Page 551 - Child's own book

with the old toad, and still less marrying her ugly son. TEte
little tishes, who were sporting below in tbe water, had seen
the toad, and heard, too, what she said, so they now popped
their heads out to see the little girl themselves. They had no
Sooner caught sight of her, than they thought her so pretty,
that they felt quite sorry she should bo condemned to live
below amongst the toads, It must not be, they all agreed, so
they gathered round the green stalk in the water below, that
kept the leaf fast, and gnawed it off at the root with their teeth>

when the leaf floated down the stream, carrying Maja
beyond the reach of the toad.
Maja sailed past many towns, and the little liirda in the
bushes saw her and sang* 41 What a lovely little creature 1
and the leaf swam and swam till Maja was ont of the land.
An elegant little White butterfly "fluttered about her continually,