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Show I 1 I M I 1 III Ml H I 1 1 1 I 1 I -I -I-I'l 1 I I 1 I I I 1 I I I 1 1 1 I I I 1 1 I 1' H I I 1 1 1 I 1 1 1 11 1 1 1 I I 1 I 1 1 1 I I 1 1 I I I 111 I I Evening Fairy Tale for the Children I t By MARY GRAHAM BONNER I tl I I 1 I 1 I U 1 I I 1 1 I 1 M 1 I I I I I 1 I 1 1 1 I I I 1 1 I I I I I I I 1 1 I I I I I I I I 1 I I I M I I i I I I I I I I I I I I I I III I i The Fairy Queen took a trip with some of the other fairies to where the banana trees were growing. The fairies were so tired from the trip that they fell asleep, but Just as the Fairy Queen was about to go to sleep .she noticed that the leaves of the banana trees all around were laughing, actually laughing. "What are you laughing for?" asked the Fairy Queen. "We're laughing because we're almost al-most ripe. It's so jolly to be almost ripe." "Well, of course, I don't know," said the Fairy Queen. "I've never been a fruit, so I don't know what It would be like to be ripe or unripe." "Ah, but we have such a glorious time growing, and while we last, we are so happy," the banana trees said. "Don't you last long?" asked the Fairy Queen. "Of course, I can understand un-derstand that the bananas wouldn't last long if there were many people around as fond of them as I am. "I am devoted to bananas. Yes, you really might say that I was devoted to them. "So are many of us in Fairyland, too, and, of course, In the world of people as well." The banana leaves laughed again. They made such a lovely sound as they laughed. It reminded the Fairy Queen of the sound of a gentle summer rain. "Some of our cousins have traveled on boats," the banana tree said. 'Some have gone on trains, too." "But tell me why you don't last very long?" the Fairy Queen asked. "Because," said the leaves, "we are cut dowa when all our fruit has been taken. "We are not nice any longer. We can never do the same work again, you see. "But there are shoots that are taken from our roots. These are started off again, and they do the same work as we have done. "Aren't you sad that you don't do the same work over again yourselves?" your-selves?" asked the Fairy Queen. "No," said the leaves cheerfully, "It "What Are You Laughing For?" is enough for us to do our work well once. "That's all we want. That makes us very happy. We love the warm sun and we have had our reward for our work. "We have jrown beautiful and ripe. Ah, ha, ha, we're getting ripe now." The Fairy Queen's mouth watered and now the other little fairies were waking up. They were both rested and hungry. ' Such a banana eating party as they had, and the bananas seemed much pleased In their banana fashion that they were so much liked. But after it was all over and the eating and the talking was finished, the Fairy Queen went back to Fairyland Fairy-land with the other fairies, and there she told everyone banana tree history, which they were all so glad to hear. And she had a big bundle of bananas, ba-nanas, too, which the banana trees had sent to Fairyland as their gift. ((c). 1931. Western Newspaper Union.) |