Nils Holgerssons underbara resa. English

by Selma Lagerlöf

horse at once, but hesitated. The animal hadnever strayed, and it did not seem likely that he would do so now. Itwas more likely that the dean was mistaken. He had been far away inthought and had not looked at the road. So he let the horse continue inthe same direction, and again lost himself in his reverie.

  "Suddenly a big branch struck him and almost swept him off the horse.Then he realized that he must find out where he was.

  "He glanced down and saw that he was riding over a soft marsh, wherethere was no beaten path. The horse trotted along at a brisk pace andshowed no uncertainty. Again the dean was positive that he was going inthe wrong direction, and now he did not hesitate to interfere. He seizedthe reins and turned the horse about, guiding him back to the roadway.No sooner was he there than he turned again and made straight for thewoods.

  "The dean was certain that he was going wrong, but because the beast wasso persistent he thought that probably he was trying to find a betterroad, and let him go along.

  "The horse did very well, although he had no path to follow. If aprecipice obstructed his way, he climbed it as nimbly as a goat, andlater, when they had to descend, he bunched his hoofs and slid down therocky inclines.

  "'May he only find his way home before church hour!' thought the dean.'I wonder how the Delsbo folk would take it if I were not at my churchon time?'

  "He did not have to brood over this long, for soon he came to a placethat was familiar to him. It was a little creek where he had fished thesummer before. Now he saw it was as he had feared--he was in the depthsof the forest, and the horse was plodding along in a south-easterlydirection. He seemed determined to carry the dean as far from church andrectory as he could.

  "The clergyman dismounted. He could not let the horse carry him into thewilderness. He must go home. And, since the animal persisted in going inthe wrong direction, he decided to walk and lead him until they came tomore familiar roads. The dean wound the reins around his arm and beganto walk. It was not an easy matter to tramp through the forest in aheavy fur coat; but the dean was strong and hardy and had little fear ofoverexertion.

  "The horse, meanwhile, caused him fresh anxiety. He would not follow butplanted his hoofs firmly on the ground.

  "At last the dean was angry. He had never beaten that horse, nor did hewish to do so now. Instead, he threw down the reins and walked away.

  "'We may as well part company here, since you want to go your own way,'he said.

  "He had not taken more than two steps before the horse came after him,took a cautious grip on his coat sleeve and stopped him. The dean turnedand looked the horse straight in the eyes, as if to search out why hebehaved so strangely.

  "Afterward the dean could not quite understand how this was possible,but it is certain that, dark as it was, he plainly saw the horse's faceand read it like that of a human being. He realized that the animal wasin a terrible state of apprehension and fear. He gave his master a lookthat was both imploring and reproachful.

  "'I have served you day after day and done your bidding,' he seemed tosay. 'Will you not follow me this one night?'

  "The dean was touched by the appeal in the animal's eyes. It was clearthat the horse needed his help to-night, in one way or another. Being aman through and through, the dean promptly determined to follow him.Without further delay he sprang into the saddle. 'Go on!' he said. 'Iwill not desert you since you want me. No one shall say of the dean inDelsbo that he refused to accompany any creature who was in trouble.'

  "He let the horse go as he wished and thought only of keeping his seat.It proved to be a hazardous and troublesome journey--uphill most of theway. The forest was so thick that he could not see two feet ahead, butit appeared to him that they were ascending a high mountain. The horseclimbed perilous steeps. Had the dean been guiding, he should not havethought of riding over such ground.

  "'Surely you don't intend to go up to Black's Ridge, do you?' laughedthe dean, who knew that was one of the highest peaks in Haelsingland.

  "During the ride he discovered that he and the horse were not the onlyones who were out that night. He heard stones roll down and branchescrackle, as if animals were breaking their way through the forest. Heremembered that wolves were plentiful in that section and wondered ifthe horse wished to lead him to an encounter with wild beasts.

  "They mounted up and up, and the higher they went the more scatteredwere the trees. At last they rode on almost bare highland, where thedean could look in every direction. He gazed out over immeasurabletracts of land, which went up and down in mountains and valleys coveredwith sombre forests. It was so dark that he had difficulty in seeing anyorderly arrangement; but presently he could make out where he was.

  "'Why of course it's Black's Ridge that I've come to!' he remarked tohimself. 'It can't be any other mountain, for there, in the west, I seeJarv Island, and to the east the sea glitters around Ag Island. Towardthe north also I see something shiny. It must be Dellen. In the depthsbelow me I see white smoke from Nian Falls. Yes, I'm up on Black'sRidge. What an adventure!'

  "When they were at the summit the horse stopped behind a thick pine, asif to hide. The dean bent forward and pushed aside the branches, that hemight have an unobstructed view.

  "The mountain's bald plate confronted him. It was not empty anddesolate, as he had anticipated. In the middle of the open space was animmense boulder around which many wild beasts had gathered. Apparentlythey were holding a conclave of some sort.

  "Near to the big rock he saw bears, so firmly and heavily built thatthey seemed like fur-clad blocks of stone. They were lying down andtheir little eyes blinked impatiently; it was obvious that they had comefrom their winter sleep to attend court, and that they could hardly keepawake. Behind them, in tight rows, were hundreds of wolves. They werenot sleepy, for wolves are more alert in winter than in summer. They satupon their haunches, like dogs, whipping the ground with their tails andpanting--their tongues lolling far out of their jaws. Behind the wolvesthe lynx skulked, stiff-legged and clumsy, like misshapen cats. Theywere loath to be among the other beasts, and hissed and spat when onecame near them. The row back of the lynx was occupied by the wolverines,with dog faces and bear coats. They were not happy on the ground, andthey stamped their pads impatiently, longing to get into the trees.Behind them, covering the entire space to the forest border, leaped thefoxes, the weasels, and the martens. These were small and perfectlyformed, but they looked even more savage and bloodthirsty than thelarger beasts.

  "All this the dean plainly saw, for the whole place was illuminated.Upon the huge rock at the centre was the Wood-nymph, who held in herhand a pine torch which burned in a big red flame. The Nymph was as tallas the tallest tree in the forest. She wore a spruce-brush mantle andhad spruce-cone hair. She stood very still, her face turned toward theforest. She was watching and listening.

  "The dean saw everything as plain as plain could be, but hisastonishment was so great that he tried to combat it, and would notbelieve the evidence of his own eyes.

  "'Such things cannot possibly happen!' he thought. 'I have ridden muchtoo long in the bleak forest. This is only an optical illusion.'

  "Nevertheless he gave the closest attention to the spectacle, andwondered what was about to be done.

  "He hadn't long to wait before he caught the sound of a familiar bell,coming from the depths of the forest, and the next moment he heardfootfalls and crackling of branches--as when many animals break throughthe forest.

  "A big herd of cattle was climbing the mountain. They came through theforest in the order in which they had marched to the mountain ranches.First came the bell cow followed by the bull, then the other cows andthe calves. The sheep, closely herded, followed. After them came thegoats, and last were the horses and colts. The sheep-dog trotted alongbeside the sheep; but neither shepherd nor shepherdess attended them.

  "The dean thought it heart-rending to see the tame animals comingstraight toward the wild beasts. He would gladly have blocked their wayand called 'Halt!' but he understood that it was not within
human powerto stop the march of the cattle on this night; therefore he made nomove.

  "The domestic animals were in a state of torment over that which theyhad to face. If it happened to be the bell cow's turn, she advanced withdrooping head and faltering step. The goats had no desire either to playor to butt. The horses tried to bear up bravely, but their bodies wereall of a quiver with fright. The most pathetic of all was the sheep-dog.He kept his tail between his legs and crawled on the ground.

  "The bell cow led the procession all the way up to the Wood-nymph, whostood on the boulder at the top of the mountain. The cow walked aroundthe rock and then turned toward the forest without any of the wildbeasts touching her. In the same way all the cattle walked unmolestedpast the wild