Part 3 (2/2)
When _The Honest Penny_ was over, Anders, almost without taking breath, said,--
”Now, girls, it is my right to call for a tune. You know lots of stories, and can tell them better than I. So, Christine, do you tell _The Death of Chanticleer_; and you, Karin, _The Greedy Cat_. And mind you act them as well as tell them. They are nursery tales meant for children, and mind you tell them well.”
I am bound to say that Christine, who was a very pretty girl, now no doubt the happy mother of children, told _The Death of Chanticleer_ in a way which would have gained her in China the post of Own Story-teller to the Emperor's children. Without a blush, and without even the stereotyped ”unaccustomed as I am to public story-telling,” she began.
”This is the story of--
THE DEATH OF CHANTICLEER.
”Once on a time there were a c.o.c.k and a Hen, who walked out into the field, and scratched, and sc.r.a.ped, and scrabbled. All at once, Chanticleer found a burr of hop, and Partlet found a barley-corn; and they said they would make malt and brew Yule ale.
”'Oh! I pluck barley, and I malt malt, and I brew ale, and the ale is good,' cackled dame Partlet.
”'Is the wort strong enough?' crew Chanticleer; and as he crowed he flew up on the edge of the cask, and tried to have a taste; but, just as he bent over to drink a drop, he took to flapping his wings, and so he fell head over heels into the cask, and was drowned.
”When dame Partlet saw that, she clean lost her wits, and flew up into the chimney-corner, and fell a-screaming and screeching out. 'Harm in the house! harm in the house!' she screeched out all in a breath, and there was no stopping her.
”'What ails you, dame Partlet, that you sit there sobbing and sighing?'
said the Handquern.
”'Why not?' said dame Partlet; 'when goodman Chanticleer has fallen into the cask and drowned himself, and lies dead? That's why I sigh and sob.'
”'Well, if I can do naught else, I will grind and groan,' said the Handquern; and so it fell to grinding as fast as it could.
”When the Chair heard that, it said--
”'What ails you, Handquern, that you grind and groan so fast and oft?'
”'Why not, when goodman Chanticleer has fallen into the cask and drowned himself; and dame Partlet sits in the ingle, and sighs and sobs? That's why I grind and groan,' said the Handquern.
”'If I can do naught else, I will crack,' said the Chair; and, with that, he fell to creaking and cracking.
”When the Door heard that, it said,--
”'What's the matter? Why do you creak and crack so, Mr. Chair?'
”'Why not?' said the Chair; 'goodman Chanticleer has fallen into the cask and drowned himself; dame Partlet sits in the ingle, sighing and sobbing; and the Handquern grinds and groans. That's why I creak and crackle, and croak and crack.'
”'Well,' said the Door, 'if I can do naught else, I can rattle and bang, and whistle and slam;' and, with that, it began to open and shut, and bang and slam, it deaved one to hear, and all one's teeth chattered.
”All this the Stove heard, and it opened its mouth and called out--
”'Door! Door! why all this slamming and banging?'
”'Why not?' said the Door; 'when goodman Chanticleer has fallen into the cask and drowned himself; dame Partlet sits in the ingle, sighing and sobbing; the Handquern grinds and groans, and the Chair creaks and cracks. That's why I bang and slam.'
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