“Why, what’s this?” said a thundering voice in his ear
THE CRUISE of THE LITTLE DIPPER
and OTHER FAIRY TALES
THE WONDERFUL TALE of NIKKO
PETER DWARF
THE CRYSTAL BOWL
THE MERCILESS TSAR
by
SUSANNE LANGER
Illustrated by
H. SEWELL
NORCROSS NEW YORK
THE CRUISE OF THE
LITTLE DIPPER
COPYRIGHT 1923
BY NORCROSS N.Y.
THE CRUISE OF THE LITTLE DIPPER
Once upon a time there was a very poorboy, who had no cap on his head, no shoes onhis feet, and never a penny in his pocket. Hewas so poor that he did not even have a name.His father had gone to sea many years ago ina ship called The Big Dipper, and as he hadnever returned, people said surely he must bedead. So the boy had gone to live in a small,dark house beside the sea, with his great-aunt,who was very old and cross and strict. Shedid not let him have any sugar on his cerealor butter on his bread, and every day afterschool she spanked him soundly for all the mistakeshe had made that day, and if he had notmade any she spanked him just the same forall those he would probably make to-morrow,or the next day, or the next. When he askedfor a bit of soap to blow bright soap-bubbles,she cried:
“Soap-bubbles, indeed! Soap is made onlyto wash one’s face with. You may have allyou want for that, but for bubbles, no, no!Bless my boots, what will you ask for next?”
When the other children played on thebeach, building castles in the sand, or pickingup pretty shells, this poor boy had to gatherdriftwood for his great-aunt’s kitchen fire.
But for all his hard luck he was alwayswhistling blithely at his work. He would whistleall the tunes in the hymn book, and all thesailor’s songs, and the nursery songs, and thensome more that he made up as he ran along thebeach picking up driftwood. Of course hisgreat-aunt had forbidden his whistling aboutthe house, but other people liked to hear him,and since he had no name, they called him“Birdling.” His great-aunt called him “You!”
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