LAST OF THE FAIRIES. 7 



" Welcome, queen/' he exclaimed, as springing for- 

 ward with his skinny arm to detain her : quietly 

 eluding his grasp, Ina veiled her charms in her gold- 

 en halo, and, gliding past him, entered the cavern 

 which contained the object of her benevolence. A 

 dank odour arose from the dripping walls, which 

 almost overpowered the fine senses of the fairy ; 

 reptiles and uncleanly insects crawled from the with- 

 ered moss, and a croaking toad cast her venom on 

 the passing fay. Extended on the damp earth lay 

 the unfortunate rustic, groaning from beneath the 

 labours of the wicked sprites, who were busily em- 

 ployed in throwing around him their cunning toils. 

 In vain he writhed from side to side and endeavoured 

 to cast off his chains j too firmly were they rivetted 

 and at length he abandoned himself to a calm des- 

 pair. Concealing herself in a dark recess, Ina 

 watched the result of the pixies' proceedings. Wa- 

 ving his torch, and shrieking in dismay, the sentinel 

 who had quickly pursued the gentle Ina, broke in 

 upon the busy scene and dispersed his comrades in 

 search of the fairy queen. 



Trembling in her snug retreat, Ina beheld prepa- 

 rations for their investigation. Now they almost 

 touched her, now they fled away in an opposite di- 

 rection. At length, to her infinite joy, she watched 

 their exit from the dismal cave. Then, emerging 

 from her hiding place, she approached the^prostrate 

 rustic, and with phant finger commenced her Hercu- 

 lean task. But vain were her endeavours to unravel 

 the curious coil of the sprites : every effort only in- 

 creased the diflficulty : the knots slipped tighter even 

 beneath her skilful hands, and, at length, despairing 

 of success, she threw herself mournfully on the yield- 

 ing soil. Her head sank on her breast, tears forced 

 their way through her silken lashes, and sighs broke 

 the silence of the dreary place. Collecting her dying 

 energies, she arose from the ground, and, departing 

 from the cavern, again wended her way across the 

 dreary moor. Pausing near the fountain-head, she 



