328 THE HAPPY FAMILY.

the whcie forest had been planted for them and theirs. They
had never been away from home, but it was known to them that
something existed in the world called the ducal palace, and that
there one was boiled, and one became black, and was laid upon
a silver dish; but what was done afterwards they did not know.
Moreover, they could not imagine what that might be, being boiled
and laid upon a silver dish; but it was stated to be fine, and par-
ticularly grand! Neither the cockchafer, nor the toad, nor the
earthworm, whom they questioned about it, could give them any
information, for none of their own kind had ever been boiled and
laid on silver dishes.

The old white Snails were the grandest in the world ; they knew
that! The forest was there for their sake, and the ducal palace
too, so that they might be boiled and laid on silver dishes.

They led avery retired and happy life, and as they themselves
were childless, they had adopted a little common Snail, which
they brought up as their own child. But the little thing would
not grow, for it was only a common Snail, though the old people,
and particularly the mother, declared one could easily see how
he grew. And when the father could not see it, she requested
him to feel the little Snail’s shell, and he felt it, and acknowledged
that she was right.

One day it rained very hard,

“ Listen, how it’s drumming on the burdock leaves, rum-dum-
dum! rum-dum-dum!” said the Father-Snail. :

“ That’s what I call drops,” said the mother. “It’s coming
straight down the stalks, Youll see it will be wet here directly.
I’m only glad that we have our good houses, and that the little
one has his own. There has been more done for us than for any
other creature; one can see very plainly that we are the grand
folks of the world! We have houses from our birth, and the
burdock forest has been planted for us: I should like to know
how far it extends, and what lies beyond it.”

“There’s nothing,” said the Father-Snail, “that can be better
than here at home; I have nothing at all to wish for.”

“Yes,” said the mother, “I should like to be taken to the ducal
palace, and be boiled and laid upon a silver dish; that has been
done to all our ancestors, and you may be sure it’s quite a dis-
tinguished honour.”

“The ducal palace has perhaps fallen in,” said the Father-Snail,
“or the forest of burdocks may have grown over it, so that the
people can’t get out at all. You need not beina hurry—but you
always hurry so, and the little one is beginning just the same
way. Has he not been creeping up that stalk these three days?
My head quite aches when I look up at him.”

“You must not scold him,” said the Mother-Snail. “ He crawls
very deliberately. We shall have much joy in him; and we old
people have nothing else to live for. But have you ever thought