9: OLE LUK-OIE.

sentry. They shouldered golden swords, and caused raisins and
tin soldiers to shower down: one could see that they were real]
Princes. Sometimes Hjalmar sailed through forests, sometimes
through halls or through the midst of azown. He also came to
the town where his nurse lived, who had always been so kind to
him; and she nodded and beckoned, and sang the pretty verse
she had made herself and had sent to Hjalmar.

“‘T’ve loved thee, and kissed thee, Hjalmar, dear boy;
I’ve watched thee waking and sleeping :
May the good Lord guard thee in sorrow, in joy,
And have thee in His keeping.”

And all the birds sang too, the flowers danced on their stalks,
and the old trees nodded, just as if Ole Luk-Oie had been telling
stories to chem.

WEDNESDAY.

How the rain was streaming down without! Hjalmar could
hear it in his sleep; and when Ole Luk-Oie opened a window,
the water stood quite up to the window-sill : there was quite a
lake outside, and a noble ship lay close by the house.

“Tf thou wilt sail with me, little Hjalmar,” said Ole Luk-Oie,
“ thou canst voyage to-night to foreign climes, and be back again
to-morrow.”

And Hjalmar suddenly stood in his Sunday clothes upon the
glorious ship, and immediately the weather became fine, and they
sailed through the streets, and steered round bythe church; and
now everything was one great wild ocean. They sailed on until
the land was no longer to be seen, and they saw a number of
storks, who also came from their home, and were travelling to-
wards the hot countries ; these storks flew in a row, one behind
the other, and they had already flown far—far! One of them
was so weary that his wings would scarcely carry him farther;
he was the very last in the row, and soon remained a great way
behind the rest; at last he sank, with outspread wings, deeper
and deeper ; he gave a few more strokes with his pinions, but it
was of no use; now he touched the rigging of the ship with his
feet, then he glided down from the sail, and—bump !—he stood
upon the deck.

Now the cabin-boy took him and put him into the hencoop
with the Fowls, Ducks,and Turkeys ; the poor Stork stood among
them quite embarrassed.

“Just look at the fellow !” said all the Fowls.

And the Turkey-cock swelled himself up as much as ever he
could,and asked the Stork who he was; and the Ducks walked
backwards and quacked to each other, ‘ Quackery ! quackery !”

And the Stork told them of hot Africa, of the pyramids, and
of the ostrich which runs like a wild horse through the desert ;