The Laumes and the Babies

By Stephen D. Rogers

A woman brought her baby to the fields during harvest. The woman, overloaded with work and worry, forgot her sleeping child and returned home to continue her chores. When her husband finally asked for his son, she realized her mistake and rushed back to where she left the basket.

She found the laumes caring for the child. "We know you made an honest mistake." The fairies then showered the child and loving mother with gifts.

A neighbor, hearing of the woman's good fortune, decided to do the same. The next day she brought her baby to the fields and abandoned it there until after dark.

When she returned to where she had left the basket, the laumes threw her dead child into her arms.