Page:Fairy tales and stories (Andersen, Tegner).djvu/172

140 wrapped. It was a leaf torn out of an old book, which ought not to have been torn to pieces; it was an old book full of poetry.

"There is more of it over there!" said the butterman. "I gave an old woman some coffee-beans for it; if you'll give me fourpence you can have what there is left of it."

"Thanks!" said the student, "let me have it instead of the cheese! I can eat my bread and butter without anything to it; it would be a sin to let the whole of the book be torn into bits and pieces. You are an excellent man, a practical man, but poetry you don't understand, any more than the tub yonder." This was rather rude of him to say, especially as far as the tub was concerned, but the butterman and the student both laughed, for it was only said in fun, of course. But the brownie was annoyed that any one should dare to say such things to a butterman, who had a house of his own, and sold the best butter.

As soon as it was night and the shop was closed, and all, with the exception of the student, had gone to bed, the brownie went into the bedroom and took the wife's tongue — she had no use for it when she was asleep — and whatever object in the room he put it on, received voice and speech, and could express its thoughts and feelings just as well as the mistress of the house. But only one object at a time could make use of it, which was a blessing, for otherwise they would all have been speaking at once.

And the brownie put the woman's tongue on the tub, in which the old newspapers were kept. "Is it really true," asked the brownie, "that you don't know what poetry is?" "Of course I do," said the tub. "It is what you find at the bottom of the pages in newspapers and cut out. I should say I have more of it inside of me than the student, and I am only a simple tub compared with the butterman." And the brownie put the tongue on the coffee-quern; how it rattled away! And he put it on the butter-firkin and the money-drawer — all were of the same opinion as the tub, and what all are agreed about one must respect. "I'll just pay out that student!" said the brownie, as he went quietly up the kitchen stairs to the garret, where the student lived. He had a light burning, and the brownie peeped through the keyhole and saw that the student was reading in the ragged book from the shop down-stairs. But how light it was in there! Out of the book shot forth a clear ray of light, which grew into a trunk — into a mighty tree, which rose high in the air and spread its branches out over the student. Every leaf was fresh and every flower was a beautiful girl's head, some with dark, sparkling eyes, others with clear blue eyes. Each fruit was a shining star and then there was such a wonderfully lovely sound of song and music.