Читать книгу A Selection from the Norse Tales for the Use of Children онлайн

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“Shan’t we, each of us, tell a little story while we sit here?”

Well! the others had nothing against that. It would be good fun, they said, and the Bear began; for you may fancy he was king of the company.

“The king of England,” said Bruin, “has such bad eyesight, that he can scarce see a yard before him; but if he only came to this lime-tree in the morning, while the dew is still on the leaves, and took and rubbed his eyes with the dew, he would get back his sight as good as ever.”

“Very true!” said Greylegs. “The king of England has a deaf and dumb daughter too; but if he only knew what I know, he would soon cure her. Last year she went to the communion. She let a crumb of the bread fall out of her mouth, and a great toad came and swallowed it down; but if they only dug up the chancel floor they would find the toad sitting right under the altar rails, with the bread still sticking in his throat. If they were to cut the toad open and take and give the bread to the princess, she would be like other folk again as to her speech and hearing.”