The Pink Fairy Book | Page 6

with dark and shining eyes, others with wonderful blue ones. Every
fruit was a glittering star, and there was a marvellous music in the

student's room. The little Goblin had never even dreamt of such a
splendid sight, much less seen it.
He stood on tiptoe gazing and gazing, till the candle in the attic was put
out; the student had blown it out and had gone to bed, but the Goblin
remained standing outside listening to the music, which very softly and
sweetly was now singing the student a lullaby.
'I have never seen anything like this!' said the Goblin. 'I never expected
this! I must stay with the student.'
The little fellow thought it over, for he was a sensible Goblin. Then he
sighed, 'The student has no jam!'
And on that he went down to the grocer again. And it was a good thing
that he did go back, for the tub had nearly worn out the tongue. It had
read everything that was inside it, on the one side, and was just going to
turn itself round and read from the other side when the Goblin came in
and returned the tongue to its owner.
But the whole shop, from the till down to the shavings, from that night
changed their opinion of the tub, and they looked up to it, and had such
faith in it that they were under the impression that when the grocer read
the art and drama critiques out of the paper in the evenings, it all came
from the tub.
But the Goblin could no longer sit quietly listening to the wisdom and
intellect downstairs. No, as soon as the light shone in the evening from
the attic it seemed to him as though its beams were strong ropes
dragging him up, and he had to go and peep through the key-hole.
There he felt the sort of feeling we have looking at the great rolling sea
in a storm, and he burst into tears. He could not himself say why he
wept, but in spite of his tears he felt quite happy. How beautiful it must
be to sit under that tree with the student, but that he could not do; he
had to content himself with the key-hole and be happy there!
There he stood out on the cold landing, the autumn wind blowing
through the cracks of the floor. It was cold--very cold, but he first
found it out when the light in the attic was put out and the music in the
wood died away. Ah ! then it froze him, and he crept down again into
his warm corner; there it was comfortable and cosy.
When Christmas came, and with it the jam with the large lump of butter,
ah! then the grocer was first with him.
But in the middle of the night the Goblin awoke, hearing a great noise

and knocking against the shutters--people hammering from outside.
The watchman was blowing his horn: a great fire had broken out; the
whole town was in flames.
Was it in the house? or was it at a neighbour's? Where was it?
The alarm increased. The grocer's wife was so terrified that she took
her gold earrings out of her ears and put them in her pocket in order to
save something. The grocer seized his account books. and the maid her
black silk dress.
Everyone wanted to save his most valuable possession; so did the
Goblin, and in a few leaps he was up the stairs and in the student's
room. He was standing quietly by the open window looking at the fire
that was burning in the neighbour's house just opposite. The Goblin
seized the book lying on the table, put it in his red cap, and clasped it
with both hands. The best treasure in the house was saved, and he
climbed out on to the roof with it--on to the chimney. There he sat,
lighted up by the flames from the burning house opposite, both hands
holding tightly on his red cap, in which lay the treasure; and now he
knew what his heart really valued most--to whom he really belonged.
But when the fire was put out, and the Goblin thought it over--then--
'I will divide myself between the two,' he said. 'I cannot quite give up
the grocer, because of the jam!'
And it is just the same with us. We also cannot quite give up the
grocer--because of the jam.

The House in the Wood From the German of Grimm.

A poor woodcutter lived with his wife and three daughters in a little hut
on the borders of a great forest.
One morning as he was going to his work, he said to his wife, 'Let our
eldest daughter