Page:On a pincushion.djvu/222

This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
Through the Fire.

until the ship follows the sound. Then she will gradually lead it down into a whirlpool, and there it will be swallowed up, and the poor sailors will never return to their wives and little children. But I will go and blow the ship in another direction, whether it likes it or no, until it is out of the sound of her song, and then it will go on all right. Ah! men little think, when they complain of meeting gales of wind, that it is often for their own good, and that we are blowing them away from danger, not into it.”

“A mermaid!” cried Jack. “I have never seen one. How much I should like to see her!”

“When we have gone to the ship we will go and look at her,” said the wind-fairy. Then he flew to one side, till they came to a ship full of sailors sailing quietly along, and the wind-fairy began to blow with all his might. He blew till the sea rose in great heavy waves. The ship leaned over on one side. The captain shouted. The sailors threw up the ropes, and all trembled for fear. But much against their will the ship had to be turned about and go in another direction, and the wind-fairy never left off blowing till

This article is issued from Wikisource. The text is available under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 4.0 unless otherwise noted. Additional terms may apply for the media files.