lood Fountain

ome time ago Baron Von Lodge was the head of a small country near Switzerland known as Lilliland.

There had been persistent rumors about something strange happening in the private gardens of Alpine Castle where Lady Angela lived. The staff had heard rumors but no one told Lady Angela.

Finally, one day Lady Angela was about to employ a new member for her staff when, to her surprise, the woman turned the job down. She said it was because she had heard rumors that the fountain in Lady Angela’s private garden sprayed out blood at times instead of the crystal blue water of Castle Lake. She also had heard the blood was from dissidents against the royal family who were beheaded by the guillotine.

Lady Angela immediately shared this information with the Baron and Professor Hamblin.

Professor Hamblin was quick to assure her that there was no record of Lilliland every having a guillotine, or ever cutting off anyone’s head. It could never happen in Lilliland.

But, where was the blood coming from? No one had access to the private garden and it certainly was not a prank. Finally, the Professor asked Lady Angela to have a trusted employee get a jar full of this so-called blood from the fountain.

When the liquid had been obtained, it was sent to a scientific laboratory in Switzerland to see if it really was blood. When the report cam back, it proved not to be blood but a mineral deposit from the bottom of the lake that sometimes made the water turn different colors. But, it happened only for a short time, and usually during a full moon.

Once the report was made public everyone was satisfied with the scientific explanation. And far as the rumors of dissidents loosing their heads, it was just not that way prisoners were treated who had to serve out their terms.

Prisoners never lost their heads but were assigned work detail in the large greenhouse to work with glowing flowers and plants. Working with plants seemed to put prisoners directly in touch with the natural beauty of nature and made them more attentive to the real world. Sometimes, fighting and aggression were replaced with compassion and admiration for all aspects of life, even plants.