Iwentafewyardsdowntheslopeofgrassmingledwithmoss,andstretchedmyselfuponitweary。Alittlefartherdownstoodatinytreefullofrosiestapplesnobiggerthansmallcherries,itstopclosetomyhand;Ipulledandateoneofthem。Findingitdelicious,Iwasintheactoftakinganother,whenasuddenshoutingofchildren,mingledwithlaughterclearandsweetasthemusicofabrook,startledmewithdelight。
\"Helikesourapples！Helikesourapples！He\'sagoodgiant！
He\'sagoodgiant！\"criedmanylittlevoices。
\"He\'sagiant！\"objectedone。
\"HeISratherbig,\"assentedanother,\"butlittlenessisn\'teverything！Itwon\'tkeepyoufromgrowingbigandstupidexceptyoutakecare！\"
Iroseonmyelbowandstared。Aboveandaboutandbelowmestoodamultitudeofchildren,apparentlyofallages,somejustabletorunalone,andsomeabouttwelveorthirteen。Threeorfourseemedolder。Theystoodinasmallknot,alittleapart,andwerelessexcitedthantherest。Themanywerechatteringingroups,declaimingandcontradicting,likeacrowdofgrownpeopleinacity,onlywithgreatermerriment,bettermanners,andmoresense。
Igatheredthat,bytheapproachofmyhandtoasecondapple,theyknewthatIlikedthefirst;buthowfromthattheyarguedmegood,Ididnotsee,norwonderedthatoneofthematleastshouldsuggestcaution。Ididnotopenmymouth,forIwasafraidoffrighteningthem,andsureIshouldlearnmorebylisteningthanbyaskingquestions。ForIunderstoodnearlyalltheysaid——atwhichIwasnotsurprised:tounderstandisnotmorewonderfulthantolove。
Therecameamovementandslightdispersionamongthem,andpresentlyasweet,innocent—looking,lovinglyroguishlittlefellowhandedmeahugegreenapple。Silencefellonthenoisythrong;allwaitedexpectant。
\"Eat,goodgiant,\"hesaid。
Isatup,tooktheapple,smiledthanks,andwouldhaveeaten;butthemomentIbitintoit,Iflungitfaraway。
Againroseashoutofdelight;theyflungthemselvesuponme,soasnearlytosmotherme;theykissedmyfaceandhands;theylaidholdofmylegs;theyclamberedaboutmyarmsandshoulders,embracingmyheadandneck。Icametothegroundatlast,overwhelmedwiththelovelylittlegoblins。
\"Good,goodgiant！\"theycried。\"Weknewyouwouldcome！Ohyoudear,good,stronggiant！\"
Thebabbleoftheirtalksprangupafresh,andeverthejubilantshoutwouldriseanewfromhundredsofclearlittlethroats。
Againcameasuddensilence。Thosearoundmedrewback;thoseatopofmegotoffandbegantryingtosetmeonmyfeet。Upontheirsweetfaces,concernhadtakentheplaceofmerriment。
\"Getup,goodgiant！\"saidalittlegirl。\"Makehaste！muchhaste！
Hesawyouthrowhisappleaway！\"
Beforesheended,Iwasonmyfeet。Shestoodpointinguptheslope。Onthebrowofitwasaclownish,bad—lookingfellow,afewinchestallerthanmyself。Helookedhostile,butIsawnoreasontofearhim,forhehadnoweapon,andmylittlefriendshadvanishedeveryone。
Hebegantodescend,andI,inthehopeofbetterfootingandposition,togoup。Hegrowledlikeabeastasheturnedtowardme。
Reachingamorelevelspot,Istoodandwaitedforhim。Ashecamenear,heheldouthishand。Iwouldhavetakenitinfriendlyfashion,buthedrewitback,threatenedablow,andhelditoutagain。ThenIunderstoodhimtoclaimtheappleIhadflungaway,whereuponImadeagrimaceofdislikeandagestureofrejection。
Heansweredwithahowlofragethatseemedtosay,\"Doyoudaretellmemyapplewasnotfittoeat？\"
\"Onebadapplemaygrowonthebesttree,\"Isaid。
WhetherheperceivedmymeaningIcannottell,buthemadeastridenearer,andIstoodonmyguard。Hedelayedhisassault,however,untilasecondgiant,muchlikehim,whohadbeenstealingupbehindme,wascloseenough,whenherusheduponme。Imethimwithagoodblowintheface,buttheotherstruckmeonthebackofthehead,andbetweenthemIwassoonoverpowered。
Theydraggedmeintothewoodabovethevalley,wheretheirtribelived——inwretchedhuts,builtoffallenbranchesandafewstones。
Intooneofthesetheypushedme,therethrewmeontheground,andkickedme。Awomanwaspresent,wholookedonwithindifference。
ImayherementionthatduringmycaptivityIhardlylearnedtodistinguishthewomenfromthemen,theydifferedsolittle。OftenIwonderedwhetherIhadnotcomeuponasortoffungoidpeople,withjustenoughmindtogivethemmotionandtheexpressionsofangerandgreed。Theirfood,whichconsistedoftubers,bulbs,andfruits,wastomeinexpressiblydisagreeable,butnothingoffendedthemsomuchastoshowdisliketoit。IwascuffedbythewomenandkickedbythemenbecauseIwouldnotswallowit。
Ilayonthefloorthatnighthardlyabletomove,butIsleptagooddeal,andwokealittlerefreshed。Inthemorningtheydraggedmetothevalley,andtyingmyfeet,withalongrope,toatree,putaflatstonewithasaw—likeedgeinmylefthand。Ishiftedittotheright;theykickedme,andputitagainintheleft;gavemetounderstandthatIwastoscrapethebarkoffeverybranchthathadnofruitonit;kickedmeoncemore,andleftme。
IsetaboutthedrearyworkinthehopethatbysatisfyingthemI
shouldbeleftverymuchtomyself——tomakemyobservationsandchoosemytimeforescape。Happilyoneofthedwarf—treesgrewclosebyme,andeveryotherminuteIpluckedandateasmallfruit,whichwonderfullyrefreshedandstrengthenedme。
CHAPTERXIII
THELITTLEONES
Ihadbeenatworkbutafewmoments,whenIheardsmallvoicesnearme,andpresentlytheLittleOnes,asIsoonfoundtheycalledthemselves,camecreepingoutfromamongthetinytreesthatlikebrushwoodfilledthespacesbetweenthebigones。Inaminutetherewerescoresandscoresaboutme。Imadesignsthatthegiantshadbutjustleftme,andwerenotfaroff;buttheylaughed,andtoldmethewindwasquiteclean。
\"Theyaretooblindtoseeus,\"theysaid,andlaughedlikeamultitudeofsheep—bells。
\"Doyoulikethatropeaboutyourankles？\"askedone。
\"IwantthemtothinkIcannottakeitoff,\"Ireplied。
\"Theycanscarcelyseetheirownfeet！\"herejoined。\"Walkwithshortstepsandtheywillthinktheropeisallright。\"
Ashespoke,hedancedwithmerriment。
Oneofthebiggergirlsgotdownonherkneestountietheclumsyknot。Ismiled,thinkingthoseprettyfingerscoulddonothingwithit,butinamomentitwasloose。
Theythenmademesitdown,andfedmewithdeliciouslittlefruits;
afterwhichthesmallerofthembegantoplaywithmeinthewildestfashion,sothatitwasimpossibleformetoresumemywork。Whenthefirstgrewtired,otherstooktheirplaces,andthiswentonuntilthesunwassetting,andheavystepswereheardapproaching。
Thelittlepeoplestartedfromme,andImadehastetoputtheroperoundmyankles。
\"Wemusthaveacare,\"saidthegirlwhohadfreedme;\"acrushofoneoftheirhorridstumpyfeetmightkillaverylittleone！\"
\"Cantheynotperceiveyouatallthen？\"
\"Theymightseesomethingmove;andifthechildrenwereinaheaponthetopofyou,astheywereamomentago,itwouldbeterrible;
fortheyhateeverylivethingbutthemselves。——Notthattheyaremuchaliveeither！\"
Shewhistledlikeabird。Thenextinstantnotoneofthemwastobeseenorheard,andthegirlherselfhaddisappeared。
Itwasmymaster,asdoubtlesshecountedhimself,cometotakemehome。Hefreedmyankles,anddraggedmetothedoorofhishut;
therehethrewmeontheground,againtiedmyfeet,gavemeakick,andleftme。
NowImightatoncehavemademyescape;butatlengthIhadfriends,andcouldnotthinkofleavingthem。Theyweresocharming,sofullofwinsomeways,thatImustseemoreofthem！Imustknowthembetter！\"To—morrow,\"Isaidtomyselfwithdelight,\"Ishallseethemagain！\"ButfromthemomenttherewassilenceinthehutsuntilIfellasleep,Iheardthemwhisperingallaboutme,andknewthatIwaslovinglywatchedbyamultitude。Afterthat,Ithinktheyhardlyeverleftmequitealone。
Ididnotcometoknowthegiantsatall,andIbelievetherewasscarcelyanythinginthemtoknow。Theyneverbecameintheleastfriendly,buttheyweremuchtoostupidtoinventcruelties。OftenIavoidedabadkickbycatchingthefootandgivingitsownerafall,uponwhichhenever,onthatoccasion,renewedhisattempt。
Butthelittlepeoplewereconstantlydoingandsayingthingsthatpleased,oftenthingsthatsurprisedme。EverydayIgrewmoreloathtoleavethem。WhileIwasatwork,theywouldkeepcomingandgoing,amusinganddelightingme,andtakingallthemisery,andmuchofthewearinessoutofmymonotonoustoil。VerysoonIlovedthemmorethanIcantell。Theydidnotknowmuch,buttheywereverywise,andseemedcapableoflearninganything。Ihadnobedsavethebareground,butalmostasoftenasIwoke,itwasinanestofchildren——
oneorotheroftheminmyarms,thoughwhichIseldomcouldtelluntilthelightcame,fortheyorderedthesuccessionamongthemselves。Whenonecreptintomybosom,unconsciouslyIclaspedhimthere,andtherestlayclosearoundme,thesmallernearer。ItishardlynecessarytosaythatIdidnotsuffermuchfromthenightlycold！Thefirstthingtheydidinthemorning,andthelastbeforesunset,wastobringthegoodgiantplentytoeat。
OnemorningIwassurprisedonwakingtofindmyselfalone。AsI
cametomysenses,however,Iheardsubduedsoundsofapproach,andpresentlythegirlalreadymentioned,thetallestandgravestofthecommunity,andregardedbyallastheirmother,appearedfromthewood,followedbythemultitudeinjubilationmanifest——butsilentlesttheyshouldrousethesleepinggiantatwhosedoorI
lay。Shecarriedaboy—babyinherarms:hithertoagirl—baby,apparentlyaboutayearold,hadbeentheyoungest。Threeofthebiggergirlswerehernurses,buttheysharedtheirtreasurewithalltherest。AmongtheLittleOnes,dollswereunknown;thebiggerhadthesmaller,andthesmallerthestillless,totendandplaywith。
Lonacametomeandlaidtheinfantinmyarms。Thebabyopenedhiseyesandlookedatme,closedthemagain,andfellasleep。
\"Helovesyoualready！\"saidthegirl。
\"Wheredidyoufindhim？\"Iasked。
\"Inthewood,ofcourse,\"sheanswered,hereyesbeamingwithdelight,\"——wherewealwaysfindthem。Isn\'theabeauty？We\'vebeenoutallnightlookingforhim。Sometimesitisnoteasytofind！\"
\"Howdoyouknowwhenthereisonetofind？\"Iasked。
\"Icannottell,\"shereplied。\"Everyonemakeshastetotelltheother,butweneverfindoutwhotoldfirst。SometimesIthinkonemusthavesaiditasleep,andanotherheardithalf—awake。Whenthereisababyinthewood,noonecanstoptoaskquestions;andwhenwehavefoundit,thenitistoolate。\"
\"Domoreboyorgirlbabiescometothewood？\"
\"Theydon\'tcometothewood;wegotothewoodandfindthem。\"
\"Aretheremoreboysorgirlsofyounow？\"
Ihadfoundthattoaskpreciselythesamequestiontwice,madethemknittheirbrows。
\"Idonotknow,\"sheanswered。
\"Youcancountthem,surely！\"
\"Weneverdothat。Weshouldn\'tliketobecounted。\"
\"Why？\"
\"Itwouldn\'tbesmooth。Wewouldrathernotknow。\"
\"Wheredothebabiescomefromfirst？\"
\"Fromthewood——always。Thereisnootherplacetheycancomefrom。\"
Sheknewwheretheycamefromlast,andthoughtnothingelsewastobeknownabouttheiradvent。
\"Howoftendoyoufindone？\"
\"Suchahappythingtakesallthegladwe\'vegot,andweforgetthelasttime。Youtooaregladtohavehim——areyounot,goodgiant？\"
\"Yes,indeed,Iam！\"Ianswered。\"Buthowdoyoufeedhim？\"
\"Iwillshowyou,\"sherejoined,andwentaway——toreturndirectlywithtwoorthreeripelittleplums。Sheputonetothebaby\'slips。
\"Hewouldopenhismouthifhewereawake,\"shesaid,andtookhiminherarms。
Shesqueezedadroptothesurface,andagainheldthefruittothebaby\'slips。Withoutwakinghebeganatoncetosuckit,andshewentonslowlysqueezinguntilnothingbutskinandstonewereleft。
\"There！\"shecried,inatoneofgentletriumph。\"Abig—appleworlditwouldbewithnothingforthebabies！Wewouldn\'tstopinit——
wouldwe,darling？Wewouldleaveittothebadgiants！\"
\"Butwhatifyouletthestoneintothebaby\'smouthwhenyouwerefeedinghim？\"Isaid。
\"Nomotherwoulddothat,\"shereplied。\"Ishouldn\'tbefittohaveababy！\"
Ithoughtwhatalovelywomanshewouldgrow。Butwhatbecameofthemwhentheygrewup？Wheredidtheygo？Thatbroughtmeagaintothequestion——wheredidtheycomefromfirst？
\"Willyoutellmewhereyoulivedbefore？\"Isaid。
\"Here,\"shereplied。
\"HaveyouNEVERlivedanywhereelse？\"Iventured。
\"Never。Weallcamefromthewood。Somethinkwedroppedoutofthetrees。\"
\"Howisittherearesomanyofyouquitelittle？\"
\"Idon\'tunderstand。Somearelessandsomearebigger。Iamverybig。\"
\"Babywillgrowbigger,won\'the？\"
\"Ofcoursehewill！\"
\"Andwillyougrowbigger？\"
\"Idon\'tthinkso。Ihopenot。Iamthebiggest。Itfrightensmesometimes。\"
\"Whyshoulditfrightenyou？\"
Shegavemenoanswer。
\"Howoldareyou？\"Iresumed。
\"Idonotknowwhatyoumean。Wearealljustthat。\"
\"Howbigwillthebabygrow？\"
\"Icannottell。——Some,\"sheadded,withatroubleinhervoice,\"begintogrowafterwethinktheyhavestopped。——Thatisafrightfulthing。Wedon\'ttalkaboutit！\"
\"Whatmakesitfrightful？\"
Shewassilentforamoment,thenanswered,\"Wefeartheymaybebeginningtogrowgiants。\"
\"Whyshouldyoufearthat？\"
\"Becauseitissoterrible。——Idon\'twanttotalkaboutit！\"
ShepressedthebabytoherbosomwithsuchananxiouslookthatI
darednotfurtherquestionher。
BeforelongIbegantoperceiveintwoorthreeofthesmallerchildrensometracesofgreedandselfishness,andnotedthatthebiggergirlscastontheseanotinfrequentglanceofanxiety。
Noneofthemputahandtomywork:theywoulddonothingforthegiants！Buttheyneverrelaxedtheirlovingministrationstome。
Theywouldsingtome,oneafteranother,forhours;climbthetreetoreachmymouthandpopfruitintoitwiththeirdaintylittlefingers;andtheykeptconstantwatchagainsttheapproachofagiant。
Sometimestheywouldsitandtellmestories——mostlyverychildish,andoftenseemingtomeanhardlyanything。Nowandthentheywouldcallageneralassemblytoamuseme。Ononesuchoccasionamoodylittlefellowsangmeastrangecrooningsong,witharefrainsopatheticthat,althoughunintelligibletome,itcausedthetearstorundownmyface。Thisphenomenonmadethosewhosawitregardmewithmuchperplexity。ThenfirstIbethoughtmyselfthatIhadnotonce,inthatworld,lookedonwater,fallingorlyingorrunning。Plentytherehadbeeninsomelongvanishedage——thatwasplainenough——buttheLittleOneshadneverseenanybeforetheysawmytears！Theyhad,nevertheless,itseemed,somedim,instinctiveperceptionoftheirorigin;foraverysmallchildwentuptothesinger,shookhisclenchedpudinhisface,andsaidsomethinglikethis:\"\'Ouskeezezejuiceoutofzegoodgiant\'sseeberries！Badgiant！\"
\"Howisit,\"IsaidonedaytoLona,asshesatwiththebabyinherarmsatthefootofmytree,\"thatIneverseeanychildrenamongthegiants？\"
Shestaredalittle,asiflookinginvainforsomesenseinthequestion,thenreplied,\"Theyaregiants;therearenolittleones。\"
\"Havetheyneveranychildren？\"Iasked。
\"No;thereareneveranyinthewoodforthem。Theydonotlovethem。Iftheysawours,theywouldstampthem。\"
\"Istherealwaysthesamenumberofthegiantsthen？Ithought,beforeIhadtimetoknowbetter,thattheywereyourfathersandmothers。\"
Sheburstintothemerriestlaughter,andsaid,\"No,goodgiant;WEareTHEIRfirsters。\"
Butasshesaidit,themerrimentdiedoutofher,andshelookedscared。
Istoppedworking,andgazedather,bewildered。
\"HowCANthatbe？\"Iexclaimed。
\"Idonotsay;Idonotunderstand,\"sheanswered。\"Butwewerehereandtheynot。Theygofromus。Iamsorry,butwecannothelpit。THEYcouldhavehelpedit。\"
\"Howlonghaveyoubeenhere？\"Iasked,moreandmorepuzzled——inthehopeofsomeside—lightonthematter。
\"Always,Ithink,\"shereplied。\"Ithinksomebodymadeusalways。\"
Iturnedtomyscraping。
ShesawIdidnotunderstand。
\"Thegiantswerenotmadealways,\"sheresumed。\"IfaLittleOnedoesn\'tcare,hegrowsgreedy,andthenlazy,andthenbig,andthenstupid,andthenbad。Thedullcreaturesdon\'tknowthattheycomefromus。Veryfewofthembelieveweareanywhere。TheysayNONSENSE！——LookatlittleBlunty:heiseatingoneoftheirapples！
Hewillbethenext！Oh！oh！hewillsoonbebigandbadandugly,andnotknowit！\"
Thechildstoodbyhimselfalittlewayoff,eatinganapplenearlyasbigashishead。Ihadoftenthoughthedidnotlooksogoodastherest;nowhelookeddisgusting。
\"Iwilltakethehorridthingfromhim！\"Icried。
\"Itisnouse,\"sheansweredsadly。\"Wehavedoneallwecan,anditistoolate！Wewereafraidhewasgrowing,forhewouldnotbelieveanythingtoldhim;butwhenherefusedtosharehisberries,andsaidhehadgatheredthemforhimself,thenweknewit！Heisaglutton,andthereisnohopeofhim。——Itmakesmesicktoseehimeat！\"
\"Couldnotsomeoftheboyswatchhim,andnotlethimtouchthepoisonousthings？\"
\"Hemayhavethemifhewill:itisallone——toeattheapples,andtobeaboythatwouldeatthemifhecould。No;hemustgotothegiants！Hebelongstothem。Youcanseehowmuchbiggerheisthanwhenfirstyoucame！Heisbiggersinceyesterday。\"
\"Heisaslikethathideousgreenlumpinhishandasboycouldlook！\"
\"Itsuitswhatheismakinghimself。\"
\"Hisheadanditmightchangeplaces！\"
\"Perhapstheydo！\"
\"Doeshewanttobeagiant？\"
\"Hehatesthegiants,butheismakinghimselfoneallthesame:helikestheirapples！Ohbaby,baby,hewasjustsuchadarlingasyouwhenwefoundhim！\"
\"Hewillbeverymiserablewhenhefindshimselfagiant！\"
\"Oh,no;hewilllikeitwellenough！Thatistheworstofit。\"
\"WillhehatetheLittleOnes？\"
\"Hewillbeliketherest;hewillnotrememberus——mostlikelywillnotbelievethereareLittleOnes。Hewillnotcare;hewilleathisapples。\"
\"Dotellmehowitwillcomeabout。Iunderstandyourworldsolittle！Icomefromaworldwhereeverythingisdifferent。\"
\"IdonotknowaboutWORLD。Whatisit？Whatmorebutawordinyourbeautifulbigmouth？——Thatmakesitsomething！\"
\"Nevermindabouttheword;tellmewhatnextwillhappentoBlunty。\"
\"Hewillwakeonemorningandfindhimselfagiant——notlikeyou,goodgiant,butlikeanyotherbadgiant。Youwillhardlyknowhim,butIwilltellyouwhich。Hewillthinkhehasbeenagiantalways,andwillnotknowyou,oranyofus。Thegiantshavelostthemselves,Peonysays,andthatiswhytheyneversmile。Iwonderwhethertheyarenotgladbecausetheyarebad,orbadbecausetheyarenotglad。
Buttheycan\'tbegladwhentheyhavenobabies！IwonderwhatBAD
means,goodgiant！\"
\"IwishIknewnomoreaboutitthanyou！\"Ireturned。\"ButItrytobegood,andmeantokeepontrying。\"
\"SodoI——andthatishowIknowyouaregood。\"
Alongpausefollowed。
\"Thenyoudonotknowwherethebabiescomefromintothewood？\"I
said,makingoneattemptmore。
\"Thereisnothingtoknowthere,\"sheanswered。\"Theyareinthewood;theygrowthere。\"
\"Thenhowisityouneverfindonebeforeitisquitegrown？\"I
asked。
Sheknittedherbrowsandwassilentamoment:
\"They\'renottheretillthey\'refinished,\"shesaid。
\"Itisapitythelittlesilliescan\'tspeaktillthey\'veforgotteneverythingtheyhadtotell！\"Iremarked。
\"LittleTolma,thelastbeforethisbaby,lookedasifshehadsomethingtotell,whenIfoundherunderabeech—tree,suckingherthumb,butshehadn\'t。Sheonlylookedupatme——oh,sosweetly！
SHEwillnevergobadandgrowbig！Whentheybegintogrowbigtheycarefornothingbutbigness;andwhentheycannotgrowanybigger,theytrytogrowfatter。Thebadgiantsareveryproudofbeingfat。\"
\"Sotheyareinmyworld,\"Isaid;\"onlytheydonotsayFATthere,theysayRICH。\"
\"Inoneoftheirhouses,\"continuedLona,\"sitsthebiggestandfattestofthem——soproudthatnobodycanseehim;andthegiantsgotohishouseatcertaintimes,andcallouttohim,andtellhimhowfatheis,andbeghimtomakethemstrongtoeatmoreandgrowfatlikehim。\"
TherumouratlengthreachedmyearsthatBluntyhadvanished。I
sawafewgravefacesamongthebiggerones,buthedidnotseemtobemuchmissed。
ThenextmorningLonacametomeandwhispered,\"Look！lookthere——bythatquince—tree:thatisthegiantthatwasBlunty！——Wouldyouhaveknownhim？\"
\"Never,\"Ianswered。\"——Butnowyoutellme,IcouldfancyitmightbeBluntystaringthroughafog！HeDOESlookstupid！\"
\"Heisforevereatingthoseapplesnow！\"shesaid。\"ThatiswhatcomesofLittleOnesthatWON\'Tbelittle！\"
\"Theycallitgrowing—upinmyworld！\"Isaidtomyself。\"Ifonlyshewouldteachmetogrowtheotherway,andbecomeaLittleOne！——ShallIeverbeabletolaughlikethem？\"
Ihadhadthechance,andhadflungitfromme！BluntyandIwerealike！Hedidnotknowhisloss,andIhadtobetaughtmine！
CHAPTERXIV
ACRISIS
ForatimeIhadnodesiresavetospendmylifewiththeLittleOnes。Butsoonotherthoughtsandfeelingsbegantoinfluenceme。
FirstawokethevaguesensethatIoughttobedoingsomething;thatIwasnotmeantforthefatteningofboors！ThenitcametomethatIwasinamarvellousworld,ofwhichitwasassuredlymybusinesstodiscoverthewaysandlaws;andthat,ifIwoulddoanythinginreturnforthechildren\'sgoodness,Imustlearnmoreaboutthemthantheycouldtellme,andtothatendmustbefree。Surely,I
thought,nosuppressionoftheirgrowthcanbeessentialtotheirlovelinessandtruthandpurity！Notinanyworldcouldthepossibilityexistofsuchadiscordbetweenconstitutionanditsnaturaloutcome！Lifeandlawcannotbesoatvariancethatperfectionmustbegainedbythwartingdevelopment！ButthegrowthoftheLittleOnesWASarrested！somethinginterferedwithit:
whatwasit？Lonaseemedtheeldestofthem,yetnotmorethanfifteen,andhadbeenlonginchargeofamultitude,insemblanceandmostlyinbehaviourmerestchildren,whoregardedherastheirmother！Weretheygrowingatall？Idoubtedit。Oftimetheyhadscarcelytheidea;oftheirownagetheyknewnothing！Lonaherselfthoughtshehadlivedalways！Fullofwisdomandemptyofknowledge,shewasatoncetheirLoveandtheirLaw！Butwhatseemedtomeherignorancemightintruthbemyownlackofinsight！Heroneanxietyplainlywas,thatherLittleOnesshouldnotgrow,andchangeintobadgiants！Their\"goodgiant\"wasboundtodohisbestforthem:withoutmoreknowledgeoftheirnature,andsomeknowledgeoftheirhistory,hecoulddonothing,andmustthereforeleavethem！Theywouldonlybeastheywerebefore;theyhadinnowaybecomedependentonme;theywerestillmyprotectors,Iwasnottheirs;mypresencebutbroughtthemmoreindangeroftheiridioticneighbours！Ilongedtoteachthemmanythings:ImustfirstunderstandmoreofthoseIwouldteach！Knowledgenodoubtmadebadpeopleworse,butitmustmakegoodpeoplebetter！Iwasconvincedtheywouldlearnmathematics;andmighttheynotbetaughttowritedownthedaintymelodiestheymurmuredandforgot？
Theconclusionwas,thatImustriseandcontinuemytravels,inthehopeofcominguponsomeelucidationofthefortunesanddestinyofthebewitchinglittlecreatures。
Mydesign,however,wouldnotsosoonhavepassedintoaction,butforwhatnowoccurred。