elen, M ‘Burnside J lustrated ) & & ES sy i = 3 os Q oO & To cleat si ae Cute ee A DAY WITH Tht SEA URCHINS A DAY WITH THE SEA URCHINS BY HELEN M. BURNSIDE WITH ILLUSTRATIONS BY ALFRED W. COOPER ENGRAVED AND PRINTED BY, EDMUND EVANS THE SONGS SET TO _ MUSIC BY MYLES BIRKET FOSTER (Late Organist of the Foundling Hospital) 4 LONDON FREDERICK WARNE AND CO. AND NEW YORK 1893 TO THE LAND URCHINS. THe Summer days are fleeting fast, The elm has donned its golden crown ; While o’er the whisp’ring wood is cast Its Autumn robe of russet brown. And though next year the elms will wake, And hang green banners o’er the lane, The Summer glory they will make Will ne’er be quite the same again. Not quite the same, the bright days taught Such sweet new lore to you and me, While with our eager eyes we sought The lovely secrets of the sea. As we shall hoard the fragile shells We found at ebb-tide in the bay, Just so, in mem’ry’s treasure-cells Those sunlit days are laid away. And when—please God—we all shall meet By Christmas hearths, as oft of yore, We'll con again those lessons sweet We learnt upon the Summer shore. ST. SERVAN, A DAY WITH | Tin Seek URemINS Once upon a time there was a family of Sea Urchins, whose home was a cave in the Bay of Delight. It is not likely that any of you have ever seen a real live Sea Urchin, though no doubt you have picked up strange-looking spiny or spiky objects on the sea- shore, which you have been told are the skins or shells of Sea Urchins. But the kind I mean is not a bit like that; they are like Land Urchins, only far smaller and prettier. If you can get up very early on the morning of the longest day in the year, and be down on the beach just as the sun shows the very tip vf his red forehead above the sea, and lights up one little ripple after another with ruby sparks till a many twinkling, rosy track creeps across the sea to your feet, and if it should happen to be high tide at that very moment, then if you could peep into the cave, unseen and unheard, you might have a chance of seeing the Sea Urchins, and hearing them also, as I saw and B 8 A Day with the Sea Urchtns. heard on that never-to-be-forgotten day which | am going to tell you about. es I dare say you have often been into this cave. at low tide, and at common hours of the day; and you know all about the beautiful colours of the quartz rock which forms the roof and sides, and how they glitter with gold and silver flakes, and you have looked out from it across the brown weed-covered rocks at the shining blue bay, and the little islands which lie in the mouth of the river just where it flows into the open sea beyond; but all the timie you knew nothing about the dear pretty little creatures who make it their home whenever the tide is high enough to serve as a door -to shut out prying eyes. When the tide ebbs they go out with it, and a merry party they are, as you would have said, had you seen them as I did, singing, laughing, and splashing, and playing all manner of funny pranks with each other. They swim out and away to the rocky islands which shine so golden and fairylike in the morning sunlight, where there are plenty of safe nooks for them to play in till the flowing tide brings them back again to their home in the cave. Perhaps you will wonder why they are so very much afraid of being seen. The fact is simply this. They wear no clothes, and you know the laws of the coast are very strict upon this point. One day they A Day with the Sea Urchins. 9 had seen (and you must remember they can see you, though you cannot see them) a Land Urchin, whom they had been watching, swimming about in the sea, seized by a huge creature all dressed in blue, and carried off to prison in spite of his prayers and tears, and they heard it was because he had no clothes on. Now you and I know that this creature was a policeman, or if you are foolish enough to use slang words you would ” perhaps call him a “bobby,” but the Sea Urchins knew nothing of policemen, or of “ bobbies” either, and they said to each other that an Erinnys had got the boy, and 10 A Day with the Sea Urchins. these Erinnys, who were not men at all by the way, but women, are of all things most dreaded by Sea Urchins. Most boys read the old Greek fairy stories, and many girls too, for it is the fashion for girls to learn Greek now-a-days, as I am told by Oxford and Cambridge examiners. Now I think, and many wise men and women agree with me, examiners notwith- standing, that there are many things more important than Greek for little girls to learn, but this is merely a matter of opinion. You all know that the Erinnys were a race who spent their lives in tracking and bringing evil-doeérs to justice, and that is why policemen are called Erinnys by Sea Urchins to this day. They had been so frightened on this occasion that they all fell off the rock round which they had been peeping, and went heels over head into the sea with such a splash that the police- man lcoked back, and thought he saw something white flourish in the air, and disappear into the sea, which looked very like the legs of a small boy; and in point of fact so it was, but he was tired and hot, and badly wetted already, so he bethought himself that a boy in the hand was worth two in the sea, and marched off his prisoner with an added sternness, which struck terror to the hearts of the Sea Urchins, who from. that day to this have never dared to show an inch of their pretty little white bodies out of their hiding-places; and, as A Day with the Sea Urchins. 11 _ you shall hear, it was quite by chance that I came to know all about them. Strolling down to the Bay of Delight early one summer morning, while the trails of honeysuckle and blackberry in the hedges were still wet with dew, I stretched myself on the short turf of the low cliff above the cave, and whilst I lay dreamily watching the sparks of sunlight creeping over the sea, I became aware of sweet singing or chanting, which it seemed to me floated up out of the cave itself; but how could this be? I asked myself, for it was high tide, and I knew the cave was half full of water. I listened a little longer, and then crept to the edge of the cliff and looked over. All was clear water below me, but the singing grew more distinct, so I noiselessly clambered down a little way, so that I could peep into the cave. And then a strange scene met my eyes, for perched about on various projections of the rocks, just above high-water mark, were six of the prettiest and tiniest boys and girls you can imagine. They were combing their. wavy yellow hair with coral combs, and chattering to each other as fast as their little tongues could go. Three of them were girls, and three were boys, and listening to their talk from my hiding-place, where I lay as still as a mouse, I discovered that the names of the girls were Pearl, Topaz, and Amethyst; and those of the boys, Jasper, Emerald, and Ruby. They spoke in A Day with the Sea Urchins. 13 a sort of rhythmical chant, which seemed to set itself to the ceaseless murmur of the sea. Indeed, I believe it was from always speaking to the accompaniment of sea. music that they had fallen into this strange and pretty manner of speaking. This was the singing I had heard, but afterwards I learnt that Jasper, the biggest of the boys, was a poet, who made songs about everything that happened to them; and sweet little Pearl drew pictures of all that occurred worthy of note. I afterwards obtained a picture which she had made of the policeman carrying off the unfortunate boy, which, with many others, and also some of the songs made by Jasper, you will find set down in this book. When they had finished their toilets—which, you may suppose did not take very long—they all stood on a rock at the entrance of the cave, and sang the following song, Jasper leading, and the others joining in the chorus :— SONG. “ Night is past, and the sun is peeping _ Over the rim of the silver sea ; From ripple to ripple the light is leaping, Brothers away on the billows free. Away, away, for the sun is peeping Over. the rim of the silver sea! 14 . A Day with the Sea Urchins. Two-Part Cuorus. Allegretto giojoso. Ist VOICE, end VOICE. Night is past, and the sun is | e/ Night is past, and the sun is peep - > ing, sae Sua eed (a= ape SS = | Sa) Sa ee ee a oe BG Saher mia Pacer ne paoead 3. SS a Ee er A Day with the Sea Urchins. 15 ae SSeS ing O-verthe rim of the ‘sil- ver ———= Se ing, O- ver the poco rit. SSeS ea sea ; From rip-ple to ‘ip - is the light is ee -ing, leap-ing from pone ree. Sete == =a a => =a oo rim of the sil- ver sea ; the light is leap - ing, oe ing from —— SS ! ae see rit. 16 A Day with the Sea Urehins. rip- ple to rip - ple. : rip - ple to rip - ple. dolce. ‘ cres. se ee eee Night is past,andthesun is peep-ing O - ver the . eer eereere = at — eS = Night is past, and the sun is eS = aoe ee hg el a ; (CSS 5 = sl 2) : —_—_ res. 7 0 De. 5g: CS Se ee ie Sel [es A Day with the Sea Urchins. 17 ea pee — ee ae ee ees ev Se yim of thesil - ver sea, the sil-ver sea, Ps sil - ver a sates eeer | aoe See aes 2 =a peep -ing O-verthe rim of thesil-ver sea, the sil-ver = === = == pees eee es (een eee cres. e ——— ee ee ia an oa |e | ee [ee Seen reese eae we a Marcato, ao aa ag Sea Se sea. - way! bro-thers, a - oe a-way! A - ee — ae Sse sat ara ew eS SS a: a = sea. A - way! bro-thers, a-way,a- way ! A- t b | Op: age 2 e- Cee s — = eae = ge ie == SS roe A Day with the Sea Urchins. a eg ae r (> [a ee I Sent Iona A casrocuesrcomne a marae - way on the bil - lows free! For the Ss =a 2 psa eS eee se a-way, . a- way! For the sun is peep- ba ae = So Bee rte a tempo. Saas ees aaa ee er sea is peep- ne: O - ver the sil - poco rit. ot a == aos = age 2 =e es —— - - ver the rim of the sil- ver sea. oe =a eee See ee ey Sas ee oro ae a QU anaes colla voce. atempo. mf Se ese =e ae == eee ge =a SS == A Day with the Sea Urchins. 19” $ _——S | ee ee Round the SS a eee Round the is-lands the waves are splash-ing, splash - = a is-lands the waves are splash - ing, splash. - er ee Te TPR eee Ze A Day with the Sea Urchins. SSS Se - ing, Gen - tly splash-ing the rocks a-mong; With snow-y - ing, Gen - tly on ing the rocks a- a aa. ase ee et SS ao oe SS e oe frin - ges of foam - bells flash-ing In - to the air as they SS = = oes: oe a ag "ag - mong; With foam - bells flash-ing In - to the air as they A Day with the Sea Urchins. 2 Peso Se estes a Se QD See cavern gion — PS a meg ee a long. ; = = z a | ie + a long. Ce mi 0 i ees a un =e a ami = == 33 se ae = — aati . of t+ 2 ea = ales dolce. es. ee ee ——_—— Se Round the islands the waves are splashing, Gen - tly ; dolce. cres. SSS SST a Phe Round the islandsthe waves are > > BerEN Los So Ss esata tate as aa ee See aie ne Se pee ; oe = See pares KH aig A Day with the Sea Urchins. -—=— Se $= ee noe lemma splash-ing the rocks a - mong, Gen-tly splash-ing the rocks a - cres. —=== =a ae ee Gen - tly ary the rocks a- mong, the rocks a - (aetna = == 2 = +f t4 ee aoe A-way! bro-thers, a- way! a-way! A - —_»—_-}+_»—_+ SS A - way! bro-thers, a-way, a - way! A - (ee Sa = pea =e A Day with the Sea Urchins. 23 uf While the Cres. <= While the wave-lets splashing YES. rit. PN eS ar [a —— | —_—— ———— wave-lets Ring a chime to our morning song! ; rit. Paes ys ae ra SS - 3 “—" Ring _. a chime to our morning = song! e. —~ Ss ee (Sa SS | - i ret. 4 2 ig Kien ee = a = a Se Ped. ere * 24 A Day with the Sea Urchins. “ Round the islands the waves are splashing— Gently splashing the rocks among ; With snowy fringes of foam-bells flashing Into the air as they trip along. Away, away, while the wavelets splashing Ring a chime to our morning song !” Jasper had a grave, beautiful face, befitting his name, for jasper, a deep red-coloured stone, is, as you all know, the foundation-stone of the walls of the New Jerusalem, just as the lovely violet amethyst is the last and topmost stone of the same wall; and I hope we shall all, you and I too, see them shining there some day. A Day with the Sea Urchins. 25 Crimson and violet are the first and last colours of the rainbow also, and if you look the next time you blow soap bubbles, you will find that these two colours are the first and last there too, with all the others in between. These little folk were, as I have said, far prettier than any Land Urchins I have ever seen; and it is, after all, no such wonder that there should be poets and artists among them, for they are Nature’s own children, neither mother nor nurse had they ever known save her. All their lives had been lived with her lovely secrets around them, and they understood her lightest 26 A Day with the Sea Urchins, word or look, and loved her with all their hearts, and believe me, children, no true artist or poet was ever born who does not do so too. , “ Where are our horses, Ruby? let us ride Adown the sun-track on the ebbing tide ; chanted Topaz. “The horses wait in yonder shining pool, I bridled them as day broke, fresh and cool ;” answered Ruby, whose duty it was to look after the steeds of the little party. He slipped off the rock and disappeared, but returned in a twinkling, swimming in front of six sea-horses, whose bridles of brown seaweed were looped over his arms. These bridles looked exactly like leather, and A Day with the Sea Urchins. 27 Quast ReEctrativo. Topaz, Reczt. . Andante graziosa. VoIcE. — hors- es, Ru- by? Let us Andante grazioso, PIANO. (mn $< a SSS SS ae down the sun-track on the ebb - ing A Day with the Sea Urchins. RuBy. 72 ae . Reczé, ae a aR SS ae = a a a as “The hors-es . wait in yon-der shin-ing pool; I Sz. Leer g ee ras 1a Tg eas crak rae QW NE SS ee == == Se ——————— a tempo. === = a ———— a SS brid-led them, as day broke fresh and cenit colla voce. UE ae > > == Se a ea ==] mf Co ree = SS seater nrecsa eRe a oe @ an oo -o- p a ea SS SS ee ie wiversaratrces a =I A Day with the Sea Urchins. 29 each one was studded with a different precious stone, corresponding to the names of the owners of the horses. If you have ever seen a sea-horse, you will know that it has no legs, but in place of them a pair of fins, which work very much in the same manner as the screw of a steamboat, by means of which it gets through the water at a wonderful rate of speed. Fearing that I should lose sight of my water fairies, who each mounted a horse, J silently dropped into the sea, and determined to follow them. So off we started, through the cool clear water, and many a strange crea- ture we passed on our way, I can assure you. The Sea Urchins were in high spirits, and their sweet little voices rang over the sea like a peal of silver bells, as they laughed and talked to each other in their pretty singing way. Their steeds seemed to catch the infection, for they pranced and danced and curvetted in very much the same manner as your ponies would do if you rode out in such delicious morning air. As they passed a rock, a young dog-fish, a mere puppy of a fish he was, came out and barked at their horses’ tails; little hoarse wheezy barks, for having been left in the lurch by the tide, he had slept on the damp seaweed all night, and caught a bad cold in his head. Ruby’s horse was of a rather irritable temper, and turned round and butted at the puppy fish, till he sulkily retreated to nurse his cold in a warm pool. 30 A Day with the Sea Urchins. Then Pearl crossed one little pink foot over a dimpled knee to form a table as she rode, and taking the bridle of her horse over her arm, drew such a funny sketch of the dog-fish that the rest all praised it, and laughed immensely. On and on they went; the sun was getting higher in the sky, and the calm surface of the bay lay shining and mottled over with all manner of colours ; here deeply blue, like a sapphire, and there, where green weedy rocks were beneath the surface, as green as anemerald. Then came a broad golden topaz- coloured sun-track, with ruby ripples dancing in it, pearly A Day with the Sea Urchins. 31 streaks where the currents flowed out to the open sea, and the loveliest amethystine shadows lay beneath the distant rocks. On and on they went, sometimes diving deep under the water, past brilliant anemonies opening like living flowers, past seaweeds and corals growing like groves of trees by the side of the way; past sun-fish and John Dory, and skates which swam in and out amongst the branches; and ugly little squids who ogled them with big rolling eyes as they rode along. And then a large fish was seen, at whose approach the whole company, both horses and riders, showed signs of consternation, and in an instant had all disappeared into various hiding- places. It seemed to me that this was a very harmless and quiet-looking giant to make such a commotion, but, as it turned out, the Sea Urchins knew best. a2 | A Day with the Sea Urehins. The fish had passed all the lurking-places except one, leaving their occupants in safety; but Pegasus, that troublesome horse of Ruby’s, had not quite re- covered his temper since the attack of the dog-fish, and must needs poke his nose from under the over- hanging fringe of seaweed just at ‘the moment the enemy went by, and received the merest flick of its fin, but in the twinkling of an eye horse and rider were shot up high into the air, for you see it was neither more nor less than a torpedo-fish who had touched Pegasus, and this fish, as you know, is so strongly charged with electricity as to give a violent shock to any creature with whom it comes in contact. Alas! for Ruby and his steed. The latter fell back into the A Day with the Sea Urchins. 33 sea, where he slowly recovered; but Ruby had fallen on the rock and cut his head badly, so that his pretty yellow hair was all stained with blood. His companions dismounted and gathered round him, and by-and-by Jasper galloped off to the shore, where a little stream of fresh water runs into the sea, and brought back some, with which Amethyst bathed and bound up the wound, as wise Nurse Nature had taught her to do, so that it soon got well. Then to horse and away again towards the largest of the islands, for which they were bound. An old Puffin on a sunny ledge of rock opened one eye and blinked sleepily at them as they went by. She was so old, so very old, that she was nearly blind, and was quite grey all over from age, and could do nothing but sit and sleep in the sunshine all day, and eat the sprats : D 34 A Day with the Sea Urchins. which her grandchildren caught for her. Now thought- less Emerald fancied it would be amusing to startle her, and make her jump, so he dived, and brought up a long spray of coraline, with which he rode up to the ledge and tickled her poor old head. She shook it, and muttered angrily to herself, but she was past jumping at anything, and Emerald went on tickling her till she hobbled and fluttered to the edge of the rock, and fell over into the water with a great flop, where she would certainly have been drowned, had not a good- natured Eider Duck, who was fishing close by, helped her on to his back and waddled home with her. Jasper, who was a gentleman, as all poets must be, and knew A Day with the Sea Urchins. 35 that it is very bad manners, as well as very wrong and unkind, in young folks to play tricks on old ones, caught up a great soft sponge and threw it at Emerald’s head, who tumbled off his horse into a pool before he could remember to shut his mouth, and a nasty jelly-fish swam into it, so that he coughed and spluttered very much, and. felt dreadfully sick and-uncomfortable. And serve him right too, as I am sure you will agree with me. Indeed, Emerald himself thought so very soon, for he was a good-hearted boy, only mischievous and thought- fess, as boys are apt to be. As soon as he was better he went and begged the old Puffin’s pardon, but she was too fast asleep again after her fright and fatigue to hear him. 36 A. Day with the Sea Urchins. - You will find pictures of both of these scenes in this book, for Pearl sat down on an empty snail shell under a coraline tree, and drew them on the spot. When Emerald rejoined his comrades, he found them in a state of excitement, and as he appeared Jasper exclaimed,— “ Great news has reached us since you went away— Our gracious Queen will visit us to-day ; We mist prepare for her the banquet hall, And deck with garlands bright each rocky wall.” And Topaz chimed in,— “Haste brothers, each I know doth understand His work—we serve with heart as well as hand ; And we're determined our beloved Queen Shall have the grandest welcome ever seen !” Without losing a moment the Urchins disappeared in | various directions, to make ready for the great event. Now the name of their Queen was Aphrodite; many of you know it well, and some of you will read by- and-by, how she, the Queen of love, and of beauty also, was formed of the foam of the sea (which was very likely intended to teach us that to be beautiful, a thing must first be clean and pure). There are many seas, as you will have found on your maps; but there is only one Queen for them all, and every crea- ture in each one of the seas loved and obeyed her. / A Day with the Sea Urchins. oe RECITATIVE. Allegro molto. 3 : Great news has reached us since you went a - way— eee | : = = ce Spence aos oe eons Sue er IF om Serre as ieee a tempo. a ae a ae as i —— =e 5 a == a oe = Our gra-cious oe will vi- sit us Sate ee cS eeetennten cy —— Ss ee 7 ee tr ee A Day with the Sea Urchins. ban - quet hall, And as ap esl : Andante con moto. deck = ———— ee ele ———— with gar-lands bright each rock - y WelllsG-acaos ~p Andante con moto.' o . iia a Seeanens geet pet Soe = SS SS Se each I know doth un-der-stand His LE RR IRR ey SO nT ee a nara A Day with the Sea Urchins. 39 work— weservewithheartas well as hand; Andwe’re de- Se oe os: - oo ee = ieee - termined our be - lov - ed Queen Shall have the grandest welcome ev- er ee j- 7 SSS 40 A Day with the Sea Urchins. Sea Urchins know nothing of Mr. Gladstone and Home Rule, I am glad to say, and so no one thought of disputing her authority. “The Queer can do ne wrong,” was their motto, and a very good one it is too. How shall I describe to you the beauties of the, sea fairies’ banqueting hall? It was a vast cavern, which must have stretched far under the island. Lovely pillars — of quartz rock and veined gypsum, alternately supported a ceiling of pure transparent white, which looked like’ alabaster, studded all over with precious stones of ‘large size, which shone and glittered like stars. The floor was of the finest and brightest golden sand, and round the base of each pillar was arranged what appeared to me to be lovely flowering plants and ferneries ; a group of plants round one, and a fernery round the next, and so on along the hall, but I found they were in reality trees of various coloured coral and seaweed, covered with the -most splendid anemonies, alternating with seaweedertes, where such tiny delicate green fronds—far more beautiful than any mosses or ferns you ever saw growing on land— were flourishing amongst the shining stones and shells ; little cascades of water, looking exactly as if they were lighted by electricity, gushed out of the pillars over them and kept them swaying backwards and forwards, and up and down, with the softest and most graceful motion possible. ! A Day with the Sea Urchins. 41 In the centre of the hall rose a dome, looking up into which was like looking up to the blue summer sky from the bottom of a narrow shaft or dry well, so intensely . and duskily blue was it. From this dome seemed to come the wonderful light which filled the place. How it really came, or from whence, I could not tell, it was like a luminous cascade of soft iridescent light. It seenied to me that no further decoration could be needed, but the Urchins thought otherwise, for they were _ rapidly weaving long rainbow-hued garlands which they linked from pillar to pillar. Next a throne was carried in, which was carved throughout from mother-of-pearl, and which shimmered and shone in such a dazzling manner, that 1 could scarcely look at it, standing as it did immediately beneath the great dome. Then variously coloured seaweed was arranged in patterns on the floor for some distance round the throne, till it looked like the most gorgeous Turkey carpet ever seen, When this was’ finished the banquet was spread. All this time shoals of Sea Urchins had been pouring in from different directions, for the news of the Queen’s intended visit had spread far and wide; and as fast as they came they fell to work in a most business-like manner to arrange the feast. Of what this was composed I do not pretend to say. - I. can only assure you, that I never before saw things that looked so good to eat, the dishes were all of mother- 42 A Day with the Sea Urchins. of-pearl, and were piled with what appeared to be fruit, jellies, creams, and ices of all shapes and colours ; raised pies too I saw—but how they were made or of what they were made, I do not know, there they were, and the sight of them made me quite hungry. Just as the finishing touch was given, a stranger Sea Urchin hurried in, exclaiming,— “ Brothers—sisters—hasten to appear, Form up your ranks, for the great Queen draws near !” And then, when the Urchins were gathered in two closely packed lines, stretching from the entrance of the hall, a wonderful procession was seen advancing. As the foremost two trumpet-fish—of which six formed the advance guard—came within their lines, Jasper gave a signal, and they all struck up what I found was really their substitute for our ‘God save the Queen.” Jasper, who was the poet laureate at this time, had composed and set it himself to the air to which they sang it. I write it down here word for word as I heard it, and I wish I could tell you how sweetly it sounded, as one by one the two long lines of Sea Urchins took it up, and how their bell-like voices rang it out :— “ All hail! Aphrodite! . Sole Queen of the Sea; Most potent and mighty We own thee to be! A Day with .the Sea. Urchins. 43 Marcu oF APHRODITE. SEA URCHINS. espa Brothers— __ sis-ters— ae to ap - pear, INTRODUCTION. Alla marcia. the great ee mee a (ae ee ee Saas = see = 4g scarcer | eee fo. te tp Fy = == . = d . poco. es 44 A Day with the Sea Urchins. runt | rst time. — and time. = fea baa b ieee a — Sega yr pS Ne WN VY ae _ = . Og ep eeee £ Og eee ieee eee —— ee 5 [| hee —— | => > => A Day with the Sea Urchins. A5 Y siete ibe gergeerwtest \le= ee oa ieee aa Ce. GEO ie me eae CHORUS OF SEA URCHINS. pa see: > sa Bae | SS _—— a Boa hail! A - phro - - te! Sole Queen of — the Sea; Most on vaadaeel ee 46 A a with. the Sea Urchins. =] = = SS = Pee eee po- tent and migh-ty. We own thee to be! Bright | (rE PHEE + eseieere ery rae == ae ears child of the wa- ter, That gir - on the earth— O daugh- ter, How great was si birth ! \ A Day with the Sea Urchins. 47 mp dolce. crea - tures a - dore es Thine em - pire we fond lips are tell - ing Thy beau - ty and pel ae p> = oe > we = = elie coe eee ee aS 5 seen eae Seale ea eae Pa gD | er GP er a, N — N NV VN YN NV ; f rst time. R (= e SAREES wv own ; And, bow - ing be - fore thee, En - fame, Till ace g - cean Se ae NE EN eS SS Se Qa — 48 A Day with the Sea _Urchins. | 2nd tdme. a eee eaa Saar Ngee G= fe= o Pots re == zl eas Ld - cir - - cle thy throne. And — dwell-ing Re - eee e—— ee gi — 8-8 eggs rise = = wg =3 Lanes — lez = — fie tere — Sines patos = Sa eo ue abil sic = = == E 2 ae R_@ t - sounds with ee name. ea All SS ae i ae — # ez =e te = Gees pee es hail! A-phro - di - te! Sole Queen of the Sea; Most pn? pee apse | A Day with the Sea Urchins. 49 - tent, and migh-ty We own thee to be! nerereTaee => 2 Sere fee == o See See gle —St e deep as thine - cean—As aes less and free; Thou a3. spoon = ee Slee aeae . a know’ st the - vo- tion We ren-der to thee! Set the March front & to fine. = 50 A Day with the Sea Urchins. Bright child’ of the water, That girdles the earth— O Sea’s peerless daughter How great was thy birth! — « All creatures adore thee, Thine empire we own ; And, -bowing before thee, Encircle thy throne. And fond lips are telling, Thy beauty and fame, Till. each ocean dwelling Resounds with thy name. " All hail! Aphrodite ! Sole Queen of the Sea; Most potent and mighty - We own thee to be! And deep as thine ocean— As boundless and free, Thou know’st the devotion We render to thee!” On and on came the procession, trumpet- -fish first, blowing their trumpets into the air; then a long train of sword-fish, holding their’ swords straight out in front of them. On-and on they came, till I thought every creature that lived in the sea must have passed me; then more Urchins in a group, and in the midst of these—her body-guard—sat the Queen herself in her royal car. This car was of mother-of-pearl, like the : 52 A Day with the Sea Urehins. throne, and so fine and wonderful was the carving of . it, that it might have been made of moonbeams and gossamers for all you could have told to the contrary. But the beauty of the Queen herself, who shall describe? Far be it from me, my children, to attempt that task, for have not the pens and pencils of all the poets and artists through the ages essayed to do it—and failed ? Each of you can form your own ideal of perfect beauty, and believe her to be like that. It would not be a thousandth part beautiful enough, you know, but it is the best way I can suggest for you to get an idea of her. -On and on she came, with more trumpet-fish and sword-fish behind her; and sweeter and sweeter sang the bands of Urchins as she slowly passed between their lines, smiling and bowing on one side and the other, just as our own dear Queen does, when she finds rows of Land Urchins standing by to see her pass. When at length she arrived at the entrance of the banqueting hall, I was delighted to see that it was my own special six Urchins who advanced to receive her with low bows. And my own particular favourite Jasper had the honour of handing her out of the car, and leading her to the throne, under the dome of light. When she was seated they all pressed round, vieing with each other who should serve her best and most quickly. The beautiful Queen looked about her well pleased, and bestowed many loving words and glances A Day with the Sea Urchins. eR on her young subjects, telling them to take care of themselves, and eat of the good things they had provided for her. And when at length the banquet was over, she made a signal to Jasper, and said,— “My zealous subjects, clear the banquet hall, We would behold a far-famed Urchins’ ball.” RECITATIVE. APHRODITE. Rec?t. a My zealous subjects, clear the banquet Bel == vu ee 7 iViVGos Quast tromba. enna aceena eae ae ee eee We would behold a far-famed Urchins’. ball. ee 54 AS Pay with the Sea Urchins. The hall was cleared as if by magic, and then began the prettiest scene it has ever been my good fortune to behold. _ Thousands of the graceful little creatures joined - in the dance, and ever as they danced they sang, over and over again, a new song Jasper had made for them, and called “The Dancing Song” :— “Far below the shining Of the Summer sea, We, with arms entwining, Dance in careless glee. Retreating and advancing, We bow before our Queen ; ’Tis well she loves our dancing,— And dancers too, I ween! To this side, and that side, Flashing to and fro; Then clasping one another, Round and round we go— Clasping one another, Round and round we go! “Far below the sunlight, Shining on the sea; Dancing in the dunlight, Who so gay as we! Fairy bands are drifted Like a mist-wreath by ; Then, ’neath arms uplifted, Wingéd couples fly! A Day with the Sea Urchins. 55 To this side, and that side, Flashing to and fro ; Ere a circle making, To our Queen we bow— Ere a circle making, To our Queen we bow!” All the time the banquet and the ball were pro- ceeding, the great numbers of fish and sea creatures forming part of the procession had gathered themselves into an immense ring surrounding the hall on the out- DANCING CHORUS. Vivace. ee a ————__—___ ©) _——_ p oo —= po _leggiero. ee = SS PIANO. 56 A Day with the Sea Urchans. ee CHORUS. cres. == SSS eS Far be-low the shin-ing Of the — A Day. with the Sea Urchins. 57 pore care~- less ~ glee. Re - treat-ing and ad -vanc-ing, We (peer fey zs ; ns eae: rth, RAGE SS er bow be-fore our Queen; ’Tis well she loves our danc-ing, And poi eee ee SS ee —#—4 ae Owe er ee a . ; vet. ie! : Woop ee ES ——¢-__he_ -—— 2 6. 8. 8. 8 0 8 ey A ae, et danc-ers too, I ween! se To this side, and ee ee aes al a ne Ses tae re era vit. Faster. s epetate le ase ee 58 A Day with the Sea Urchins. ee ees x RE eee eae = that side, | Flash-ing to and _ fro;........ ee — see 2 a 2. a. J ee ee = Sen ea Va = eres Oss saan | a eaten eae ors | eater | ON 6 an SS = =e —~— this side, and that side, Flash-ing to and fro: Then a See Se ir gp eae ———— ( = A Day with the Sea Urchins. 59 _ ay mr a1 tentpo. = cores — pan Ease clasp-ing one an - o-ther,Roundandround we go!....... . 3 - aot a es wefe @ tempo. SSS aa 2 =. : 2 2 : a 60. A Day with the Sea Urchins. mf ores. SS eS an _ Far be- low the sunlight, Shining SSS gay Fai-ry bands are drift - ed | oe eae ee | SS SSeS =] A Day with the Sea Urchins. 61 ret. faa NL Like a mist-wreath by 3... Then,’neatharmsup - lift - ed, 2 =S= |= 2g ain. leva ag nm Laster. rer Wing-ed cou-ples fly! To this side, and that side, Flash-ing to and fro ; 62 A. Day with the Sea Urchins. this side, and that side, Flash-ing to and fro; Ere.. SSSs Ses (=== =< j= | bow ! Then, A Day with the Sea Urchins. 63 64 A Day with the Sea Urchins. side, with their heads towards it,.and some distance outsidé this again pairs of flying-fish were stationed as scouts, whose duty it. was to give ‘warning if any danger threatened. . Thad remarked that neither Pearl nor Topaz had: taken part in the dance. Pearl, I knew, was seated ‘on the step of the throne, very busily engaged making’: pictures of everything. Some of them you. will find} in this book, especially a sketch, which may be termed | a fish’s-eye view of the ball, which was admired and praised even by the Queen herself; indeed, she was. soy pleased with it, that she graciously honoured her little! — _ subject by allowing her to take a portrait of her royal; ‘mistress seated on her throne. But it was some minutes! before I discovered what had become of Topaz, whom! I had last seen eating, as it appeared to me, rather too heartily of some of the good things with which — the tables were laden; then, as I peered about, 1 caught sight of her, sitting mournfully in a dim ‘recess. all alone. And I saw that, as I had suspected, the| silly little maiden was paying the inevitable penalty’ of her greediness. Nurse Nature had given her a bitter dose of salt water to drink, and here she had to sit, feeling very ill and unhappy, until she got well) again. Of course, she could not dance at all; and, worse still, she could not even come forward: to say, good-bye to her dear Queen; so she cried till her: A Day with the Sea Urchins. 65 pretty eyes were quite red, and said over and over again to herself how very very careful she would be not to do so foolish a thing again. But time was getting on. One of the flying-fish came in, and announced that the sun was well on his journey down the western path of the sky. The Queen made a sign to Jasper to stop the dance, and one by one the Urchins came up to take leave of her, saying,— “We thank thee, mighty Queen, for this thy grace ; Farewell, until again we see thy face.” To which Aphrodite replied,— “Fare ye well, dear children, we would fain Know ye all happy tili we meet again.” Then she rose from her throne, and taking Jasper’s F 66 A Day with the Sea Urchins. RECITATIVE. SEA URCHINS. Reczt. Se APHRODITE. ————— 2 Fare ye well, dear A Day with the Sea Urchins. “ 67 chil- dren, we would fain Know ye all hap - py till we 68 A Day with the Sea Urcehtns. arm, she walked to the car which now awaited her, escorted by the whole family of Urchins, with the exception of Topaz. Then they formed their lines, and the procession wound its mighty length between them and went out and away in the same direction from which it had arrived, till it was lost in the dim distance. The great event had not, however, been quite unseen by the prying eyes of those who lived above the water ; one pair, at least, had caught a glimpse of the scene. The good-natured young Eider Duck who had assisted the old Puffin was a noted diver, and was the master of a diving club, whose head-quarters were on the island where the Puffin family also lived. A Day with the Sea Urchins. 69 Now young Eider had taken it into his head to have a diving match on this very afternoon with some other youngsters, members of the club, and he dived down and down till his bewildered eyes caught sight of some of the grand doings in and about the cavern. So astonished was he that it was some minutes before he could collect himself sufficiently to return to the surface. He had been so long under water that his comrades, who had given him up for lost, were already wondering who would be elected as manager of the club in his stead, when up he came, panting and gasping, with barely breath enough left to scramble on to a rock, where he had to lie for some minutes before he could recover his scattered senses, and tell what had happened to him. Then, as his companions gathered round him, he began to unfold the wonderful story of what he had 70 A Day with the Sea Urchins. seen, and closer and closer their bills drew together as they listened. Some said they did not believe it at all. Some were for going down to see it for themselves (but that was all talk, for they knew very well they could not dive so far down). Others screamed excited questions, till at last the old Puffin herself was aroused by the clamour. She woke up and tried to listen, but her sleepy brains could only take in a word or two here and there. . “I hope she cut his head off,” she exclaimed at last, in a very angry voice. The whole club jumped with surprise, and the members, looking at each other, tapped their foreheads significantly with their toes. “What do you mean, Madam?” asked Eider, politely. . “The Queen—the rude boy—I hope she cut his head off,” repeated old Mrs. Puffin, still more viciously. “T think not, Madam,” replied young Eider, “for I saw him down below. there with his head still on his shoulders, and a very handsome one it is too.” “And he isn’t a bad fellow by any means,” chimed in another. “He came and begged your pardon for teasing you, mother. No one can do more than that, . but you were too sleepy to hear him.” “T hope she cut his head off,” muttered the old thing again, but very drowsily this time. “And if she had,” struck in a third member, “ you A Day with the Sea Urchins. 71 would want to put a sleepy old head on his shoulders instead, I suppose. No, no, boys will be boys, and every dog must have his day, and so must boys and ducks also.” “Rude boy—cut off—my head—tickled it—when you come to’my age,” murmured Mrs. Puffin, and then’ she was fast asleep again, and snoring loudly. “The old lady can’t last long at this rate,” remarked a young Drake, who was studying medicine under Dame Nature. “That snore sounds very apoplectic, and no wonder, eating so many sprats, and sleeping all day in the sun like that.” And he was right, for an hour or two later the poor old Puffin fell off her perch into the sea with a heavy splash, and when she was picked up she was found to be quite dead. The Urchins employed themselves, for some time after the departure of the Queen, in restoring the banqueting hall to its usual order, and putting away the remains of the feast. By this time Topaz was better, and she came to assist them, looking very much ashamed of herself, but they all good-naturedly pre- tended not to have noticed her misfortune, for they knew, from their own experience, no doubt, that she had already been sufficiently punished for her fault. The stranger Urchins had all departed in detach- ments, so that now only the original six were left. I 72 A Day with the Sea. Urchins. was glad of this, for I wanted to follow their movements more closely than I had lately been able to do on account of the crowd. I had become deeply interested in them; as who would not be? And now a very sad thing was about to “happen. The sun was certainly getting low, and I was wondering whether my little friends would return to the cave in the Bay of Delight. They were swimming about under water, employing and amusing themselves in one way and another, when something large and shadowy appeared above us, and fell down and down towards us through the clear green water, which, when it came close, I recognized as the body of a drowned boy. At first the Urchins were much alarmed, not knowing him to be.dead, and they scurried off to hide themselves. But he fell down and down, till at last he was lying motionless on the bright sand’ at the bottom of the sea a little way below us, and after a time they. began to peep out at him and whisper to each other. - -Was he an Erinnys ? they said; and was he asleep? But they soon began to guess the truth, for they knew quite well that Land Urchins cannot live under water as they themselves do. And Jasper said—~ i “Not thus, beneath the sea, can mortals dwell ; \ My brothers, this is but the empty shell Of one, who now has spread his wings of white, And flown away, far—far beyond our sight.” A Day with the Sea Urchins. as RECITATIVE. JASPER. Recit. Andante maestoso. {Ga SSS SSS Not thus, be-neath the sea, can mor-tals dwell ; My bro-thers, this is but the emp - ty shell Of TA ee A Day with the Sea Urchins, And flown a.- way, Cantando. far be-yond our sight. PP colla voce. Pp . A Day with the Sea Urchins. 75 So one by one the Sea Urchins came out of their hiding places, and floated down to where the body of the boy lay. How much they knew of the great mystery of life and death I could not tell, but Jasper, who was very wise, had evidently told them something, for they were very grave, and looked so pitifully at what they called the empty shell of the boy as they stood round it. He was younger and smaller than the one they had see carried off by the policeman—quite a little boy, in fact, though so much bigger than the Sea Urchins. Presently they agreed among themselves that they 76 A Day with the Sea Urehins. could not leave “the shell” lying there, so each taking gently hold of it, they floated up till they came to a little cavern in the rock, with a floor of soft shining white sand. In this they laid it, and I wish you could have seen how lovingly they kissed its eyes and lips, and how tenderly they smoothed and arranged the pretty curling brown hair. Then Pearl wove a lovely garland of white seaweed, which they twined about it as it lay in the little cavern, which was then shut up with a large block of veined gypsum. Very gravely and silently they had done all this, and when it was finished Jasper floated. up by himself to the surface of the sea, where a boat was sailing about over and over and round and round the same place. A man in the boat, with a terribly sad face, was leaning A Day with the Sea Orchins. ne 97 over the side;.he seemed to. be very intently looking for, or trying to see, something under the water. Now Jasper guessed. that this boat contained the , friends of the drowned boy, and so, in fact, it did. The sad-faced mah was the father, who was trying to find ' the body of his little son, for he knew that this was all they cowd hope to see of him now. Jasper followed _ the boat at a little distance, singing over and over. again a sweet song ‘which he made then and there for the purpose, and which I write down here for you , to read :-— “There’s a Land where all are happy, Far away beyond our ken; All may find a place within it, But we know not—know not when. Through the pearly gates that stand ‘At the entrance of that Land, We have caught a gleam of glory when it opened, now and then. “Only gentle angels know it, And T’ve longed for wings like theirs, When I’ve seen them flying—flying, Up the sunbeams’ golden stairs. ‘For no’ sorrow enters there— Not a pain, and not a care— And our eyes have seen no beauty that with yonder Land compares! 78 — A Day with the Sea Urchins. JASPER’S SONG. Andante maestoso, con gran. espress. eerie oO fo aoa See | verter Ja 3 |G == 1.-There’s a | Land where all are hap-py, Far a - 25 gen - tle an-gels know it, And I’ve Sempre legato - way be-yond our ken; All may find a place with- longed for wings like theirs, When I’ve seen them fly - ing— . ; vit. espress. 1 ae sae - in it, But we know not—know not when. Thro’ the fly - ing, Up the sun-beams’ gold - en stairs. For no 2! pe ' ae Ee SSH | al : colla voce. | esate —————— A Day with the Sea Urchins. 49 pearl- y gates that stand sor -row en- ters there— vit. SPYeSS. — ~> At the en - trance of that Not a _ pain, and not a Land, We have caught a gleam of glo -ry when it care— And our eyes have seen no _ beau-ty that with : ® & ee ae — \—_ S|} —# : | gi —— i——s33 ? i ee SD os harass —* o - pened, now and - then. yon - der’ Land com - pares ! | ‘ <> ey ———— . qi = = SS Cs Se eee ee : = : <7 eee _ === collavoce. pp 1) ——— : oe ERR eae 80 A Day with the Sea Urchins. Ist time. ‘ [zt time | eS 5 2. On - ly EERE ARE i PaaS SSS SS , -o ] and time, accel, ———————— ae arene ae = ae — zea ear Jeo Se Seem 3. And if a - ny harm as sail - eth trem. eee leas — ——— ee ; p acce eet = ~ ee resets Se Oimas [sree Smears sae ( Sae* eee Cres. sf Tranguitlo. a Ea a ee ee ——, From the storm - y wave or blast, One, whose Tranguillo. eae re gi ee te ei ereay Cres. sf SSS 25 = ————== A Day with the Sea Urchins. 81 82 A Day with the Sea Urchins. ~ rit. ae rit. aes : == meee we SSS cast. And of ev - ‘ry ach -ing heart He will Spee colla voce. pe in a a _—" = == === ae SEES heal the “pain and = smart, ‘When He calls us— === = | eG when He calls us— to that hap - py Land at , a ee SESE A Day with the Sea Urchins. — 83 DV : rall, So eS ee ee ee rn ree = last ! When He calls us—when He calls us— “— : : | rR is ae as 3s —s— = = | a s ' raul, 84 A Day with the Sea Urchins. “And if any harm assaileth From the stormy wave or blast, “One, whose mercy never faileth, Will protection o’er us cast. And of every aching heart He will heal the pain and smart, When He calls us—when He calls us—to that happy Land at last !” Jasper sang with all his heart. He knew that the actual words of his song would not reach or be under- stood by the people in the boat, but he sang and sang on, for he wanted the spirit of his words to mingle with the murmur of the sea and the whisper of the summer wind, and by this means reach the heart of the sorrowful father, and comfort him, as it really did, for by-and-by, as the singing went on, he began to look rather less sad, and instead of gazing down into the water, and thinking of the little son he had so loved, lying unburied down there, he looked up into the beautiful sky, which was now putting on its brightest colours ready for sunset, and thought of a happy angel up there instead. It is not everybody who knows and loves Mother Nature well enough to hear and understand all the sweet comforting things she can say out of her own ~ _ great heart, to the hearts of any who are in sorrow, or trouble, or pain, but you will agree with me that it is A Day with the Sea Urchins. 85 , a very happy thing for those who do so hear and understand her. Jasper knew all about it. He knew many Ans this dear wonderful Sea Urchin of mine. I felt sure that he must have had some great sorrow to bear himself, in spite of all his fun; for poets, and artists too, and, in fact, every one who really teaches others, must have learnt everything that they teach, with pain and trouble to themselves. You children all know this, I am sure, for are you not learning something all day long, even at your play? You must find out everything by the pain or trouble of experience. It must be so, in one way or another, all through your lives in this world, and then, sooner or later, when all your lessons are learnt, you know that you will have to go through the dark and pain of death, before you get into the beautiful and glorious light which shines beyond. Jasper knew all this, I am sure. The name of the stone—the blood-red jasper—by which I have called him, means suffering. Some day I will tell you the signification of the twelve other precious stones also, unless in the meantime you find them out for your- selves. After a time the little boat, with its sorrowful crew, who had given up their fruitless search, turned and _ vowed towards the shore in the quiet sunset, and then 86 to Day with the Sea Urchens. Jasper swam back and rejoined the others, who were now evidently preparing to depart. Ruby had bridled, and brought together, the same sea-horses on which the party had ridden in the morning, and was amusing himself by all manner of daring and eccentric performances with them. All were there except Pearl, whom they called several times, and who at last appeared. But what a strange-looking Pearl it was who slowly swam towards them, with an expression half-conceited, and half ashamed, on her usually sweet, placid little face. Now the facts of the case were these. One day Pearl, from a secure hiding-place, had watched a pleasure boat go past, and having been much struck by the smart 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 - A Day with the Sea Urchins, 89 /.. by laughing too—the sound of such mirth was so very | infectious. A number of See looking young plaice came by, romping roughly with each other, who, when they saw Pearl, stuck their tongues into their cheeks and grinned derisively. Then passed a pair of.smart, slender mullet, taking their evening stroll together, arm in arm; they stared rather ‘more than was polite, and whispered to - each other. Pearl grew hotter and hotter, and felt more and more ashamed of herself. This was not at all what she had expected, and the conceit was being rapidly taken out of her. At last the poor little. maiden fairly burst into . tears, which so touched the hearts of her comrades that they made a great effort and overcame their laughter. Then Amethyst went up to her too ambitious sister, and led her by the hand into the recess from whence she had so proudly emerged a few minutes before, and kindly and quietly helped her to strip off her finery and be once more her natural self. This ridiculous scene had somewhat een the return journey, but now the sun was nearly down, and mounting their restless steeds they set out in earnest. Giddy, mirth-loving Emerald, however, lagged behind now and again to laugh softly to herself, but being Pearl’s special ally he would not for worlds have hurt her feelings by letting her see him do it. 90 A Day with the Sea Urchins. The sea-birds were flying homeward, slowly uttering from time to time their rather melancholy cries. All the gay boats were gathering into the harbour, and I could see the bright star-like light of the lighthouse on shore beginning to gleam and flash; family parties of Land Urchins were being got together by their nurses, and led home ere the twilight fell on the steep pathway up the cliff. My little friends had grown very quiet as we sped on over the gentle ripples of the sea, and presently they began to sing the song I have written down here to a sweet simple air, which the cliffs seemed to catch up and echo back as they sang :— “Day’s bright hues are fading From the ocean’s breast 3 Lo, the sun is setting In the crimson west, A Day with the Si Urs OL y i { 1. Day’s bright hues are fad - ing ~ Andante piacevole. 2. Lips of ti- ny wave - lets —* From the o-cean’s breast; ° Lo, the sun is set.- ting . Kiss the shin-ing shore ; _ All is sweet and _ peace - ful, ( —— __ pe Eat aso gee ge —— oe. @ ~~ oe —e a a” a | | $ — a — = ee = a i: be \ ie mf a tempo. i iA the crim-son west. Lit-tle boats are flit - ting Day is well-nigh o’er. Lo, the moon is ris - ing See ——— = === = wo Ta EnIOG! les ring. ED =— ~ Oa A Lay with the Sea Urchins. —* 2nd VoIcEs. ar ee atta eee = Round the riv - er bend, While the white-wing’d sea.- gulls O’er the cliffs a - far; On the grey ho - ri - zon eo —_—_—_—_ ee == —_ SSS es bow "ei To the ha-ven wend, Hangs the ev~ning star. agg an aD a o o = " bb ann Tt uGe Gree ie And on ro-sy rip - ples Of the flow-ing tide, Light-ly Twilight’s dew-y fra- grance Clos-esroundus fast; All so = = == —e == s === == pp cres. apie essere A Day with the Sea Urchins. 93 Spe as . a) | ay vw iw ww cm ae FE pS Na re in the sun-set glo - ry, Light-ly home we _— ride— sweet, so sweet and peace - ful, Tells that day is past— VS In the sun-set glo - ry, Light- ly home we ride. All so sweet and peace -ful, Tells that day is past! jem os oo oo — — 3-3-3 = SS ac: sempre dim. eRe Te ea Beal aaa mye aa ES ase ees eae —— ee Both Pedals. 94 A Day with the Sea Urchins. A Day with the Sea Urchins. Little boats are flitting Round the river bend, While the white-winged sea-gulls To the haven wend, And on rosy ripples Of the flowing tide, In the sunset glory Lightly home we ride. In the sunset glory, etc. “Lips of tiny wavelets Kiss the shining shore ; All is sweet and peaceful,— Day is well-nigh o’er. Lo, the moon is rising O’er the cliffs afar ; On the grey horizon Hangs the evening star. OD 96°. A Day with the Sea Urchins. Twilight’s dewy fragrance _ Closes round us fast ; All so sweet and peaceful, Tells that day is past! All so sweet and peaceful, etc.” By the time this song was finished the cave was reached, and the sea-horses were unbridled and set free © to roam about as they liked. In a few minutes the Urchins had disappeared, and with the echo of their sweet bell-like voices in my ears I fell asleep imme- _ diately on reaching the shore. When'I awoke it was morning again, and I found myself still stretched on. the short turf of the cliff, with the full tide flowing beneath me. Could I have slept there all night, I thought, after my long day spent with the Sea Urchins? ‘I did not remember scrambling up the rocks to the cliff again, but then I had been so very sleepy. Had I dreamt it all, I wondered? I could ‘not tell; I cannot tell to this day. But this I know— that I saw all I have told. you, just as it is set down here, with my own eyes. So you will agree with me that the Sea Urchins must really have been there, and here are the pictures of all I saw them. doing, and the songs I heard them sing, which will be proof | enough to all sensible people. ~ And whenever I walk inland on the moor above the river, I dream it all over again; and whenever I come A Day with the Sea Urehens, 97 down the steep path by the little cemetery where the white crosses gleam in the evening light, and catch sight of the lovely placid bay between the trees, I dream it all over again too; and think how much better than other people I know what is going on out there. Now that I have told you all about it you may picture it to yourselves, as you come upon our favourite haunts day after day. But I have still to make my own farewell song for you, and at any rate, dear Land Urchins, every one of you—this is in real, downright earnest—that I wish you, with all my heart in the wish, A Happy Christmas, and the brightest of New Years. » a 1 98 A Day with the Sea Urehins. Close o’er the page, my task is done, Here I must lay aside my wand; _ Here we must part, who hand in hand, Have sped from dawn to set of sun. For I who wrote, and you who read, Have met in spirit o’er the page; I, knowing not your name or age, Have held you with a golden thread. And, though on earth I may not trace Your features, One guides you and me, Who by the tideless crystal sea, Some day may bring us face to face. But we must learn through toil and pain, Dear children, aye, both you and I— Both life and death’s great mystery, Before with Him we live and reign. A Day with the Sea Wiis. : - 99 You know the suffering that He bore— t a : “By which His tender heart was riv’n, Was borne, the blessed hope of Heav’n, oo : To ‘us—His brethren to restore. And on the blood-red Jasper stone, I think His City walls are set, That human hearts may ne’er forget, The price by which that hope was won.’ For ere we-see the Face of Christ, We must have climbed each varied hue, Of joy and sorrow meekly through, From Jasper—unto Amethyst. \ ei 3 THE END. _ Os ENGRAVED AND PRINTED BY EDMUND EVANS, RACQUET COURT, FLEET ‘STREET, LONDON. 1 © x elen M. Burnsi i ustr ated ),