In a little while again he comes, To the king he marches up, And little Roland boldly takes The royal golden cup.
"Halloo! stop there! thou saucy wight!"
King Charles"s voice did ring; Little Roland kept the golden cup, And looked up at the king.
The king at first looked angrily; But very soon he smiled:-- "You tread here in our golden hall, As in the green woods wild.
"From the royal table you take a dish, As they take an apple from a tree; As with the waters of the brook, With my red wine you make free."
"The peasant drinks from the running brook, On apples she may dine; My mother must have fish and game, For her is the foaming wine."
"Is thy mother such a n.o.ble dame As thou, my boy, dost boast, Then surely has she a castle fair, And of va.s.sals a stately host.
"Tell me, who may her sewer be?
And who cupbearer, too?"
"My own right hand her sewer is; My left, cupbearer true."
"Tell on; who are her faithful guards?"
"My two blue eyes alway."
"Tell on; who is her minstrel free?"
"My rosy mouth, I say."
"Brave servants has the dame, indeed; But does strange livery choose,-- Made up of colors manifold, Shining with rainbow hues."
"From each quarter of the city, With eight boys I have fought; Four sorts of cloth to the conqueror, As tribute, they have brought."
"The best of servants, to my mind, The dame"s must surely be; She is, I wot, the beggar"s queen, Who keeps a table free.
"The n.o.ble lady should not far From my royal palace be; Arise, three ladies, and three lords, And bring her in to me."
Little Roland, holding fast the cup, From the splendid hall he hies; To follow him, at the king"s command, Three lords, three ladies, rise.
And after now a little while, The king sees, far away, The n.o.ble ladies and the knights Return without delay.
The king he cries out suddenly,-- "Help, Heaven! see I aright?
"Tis my own blood, in open hall, I have treated with cruel slight.
"Help, Heaven! in pilgrim dress I see My sister Bertha stand; So pale in my gay palace here, A beggar"s staff in her hand!"
Lady Bertha sinks down at his feet, Pale image of despair; His wrath returns, and he looks on her With a stern and angry air.
Lady Bertha quick cast down her eyes, No word to speak she tried; Little Roland raised his clear blue eyes,-- "My uncle!" loud he cried.
"Rise up, my sister Bertha, rise!"
The king said tenderly; "For the sake of this dear son of thine, Thou shalt forgiven be."
Lady Bertha rose up joyfully:-- "Dear brother! thanks to thee; Little Roland shall requite the boon Thou hast bestowed on me.
"He of the glory of his king Shall be an image fair; The colors of many a foreign realm His banner and shield shall bear.
"The cup from many a royal board He shall seize with his free right hand, And safety and fresh glory bring To his sighing mother-land."
BILLY RABBIT TO MARY.
[Billy Rabbit was a little rabbit which a boy caught in the woods, and gave to a little girl of the name of Mary. She was very attentive to the little prisoner, gave him an abundance of good things to eat, and tried her best to make him happy; but all in vain. After many attempts, he at last succeeded in making his escape, and instantly disappeared in the woods. In the course of the day, the following letter, sealed with a sharp thorn, was received by his friend Mary.]
Artichoke Woods.
You thought, my dear Mary, you had Billy fast, But I tried very hard, and escaped you at last; The chance was so tempting, I thought I would _nab_ it,-- It was not very naughty, I"m sure, in a rabbit.
O, let not your kind heart be angry with me; But think what a joy it is to be free, To see the green woods, to feel the fresh air, To skip, and to play, and to run everywhere.
The food that you gave me was pleasant and sweet, But I"d rather be free, though with nothing to eat.
O, how glad they all were to see me come back, And every one wanted to give me a smack.
d.i.c.k knocked over Brownie, and jumped over Bun, And the neighbours came in to witness the fun.
My father said something, but could not be heard; My mother looked at me, but spoke not a word; And while she was looking, her eyes became pink, And she shed a few tears, I verily think.
To him who a hole or a palace inhabits, To all sorts of beings, to men, and to rabbits, Ah! dear to us all is sweet Liberty, Especially, Mary, to you and to me.
So I hope you"ll forgive me for sending this letter, To tell you I"m safe, and feel so much better, Cut all sorts of capers, and act very silly, And am your devoted, affectionate
BILLY.
THE OLD AND NEW SHOES.
"Good bye, get away, you ugly old things!"
Said a little boy once to his shoes; "All stubbed are your toes, all twisted your strings, You"re wrinkled, one-sided, and loose.
"But here are my new ones, so shiny and bright, They are almost as smooth as my skin; How stiff they are, too! how straight and upright!
How snug my feet feel now they"re in!"
So saying, he gave to his old shoes a kick, And strutted with pride to the door; His unkindness had cut the old shoes to the quick, For nothing contempt can endure.
"Master Frank, Master Frank, stop a while, if you please,"
("Twas one of the shoes he heard call); "Our _soles_ cannot bear such insults as these, And your pride, Sir, will soon have a fall."
Frank stood still with wonder and looked at the shoe, But could not see into the matter; At last he exclaimed,--"As they"ve nothing to do, I suppose, like Poll Parrot, they chatter."
So he opened the door, and walked down the stairs; His shoes were too stiff to go fast; But let us observe him, and see how he fares, How repentant poor Frank was at last.
His shoes were so smooth that he could but just stand, So tight, that they pinched in his toes; He could only sit still, and try to look grand, And remember he had on new shoes.
But Fido ran in, who loved little Frank, And the shoes were remembered no more; They began to cut capers, but at the first prank Down tumbled poor Frank on the floor.
He was a brave boy, he thought not of crying, He said, "Never mind," though in pain; He whistled to Fido, but there is no denying He fell down again and again.
He went to his bed with his heart full of sorrow; He said to the nurse,--"I should choose, If you please, when I"m dressed, my good Betsey, to-morrow, To put on my easy old shoes.
"See how red my toes are, and I"m all black and blue; I don"t like my new shoes at all."