[Editor: This short story for children, by Eva Oakley, was published in Real Australian Fairy Stories (1945).]
The Brownies, the Mushrooms, the Gum Babies and the Fairies
There once lived, on a large Mushroom patch, some very kind little Brownies, and every night they slept under the shelter of the Mushrooms, and Brownies and Mushrooms grew to be very fond of each other.
Each day the Brownies went off, and worked and played round about, and when they wanted to rest out of the heat of the sun, they would lie in the shade of the Dandelions, or sit in the centre of large clumps of lovely, green grass.
Sometimes people gathered the Mushrooms; but there would always be a fresh crop for them, under which they could sleep. Children picked the Dandelions, too; but the Brownies said, “It makes them happy, so we do not mind.” (That was a kind thought). “We shall still have the grass,” they said; but the cows came and ate the grass. However, the Brownies did not even mind that, for they knew fresh flowers and grass would be there next day.
There was just one thing though; they got tired of playing the same games, for they did not know many. Now sometimes they climbed the big gum trees, and talked to the Gum Babies, who loved the kind Brownies. One day, when the Brownies had been telling the Gum Babies how they would love to know some more games, the Gum Babies had a lovely thought, and as soon as the Brownies had gone, they talked it over.
This was the thought: they decided they would tell all the Bush Fairies, and ask their help for their dear little friends. So that night the Fairies all appeared, and pretty little Fairy Lights shone out. Some of the Fairies were dressed in snow-white, some in rose-pink, and the rest were in deep sky-blue, and oh! they looked lovely.
Well! They woke the Brownies, who were thrilled to see them, and became quite excited. Then they taught the Brownies to dance on their toes, and to do all sorts of beautiful steps, and the Brownies were happy for ever after, because now, when tired of their games, they would do all these wonderful dances.
Source:
Eva Oakley, Real Australian Fairy Stories, Melbourne: Austral Printing & Publishing Company, [1945], pp. 4-5
Editor’s notes:
brownie = in British folklore, a brownie is a small brown elf, goblin, or household spirit who helps people by performing household chores (usually at night, and in exchange for small amount of food left out for them); can also refer to: a member of the Brownies (a female youth organisation, the junior branch of the Girl Guides); a small flat piece of dense rich chocolate cake, square or rectangular in shape, which often contains nuts (also called a chocolate brownie); a type of sweet bread made with currants and sugar
See: 1) “Brownies – sensitive house spirits”, Fairy Land: The World of Magical Creatures
2) “Brownies make finicky (but useful) roomates”, Astonishing Legends
3) Carolyn Emerick, “When Brownies turn bad”, Owlcation, 15 August 2016
See also: “Brownie (folklore)”, Wikipedia
[Editor: The original text has been separated into paragraphs.]
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