THE ELVES
(Iroquois)
The little Elves of Darkness, so says the old
Iroquois Grandmother, were wise and
mysterious. They dwelt under the Earth, where were deep forests and broad plains.
There they kept captive all the evil things that wished to injure human beings,—the
venomous snakes, the wicked spiders, and the fearful monsters. Sometimes one of
these evil creatures escaped and rushed upward to the bright, pure air, and spread
its poisonous breath over the Upper World. But such happenings were rare, for the
Elves of Darkness were faithful and strong, and did not willingly allow the wicked
beasts and reptiles to harm human beings and the growing things.
When the night was lighted by the Moon's soft rays, and the woods of the
Upper World were sweet with the odour of the Spring flowers, then the Elves of
Darkness left the Under World, and creeping from their holes, held a festival in the
woods. And under many a tree where the blades of grass had refused to grow, the
Little People danced until rings of green sprang up under their feet. And to the
festival came the Elves of Light,—among them the Tree-Elves, Flower-Elves, and
Fruit-Elves. They too danced and made merry.
But when the moonlight faded away, and day began to break, then the Elves
of Darkness scampered back to their holes, and returned once more to the Under
World, while the Elves of Light began their daily tasks.
For in the Springtime these Little People of Light hid in sheltered places.
They listened to the complaints of the seeds that lay covered in the ground, and
they whispered to the Earth until the seeds burst their pods and sent their shoots up
to the light. Then the little Elves wandered through the woods bidding all growing
things look up to the Sun.
The Tree-Elves tended the trees, unfolding their leaves, and feeding their
roots with sap from the Earth. The Flower-Elves unwrapped the baby buds, and
tinted the petals of the opening flowers, and played with the Butterflies and Bees.
But the busiest of all were the Fruit-Elves. Their greatest care in the Spring
was the Strawberry Plant. When the ground softened from the frost, the Fruit-Elves
loosened the soil around each Strawberry root, that its shoots might push through
to the light. They shaped the plant's leaves, and turned its blossoms toward the
warm rays of the Sun. They trained its runners, and helped the timid fruit to form.
They painted the luscious berry, and bade it ripen. And when the first Strawberries
blushed on the vines, these guardian Elves protected them from the evil insects that
had escaped from the world of darkness underground.
The old Iroquois Grandmother tells how once, when the fruit first came to
earth, the Evil One, Hahgwehdaetgah, stole the Strawberry Plant, and carried it to
his gloomy cave, where he hid it away. And there it lay until a tiny sunbeam
pierced the damp mould, and finding the little vine, carried it back to its sunny
fields. And ever since then the Strawberry Plant has lived and thrived in the fields
and woods. But the Fruit-Elves, fearing lest the Evil One should one day steal the
vine again, watch day and night over their favourite. And when the Strawberries
ripen, the Elves give the juicy, fragrant fruit to the Iroquois children as they gather
the Spring flowers in the woods.
The Elves
Engelsk for 8. klasse
Skole-forum.dk
Opgaver til "The Elves"
Sit down together, write down the words you do not know and look them up in a
dictionary.
What is elves?
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In Iceland people still believe in elves and connect them to Christmas.
What do you think about that?
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Is there some kind of magic world we cannot see? Try to explain:
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In your exercise book:
Write a tale about the world we cannot sense.
Opgaver til "The Elves"
Engelsk for 8. klasse
Skole-forum.dk
