Little knock - fairy tales and stories. The Little Thump - Tales and Stories The Steadfast Tin Soldier

Little Tuk

Yes, so, there lived a little Tuk. His name, in fact, was not Tuk, but that’s what he called himself when he still couldn’t speak well:

“Tuk” was supposed to mean “Karl” in his language, and it’s good if anyone knew this! Tuk had to babysit his sister Gustava, who was much smaller than him, and at the same time teach homework, and these two things did not go well at the same time. The poor boy held his sister on his lap and sang her one song after another, while looking at the geography textbook that lay in front of him. By tomorrow the task was to memorize all the cities in Zealand and know everything there is to know about them.

Finally his mother, who had gone somewhere on business, returned and took Gustava. Knocked quickly to the window and grabbed a book, and read, read almost until he was blind: the room was getting dark, and his mother had nothing to buy a candle with.

Vaughn the old one is coming washerwoman from the alley! - said the mother, looking out the window. “She can barely move herself, and now she has to carry a bucket of water.” Be smart, Tuk, run out and help the old lady!

Tuk immediately ran out and helped, but when he returned to the room, it was already completely dark; there was nothing to talk about the candle. He had to go to bed. Tuku's bed was an old wooden bench with a back and a box under the seat. He lay down, but still couldn’t stop thinking about his lesson: about the cities of Zealand and everything that the teacher told about them. He should have read the lesson, but it was already late, and the boy put the book under his pillow: he had heard that this was an excellent tool for remembering the lesson, but, of course, you couldn’t really rely on it.

And so Tuk lay in bed and thought and thought. Suddenly someone kissed him on the eyes and on the lips - at that time he was both sleeping and as if he was not sleeping - and he saw an old washerwoman in front of him. She looked at him tenderly and said:

It would be a sin if you didn’t know your lesson tomorrow. You helped me, now I will help you. The Lord will never leave you with his help!

At that same moment, the pages of the book that lay under Tuk’s head rustled and began to turn over. Then came:

Kok-kok-kudak!

It was a chicken, and even from the city of Köge!

I'm a chicken from Kyoge! - And she told Tuk how many inhabitants there were in Köge, and then she told about the battle that took place here - this was even unnecessary: ​​Tuk already knew about it.

Krible, krible, boom! - and something fell; it was a wooden parrot that fell on the bed, serving as a target in the company of riflemen in the city of Preete. The bird told the boy that this city had as many inhabitants as there were scars on its body, and boasted that Thorvaldsen had been her neighbor at one time. - Bume! I am famous for the most wonderful location!

But little Tuk was no longer lying in bed, but suddenly found himself on horseback and galloped. He sat behind a dressed-up knight in a shiny helmet with a flowing plume. They drove through the forest and found themselves in the ancient city of Vordipgborg. It was a large, busy city; on the hill of the city stood the royal castle; in the windows tall towers The lights were shining brightly. There was fun, singing and dancing in the castle. King Valdemar danced in a circle of dressed young ladies-in-waiting.

But then morning came, and as soon as the sun rose, the city with the royal castle collapsed, the towers disappeared one after another, and in the end there was only one left on the hill; the town itself became small and poor; schoolchildren running to school with books under their arms said: “We have two thousand inhabitants in our city!” - but it’s not true, even that didn’t happen.

Little Tuk found himself in bed again; it seemed to him that he was daydreaming; someone was standing next to him again.

Little Tuck! Little Tuck! - he thought. The little sailor said this as if he were a cadet, but still not a cadet. - I brought you greetings from Corseur. This is a city with a future! Lively city! He has his own mail coaches and steamers. It was once considered a miserable little town, but that opinion is outdated. “I'm lying on the sea! - says Corseur. - I have highways and a park! I gave birth to a poet, and what a funny one at that, but not all poets are funny! I was even planning to send one of my ships to circumnavigation!.. I suppose I didn’t send it, but I could have sent it. And how wonderfully I smell from the very city gates! The most wonderful roses are blooming everywhere!”

Little Tuk looked at them, and his eyes flashed red and green. When the waves of colors subsided, he saw a forested cliff above a transparent fiord. An old cathedral with tall pointed towers and spiers rose above the cliff. The streams of the springs ran down with a murmur. Sitting near the source old king; his gray head with long curls was crowned with a golden crown. This was King Roar, after whom the spring is named, and the nearby city of Roskilde is named after the source. Along the path leading to the cathedral, all the kings and queens of Denmark, crowned with golden crowns, walked hand in hand. The organ played, streams of the spring gurgled. Little Tuck watched and listened.

Don't forget the classes! - said King Roar. Suddenly everything disappeared. Where did all this go? It's like turning a page in a book! In front of the boy stood an old weeder; she came from the city of Soret, where grass grows even in the square. She threw her gray canvas apron over her head and back; the apron was all wet, it must have been raining.

Yes! - she said and told him about Holberg’s funny comedies, about King Valdemar and Bishop Absalon, then suddenly she shrank all over, shook her head, as if about to jump, and croaked. - Kwa! Kwa! How damp, wet and quiet it is in Sora! Kwa! - she turned into a frog. - Kwa! - and she became a woman again. - We must dress according to the weather! - she said. - It's damp, damp here! My city is like a bottle: you enter the neck, and you have to come out from there. Previously, it was famous for its most wonderful fish, but now at the bottom of the “bottle” are red-cheeked young men; they learn different wisdom here: Greek, Hebrew... Kwa!

The boy heard either the croaking of frogs or the splashing of boots in the swamp: the same sound, monotonous and boring, to which Tuk fell asleep soundly, and did well.

But even then he had a dream - otherwise what was it all about? His blue-eyed, blond and curly-haired sister, Gustava, suddenly became a grown-up, charming girl, and, although neither she nor he had wings, they flew together through the air over Zealand, over green forests and blue waters.

Do you hear the rooster crow, little Tuk? Crow! Chickens have flown from Köge Bay! You will have a poultry yard, huge, huge! You won't have to endure need! You, as they say, kill the beaver and become rich, happy man! Your house will rise like the tower of King Valdemar, and will be richly decorated with the same marble statues as those sculptured near Preete. Do you understand me? Your name will fly around the whole world, like a ship that they wanted to send from Corseur, and in Roskilde - “Remember the estates!” - said King Roar - you will speak well and wisely, little Tuk! When you finally go to your grave, you will sleep quietly in it...

He jumped out of bed, took up the book and quickly learned his lesson. And the old washerwoman stuck her head through the door, nodded to him and said:

Thanks for yesterday, darling! May the Lord fulfill your best dream.

And little Tuk didn’t even know what he was dreaming about, but the Lord God knows!

Yes, so, there lived a little Tuk. His name, in fact, was not Tuk, but that’s what he called himself when he still couldn’t speak well:

“Tuk” was supposed to mean “Karl” in his language, and it’s good if anyone knew this! Tuk had to babysit his sister Gustava, who was much smaller than him, and at the same time teach homework, and these two things did not go well at the same time. The poor boy held his sister on his lap and sang her one song after another, while looking at the geography textbook that lay in front of him. By tomorrow the task was to memorize all the cities in Zealand and know everything there is to know about them.

Finally his mother, who had gone somewhere on business, returned and took Gustava. Knocked quickly to the window and grabbed a book, and read, read almost until he was blind: the room was getting dark, and his mother had nothing to buy a candle with.

There comes the old washerwoman from the alley! - said the mother, looking out the window. “She can barely move herself, and now she has to carry a bucket of water.” Be smart, Tuk, run out and help the old lady!

Tuk immediately ran out and helped, but when he returned to the room, it was already completely dark; there was nothing to talk about the candle. He had to go to bed. Tuku's bed was an old wooden bench with a back and a box under the seat. He lay down, but still couldn’t stop thinking about his lesson: about the cities of Zealand and everything that the teacher told about them. He should have read the lesson, but it was already late, and the boy put the book under his pillow: he had heard that this was an excellent tool for remembering the lesson, but, of course, you couldn’t really rely on it.

And so Tuk lay in bed and thought and thought. Suddenly someone kissed him on the eyes and on the lips - at that time he was both sleeping and as if he was not sleeping - and he saw an old washerwoman in front of him. She looked at him tenderly and said:

It would be a sin if you didn’t know your lesson tomorrow. You helped me, now I will help you. The Lord will never leave you with his help!

At that same moment, the pages of the book that lay under Tuk’s head rustled and began to turn over. Then came:

Kok-kok-kudak!

It was a chicken, and even from the city of Köge!

I'm a chicken from Kyoge! - And she told Tuk how many inhabitants there were in Köge, and then she told about the battle that took place here - this was even unnecessary: ​​Tuk already knew about it.

Krible, krible, boom! - and something fell; it was a wooden parrot that fell on the bed, serving as a target in the company of riflemen in the city of Preete. The bird told the boy that this city had as many inhabitants as there were scars on its body, and boasted that Thorvaldsen had been her neighbor at one time. - Bume! I am famous for the most wonderful location!

But little Tuk was no longer lying in bed, but suddenly found himself on horseback and galloped. He sat behind a dressed-up knight in a shiny helmet with a flowing plume. They drove through the forest and found themselves in the ancient city of Vordipgborg. It was a large, busy city; on the hill of the city stood the royal castle; Lights shone brightly in the windows of the high towers. There was fun, singing and dancing in the castle. King Valdemar danced in a circle of dressed young ladies-in-waiting.

But then morning came, and as soon as the sun rose, the city with the royal castle collapsed, the towers disappeared one after another, and in the end there was only one left on the hill; the town itself became small and poor; Schoolchildren running to school with books under their arms said: “We have two thousand inhabitants in our city!” - but it’s not true, even that didn’t happen.

Little Tuk found himself in bed again; it seemed to him that he was daydreaming; someone was standing next to him again.

Little Tuck! Little Tuck! - he thought. The little sailor said this as if he were a cadet, but still not a cadet. - I brought you greetings from Corseur. This is a city with a future! Lively city! He has his own mail coaches and steamers. It was once considered a miserable little town, but that opinion is outdated. “I lie on the sea!” says Corseur. “I have highways and a park! I gave birth to a poet (meaning Baggesen (1764 - 1826) - Danish poet-humorist and satirist. - Ed.), and what a poet funny, but not all poets are funny! I even planned to send one of my ships on a voyage around the world!.. I suppose I didn’t send it, but I could have sent it. And how wonderfully I smell, from the very city gates the most wonderful roses are blooming! !"

Little Tuk looked at them, and his eyes flashed red and green. When the waves of colors subsided, he saw a forested cliff above a transparent fiord. An old cathedral with tall pointed towers and spiers rose above the cliff. The streams of the springs ran down with a murmur. The old king sat near the spring; his gray head with long curls was crowned with a golden crown. It was King Roar, after whom the source is named, and the nearby city of Roskilde (the ancient capital of Denmark - Ed.) is named after the source. Along the path leading to the cathedral, all the kings and queens of Denmark, crowned with golden crowns, walked hand in hand. The organ played, streams of the spring gurgled. Little Tuck watched and listened.

Don't forget the classes! - said King Roar. Suddenly everything disappeared. Where did all this go? It's like turning a page in a book! In front of the boy stood an old weeder; she came from the city of Soret, where grass grows even in the square. She threw her gray canvas apron over her head and back; the apron was all wet, it must have been raining.

Yes! - she said and told him about Holberg’s funny comedies, about King Valdemar and Bishop Absalon, then suddenly she shrank all over, shook her head, as if about to jump, and croaked. - Kwa! Kwa! How damp, wet and quiet it is in Sora! Kwa! - she turned into a frog. - Kwa! - and she became a woman again. - We must dress according to the weather! - she said. - It's damp, damp here! My city is like a bottle: you enter the neck, and you have to come out from there. Previously, it was famous for its most wonderful fish, but now at the bottom of the “bottle” are red-cheeked young men; they learn different wisdom here: Greek, Hebrew... Kwa!

The boy heard either the croaking of frogs or the splashing of boots in the swamp: the same sound, monotonous and boring, to which Tuk fell asleep soundly, and did well.

But even then he had a dream - otherwise what was it all about? His blue-eyed, blond and curly-haired sister, Gustava, suddenly became a grown-up, charming girl, and, although neither she nor he had wings, they flew together through the air over Zealand, over green forests and blue waters.

Do you hear the rooster crow, little Tuk? Crow! Chickens have flown from Köge Bay! You will have a poultry yard, huge, huge! You won't have to endure need! You, as they say, kill the beaver and become a rich, happy man! Your house will rise like the tower of King Valdemar, and will be richly decorated with the same marble statues as those sculptured near Preete. Do you understand me? Your name will fly around the world, like a ship that they wanted to send from Corseur, and in Roskilde - “Remember the estates!” - said King Roar - you will speak well and wisely, little Tuk! When you finally go to your grave, you will sleep quietly in it...

He jumped out of bed, took up the book and quickly learned his lesson. And the old washerwoman stuck her head through the door, nodded to him and said:

Thanks for yesterday, darling! May the Lord fulfill your best dream.

And little Tuk didn’t even know what he was dreaming about, but the Lord God knows!

Information for parents: Little Tuk - fairy tale, written by Hans Christian Andersen. It tells about how a little boy helped an old woman, and how she thanked him. This good fairy tale will be of interest to children aged 4 to 9 years. The text of the fairy tale “Little Tuk” is written in a fascinating way; it can be read to children at night. Happy reading to you and your little ones.

Read the fairy tale Little Tuk

Yes, so, there lived a little Tuk. His name, in fact, was not Tuk, but that’s what he nicknamed himself when he still couldn’t speak well: “Tuk” was supposed to mean “Karl” in his language, and it’s good if anyone knew this! Tuk had to babysit his sister Gustava, who was much smaller than him, and at the same time teach homework, and these two things did not go well at the same time. The poor boy held his sister on his lap and sang her one song after another, while looking at the geography textbook that lay in front of him. By tomorrow, the task was to memorize all the cities in Zealand and know everything there is to know about them.

Finally, his mother, who had gone somewhere on business, returned and took Gustava. He ran quickly to the window and grabbed a book, and read, read almost until he was blind: the room was getting dark, and his mother had nothing to buy a candle with.

There comes the old washerwoman from the alley! - said the mother, looking out the window. “She can barely move herself, and now she has to carry a bucket of water.” Be smart, Tuk, run out and help the old lady!

Tuk immediately ran out and helped, but when he returned to the room, it was already completely dark; there was nothing to talk about the candle. He had to go to bed. Tuku's bed was an old wooden bench with a back and a box under the seat. He lay down, but still did not stop thinking about his lesson: about the cities of Zealand and everything that the teacher told about them. He should have read the lesson, but it was already late, and the boy put the book under his pillow: he had heard that this was an excellent tool for remembering the lesson, but, of course, you couldn’t really rely on it.

And so Tuk lay in bed and thought and thought. Suddenly someone kissed him on the eyes and on the lips - at that time he was both sleeping and as if he was not sleeping - and he saw an old washerwoman in front of him. She looked at him tenderly and said:

It would be a sin if you didn’t know your lesson tomorrow. You helped me, now I will help you. The Lord will never leave you with his help!

At that same moment, the pages of the book that lay under Tuk’s head rustled and began to turn over. Then came:

Kok-kok-kudak!

It was a chicken, and even from the city of Köge!

I'm a chicken from Kyoge! - And she told Tuk how many inhabitants there were in Köge, and then she told about the battle that took place here - this was even unnecessary: ​​Tuk already knew about it.

Krible, krible, boom! - and something fell; it was a wooden parrot that fell on the bed, serving as a target in the company of riflemen in the city of Preete. The bird told the boy that in this city there are as many inhabitants as there are scars on her body, and boasted that Thorvaldsen was at one time her neighbor. - Booms! I am famous for the most wonderful location!

But little Tuk was no longer lying in bed, but suddenly found himself on horseback and galloped. He sat behind a dressed-up knight in a shiny helmet with a flowing plume. They drove through the forest and found themselves in the ancient city of Vordipgborg. It was a large, busy city; on the hill of the city stood the royal castle; Lights shone brightly in the windows of the high towers. There was fun, singing and dancing in the castle. King Valdemar danced in a circle of dressed young ladies-in-waiting.

But then morning came, and as soon as the sun rose, the city with the royal castle collapsed, the towers disappeared one after another, and in the end there was only one left on the hill; the town itself became small and poor. Schoolchildren running to school with books under their arms said: “We have two thousand inhabitants in our city!” - but it’s not true, even that didn’t happen.

Little Tuk found himself in bed again; it seemed to him that he was daydreaming; someone was standing next to him again.

Little Tuck! Little Tuck! - he thought. This was said by the little sailor, as if he were a cadet, but still not a cadet. - I brought you greetings from Corseur. This is a city with a future! Lively city! He has his own mail coaches and steamers. It was once considered a miserable little town, but that opinion is outdated. “I'm lying on the sea! - says Corseur. - I have highways and a park! I gave birth to a poet, and what a funny one at that, but not all poets are funny! I was even going to send one of my ships on a voyage around the world!.. I suppose I didn’t send it, but I could have sent it. And how wonderfully I smell from the very city gates! The most wonderful roses are blooming everywhere!”

Little Tuk looked at them, and his eyes flashed red and green. When the waves of colors subsided, he saw a forested cliff above a transparent fiord. An old cathedral with tall pointed towers and spiers rose above the cliff. The streams of the springs ran down with a murmur. The old king sat near the spring; his gray head with long curls was crowned with a golden crown. This was King Roar, after whom the spring is named, and the nearby city of Roskilde is named after the source. Along the path leading to the cathedral, all the kings and queens of Denmark, crowned with golden crowns, walked hand in hand. The organ played, the streams of the spring gurgled. Little Tuck watched and listened.

Don't forget the classes! - said King Roar. Suddenly everything disappeared. Where did all this go? It's like turning a page in a book! In front of the boy stood an old weeder; she came from the city of Soryo, where grass grows even in the square. She threw her gray canvas apron over her head and back; the apron was all wet, it must have been raining.

Yes! - she said and told him about Holberg’s funny comedies, about King Valdemar and Bishop Absalon, then suddenly she shrank all over, shook her head, as if about to jump, and croaked. - Kwa! Kwa! How damp, wet and quiet it is in Soryo! Kwa! - she turned into a frog. - Kwa! - and she became a woman again. - We must dress according to the weather! - she said. - It's damp, damp here! My city is like a bottle: you enter the neck, and you have to come out from there. Previously, it was famous for its most wonderful fish, but now at the bottom of the “bottle” there are red-cheeked young men; they learn different wisdom here: Greek, Hebrew... Kwa!

The boy heard either the croaking of frogs or the splashing of boots in the swamp: all the same sound, monotonous and boring, to which Tuk fell asleep soundly, and did well.

But even then he had a dream - otherwise what was all this? His blue-eyed, blond and curly-haired sister, Gustava, suddenly became a grown-up, charming girl, and, although neither she nor he had wings, they flew together through the air over Zealand, over the green forests and blue waters.

Do you hear the rooster crow, little Tuk? Crow! Chickens have flown from Köge Bay! You will have a poultry yard, huge, huge! You won't have to endure need! You, as they say, kill the beaver and become a rich, happy man! Your house will rise like the tower of King Valdemar, and will be richly decorated with the same marble statues as those sculptured near Preete. Do you understand me? Your name will fly around the whole world, like a ship that they wanted to send from Corseur, and in Roskilde - “Remember the estates!” - said King Roar - you will speak well and wisely, little Tuk! When you finally go to your grave, you will sleep quietly in it...

He jumped out of bed, took up the book and quickly learned his lesson. And the old washerwoman stuck her head through the door, nodded to him and said:

Thanks for yesterday, darling! May the Lord fulfill your best dream.

And little Tuk didn’t even know what he was dreaming about, but the Lord God knows!

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Andersen's tales

Little Tuk - Andersen's fairy tale about one little boy. In fact, his name was Karl; he nicknamed himself Tuk when he was very young. He had Gustav's little sister to look after and at the same time little Tuk needed to learn a lesson about the cities of Zealand. It was already dark, but he still couldn’t do it. But he helped one old woman carry a bucket of water to the old woman. He could no longer continue studying because it was getting dark and their family couldn’t afford candles. And little Tuk went to bed. Before going to bed, an old woman came to him, whom he helped with a bucket of water and thanked him. When little Tuk fell asleep, he began to dream about the cities of Zealand, and everything was told in detail about them. So the grandmother helped little Tuk learn his lesson.

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Yes, so, there lived a little Tuk. His name, in fact, was not Tuk, but that’s what he nicknamed himself when he still couldn’t speak well:

“Tuk” was supposed to mean “Karl” in his language, and it’s good if anyone knew this! Tuk had to babysit his sister Gustava, who was much smaller than him, and at the same time teach homework, and these two things did not go well at the same time. The poor boy held his sister on his lap and sang her one song after another, while looking at the geography textbook that lay in front of him. By tomorrow the task was to memorize all the cities in Zealand and know everything there is to know about them.

Finally his mother, who had gone somewhere on business, returned and took Gustava. He ran quickly to the window and grabbed a book, and read, read almost until he was blind: the room was getting dark, and his mother had nothing to buy a candle with.

There comes the old washerwoman from the alley! - said the mother, looking out the window. “She can barely move herself, and now she has to carry a bucket of water.” Be smart, Tuk, run out and help the old lady!

Tuk immediately ran out and helped, but when he returned to the room, it was already completely dark; there was nothing to talk about the candle. He had to go to bed. Tuku's bed was an old wooden bench with a back and a box under the seat. He lay down, but still couldn’t stop thinking about his lesson: about the cities of Zealand and everything that the teacher told about them. He should have read the lesson, but it was already late, and the boy put the book under his pillow: he had heard that this was an excellent tool for remembering the lesson, but, of course, you couldn’t really rely on it.

And so Tuk lay in bed and thought and thought. Suddenly someone kissed him on the eyes and on the lips - at that time he was both sleeping and as if he was not sleeping - and he saw an old washerwoman in front of him. She looked at him tenderly and said:

It would be a sin if you didn’t know your lesson tomorrow. You helped me, now I will help you. The Lord will never leave you with his help!

At that same moment, the pages of the book that lay under Tuk’s head rustled and began to turn over. Then came:

Kok-kok-kudak!

It was a chicken, and even from the city of Köge!

I'm a chicken from Kyoge! - And she told Tuk how many inhabitants there were in Köge, and then she told about the battle that took place here - this was even unnecessary: ​​Tuk already knew about it.

Krible, krible, boom! - and something fell; it was a wooden parrot that fell on the bed, serving as a target in the company of riflemen in the city of Preete. The bird told the boy that this city had as many inhabitants as there were scars on its body, and boasted that Thorvaldsen had been her neighbor at one time. - Bume! I am famous for the most wonderful location!

But little Tuk was no longer lying in bed, but suddenly found himself on horseback and galloped. He sat behind a dressed-up knight in a shiny helmet with a flowing plume. They drove through the forest and found themselves in the ancient city of Vordipgborg. It was a large, busy city; on the hill of the city stood the royal castle; Lights shone brightly in the windows of the high towers. There was fun, singing and dancing in the castle. King Valdemar danced in a circle of dressed young ladies-in-waiting.

But then morning came, and as soon as the sun rose, the city with the royal castle collapsed, the towers disappeared one after another, and in the end there was only one left on the hill; the town itself became small and poor; Schoolchildren running to school with books under their arms said: “We have two thousand inhabitants in our city!” - but it’s not true, even that didn’t happen.

Little Tuk found himself in bed again; it seemed to him that he was daydreaming; someone was standing next to him again.

Little Tuck! Little Tuck! - he thought. The little sailor said this as if he were a cadet, but still not a cadet. - I brought you greetings from Corseur. This is a city with a future! Lively city! He has his own mail coaches and steamers. It was once considered a miserable little town, but that opinion is outdated. “I lie on the sea!” says Corseur. “I have highways and a park! I gave birth to a poet (meaning Baggesen (1764 - 1826) - Danish poet-humorist and satirist. - Ed.), and what a poet funny, but not all poets are funny! I even planned to send one of my ships on a voyage around the world!.. I suppose I didn’t send it, but I could have sent it. And how wonderfully I smell, from the very city gates the most wonderful roses are blooming! !"

Little Tuk looked at them, and his eyes flashed red and green. When the waves of colors subsided, he saw a forested cliff above a transparent fiord. An old cathedral with tall pointed towers and spiers rose above the cliff. The streams of the springs ran down with a murmur. The old king sat near the spring; his gray head with long curls was crowned with a golden crown. It was King Roar, after whom the source is named, and the nearby city of Roskilde (the ancient capital of Denmark - Ed.) is named after the source. Along the path leading to the cathedral, all the kings and queens of Denmark, crowned with golden crowns, walked hand in hand. The organ played, streams of the spring gurgled. Little Tuck watched and listened.

Don't forget the classes! - said King Roar. Suddenly everything disappeared. Where did all this go? It's like turning a page in a book! In front of the boy stood an old weeder; she came from the city of Soret, where grass grows even in the square. She threw her gray canvas apron over her head and back; the apron was all wet, it must have been raining.

Yes! - she said and told him about Holberg’s funny comedies, about King Valdemar and Bishop Absalon, then suddenly she shrank all over, shook her head, as if about to jump, and croaked. - Kwa! Kwa! How damp, wet and quiet it is in Sora! Kwa! - she turned into a frog. - Kwa! - and she became a woman again. - We must dress according to the weather! - she said. - It's damp, damp here! My city is like a bottle: you enter the neck, and you have to come out from there. Previously, it was famous for its most wonderful fish, but now at the bottom of the “bottle” are red-cheeked young men; they learn different wisdom here: Greek, Hebrew... Kwa!

The boy heard either the croaking of frogs or the splashing of boots in the swamp: the same sound, monotonous and boring, to which Tuk fell asleep soundly, and did well.

But even then he had a dream - otherwise what was it all about? His blue-eyed, blond and curly-haired sister, Gustava, suddenly became a grown-up, charming girl, and, although neither she nor he had wings, they flew together through the air over Zealand, over green forests and blue waters.

Do you hear the rooster crow, little Tuk? Crow! Chickens have flown from Köge Bay! You will have a poultry yard, huge, huge! You won't have to endure need! You, as they say, kill the beaver and become a rich, happy man! Your house will rise like the tower of King Valdemar, and will be richly decorated with the same marble statues as those sculptured near Preete. Do you understand me? Your name will fly around the world, like a ship that they wanted to send from Corseur, and in Roskilde - “Remember the estates!” - said King Roar - you will speak well and wisely, little Tuk! When you finally go to your grave, you will sleep quietly in it...

He jumped out of bed, took up the book and quickly learned his lesson. And the old washerwoman stuck her head through the door, nodded to him and said:

Thanks for yesterday, darling! May the Lord fulfill your best dream.

And little Tuk didn’t even know what he was dreaming about, but the Lord God knows!