| The emperors horse had
been awarded golden shoes, one for each hoof. |
Keiserens Hest fik Guldskoe;
Guldsko paa hver en Fod. |
| |
Hvorfor fik han Guldskoe?
|
| It was such a beautiful
animal, with strong legs and a mane that fell like a veil of
silk over its neck. Its eyes were sad, and when you looked into
them you felt certain that if the horse could speak it would
be able to answer more questions than you could ask. On the
battlefield it had carried its master through a rain of bullets
and a cloud of gun smoke. It was a true war horse, and once
when the emperor was surrounded by the enemy, it had bit and
kicked their horses and then, when all seemed lost, it had leaped
over the carcass of an enemy steed to carry the emperor to safety.
The horse had saved his master's golden crown and his life,
which was worth a great deal more to the emperor than all the
crown jewels. And that was why the blacksmith had been given
orders to fasten a golden shoe on each of its hoofs. |
Han var det deiligste
Dyr, havde fine Been, Øine saa kloge og en Manke, der hang som
et Silkeslør ned om Halsen. Han havde baaret sin Herre i Kruddamp
og Kugleregn, hørt Kuglerne synge og pibe; han havde bidt om
sig, slaaet om sig, kæmpet med, da Fjenderne trængte paa; med
sin Keiser sat i eet Spring over den styrtede Fjendes Hest,
frelst sin Keisers Krone af det røde Guld, frelst sin Keisers
Liv, der var mere end det røde Guld, og derfor fik Keiserens
Hest Guldskoe, Guldsko paa hver en Fod. |
| The dung beetle climbed
to the top of the manure pile to watch. |
Og Skarnbassen krøb
frem. |
| "First the big and then
the small," he said. "Not that size is important," he added
as he lifted one of his thin legs and stretched it up toward
the blacksmith. |
"Først de Store, saa
de Smaa," sagde den, "dog det er ikke Størrelsen, som gjør det."
Og saa strakte den frem sine tynde Been. |
| "What do you want?"
the man asked. |
"Hvad vil Du?" spurgte
Smeden. |
| "Golden shoes," replied
the dung beetle while balancing on five legs. |
"Guldskoe!" svarede
Skarnbassen. |
| "You must be out of
your mind to think that you should have golden shoes," the blacksmith
exclaimed, and scratched himself behind his right ear. |
"Du er nok ikke klarhovedet!"
sagde Smeden, "vil Du ogsaa have Guldskoe?" |
| "Golden shoes!" repeated
the dung beetle crossly. "Am I not as good as that big clumsy
beast that needs to have a servant to groom it, and even to
see to it that it doesn't starve? Do I not belong to the emperor's
stable too?" |
"Guldskoe!" sagde Skarnbassen.
"Er jeg ikke ligesaa god som det store Bæst, der skal have Opvartning,
strigles, passes, have Føde og Drikke. Hører jeg ikke ogsaa
til Keiserens Stald?" |
| "But why does the horse
deserve golden shoes, have you any idea about that?" |
"Men hvorfor faaer Hesten
Guldskoe?," spurgte Smeden, "begriber Du det ikke?" |
| "Idea!" cried the dung
beetle. "I have a very good idea of how I deserve to be treated
and how I am treated. Now I have been insulted enough; there
is nothing left for me to do but go out into the wide world."
|
"Begriber? Jeg begriber,
at det er Ringeagt imod mig," sagde Skarnbassen, "det er en
Krænkelse - og nu gaaer jeg derfor ud i den vide Verden!" |
| "Good riddance," said
the smith. |
"Pil af!" sagde Smeden.
|
| "Brute!" returned the
dung beetle, but the blacksmith, who had already returned to
his work, did not hear him. The dung beetle flew from the stable
to the flower garden; it was a lovely place that smelled of
roses and lavender. |
"Grov Karl!" sagde Skarnbassen,
og saa gik den udenfor, fløi et lille Stykke, og nu var den
i en nydelig lille Blomsterhave, hvor der duftede af Roser og
Lavendler. |
| "Isn't it beautiful
here?" a ladybug called to him. She had just come for a visit
and was busy folding her fragile wings beneath her blackspotted
armor. "The flowers smell so sweet that I think I shall stay
here forever." |
"Er her ikke deiligt!"
sagde en af de smaa "Vorherres Høns", der fløi om med sorte
Prikker paa de røde skjoldstærke Vinger. "Hvor her lugter sødt
og hvor her er kjønt!" |
| The dung beetle sniffed.
"I am used to something better. Why, there isn't even a decent
pile of dung here." |
"Jeg er vant til Bedre!"
sagde Skarnbassen, "kalde I dette kjønt? Her er jo ikke engang
en Mødding!" |
| The dung beetle sat
down to rest in the shadow of a tiger lily. Climbing up the
flower's stem was a caterpillar. |
Og saa gik den videre
frem, ind i Skyggen af en stor Levkoi; der krøb en Kaalorm paa
den. |
| "The world is beautiful,"
the caterpillar said. "The sun is very warm and I am getting
quite sleepy. When I fall asleep-- or die as some call it--
I am sure that I shall wake up as a butterfly." |
"Hvor dog Verden er
deilig!" sagde Kaalormen, "Solen er saa varm! Alt er saa fornøieligt!
og naar jeg engang sover ind og døer, som de kalde det, saa
vaagner jeg op og er en Sommerfugl!" |
| "Butterfly, indeed!
Dont give yourself airs. I come from the emperor's stable, and
no one there--not even the emperor's horse--has any notions
like that. Those who can fly, fly. . . . And those who can crawl,
crawl." And then the dung beetle flew away. "I try not to let
things annoy me; but they annoy me anyway," |
"Bild Dig Noget ind!"
sagde Skarnbassen, "nu flyve vi om som Sommerfugl! Jeg kommer
fra Keiserens Stald, men Ingen der, ikke engang Keiserens Livhest,
der dog gaaer med mine aflagte Guldskoe, har slige Indbildninger.
Faae Vinger! flyve! ja nu flyve vi!" Og saa fløi Skarnbassen.
"Jeg vil ikke ærgre mig, men jeg ærgrer mig dog!" |
| the dung beetle thought
as it landed with a thud in the middle of a great lawn, where
it lay quietly for a moment before falling asleep. |
Saa dumpede den ned
paa en stor Græsplet; her laae den lidt, saa faldt den i Søvn.
|
| Goodness, it was raining.
It poured! The dung beetle woke with a splash and tried to dig
himself down into the earth but he couldn't. The rain had formed
little rivers, and the dung beetle swam first on his stomach
and then on his back. There was no hope of being able to fly.
"I shan't live through it," he muttered, and sighed so deeply
that his mouth filled with water. There was nothing to do but
lie still where he was, and so he lay still. |
Bevares, hvilken Skylregn
der styrtede! Skarnbassen vaagnede ved det Pladsk og vilde strax
ned i Jorden, men kunde det ikke; den væltede, den svømmede
paa Maven og paa Ryggen, flyve var der ikke at tænke paa, den
kom vist aldrig levende fra denne Plet; den laae hvor den laae
og blev liggende. |
| When the rain let up
for a moment the dung beetle blinked the water out of his eyes
and looked about. He saw something white and crawled through
the wet grass toward it. It was a piece of linen that had been
stretched out on the grass to bleach. "I am used to better but
it will have to do," he thought. "Though it's neither as warm
nor as comfortable as a heap of dung; but when you travel you
have to take things as they come." And he stayed under the linen
a whole day and a whole night; and it rained all the time. Finally,
the following morning, the dung beetle stuck his head out from
the fold of the linen and, seeing the gray sky, he was very
annoyed. |
Da det hoftede lidt,
og Skarnbassen havde blinket Vandet af sine Øine, skimtede den
noget Hvidt, det var Linned paa Blegen; den naaede derhen, krøb
ind i en Fold af det vaade Lintøi, det var rigtignok ikke, som
at ligge i den varme Dynge i Stalden; men her var nu Intet bedre,
og saa blev den her en heel. Dag, en heel Nat, og ogsaa Regnveiret
blev. I Morgenstunden kom Skarnbassen frem; den var saa ærgerlig
over Climatet. |
| Two frogs sat down on
the linen. "What glorious weather," said one to the other. "It's
so refreshing and this linen is soaking wet; to sit here is
almost as pleasant as to swim." |
Der sad paa Linnedet
to Frøer; deres klare Øine lyste af bare Fornøielse. "Det er
et velsignet Veir!" sagde den Ene. "Hvor det forfrisker! og
Lintøiet holder saa deiligt sammen paa Vandet! det kriller mig
i Bagbenene, som om jeg skulde svømme!" |
| "I would like to know,"
began the other frog, "if the swallow, who travels a good deal
in foreign countries, ever has been in a land that has a better
climate than ours. As much rain as you need; and a bit of wind,
too--not to talk of the mist and the dew. Why, it is as good
as living in a ditch. If you don't love this climate, then you
don't love your country." |
"Jeg gad nok vide,"
sagde den Anden, "om Svalen, som flyver saa vidt omkring, om
den paa sine mange Reiser i Udlandet har fundet et bedre Climat,
end vort; saadant et Rusk, og saadan en Væde! det er ligesom
om man laae i en vaad Grøft! er man ikke glad ved det, saa elsker
man rigtignok ikke sit Fædreland!" |
| "Have you ever been
in the emperor's stable?" the dung beetle asked. "There the
wetness is spicy and warm. I prefer that kind of climate because
I am used to it; but when you travel you can't take it along,
that's the way things are. . . . Could you tell me if there
is a hothouse in this garden, where a person of my rank and
sensitivity would feel at home?" |
"I have da aldrig været
i Keiserens Stalde?" spurgte Skarnbassen. "Der er det Vaade
baade varmt og krydret! det er jeg vant til; det er mit Climat,
men det kan man ikke tage med paa Reisen. Er her ingen Mistbænk
i Haven, hvor Standspersoner, som jeg, kunne tage ind og føle
sig hjemme?" |
| The frogs either couldn't
or wouldn't understand him. |
Men Frøerne forstode
ham ikke, eller vilde ikke forstaae ham. |
| "I never ask a question
more than once," said the dung beetle after he had repeated
his query the third time without getting an answer. |
"Jeg spørger aldrig
anden Gang!" sagde Skarnbassen, da den havde spurgt tre Gange
uden at faae Svar. |
| He walked along until
he came upon a piece of a broken flowerpot. It shouldn't have
been lying there but the gardener hadn't seen it, so it provided
a good home for several families of earwigs. Earwigs do not
need very much room, only company, especially lady earwigs,
who are very motherly. Underneath the piece of pottery there
lived several lady earwigs; and each of them thought that her
children were the handsomest and most intelligent in the whole
world. |
Saa gik den et Stykke,
der laae et Potteskaar; det skulde ikke ligge der, men som det
laae gav det Ly. Her boede flere Ørentviste-Familier; de forlange
ikke meget Huusrum, men kun Selskabelighed; Hunnerne ere især
begavede med Moderkjærlighed, derfor var ogsaa hvers Unge den
kjønneste og den klogeste. |
| "My son is engaged,"
one of them announced. "That innocent joy of my life . . . His
most cherished ambition is to climb into the ear of a minister.
He is charmingly childish, and being engaged will keep him from
running about, and that is a great comfort to a mother." |
"Vor Søn er bleven forlovet!"
sagde een Moder, "den søde Uskyldighed! hans høieste Maal er
engang at kunne krybe i Øret paa en Præst. Han er saa elskelig
barnlig og Forlovelse holder ham fra Udskeielser! det er saa
glædeligt for en Moder!" |
| "Our son," began another
mother earwig, "came straight out of the egg. He is full of
life and that is a joy. He is busy sowing his wild oats, and
that, too, can make a mother proud. Don't you agree with me,
Mr. Dung Beetle?" She had recognized him by his shape. |
"Vor Søn," sagde en
anden Moder, "kom lige ud af Ægget og var strax paa Spil; det
sprutter i ham, han løber Hornene af sig. Det er en uhyre Glæde
for en Moder! Ikke sandt? Hr. Skarnbasse!" De kjendte den Fremmede
paa Skabelonen. |
| "You are both right,"
remarked the dung beetle; and the earwigs invited him to come
into their home and make himself comfortable. |
"De har begge To Ret!"
sagde Skarnbassen, og saa blev den budt op i Stuen, saa langt
den kunde komme under Potteskaaret. |
| "Now you must meet my
children," said a third mother earwig. "And mine!" cried a fourth.
"They are so lovable and so amusing, and they only misbehave
when they have stomach aches and it's not their fault that you
get one so easily at their age." |
"Nu skal De ogsaa see
min lille Ørentvist!" sagde en tredie og fjerde af Mødrene,
"det er de elskeligste Børn og saa morsomme! de ere aldrig uartige
uden naar de have ondt i Maven, men det faaer man saa let i
deres Alder!" |
| All the mothers talked
and their children talked; and when the little ones weren't
talking, they were pulling at the dung beetle's mustache with
the little tweezers that each of them had in his tail. |
Og saa talte hver Moder
om sine Unger, og Ungerne talte med og brugte den lille Gaffel
de havde paa Halen til at trække i Skarnbassens Mundskjæg. |
| "Always up to something!
Aren't they darling?" the mothers said in a chorus, and oozed
mother love. But the dung beetle was bored and asked for directions
to the nearest hothouse. |
"De finde nu ogsaa paa
Alting, de Smaaskjelmer!" sagde Mødrene og dunstede af Moderkjærlighed,
men det kjedede Skarnbassen, og saa spurgte den om der var langt
herfra til Mistbænken. |
| "It is far, far away,
nearly at the end of the world, on the other side of the ditch,"
explained one of the lady earwigs. "If one of my children ever
should think of traveling so far away I would die. I am sure
of it." |
"Det er langt ude i
Verden, paa den anden Side Grøften!" sagde Ørentvisten, "saa
langt, vil jeg haabe, komme aldrig nogen af mine Børn, for saa
døde jeg!" |
| "Well, that is where
I am going," said the dung beetle, and to show that he was really
gallant, he left without saying good-by. |
"Saa langt vil jeg dog
prøve at naae!" sagde Skarnbassen og gik uden Afsked; det er
galantest. |
| In the ditch he met
many relatives: all of them dung beetles. |
Ved Grøften traf den
flere af sin Slægt, alle Skarnbasser. |
| "This is our home,"
they said. "It is quite comfortable: warm and wet. Please step
down into the land of plenty. You must be tired after all your
travels." |
"Her boe vi!" sagde
de. "Vi have det ganske luunt! Tør vi ikke byde Dem ned i det
Fede! Reisen har vist trættet Dem!" |
| "I am!" replied the
dung beetle. "I have lain a whole day and a whole night on linen.
Cleanliness wears you out so. Then I stood under a drafty flowerpot
until I got arthritis in my wings. It is a blessing to be with
my own kind again." |
"Det har den!" sagde
Skarnbassen. "Jeg har ligget paa Linned i Regnveir, og Reenlighed
tager især paa mig! jeg har ogsaa faaet Gigt i Vingeledet, ved
at staae i Træk under et Potteskaar. Det er rigtig en Vederqvægelse
at komme engang til sine egne!" |
| "Do you come from the
hothouse?" one of the older dung beetles asked. |
"De kommer maaskee fra
Mistbænken!" spurgte den Ældste. |
| "Higher still. I was
born in the emperor's stable with golden shoes on. I am traveling
incognito on a secret mission. And no matter how much you coaxed,
I wouldn't tell you about it." |
"Høiere op!" sagde Skarnbassen.
"Jeg kommer fra Keiserens Stald, hvor jeg blev født med Guldskoe;
jeg reiser i et hemmeligt Ærende, hvorom De ikke maa fritte
mig, thi jeg siger det ikke!" |
| With these words the
dung beetle crept into the mud and made himself comfortable.
Nearby sat three young lady dung beetles. They were tittering
because they didn't know what to say. |
Og saa steg Skarnbassen
ned i det fede Dynd; der sad tre unge Hun-Skarnbasser, de fnisede,
for de vidste ikke hvad de skulde sige. |
| "They are not engaged,
though they are beautiful," remarked their mother. The young
ladies tittered again, this time because they were shy. |
"De ere uforlovede!"
sagde Moderen, og saa fnisede de igjen, men det var af Forlegenhed.
|
| "Even in the emperor's
stable I have never seen anyone more beautiful," agreed the
dung beetle, who had traveled far and wide. |
"Jeg har ikke seet dem
skjønnere i Keiserens Stalde!" sagde den reisende Skarnbasse.
|
| "They are young and
virtuous. Don't ruin them! Don't speak to them unless you have
honorable intentions. But I see you are a gentleman, and therefore
I give you my blessings!" |
"Fordærv mig ikke mine
Pigebørn! og tal ikke til dem, uden De har reelle Hensigter;
- men det har De, og jeg giver Dem min Velsignelse." |
| "Hurrah!" cried all
the other dung beetles, and congratulated the foreigner on his
engagement. First engaged, then married; there was no reason
to put it off. |
"Hurra!" sagde alle
de Andre, og saa var Skarnbassen forlovet. Først Forlovelse,
saa Bryllup, der var jo ikke Noget at vente efter. |
| The first day of married
life was good, and the second was pleasant enough, but on the
third began all the responsibilities of providing food for his
wives, and soon there would probably be offspring. |
Næste Dag gik meget
godt, den anden luntede af, men paa den tredie Dag skulde man
dog tænke paa Føden for Kone og maaskee Rollinger. |
| "They took me by surprise,"
thought the dung beetle., "Now I shall surprise them." |
"Jeg har ladet mig overraske!"
sagde den, "saa maa jeg nok overraske dem igjen. -!" |
| And so he did. He ran
away. All day the wives waited, and all night too; then they
declared themselves widows. The other dung beetles were angry
and called him a ne'er-do-well, because they feared that now
they would have to support the deserted wives. |
Og det gjorde den. Væk
var den; væk hele Dagen, væk hele Natten -og Konen sad Enke.
De andre Skarnbasser sagde, at det var en rigtig Landstryger
de havde optaget i Familien; Konen sad dem nu til Byrde. |
| "Just behave as if you
were virgins again," said their mother. "Come, you are still
my innocent girls. But shame on the tramp who abandoned you."
|
"Saa kan hun sidde som
Jomfru igjen!" sagde Moderen, "sidde som mit Barn! fy, det lede
Skarn, som forlod hende!" |
| In the meantime, the
dung beetle was sailing across the ditch on a cabbage leaf.
It was morning and two human beings who happened to be passing
noticed him and picked him up. They turned the dung beetle over
and looked at him from all sides, for these two men were scholars.
The younger of the two, who was the most learned, said, "'Allah
sees the black scarab in the black stone that is part of the
black mountain.' Isn't it written thus in the Koran?" Then he
translated the dung beetle's name into Latin and gave a lecture
in which he explained its genealogy and history. The older scholar
remarked that there was no reason to take the dung beetle home
with them, because he already had a much more beautiful scarab
in his collection. The dung beetle's feelings were hurt and
he flew right out of the scholar's hand, high up into the sky.
Now that his wings were dry he was able to make the long journey
to the hothouse in one stretch. Luckily, a window was open and
he flew straight in and landed on a Pile of manure that had
been delivered that morning. |
Han var imidlertid paa
Farten, var seilet paa et Kaalblad over Grøften; hen paa Morgenstunden
kom to Mennesker, de saae Skarnbassen, tog den op, vendte og
dreiede den og de vare meget lærde begge To, især Drengen. "Allah
seer den sorte Skarnbasse i den sorte Steen i det sorte Fjeld!
staaer der ikke saaledes i Alkoranen?" spurgte han og oversatte
Skarnbassens Navn paa Latin, gjorde Rede for dens Slægt og Natur.
Den ældre Lærde stemte imod at den skulde tages med hjem, de
havde der ligesaa gode Exemplarer, sagde han, og det var ikke
høfligt sagt, syntes Skarnbassen, derfor fløi den ham af Haanden,
fløi et godt Stykke, den var bleven tør i Vingerne og saa naaede
den Drivhuset, hvor den i største Beqvemmelighed, da det ene
Vindue var skudt op, kunde smutte ind og grave sig ned i den
friske Gjødning. |
| "This is sumptuous,"
he said as he dug himself down into the dung, |
"Her er lækkert!" sagde
den. |
| where he soon was asleep.
He dreamed that the emperor's horse was dead and that he--the
dung beetle--had not only been given its four golden shoes but
had been promised two more. It was a pleasant dream and when
the dung beetle awoke he climbed out of the manure to look about
him. How magnificent everything was! There were slender palm
trees, whose green leaves appeared transparent when the sun
shone on them; and below the trees were flowers of all colors.
Some were red as fire, and some were yellow as amber, and some
were as pure white as new-fallen snow. |
Snart faldt den isøvn
og drømte at Keiserens Hest var styrtet og at Hr. Skarnbasse
havde faaet dens Guldskoe og Løftet om to til. Det var en Behagelighed
og da Skarnbassen vaagnede, krøb den frem og saae op. Hvilken
Pragt her i Drivhuset! store Vifte-Palmer bredte sig i Høiden,
Solen gjorde dem transparente, og under dem vældede der en Fylde
af Grønt og skinnede der Blomster, røde som Ild, gule som Rav
og hvide som nysfalden Snee. |
| "What a marvelous display!"
exclaimed the dung bettle. "And think how delicious it all will
taste as soon as it is rotten. It is a glorious larder. I must
go visiting and see if I can find any of my family living here.
I cannot associate with just anybody. I have my pride, and that
I am proud of." Then he crawled on, recalling as he did so,
his dream and how the horse had died and he was given its gold
shoes. |
"Det er en mageløs Plantepragt!
hvor den vil smage naar den gaaer i Forraadnelse!" sagde Skarnbassen.
"Det er et godt Spiiskammer; her boe vist af Familien; jeg vil
gaae paa Eftersporing, see at finde Nogen, jeg kan omgaaes med.
Stolt er jeg, det er min Stolthed!" Og saa gik den og tænkte
paa sin Drøm om den døde Hest og de vundne Guldskoe. |
| Suddenly a little hand
picked him up, and again he was pinched and turned over. |
Da greb lige med Eet
en Haand om Skarnbassen, den blev klemt, vendt og dreiet. |
| The gardener's son and
one of his playmates had been exploring in the hothouse and,
when they saw the dung beetle, they decided it would be fun
to keep it. They wrapped it in a leaf from a grapevine, and
the gardener's son stuck it in his pocket. The dung beetle tried
to creep and to crawl, and the boy closed his hand around him
and that was most uncomfortable. The boys ran to the big pond
at the other end of the garden. A worn-out wooden shoe with
a missing instep became a ship. With a stick for a mast and
the dung beetle, who was tied to the stick with a piece of woolen
thread, as the captain, the ship was launched. |
Gartnerens lille Søn
og en Kammerat var i Drivhuset, havde seet Skarnbassen og skulde
have Fornøielse af den; lagt i et Vindrueblad kom den ned i
en varm Buxelomme, den kriblede og krablede, fik saa et Tryk
med Haanden af Drengen, der gik rask afsted til den store Indsø
for Enden af Haven, her blev Skarnbassen sat i en gammel knækket
Træsko, som Vristen var gaaet af; en Pind blev gjort fast, som
Mast; og til den blev Skarnbassen tøiret med en ulden Traad;
nu var den Skipper og skulde ud at seile. |
| The pool was large and
the dung beetle thought he was adrift on an ocean. He got so
frightened that he fell over on his back and there he lay with
all his legs pointing up toward the sky. |
Det var en meget stor
Indsø, Skarnbassen syntes, at det var et Verdenshav og blev
saa forbauset, at den faldt om paa Ryggen og sprættede med Benene.
|
| There were currents
in the water and they carried the wooden shoe along. When it
got out too far, one of the boys would roll up his trousers--both
boys were barefooted--and wade out to bring the shoe nearer
the shore. Suddenly, while the shoe was quite far out, almost
in the center of the pond, someone called the boys, called them
in so stern a voice that they forgot all about the shoe and
ran home as fast as they could. The wooden shoe drifted on and
on. The dung beetle shuddered with fear, for he couldn't fly
away, tethered as he was to the mast. |
Træskoen seilede, der
var Strømning i Vandet, men kom Fartøiet lidt forlangt ud, saa
smøgede den ene Dreng strax sine Buxer op og gik ud og hentede
det, men da det igjen var i Drift blev der kaldt paa Drengene,
alvorligt kaldt, og de skyndte dem afsted og lod Træsko være
Træsko; den drev og det altid meer fra Land, altid længer ud,
det var gyseligt for Skarnbassen; flyve kunde den ikke, den
var bunden fast til Masten. |
| A fly came to keep him
company. |
Den fik Besøg af en
Flue. |
| "Lovely weather, don't
you agree? I think I'll rest here for a moment in the sun. A
very comfortable place you have here." |
"Det er et deiligt Veir
vi har!" sagde Fluen. "Her kan jeg hvile mig! her kan jeg sole
mig. De har det meget behageligt!" |
| "Nonsense!" cried the
dung beetle. "How can I be comfortable when I am tied to the
mast? You talk like an idiot, so I'm sure you must be one." |
"De snakker, som De
har Forstand til! seer De ikke, at jeg er tøiret!" |
| "I'm not tied to anything,"
said the fly, and flew away. |
"Jeg er ikke tøiret!"
sagde Fluen og saa fløi den. |
| "Now I know the world,"
muttered the dung beetle. "It is cruel and I am the only decent
one in it. First they refused to give me golden shoes, then
they made me lie on wet linen and stand for hours in a draft.
Finally, I am tricked into marriage; and when I show my courage
by going out into the world to find out what that's like and
see how I will be treated there, I am captured by a human puppy
who ties me to a mast and sets me adrift on a great ocean. And
all the while the emperor's horse runs about with golden shoes
on; and that's almost the most annoying part of it all. In this
world you must not ask for sympathy. My life has been most interesting.
. . . But what difference does that make if no one ever hears
about it? . . . But does the world deserve to hear my story?
. . . If it did, I would have been given the golden shoes. Had
I got them, it would have brought honor to the stable. The stable
missed its chance, so did the world, for everything is over."
|
"Nu kjender jeg Verden!"
sagde Skarnbassen, "det er en nedrig Verden! jeg er den eneste
Honette i den! Først negter man mig Guldskoe, saa maa jeg ligge
paa vaadt Linned, staae i Træk og tilsidst prakke de mig en
Kone paa. Gjør jeg nu et rask Skridt ud i Verden, og seer hvorledes
man kan have det og jeg skulde have det, saa kommer en Menneske-Hvalp
og sætter mig i Tøir paa det vilde Hav. Og imidlertid gaaer
Keiserens Hest med Guldskoe! det creperer mig meest; men Deeltagelse
kan man ikke vente sig i denne Verden! mit Levnetsløb er meget
interessant, dog hvad kan det hjelpe naar Ingen kjende det!
Verden fortjener heller ikke at kjende det, ellers havde den
givet mig Guldskoe i Keiserens Stald, da Livhesten blev skoet
og jeg rakte Benene frem. Havde jeg faaet Guldskoe, da var jeg
bleven en Ære for Stalden, nu har den tabt mig og Verden har
tabt mig, Alt er ude!" |
| But everything was not
over; some young girls who were out rowing on the pond saw the
little ship. |
Men Alt var ikke ude
endnu, der kom en Baad med nogle unge Piger. |
| "Look, there is a wooden
shoe," one of them said. |
"Der seiler en Træsko!"
sagde den Ene. |
| "Someone has tied a
beetle to the mast," said another; |
"Der er et lille Dyr
tøiret fast i den!" sagde den Anden. |
| and she leaned over
the side of the boat and grabbed the wooden shoe. With a tiny
pair of scissors she carefully cut the woolen thread, so that
no harm came to the dung beetle. When they returned to shore
the girl let him go in the grass. |
De vare lige ved Siden
af Træskoen, de fik den op, og den ene af Pigerne tog en lille
Sax frem, klippede Uldtraaden over uden at gjøre Skarnbassen
Skade og da de kom i Land, satte hun den i Græsset. |
| "Crawl or fly, whichever
you can, for freedom is a precious gift," she said. |
"Kryb, kryb! flyv, flyv,
om Du kan!" sagde hun. "Frihed er en deilig Ting!" |
| The dung beetle flew
straight in through an open window of a large building and landed
in the long, soft, silken mane of the emperor's horse, who was
standing in the stable where they both belonged. He held on
tightly to the mane, then he relaxed and began to think about
life. "Here I am, sitting on the emperor's horse. I am the rider.
. . . What am I saying?" The dung beetle was talking out loud.
"Now everything is clear to me! And I know it is true! Didn't
the blacksmith ask me if I didnt have some idea why the emperor's
horse was being shod with golden shoes? Now I understand that
it was for my sake that the horse was given golden shoes." |
Og Skarnbassen fløi
lige ind af det aabne Vindue paa en stor Bygning og der sank
den træt ned i den fine bløde, lange Manke paa Keiserens Livhest,
der stod i Stalden, hvor den og Skarnbassen hørte hjemme; den
klamrede sig fast i Manken og sad lidt og summede sig. "Her
sidder jeg paa Keiserens Livhest! sidder som Rytter! Hvad er
det jeg siger! ja nu bliver det mig klart! det er en god Idee,
og rigtig. Hvorfor fik Hesten Guldskoe? Det spurgte han mig
ogsaa om, Smeden. Nu indseer jeg det! for min Skyld fik Hesten
Guldskoe!" |
| The dung beetle was
in the best of humors. |
Og saa blev Skarnbassen
i godt Humeur. |
| "It is traveling that
did it!" he thought. "It broadens your horizon and makes everything
clear to you." |
"Man bliver klarhovedet
paa Reisen!" sagde den. |
| The sun shone through
the window. Its rays fell upon the horse and the dung beetle.
"The world is not so bad," remarked the dung beetle. "It all
depends on how you look at it." And the world, indeed, was beautiful,
when the emperor's horse was awarded golden shoes because the
dung beetle was to ride it. |
Solen skinnede ind paa
den, skinnede meget smukt. "Verden er ikke saa gal endda," sagde
Skarnbassen, "man maa bare vide at tage den!" Verden var deilig,
thi Keiserens Livhest havde faaet Guldskoe fordi Skarnbassen
skulde være dens Rytter. |
| "I must dismount," he
thought, "and go and tell the other dung beetles how I have
been honored. I will tell them of my wonderful adventures and
how I enjoyed traveling abroad. And I'll tell them, too, that
I have decided to stay at home until the horse wears out his
golden shoes." |
"Nu vil jeg stige ned
til de andre Basser og fortælle hvor Meget man har gjort for
mig; jeg vil fortælle om alle de Behageligheder jeg har nydt
paa Udenlandsreisen, og jeg vil sige, at nu bliver jeg hjemme
saalænge, til Hesten har slidt sine Guldskoe!" |