of hearing a crab talk being so surprising. She told her that she would accept her offer with pleasure; but that she could not walk backwards as she did. The Crab smiled, and immediately took the figure of a handsome little old woman.
"Very well, Madam," said she, "we will not walk backwards, I consent to that: but, at all events, look upon me as one of your friends, who would be of service to you."
She walked out of the fountain without being wetted. Her dress was white, lined with crimson, and her grey hair was dressed with knots of green riband; scarcely was ever seen an old woman with so sprightly an air. She saluted the Queen, and was embraced by her; and, without delaying any longer, she conducted her through a path in the wood, which astonished that princess; for, although she had been in the wood a thousand and a thousand times, she had never entered that particular path. How could she have entered it? It was the road by which the fairies went to the fountain, and was generally closed by brambles and thorns; but when the Queen and her conductress presented themselves, roses immediately appeared upon the brambles, jasmine and orange-trees interlaced their branches, to form an arbour covered by leaves and flowers. The ground was mantled with violets; a thousand different birds sang in emulation of each other upon the trees.
The Queen had not recovered from her astonishment, when her eyes were struck by the unequalled lustre of a palace of diamonds,—the walls, the roofs, the platforms, the floors, the stairs, the balconies, even the terraces, were all diamonds. In the excitement of her admiration, she could not help uttering a loud cry; and asked the fine old lady who accompanied her, if what she saw was a dream, or reality. "Nothing can be more real, Madam," replied she. Immediately the gates of the palace opened, six fairies issued forth,—but what fairies! the most beautiful and the most magnificent that had ever been seen in their empire. They all came and made a profound courtesy to the Queen, and each presented her with a flower of precious stones, to make her a bouquet. There was a rose, a tulip, an anemone, a columbine, a carnation, and a pomegranate. "Madam," said they, "we cannot give you a greater mark of our esteem than that of permitting you to come here to see us; but we are delighted to
