The Beetle Who Went on His Travels · page 21 2101Then he translated the beetle's name into Latin, and said a great deal upon the creature's nature and history.102The second person, who was older and a scholar, proposed to carry the beetle home, as they wanted just such good specimens as this.103Our beetle considered this speech a great insult, so he flew suddenly out of the speaker's hand.104His wings were dry now, so they carried him to a great distance, till at last he reached a hothouse, where a sash of the glass roof was partly open, so he quietly slipped in and buried himself in the warm earth. "105It is very comfortable here," he said to himself, and soon after fell asleep.106Then he dreamed that the emperor's horse was dying, and had left him his golden shoes, and also promised that he should have two more.107All this was very delightful, and when the beetle woke up he crept forth and looked around him.108What a splendid place the hothouse was!109At the back, large palm-trees were growing; and the sunlight made the leaves--look quite glossy; and beneath them what a profusion of luxuriant green, and of flowers red like flame, yellow as amber, or white as new-fallen snow! "110What a wonderful quantity of plants," cried the beetle; "how good they will taste when they are decayed!111This is a capital store-room.112There must certainly be some relations of mine living here; I will just see if I can find any one with whom I can associate.113I'm proud, certainly; but I'm also proud of being so."114Then he prowled about in the earth, and thought what a pleasant dream that was about the dying horse, and the golden shoes he had inherited.115Suddenly a hand seized the beetle, and squeezed him, and turned him round and round.116The gardener's little son and his playfellow had come into the hothouse, and, seeing the beetle, wanted to have some fun with him.checked by a teacher117First, he was wrapped, in a vine-leaf, and put into a warm trousers' pocket.118He twisted and turned about with all his might, but he got a good squeeze from the boy's hand, as a hint for him to keep quiet.119Then the boy went quickly towards a lake that lay at the end of the garden.120Here the beetle was put into an old broken wooden shoe, in which a little stick had been fastened upright for a mast, and to this mast the beetle was bound with a piece of worsted.121Now he was a sailor, and had to sail away.122The lake was not very large, but to the beetle it seemed an ocean, and he was so astonished at its size that he fell over on his back, and kicked out his legs.123Then the little ship sailed away; sometimes the current of the water seized it, but whenever it went too far from the shore one of the boys turned up his trousers, and went in after it, and brought it back to land.124But at last, just as it went merrily out again, the two boys were called, and so angrily, that they hastened to obey, and ran away as fast as they could from the pond, so that the little ship was left to its fate.125It was carried away farther and farther from the shore, till it reached the open sea.126This was a terrible prospect for the beetle, for he could not escape in consequence of being bound to the mast.127Then a fly came and paid him a visit. "128What beautiful weather," said the fly; "I shall rest here and sun myself.129You must have a pleasant time of it."130"You speak without knowing the facts," replied the beetle; "don't you see that I am a prisoner?"131"Ah, but I'm not a prisoner," remarked the fly, and away he flew.132"Well, now I know the world," said the beetle to himself; "it's an abominable world; I'm the only respectable person in it.133First, they refuse me my golden shoes; then I have to lie on damp linen, and to stand in a draught; and to crown all, they fasten a wife upon me.134Then, when I have made a step forward in the world, and found out a comfortable position, just as I could wish it to be, one of these human boys comes and ties me up, and leaves me to the mercy of the wild waves, while the emperor's favorite horse goes prancing about proudly on his golden shoes.135This vexes me more than anything.136But it is useless to look for sympathy in this world.checked by a teacher137My career has been very interesting, but what's the use of that if nobody knows anything about it?138The world does not deserve to be made acquainted with my adventures, for it ought to have given me golden shoes when the emperor's horse was shod, and I stretched out my feet to be shod, too.139If I had received golden shoes I should have been an ornament to the stable; now I am lost to the stable and to the world.140It is all over with me."141But all was not yet over.142A boat, in which were a few young girls, came rowing up. "143Look, yonder is an old wooden shoe sailing along," said one of the younger girls.144"And there's a poor little creature bound fast in it," said another.145The boat now came close to our beetle's ship, and the young girls fished it out of the water.146One of them drew a small pair of scissors from her pocket, and cut the worsted without hurting the beetle, and when she stepped on shore she placed him on the grass. "147There," she said, "creep away, or fly, if thou canst.148It is a splendid thing to have thy liberty."149Away flew the beetle, straight through the open window of a large building; there he sank down, tired and exhausted, exactly on the mane of the emperor's favorite horse, who was standing in his stable; and the beetle found himself at home again.150For some time he clung to the mane, that he might recover himself. "151Well," he said, "here I am, seated on the emperor's favorite horse,--sitting upon him as if I were the emperor himself.152But what was it the farrier asked me?153Ah, I remember now,--that's a good thought,--he asked me why the golden shoes were given to the horse.154The answer is quite clear to me, now.155They were given to the horse on my account."156And this reflection put the beetle into a good temper.157The sun's rays also came streaming into the stable, and shone upon him, and made the place lively and bright. "158Travelling expands the mind very much," said the beetle. "159The world is not so bad after all, if you know how to take things as they come."1 2← previousBeauty of Form and Beauty of Mindnext →The Bell↑ back to Fairy Tales of Hans Christian AndersenThis page in Markdown → https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/tales/pg27200/8/page/2/