nymphs to come up out of the waves and play
with me?"

"Yes, child," answered Mother Ceres. "The
sea nymphs are good creatures, and will never
lead you into any harm. Bat you must take
care not to stray away from them, nor go wander-
ing about the fields by yourself. Young girls,
without their mothers to take care of them, are
very apt to get into mischief."

The child promised to be as prudent as if she
were a grown-up woman; and, by the time the
winged dragons had whirled the car out of sight,
she was already on the shore, calling to the sea
nymphs to come and play with her. They knew
Proserpina's voice, and were not long in showing
their glistening faces and sea-green hair above
the water, at the bottom of which was their
home. They brought along with them a great
many beautiful shells; and sitting down on the
moist sand, where the surf wave broke over them,
they busied themselves in making a necklace,
which they hung round Proserpina's neck. By
way of showing her gratitude, the child be-
sought them to go with her a little way into
the fields, so that they might gather abundance

[[215]]

p214 _ -chap- _ toc-1 _ p215w _ toc-2 _ +chap+ _ p216

v?