hich the wild geese
travelled over the mining districts, and as soon as they attempted to
direct their course northward they were buffeted toward the east. Now,
Akka thought that Smirre Fox was at large in the eastern part of the
province; therefore she would not fly in that direction, but turned
back, time and again, struggling westward with great difficulty. At this
rate the wild geese advanced very slowly, and late in the afternoon they
were still in the Westmanland mining districts. Toward evening the wind
abated suddenly, and the tired travellers hoped that they would have an
interval of easy flight before sundown. Then along came a violent gust
of wind, which tossed the geese before it, like balls, and the boy, who
was sitting comfortably, with no thought of peril, was lifted from the
goose's back and hurled into space.

Little and light as he was, he could not fall straight to the ground in
such a wind; so at first he was carried along with it, drifting down
slowly and spasmodically, as a leaf falls from a tree.

"Why, this isn't so bad!" thought the boy as he fell. "I'm tumbling as
easily as if I were only a scrap of paper. Morten Goosey-Gander will
doubtless hurry along and pick me up."

The first thing the boy did when he landed was to tear off his cap and
wave it, so that the big white gander should see where he was.

"Here am I, where are you? Here am I, where are you?" he called, and was
rather surprised that Morten Goosey-Gander was not already at his side.

But the big white gander was not to be seen, nor was the wild goose
flock outlined against the sky. It had entirely disappeared.

He thought this rather singular, but he was neither worried nor
frightened. Not for a second did it occur to him that folk like Akka and
Morten Goosey-Gander would abandon him. The unexpected gust of wind had
probably borne them along with it. As soon as they could manage to turn,
they would surely come back and fetch him.

But what was this? Where on earth was he anyway? He had been standing
gazing toward the sky for some sign of the geese, but now he happened to
glance about him. He had not come down on even ground, but had dropped
into a deep, wide mountain cave--or whatever it might be. It was as
large as a church, with almost perpendicular walls on all four sides,
and with no roof at all. On the ground were some huge rocks, between
which moss and lignon-brush and dwarfed birches grew. Here and there in
the wall w