FREE BOOKS

Author's List




PREV.   NEXT  
|<   645   646   647   648   649   650   651   652   653   654   655   656   657   658   659   660   661   662   663   664   665   666   667   668   669  
670   671   672   673   674   675   676   677   678   679   680   681   682   683   684   685   686   687   688   689   690   691   692   693   694   >>   >|  
eat the last words she had said; and she had no particular wish to hear her own words over again. It was just as if they had all taken something to make them sleepy while they were in the palace, for they did not recover themselves nor speak till they got back again into the street. There was quite a long line of them reaching from the town-gate to the palace. I went myself to see them," said the crow. "They were hungry and thirsty, for at the palace they did not get even a glass of water. Some of the wisest had taken a few slices of bread and butter with them, but they did not share it with their neighbors; they thought if they went in to the princess looking hungry, there would be a better chance for themselves." "But Kay! tell me about little Kay!" said Gerda, "was he amongst the crowd?" "Stop a bit, we are just coming to him. It was on the third day, there came marching cheerfully along to the palace a little personage, without horses or carriage, his eyes sparkling like yours; he had beautiful long hair, but his clothes were very poor." "That was Kay!" said Gerda joyfully. "Oh, then I have found him;" and she clapped her hands. "He had a little knapsack on his back," added the crow. "No, it must have been his sledge," said Gerda; "for he went away with it." "It may have been so," said the crow; "I did not look at it very closely. But I know from my tame sweetheart that he passed through the palace gates, saw the guards in their silver uniform, and the servants in their liveries of gold on the stairs, but he was not in the least embarrassed. 'It must be very tiresome to stand on the stairs,' he said. 'I prefer to go in.' The rooms were blazing with light. Councillors and ambassadors walked about with bare feet, carrying golden vessels; it was enough to make any one feel serious. His boots creaked loudly as he walked, and yet he was not at all uneasy." "It must be Kay," said Gerda, "I know he had new boots on, I have heard them creak in grandmother's room." "They really did creak," said the crow, "yet he went boldly up to the princess herself, who was sitting on a pearl as large as a spinning wheel, and all the ladies of the court were present with their maids, and all the cavaliers with their servants; and each of the maids had another maid to wait upon her, and the cavaliers' servants had their own servants, as well as a page each. They all stood in circles round the princess, and the nearer they
PREV.   NEXT  
|<   645   646   647   648   649   650   651   652   653   654   655   656   657   658   659   660   661   662   663   664   665   666   667   668   669  
670   671   672   673   674   675   676   677   678   679   680   681   682   683   684   685   686   687   688   689   690   691   692   693   694   >>   >|  



Top keywords:

palace

 
servants
 

princess

 

stairs

 

hungry

 

walked

 

cavaliers

 

Councillors

 

blazing

 

ambassadors


silver

 

passed

 

sweetheart

 

closely

 

embarrassed

 

tiresome

 

liveries

 

guards

 

uniform

 

prefer


ladies

 

present

 

spinning

 

sitting

 

circles

 

nearer

 

carrying

 

golden

 
vessels
 

creaked


loudly

 

boldly

 
grandmother
 

uneasy

 

sledge

 

thirsty

 

wisest

 

neighbors

 

thought

 

butter


slices

 

reaching

 
sleepy
 

recover

 

street

 
beautiful
 

clothes

 

carriage

 

sparkling

 
joyfully