THE STORY OF THE SUNFLOWER 349 
THE STORY OF THE SUNFLOWER. 
Clyte was a water-nymph, and she lived at the bottom 
of the sea. The white sea-sand was Clyte’s carpet, a 
pink sea-shell was her bed, and the soft seaweed was her 
pillow. The seaweeds and the sea-flowers made groves 
and gardens for Clyte, She was quite the happiest nymph 
in the whole great sea. One morning Clyte awoke in her 
sea-shell cradle with a laugh. She flung on her soft green 
dress and clapped her hands to call her servants. 
“ Bring my largest, pinkest sea-shell carriage, ' ’ she or- 
dered. “And to-day I shall drive the turtles; for they 
are strong and can travel far.” 
“Take me wherever you like,” said Clyte, when she 
was comfortably seated in her big sea-shell carriage, “ All 
the sea-bottom is lovely. I can never tire of it!” 
The turtles drew Clyte on and on and on. They passed 
great forests of seaweed. They passed pink sea-shell after 
pink sea-shell. They glided over smooth sandy sea-bot- 
tom, They crawled around great ragged-edged rocks. 
Indeed, so long was the ride and so easy the carriage 
that Clyte at length fell asleep. She did not waken until 
a big wave carried Clyte, carriage, turtles, and all ashore. 
Then Clyte opened her big brown eyes very wide. She 
had never before seen the land ! 
The blue, blue sky was above her. Her own blue, 
blue sea was before her. There was green grass at her 
feet, and such flowers as never grew in her deep sea- 
garden. In the trees were birds, whose songs sounded 
sweeter even than the wave-music which always lulled 
Clyte to sleep. Clyte looked again at the blue sky. 
Across it rode the sun-king in a chariot which shone like 
blazing gold. When Clyte saw the sun-king, she knew 
why the earth v/as different from the sea. She saw how 
all living things looked up and smiled when the sun-king 
passed that way. 
She saw how the sun-king smiled kindly down on every 
living thing. Little Clyte sighed and smiled and was 
happy, for she liked the strange land. 
“Ah, me,” said Clyte, “I wish I were a land-child. 
Then I, too, might ever look up to this sun-king. But I 
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