4 The Fairy Godmothers.

or a ruby. A fort of queen of Nature’s own
making, reigning royally in undifputed {way, let
her circumftances of life be what they may!
Look how mean the richeft woman who is ugly
looks by the fide of her! No no, dear Ianthe,
make your little lady handfome, and you have done
the beft that Fairy can do for her. I declare I
envy her beforehand! Here where we are all
fo beautiful together there is no intereft or excite-
ment about it—it is quite flat.” And fo faying
the young fairy Leila laid herfelf down to her
wreath again. ‘‘ Why, Leila, you are abfolutely
eloquent!” obferved Ianthe, ‘ Beauty it certainly
mutt be.”

“© Oh, I declare,” purfued Ianthe, roufing up
again,” I have fometimes really wifhed myfelf
ugly, that I might fome day have the pleafure of
fuddenly finding myfelf beautiful ! ”

“¢ Oh, but then,” faid a Fairy from behind, ‘is
there no danger of your regular beauty, as you
call her, getting as tired of being beautiful as you
are, and wifhing herfelf ugly too?”

“ Certainly,’not,” anfwered Ianthe, “for, for an
earthly beauty there would always be the excite-
ment of being envied.”

“© Come, come,” perfifted the former fpeaker,
“ then the gift of being envied would be the beft
thing to beftow, at all events a neceflary addi-
tion.”

“ Oh,” cried Leila, ftopping her ears, “I can’t
argue, I never could—I can’t hear any more, I