A Day with the Sea Cae, | 87

 

appearance of a tiny girl amongst the party of Land.
Urchins on board, had secretly determined. in her foolish
little heart that she would, on the first convenient oppor-
tunity, contrive a dress like it for herself. The. stirring
_ events of the day had, however, fully occupied her
- attention, and it was only now, to while away the time
till Jasper should return, that she had remembered and
carried out her idea. —

There is no denying that she had done it very well,
considering that seaweed was the only material at her —
command. Her artistic fingers had fashioned a green
frock, very like a Land Urchin’s night-gown in shape,
which was gathered round the waist with a ribbon-like
strip of gold colour, and a delicate trimming of white.
finished it at the ‘throat and wrists; two or three rows of
tiny pearly shells were round her neck, and a jaunty
little flat green cap was set on the back of her yellow
curls. It was very cleverly managed indeed, and I
wished she could have made a sketch of herself. But
you -see ‘that, though this costume would have looked
pretty enough on a Land Urchin, it was very comical
indeed to behold a Sea Urchin thus fashionably attired.
Pearl’s brothers and sisters and other inhabitants of the
sea seemed to think so too, for after a pause of mute
astonishment, she was greeted with such peals of silvery
laughter that the water rang again with it. Peal after
peal burst out, till at last I feared I should betray myself

gi