Mother Ceres was exceedingly fond of her daughter Proserpina, and seldom let her go alone into the fields.But, just at the time when my story begins, the good lady was very busy, because she had the care of the wheat, and the Indian corn, and the rye and barley and, in short, of the crops of every kind, all over the earth; and as the season had thus far been uncommonly backward, it was necessary to make the harvest ripen more speedily than usual.So she put on her turban, made of poppies (a kind of flower which she was always noted for wearing), and got into her car drawn by a pair of winged dragons, and was just ready to set off.
"Dear mother," said Proserpina, "I shall be very lonely while you are away.May I not run down to the shore, and ask some of the sea 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.But you must take care not to stray away from them, nor go wandering 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 besought them to go with her a little way into the fields, so that they might gather abundance of flowers, with which she would make each of her kind playmates a wreath.
"O no, dear Proserpina," cried the sea nymphs; "we dare not go with you upon the dry land.We are apt to grow faint, unless at every breath we can snuff up the salt breeze of the ocean.And don't you see how careful we are to let the surf wave break over us every moment or two, so as to keep ourselves comfortably moist? If it were not for that, we should look like bunches of uprooted seaweed dried in the sun.
"It is a great pity," said Proserpina."But do you wait for me here, and I will run and gather my apron full of flowers, and be back again before the surf wave has broken ten times over you.I long to make you some wreaths that shall be as lovely as this necklace of many colored shells.""We will wait, then," answered the sea nymphs."But while you are gone, we may as well lie down on a bank of soft sponge under the water.The air to-day is a little too dry for our comfort.But we will pop up our heads every few minutes to see if you are coming."The young Proserpina ran quickly to a spot where, only the day before, she had seen a great many flowers.These, however, were now a little past their bloom; and wishing to give her friends the freshest and loveliest blossoms, she strayed farther into the fields, and found some that made her scream with delight.
Never had she met with such exquisite flowers before--violets so large and fragrant--roses with so rich and delicate a blush--such superb hyacinths and such aromatic pinks--and many others, some of which seemed to be of new shapes and colors.
Two or three times, moreover, she could not help thinking that a tuft of most splendid flowers had suddenly sprouted out of the earth before her very eyes, as if on purpose to tempt her a few steps farther.Proserpina's apron was soon filled, and brimming over with delightful blossoms.She was on the point of turning back in order to rejoin the sea nymphs, and sit with them on the moist sands, all twining wreaths together.But, a little farther on, what should she behold? It was a large shrub, completely covered with the most magnificent flowers in the world.
"The darlings!" cried Proserpina; and then she thought to herself, "I was looking at that spot only a moment ago.How strange it is that I did not see the flowers!"The nearer she approached the shrub, the more attractive it looked, until she came quite close to it; and then, although its beauty was richer than words can tell, she hardly knew whether to like it or not.It bore above a hundred flowers of the most brilliant hues, and each different from the others, but all having a kind of resemblance among themselves, which showed them to be sister blossoms.But there was a deep, glossy luster on the leaves of the shrub, and on the petals of the flowers, that made Proserpina doubt whether they might not be poisonous.To tell you the truth, foolish as it may seem, she was half inclined to turn round and run away.
"What a silly child I am!" thought she, taking courage."It is really the most beautiful shrub that ever sprang out of the earth.I will pull it up by the roots, and carry it home, and plant it in my mother's garden."Holding up her apron full of flowers with her left hand, Proserpina seized the large shrub with the other, and pulled, and pulled, but was hardly able to loosen the soil about its roots.What a deep-rooted plant it was! Again the girl pulled with all her might, and observed that the earth began to stir and crack to some distance around the stem.She gave another pull, but relaxed her hold, fancying that there was a rumbling sound right beneath her feet.Did the roots extend down into some enchanted cavern? Then laughing at herself for so childish a notion, she made another effort: up came the shrub, and Proserpina staggered back, holding the stem triumphantly in her hand, and gazing at the deep hole which its roots had left in the soil.
