From the New York Tribune, April 5, 1914. By D. K. S.
’Twas very, very long ago, in days no longer sung,
When giants stood about so high, and pixies all were young;
The Queen of Fairies said one day, “I’m tired of honey dew,
So hasten now, and mix for me a cup of something new.
“It must lift the drooping spirit, it must heal the wounded heart;
It must bring the smile of happiness, and bid the tear depart;
It must make the young grow younger, and the old no longer old;
It must make the poor contented, and the rich forget their gold.”
Now, you can just imagine how the pixies far and wide
Came hurrying and scurrying with things to be supplied.
First, they bought a useful caldron which some witches had for sale,
And the pixies brought sweet water from the Falls of Dryadvale.
Then they took some sprays of Heartsease as the first thing to infuse,
And they added Johnny-Jump-Up as an antidote for blues.
For the young they brought the May-Bloom, Everlasting for the old;
For the rich and poor the Joy-Weed, which is just as good as gold.
When it boiled, they cooled and poured it, so the ancient story goes;
And to the Queen they brought it in the chalice of a rose.
She sipped, delighted, then she cried, “I issue this decree:
The cup you have so deftly brewed, I christen Fairy Tea!”
So when you see the fairy folk “at home” in Dingle Dell,
All sipping something dainty from their cups of Heather Bell,
You will notice they are happy, as good fairies ought to be,
And that’s because they always use their famous Fairy Tea.
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