The Fairy Green — Background and Themes

You said a thing that seemed unkind To the dear little fairy folk. I'm sure they're simply everywhere, So _promise_ me that you'll take care.

All about the daphne bush the happy fairies went, And spread abroad their silken hair to catch its magic scent; They chanted little silver tunes, they danced the whole day long; The rosy bush was ringed around with chains of coloured song.

They danced, they sang, they flung about their tiny fairy names, Till swiftly over all the sky there ran the sunset flames; Then high into the glowing air they leapt with joyful shout, And with the ruddy shreds of mist they wrapped themselves about.

Into my quiet garden close they swiftly dropped again (The music of their merriment tinkled like falling rain); Laughing they swayed, while from their hair they shook the warm perfume, Till all the place seemed filled with clouds of drifting daphne bloom.

Spindle-wood, spindle-wood, will you lend me, pray, A little flaming lantern to guide me on my way? The fairies all have vanished from the meadow and the glen And I would fain go seeking till I find them once again. Lend me now a lantern that I may bear a light To find the hidden pathway in the darkness of the night.

Ash-tree, ash-tree, throw me, if you please, Throw me down a slender bunch of russet-gold keys. I fear the gates of Fairyland may all be shut so fast That nothing but your magic keys will ever take me past. I'll tie them to my girdle, and as I go along My heart will find a comfort in the tinkle of their song.

Holly-bush, holly-bush, help me in my task, A pocketful of berries is all the alms I ask: A pocketful of berries to thread in glowing strands (I would not go a-visiting with nothing in my hands) So fine will be the rosy chains, so gay, so glossy bright They'll set the realms of Fairyland all dancing with delight.

When the fiddlers play their tunes you may sometimes hear, Very softly chiming in, magically clear, Magically high and sweet, the tiny crystal notes Of fairy voices bubbling free from tiny fairy throats.

When the birds at break of day chant their morning prayers, Or on sunny afternoons pipe ecstatic airs, Comes an added rush of sound to the silver din-- Songs of fairy troubadours gaily joining in.

When athwart the drowsy fields summer twilight falls, Through the tranquil air there float elfin madrigals And in wild November nights, on the winds astride, Fairy hosts go rushing by, singing as they ride.

Every dream that mortals dream, sleeping or awake, Every lovely fragile hope--these the fairies take, Delicately fashion them and give them back again In tender, limpid melodies that charm the hearts of men.

Over the field the fairies went Singing and dancing and well content; Over the field of sweet warm grass I saw their shimmering cohorts pass.

The clover flamed to a ruddier glow, The slender buttercups curtseyed low, The wondering daisies, innocent-eyed, Bowed their heads to the radiant tide.

And flirting butterflies, pearly white, Left the flowers for a new delight, Left their loves for the fairies' sake, And fluttered dizzily in their wake.

Over the swaying grass they swept, Over the hedgerow soared and leapt, Broke and scattered in golden spray, Gleamed and glittered--and melted away.

I know an island in a lake, Green upon waters grey; It has a strange enchanted air; I hear the fairies singing there When I go by that way.

They guard their hidden dwelling-place With bands of stalwart reeds, But sometimes, by a happy chance, I see them all come out and dance Upon the water-weeds.

One night, one summer night, I know Suddenly I shall wake, And very softly hasten down And out beyond the sleeping town To find my fairy lake.

I shall not need to seek a boat, It will be moored, I think, Within a tiny pebbled bay Where meadow-sweet and mallow sway Close to the water's brink.

The moon from shore to shadowy shore Will make a shining trail, And I shall sing their fairy song As joyfully I float along-- I shall not need a sail.

And peering through a starlit haze I presently shall see, Where swift the waiting reeds unclose, The fairies all in rows and rows Waiting to welcome me.

SMITH SQUARE, WESTMINSTER

In Smith Square, Westminster, the houses stand so prim, With slender railings at their feet and windows straight and slim; And all day long they staidly stare with gentle placid gaze, And dream of joyous happenings in splendid bygone days.

In Smith Square, Westminster, you must not make a noise, No shrill-voiced vendors harbour there, no shouting errand-boys; But very busy gentlemen step swiftly out and in With little leather cases and umbrellas neatly thin.

Yet sometimes when the summer night her starry curtain spreads, And all the busy gentlemen are sleeping in their beds, You hear a gentle humming like the humming of a hive, And Smith Square, Westminster, begins to come alive.

For all the houses start to sing, honey-sweet and low, The tender little lovely songs of long and long ago, And all the fairies round about come hastening up in crowds, Until the quiet air is filled with rainbow-coloured clouds.

On roof and rail and chimney-pot they delicately perch, They hang like jewelled fringes on the ledges of the church; They dance about the roadway upon nimble, noiseless feet, While the houses keep on chanting with a soft enticing beat.

And still they weave their sparkling webs and still they leap and whirl Until the far horizon's edge is faintly rimmed with pearl, And the morning breeze blows out the stars discreetly, one by one, And the sentries on the Abbey signal down--"The Sun--the Sun!"

And long before the butlers stumble drowsily downstairs, And long before their masters have begun to say their prayers, The fairies all have pranced away upon the morning beams, And Smith Square, Westminster, is wrapped once more in dreams.

THE ENCHANTED PRINCESS

She wanders in the forest with wide and solemn eyes; A little shade of wilderment across her forehead lies.

No timid woodland creature her footfall need affright, The shadow of her floating hair is not more soft and light.

She hears the gentle cadence of bird and wind and stream, They make a little song for her, like singing in a dream.

Across the distant valley the pleasant sunbeams fall; The children in the cowslip field merrily laugh and call.

She does not hear their laughter, she does not feel the sun, She cannot leave the shadowed wood until the spell is done.

THE GOBLIN TO THE FAIRY QUEEN

What do you lack, queen, queen, That is precious and fine and rare? A jewelled snood that shall lie between The delicate waves of your hair? I will ride through the sky on the evening wind With a golden needle and thread, And string up the tiniest stars I can find, To glitter about your head.

What can I do, queen, queen, To hasten the hours along When you grow weary of woodland green, Weary of woodland song? A cage of gossamer gold I will tie On to a skylark's wing, And there you shall hang in the midst of the sky And tremble to hear him sing.

Grant me a boon, queen, queen; This is the boon that I ask-- Let me do service, mighty or mean, Give me a task, a task. Are there no jackanapes giants to slay? Are there no dragons to fight? Nothing shall daunt me by dark or by day; Make me your goblin knight!

THE FAIRY QUEEN TO THE GOBLIN

Last night I heard a singing--a singing in my dreams, It wandered through my land of sleep like little silver streams; Like little purling silver streams that gently laugh and coo-- Goblin with the shining eyes, goblin, was it you?

Softer than the tender croon of my happy doves, Sweeter than my nightingales pouring forth their loves, Clearer than my valiant lark triumphant in the blue; Goblin with the whimsic smile, goblin, was it you?

All night long the singer stayed close beside my bower, Weaving his enchanted songs, till that magic hour When the early morning light creeps across the dew; Goblin with the steadfast heart, goblin, was it you?

You perch upon the leaves where the trees are very high, And you all shout together as the wind goes by; The merry mad wind sets the leaves all afloat, And off you go a-sailing in an airy wee boat.

You fly to the edges of a grim grey cloud, And you all start a-dancing and a-singing very loud; The cloud melts away in a shower of peevish rain And you slide down from heaven on a slim silver chain.

The larch-tree gives them needles To stitch their gossamer things; Carefully, cunningly toils the oak To shape the cups of the fairy folk; The sycamore gives them wings.

The lordly fir-tree rocks them High on his swinging sails; The hawthorn fashions their tiny spears; The whispering alder charms their ears With soft, mysterious tales.

The chestnut gives them candles To make their ballroom fine; And the elder-bush and the hazel tree Assist their delicate revelry With nuts and fragrant wine.

FAIRIES IN THE MALVERNS

As I walked over Hollybush Hill The sun was low and the winds were still, And never a whispering branch I heard Nor ever the tiniest call of a bird.

And when I came to the topmost height Oh, but I saw such a wonderful sight: All about on the hill-crest there The fairies danced in the golden air.

Danced and frolicked with never a sound In and out in a magical round; Wide and wider the circle grew Then suddenly melted into the blue.

As I walked down into Eastnor Vale The stars already were twinkling pale, And over the spaces of dew-white grass I saw a marvellous pageant pass.

Tiny riders on tiny steeds, Decked with blossoms and armed with reeds, With gossamer banners floating far And a radiant queen in an ivory car.

The beeches spread their petticoats wide And curtseyed low upon either side; The rabbits scurried across the glade To peep at the glittering cavalcade.

Far and farther I saw them go And vanish into the woods below; Then over the shadowy woodland ways I wandered home in a sweet amaze.

But Malvern people need fear no ill Since fairies bide in their country still.

THE FAIRIES SEND MESSENGERS

They sent a stout little red-breast bird; He sang from the garden wall; Surely, oh, surely the children heard, But never they came to his call.

They sent a capering, glad young breeze; He shouted, he rattled about; But the children sat with their books on their knees And gave no heed to his shout.

They sent a bee in a velvet coat, Busily, busily gay; He hummed his tale on a spirited note But the children chased him away.

They sent a brave little fairy sprite; She peeped round the window frame; The children looked, and their eyes grew bright, And they came!

There is no road to Dunsley Glen, I should not know the way again Because the fairies took me there, Down by a little rocky stair-- A little stair all twists and turns, Half hidden by the spreading ferns.

High overhead the trees were green, With little bits of blue between, So high that they could see, I'm sure, Beyond the wood, beyond the moor, The water many miles away Mistily shining in the bay.

Deep in the glen a streamlet cool Ran down into a magic pool, With mossy caverns all about Where fairies fluttered in and out; Their sparkling wings and golden hair Made dancing twinkles here and there.

I stood and watched them at their play Until I dared no longer stay; I knew that I might seek and seek On every day of every week Ere I should find the place again-- There is no road to Dunsley Glen.

Peacocks sweep the fairies' rooms; They use their folded tails for brooms; But fairy dust is brighter far Than any mortal colours are, And all about their tails it clings In strange designs of rounds and rings: And that is why they strut about And proudly spread their feathers out.

The Cuckoo is a tell-tale, A mischief-making bird; He flies to East, he flies to West And whispers into every nest The wicked things he's heard; He loves to spread his naughty lies, He laughs about it as he flies: "Cuckoo," he cries, "cuckoo, cuckoo, It's true, it's true."

And when the fairies catch him His busy wings they dock, They shut him up for evermore (He may not go beyond the door) Inside a wooden clock; Inside a wooden clock he cowers And has to tell the proper hours-- "Cuckoo," he cries, "cuckoo, cuckoo, It's true, it's true."

High in the elm-trees sit the rooks, Or flit about with busy looks And solemn, ceaseless caws. Small wonder they are so intent, They are the fairies' Parliament-- They make the fairy laws.

They never seem to stop all day, And you can hear from far away Their busy chatter-chat. They work so very hard indeed You'd wonder that the fairies need So many laws as that.

The robin is the fairies' page; They keep him neatly dressed For country service or for town In dapper livery of brown And little scarlet vest.

On busy errands all day long He hurries to and fro With watchful eyes and nimble wings-- There are not very many things The robin doesn't know.

And he can tell you, if he will, The latest fairy news: The quaint adventures of the King, And whom the Queen is visiting, And where she gets her shoes.

And lately, when the fairy Court Invited me to tea, He stood behind the Royal Chair; And here I solemnly declare, When he discovered I was there. That robin _winked_ at me.

The kindly cock is the fairies' friend, He warns them when their revels must end; He never forgets to give the word, For the cock is a thoroughly punctual bird.

And since he grieves that he never can fly. Like all the other birds, up in the sky, The fairies put him now and again High on a church for a weather-vane.

Little for sun or for rain he cares; He turns about with the proudest airs And chuckles with joy as the clouds go past To think he is up in the sky at last.

The Grouse that lives on the moorland wide Is filled with a most ridiculous pride; He thinks that it all belongs to him, And every one else must obey his whim. When the queer wee folk who live on the moors Come joyfully leaping out of their doors To frisk about on the warm sweet heather Laughing and chattering all together, He looks askance at their rollicking play And calls to them in the angriest way: "You're a feather-brained, foolish, frivolous pack, Go back, you rascally imps, go back!"

But little enough they heed his shout, Over the rocks they tumble about; They chase each other over the ling; They kick their heels in the heather and sing: "Oho, Mr. Grouse, you'd best beware, Or some fine day, if you don't take care, The witch who lives in the big brown bog With a wise old weasel, a rat and a frog, Will come a-capering over the fell And put you under a horrible spell; Your feathers will moult and your voice will crack-- Go back, you silly old bird, go back!"

Before I was a little girl I was a little bird, I could not laugh, I could not dance, I could not speak a word; But all about the woods I went and up into the sky-- And isn't it a pity I've forgotten how to fly?

I often came to visit you. I used to sit and sing Upon our purple lilac-bush that smells so sweet in Spring; But when you thanked me for my song of course you never knew I soon should be a little girl and come to live with you.

I wake in the morning early And always, the very first thing, I poke out my head and I sit up in bed And I sing and I sing and I sing.

THERE ARE NO WOLVES IN ENGLAND NOW

There are no wolves in England now, nor any grizzly bears; You could not meet them after dark upon the attic stairs.

When Nanna goes to fetch the tea there is no need at all To leave the nursery door ajar in case you want to call.

And mother says, in fairy tales, those bits are never true That tell you all the dreadful deeds that wicked fairies do.

And wouldn't it be silly for a great big girl like me To be the leastest bit afraid of things that couldn't be?

As soon as I'm in bed at night And snugly settled down, The little girl I am by day Goes very suddenly away, And then I'm Mrs. Brown.

I have a family of six, And all of them have names, The girls are Joyce and Nancy Maud, The boys are Marmaduke and Claude And Percival and James.

We have a house with twenty rooms A mile away from town; I think it's good for girls and boys To be allowed to make a noise-- And so does Mr. Brown.

We do the most exciting things, Enough to make you creep; And on and on and on we go-- I sometimes wonder if I know When I have gone to sleep.

A little mountain spring I found That fell into a pool; I made my hands into a cup And caught the sparkling water up-- It tasted fresh and cool.

A solemn little frog I spied Upon the rocky brim; He looked so boldly in my face, I'm certain that he thought the place Belonged by rights to him.

I like my cousin very much Because of course one should; She comes to spend the day with me And stays to dinner and to tea, And she is very good.

Her shining hair is smooth and neat, She always wears a plait, And French Translation she can do And Algebra and Science too, And clever things like that.

My Nanna thinks I ought to try And copy Cousin Gwen; But I could never be like her, Indeed, indeed, I wish I were-- Excepting now and then.

The butcher's shop is open wide And everyone can see inside; He stands behind the rows of meat And gazes out into the street.

He always wears a coat of blue, He has a linen apron too, And with his knife he rather looks Like ogres in the story-books.

He smiles and nods and says "Good-day" If nurse and I go by that way When we are shopping in the town-- I've never seen him sitting down.

The pillar-box is fat and red, It's mouth is very wide, It wears a Tammy on its head-- It must be dark inside.

And really it's the greatest fun When mother lets me stop And post the letters one by one-- I like to hear them drop.

I'd like to be a dentist with a plate upon the door And a little bubbling fountain in the middle of the floor; With lots of tiny bottles all arranged in coloured rows And a page-boy with a line of silver buttons down his clothes.

I'd love to polish up the things and put them every day Inside the darling chests of drawers all tidily away; And every Sunday afternoon when nobody was there I should go riding up and down upon the velvet chair.

I'm rather fond of medicine, especially if it's pink, Or else the fizzy-wizzy kind that makes you want to blink; And eucalyptus lozenges are very nice I think.

I like it when I'm really ill and have to stay in bed With mother's grown-up pillows all frilly round my head; But measles is the funniest, because you get so red.

He is always standing there At the corner of the Square; He is very big and fine And his silver buttons shine.

All the carts and taxis do Everything he tells them to, And the little errand-boys When they pass him make no noise.

Though I seem so very small I am not afraid at all; He and I are friends, you see, And he always smiles at me.

Once I wasn't very good Rather near to where he stood, But he never said a word Though I'm sure he must have heard.