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Short Stories by Hans Christian Andersen · Short Stories by Hans Christian Andersen

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The bell, People said, the evening bell is sounding. The sun is
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setting. For a strange, wondrous tone was heard in the narrow streets of
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a large town. It was like the sound of a church bell. But
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it was only heard for a moment, for the rolling of the carriages and
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the voices of the multitude made too great a noise. Those people who were
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walking outside the town, where the houses were farther apart, with gardens or
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little fields between them, could see the evening sky still better, and heard
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the sound of the bell much more distinctly. It was as if the tones
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came from a church in the still forest. People looked thitherward and felt their
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minds attuned most solemnly. A long time passed, and people said to each
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other, I wonder if there is a church out in the wood. The
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bell has a tone that is wondrous. Sweet, Let us stroll thither and
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examine the matter nearer. And the rich people drove out, and the poor
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walked. But the way seemed strangely long to them. And when they came
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to a clump of willows which grew on the skirts of the forest, they
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sat down and looked up at the long branches and fancied. They were now
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in the depth of the green wood. The confectioner of the town came out
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and set up his booth there, and soon after came another confectioner who hung
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a bell over his stand as a sign or ornament, but it had no
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clapper, and it was tarred over to preserve it from the rain. When
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all the people returned home, they said it had been very romantic, and
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that was quite a different sort of thing to a picnic or tea party.
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There were three persons who asserted they had penetrated to the end of the forest,
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and that they had always heard the wonderful sounds of the bell, but
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it seemed to them as if it had come from the town. One wrote
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a whole poem about it, and said the bell sounded like the voice of
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a mother to a good dear child, and that no melody was sweeter than
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the tones of the bell. The king of the country was also observant of
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it, and vowed that he who could discover whence the sounds proceeded, should
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have the title of universal bell ringer, even if it were not really a
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bell. Many persons now went to the wood for the sake of getting the
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place, but one only returned with a sort of explanation, for nobody went
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far enough that one not further than the others. However, he said that
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the sound proceeded from a very large owl in a hollow tree, a sort
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of learned owl that continually knocked its head against the branches. But whether the
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sound came from his head or from the hollow tree, that no one could
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say with certainty. So now he got the place of a universal bell ringer,
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and wrote yearly a short treatise on the owl. But everybody was just
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as wise as before. It was the day of confirmation. The clergyman had
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spoken so touchingly. The children who were confirmed had been greatly moved. It
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was an eventful day for them. From children, they became all at once
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grown up persons. It was as if their infant souls were now to fly
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all at once into persons with more understanding. The sun was shining gloriously.
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The children that had been confirmed went out of the town, and from the
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wood was borne towards them the sounds of the unknown bell with wonderful distinctness.
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They had all immediately felt a wish to go thither, all except three one
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of them had to go home to try on a ball dress, for it
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was just the dress and the ball which had caused her to be confirmed this
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time, for otherwise she would not have come. The other was a poor
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boy who had borrowed his coat and boots to be confirmed in from the innkeeper's
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son, and he was to give them back by a certain hour. The
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third said that he never went to a strange place if his parents were not
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with him, that he had always been a good boy hitherto and would still
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be so now that he was confirmed, and that no one ought to laugh
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at him for it. The others, however, did make fun of him.
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After all, there were three therefore, that did not go. The
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others hastened on the sun shone. The birds sang, and the children sang
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too, and each held the other by the hand, for as yet they
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had none of them any high office, and were all of equal rank in
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the eye of God. But two of the youngest soon grew tired, and
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both returned to town. Two little girls sat down and twined garlands. So
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they did not go on either, And when the others reached the willow tree
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where the confectioner was, they said, now we are there. In reality,
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the bell does not exist. It is only a fancy that people have
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taken into their heads. At the same moment, the bell sounded deep in
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the wood, so clear and solemnly, that five or six determined to penetrate
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somewhat further. It was so thick, and the foliage so dense, that
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it was quite fatiguing to proceed. Wood roof and anemones grew almost too high.
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Blooming convolvuluses and BlackBerry bushes hung in long garlands from tree to tree,
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where the nightingale sang and the sunbeams were playing. It was very beautiful,
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but it was no place for girls to go. Their clothes would get so
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torn. Large blocks of stone lay there, overgrown with moss of every color.
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The fresh spring bubbled forth and made a strange gurgling sound that surely cannot
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be the bell, said one of the children, lying down and listening.
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This must be looked to, so he remained and let the others go on
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without him. They afterwards came to a little house made of branches and the
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bark of trees. A large wild apple tree bent over it, as if
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it would shower down all its blessings on the roof, where roses were blooming.
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The long stems twined round the gable on which there hung a small bell.
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Was it that which people had heard? Yes, everybody was unanimous on
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the subject, except one, who said that the bell was too small and
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too fine to be heard at so great a distance, And besides, it
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was very different tones to those that could move a human heart in such manner.
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It was the king's son who spoke, whereon the other said, such
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people always want to be wiser than everybody else. They now let him go
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on alone, and as he went his breast was filled more and more with
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the forest solitude. But he still heard the little bell with which the others
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were so satisfied. And now and then, when the wind blew, he
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could also hear the people singing who were sitting at tea where the confectioner had
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his tint. But the deep sound of the bell rose louder. It was
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almost as if an organ were accompanying it. And the tones came from the
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left hand, the side where the heart is placed. A rustling was heard
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in the bushes, and a little boy stood before the King's son, a
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boy in wooden shoes, and was so short a jacket that one could see
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what long wrists he had. Both knew each other. The boy was that
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one among the children who could not come, because he had to go home
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and return his jacket in boots to the innkeeper's son. This he had done,
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and was now going on in wooden shoes and in his humble dress.
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For the bell sounded with so deep a tone and with such strange power that
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proceed he must. Why then we can go on together, said the king's
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son. But the poor child that had been confirmed was quite ashamed. He
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looked at his wooden shoes, pulled at the short sleeves of his jacket,
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and said that he was afraid he could not walk so fast. Besides,
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he thought that the bell must be looked for to the right, for that
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was the place where all sorts of beautiful things were to be found. But
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there we shall not meet, said the king's son, nodding at the same
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time to the poor boy, who went into the darkest, thickest part of
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the wood, where thorns tore his humble dress and scratched his face and hands
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and feet till they bled. The king's son got some scratches, too,
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But the sun shone on his path, and it is him that we will
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follow, for he was an excellent and resolute youth. I must and will
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find the bell, said he, even if I am obliged to go to
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the end of the world. The ugly apes sat upon the trees and grinned.
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Shall we thrash him? Said they shall we thrash him? He is
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the son of a king. But he went on, without being disheartened,
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deeper and deeper into the wood where the most wonderful flowers were growing. There
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stood white lilies with blood red stamina, sky blue tulips, which shone as
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they waved in the winds, and apple trees, the apples of which looked
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exactly like large soap bubbles. So only thing how the trees must have sparkled
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in the sunshine. Around the nicest green meads, where the deer were playing
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in the grass grew magnificent oaks and beeches, And if the bark of one
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of the trees was cracked, there grass and long creeping plants grew in the
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crevices. And there were large calm lakes there too, in which white swans
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were swimming and beat the air with their wings. The king's son often stood
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still and listened. He thought the bell sounded from the depths of these still
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lakes. But then he remarked again that the tone proceeded not from there,
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but farther off, from out the depths of the forest. The sun now
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set, the atmospheric glowed like fire. It was still in the woods,
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so very still. And he fell on his knees, sung his evening hymn,
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and said, I cannot find what I seek. The sun is going
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down, and night is coming, the dark, dark night. Yet perhaps
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I may be able once more to see the round red Sun before he entirely
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disappears. I will climb up yonder rock, and he sees hold of the
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creeping plants and the roots of trees. Climbed up the moist stones, where
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the water snakes were writhing and the toads were croaking, and he gained the
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summit before the sun had quite gone down. How magnificent was the sight From
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this height. The sea, the great, the glorious sea, that dashed
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its long waves against the coast, was stretched out before him. And yonder
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where sea and sky meet, stood the Sun like a large shining altar,
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all melted together in the most glowing colors, and the wood and the sea
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sang a song of rejoicing, and his heart sang with the rest. All
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nature was a vast holy church, in which the trees and the buoyant clouds
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were, the pillars, flowers and grass, the velvet carpeting, and heaven
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itself the large cupola. The red colors above faded away as the sun vanished,
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but a million stars were lighted, a million lamps shone, and the
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King's son spread out his arms toward the heaven and wood and sea, when
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at the same moment, coming by a path to the right, appeared in
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his wooden shoes and jacket, the poor boy, who had been confirmed with
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him. He had followed his own path and had reached the spot just as
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soon as the son of the King had done. They ran towards each other
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and stood together hand in hand in the vast church of nature and of poetry.
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While over them sounded the invisible holy bell. Blessed spirits floated around them
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and lifted up their voices, and they were joicing, Hallelujah. End of
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the bell. The elder bush. Once upon a time there was a little
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boy who had taken cold. He had gone out and got his feet wet,
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though nobody could imagine how it had happened, for it was quite dry
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weather. So his mother undressed him, put him to bed, and had
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a teapot brought in to make him a good cup of elder flower tea.
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Just at that moment, the merry old man came in, who lived up
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the top of the house all alone, for he had neither wife nor children,
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but he liked children very much and knew so many fairy tales that it
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was quite delightful. Now, drink your tea, said the boy's mother.
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Then perhaps you may hear a fairy tale if I but had something new to
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tell, said the old man. But how did the child get his feet
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wet? That is the very thing that nobody can make out, said his
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mother. Am I to hear a fairy tale? Asked the little boy.
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Yes, if you can tell me exactly, for I must know that first
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how deep the gutter is in the little street opposite that you pass through in
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going to school. Just up to the middle of my boot, said the
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child. But then I must go into the deep hole. Aha, that's
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where the wet feet came from, said the old man. I ought now
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to tell you a story, but I don't know any more. You can
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make one in a moment, said the little boy. My mother says that
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all you look at can be turned into a fairy tale, and that you
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can find a story in everything. Yes, but such tales and stories are
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good for nothing. The right sort come of themselves. They tap at my
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forehead and say, here we are. Won't there be a tap soon?
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Asked the little boy, And his mother laughed, put some elder flowers in
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the teapot and poured boiling water upon them. Do tell me something, pray
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do, yes, if a fairy tale would come of its own accord.
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But they are proud and haughty, and come only when they choose. Stop,
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said he all on a sudden, I have it. Pay attention,
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there is one in the teapot. And the little boy looked at the teapot.
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The cover rose more and more, and the elder flowers came forth so
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fresh and white, and shot up long branches out of the spout. Even
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did they spread themselves on all sides and grew larger and larger. It was
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a splendid elder bush, a whole tree, and it reached into the very
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bed and pushed the curtains aside, how it bloomed, and what an odor.
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In the middle of the bush sat a friendly looking old woman in a
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most strange dress. It was quite green, like the leaves of the elder,
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and was trimmed with large white elderflowers, so that at first one could
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not tell whether it was a stuff or a natural green and real flowers.
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What's that woman's name, asked the little boy. The Greeks and Romans said,
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the old man called her a dryad, but that we do not understand.
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The people who live in the New Booths have a much better name for
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her. They call her Old Grannie, and she it is to whom you
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are to pay attention. Now, listen and look at the beautiful elder bush.
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Such another large blooming elder tree stands near the New Booths. He grew
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there in the corner of a little miserable courtyard, and under it sat of
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an afternoon in the most splendid sunshine, two old people, an old old
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seaman and his old old wife. They had great grandchildren and were soon to
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celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of their marriage, but they could not exactly recall the
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date. And Old Grannie sat in the tree and looked as pleased as now.
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I know the date, said she, But those below did not hear
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her, for they were talking about old times. Yes, can't you remember
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when we were very little, said the old seaman, and ran and played
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about. It was the very same courtyard where we are now, and we
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stuck slips in the ground and made a gordon. I remember it well,
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said the old woman. I remember it quite well. We watered the slips,
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and one of them was an elderbush. It took root, put forth
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green shoots, and grew up to be the large tree under which we o
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folks are now sitting. To be sure, said he. And there in
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the corner stood a water pail where I used to swim my boats. True,
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but first we went to school to learn something, said she, And
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then we were confirmed. We both cried. But in the afternoon we went
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up to round tower and looked down on Copenhagen and far far away over the
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water. Then we went to Fredericksburg, where the King and the Queen were
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sailing about in their splendid barges. But I had a different sort of sailing
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to that later, and that too, for many a year, allong,
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awful and great voyages. Yes, many a time have I wept for your
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sake, said she. I thought you were dead and gone, and lying
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down in the deep waters. Many a night have I got up to see
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if the wind had not changed, And changed it had, sure enough.
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But you never came. I remember so well. One day when the rain
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was pouring down in Torrents. The scavengers were before the house where I was
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in service, and I had come up with the dust and remained standing at
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the door. It was dreadful weather, when just as I was there,
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the postman came and gave me a letter. It was from you. What
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a tour that letter had made. I opened it instantly and read. I
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laughed and wept. I was so happy in it. I read that you
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were in warm lands where the coffee tree grows. What a blessed land that
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must be. You related so much, and I saw it all while the
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rain was pouring down, and I standing there with the dust box. At
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the same moment came some one who embraced me. Yes, but you gave
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him a good box on his ear that made it tingle. But I did
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not know it was you. You arrived as soon as your letter, and
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you were so handsome that you still are, and had a long yellow silk
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handkerchief round your neck, had a brand new hat on. Oh, you
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were so dashing. Good heavens, what weather it was, and what a
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state the street was in. And then we were married, said he,
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don't you remember? And then we had our first little boy, and then
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Mary and Nicholas and Peter and Christian. Yes, and how they all grew
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up to be honest people and were beloved by everybody. And their children also
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have children, said the old sailor. Yes, those are our grandchildren,
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full of strength and vigor. It was methinks about this season that we had
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our wedding. Yes, this very day is the fiftieth anniversary of the marriage,
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said old Granny, sticking her head between the two old people, who
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thought it was their neighbor who nodded to them. They looked at each other
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and held one another by the hand. Soon after came their children and their
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grandchildren, for they knew well enough that it was the day of the fiftieth
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anniversary, and had come with their gratulations that very morning. But the old
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people had forgotten it. Although they were able to remember all that had happened
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many years ago, and then the elder bush sent forth a strong odor in
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the sun that was just about to set, and shone right in the old
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people's faces. They both looked so rosy cheeked, and the youngest of the
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grandchildren danced around them and called out quite delightedly that there was to be something
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very splendid that evening. They were all to have hot potatoes. And Old
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Nanny nodded in the bush and shouted hooray with the rest. But that is
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no fairy tale, said the little boy, who was listening to the story.
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The thing is, you must understand it, said the narrator. Let
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us ask Old Nanny. That was no fairy tale, tis true, said
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Old Nanny. But now it's coming. The most wonderful fairy tales grow out
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of that which is reality. Were that not the case, you know,
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my magnificent elder bush could not have grown out of the teapot. And then
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she took the little boy out of bed, laid him on her bosom,
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and the branches of the elder tree, full of flowers, closed around her.
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They sat in an aerial dwelling, and it flew with them through the
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air. Oh, it was wondrous, beautiful. Old nanny had grown all
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of a sudden a young, pretty maiden, but her robe was still the
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same green, stuffed with white flowers, which she had worn before. On
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her bosom she had a real elderflower, and in her yellow waving hair a
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wreath of the flowers. Her eyes were so large and blue that it was
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a pleasure to look at them. She kissed the boy, and now they
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were of the same age and felt alike. Hand in hand, they went
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out of the bower, and they were standing in the beautiful garden of their
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home, near the green lawn. Papa's walking stick was tied, and for
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the little ones it seemed to be endowed with life. For as soon as
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they got astride it, the round polished knob was turned into a magnificent neighing
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head. A long black mane fluttered in the breeze, and four slender yet
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strong legs shot out. The animal was strong and handsome, and away they
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went at full gallop round the lawn. Huzzah, Now we are riding miles
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off, said the boy. We are riding away to the castle where we
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were last year. And on they rode round the grass plot, and the
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little maiden, who we know was no one else but old Nanny kept on
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crying out. Now we are in the country. Don't you see the farmhouse
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yonder? And there is an elder tree standing beside it, and the cock
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is scraping away the earth for the hens. Look how he struts. And
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now we are close to the church. It lies high upon the hill between
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the large oak trees, one of which is half decayed. And now we
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are by the smithy, where the fire is blazing, and where the half
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naked men are banging with their hammers till the sparks fly about away away to
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the beautiful country seat. And all that the little maiden, who sat behind
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on the stick, spoke of and flew by. In reality, the boy
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saw it all, And yet they were only going round the grass plot.
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Then they played in a side avenue and marked out a little garden on the
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earth, and they took elder blossoms from their hair planted them, and they
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grew just like those the old people planted when they were children. As related
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before. They went hand in hand as the old people had done when they
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were children. But not to the round tower or to Friedericksburg. No,
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the little damsel wound arms around the boy and then they flew far away through
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all Denmark, and spring came, and summer, and then it was autumn,
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and then winter, and a thousand pictures were reflected in the eye and
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in the heart of the boy, and the little girl always sang to him,
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this you will never forget. And during their whole flight the elder tree
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smelt so sweet and odorous. He remarked, the roses and the fresh beeches,
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But the elder tree had a more wondrous fragrance, for its flowers hung
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on the breast of the little maiden, and there too, Kitty often lay
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his head during the flight. It is lovely here in spring, said the
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young maiden, And they stood in a beech wood that had just put on
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its first green, where the wood roof at their feet sent forth its fragrance,
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and the pale red anemone looked so pretty, the verdure. Oh,
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would it were always spring in the sweetly smelling Danish beech forests. It is
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lovely here in summer, said she. And she flew past old castles of
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by gone days of chivalry, where the red walls and the embattled gables were
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mirrored in the canal, where the swans were swimming and peered up into the
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old cool avenues. In the fields, the corn was waving like the sea.
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In the ditches, red and yellow flowers were growing, while wild drone
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flowers and blooming convolvuluses were creeping in the hedges. And towards evening, the
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moon rose round and large, and the haycocks in the meadows smelt so sweetly.
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This one never forgets. It is lovely here in autumn, said the
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little Maiden, And suddenly the atmosphere grew as blue again as before. The
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forest grew red and green and yellow colored. The dogs came leaping along,
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and whole flocks of wild fowl flew over the corn, where BlackBerry bushes were
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hanging round the old stones. The sea was dark blue, covered with ships
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full of white sails. And in the barn, old women, maidens and
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children were sitting picking hops into a large cask. The young sang songs,
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but the old tall fairy tales of mountain sprites and soothsayers. Nothing could be
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more charming. It is delightful here in winter, said the little Maiden,
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And all the trees were covered with hoar frost. They looked like white corals.
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The snow crackled underfoot as if one had new boots on, and one
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falling star after the other was seen in the sky. The Christmas tree was
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lighted in the room, presents were there, and good humor reigned in the
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country. The violin sounded in the room of the peasant, the newly baked
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cakes were attacked. Even the poorest child said, it is really delightful here
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in winter. Yes, it was delightful. And the little maiden showed the
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boy everything, and the elder tree still was fragrant, and the red flag
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with the white cross was still waving, the flag under which the old seaman
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in the new booths had sailed. And the boy grew up to be a
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lad, and was to go forth in the wide world, far far away,
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to warm lands where the coffee tree grows. But at his departure,
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the little maiden took an elder blossom from her bosom and gave it to him
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to keep, And it was placed between the leaves of his prayer book.
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And when in foreign lands he opened the book, it was always at the
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place where the keeper sake flower lay. And the more he looked at it,
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the fresher it became. He felt as if it were the fragrance of
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the Danish groves, and from among the leaves of the flowers, he could
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distinctly see the little maiden peeping forth with her bright blue eyes. And then
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she whispered, it is delightful here in spring, summer, autumn, and
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winter, and a hundred visions glided before his mind. Thus passed many years,
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and he was now an old man and sat with his old wife under
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the blooming tree. They held each other by the hand, as the old
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grandfather and grandmother Yonder in the new Booths did, and they talked exactly like
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them of old times and of the fiftieth anniversary of their wedding. The little
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maiden, with the blue eyes and the elder blossoms in her hair, sat
30:56
in the tree, nodded to both of them, and said, today is
31:00
the fiftieth anniversary. And then she took two flowers out of her hair and
31:07
kissed them. First they shone like silver, then like gold, and when
31:12
they laid them on the heads of the old people, each flower became a
31:18
golden crown. So there they both sat like a king and a queen,
31:23
under the fragrant tree that looked exactly like an elder. The old man told
31:30
his wife the story of Old Nanny as it had been told him when a
31:33
boy, and it seemed to both of them it contained much that resembled their
31:38
own history, and those parts that were like it please them best. Thus
31:45
it is said the little maiden in the tree. Some call me Old Nanny,
31:49
others a dryad. But in reality my name is Remembrance. Tis I
31:56
who sit in the tree. They grows and grows. I can remember,
32:00
I can tell things. Let me see if you have my flower still,
32:07
And the old man opened his prayer book. There lay the elder blossom,
32:12
as fresh as if it had been placed there but a short time before.
32:16
And Remembrance nodded, and the old people, decked with crowns of gold,
32:22
sat in the flush of the evening sun. They closed their eyes, and
32:29
yes, that's the end of the story. The little boy lay in his
32:32
bed. He did not know if he had dreamed or not, or if
32:37
he had been listening while someone told him the story. The teapot was standing
32:42
on the table, but no elder tree was growing out of it, And
32:45
the old man who had been talking was just on the point of going out
32:50
at the door, and he did go. How splendid that was, said
32:55
the little boy. Mother. I have been to warm countries, so I
33:01
should think, said his mother. When one has drunk two good cupfuls of
33:07
elder flower tea, tis likely enough one goes into warm climates. And she
33:13
tucked him up nicely. Least he should take hold. You have had a
33:16
good sleep while I have been sitting here and arguing with him whether it was
33:21
a story or a fairy tale? And where is old nanny? Asked the
33:25
little boy in the teapot, said his mother, And there she may remain
33:35
end of the elder bush. The leap frog, a flea, a grasshopper
33:40
and a leap frog once wanted to see which could jump highest, And they
33:46
invited the whole world and everybody else besides who chose to come to see the
33:52
festival. Three famous jumpers were they, as everybody would say when they all
33:58
met together in the room. I will give my daughter to him who jumps
34:04
highest, exclaimed the king, for it is not so amusing where there is
34:07
no prize to jump. For the flea was the first to step forward.
34:14
He had exquisite manners and bowed to the company on all sides, for he
34:20
had noble blood, and was moreover accustomed to the society of man alone,
34:24
and that makes a great difference. Then came the grasshopper. He was considerably
34:31
heavier, but he was well mannered, and wore a green uniform, which
34:36
he had by right of birth. He said moreover that he belonged to a
34:42
very ancient Egyptian family, and that in the house where he then was he
34:46
was thought much of the fact was he had been just brought out of the
34:52
fields and put in a pasteboard box three stories high, all made of court
34:57
cards, with the colored sides inwards, and doors and windows cut out of
35:01
the body of the Queen of hearts. I sing so well, said he
35:07
that sixteen native grasshoppers, who have chirped from infancy and yet got no house
35:14
built of cards to live in, grew thinner than they were before for sheer
35:17
vexation when they heard me. It was thus that the flea and the grasshopper
35:23
gave an account of themselves, and thought they were quite good enough to marry
35:28
a princess. The leap frog said nothing, but people gave it as their
35:34
opinion that he therefore thought the more. And when the house dog snuffed at
35:38
him, with his nose. He confessed the leap frog was of good family.
35:45
The old counselor, who had had three orders given him to make him
35:49
hold his tongue, asserted that the leap frog was a prophet, for that
35:53
one could see on his back if there would be a severe or mild winter,
35:59
And that was what one could not see even on the back of the
36:01
man who writes the almanac. I say nothing, it is true, exclaimed
36:07
the king, but I have my own opinion. Notwithstanding, now the trial
36:13
was to take place. The flea jumped so high that nobody could see where
36:20
he went to. So they all asserted he had not jumped at all,
36:23
and that was dishonorable. The grasshopper jumped only half as high, but he
36:30
leaped into the king's face, who said that was ill mannered. The leap
36:35
frog stood still for a long time, lost in thought. It was believed
36:40
at last he would not jump at all. I only hope he is not
36:45
unwell, said the house dog. When pop he made a jump, all
36:51
on one side, into the lap of the princess, who was sitting on
36:55
a little golden stool close by. Hereupon, the king said, there is
37:00
nothing above my daughter Therefore, to bound up to her is the highest jump
37:06
that can be made. But for this one must possess understanding. And the
37:12
leap frog has shown that he has understanding. He is brave and intellectual,
37:19
and so he won the princess. It's all the same to me, said
37:24
the flea. She may have the old leap frog, for all I care.
37:29
I jumped the highest, But in this world merit seldom meets its reward.
37:35
A fine exterior is what people look at nowadays. The flea went into
37:40
foreign service, where it is said he was killed. The grasshopper sat without
37:46
on a green bank and reflected on worldly things, and he said, too,
37:52
yes, a fine exterior is everything. A fine exterior is what people
37:59
care about. And then he began chirping his peculiar, melancholy song from which
38:05
we have taken this history, and which may very possibly be all untrue,
38:09
although it does stand here printed in black and white, end of the leaf
38:15
Frog. The Little match Girl by Hans Christian Andersen. Most terribly cold it
38:23
was. It snowed, and was nearly quite dark and evening, the last
38:30
evening of the year. In this cold and darkness, there went along the
38:36
street a poor little girl bare headed and with naked feet. When she left
38:42
home. She had slippers on, it is true, But what was the
38:45
good of that? They were very large slippers, which her mother had hitherto
38:52
worn. So large were they, and the poor little thing lost them as
38:55
she scuffled away across the street. Because of two carriages that rolled by dreadfully
39:01
fast, one slipper was nowhere to be found. The other had been laid
39:07
hold of by an urchin, and off he ran with it. He thought
39:10
it would do capitally for a cradle when he, some day or other,
39:15
should have children himself. So the little maiden walked on with her tiny naked
39:22
feet that were quite red and blue from cold. She carried a quantity of
39:28
matches in an old apron, and she held a bundle of them in her
39:31
hand. Nobody had bought anything of her the whole livelong day. No one
39:38
had given her a single farthing. She crept along, trembling with cold and
39:45
hunger. Hey very picture of sorrow, the poor little thing. The flakes
39:52
of snow covered her long fair hair, which fell in beautiful curls around her
39:57
neck. But of that, of course, she never once now thought.
40:01
From all the windows the candles were gleaming, and it smelt so deliciously of
40:07
roast goose. For you know it was New Year's eve, Yes, of
40:13
that, she thought. In a corner formed by two houses, of which
40:17
one advanced more than the other, she seated herself down and cowered together her
40:24
little feet she had drawn close up to her. But she grew colder and
40:30
colder, And to go home she did not venture, for she had not
40:34
sold any matches, and could not bring a farthing of money from her father.
40:38
She would certainly yet blows, And at home it was cold too,
40:45
for above her she had only the roof through which the wind whistled. Even
40:50
though the largest cracks were stopped up with straw and rags. Her little hands
40:54
were almost numbed with cold. Oh, a match might afford her a world
41:00
of comfort, if she only dare take a single one out of the bundle,
41:06
draw it against the wall, and warm her fingers by it. She
41:10
drew one out frock. How it blazed, how it burnt. It was
41:17
a warm, bright flame like a candle. As she held her hands over
41:22
it, and it was wonderfully light. It seemed, really to the little
41:28
maiden, as though she were sitting before a large iron stove with burnished brass
41:32
feet and a brass ornament atop. The fire burned with such blessed influence it
41:39
warmed so delightfully the little girl had already stretched out her feet to warm them
41:45
too. But the small flame went out, the stove vanished. She had
41:52
only the remains of the burnt out match in her hand. She rubbed another
41:58
against the wall. It burned brightly, and where the light fell on the
42:02
wall, there the wall became transparent like a veil, so that she could
42:08
see into the room. On the table, which spread a snow white tablecloth
42:14
upon it was a splendid porcelain surface, And the roast goose was steaming famously
42:21
with its stuffing of apple and dried plums. And what was still more capital
42:27
to behold was the goose hopped down from the dish, reeled about on the
42:32
floor with knife and fork in its breast, till it came up to the
42:37
poor little girl. When the match went out, and nothing but the thick,
42:42
cold damp wall was left behind, she lighted another match. Now there
42:50
she was sitting under the most magnificent crispas tree. It was still larger and
42:55
more decorated than the one which she had seen through the glass door in the
43:00
rich merchant's house. Thousands of lights were burning on the green branches, and
43:06
gaily colored pictures, such as she had seen in the shop windows, looked
43:10
down upon her. The little maiden stretched out her hands toward them. When
43:16
the match went out, the lights of the Christmas tree rose higher and higher.
43:23
She saw them now as stars in heaven. One fell down and formed
43:29
a long trail of fire. Someone is just dead, said the little girl,
43:36
for her old grandmother, the only person who had loved her and who
43:39
was now no more, had told her that when a star falls, a
43:44
soul ascends to God. She drew another match against the wall. It was
43:50
again light, and in the luster there stood the old grandmother, so bright
43:55
and radiant, so mild, and with such an expression of grandmother, cried
44:01
the little one. Oh, take me with you. You go away when
44:06
the match burns out, You vanished like the warm stove, like the delicious
44:10
roast goose, and like the magnificent Christmas tree. And she rubbed the whole
44:16
bundle of matches quickly against the wall, for she wanted to be quite sure
44:22
of keeping her grandmother nearer, and the matches gave such a brilliant light that
44:28
it was brighter than at noonday. Never formerly had the grandmother been so beautiful
44:32
and so tall. She took the little maiden on her arm, and both
44:38
flew in brightness and in joy, so high, so very high. And
44:45
then above was neither cold, nor hunger nor anxiety. They were with God.
44:52
But in the corner, at the cold hour of dawn sat the poor
44:57
girl, with rosy cheeks and with a smiling mouth, leaning against the wall,
45:02
frozen to death. On the last evening of the old year, stiff
45:07
and stark sat the child there with her matches, of which one bundle had
45:13
been burnt. She wanted to warm herself. People said, no one had
45:19
the slightest suspicion of what beautiful things she had seen. No one even dreamed
45:25
of the splendor in which, with her grandmother she had entered on the joys
45:30
of a new year. End of the little match girl. The old house
45:39
in the street up there was old, a very old house. It was
45:45
almost three hundred years old, For that might be known by reading the great
45:50
beam on which the date of the year was carved, together with tulips and
45:53
hoppines. There were whole verses spelled as in former times. Over every window
46:00
was a distorted face cut out in the beam. The one story stood forward
46:07
a great way over the other, and directly under the eaves was a leaden
46:12
spout with a dragon's head. The rain water should have run out of the
46:16
mouth, but it ran out of the belly, for there was a hole
46:20
in the spout. All the other houses in the street were so new and
46:24
so neat, with large window panes and smooth walls, one could easily see
46:30
that they would have nothing to do with the old house. They certainly thought,
46:36
how long is that old, decayed thing to stand there as a spectacle
46:40
in the street. And then the projecting windows stand so far out that no
46:46
one can see from our windows what happens in that direction. The steps are
46:52
as broad as those of a palace and as high as a church tower.
46:57
The iron railings looked just like the door to an old family vault. And
47:01
then they have brass tops. That's so stupid. On the other side of
47:07
the street were also new and neat houses, and they thought just as the
47:13
others did. But at the window opposite the old house there sat a little
47:17
boy with fresh rosy cheeks and bright beaming eyes. He certainly liked the old
47:24
house best, and that both in sunshine and moonshine. And when he looked
47:30
across at the wall where the mortar had fallen out, he could sit and
47:34
find out there the strangest creatures imaginable, exactly as the street had appeared before,
47:40
with steps, projecting windows and pointed gables. He could see soldiers with
47:46
halberts, and spouts where the water ran like dragons and serpents. That was
47:52
a house to look at. And there lived an old man who wore plush
47:58
breeches, and he had a coat with large brass buttons, and a wig
48:02
that one could see was a real wig. Every morning there came an old
48:07
fellow to him, who put his rooms in order and went on errands.
48:13
Otherwise, the old man in the plush breeches was quite alone in the old
48:17
house now. And then he came to the window and looked out, and
48:22
the little boy nodded to him, and the old man nodded again, and
48:27
so they became acquaintances, and then they were friends, although they had never
48:31
spoken to each other, but that made no difference. The little boy heard
48:37
his parents say, the old man opposite is very well off, but he
48:42
is so very very lonely. The sunday following, the little boy took something
48:47
and wrapped it up in a piece of paper, went downstairs and stood in
48:52
the doorway, And when the man who went on errands came past, he
48:55
said to him, I say, master, will you give this to the
49:00
old man over the way from me? I have two pewter soldiers. This
49:05
is one of them, and he shall have it, for I know he
49:08
is so very very lonely. And the old errand man looked quite pleased,
49:14
nodded, and took the pewter soldier over to the old house. Afterwards there
49:20
came a message. It was to ask if the little boy himself had not
49:23
a wish to come over and pay a visit. And so he got permission
49:28
of his parents, and then went over to the old house. And the
49:34
brass balls on the iron railings shone much brighter than ever one would have thought.
49:39
They were polished on account of the visit. And it was as if
49:43
the carved out trumpeters, for there were trumpeters who stood in tulips carved out
49:49
on the door, blew with all their might their cheeks appeared so much rounder
49:53
than before. Yes, they blew to draw. The little boy comes to
50:00
run the detra, and then the door opened. The whole passage was hung
50:07
with portraits of knights in armor and ladies in silken gowns, and the armor
50:13
rattled and the silken gowns rustled. And then there was a flight of stairs
50:19
which went a good way upwards and a little way downwards. And then one
50:23
came on a balcony which was in a very dilapidated state, sure enough,
50:29
with large holes and long crevices. But grass grew there, and leaves out
50:34
of them all together. For the whole balcony outside the yard and the walls
50:38
were overgrown with so much green stuff that it looked like a garden, only
50:44
a balcony. Here stood old flower pots with faces and asses ears, and
50:50
the flowers grew just as they liked. One of the pots was quite overrun
50:54
on all sides with pinks, that is to say, with the green shoot
51:00
stood by shoot, and it said, quite distinctly, the air has cherished
51:06
me, the sun has kissed me, and promised me a little flower on
51:10
Sunday, a little flower on Sunday. And then they entered a chamber,
51:15
where the walls were covered with hog's leather and printed with gold flowers. The
51:22
gildening decays, but hog's leather stays, said the walls. And there stood
51:29
easy chairs with such high backs and so carved out, and with arms on
51:34
both sides. Sit down, sit down, said they. Uugh, how
51:38
I creak? Now, I shall certainly get the gout like the old clothes
51:43
press. Oh. And then the little boy came into the room where the
51:49
projecting windows were and where the old man sat. I thank you for the
51:54
pewter soldier, my little friend, said the old man. And I thank
51:59
you because you come over to me. Thankee thankee or cranky cranky sounded from
52:05
all the furniture. There was so much of it that each article stood in
52:09
the other's way to get a look at the little boy. In the middle
52:15
of the wall hung a picture representing a beautiful lady, so young, so
52:20
glad, but dressed quite as in former times, with clothes that stood quite
52:24
stiff, and with powder in her hair. She neither said thankee thankee nor
52:30
cranky creaky, but looked with her mild eyes at the little boy, who
52:35
directly asked the old man, where did you get her yonder at the broker's,
52:40
said the old man, where there are so many pictures hanging, No
52:45
one knows or cares about them, for they are all of them buried.
52:50
But I knew her in bygone days, and now she has been dead and
52:54
gone these fifty years. Under the picture, in a glazed frame, there
53:00
hung a bouquet of withered flowers. They were almost fifty years old. They
53:06
looked so very old. The pendulum of the great clock went to and fro,
53:14
and the hands turned, and everything in the room became still older.
53:19
But they did not observe it. They say at home, said the little
53:23
boy, that you are so very very lonely. Oh, said he the
53:30
old thoughts, with what they may bring with them, come and visit me.
53:35
And now you also come, and I am very well off. Then
53:38
he took a book with pictures in it. Down from the shelf. There
53:43
were whole long processions and pageants with the strangest characters which one never sees nowadays.
53:52
Soldiers like the knave of clubs and citizens with waving flags. The tailors
53:58
had theirs with the pair of shears held by two lines, and the shoemaker's
54:04
theirs without boots. But with an eagle that had two heads. For the
54:08
shoemakers must have everything so that they can say it is a pair. Yes,
54:14
that was a picture book. The old man now went into the other
54:19
room to fetch preserves, apples and nuts. Yes, it was delightful over
54:24
there in the old house. I cannot bear it any longer, said the
54:30
pewter soldier, who sat on the drawers. It is so lonely and melancholy
54:35
here. But when one has been in a family circle, one cannot accustom
54:39
oneself to this life. I cannot bear it any longer. The whole day
54:45
is so long, and the evenings are still longer. Here. It is
54:51
not at all as it is over the way at yr house, where your
54:54
father and mother spoke so pleasantly, and where you and all your the sweet
55:00
children made such delightful noise. Nay, how lonely the old man is.
55:07
Do you think that he gets kisses? Do you think he gets mild eyes?
55:13
Are a Christmas tree? Em He will get nothing but a grave.
55:16
I can bear it no longer. You must not let it grieve you so
55:21
much, said the little boy. I find it so very delightful here.
55:25
And then all the old thoughts with what they may bring with them. They
55:30
come and visit here. Yes, it's all very well, but I see
55:34
nothing of them, and I don't know them, said the pewter soldier.
55:38
I cannot bear it, but you must, said the little boy. Then
55:45
in came the old man with the most pleased and happy face, the most
55:50
delicious preserves apples and nuts, And so the little boy thought no more about
55:57
the pewter soldier. Boy return home happy and pleased, And weeks and days
56:02
passed away, and nods were made to the old house and from the old
56:07
house, and then the little boy went over there again. The carved trumpeters
56:14
blew to rute a da da. There was a little boy to rute a
56:17
da da. And the swords and armor on the knight's portraits rattled, and
56:22
the silk gowns rustled, the hog's leathers spoke, and the old chairs had
56:29
the gout in their legs and rheumatism in their backs. Oh, it was
56:34
exactly like the first time. For over there, one day an hour was
56:38
just like another. I cannot bear it, said the pewter soldier. I
56:45
have shed pewter tears. It is too melancholy. Rather, let me go
56:49
to the wars and lose arms and legs. It would at least be a
56:52
change. I cannot bear it longer. Now I know what it is to
56:59
have a visit from one's old thoughts, with what they may bring with them.
57:04
I have had a visit from mine, and you may be sure it
57:07
is no pleasant thing. In the end, I was at last about to
57:13
jump down from the jars. I saw you all over there at home,
57:17
so distinctly as if you really were here. It was again that Sunday morning.
57:24
All you children stood before the table and sung your psalms, as you
57:29
do every morning. You stood devoutly with folded hands, and father and mother
57:35
were just as pious. And when the door was opened, and little sister
57:39
Mary, who is not two years old yet, and who always dances when
57:45
she hears music or singing of whatever kind it may be, was put into
57:49
the room, though she ought not to have been there. And then she
57:52
began to dance, but could not keep time because the tones were so long.
57:59
And she stood ferished on one leg and bent her head forwards, and
58:04
then on the other leg and bent her head forwards. But all would not
58:08
do. You stood very seriously all together, although it was difficult enough,
58:15
but I laughed to myself, and then I fell off the table and got
58:19
a bump, which I still have, for it was not right of me
58:22
to laugh. But the hole now passes before me again in thought and everything
58:28
that I have lived to see. And these are the old thoughts, with
58:31
what they may bring with them. Tell me if you still sing on Sundays,
58:37
and tell me something about little Mary, and how my comrade, the
58:40
other pewter soldier lives. Yes, he is happy enough, that's sure.
58:45
I cannot bear it any longer. You are given away as a present,
58:51
said the little boy. You must remain. Can you not understand that the
58:58
old man now came with a drawer in which there was much to be seen,
59:01
both tin boxes and balsam boxes, old cards, so large and so
59:07
gilded, such as one never sees them now. And several drawers were opened,
59:14
and the piano was opened. It had landscapes on the inside of the
59:19
lid, and it was so hoarse when the old man played on it.
59:22
And then he hummed a song. Yes she could sing, that, said
59:28
he, and nodded to the portrait which he had bought at the broker's And
59:31
the old man's eyes shone so bright. I will go to the wars.
59:37
I will go to the wars, shouted the pewter soldier as loud as he
59:42
could, and threw himself off the drawers, right down on the floor.
59:46
What became of him? The old man sought, and the little boy saught.
59:52
He was away, and he stayed away. I shall find him,
59:58
said the old man, But he never found him. The floor was to
1:00:02
open. The pewter soldier had fallen through a crevice, and there he lay
1:00:08
as in an open tomb. That day passed, and the little boy went
1:00:15
home, and that week passed, and several weeks too. The windows were
1:00:21
quite frozen. The little boy was obliged to sit and breathe on them,
1:00:25
to get a peep hole over to the old house. And there the snow
1:00:30
had been blown into all the carved work and inscriptions. It lay quite up
1:00:36
over the steps, just as if there was no one at home. Nor
1:00:40
was there any one at home. The old man was dead in the evening.
1:00:46
There was a hearse scene before the door, and he was born into
1:00:51
it in his coffin. He was now to go out into the country to
1:00:55
lie in his grave. He was driven out there, but no one followed.
1:01:00
All his friends were dead, and the little boy kissed his hand to
1:01:05
the coffin as it was driven away. Some days afterwards there was an auction
1:01:09
at the old house, and the little boy saw from his window how they
1:01:15
carried the old knights and the old ladies away, the flower pots with the
1:01:20
long ears, the old chairs, and the old clothes presses. Something came
1:01:25
here, and something came there. The portrait of her, who had been
1:01:30
found at the broker's, came to the brokers again, and there it hung,
1:01:35
for no one knew her more, no one cared about the old picture.
1:01:42
In the spring they pulled the house down, for as people said,
1:01:45
it was a ruin. One could see from the street right into the room
1:01:51
with the hog's leather hanging, which was slashed and torn, and the green
1:01:55
grass and leaves about the balcony hung quite wild about the falling beams. And
1:02:01
then it was put to rights. That was our relief, said the neighboring
1:02:07
houses. A fine house was built there, with large windows and smooth white
1:02:14
walls. But before it, where the old house had in fact stood,
1:02:19
was a little garden laid out, and a wild grapevine ran up the wall
1:02:23
of the neighboring house before the garden, there was a large iron railing with
1:02:29
an iron door. It looked quite splendid, and people stood still and peeped
1:02:35
in, and the sparrows hung by scores in the vine and chattered away at
1:02:39
each other as well as they could. But it was not about the old
1:02:44
house, for they could not remember it. So many years had passed,
1:02:47
so many that the little boy had grown up to a whole man, yes,
1:02:52
a clever man, and a pleasure to his parents. And he had
1:02:58
just been married, and together with his little wife, had come to live
1:03:02
in the house here where the garden was. And he stood by her there
1:03:07
whilst she planted a field flower that she found so pretty. She planted it
1:03:13
with her little hand and pressed the earth around it with her fingers. Oh
1:03:19
what was that she had stuck herself? There sat something pointed straight out of
1:03:24
the soft mold. It was, yes, yes, it was the pewter
1:03:31
soldier. He that was lost up at the old man's and had tumbled and
1:03:37
turned about amidst the timber and the rubbish, and had at last laid for
1:03:43
years in the ground. The young wife wiped the dirt off the soldier first
1:03:47
with a green leaf, and then with her fine handkerchief. It was such
1:03:52
a delightful smell that it was to the pewter soldier just as if he had
1:03:57
awakened from a trance. You see him, said the young man. He
1:04:01
laughed, and then shook his head. Nay, it cannot be. He
1:04:05
but he reminds me of a story about a pewter soldier which I had when
1:04:11
I was a little boy. And then he told his wife about the old
1:04:15
house and the old man, and about the pewter soldier that he sent over
1:04:20
to him because he was so very very lonely, And he told it as
1:04:26
correctly as it had really been, so that the tears came into the eyes
1:04:30
of his young wife on account of the old house and the old man.
1:04:36
It may possibly be, however, that it is the same pewter soldier,
1:04:41
said she. I will take care of it, and remember all that you
1:04:45
have told me. But you must show me the old man's grave. But
1:04:49
I do not know it, said he. And no one knows it.
1:04:54
All his friends were dead, no one took care of it. And then
1:04:58
I was a little boy. How very very lonely he must have been,
1:05:02
said she, very very lonely, said the pewter soldier, But it is
1:05:09
delightful not to be forgotten. Delightful shouted something close by, but no one
1:05:15
except the pewter soldier saw that it was a piece of the hog's leather hangings.
1:05:21
It had lost all its guilding. It looked like a piece of wet
1:05:25
clay. But it had an opinion, and it gave it. The guilding
1:05:30
decays, but Hogg's leather stays this. The pewter soldier did not believe,
1:05:39
and of the old house the real princess. There was once a prince who
1:05:47
wished to marry a princess. But then she must be a real princess.
1:05:54
He traveled all over the world in hopes of finding such a lady, but
1:05:59
there was always something wrong. Princesses he found in plenty, but whether they
1:06:05
were real princesses, it was impossible for him to decide. For now one
1:06:11
thing, now another seemed to him not quite right about the ladies. At
1:06:16
last, he returned to his palace, quite cast down because he wished so
1:06:21
much to have a real princess for his wife. One evening, a fearful
1:06:28
tempest arose. It thundered, enlightened and the rain poured down from the sky
1:06:33
in torrents. Besides, it was as dark as pitch. All at once
1:06:40
there was heard a violent knocking at the door, and the old king,
1:06:45
the prince's father, went out himself to open it. It was a princess
1:06:50
who was standing outside the door. What with the rain and the wind,
1:06:56
she was in a sad condition. The water trickled down from her hair,
1:07:00
and her clothes clung to her body. She said, she was a real
1:07:05
princess. Ah, we shall soon see that, thought the old queen mother.
1:07:14
However, she said not a word of what she was going to do,
1:07:17
but went quietly into the bedroom, took all the bedclothes off the beds,
1:07:24
and put three little peas on the bedstead. She then laid twenty mattresses,
1:07:30
one upon another over the three peas, and put twenty feather beds over
1:07:35
the mattresses. Upon this bed the princess was to pass the night. The
1:07:43
next morning, she was asked how she had slept. Oh, very badly,
1:07:48
indeed, she replied, I have scarcely closed my eyes the whole night
1:07:55
through. I do not know what was in my bed, but I had
1:07:59
some hard under me, and am all over black and blue. It has
1:08:04
hurt me so much. Now it was plain that the lady must be a
1:08:11
real princess, since she had been able to feel the three little peas through
1:08:15
the twenty mattresses and twenty feather beds. None but a real princess could have
1:08:21
had such a delicate sense of feeling. The Prince accordingly made her his wife,
1:08:29
being now convinced that he had found a real princess. The three peas
1:08:34
were, however, put into the cabinet of Curiosities, where they are still
1:08:40
to be seen, provided they are not lost. Wasn't this a lady of
1:08:45
real delicacy? End of the real Princess? The Swine heard by Hans Christian
1:08:55
Anderson. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain. The Swineherd. There
1:09:04
was once a poor prince who had a kingdom. His kingdom was very small,
1:09:10
but still quite large enough to marry upon, and he wished to marry.
1:09:15
It was certainly rather cool of him to say to the Emperor's daughter,
1:09:19
will you have me? But so he did, for his name was renowned
1:09:25
far and wide, and there were a hundred princesses who would have answered yes,
1:09:30
and thank you kindly. We shall see what this princess said. Listen.
1:09:38
It happened that where the prince's father lay buried, there grew a rose
1:09:43
tree, a most beautiful rose tree, which blossomed only once in every five
1:09:48
years, and even then bore only one flower. But that was a rose.
1:09:56
It smelt so sweet that all cares and so morrows were forgotten by him
1:10:00
who inhaled its fragrance. And furthermore, the prince had a nightingale, who
1:10:06
could sing in such a manner that it seemed as though all sweet melodies dwelt
1:10:12
in her little throat. So the princess was to have the rose and the
1:10:17
nightingale, and they were accordingly put into large silver caskets and sent to her.
1:10:25
The Emperor had then brought into a large hall where the princess was playing
1:10:29
at visiting with the ladies of the court. And when she saw the caskets
1:10:33
with the presents, she clapped her hands for joy. Ah, if it
1:10:39
were but a little pussy cat, said she. But the rose tree,
1:10:43
with its beautiful rose, came to view. Oh how prettily it is made,
1:10:49
said all the court ladies. It is more than pretty, said the
1:10:54
emperor. It is charming. But the princess touched it and was almost ready
1:11:00
to cry. Fie, Papa, said she. It is not made at
1:11:04
all, It is natural. Let us see what is in the other casket,
1:11:11
before we get into a bad humor, said the Emperor. So the
1:11:15
nightingale came forth and sang so delightfully that at first no one could say anything
1:11:21
ill humored of her, said pab Charmond, exclaimed the ladies, for they
1:11:28
all used to chatter French, each one worse than her neighbor. How much
1:11:32
the bird reminds me of a musical box that belonged to our blessed Empress,
1:11:38
said an old knight. Oh, yes, these are the same tones,
1:11:43
the same execution. Yes, yes, said the Emperor, and he wept
1:11:48
like a child at the remembrance. I will still hope that it is not
1:11:55
a real bird, said the princess. Yes it is a real bird,
1:12:00
said those who had brought it. Well, then let the bird fly,
1:12:03
said the princess, and she positively refused to see the prince. However,
1:12:11
he was not to be discouraged. He daubed his face over brown and black,
1:12:15
pulled his cap over his ears, and knocked at the door good day
1:12:20
to my lord the Emperor said he can I have employment at the palace.
1:12:26
Why yes, said the Emperor. I want someone to take care of the
1:12:30
pigs, for we have a great many of them. So the prince was
1:12:34
appointed Imperial Swineherd. He had a dirty little room close by the pigstye,
1:12:42
and there he sat the whole day and worked. By the evening, he
1:12:45
had made a pretty little kitchen pot. Little bells were hung all round it,
1:12:51
and when the pot was boiling, these bells tinkled in the most charming
1:12:57
manner and played the old melody, Oh, dear Augustine, all is gone,
1:13:05
gone gone. But what was still more curious? Whoever held his finger
1:13:13
in the smoke of the kitchen pot immediately smelt all the dishes that were cooking
1:13:18
on every hearth in the city. This, you see, was something quite
1:13:24
different from the rose. Now. The princess happened to walk that way,
1:13:29
and when she heard the tune, she stood quite still and seemed pleased,
1:13:33
for she could play Lieber Augustine. It was the only piece she knew,
1:13:39
and she played it with one finger. Why there is my piece, said
1:13:45
the princess. That Swineherd must certainly have been well educated go in and ask
1:13:51
him the price of the instrument. So one of the court ladies must run
1:13:57
in. However, she drew on with us slippers first. What will you
1:14:01
take for the kitchen pot, said the lady. I will have ten kisses
1:14:05
from the princess, said the swineherd. Yes, indeed, said the lady.
1:14:12
I cannot sell it for less, rejoined the swineherd. He is an
1:14:16
impudent fellow, said the princess. And she walked on. But when she
1:14:21
had gone a little way, the bells tinkled so prettily. Ah, Dear
1:14:28
Augustine, all is gone, gone, gone, stay, said the princess.
1:14:38
Ask him if he will have ten kisses from the ladies of my court.
1:14:42
No, thank you, said the swineherd. Ten kisses from the princess.
1:14:46
Or I keep the kitchen pot myself. That must not be either,
1:14:51
said the princess. But do you all stand before me that no one may
1:14:58
see us? And the the court ladies placed themselves in front of her and
1:15:02
spread out their dresses. The swineherd got ten kisses, and the princess the
1:15:09
kitchen pot. That was delightful. The pot was boiling. The whole evening
1:15:15
and the whole of the following day. They knew perfectly well what was cooking
1:15:20
at every fire throughout the city, from the chamberlains to the cowlers. The
1:15:26
court ladies danced and clapped their hands. We know who has soup, and
1:15:30
who has pancakes for dinner to day, who has cutlets, and who has
1:15:34
eggs? How interesting, yes, but keep my secret, for I am
1:15:41
an emperor's daughter. The swineherd, that is to say the prince, for
1:15:46
no one knew that he was other than an ill favored swineherd. Let not
1:15:51
a day pass without working at something. He at last constructed a rattle,
1:15:58
which, when it was swung round, played all the waltzes and jig tunes
1:16:02
which have ever been heard since the creation of the world. Ah, that
1:16:08
is superbe, said the princess when she passed by. I have never heard
1:16:13
prettier compositions. Go in and ask him the price of the instrument. But
1:16:18
mind he shall have no more kisses. He will have a hundred kisses from
1:16:25
the princess, said the lady who had been to ask. I think he
1:16:29
is not in his right senses, said the princess, and walked on.
1:16:33
But When she had gone a little way, she stopped again. One must
1:16:39
encourage art, said she, I am the Emperor's daughter. Tell him he
1:16:45
shall, as on yesterday, have ten kisses from me, and may take
1:16:49
the rest from the ladies of the court. Oh but we should not like
1:16:54
that at all, said they. What are you muttering, asked the princess.
1:17:00
If I can kiss him, surely you can remember that you owe everything
1:17:04
to me. So the ladies were obliged to go to him again. A
1:17:11
hundred kisses from the princess, said he, or else, let everyone keep
1:17:15
his own stand round, said she, and all the ladies stood round her
1:17:23
while the kissing was going on. What can be the reason for such a
1:17:28
crowd close by the pig stye, said the Emperor, who happened just then
1:17:33
to step out on the balcony. He rubbed his eyes and put on his
1:17:36
spectacles. There are the ladies of the court. I must go down and
1:17:42
see what they are about. So he pulled up his slippers at the heel,
1:17:45
for he had trodden them down as soon as he had got into the
1:17:50
courtyard. He moved very softly, and the ladies were so much engrossed with
1:17:57
counting the kisses that I might go fairly, that they did not perceive.
1:18:00
The Emperor. He rose on his tiptoes. What is all this, said
1:18:08
he when he saw what was going on, and he boxed the princess's ears
1:18:13
with his slipper. Just as the swineherd was taking his eighty sixth kiss.
1:18:19
March out, said the emperor, for he was very angry, and both
1:18:24
the princess and swineherd were thrust out of the city. The princess now stood
1:18:31
and wept, The swineherd scolded, and the rain poured down. Alas unhappy
1:18:39
creature that I am, said the princess. If I had but married the
1:18:44
handsome young prince, Ah, how unfortunate I am. And the swineherd went
1:18:49
behind a tree, washed the black and brown color from his face, threw
1:18:55
off his dirty clothes, and stepped forth in his princely robes. He looked
1:19:00
so noble that the princess could not help bowing before him. I am come
1:19:05
to despise, thee said he. Thou wouldst not have an honorable prince.
1:19:12
Thou couldst not prize the rose and the nightingale, But thou wast ready to
1:19:17
kiss the swineherd for the sake of a trumpery plaything, Thou art rightly served.
1:19:26
He then went back to his own little kingdom, shut the door of
1:19:29
his palace in her face. Now she might well sing, ah, Dear
1:19:35
Augustine, all is gone, gone, gone, end of the swineherd.