Page:The fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen (c1899).djvu/197

 THE FELLOW-TRAVELLER

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Johannes had just left the forest, when the full-toned voice of a man cried out to him, " Ho there, comrade ! whither are you going ? "

" Into the wide world," said he. " I have neither father nor mother, and am a poor boy ; but the Lord will help me in time of need."

" I am likewise going into the wide world," said the stranger. " Shall we keep each other company ? "

" Willingl)'," said he ; and so they walked on together. They soon felt a mutual liking for each other, for both were good ; only Johannes soon found out that the stranger was much wiser than himself He had travelled throughout nearly the whole world, and could tell of everything that existed.

The sun was already high when they sat down under a tree to eat their breakfast, just as an old woman was coming up to them. She was very aged, and almost bent double, and supported herself on a crutch-stick, while she carried on her back a bundle of firewood, which she had gathered in the forest. Her apron was tucked up, and Johannes saw three large rods of fern and willow- twigs peeping out at each end. When she was quite close to our travellers, her foot slip- ped, and she fell with a loud scream, for she had broken her leg — poor old woman !

Johannes at once proposed that the}- should carry the old woman home ; but the stranger opened his knapsack, and took out a bo.x, saying that he had an ointment which wou Id i m m e d i a t e 1 )• make her leg whole again, and so strong that she would be able to walk home by her- self, just as if the ac- cident had never hap- pened ; only he re- quired that she should give him in return the three rods she carried in her apron.

" That would be well paid," said the old woman, nodding her head in a peculiar manner. She did not like giving up the rods ; but, on the other hand, it was still more disagreeable to be lying there with a broken limb. So she gave him the rods, and the moment he had rubbed her leg with the ointment the old dame got up, and walked much better than before. Such were the effects of the ointment ; and truly it was not of a sort to be purchased at the apothecary's.

" What do }-ou want with these rods ? " asked Johannes of his fellow-traveller.

" They are three very pretty herb-brooms," said he, " and I like them, because I am a foolish fellow."

They then went on a good deal further.

" Look how overcast the sky appears ! " said Johannes, pointing before them. " Those are frightfully heavy clouds."

" No," said his fellow-traveller " they are not clouds; they are mountains — fine, large moun- tains — at the top of which one may overlook the clouds, and breathe fresh air. And delightful it is. believe me, to stand there ! To-morrow we shall assuredly be far out in the wide world."

But they were not so near as they looked, and it took a full day before they had reached the m.ountains, where the black forests were towering up to the sky, and where blocks of stone might be found as huge as a large town. It seemed a somewhat difficult undertaking to cross them ;

TOOK oUl

SAYING THAT HE HAD AiN OINTMENT WHICH WOULD IMMEDIATELY MAKE HER LEG WHOLE AGAIN.