The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, February 17, 1901, Page 7

THE SUNDAY CALL. \ 9 7=, OROTHY was a poor i i little girl, whose mother worked very hard in er to get enough for them to eat and to clothe the child and send school. Very often they did not eat, and Dorothy was 80 she suffered from the y she had heard her little school- mates talking so much about Vale 2 day. What a lot of mystery ard fu to be s tall whispering there was she heard the chi the people to whom were g send valentines her littie heart ached childish sorrow, and she did wish with all her might that she, t00, wo entine, or, better still, m buy one of the bright, pre: give It to her mamma. B she do? She could not dear ask her mamma for money to buy one, because 4 no money to give her, and she knew it would only bring one more sor- row to the dear mother heart, she studied her lessons, and was as pleasant and d to every ome as if her little heart was not aching over the that Valentine’s day would not mean anything to her, as it would to her light-hearted little playmates. Well, school was over at last and she walked home alone, feeling cold, hungry and unhappy. Her eyes were fixed upon the ground, and she was just saying, “It's she 50 : no use; there is no way to get it—but oh, I would love to have a valentine for my very own” * ¢ ¢ Just then she saw lying in her path an envelope on which were printed the words “Open me.” With much surprise she stooped down, and picking it up, opened it carefully, when— aped a tiny man, no bigger than her thumb, and he was all dressed in red, and had tiny red hearts on his coat, no bigger than the nail on her little finger. In her surprise she almost dropped him, but he was not to be easily shaken, so sat perched on her sleeve and addressed her in the tinjest voice she had ever heard. “So you are the little girl who wants a Well, well, we shall see. Are walentine? said Dorothy, for man had such a delightfully pleasant face that she feit sure he must have 2 good heart back of it. He then produced a teeny, weeny silver heart and kave It to her, saying: “Take this heart i go home and get your supper and go ed, but do not say a word to any one te about it, and when your mamma is asleep £0 and pass this heart three times over ead, and then she will not awaken vou have had a visit to St. Valen- tine’s Land. “Oh, can I really go to Bt. Valentine's Land? The land where the valentines reelly grow?” she asked, and he sald: 7 SSIE JULIEY - TKNOX “Yes, you shall, for you are 4 good and obedient little girl, and I never take any other kind to that beautiful country. Farewell until to-night.” She fairly trod on air the rest of the way home, singing all the way, “O I am #0 happy—so happy.” When she reached home her mamma met her at the door with & kiss, and sald: “What makes my little girl have such a bright, happy face to-day, and where did you get tliose two big, red roses in your cheeks?” Dorothy only laughed the more, and sald, “O, I feel happy to-day, mamma.” She flew around, helping about the work, and it seemed to her she would never get supper over and get to bed. But mamma was unusually tired that night and retired early. Little Dorothy walted until she saw her sleeping, and sald: “Now for the little silver heart: we will try ft.” And she slipped over to mamma's bed and d1d as St. Valentine had directed. Then she hurriedly put on her clothes again, and just as she was all ready there stood the little man before her, and taking her by the hand passed a gold heart three times over her head and she became as small as he, and hand in hand they jump- ed through a tiny hole in the window. “Lady Dorothy, my carriage walts,” he #ald, and she saw the cunningest little carrlage, about the size of thelr sugar bowl; and it was all red, and two tiny red horses and a coachman dressed in red and gold. “Away to St. Valentine’s land,” he called out to the coachman, and on they flew, swifter than the wind, and it was #0 delightful to go through the air this way that Dorothy laughed till she held her sides, and jolly little St. Valentine laughed, and even the tiny horses laughed and the coachman heard them and he laughed. It was all so perfectly lovely and Dorothy was so happy. And oh! they passed through the queerest countrie Some of the houses were upside down and the people standing on thelr heads, and horses and all kinds of animals walking on thelr backs with their feet In the afr, and children walking on their heads and the blue sky was underneath and the trees on top. Dorothy sald: *“Why, what coun- try is this? It makes me dizzy to look at it.”” St. Valentine replied: “It is the Up- side Down country. They don’t mind it. They have always been that way, you know.” Dorothy said: *““Well, anyway, I am glad that I live in the Rightside Up country.” Next they passed through the land of Giants, and oh! how tiny she did feel as she looked away up to the people who were as big as trees. She could not see their faces, they were so far away, 80 the coachman stopped the carriage and St. Valentine produced a very fine ladder, and he and Dorothy placed this ladder against one of the big giants and ran clear up to the top of it, hand in hand, and peeped right into the glant's face and sald, “How do you do?’ The giant tried to brush them off with his hand, and #aid in a volce like thunder, “Those hor- rid mosquitos are such a nuisance,” and St. Valentine fairly roared in his ear, “O 1 don’t know,” and the giant looked so funny. Dorothy laughed, and sald: “Mos- quitos! Indeed! Well, I never thought 1 should ever be called a mesquito.” And then they ran down the ladder again, but not until Dorothy had seen that his eves were like two big windows and his halr like a field of wheat. She looked in at some of the shop win- dows and saw great sticks of candy, as big as a small tree. “Oh, if I had just one of these,” she said, “it would last me ail my life.” They jumped Into the carriage again, and on they sped, stopping a little while in “Animal Land,” where she saw something much nicer than the circus— monkeys by the score playing the funniest pranks, and elephants doing the '‘cake- walk,” and kangaroos dancing the “skirt dance,” cats and mice sleeping sweetly side by side and a lot of llons and lambs having & big frolic in-the most friendly way imaginable. Birds sang and dogs barked, and food for all the different kinds of animals grew on trees and bushes, while clear streams of water flowed through the land. But they could not tarry long, for they must hasten on to the end of their journey. * * * The scehe changed. There were miles of the most gorgeous flowers, with beautiful but- terflies, many-colored and as large as din- ner plates, hovering over them. The air was filled with the rarest perfume, and flying all around among the beautiful trees were little cupids, with silver bows and arrows. They kept shooting at every one they saw, but it did not hurt a bit— only made one feel very happy. Finally the coachman stopped and opened the door; they had reached St. Valentine’'s Land; al there was a red velvet carpet spread out for their feet. St. Valentine passed the heart over Dorothy's head and his own, and they became their usual size. All the air was tull of music, and Doro- ‘HE ADRESSED HERIN THE TINIEST VOI(ESHE HADEZER HEARD. thy looked in wonder to see whence It came, and discovered that many of the cupids who were flying through the air had harps and violins and other kinds of musical instruments, and as they played they would produce the most wonderful harmony—more beautiful than any that Dorothy had ever heard. It made her feel like dancing, and she was delighted when a little group of fairles, all dressed in red gauze, with silver and gold hearts scat- tered all over their dresses, approached her and sald, altogether: “Will you dance 'with us, falr maiden—the dance of the Valentines?”” Taking her rapturous smile to mean yes, they took her hand, and as soon as they had touched her she looked down and saw that she, too, was dressed in red gauie with gold and silver hearts. And, oh, such beautiful little red slipper: Away they went, in the merriest’ dance that was ever danced. No mortal child could ever dance that way. She must be a “really” fairy just now; and, oh, how perfectly lovely it was to be a Valentine fairy. One felt as light as a feather, and could have laughed and danced forever. The music rose high and sweet above the merriment, and St. Valentine danced on in front of them, until at last they came to the most wondertul tree—it was the tres where the valentines grew; and the fairfes grouped In a ring around it and danced and sang. Dorothy seemed to have known the words and music always, and she sang with the others, until St. Valentine waved his wand and they all stood still, and a long silver wand was placed in the eager hands of each little fairy. They were all little girls, just llke Dorothy, who had been so good that St. Valentine had changed them into fairles for just this one night. Each one was given a large golden basket by one of the attend- ant cuplds, and then with the siiver wand she could reach even to the very top of the big tree and point to the valentine ® liked best, and as soon as she touched it it would fall off and fly right into the basket, and as fast as it fell off another one would grow in Its DlL"- %0 that the tree was never empty. This was more fun than anything of which Doro- thy had ever dreamed, and she got enough valentines for every person she had ever known in all her little life, and one—such a beautiful big one—for dear mama. St. Valentine smiled in a very pleated way when he saw the one she had selected for mamma, and sald it was the very one he had intended for her mamma. And it hap- pened that the valentines the little giris selected for their mammas were all just alike, and very fat and heavy. Finally all the golden baskets were full, and the children were all allowed to remain the.r natural size, and when they had said good-by all around they saw a very large red carriage and very large red horses waiting for them. So each one was bun- dled In, with many good wishes from St. Valentine and with all their golden bas- kets tull; for each mamma a huge bouquet of flowers, such as they had never befors seen. Away they whizzed, stopping nowhers this time, but In haste to be home befors daw: Each little girl was safely deliv- ered, and finally Dorothy reached her own little home. She still had the silver heart, and St. Val had told her whenever she wished foranything to tap three times with the heart on the palm of her left hand, and her wish would be gratified. So after the coachman had opened the door with a little golden key, she ran up- stairs and waved the heart over her mother’s head, and she awakened. What was her surprise to see her littls girl, still dressed as a falry and holding out the big valentine and rare flowers to her. She opened the valentine, and out fell a great heap of gold money—and, oh, what smiles chased away the sadness then. How she kissed dear little Doro- thy as she told her all about it; and then Dorothy began making wishes and tap- ping her hand with the little siiver heart, untfl their poor little home vanished and in its place appeared a perfect palace, just filled with beautiful things—and all be- cause of an obedient little girl and the good St. Valentine. UST now there seems to be an un- usually large number of baby heirs Rich Babies Who Will Have Titles d to millions and titles. There is the three-year-old Marquis of Bland- ford, son of the Duchess of Mariborough, formerly Miss Vanderbilt, who is already beginning to recognize that he is not like other bables. Some day this little fellow, if he lives, will be twice a Prince, a Duke, a Marquis, twice an Earl and twice a Baron. He will rule over 23,000 acres of land, be lord of Blenheim Palace and in- herit a good share of the Vanderbilt mil- lions. Ancther little English boy who will come into a good thing when he grows up is little Charlie Lennox, who one fine day will be Duke of Richmond with a variety of other titles, including two more duke- doms, and will Inherif nearly as much land as there is in the two British coun- ties of Rutland and Middlesex. Along with this fine propery go four magnificent country houses in England and Scotland. Another infant not old enough yet to be a playfellow of the son of little Maribor- ough is the one-year-old Earl of Breck- nock, who now toddles about the halls of Bayham Abbey. This little fellow will one day be*Marquis of Camden, twice an Earl, a Viscount and a Baron. He will bhave nearly thirty square miles of real estate, a fine country seat In Kent and another in Wales. A playmate of the little heir of the Van- derbiits and the Mariboroughs Is the It~ tle Viscount Weymouth, who fecls him- self quite a man, and has a pony of his own, being 5 years old. He will one day be Marquis of Bath and draw a revenue from 56,000 acres of land. Lord Porchester, heir to the earldom of Carnarvon, to 36,000 acres of land and four great country seats, is only 2 years old, and, of course, is looked upon as a mers baby by my Lords Blandford and Wey- mouth. The future Duke of Portland is 7 years old and is heir to an estate larger than an English county and five splendid homes, including the historic Welbeck Abbey. The future Dukes of Bedford and Sutherland are boys of 12 They will some day share between them thirteen peerage titles, nine lordly seats and con- siderably over 1,650,000 acres of land. The Marquis of Stafford, now 3 years old, is heir to the largest estate In the United Kingdom, for the Sutherland acres would make a compact estate 100 miles long and more than twenty-one miles wide. The estate contains 52,000 more acres than the entire county of Lanca- ahire. Among the playmates of the Marquis of Blandford may be mentioned the Earl of Hillsborough, who will one day be Marquis of Downshire. He is § years old and is three years older than his father was when he succeeded to the marquisate and estates. The little Earl may look for- ward to an estate larger than the county of Rutland and many titles of nobility. Of the same age as the Earl of Hills- borough is the Viscount Ednam, heir to an estate of 30,000 acres of land in Jamaica, valuable mines in England and large ron works. Q£