Little Lasse rubbed the sleep out of his eyes and looked around him . Everything was the same as before ; the crow in the birch tree , the cat on the grass , and the pea-shell fleet on the shore . Some of the ships had foundered , and some had drifted back to land . Hercules had come back with its cargo from Asia , The Flea had arrived from Polynesia , and the other parts of the world were just where they were before . Little Lasse did not know what to think . He had so often been in that grotto in the ` Land of Nod ' and did not know what tricks dreams can play . But Little Lasse did not trouble his head with such things ; he gathered together his boats and walked up the shore back to the house . His brother and sister ran to meet him , and called out from the distance , ` Where have you been so long , Lasse ? Come home and get some bread-and-butter . ' The kitchen door stood open , and inside was heard a strange frizzling . The gardener was near the gate , watering the dill and parsley , the carrots and parsnips . ` Well , ' he said , ` where has Little Lasse been so long ? ' Little Lasse straightened himself up stiff , and answered : ' I have sailed round the world in a pea-shell boat . ' ` Oh ! ' said the gardener . He has forgotten Dreamland . But you have not forgotten it ; you know that it exists . You know the beautiful grotto and the bright silver walls whose lustre never fades , the sparkling diamonds which never grow dim , the music which never ceases its low , soft murmur through the sweet evening twilight . The airy fairy fancies of happy Dreamland never grow old ; they , like the glorious stars above us , are always young . Perhaps you have caught a glimpse of their ethereal wings as they flew around your pillow .
Perhaps you have met the same dream-boy XXXXX the blue eyes and the fair hair , the one who wore the red cap with the silver band and the white coat with pearls on the collar .
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