The Story of Narcissus
Long, long ago, when birds and flowers and trees could talk, a beautiful fountain sprang up in the
midst of a forest. Little sunbeams crept between the leaves, and, as they fell upon it, made it shine like
silver.
One day a lad, who had been hunting in the forest, lost sight of his friends. While looking for them, he
saw the fountain shining in the sunlight through the trees. He at once turned to it, for he was hot and
thirsty.
He stoopped down to bathe his burning forehead, and to cool his dry hot lips. But as he bent over the
water, he saw his own face in it, as in a glass. He thought it must be some lovely water fairy, that lived
within the fountain, and as he looked he forgot to drink. The bright eyes, the curly hair, the round cheeks,
and the red lips were beautiful to him; and he fell in love with that image of himself, but knew not that it
was his own image. It smiled when he smiled, and as he spoke the lips of the face moved as though
speaking too, though no sound came from them. “I love you with all my heart,” said the lad. The image
smiled and held out its arms, but still was dumb. The lad spoke to it again and again, and getting no
answer, he at last began to cry. The tears fell upon the water, and ruffled it, so that the face looked
wrinkled. Thinking it was going away, he said: “Only stay, beautiful being, and let me look at you, even
if I may not touch you.” He forgot everything but that lovely face. Day after day, night after night, he
stayed there, till he grew thin and pale, and at last died. Just at the water’s edge, where the lad had died,
there grew one strange little flower, all alone. “He has been changed into a flower,” his friends said. “Let
us call it after our dead friend.” So they named the flower Narcissus in memory of him and it is called
Narcissus to this very day.
Intonation Pattern IX
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