Andersen's Fairy Tales

Odnośniki

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great-grand-children, and were soon to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of their marriage;
but they could not exactly recollect the date: and old Granny sat in the tree, and looked as
pleased as now. 'I know the date,' said she; but those below did not hear her, for they were
talking about old times.
"'Yes, can't you remember when we were very little,' said the old seaman, 'and ran and
played about? It was the very same court-yard where we now are, and we stuck slips in the
ground, and made a garden.'
"'I remember it well,' said the old woman; 'I remember it quite well. We watered the slips,
and one of them was an Elderbush. It took root, put forth green shoots, and grew up to be
the large tree under which we old folks are now sitting.'
"'To be sure,' said he. 'And there in the corner stood a waterpail, where I used to swim my
boats.'
"'True; but first we went to school to learn somewhat,' said she; 'and then we were
confirmed. We both cried; but in the afternoon we went up the Round Tower, and looked
down on Copenhagen, and far, far away over the water; then we went to Friedericksberg,
where the King and the Queen were sailing about in their splendid barges.'
"'But I had a different sort of sailing to that, later; and that, too, for many a year; a long way
off, on great voyages.'
"'Yes, many a time have I wept for your sake,' said she. 'I thought you were dead and gone,
and lying down in the deep waters. Many a night have I got up to see if the wind had not
changed: and changed it had, sure enough; but you never came. I remember so well one
day, when the rain was pouring down in torrents, the scavengers were before the house
where I was in service, and I had come up with the dust, and remained standing at the door-
-it was dreadful weather--when just as I was there, the postman came and gave me a letter.
It was from you! What a tour that letter had made! I opened it instantly and read: I laughed
and wept. I was so happy. In it I read that you were in warm lands where the coffee-tree
grows. What a blessed land that must be! You related so much, and I saw it all the while
the rain was pouring down, and I standing there with the dust-box. At the same moment
came someone who embraced me.'
"'Yes; but you gave him a good box on his ear that made it tingle!'
"'But I did not know it was you. You arrived as soon as your letter, and you were so
handsome--that you still are--and had a long yellow silk handkerchief round your neck, and
a bran new hat on; oh, you were so dashing! Good heavens! What weather it was, and what
a state the street was in!'
"'And then we married,' said he. 'Don't you remember? And then we had our first little boy,
and then Mary, and Nicholas, and Peter, and Christian.'
"'Yes, and how they all grew up to be honest people, and were beloved by everybody.'
" 'And their children also have children,' said the old sailor; 'yes, those are our grand-
children, full of strength and vigor. It was, methinks about this season that we had our
wedding.'
"'Yes, this very day is the fiftieth anniversary of the marriage,' said old Granny, sticking her
head between the two old people; who thought it was their neighbor who nodded to them.
They looked at each other and held one another by the hand. Soon after came their
children, and their grand-children; for they knew well enough that it was the day of the
fiftieth anniversary, and had come with their gratulations that very morning; but the old
people had forgotten it, although they were able to remember all that had happened many
years ago. And the Elderbush sent forth a strong odour in the sun, that was just about to set,
and shone right in the old people's faces. They both looked so rosy-cheeked; and the
youngest of the grandchildren danced around them, and called out quite delighted, that
there was to be something very splendid that evening--they were all to have hot potatoes.
And old Nanny nodded in the bush, and shouted 'hurrah!' with the rest."
"But that is no fairy tale," said the little boy, who was listening to the story.
"The thing is, you must understand it," said the narrator; "let us ask old Nanny."
"That was no fairy tale, 'tis true," said old Nanny; "but now it's coming. The most
wonderful fairy tales grow out of that which is reality; were that not the case, you know,
my magnificent Elderbush could not have grown out of the tea-pot." And then she took the
little boy out of bed, laid him on her bosom, and the branches of the Elder Tree, full of
flowers, closed around her. They sat in an aerial dwelling, and it flew with them through
the air. Oh, it was wondrous beautiful! Old Nanny had grown all of a sudden a young and
pretty maiden; but her robe was still the same green stuff with white flowers, which she had
worn before. On her bosom she had a real Elderflower, and in her yellow waving hair a
wreath of the flowers; her eyes were so large and blue that it was a pleasure to look at
them; she kissed the boy, and now they were of the same age and felt alike.
Hand in hand they went out of the bower, and they were standing in the beautiful garden of
their home. Near the green lawn papa's walking-stick was tied, and for the little ones it
seemed to be endowed with life; for as soon as they got astride it, the round polished knob
was turned into a magnificent neighing head, a long black mane fluttered in the breeze, and
four slender yet strong legs shot out. The animal was strong and handsome, and away they
went at full gallop round the lawn.
"Huzza! Now we are riding miles off," said the boy. "We are riding away to the castle
where we were last year!"
And on they rode round the grass-plot; and the little maiden, who, we know, was no one
else but old Nanny, kept on crying out, "Now we are in the country! Don't you see the
farm-house yonder? And there is an Elder Tree standing beside it; and the cock is scraping
away the earth for the hens, look, how he struts! And now we are close to the church. It lies
high upon the hill, between the large oak-trees, one of which is half decayed. And now we
are by the smithy, where the fire is blazing, and where the half-naked men are banging with [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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