Page:The fairy tales of Hans Christian Andersen (c1899).djvu/36

 “This is the prettiest piece of coquetry that I know of,” said the ladies present; and they put water into their mouths, to make a kind of liquid, clucking sound when anybody spoke to them. They then fancied themselves nightingales. Even the footmen and the chambermaids gave out that they were satisfied with the performance: and that is saying a great deal, for they are the most fastidious to please. In short, the nightingale’s success was complete.

She was now invited to take up her abode at court, where she was to have her own cage, besides the liberty of going out twice a day, and once in the night, on which occasions she was attended by twelve servants, each of whom had fastened a ribbon round her leg to hold her fast. There was no pleasure to be had in flying after such a fashion as that.

The whole talk of the town ran on no other subject than the wonderful bird. Eleven old-clothes-men’s children were christened after her, but not one of them had a note in their throat.

One day the emperor received a large parcel, on which was written: “The Nightingale.”

“Here’s no doubt a new book about our celebrated bird,” said the emperor. But instead of a book, it was a piece of mechanism that lay in a box—an artificial nightingale made to imitate the living one, only set all over with diamonds, rubies and sapphires. As soon as the artificial bird was wound up, it could sing one of the pieces that the real one sang; and then it wagged its tail up and down, all sparkling with silver and gold. Round its neck was slung a little ribbon, on which was written: “The Emperor of Japan’s nightingale is poor indeed compared to that belonging to the Emperor of China.”

“This is splendid,” said all present, while he who had brought the bird was immediately invested with the title of Imperial Chief Nightingale-bringer.

“Now they must sing together,” said the courtiers, “and what a duet that will be!”

And they were accordingly set to sing together. But it did not do, for the real nightingale sang after her fashion, and the artificial bird according