The Book of Brownies (The Enchanted World) by Enid Blyton Read Free Book Online Page A

astonishment. The giantess came running in to see what was the matter. She couldn’t believe her eyes.
    ‘What’s happened?’ she cried. ‘Oh, what’s happened? Why have some of you grown small and some of you big? Oh dear, dear, dear!’
    ‘Come on,’ said Hop, and he and the other brownies ran out of the door.
    The giantess saw them.
    ‘Oh, you’ve worked a spell on them!’ she cried angrily. ‘I’ll catch you, you wicked little things.’
    Hop, Skip, and Jump raced across the kitchen floor as hard as they could, and out into the garden. They hid under a large leaf and watched the huge feet of the giantess go clomping by in search
of them.
    ‘Good thing she didn’t tread on us,’ said Hop. Then he saw something that made him shiver in fright.
    ‘Look!’ he said. ‘There’s a giant hen – and there’s another one – they’re scratching in the ground. Oh my, we’ve run into the chicken
yard!’
    The brownies trembled in fear. The hens came nearer and nearer, clucking and squawking as they scratched for grain.
    Suddenly one of them saw Hop under the big leaf. She pecked at him. He jumped away only just in time.
    ‘Run!’ he cried. ‘It’s the only chance we have!’
    They ran from beneath the leaf and tore across the yard.
    ‘Squawk – squawk!’ cried all the hens, and tore after them.
    ‘They’ll catch us!’ panted Jump.
    Suddenly, Hop saw a large hole in front of him. Quick as lightning he jumped into it and pulled the others after him.
    ‘It’s a worm-home!’ he gasped. ‘Come on, it’s our only chance of escaping those horrid birds.’
    The hens were pecking and scraping around the hole, their beaks sounding like picks and hammers.
    But once more the brownies were safe, for the worm-hole was like a narrow tunnel, and they could pass along it easily, one after another.
    ‘I hope we don’t meet a worm,’ said Skip. ‘It would be rather awkward, wouldn’t it?’
    ‘I’d much rather meet a worm than a crowd of huge giants, or a pack of greedy birds,’ said Hop cheerfully. ‘Come on! Goodness knows where this tunnel leads to, but
anyway, it must lead
somewhere
  !’

Their Adventure in the Land of Clever People
    The three brownies went on through the dark tunnel, hoping they would soon find it came to an end. It felt rather sticky, and Hop said it must be because a worm had lately
passed along it.
    Just as he said that the brownies heard a peculiar noise. ‘Oh my! I do believe it’s a worm coming!’ Hop groaned.
    It was a worm, a simply enormous one, for its body filled up the whole tunnel.
    ‘Ho,’ shouted Hop in a panic, ‘don’t come any farther, Mr Worm; you’ll squash us to bits!’
    The worm stopped wriggling in surprise.
    ‘What are you doing in my tunnel?’ he asked.
    ‘Nothing much,’ said Skip. ‘Just escaping from a lot of greedy birds!’
    ‘Oh!’ said the worm with a shudder. ‘I know all about birds. I’ve had my tail pecked off twice by the greedy things.’
    ‘Do you know where this tunnel leads to?’ asked Jump.
    ‘It leads to all sorts of places,’ said the worm. ‘You’ll find cross-roads a little farther on, and a sign-post.’
    ‘Oh, thanks,’ said Jump. ‘Then I think we’ll be getting on.’
    ‘So will I,’ said the worm, and began to wriggle towards the brownies.
    ‘Stop!’ they shouted. ‘There isn’t room for you to go past us!’
    ‘But I
must
,’ said the worm. ‘I’ve an appointment with my tailor at six o’clock. He’s making me a few more rings for my body.’
    ‘Oh,
do
go backwards till you get to the cross-roads,’ begged Hop.
    ‘I’m going backwards
now
,’ said the worm. ‘At least I think I am. It’s so muddling being able to use both your ends, you know. I never know which way
I’m
really
going.’
    ‘It must be
very
muddling,’ said Skip. ‘But please don’t push past us; you’re rather sticky, you know, and you’ll spoil our suits, and
we
haven’t got a tailor like you!’
    ‘Dear,