136 Fairy Tales

the moor in a great hurry, for she felt herself
quite the most important person of the tribe,
and was burning to tell her news. The hill,
however, was so far away that it was dark
before she reached it, but this did not so
much matter, as the dwarfs always mark
out their roads with glow-worms, and shé
knew her way quite well. When she had
climbed a short distance up the mountain
she slipped off her stilts and stamped three
times on the ground. A little trap-door
instantly opened, and inside was a flight of
steps lit by torches, and going down, down,
down. When she came to the bottom there
was the busiest scene! The whole mountain
seemed to be honey-combed with the dwarfs’
dwellings, for each family had a separate
house, and each trade its separate work-
shops; and as the dwarfs use a great deal
of iron, and silver, and ore of all kinds,
you may imagine what a clash and clang
of metal went on! Of course inside the
mountain it was always dark, and therefore
the only light came from the fires of the