100 FOREST FANCIES 



**The river? Where will the river take the 

 trees?" 



But the old tree trembled. ^'It is well to 

 abide in the forest," said she, ''with a hundred 

 years of life." 



**Just one more question," said the little 

 spruce again; *'do the trees answer the river's 

 call?" 



**Grow taller," replied the old tree, ''and 

 you can see for yourself." 



But one day a storm arose, and many spruce 

 trees lost their footing on the mountain side 

 and fell. The little spruce tree could now see 

 the river, and far beyond the valley to the dis- 

 tant mountains, where other spruce trees, 

 thousands of them, grew. 



"What a wide, wide world I" she cried, and 

 at night hearkened no more to the river, but 

 listened to the ceaseless song of the spruce 

 trees borne by the wind across the valley. 



"What are they singing?" she asked. 



"They are restless," was the reply; "they 

 long to dance to the river's playing. Heed 

 them not." 



