when Leo pushed it he found it strong as iron and impossible to break. The rain-children stood by, and laughed at him while he hammered on it with both his little fists.

Presently a rushing sound was heard, and forth from an inner archway burst a troop of airy creatures with long, streaming hair, and wildly-floating mantles, who dashed down the glittering path to the gate, wrestling with each other, pushing, struggling, tripping each other up, everyone elbowing his neighbour and trying to get first to the gate of clear crystal at which the six dark, heavy-looking rainchildren and the little human rosy-cheeked boy were standing, waiting to get admittance to the palace of King Storm.

"You can't get in! you can't get in !" shrieked the wind-creatures, pushing against the gate. "The king is in a fury, just getting ready to set off with a cyclone."

"A cyclone?" said Leo.

"Certainly. Did you never hear of a cyclone?" "Oh yes," said Leo.

"I remember now.

It is a terrible hurricane that tears up trees and houses by the roots. My uncle told me about one that happened while he was in India."

"We had better not stand here talking about it much longer," said the rain-children, "unless we intend to be blown into fragments. Let us lie flat on our faces until the king comes out and goes past.'

"That would be wise, indeed," said the wind-creatures, who then separated themselves into two bands, and frolicked about in the air at either side of the crystal gates. Leo and the rain-children, in the meantime, laid themselves flat, much against Leo's will, who would rather have stood bolt upright with his hands in his pockets, and his eyes fixed on the opening through which the great Storm King was to make his appearance. As it was, he contrived to keep a corner of one eye open, and peered upward with it in the best way he could. Suddenly was heard a frightful crash, like near thunder, and Leo, making a great effort to look, caught just one glimpse of a gigantic face, pale and fierce, as if with passion, eyes and nostrils streaming white fire; the next moment a monstrous foot was planted right beside him, and the brave little boy felt a shock which threw him into a swoon. When he recovered his senses, Leo found the rainchildren picking him up, and the wind-creatures frolicking about and holding their sides with laughing, while the crystal gates stood open, that Leo and his companions might enter, with welcome, into the palace. The Storm King was gone, cyclone and all, and his retainers were quite ready to hold a revel in his absence..

The wind-creatures joined hands in a circle round their visitors, and swept them through the crystal gates, and up the sloping, glittering path in under the open archway that led into the palace.

There Leo was struck dumb with amazement at sight of the vast airy halls that spread on every side as he entered. Down from roofs which were so high he could not see them wound light gleaming staircases twining round crystal pillars like those outside, only the pent-up breath of the Storm King no longer kept restlessly rushing

through them. And as Leo strained his gaze upward to the soaring staircases he beheld wonderful figures descending by them, some tall and powerful-looking and like strong warriors, others fair, delicate, and smiling, like playful girls.

"These," said the rain-children, "are King Storm's retainers, who have been away about his affairs, and are returning and coming down here to rest themselves in his absence."

"Dear me !" said Leo; "have they got a hall-door on the roof of the palace? I have heard it said that when flying machines come into fashion all the hall-doors will be made on the tops of the houses. Have they got flying machines up here?-But oh, how silly I amof course they are all flying machines themselves."

"I should think so," said the rain-children, "and besides that they are extremely pleasant creatures. I advise you to join in their dances and amusements, They will like you the better for it, and you will have much more fun."

As the rain-children spoke, Leo saw the halls fill quickly with wind-creatures, gales, winds, stiff breezes and mild breezes-all floating about, laughing and chasing each other, or wreathing themselves in long chains, which the others broke through when they met them. Leo felt himself caught up among them and whirled hither and thither at their will, till his head was so dizzy that he did not know where he was, or what wild thing could be happening to him. Presently they began to dance to a sort of strange, murmuring music which came from the movement of the dancers. It was like the sighing and piping of the wind on a rough evening at home, and Leo tried to think about that, and to make up his mind as to what was the cause of the likeness; but his head was spinning madly, and his breath was taken away, and he even felt as if dying in the struggle and confusion.

I do not know what would have become of him only that a kind young breeze caught him in her arms, and snatched him out of the crowd of the bewildering dancers. She carried him away into an empty hall, where he recovered his breath, and was able to speak to her. She was a charming young creature, with a sweet, rosy face, and a pale gleaming of gold about her dress.

66

Oh, thank you!" said Leo, "you are very kind," as she fluttered round him and breathed on his head and his hands. Her breath had the most delicious perfume of violets, and Leo felt pleasantly refreshed as she hovered about and kissed him and petted him.

"Some of our friends here are rather rough," she said, "though they mean no harm. Now if you come with me I will show you some things that may amuse you."

Leo followed her through the vast halls, till they came to one which was lined with crystal pillars, and between the pillars there seemed to be dim pictures, wide and dim, with lights and colours struggling in them, as if out of a deep and wonderful distance.

"What strange pictures!" said Leo, peering at them; "I cannot make out what they are."

"These are not pictures, but visions," said the breeze. "If you

gaze at them steadily, one after another, you will see a good deal of what is going on at our hands in different parts of the world."

Leo walked slowly round the hall staring at each in turn. At first he could see very little, but after gazing earnestly for some time, he found that each of these seeming pictures was indeed a strange piece of reality laid before his eyes.

After peering attentively into the first for a few moments, Leo clasped his hands and screamed aloud.

"What do you see ?" asked the breeze.

"Oh, I see a dreadful dark sea at night!" cried Leo, "and a vessel driven about and going to pieces in the raging storm! The waves are foaming, and people are swallowed up in them. Oh, it is frightful! Cannot we do something to save them ?"

"No," said the breeze, sadly, and drew Leo away to the next picture or vision.

"What do you see now ?" she asked again.

""I see a beautiful bright ocean," said Leo, gladly, "and such a glorious ship with its sails spread, moving so swiftly across the shining waves. People are waving handkerchiefs, and laughing, and clapping their hands. I suppose they are coming safely into port."

"Yes, indeed," said the breeze, "and that is pleasanter than the last. The next is very frightful, and you must not take more than a glance at it."

It was terrible, indeed. In the darkness of night a house was on fire, and the wind was blowing the flames wildly and increasing their fury. A red glare shone on upturned faces below, and some of them were full of agony and fear. Leo covered his face with his hand, and the breeze drew him on, leaving the horror behind.

After this there was a forest of gigantic trees, torn and lashed by the tempest; followed by many other pictures of different scenes, peaceful or terrible, in which the winds had an active part. Last of all came a delightful garden, full of the most lovely flowers of every hue, tended by a band of delicate creatures, so like his present kind companion that Leo knew at once that they must be breezes. Over this pleasant vision he lingered a long time, watching the breezes gently picking the dead leaves from the blossoms, fanning the buds open, and taking the scent from the hearts of the flowers upon their breath to scatter it sweetly over the place.

But at last he grew tired even of this, and the breeze said to him: 66 Should you like to return to the dancers, or is there anything you wish particularly to see and know about ?"

"I should be glad if you would take me up one of your wonderful winding staircases," said Leo. "I would give anything to see what you have got at the top of it."

"Come, then," said the breeze, smiling, and sweeping the little boy on before her, they began to mount a staircase close at hand which twined round one of the crystal pillars.

Up and up they went, the breeze fluttering behind Leo, and wafting him over step after step, so that he had no need to clutch at the glittering balustrade as he had fully intended to do. Higher and

higher they went, losing sight of the halls below and as yet reaching nothing; and Leo thought of a picture he had seen of the angels ascending and descending on Jacob's ladder in a dream.

"This is reality, though," thought Leo, "and I am going up myself, instead of merely looking at the angels."

Just as this thought passed through his mind, the staircase shock violently, and a convulsion seemed to have seized the whole palace.

"It is the king returning !" cried the breeze, in a tone of alarm. Before she had time to say another word, a terrific crash seemed to split up the whole of creation. The shock threw Leo into a deadly swoon; and, as the Storm King re-entered his palace, the little boy was spun away into space, and remembered nothing more.

CHAPTER X.

THE SNOW'S KINGDOM.

THE next time Leo opened his eyes and looked round to see where he might be, he found that palace, staircase, drawbridge, and all, had disappeared, and that wind-creatures and rain-children and breezes had deserted him. He was in a great white world, completely alone.

Oh, what a strange place it was! Nothing but vast plains of snow lying on every side of him. Was it really snow? He took up a handful and looked at it. Yes, it was snow. It did not melt, as earthly snow would do; but still it was snow. It did not shift and break up in fragments like the clouds, but his feet sank in it when he walked. He was certainly in a world of snow.

Away he went pattering through it as well as he could, leaving little dark foot-prints behind him as he walked. Now and again he stopped and listened and looked around. There was nothing floating, moving, soaring, or singing. All was silence, and flat, deathly whiteness.

Then he trudged on again. At last, feeling rather lonely, he called out loudly, at the top of his voice; but nothing stirred, and no answer was given. To keep up his heart he sang and whistled, and tried to assure himself that he was not at all afraid of these dreadful white wildernesses; but with all his bravery, it must be owned that his teeth began to chatter and his knees to shake.

"If there was going to be any end of it, you know, or anyone to speak to!" said Leo, to himself.

At this moment he saw the first glimpse of some new forms in the whiteness-tall, bristling, glittering things that stood together in a vast spreading crowd, like a forest of icicle-trees. As he drew nearer to the strange appearance, he saw that this was indeed a magnificent frost forest with spreading palms and pluming ferns.

"Oho!" said Leo, to himself, "this is the place we see on the window-panes in the frosty winter mornings. I often wished I could get into it for a while; so here goes!"

And in he plunged bravely into the middle of the ice-trees, pushing his way carefully among them, and sometimes pricking his fingers with the jagged edges of the frozen leaves. As he went deeper and deeper into the glittering thickets the most exquisite coloured lights. came gleaming out of the distance, exactly like the glowing rays he had often seen lurking in crystal ornaments in the drawing-room at home.

These beautiful darting lights almost blinded him, and so he was hardly sure whether or not he really saw curious little snow-white figures of children lying sleeping along the branches of the trees, and sitting perched among the boughs with their knees drawn up to their chins, and their wild, pale faces smiling down at him.

I often wondered if there were really live people hiding in these forests," thought Leo, "and now I know there are plenty of snowchildren here, at all events."

And he stopped under a tree and looked up.

"I say!" he cried. "What jolly good slides you must have there on the barest boughs; I wish you would help me up to you. The trunks are all so slippery that I cannot reach a place to put my feet!" But in answer to this, the snow-children who were awake perching in the branches only answered:

"We can't come down until thawing time begins." And they laughed in a way that sounded like crackling ice.

"When will that be ?" asked Leo, of a sweet little snow-maiden who was peering down at him with merry bright eyes looking out of a cluster of icicle ringlets.

"When the Snow Queen turns in her sleep," answered the little girl, gaily.

"When will that be ?" asked Leo.

"How should I know?" said the snow-girl.

"Go away! go away!" shrieked a whole flock of the snow-children, looking down at him, and shaking their little fists. "Your breath is beginning to melt us. The tears are already running down our

cheeks!"

"Dear me!" said Leo; "how very strange!" and he saw that his breath was puffing before his face like steam; and he was too much surprised to do anything but stare upward at the children, who soon brought him to his senses, however, by pelting him with icicles till he fled like the wind.

As soon as he stopped to take breath, he found that he had come to a very large clearing in the frost-forest. Here was a lovely plain of untrodden snow, broken only here and there by beds of glittering ice-flowers. In the centre of all stood a transparent palace built of ice.

Up and down, and round and round the palace, walked bands of snow-figures, with long trailing robes, and heads leaning low on their breasts. Their hands were folded, and they looked like people who were patiently waiting for some wonderful event to take place. None of them took the slightest notice of Leo. Their noiseless, wreathing movement had the most beautiful and awful effect, and the coloured