Childhood and Early Youth 21 heavy and cause her sweet toil to carry about She took even her doll-play seriously, a play which soon ended, as she came to have five younger sisters and brothers who were better to pet and care for than the dolls. In a photo- graph of her at the age of six, this disposition can be recognised. A dear little one, but already then a thoughtful "little mother." Ellen Key never became tiresome in her seriousness, she had too much humour and roguishness for that, which showed itself early in her ready wit and funny sayings. When she was only four years old, her grand- father, who loved horses, put her on a pony. ^AThen the pony threw her, she kept her counte- nance, explaining the incident thus: ''Myg- gan (as the pony was called) took down her will from the damper,"' that being the place where, according to prevalent custom, she had been told that her own will sat. Like other country-bred children Ellen drove and rode horseback, swam and rowed, and often, when the stars mirrored themselves in ' Swedish children are generally told that they have no will of their own while they are young: they must simply obey their elders. They are told that their will is growing on the top of some tree in the forest, or living in the damper, which, on the customary fireplace is very high near the ceiling and is regulated only by the elders of the household.—Translator's footnote.