• 1:03:19
  Speaker 1: the plain. Their homes were great castles, splendid with silver
• 1:03:24
  Speaker 1: and gold. In the middle of the plain, and apart
• 1:03:27
  Speaker 1: from the other dwellings, stood a pure white palace. Nothing
• 1:03:32
  Speaker 1: that was not fair and good had ever dared to
• 1:03:35
  Speaker 1: enter it. It was the home of Balder. Because of
• 1:03:40
  Speaker 1: his great beauty and wisdom, he was called Balder the beautiful,
• 1:03:44
  Speaker 1: and Balder the good. Everything loved him. The dull rocks
• 1:03:49
  Speaker 1: and the gray old mountains met him with a smile.
• 1:03:52
  Speaker 1: The flowers opened, the birds sang, and the water sparkled
• 1:03:57
  Speaker 1: when they saw his face. One night, he dreamed that
• 1:04:00
  Speaker 1: he must soon leave Asgard and all the things that
• 1:04:04
  Speaker 1: he loved. The next night he dreamed that he was
• 1:04:07
  Speaker 1: living in the gloomy underground world. The third night, when
• 1:04:12
  Speaker 1: the same terrible dream came to him, he was greatly troubled.
• 1:04:16
  Speaker 1: He told Odin, his father, and Frigga his mother, about it. Odin,
• 1:04:21
  Speaker 1: in great fear, called together his wisest heroes. They shook
• 1:04:26
  Speaker 1: their heads, but could do nothing to help him. Friga cried,
• 1:04:31
  Speaker 1: it shall not be I. His mother will save him.
• 1:04:35
  Speaker 1: She went straightway to Hymn Daal, who guarded the Rainbow Bridge. Bivrost,
• 1:04:41
  Speaker 1: which was the name of the bridge, was the only
• 1:04:44
  Speaker 1: path which led from Asgard to the earth. Hymn Dayal
• 1:04:49
  Speaker 1: allowed only those who lived in the plain to pass
• 1:04:52
  Speaker 1: over it. All feared Himdal, yet they loved him. He
• 1:04:58
  Speaker 1: could see to the inn of the world. He could
• 1:05:02
  Speaker 1: hear the wool growing on the sheep's back, and knew
• 1:05:06
  Speaker 1: when each grass blade broke into the sunshine. Hemdayal loved Balder,
• 1:05:12
  Speaker 1: and when he heard what troubled Friga pitied her. He
• 1:05:16
  Speaker 1: gave her his swift black horse and showed her the
• 1:05:19
  Speaker 1: way to the ends of the earth. For nine days
• 1:05:23
  Speaker 1: and nights she traveled without food or rest. She asked
• 1:05:27
  Speaker 1: everything she met to promise not to harm balder animals, flowers, trees, water,
• 1:05:34
  Speaker 1: air fire. Everything she asked gladly gave the promise. They
• 1:05:40
  Speaker 1: smiled in wonder at the question, who could wish to
• 1:05:44
  Speaker 1: hurt the gentle balder Alas the mistletoe did not promise,
• 1:05:50
  Speaker 1: Frigga saw it growing high up on an oak tree.
• 1:05:54
  Speaker 1: It seemed too small and weak to do any harm.
• 1:05:58
  Speaker 1: She did not ask it to promise. On the tenth
• 1:06:01
  Speaker 1: day of her journey, she came back again to Asgard.
• 1:06:05
  Speaker 1: She told the sorrowing Odin and his friends what she
• 1:06:07
  Speaker 1: had done. In their joy, they found a new way
• 1:06:11
  Speaker 1: to do balder honor. He stood in their midst while
• 1:06:14
  Speaker 1: his most skillful heroes hurled their arrows at him. At first,
• 1:06:19
  Speaker 1: they threw only small twigs and pebbles. Everything, however, had
• 1:06:24
  Speaker 1: soon proved itself true to its promise. Then the heroes
• 1:06:29
  Speaker 1: lost all fear of harming him and threw their warlike weapons.
• 1:06:34
  Speaker 1: Balder stood unharmed and smiling among them. Each day they
• 1:06:39
  Speaker 1: met on the plane, and in this sport proved the
• 1:06:43
  Speaker 1: love of all things for him. The blind Hoder was
• 1:06:47
  Speaker 1: the only one in Asgard who could not join in
• 1:06:51
  Speaker 1: the game. He was Baldard's brother and loved him very dearly.
• 1:06:56
  Speaker 1: Hoder was not unhappy, but always cheered and shouted as
• 1:06:59
  Speaker 1: gayly as the others. One day he stood aside Loki
• 1:07:03
  Speaker 1: saw him. Loki was a mischief maker. His jokes were
• 1:07:08
  Speaker 1: often cruel. Indeed, most of the unhappiness in Asgard was
• 1:07:13
  Speaker 1: caused by Loki's unkindness. Hoder, why do you not do
• 1:07:17
  Speaker 1: Balder honor, asked Loki. I am blind, Oder said, And besides,
• 1:07:23
  Speaker 1: I have nothing to throw. Here is my arrow, said Loki.
• 1:07:27
  Speaker 1: Take it. I will guide your hands alas the cruel
• 1:07:31
  Speaker 1: Loki had made the arrow of mistletoe. He knew that
• 1:07:37
  Speaker 1: this was the only way in which Balder could be harmed.
• 1:07:41
  Speaker 1: He longed to see the surprise of the heroes when
• 1:07:43
  Speaker 1: Balder should at last be wounded away flew the arrow
• 1:07:48
  Speaker 1: Balder the beautiful fell lifeless to the ground. Then all
• 1:07:54
  Speaker 1: Asgard was dark with sorrow. Strong heroes wept and would
• 1:07:59
  Speaker 1: not be comforted. The earth grew cold, white, and still
• 1:08:06
  Speaker 1: the water would not flow. The seeds refused to grow.
• 1:08:10
  Speaker 1: The birds were silent. No flowers breathed their perfumes into
• 1:08:15
  Speaker 1: the air. There was not a smile in all the world.
• 1:08:19
  Speaker 1: Odin said, this cannot be. Balder shall return. I myself
• 1:08:26
  Speaker 1: will go and bring him from Hela's dark regions. But
• 1:08:31
  Speaker 1: Friga had already sent a message to the spirit world
• 1:08:35
  Speaker 1: to beg Queenhila to release Balder. While waiting for the
• 1:08:39
  Speaker 1: message to return, the heroes were not idle. For twelve
• 1:08:44
  Speaker 1: days and nights, they worked as only love can make
• 1:08:46
  Speaker 1: men work. They did not pause for food nor rest.
• 1:08:51
  Speaker 1: They built a great funeral pyre, and no one was
• 1:08:54
  Speaker 1: too small to help in the work of love. They
• 1:08:57
  Speaker 1: found Balder's ship among the seashore. They brought great logs
• 1:09:01
  Speaker 1: from the forest and bound them upon the deck. Upon
• 1:09:06
  Speaker 1: these they placed his beautiful white horse, his dogs, his
• 1:09:10
  Speaker 1: shining armor, and many things which he had loved on earth.
• 1:09:14
  Speaker 1: When it was finished, they raised the sails, set the
• 1:09:18
  Speaker 1: ship on fire, and pushed it out upon the sea.
• 1:09:22
  Speaker 1: They sang and wept all night, until at sunrise the
• 1:09:25
  Speaker 1: sails fell. They watched the flames die down and the
• 1:09:30
  Speaker 1: waves wash over the sinking ship. As they turned sadly
• 1:09:34
  Speaker 1: from the shore, they met the messenger from Hela's regions. Rejoice,
• 1:09:39
  Speaker 1: he said, HeLa says, if everything living and lifeless weep
• 1:09:44
  Speaker 1: for Balder, he may return to us. There was great
• 1:09:48
  Speaker 1: happiness in Asgar that day. Surely they thought every one
• 1:09:52
  Speaker 1: in the world will weep for Balder. They had forgotten
• 1:09:56
  Speaker 1: the cruel Loki. He set with dry eyes, though rocks
• 1:10:01
  Speaker 1: and trees, birds and flowers, wind and clouds were shedding tears.
• 1:10:07
  Speaker 1: When Odin found that Balder could not return to life,
• 1:10:11
  Speaker 1: his anger and grief were terrible to see. In fear,
• 1:10:16
  Speaker 1: Loki hid himself deep in the earth under a mountain.
• 1:10:20
  Speaker 1: Frigin knew that he was conquered, and she patiently waited
• 1:10:24
  Speaker 1: for the time when Balder should again be allowed to
• 1:10:27
  Speaker 1: bring gladness to the earth and fill all the heavens
• 1:10:31
  Speaker 1: with the glory of his smile. The end, Persephone Demeter
• 1:10:39
  Speaker 1: had the care of all the plants, fruits, and grains
• 1:10:43
  Speaker 1: in the world. She taught the people how to plow
• 1:10:46
  Speaker 1: the fields and plant the seeds. She helped them gather
• 1:10:50
  Speaker 1: in their harvests. They loved the kind earth mother and
• 1:10:54
  Speaker 1: gladly obeyed her. They also loved her daughter, the beautiful Persephone.
• 1:11:00
  Speaker 1: Persephone wandered all day in the meadows among the flowers.
• 1:11:04
  Speaker 1: Wherever she went, the birds, singing merrily, flocked after her.
• 1:11:09
  Speaker 1: The people said, where Persephone is, there is the warm sunshine.
• 1:11:15
  Speaker 1: Flowers bloom when she smiles. Listen to her voice. It
• 1:11:19
  Speaker 1: is like a bird's song. Demeter wished always to have
• 1:11:24
  Speaker 1: her child near her. One day, Persephone went alone into
• 1:11:28
  Speaker 1: a meadow near the sea. She had made a wreath
• 1:11:32
  Speaker 1: for her hair and gathered all the flowers that her
• 1:11:35
  Speaker 1: apron could hold. Far away across the meadow, she saw
• 1:11:40
  Speaker 1: a white flower gleaming. She ran to it and found
• 1:11:44
  Speaker 1: that it was a narcissus, but far more beautiful than
• 1:11:48
  Speaker 1: any she had ever seen. On a single stem were
• 1:11:52
  Speaker 1: a hundred blossoms. She tried to pick it, but the
• 1:11:56
  Speaker 1: stem would not break. With all her strength, she grasped it,
• 1:12:00
  Speaker 1: and slowly it came up by the roots. It left
• 1:12:04
  Speaker 1: a great opening in the earth, which grew larger and
• 1:12:07
  Speaker 1: larger Persephone heard rumbling like thunder under her feet. Then
• 1:12:14
  Speaker 1: she saw four black horses coming toward her from the opening.
• 1:12:19
  Speaker 1: Behind them was a chariot made of gold and precious
• 1:12:22
  Speaker 1: stones in it, said a dark, stern man. It was Hades.
• 1:12:29
  Speaker 1: He had come up from his land of darkness and
• 1:12:32
  Speaker 1: was shading his eyes with his hands. He saw Persephone
• 1:12:36
  Speaker 1: beautiful with flowers, and instantly caught her in his arms
• 1:12:40
  Speaker 1: and placed her in the chariot beside him. The flowers
• 1:12:44
  Speaker 1: fell from her apron, Oh, my pretty flowers, she cried,
• 1:12:49
  Speaker 1: I have lost them all. Then she saw the stern
• 1:12:53
  Speaker 1: face of Hades. Frightened, she stretched out her hands to
• 1:12:58
  Speaker 1: kind Apollo, who was his chariot overhead. She called to
• 1:13:03
  Speaker 1: her mother for help. Hades drove straight toward his dark
• 1:13:08
  Speaker 1: underground home. The horses seemed to fly as they left
• 1:13:13
  Speaker 1: the light. Hades tried to comfort Persephone. He told her
• 1:13:17
  Speaker 1: of the wonders of his kingdom. He had gold and
• 1:13:21
  Speaker 1: silver and all kinds of precious stones. Persephone saw gems
• 1:13:26
  Speaker 1: glittering on every side as they went along, but she
• 1:13:30
  Speaker 1: did not care for them. Hades told her how lonely
• 1:13:33
  Speaker 1: he was, and that he wished her to be his
• 1:13:36
  Speaker 1: queen and share all his riches. Persephone did not want
• 1:13:41
  Speaker 1: to be a queen. She longed only for her mother
• 1:13:43
  Speaker 1: and the bright sunshine. Soon they came to the land
• 1:13:48
  Speaker 1: of Hades. It seemed very dark and dismal to Persephone,
• 1:13:52
  Speaker 1: and very cold too. A feast was ready for her,
• 1:13:56
  Speaker 1: but she would not eat. She knew that any one
• 1:13:59
  Speaker 1: who ate in Hades's home could never return to Earth again.
• 1:14:04
  Speaker 1: She was very unhappy. Though Hades tried in many ways
• 1:14:08
  Speaker 1: to please her, everything on the earth was unhappy too.
• 1:14:13
  Speaker 1: One by one, the flowers hung their heads and said,
• 1:14:16
  Speaker 1: we cannot bloom, for Persephone has gone. The trees dropped
• 1:14:22
  Speaker 1: their leaves and moaned, Persephone is gone. Gone. The birds
• 1:14:28
  Speaker 1: flew away and said we cannot sing, for Persephone has gone.
• 1:14:34
  Speaker 1: Demeter was more miserable than any one else. She had
• 1:14:38
  Speaker 1: heard Persephone call her and had gone straight home. She
• 1:14:41
  Speaker 1: searched all the earth for her child. She asked every
• 1:14:44
  Speaker 1: one she met these questions, have you seen Persephone? Where
• 1:14:49
  Speaker 1: is Persephone? The only answer she ever received was gone gone,
• 1:14:55
  Speaker 1: Persephone is gone. Demeter became a wrinkled old woman. No
• 1:15:01
  Speaker 1: one would have known that she was the kind mother
• 1:15:04
  Speaker 1: who had always smiled on the people. Nothing grew on
• 1:15:08
  Speaker 1: the earth, and all was dreary and barren. Demeter said
• 1:15:13
  Speaker 1: that she would do nothing until Persephone returned to her.
• 1:15:17
  Speaker 1: It was useless for the people to plow the soil,
• 1:15:20
  Speaker 1: it was useless to plant the seeds. Nothing could grow
• 1:15:24
  Speaker 1: without the help of Demeter. All the people were idle
• 1:15:28
  Speaker 1: and sad. When Demeter found no one on earth who
• 1:15:33
  Speaker 1: could tell her about Persephone, she looked up toward the sky.
• 1:15:37
  Speaker 1: There she saw Apollo in his bright chariot. He was
• 1:15:41
  Speaker 1: not driving as high in the sky as he was
• 1:15:44
  Speaker 1: wont to do. Often, he gathered dark mists about him,
• 1:15:49
  Speaker 1: so that none saw him. For many days. Demeter knew
• 1:15:54
  Speaker 1: that he must know about Persephone, for he could see
• 1:15:58
  Speaker 1: all things on earth and in the sky. Apollo told
• 1:16:03
  Speaker 1: Demeter that Hades had carried Persephone away, and that she
• 1:16:07
  Speaker 1: was with him in his underground home. Demeter hastened to
• 1:16:12
  Speaker 1: the great father Zeus, who could do all things. She
• 1:16:16
  Speaker 1: asked him to send to Hades for her daughter. Zeus
• 1:16:20
  Speaker 1: called Hermes. He bade him go as swiftly as the
• 1:16:24
  Speaker 1: wind to the home of Hades. Hermes whispered to everything
• 1:16:29
  Speaker 1: on the way that he was going for Persephone so
• 1:16:32
  Speaker 1: that all might be ready to welcome her back. He
• 1:16:36
  Speaker 1: soon arrived in the kingdom and gave Hades the message
• 1:16:39
  Speaker 1: from Zeus. He told about the barren earth and of
• 1:16:43
  Speaker 1: how Demeter was mourning for her child. He said she
• 1:16:48
  Speaker 1: would not let anything grow until Persephone came back. The
• 1:16:52
  Speaker 1: people must starve if she did not soon return. Then
• 1:16:57
  Speaker 1: Persephone wept bitterly, for that very day she had eaten
• 1:17:02
  Speaker 1: a pomegranate and swallowed six of its seeds. Hades pitied
• 1:17:07
  Speaker 1: her and said that she need only stay with him
• 1:17:10
  Speaker 1: one month for each seed she had eaten. Joy gave
• 1:17:14
  Speaker 1: her wings, and as swiftly as Hermes himself, Persephone flew
• 1:17:19
  Speaker 1: up into the sunshine. Apello saw her and rose higher
• 1:17:23
  Speaker 1: and higher into the sky. A gentle breeze came rustling
• 1:17:27
  Speaker 1: from the southeast and whispered something to everything he met. Suddenly,
• 1:17:33
  Speaker 1: the flowers sprang up, the birds flocked together and sang.
• 1:17:37
  Speaker 1: The trees put on bright green leaves. Everything great and
• 1:17:42
  Speaker 1: small began to say, in its own language, be happy,
• 1:17:47
  Speaker 1: for Persephone has come. Persephone has come. Demeter saw these
• 1:17:52
  Speaker 1: changes and was puzzled, can the earth be ungrateful? Does
• 1:17:57
  Speaker 1: she so soon forget procesh she cried. It was not long, however,
• 1:18:03
  Speaker 1: before her own face became beautiful and happy, for she
• 1:18:07
  Speaker 1: held again her beloved child in her arms. When Demet
• 1:18:12
  Speaker 1: found that Persephone could stay with her only half the year,
• 1:18:17
  Speaker 1: she brought out the choicest treasures from her storehouse, and
• 1:18:21
  Speaker 1: while Persephone stayed the world was filled with beauty and joy.
• 1:18:26
  Speaker 1: When she had gone, Demeter covered the rivers and lakes
• 1:18:30
  Speaker 1: and spread a soft white blanket over the sleeping earth.
• 1:18:34
  Speaker 1: Then she too fell asleep and dreamed such pleasant dreams
• 1:18:38
  Speaker 1: that she did not awake until she felt Persephone's warm
• 1:18:42
  Speaker 1: kiss on her forehead. The end. Phaatin Phaatin was the
• 1:18:51
  Speaker 1: son of Helius, who drove the chariot of the Sun.
• 1:18:55
  Speaker 1: He lived with his mother, the gentle Clemini, in a
• 1:18:59
  Speaker 1: beautiful valley in the east. One day, when Phaeton was
• 1:19:04
  Speaker 1: telling his companions about his father, the sky King, they
• 1:19:08
  Speaker 1: laughed and said, how do you know that Helius is
• 1:19:11
  Speaker 1: your father? You have never seen him. If, as you say,
• 1:19:16
  Speaker 1: he cannot safely come nearer to the earth, why do
• 1:19:19
  Speaker 1: you not sometimes go to his land? Phaaeton answered, my
• 1:19:24
  Speaker 1: father's throne is far away from this valley. My mother
• 1:19:27
  Speaker 1: has promised that when I am stronger, I shall go
• 1:19:30
  Speaker 1: to my father's palace. I often watch his golden chariot
• 1:19:34
  Speaker 1: roll by in its path, and think, perhaps some day
• 1:19:38
  Speaker 1: I shall drive the glorious horses of the Sun. I
• 1:19:42
  Speaker 1: shall go now to my mother and ask her how
• 1:19:44
  Speaker 1: much longer I must wait. When Phaeton told his mother
• 1:19:49
  Speaker 1: what his companions had said, she answered, go, my child,
• 1:19:54
  Speaker 1: ask great Helius if you are his son, if you
• 1:19:58
  Speaker 1: are worthy to be the son of Helia, you will
• 1:20:01
  Speaker 1: be given strength and courage for the journey. Faaton gladly
• 1:20:05
  Speaker 1: and bravely climbed the unused path which led to the
• 1:20:09
  Speaker 1: Palace of the Sun. At last he came in sight
• 1:20:13
  Speaker 1: of the throne. He had never seen anything so beautiful.
• 1:20:17
  Speaker 1: On one side were standing the days, months, and the
• 1:20:20
  Speaker 1: old years. On the other side were the seasons, spring
• 1:20:25
  Speaker 1: covered with flowers, summer with their baskets of fruit and grain,
• 1:20:30
  Speaker 1: autumn and a mini colored dress, and young winter with
• 1:20:34
  Speaker 1: a crown of icicles. As Faatin came nearer to the throne,
• 1:20:39
  Speaker 1: the light was greater than his eyes could bear. Its
• 1:20:43
  Speaker 1: wonderful colors dazzled him. Helius saw the brave youth and
• 1:20:48
  Speaker 1: knew that it was Faatin his son. He took his
• 1:20:52
  Speaker 1: glittering crown from his head and went forward to meet him.
• 1:20:57
  Speaker 1: Faaetin cried, great Helius, if you are my father, give
• 1:21:02
  Speaker 1: me and other's proof that it is so. Helius took
• 1:21:07
  Speaker 1: him in his arms and kissed him. You are indeed
• 1:21:10
  Speaker 1: my son, he said, I will put an end to
• 1:21:13
  Speaker 1: your doubts. Ask any gift you will, and it shall
• 1:21:17
  Speaker 1: be yours. Bayaton had always had one wish in his heart,
• 1:21:21
  Speaker 1: and said, oh, my father, let me drive the wonderful
• 1:21:24
  Speaker 1: golden chariot of the sun for just one day. Helius
• 1:21:29
  Speaker 1: shook his head sadly and said, that is the one
• 1:21:33
  Speaker 1: thing which you must not ask to do. You are
• 1:21:37
  Speaker 1: my son, and I love you for your own sake.
• 1:21:40
  Speaker 1: I cannot let you do this. You have neither the
• 1:21:43
  Speaker 1: strength nor the wisdom for the great work. The first
• 1:21:47
  Speaker 1: part of the way is very steep and rugged. In
• 1:21:51
  Speaker 1: the middle part even I dare not look below at
• 1:21:54
  Speaker 1: the far stretching earth. And the last part is full
• 1:21:58
  Speaker 1: of terrible dangers. Fayeton would not listen, but threw his
• 1:22:03
  Speaker 1: arms around his father's neck and begged to go. Helius said,
• 1:22:09
  Speaker 1: at last, if you persist, foolish boy, you shall have
• 1:22:13
  Speaker 1: your wish, for I cannot break my promise. I beg
• 1:22:17
  Speaker 1: of you. Choose more wisely, ask the most precious thing
• 1:22:22
  Speaker 1: on earth or in the sky, and you shall have it.
• 1:22:27
  Speaker 1: Already dawn had drawn back the purple curtains of the morning,
• 1:22:30
  Speaker 1: and the hours were harnessing the horses to the chariot.
• 1:22:34
  Speaker 1: The stars and moon were retiring for the day. The
• 1:22:38
  Speaker 1: chariot glittered with jewels, which scent the light in all directions.
• 1:22:43
  Speaker 1: Faeton looked upon it with delight, and longed impatiently for
• 1:22:48
  Speaker 1: the great joy of driving it. Helius said, oh, my
• 1:22:53
  Speaker 1: dear son, go not too high, or you will scorch
• 1:22:57
  Speaker 1: the dwelling of heaven. Nor too low lest you set
• 1:23:02
  Speaker 1: the world on fire. Keep in the middle path that
• 1:23:05
  Speaker 1: is best, and do not use the whip, rather hold
• 1:23:09
  Speaker 1: the horses in. Phaeton was too happy to hear what
• 1:23:12
  Speaker 1: his father was saying. He leapt into the golden chariot
• 1:23:16
  Speaker 1: and stood erect. As the fiery horses sprang forth from
• 1:23:20
  Speaker 1: the eastern gates of day. They soon missed the strong,
• 1:23:24
  Speaker 1: steady hand of their master. Up Up, they went far
• 1:23:28
  Speaker 1: into the sky, above the stars and then plunged downward
• 1:23:32
  Speaker 1: toward the earth. The clouds smoked, the mountain tops caught fire,
• 1:23:38
  Speaker 1: Many rivers dried up, and whole countries became deserts. Great
• 1:23:45
  Speaker 1: cities were burned, and even Poseidon cried out in terror
• 1:23:49
  Speaker 1: from the sea. Then the people on earth learned with
• 1:23:53
  Speaker 1: what great wisdom the path of the Sun was planned.
• 1:23:57
  Speaker 1: Helius saw that the whole world world would soon be
• 1:24:00
  Speaker 1: on fire, and cried to Father Zeus to save the
• 1:24:04
  Speaker 1: earth from the flames. Zeus searched all the heavens for
• 1:24:07
  Speaker 1: clouds and hurled his thunderbolts from the sky. Fayaton fell
• 1:24:13
  Speaker 1: from the chariot down down into a clear river. The
• 1:24:17
  Speaker 1: naids cooled his burning brow and gently sang him to sleep.
• 1:24:23
  Speaker 1: His sisters came to the banks of the river and
• 1:24:25
  Speaker 1: wept that they might be always near Fayatin. Zeus, in pity,
• 1:24:31
  Speaker 1: changed them into poplar trees, and their tears became clear
• 1:24:35
  Speaker 1: amber as they fell into the water. At last, the
• 1:24:39
  Speaker 1: tired horses became quiet, and the great car rolled slowly
• 1:24:43
  Speaker 1: back into its old path. But the deserts and barren
• 1:24:48
  Speaker 1: mountain tops still tell the story of the day Fayaton
• 1:24:53
  Speaker 1: tried to drive the Chariot of the Sun. The End
• 1:24:59
  Speaker 1: End of Sunny Myths, Nature Myths and Stories for Little
• 1:25:08
  Speaker 1: Children by Flora J. Cook. This LibriVox recording is in
• 1:25:12
  Speaker 1: the public domain Tree Stories. Daphne was the daughter of
• 1:25:18
  Speaker 1: the river Peneus. She was a beautiful child, and her
• 1:25:22
  Speaker 1: father loved her more than anything else in the world.
• 1:25:26
  Speaker 1: Her home was in a cave which she had cut
• 1:25:29
  Speaker 1: for her in a great white cliff. The walls of
• 1:25:33
  Speaker 1: the cave were of marble. From the roof hung crystal
• 1:25:37
  Speaker 1: chandeliers which Penias's servants had made. On the floor was
• 1:25:42
  Speaker 1: a soft green carpet woven by the water fairies. Peneas
• 1:25:48
  Speaker 1: brought his most beautiful pebbles to Daphne's cave every night.
• 1:25:53
  Speaker 1: He sang songs to her in the evenings and told
• 1:25:56
  Speaker 1: her stories of his travels. She visited with him on
• 1:26:00
  Speaker 1: the great island which he was building in the sea.
• 1:26:04
  Speaker 1: When the morning stars shone in the sky, it was
• 1:26:07
  Speaker 1: Daphne who awakened the birds and flowers. With her golden
• 1:26:12
  Speaker 1: hair flying behind her, she sped into the forest. Everything
• 1:26:16
  Speaker 1: awoke when they felt the touch of her rosy fingers,
• 1:26:20
  Speaker 1: and smiled as they saw her. Happy face. The trees
• 1:26:25
  Speaker 1: and the forest animals were her playfellows, and she had
• 1:26:28
  Speaker 1: no wish for other friends. She learned their ways, and
• 1:26:33
  Speaker 1: the deer could not run more swiftly than she, nor
• 1:26:37
  Speaker 1: the birds sing more sweetly. One day, as she was
• 1:26:41
  Speaker 1: running over the stones near the cave, King Apollo saw her, Ah,
• 1:26:46
  Speaker 1: little maid. He said, you are very beautiful. Your feet
• 1:26:51
  Speaker 1: are too tender for the hard rocky earth. Come you
• 1:26:55
  Speaker 1: shall live with me in my palace in the sky.
• 1:26:59
  Speaker 1: But daf fled from him. She did not want to
• 1:27:03
  Speaker 1: leave her beautiful earth home. Fear gave her wings, and
• 1:27:07
  Speaker 1: faster and faster she flew. Her hair streamed behind her
• 1:27:13
  Speaker 1: like a cloud of golden light. Apollo followed more swiftly
• 1:27:17
  Speaker 1: than the wind. Stop and listen, he cried, I am
• 1:27:21
  Speaker 1: not a foe. Foolish girl, It is Apollo who follows you.
• 1:27:25
  Speaker 1: I shall carry you to a home more beautiful than
• 1:27:28
  Speaker 1: anything you have ever seen. She felt his breath upon
• 1:27:32
  Speaker 1: her hair, and saw his hand as he stretched it
• 1:27:36
  Speaker 1: forth to seize her father. Save me from Apollo, she cried,
• 1:27:41
  Speaker 1: let the earth enclose me. Peneus heard her voice, and
• 1:27:46
  Speaker 1: instantly her feet became fastened in the soil, like roots.
• 1:27:50
  Speaker 1: A soft bark covered her body, and her beautiful hair
• 1:27:54
  Speaker 1: became the leaves of the laurel tree. Apollo sadly gathered
• 1:27:59
  Speaker 1: some of the lee leaves and wove them into a wreath.
• 1:28:03
  Speaker 1: He laid his hand upon the tree and said, I
• 1:28:07
  Speaker 1: would have made you happy, but you would not listen
• 1:28:10
  Speaker 1: to me. At least you shall be my tree. Your
• 1:28:15
  Speaker 1: leaves shall be ever green, and heroes shall be crowned
• 1:28:20
  Speaker 1: with them in a sign of victory. The end a
• 1:28:27
  Speaker 1: fairy story. Some fairies once lived in a dark glen
• 1:28:32
  Speaker 1: in a pine forest. They were real fairies, many of
• 1:28:36
  Speaker 1: them not higher than a pin. Their greatest treasure was
• 1:28:40
  Speaker 1: a magic cap, which had been in the fairy family
• 1:28:44
  Speaker 1: for many generations. The most wonderful thing about the cap
• 1:28:48
  Speaker 1: was that it fitted exactly anyone who wore it. When
• 1:28:53
  Speaker 1: one fairy put it on, he and all the others
• 1:28:56
  Speaker 1: became invisible. A stupid race of giants lived among the
• 1:29:02
  Speaker 1: mountains near them. They wanted the fairy cap more than
• 1:29:06
  Speaker 1: anything else in the world. One warm day, when the
• 1:29:10
  Speaker 1: elves were away from home, a giant came into the glen.
• 1:29:14
  Speaker 1: He was seeking just such a cool place for his
• 1:29:17
  Speaker 1: afternoon nap. He was so large and the glen so small,
• 1:29:23
  Speaker 1: that when he lay down he almost filled the valley.
• 1:29:28
  Speaker 1: The music of a fairy brook soon lulled him to sleep.
• 1:29:32
  Speaker 1: Perhaps you have heard how a giant snores, and how
• 1:29:36
  Speaker 1: his breath comes in great puffs. The giant was snoring
• 1:29:41
  Speaker 1: and puffing when the fairies came towards home. They heard
• 1:29:45
  Speaker 1: the strange sound and thought a great storm was brewing.
• 1:29:49
  Speaker 1: There has never been such a wind in the glen,
• 1:29:52
  Speaker 1: said the fairy queen. We will not go down into it.
• 1:29:56
  Speaker 1: We must seek shelter for to night on this hill side.
• 1:30:00
  Speaker 1: Just then they came to the giant's ear. Here is
• 1:30:04
  Speaker 1: a fine cavern, the queen said, and she stopped and
• 1:30:08
  Speaker 1: waved her wand a fairy hastened forward to carry the
• 1:30:12
  Speaker 1: cap to a safe place in the cave, for that
• 1:30:15
  Speaker 1: was always their first care. Just then the giant awoke.
• 1:30:21
  Speaker 1: He raised his great head. Oh how miserable the fairies were.
• 1:30:26
  Speaker 1: They wept and moaned, until even the dull ear of
• 1:30:29
  Speaker 1: the giant heard them. It was a sound like the
• 1:30:34
  Speaker 1: tolling of tiny silver bells. He listened and understood what
• 1:30:39
  Speaker 1: the wee voice of the prisoner in his ear was
• 1:30:42
  Speaker 1: saying he was the wisest and most kind hearted of
• 1:30:47
  Speaker 1: all the giants. He helped the little creature gently out
• 1:30:52
  Speaker 1: into his hand, and looked at him in wonder. He
• 1:30:56
  Speaker 1: had never before seen a fairy in vain. The brave
• 1:31:00
  Speaker 1: little fellow tried to conceal the precious cap. The giants
• 1:31:04
  Speaker 1: saw the wonderful star and knew at once that he
• 1:31:09
  Speaker 1: had the treasure cap of the elves. He set the
• 1:31:12
  Speaker 1: fairy carefully upon the ground and shouted for joy as
• 1:31:16
  Speaker 1: he found that the cap exactly fitted his own great head.
• 1:31:22
  Speaker 1: The poor fairies could no longer see him, but they
• 1:31:26
  Speaker 1: heard a sound like thunder as he hurried over the
• 1:31:29
  Speaker 1: stones towards his home. They were now afraid to move about.
• 1:31:33
  Speaker 1: While the sun shone, They crept under leaves and into shells,
• 1:31:38
  Speaker 1: and cried bitterly. By sundown, every plant in the glen
• 1:31:42
  Speaker 1: was wet with their tears. The sharp eyes of the
• 1:31:46
  Speaker 1: eagle on the mountain top saw them, and a great
• 1:31:49
  Speaker 1: pity filled his heart. I must help the fairies, he said,
• 1:31:54
  Speaker 1: otherwise I should not be worthy to be called the
• 1:31:57
  Speaker 1: king of the birds. He went directly to the home
• 1:32:00
  Speaker 1: of the giants and demanded the cap, but they refused
• 1:32:03
  Speaker 1: to give it up. All that an eagle could do
• 1:32:07
  Speaker 1: he did. But as the giants wore the invisible cap,
• 1:32:11
  Speaker 1: he could not see them. He could only hear their
• 1:32:14
  Speaker 1: great voices. He knew, however, that the giants were proud
• 1:32:18
  Speaker 1: of their great size and strength, and liked above all
• 1:32:22
  Speaker 1: things to be seen. He was sure that they would
• 1:32:27
  Speaker 1: not wear the cap in a battle, and he did
• 1:32:30
  Speaker 1: not lose hope. One day, they carefully placed it under
• 1:32:35
  Speaker 1: a large stone on the mountain side below them. The
• 1:32:39
  Speaker 1: keen eye of the eagle was watching. He flew fearlessly
• 1:32:43
  Speaker 1: to the spot. As soon as the giants had left it.
• 1:32:47
  Speaker 1: He lifted the stone in his great talons and was
• 1:32:51
  Speaker 1: soon flying away with the cap to the fairy glen.
• 1:32:54
  Speaker 1: The giants saw him and knew at once what he
• 1:32:57
  Speaker 1: was doing. They began a fierce attack upon him. The
• 1:33:02
  Speaker 1: air was filled with flying arrows and sharp rocks. Drops
• 1:33:07
  Speaker 1: of blood fell on the mountain side, and many feathers
• 1:33:10
  Speaker 1: fluttered down, But the brave eagle was soon out of
• 1:33:15
  Speaker 1: their reach. He did not stop until the cap was
• 1:33:19
  Speaker 1: safe in the fairy queen's lap. There was great rejoicing
• 1:33:24
  Speaker 1: among the fairies that day, they had a feast in
• 1:33:27
  Speaker 1: the eagle's honor, and healed his wounds with fairy magic.
• 1:33:32
  Speaker 1: On the mountain side, wherever the blood and feathers fell,
• 1:33:36
  Speaker 1: there sprang up trees with featherlike leaves and blood red berries.
• 1:33:41
  Speaker 1: All the Giant's fairies, plants, and animals knew why they
• 1:33:45
  Speaker 1: grew the unselfish love of the eagle's blood. Could not die,
• 1:33:51
  Speaker 1: but lived again in the beautiful trees. But people who
• 1:33:54
  Speaker 1: did not know how they came there called them mountain
• 1:33:57
  Speaker 1: ash trees. The end Philimon and Bosses. On a high
• 1:34:06
  Speaker 1: hill in Greece. Long ago lived Phillymon and Bosses. They
• 1:34:12
  Speaker 1: had always been poor, but never unhappy. At the time
• 1:34:16
  Speaker 1: of this story, the people in the valley below them
• 1:34:19
  Speaker 1: were very busy. Zeus, their king, had sent word that
• 1:34:24
  Speaker 1: he was about to visit them. Hermes, his messenger, was
• 1:34:29
  Speaker 1: to come with him. The people were getting ready great
• 1:34:33
  Speaker 1: feasts and making everything beautiful for their coming. For miles
• 1:34:39
  Speaker 1: out of the city, men were watching for the golden
• 1:34:42
  Speaker 1: chariot and white horses of the king. One night, just
• 1:34:46
  Speaker 1: at dark, two beggars came to the valley. They stopped
• 1:34:51
  Speaker 1: at every house and asked for food and a place
• 1:34:54
  Speaker 1: to sleep, but the people were too busy or too
• 1:34:57
  Speaker 1: tired to attend to their needs. Foot sore and weary,
• 1:35:02
  Speaker 1: at last they climbed the hill to the hut of
• 1:35:05
  Speaker 1: Philemon and Bosses. These good people had eaten scarcely anything
• 1:35:11
  Speaker 1: for several days that they might have food to offer
• 1:35:15
  Speaker 1: the king. When they saw the strangers, Philamon said, surely
• 1:35:19
  Speaker 1: these men need food more than the king. Bossus spread
• 1:35:23
  Speaker 1: her one white tablecloth. Upon the table she brought out
• 1:35:28
  Speaker 1: bacon and herbs, wild honey, and milk. She set these
• 1:35:33
  Speaker 1: before the strangers with all the good dishes that she had.
• 1:35:37
  Speaker 1: Then a wonderful thing happened. The dishes which the strangers
• 1:35:43
  Speaker 1: touched turned to gold. The milk in the pitcher became
• 1:35:49
  Speaker 1: rich nectar. Philaemon and Bosses dropped upon their knees. They
• 1:35:55
  Speaker 1: knew that their guests could be no other than Zeus.
• 1:35:59
  Speaker 1: Ands Zeus raised his hand and said, arise, good people,
• 1:36:05
  Speaker 1: Ask what you will, and it shall be yours. Philammond
• 1:36:09
  Speaker 1: and Bossus cried in one voice, grant o Zeus that
• 1:36:14
  Speaker 1: one of us may not outlive the other, but that
• 1:36:17
  Speaker 1: both may die in the same instant. This had long
• 1:36:22
  Speaker 1: been the wish in each heart, and the fear of
• 1:36:25
  Speaker 1: being left alone in the world was the one trouble
• 1:36:28
  Speaker 1: of their old age. Zeus smiled and changed their rude
• 1:36:34
  Speaker 1: hut into a beautiful castle, and granted them many years
• 1:36:38
  Speaker 1: of happy life. One morning, the people in the valley
• 1:36:42
  Speaker 1: noticed that the castle had disappeared. They hurried to the
• 1:36:48
  Speaker 1: spot and found growing in its place two beautiful trees,
• 1:36:53
  Speaker 1: an oak and a linden. No trace of the good
• 1:36:57
  Speaker 1: couple could be found. Many years after, however, a traveler
• 1:37:02
  Speaker 1: lying under the trees heard them whispering to each other.
• 1:37:06
  Speaker 1: He lay very still, and soon learned that in them
• 1:37:10
  Speaker 1: Philammon and Bosses still lived, happy and contented, and protected
• 1:37:17
  Speaker 1: by Zeus from all harm. The end the poplar tree.
• 1:37:26
  Speaker 1: One night, just at sunset, an old man found the
• 1:37:29
  Speaker 1: pot of gold which lies under the end of the rainbow.
• 1:37:33
  Speaker 1: His home was far beyond the dark forest through which
• 1:37:37
  Speaker 1: he was passing. The pot of gold was heavy, and
• 1:37:41
  Speaker 1: he soon began to look for a safe place in
• 1:37:44
  Speaker 1: which to hide it. Until morning. A poplar tree stood
• 1:37:47
  Speaker 1: near the path, stretching its branches straight out from the trunk.
• 1:37:53
  Speaker 1: That was the way the poplar trees grew in those days, Ah,
• 1:37:58
  Speaker 1: said the man, This tree is the very place in
• 1:38:01
  Speaker 1: which to conceal my treasure. The trees are all asleep,
• 1:38:05
  Speaker 1: I see, and these leaves are large and thick. He
• 1:38:10
  Speaker 1: carefully placed the pot of gold in the tree and
• 1:38:13
  Speaker 1: hurried home to tell of his good fortune. Very early
• 1:38:17
  Speaker 1: the next morning, Iris, the rainbow messenger, missed the precious
• 1:38:21
  Speaker 1: pot of gold. She hastened to Zeus and told him
• 1:38:25
  Speaker 1: of the loss. Zeus immediately sent Hermes in search of it.
• 1:38:30
  Speaker 1: Hermes soon came to the forest where it was hidden.
• 1:38:34
  Speaker 1: He awakened the trees and asked them if they had
• 1:38:37
  Speaker 1: seen the pot of gold. They shook their heads sleepily
• 1:38:41
  Speaker 1: and murmured something which Hermes could not understand. Then Zeus
• 1:38:46
  Speaker 1: himself spoke to them, hold your arms high above your heads.
• 1:38:51
  Speaker 1: He said that I may see that all are awake.
• 1:38:56
  Speaker 1: Up went the arms, but alas to the ground came
• 1:39:01
  Speaker 1: the pot of gold. The poplar tree was more surprised
• 1:39:04
  Speaker 1: than any one else. He was a very honest tree,
• 1:39:09
  Speaker 1: and for a moment hung his head in grief and shame.
• 1:39:13
  Speaker 1: Then again he stretched his arms high above his head
• 1:39:16
  Speaker 1: and said, forgive me, Great Father. Hereafter I shall stand
• 1:39:21
  Speaker 1: in this way that you may know that I hide
• 1:39:24
  Speaker 1: nothing from the sun, my king. At first, the poplar
• 1:39:28
  Speaker 1: tree was much laughed at. He was often told that
• 1:39:32
  Speaker 1: he looked like a great umbrella which a storm had
• 1:39:35
  Speaker 1: turned inside out. But as years went by, every small
• 1:39:40
  Speaker 1: poplar was taught to grow as fearless, straight and open
• 1:39:44
  Speaker 1: hearted as himself, and the whole poplar family became respected
• 1:39:49
  Speaker 1: and loved for its uprightness and strength. The end the
• 1:39:58
  Speaker 1: Secret of Fire. One summer night, a great army of
• 1:40:03
  Speaker 1: pine trees settled down in a quiet valley to rest.
• 1:40:07
  Speaker 1: They were a tall, dark, grave looking company. They held
• 1:40:11
  Speaker 1: their heads high in the air, for they were the
• 1:40:14
  Speaker 1: only trees in the world who knew the wonderful secret
• 1:40:17
  Speaker 1: of fire. High above this valley, on the hill side,
• 1:40:21
  Speaker 1: lived a little company of oaks. They were young, brave,
• 1:40:26
  Speaker 1: and strong hearted. When they saw the great band of
• 1:40:30
  Speaker 1: pines marching into the valley, the tallest one said, let
• 1:40:34
  Speaker 1: us make them divide the gift of fire with us. No,
• 1:40:38
  Speaker 1: said the oldest, wisest oak. We must not risk foolishly
• 1:40:43
  Speaker 1: the lives of our acorns. We could do nothing against
• 1:40:47
  Speaker 1: so many. All the acorns had been listening to what
• 1:40:51
  Speaker 1: the trees said each one longed to help in finding
• 1:40:55
  Speaker 1: out the great secret. One of them became so excited
• 1:40:59
  Speaker 1: that he fell from the limb down upon the hard ground.
• 1:41:04
  Speaker 1: He did not stop at the foot of the tree,
• 1:41:06
  Speaker 1: but rolled over and over far down into the valley.
• 1:41:11
  Speaker 1: Here a brook picked him up and hurried him away,
• 1:41:16
  Speaker 1: But as he stopped to rest by a stone, he
• 1:41:19
  Speaker 1: hurt his good friend. The wind talking to a pine tree,
• 1:41:23
  Speaker 1: what is the secret of fire which the pine trees know?
• 1:41:28
  Speaker 1: Asked the wind. Don't you think it is selfish to
• 1:41:32
  Speaker 1: keep it all to yourselves? The pine tree loved the
• 1:41:37
  Speaker 1: wind and answered, great Wind, it is indeed a wonderful secret.
• 1:41:42
  Speaker 1: You must never tell it. Then she whispered it to
• 1:41:46
  Speaker 1: the wind. The little acorn went on and on down
• 1:41:51
  Speaker 1: the stream. He came to an old log which was
• 1:41:55
  Speaker 1: the home of a large family of squirrels. The mother
• 1:41:58
  Speaker 1: squirrel was very sad. The last flood had brought her
• 1:42:02
  Speaker 1: and her children far away from their old forest home.
• 1:42:07
  Speaker 1: Her family had all been saved, but food was scarce
• 1:42:11
  Speaker 1: and winter was near. The acorn felt very sorry for her,
• 1:42:16
  Speaker 1: and said, I am too small to do you much
• 1:42:19
  Speaker 1: good alone. If you will carry me back to my home,
• 1:42:23
  Speaker 1: I will show you a forest with plenty of nuts.
• 1:42:27
  Speaker 1: You can take your family there in the fall. This
• 1:42:31
  Speaker 1: the squirrel was very glad to do. As they went along,
• 1:42:35
  Speaker 1: the acorn called to all the elms, naples, willows, and
• 1:42:40
  Speaker 1: hickorys to meet that night on the hilltop. Come to
• 1:42:45
  Speaker 1: the hill across from the great blue mountains. He said,
• 1:42:49
  Speaker 1: there you will learn the secret of fire. By the evening,
• 1:42:54
  Speaker 1: they were all there in great companies, ready for war
• 1:42:58
  Speaker 1: on the pines. When the squirrel came to the forest
• 1:43:02
  Speaker 1: and saw all the nuts, she was much pleased. She
• 1:43:06
  Speaker 1: offered to carry the acorn to the very top of
• 1:43:09
  Speaker 1: the tallest tree. The trees were all glad for this,
• 1:43:13
  Speaker 1: for everyone wanted to hear what he said. When the
• 1:43:17
  Speaker 1: acorn began to speak, even the wind stopped whispering and listened. Friends,
• 1:43:23
  Speaker 1: He said, there must be no battle. The pine trees
• 1:43:28
  Speaker 1: have only the same gift of fire that you have.
• 1:43:31
  Speaker 1: To every tree that stretches out its arms. The glorious
• 1:43:35
  Speaker 1: Sun gives this gift. But it was in this way
• 1:43:39
  Speaker 1: that the pine trees learned the secret of getting the
• 1:43:42
  Speaker 1: fire from the wood. They saw an old Indian chief
• 1:43:46
  Speaker 1: with two curious pieces of wood, one was round and smooth.
• 1:43:51
  Speaker 1: The other was sharp pointed. With all his strength, he
• 1:43:55
  Speaker 1: was rubbing them together. Soon he had worn a groom
• 1:44:00
  Speaker 1: in the round stick. He rubbed faster and faster, and
• 1:44:05
  Speaker 1: there in the groove was a tiny spark of fire.
• 1:44:10
  Speaker 1: Then the Indian blew his breath upon the spark, and
• 1:44:14
  Speaker 1: a little yellow flame leaped up. All the pine trees
• 1:44:18
  Speaker 1: saw it. See it is fire, they said. When the
• 1:44:23
  Speaker 1: great company of trees had heard the acorns story, they
• 1:44:27
  Speaker 1: shook their heads in doubt. Then the acorn said, this
• 1:44:31
  Speaker 1: is the true secret of fire. If you do not
• 1:44:34
  Speaker 1: believe it, why do you not try it for yourselves.
• 1:44:39
  Speaker 1: They took his advice, and all the trees learned that
• 1:44:43
  Speaker 1: what he had said was true. They were so happy
• 1:44:47
  Speaker 1: that they spent the whole night in singing and dancing.
• 1:44:51
  Speaker 1: In the morning, when they saw the great blue mountains
• 1:44:54
  Speaker 1: in the beautiful valley, many of them settled down upon
• 1:44:58
  Speaker 1: the hillside for life. The pines looked up and saw
• 1:45:02
  Speaker 1: hundreds of trees with their shining arms. They were so
• 1:45:06
  Speaker 1: frightened that they climbed high up on the mountain side.
• 1:45:09
  Speaker 1: There they stayed a long long time. They grew sad
• 1:45:14
  Speaker 1: and lonely, and often sighed and wished for their old
• 1:45:18
  Speaker 1: home and comforts. But they were brave and strong hearted
• 1:45:22
  Speaker 1: and helped each other. At last, some of them came
• 1:45:26
  Speaker 1: down into the valley again. Through suffering, they had grown
• 1:45:30
  Speaker 1: strong and unselfish. They gave their best trees to the people,
• 1:45:35
  Speaker 1: and their fairest to the children at Christmas time. Indeed,
• 1:45:39
  Speaker 1: there is not a tree in the world to day
• 1:45:42
  Speaker 1: more loved than the pine tree, who first had the
• 1:45:45
  Speaker 1: secret of fire. The end end of Tree Stories, Nature
• 1:45:58
  Speaker 1: Myths and Stories for Little Children by Flora J. Cook.
• 1:46:01
  Speaker 1: The Slibrivox recording is in the public Domain Miscellaneous Stories.
• 1:46:07
  Speaker 1: Hermes Yellows was the father of all the winds, great
• 1:46:13
  Speaker 1: and small. Long ago, they all lived happily together in
• 1:46:17
  Speaker 1: a dark cave near the sea. On holidays, north wind,
• 1:46:21
  Speaker 1: south wind, east wind, and west wind, and their faithful
• 1:46:26
  Speaker 1: sisters came home and told of their travels. The whirlwinds
• 1:46:31
  Speaker 1: performed their most wonderful feats, and the zephyrs sang their
• 1:46:36
  Speaker 1: sweetest songs. These holidays, however, did not come often. There
• 1:46:41
  Speaker 1: were no idle children in the family of Yellows. They
• 1:46:45
  Speaker 1: swept and dusted the whole world. They carried water over
• 1:46:49
  Speaker 1: all the earth. They helped push the great ships across
• 1:46:53
  Speaker 1: the ocean. The smaller winds scattered the seas and sprinkled
• 1:46:58
  Speaker 1: the flowers and the other things which you may find
• 1:47:02
  Speaker 1: out for yourselves. Indeed, they were so busy that Eyellos
• 1:47:07
  Speaker 1: was often left alone in his dark home for several
• 1:47:11
  Speaker 1: days at a time. He was glad when one summer
• 1:47:14
  Speaker 1: morning a baby came to the cave. The baby's name
• 1:47:17
  Speaker 1: was Hermes, but ILOs called him Little Mischief because he
• 1:47:23
  Speaker 1: was so little and so full of trucks. Zeus was
• 1:47:28
  Speaker 1: Hermes's father, and his mother was the beautiful Queen Maya.
• 1:47:34
  Speaker 1: She was often called Star of Spring because people thought
• 1:47:37
  Speaker 1: that wherever she stepped, flowers sprang from under the snow.
• 1:47:43
  Speaker 1: Yellos loved Hermes dearly. He taught him many secrets which
• 1:47:47
  Speaker 1: only the winds know. Ermes was a wise baby and
• 1:47:52
  Speaker 1: understood all that Yellos told him. When he was only
• 1:47:57
  Speaker 1: two days old, he could run and whistle as well
• 1:48:00
  Speaker 1: as north wind. One day, while he was very young,
• 1:48:05
  Speaker 1: he climbed out of his cradle and ran down to
• 1:48:08
  Speaker 1: the sea shore. There he found an old tortoise shell.
• 1:48:12
  Speaker 1: He picked it up and put a row of holes
• 1:48:15
  Speaker 1: along each edge of the shell. Through these holes he
• 1:48:19
  Speaker 1: wove some reeds, which he found upon the sea shore.
• 1:48:22
  Speaker 1: Then he blew softly upon the reeds. The birds heard
• 1:48:27
  Speaker 1: such wonderful music that they stopped to listen. The leaves
• 1:48:32
  Speaker 1: on the trees began to dance, and nodded to the
• 1:48:35
  Speaker 1: flowers to keep still. The waves on the shore caught
• 1:48:39
  Speaker 1: the tune and have been singing it ever since. Hermes
• 1:48:43
  Speaker 1: had invented the lyre and brought a new kind of
• 1:48:46
  Speaker 1: music into the world. He soon tired of his lyre
• 1:48:50
  Speaker 1: and went back to his cradle in the cave. As
• 1:48:53
  Speaker 1: he lay there, he could see a beautiful blue meadow
• 1:48:57
  Speaker 1: with many white cows upon it. Hermes knew that the
• 1:49:01
  Speaker 1: cows belonged to his brother, King Apollo. What fun, he thought,
• 1:49:06
  Speaker 1: I will go and make the cows run off. He
• 1:49:10
  Speaker 1: ran after them until he was tired and out of breath.
• 1:49:14
  Speaker 1: Then he drove them all backward into a cave and
• 1:49:18
  Speaker 1: fastened them in. King Apollo soon missed the cows and
• 1:49:22
  Speaker 1: searched all the meadows for them. He traced them to
• 1:49:26
  Speaker 1: the cave, but when he came closer to it, he
• 1:49:29
  Speaker 1: found that all the tracks led from the opening, not
• 1:49:33
  Speaker 1: into it. Near the cave, he saw an old man
• 1:49:38
  Speaker 1: who told him that he had seen the cows. He
• 1:49:41
  Speaker 1: said that with them he had seen a baby with
• 1:49:44
  Speaker 1: wings on his cap and heels. Apollo knew at once
• 1:49:49
  Speaker 1: that the baby was his brother, Ermeys. He went straight
• 1:49:52
  Speaker 1: to the cave of e Elos. There was Hermes in
• 1:49:56
  Speaker 1: his cradle, playing with the shell, just like any other baby.
• 1:50:00
  Speaker 1: Apollo was angry and commanded him to stop laughing and
• 1:50:03
  Speaker 1: crowing and tell him where the white cows were. Hermes
• 1:50:08
  Speaker 1: only picked up the shell and breathed softly upon it.
• 1:50:12
  Speaker 1: Apollo forgot his anger and everything but the beautiful music.
• 1:50:16
  Speaker 1: He took Ermes into his arms and kissed him, and
• 1:50:19
  Speaker 1: begged him to teach him his secret. Hermes was glad
• 1:50:22
  Speaker 1: to be so easily forgiven. He gave Apollo the lyre
• 1:50:26
  Speaker 1: and taught him many ways to play upon it. Apollo
• 1:50:30
  Speaker 1: was soon able to make even sweeter music than Hermes,
• 1:50:33
  Speaker 1: and he afterwards became the god of music. He was
• 1:50:38
  Speaker 1: so thankful to Hermes for his gift that he gave
• 1:50:41
  Speaker 1: him a wonderful rod called the Cadusius. Whatever Hermes touched
• 1:50:47
  Speaker 1: with the rod became wise, loving and unselfish. One time
• 1:50:52
  Speaker 1: he saw two hissing serpents about to spring at each
• 1:50:55
  Speaker 1: other in fury. He touched them with the cadusius in Distantly,
• 1:51:00
  Speaker 1: they twined themselves lovingly around the rod, and never again
• 1:51:04
  Speaker 1: left it. Apollo also gave Hermes charge over all the
• 1:51:09
  Speaker 1: cows in the Blue meadow. Ermes loved the cows and
• 1:51:12
  Speaker 1: often took them with him on his journeys. He was
• 1:51:16
  Speaker 1: a wild youth and a great traveler. And so it
• 1:51:20
  Speaker 1: happened that in nearly all the countries of the world,
• 1:51:23
  Speaker 1: armes and as white cows have been seen. The end
• 1:51:31
  Speaker 1: Iris's bridge in the sky, where the amber tents are
• 1:51:35
  Speaker 1: seen on the clouds, Iris was born. She loved her
• 1:51:39
  Speaker 1: home and all the beautiful things around her. Perhaps she
• 1:51:43
  Speaker 1: sailed in the moon's silver boat and knew why the
• 1:51:47
  Speaker 1: stars kept twinkling. Perhaps she feasted on sunshine and dew
• 1:51:52
  Speaker 1: and slept on the soft white clouds more than anything
• 1:51:57
  Speaker 1: in her sky home. Iris loved her grandfather the stern
• 1:52:02
  Speaker 1: old Ocean. When he was merry and drove his white
• 1:52:06
  Speaker 1: horses over the water, she was happy when he was
• 1:52:11
  Speaker 1: troubled and the sky grew dark. And sad. She quietly
• 1:52:16
  Speaker 1: slipped her hand into his. Instantly he smiled and became
• 1:52:21
  Speaker 1: gentle again. He longed always to keep her with him,
• 1:52:25
  Speaker 1: But the Sun said no. Iris belongs to both ocean
• 1:52:30
  Speaker 1: and sky. Let her be the messenger between heaven and Earth.
• 1:52:35
  Speaker 1: They placed golden wings upon her shoulders and made her
• 1:52:39
  Speaker 1: a bridge of beautiful colors. One end of the bridge
• 1:52:43
  Speaker 1: they rested in the sky. But the other Iris could
• 1:52:46
  Speaker 1: fasten to the earth with a pot of gold. This
• 1:52:51
  Speaker 1: was the way Iris's path was made. The earth gave
• 1:52:55
  Speaker 1: the tints of her fairest flowers, the sea brought great
• 1:52:59
  Speaker 1: ribbons of silvery mist. The wind was the shuttle, the
• 1:53:04
  Speaker 1: sky was the loom, and the Sun himself was the weaver.
• 1:53:09
  Speaker 1: It is no wonder that the most beautiful thing in
• 1:53:12
  Speaker 1: all the world is Iris's bridge, the rainbow, the end Prometheus.
• 1:53:23
  Speaker 1: Greece is far away to the east, over a great ocean.
• 1:53:27
  Speaker 1: It is a very small country, with high mountains in
• 1:53:31
  Speaker 1: every part of it. The people who lived there long
• 1:53:34
  Speaker 1: ago could not easily go from one place to another.
• 1:53:39
  Speaker 1: Some of the mountains reached above the clouds and made
• 1:53:42
  Speaker 1: great walls around their homes. Men sometimes lived all their
• 1:53:47
  Speaker 1: lives near the sea and never saw it. These people
• 1:53:51
  Speaker 1: who were shut up in a little valley of Greece
• 1:53:55
  Speaker 1: did many wonderful things. As they could not go far
• 1:53:59
  Speaker 1: from their humes, they had time to see how beautiful
• 1:54:02
  Speaker 1: the things around them were. Perhaps they looked at the
• 1:54:05
  Speaker 1: sky so much that they wished to have everything on
• 1:54:09
  Speaker 1: earth just as beautiful. They gave their children work to do,
• 1:54:14
  Speaker 1: which made them strong and graceful. Some of the Greeks
• 1:54:18
  Speaker 1: carved statues from the marble in the mountains. Some built
• 1:54:22
  Speaker 1: great temples of it. Some painted pictures, while others made
• 1:54:27
  Speaker 1: gardens more beautiful than pictures. Others wrote books. Many of
• 1:54:32
  Speaker 1: the stories you like were written by the poets who
• 1:54:35
  Speaker 1: lived in Greece long ago. In all these ways, the
• 1:54:38
  Speaker 1: Greeks showed their love for their country and made it
• 1:54:41
  Speaker 1: a better place in which to live. Though they were
• 1:54:45
  Speaker 1: so wise, they had many thoughts which seemed strange to us.
• 1:54:49
  Speaker 1: They believed that long before they were born, a race
• 1:54:52
  Speaker 1: of giants had lived among the mountains. At one time,
• 1:54:56
  Speaker 1: the giants grew angry with Zeus, their king, and wished
• 1:55:00
  Speaker 1: to take his throne away from him. There was a
• 1:55:04
  Speaker 1: wise giant named Prometheus, who begged them not to attempt
• 1:55:09
  Speaker 1: to do this. He tried to show them how foolish
• 1:55:13
  Speaker 1: they were. They would not listen to him. Zeus lived
• 1:55:17
  Speaker 1: upon Mount Olympus, the highest mountain in Greece. The giants
• 1:55:22
  Speaker 1: brought great rocks to this mountain and piled them up
• 1:55:25
  Speaker 1: higher and higher until they reached the sky. Zeus waited
• 1:55:29
  Speaker 1: until the giants had finished their work and were ready
• 1:55:32
  Speaker 1: for battle. Then he put out his hand and touched
• 1:55:36
  Speaker 1: the great mound. Instantly, it fell over into the sea.
• 1:55:41
  Speaker 1: Promytheus and his brother were now the only people on earth.
• 1:55:45
  Speaker 1: They were so lonely that Zeus told them to model
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  Speaker 1: some people from clay. Promytheus made animals and men, and
• 1:55:54
  Speaker 1: Epimytheus his brother gave them gifts of courage, swiftness, and strength.
• 1:56:01
  Speaker 1: To some he gave feathers and wings, to others fur
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  Speaker 1: and claws, and to others a hard shelly covering. When
• 1:56:10
  Speaker 1: he came to man, he had no covering left. Zeus said,
• 1:56:14
  Speaker 1: I will clothe man, and that is the reason his
• 1:56:17
  Speaker 1: covering is so delicate and beautiful. Prometheus's people could not breathe.
• 1:56:24
  Speaker 1: Zeus sent him to Yellows, the god of the winds
• 1:56:27
  Speaker 1: for help. Yellos sent his strong son north Wind back
• 1:56:32
  Speaker 1: with Prometheus. When north Wind saw the people of Clay,
• 1:56:36
  Speaker 1: he whistled with surprise. He blew his breath upon them.
• 1:56:40
  Speaker 1: They turned as white as snow and began to breathe.
• 1:56:46
  Speaker 1: They were a cold people, however, and Prometheus did not
• 1:56:49
  Speaker 1: love them. He went to ILOs again, and this time
• 1:56:53
  Speaker 1: south Wind and the zephyrs came with him. South Wind
• 1:56:57
  Speaker 1: brought the people green grass and flowers and birds. The
• 1:57:01
  Speaker 1: zephyrs showed them how to laugh and cry, and sing
• 1:57:05
  Speaker 1: and dance. But the people were stupid. They lived like
• 1:57:10
  Speaker 1: ants in dark caves. Promytheus saw that there was only
• 1:57:14
  Speaker 1: one thing which could help them. That was fire. Fire
• 1:57:19
  Speaker 1: was the most precious thing Zeus had, and he kept
• 1:57:23
  Speaker 1: it ever burning around his throne. When Prometheus asked for fire,
• 1:57:28
  Speaker 1: Zeus was angry. I have already given too much to
• 1:57:32
  Speaker 1: your people, he said, let them now help themselves. Promeytheus
• 1:57:37
  Speaker 1: was sad. Indeed, he loved his people more than he
• 1:57:40
  Speaker 1: did himself. At last, he said, they shall have the fire.
• 1:57:45
  Speaker 1: I will pay for it with my life. He went
• 1:57:48
  Speaker 1: straight to Zeus's throne and filled a farrow with it.
• 1:57:52
  Speaker 1: And carried it to his people. Then the people began
• 1:57:55
  Speaker 1: to be wise. He taught them to cook and to
• 1:57:58
  Speaker 1: build houses, and to sail their ships upon the ocean.
• 1:58:03
  Speaker 1: He showed them how to get rich oars from the
• 1:58:05
  Speaker 1: mountains and prepare them for use. They learned how to
• 1:58:09
  Speaker 1: plow and to reap, and to store up their food
• 1:58:12
  Speaker 1: for the winter. Zeus was angry with Prometheus. He chained
• 1:58:17
  Speaker 1: him to a rock on the top of a high mountain.
• 1:58:21
  Speaker 1: He sent a great bird each day to torment him.
• 1:58:25
  Speaker 1: Zeus said that he must stay there until he repented
• 1:58:28
  Speaker 1: and returned the fire to heaven. There Prometheus stayed and
• 1:58:33
  Speaker 1: suffered for many burning summers and long cold winters. Sometimes
• 1:58:39
  Speaker 1: he grew fainthearted, and wished to be free. Then he
• 1:58:43
  Speaker 1: looked down and saw how the fire was helping the people,
• 1:58:46
  Speaker 1: and how happy they were, and he grew strong again.
• 1:58:50
  Speaker 1: After many, many years, a Greek hero who was sailing
• 1:58:54
  Speaker 1: over the mountain in a golden cup, saw Prometheus. It
• 1:59:00
  Speaker 1: was Hercules. He shot the bird with a golden arrow,
• 1:59:04
  Speaker 1: unbound the chain, and set the wise Prometheus free. The
• 1:59:09
  Speaker 1: end end of Miscellaneous Stories, end of Nature Myths and
• 1:59:15
  Speaker 1: Stories for Little Children by Flora J. Cook Read to
• 1:59:19
  Speaker 1: You by Linnett Gaisel