Soon he saw that others of the same kind were coming up, all
dripping, from the water, and taking their places on the leaves; and as
each new-comer arrived, the others kept saying,
"Ha! ha! lazy fellow! very lazy fellow!"
And then the others would look at him, and shake their speckled sides
with laughter, and say, "Lazy fellow! ha! ha!"
Poor Larkin was used to being laughed at, but it was provoking to be
laughed at by these queer-looking folk, sitting on the lilies in the
water. Soon he saw that there were nearly a hundred of them gathered.
"Come on, Joblilies!" cried one of them, who carried a long fish-bone,
and seemed to be leader; "let's make a Joblily of him."
Upon that the whole swarm of them came ashore. The leader stuck his
fish-bone in Larkin, and made him cry out. Then they all set up another
laugh, and another cry of "lazy fellow!"
"Bring me three grains of silver-white sand from the middle of the lake,"
said the leader; and two of them jumped into the water and disappeared.
"Now fetch three blades of dry grass from the lining of the kingfisher's
nest," he said; and immediately two others were gone.
When the four returned, the leader dropped the grains of sand in Larkin's
eyes, saying,
"Three grains of silver sand,
From the Joblily's hand!
Where shall the Joblily lie,
When the young owl learns to fly?"
Then they all jumped upon him and stamped, but Larkin could not move hand
or foot.
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