Page:Fairy tales and stories (Andersen, Tegner).djvu/64

32 the dance, but they toppled over at the very first jump they made — yes, it was indeed a merry sight! Next morning Johannes and his traveling companion went away from all of them and continued their journey across the lofty mountains and through the large pine-forests. They got so high up that the church towers far down below them looked at last like small red berries among all the green, and they could see a long way off, for many, many miles off, far away to places where they had never been. Johannes had never before seen so much of the beauties of this lovely world all at once; the sun shone so warm through the fresh blue air, he heard the huntsmen blow their bugles among the mountains, so beautifully and gaily, that the tears came into his eyes with joy and he could not help saying: "I feel as if I could kiss you, dear Lord, because you are so kind to us all, and have given us all the loveliness there is in the world!"

The traveling companion also stood with folded hands, looking out over the forest and the cities that lay bathed in the warm sunshine. Just then they heard the most wonderful and lovely music over their heads; they looked up and saw a large white swan soaring above them in the air; it was very beautiful, and it sang as they never before had heard a bird sing; but the song grew fainter and fainter, the bird bent its head and dropped quite slowly down at their feet, where it lay dead — poor, beautiful bird! "Two such beautiful wings," said the companion, "as white and large as those which this bird has, are worth a deal of money! I'll take them with me! You can now see it was a good thing I took the saber!" and with one blow he cut off both wings of the dead swan, which he wanted to keep. They now traveled for many, many miles across the mountains, till at last they saw before them a great city, with over a hundred steeples, which shone like silver in the sunshine. In the middle of the city was a splendid marble palace, with a roof of red gold, and here lived the king.

Johannes and his companion would not go straight into the city, but stopped at the inn outside it, so that they might make themselves tidy, for they wanted to look respectable when they got into the streets. The landlord told them that the king was such a good man, that he never did any injustice or harm to any one, either in one way or another, but as for his daughter — -well, heaven preserve us, she was a very wicked princess indeed! Beauty she possessed enough, — no one could be more beautiful and fascinating than she, — but what good could that be? She was a wicked witch, who was the cause of so many handsome princes having lost their lives. She had given permission to all men to woo her; everybody might come and try his luck, whether he was a prince or a beggar, that did not matter as far as she was concerned; the suitor would only have to guess three things which she would ask him. If he guessed