Jean de Boschère

“ The treasure was discovered first of all by my father. He came upon it one day when he was hunting in the forest, among the ruins of a palace that once belonged to [70] an ancient king. There, in a deep hole, under a big stone, he found the gold and gems, and for ever afterwards he was a changed creature. No longer blithe and care-free, he slunk about as though overburdened with responsibility. He knew himself rich beyond compare—richer than any king in all the world, and gradually into his heart there crept the desire to win, by means of his riches, a place of power. ”

“ Let the Fox tell us where this treasure is hidden; that is the important thing!”
“I had thought to carry the secret with me to the grave,” said Reynard, “but in this solemn hour I can hide nothing. If it is your Majesty’s will, I will tell all.”
“AND PEARLS TOO?” SHE WHISPERED
“Beware, O King!” cried the Bear. “He will deceive you now as he has deceived others. Believe not his lying words!”
“Silence!” cried the King. “This matter concerns me, and me alone. Let Reynard speak!”
Reynard cast a look of triumph at Bruin and Isengrim, and, smiling faintly, went on with his tale. ”

“ We should not dream of saying nasty things about your mother," said Redy with true emotion.
"I thought not," said the Crow more peaceably, "besides, she's such a funny little thing, poor dear; she's no legs, no wings, and no tail."
"Dear, dear, and only one eye?" asked Smaly.
"Yes," said the Crow, "only one eye, so she sees only one side of men, birds, and things."
"What does she live on?" asked Redy, with a woman's interest in practical matters. ”

“ Let us go into partnership, for there cannot be two others like us in the whole world.”
“Willingly,” answered Sponsken, “but what are we to do?”
“Why, as for that,” said the giant, “the King of this country has promised his daughter’s hand in marriage, and a great treasure besides, to anybody who can destroy three ferocious beasts which are devastating his realm. It seems to me that this is a task we can quite well do together. You, with your quickness and skill, can trap the beasts, and I can kill them with my club. That done, we will divide the spoils.” ”

“ Those Wigs whose feet stuck out too far drew them back, and those whose feet did not come out far enough advanced them until every one's toes touched the cord and made a straight line.
"You can roll the cord up," commanded the master; then he turned to Smaly. "Tell the truth," he demanded, "are you made of suet?"
At this moment Papylick and the Young Stork gave a cry of horror. They had discovered that Smaly and Redy had licked the painted landscapes off the insides of the nuts in which they had been transported. ”

“ When Smaly and Redy were sure that all was safe, they crept forward to the edge of the rock. Their two little heads appeared side by side before the astonished eyes of the three young girls, and since their beaks had disappeared for good and all, the two little people were certain they would make a good impression. And, indeed, the three young girls saw at once that these were the heads of human beings, real human beings, not creatures made of sugar and cake. ”

“ Lurking in his usual stealthy way in a farmyard, he saw the farmer go into the house with a fine big ham, which he hung by a cord on a nail in the kitchen wall. Away he ran to Courtoys and told him what he had seen.
“Well,” said Courtoys surlily, “and what about it?”
“Why,” answered Tybert. “There is no reason why we should not feast on that ham, you and I. It will be the easiest thing in the world to steal it. The latch of the kitchen window is broken, and it cannot be locked. All you have to do is to go there to-night, creep through the window, pull down the ham, and throw it out to me.” ”

“ Wigs themselves would have melted away directly they passed the Frontier
And indeed the rain began to fall. The Soy powder mingling with the water had a magical effect, the effect that Smaly had hoped for; the whole country began to sprout, trees, houses, grass, walls, lawns, everything began to grow and grow, just as the sugar-cane prison had done when the Rats watered it with the liquid from the reservoir of Soy. ”

“ Slinking through the undergrowth came Isengrim’s kin, the grey wolves, with lean flanks and fierce eyes shining. Reynard brought his troop of foxes. Crashing through the trees came the mighty elephants, waving their trunks and trumpeting defiance to the foe. Out of the mud of river-beds, from the grassy plains, and the densest thickets of the forest, the animals came flocking—lions, tigers, camels, bulls, horses—if I were to name them [136] all I should fill this book with their names. Never had so many animals been brought together since the days of Noah’s Ark. ”

“ There was a flash, a loud report, and the Bear felt a terrific blow against his side. Down he went like a ninepin, but fortunately for him the bullet had merely glanced off his hide, and he was not seriously hurt. Picking himself up, he lost no time in gaining the shelter of the trees, and presently came limping painfully to the place where the Fox was waiting for him.
“Well, my friend,” said Reynard, “did you see the man-animal? And what did you think of him?”
“You were right,” answered poor Bruin sadly. “He is certainly the most cunning creature in the world. ”

“ Smaly began to understand why it was that the Confectioner walked about on high pattens, and why the Rats wore boots. He saw that though all these people owed their pleasant life to Soy because it made everything grow without any trouble, yet they feared it, feared it even more than they feared the flies which used to come when they were asleep and eat the sugar of which their faces and hands were composed. ”

“ The next morning, therefore, having packed a loaf of bread and a piece of cheese in a bag, Sponsken set off on his travels, telling nobody where he was going, and taking nothing else with him except a sparrow which he had tamed and kept since it was a fledgling. After walking for a long time he came to a forest, and feeling rather tired he sat down on the trunk of a fallen tree to rest.
Now in this forest lived a giant who was the most hideous creature one could possibly imagine. ”

“ Smaly and his wife Redy set forth in search of three little girls: They are bewitched so that their noses turn into beaks: Smaly eats the latch of a door and Redy eats the hinge: Redy's fingers weep tears: They meet with a Confectioner who resembles a Kangaroo. ”

“ The King wants his ring back again, and will give the five bags of gold to anybody who will recover it for him.”
“I see,” said Chaton; “and why don’t you climb the walnut-tree and get the ring?”
“Because I have too much respect for my neck,” answered the peasant, “and so has everybody else here. The boughs at the top of the tree where the nest is are so thin and slender that they would not bear the weight of a child, let alone a grown man. Gold is good, but whole limbs are better, that’s what I say!” ”

“ Their vividly coloured clothes were composed of mosaics of caramel and jam, with insertions of fruit and cake. Each one wore on his head a hat made of preserved fruit or of a whole bun or little cake. Shoes seemed to be very much a matter of individual taste in this land, for every inhabitant wore a pair of a different colour, shoes so gay that the mere sight of them made one want to dance. There was one woman in particular who wore upon her head a cake in the form of a little tower, who had the most charming mauve shoes with red soles, upon which Redy felt her eyes always returning enviously. ”

“ A long time ago (she said) there lived in a farmyard a Cock who was very proud of himself, and with reason, too, for he was, indeed, a plump and handsome bird. Nothing could have been finer than his appearance when he strutted through the yard, lifting his feet high as he walked, and nodding his head at each step. He had a magnificent comb of coral-red, and blue-black plumage streaked with gold, which shone so brilliantly when the sun flashed on it that it was a joy to see him. ”

“ Smaly and Redy joined hands and ran out of the door.
Directly they appeared in the square the Wigs seized hold of them and ran them into the kitchen once more, which by now had been built up again. Smaly and Redy began to hope that the evening was not far off, for they were becoming more and more anxious to see the three girls. They opened their mouths and began their little chant:
We wish to have three girls,
Fine, sweet——
But at this moment Redy noticed that the sun had not moved during all the hours of the siesta. ”

“ Unfortunately the treasure was heavy and I had no means of conveyance—not even a barrow, but I took counsel of Hermeline, my wife, and she, noble soul as she is, strengthened me in my resolve. ‘Though we wear our paws to the bone,’ said she, ‘we must take the treasure away and save the life of our noble and our beloved King.’ That very night we began our task, and little by little we moved the treasure, hiding it in a safe place known only to ourselves. For the best part of a month we laboured, working only at night, and fearful every moment that we should be discovered. ”

“ Slung all about him, the Kangaroo carried as many pots and pans as a travelling tinker. He was adorned as well by spoons of bamboo, and from his belt hung ebony-handled knives, while jam-jars and flagons, filled with preserves and essences, dangled [Pg 13] about him. The most tender mauves and translucent greens glowed through the glass of the flagons.
Kangaroo-Confectioner
Smaly studied the good-natured face of this personage, and asked him simply:
"Who are you?"
Then the Kangaroo-Confectioner said a surprising thing. He replied:
"I am the Architect." ”

“ Just as the mosquito arrived, the Bear and the Fox were speaking together.
“So it is settled,” the Bear was saying. “Our great offensive will begin to-morrow. Each of you knows what to do, I think? We have discussed everything, and nothing remains to do, but to press forward to a glorious victory.”
“You are right, my lord,” said Reynard, “but there is just one thing you have forgotten. How are we to know when the victory is won? We must have a standard-bearer.” ”

“ With his nail, which looked exactly like a horn salt-spoon, the Confectioner scraped the inner side of the door just beside the latch, and Redy and Smaly saw the chocolate grow again as rapidly as he scraped it away. ”

“ I have no doubt you could kill a whole regiment with your breath. But words won’t go with me, my man; you must give me some proof of your prowess.”
“Proof!” roared the giant. “See here! I can throw a stone so high into the air that it will not come down for a quarter of an hour.” And he was as good as his word, for, picking up a large stone, he flung it with all his strength, and it was more than a quarter of an hour before it fell again at their feet.
“Can you match that?” asked the giant with a grin.
“Easily,” said Sponsken. “I will throw a stone so high that it will not come down at all!” ”

“ Now this light came from the cat’s eyes, and as soon as puss felt the robber touch her, she sprang up, snarling and spitting, and scratched his face. With a scream of terror, he dropped his candle and rushed for the door, and as he passed the dog bit him in the leg. By this time the noise had awakened Greyskin, who got upon his feet just as the man ran by, and helped him forward with a mighty kick, which sent him flying out into the roadway. Seeing this, the cock on the housetop spread his wings and crowed in triumph, “Cock-a-doodle-doo!” ”