"AND now," said the squirrel, when the tea-things were cleared away that
evening, "now for dancing-school. If we are going to a ball, we really
must be more sure of our steps than we are now. Coon, oblige me with a
whisk of your tail over the hearth. Some coals have fallen from the
fire, and we shall be treading on them."
"When the coals are cold," replied the raccoon, "I shall be happy to
oblige you. At present they are red-hot. And meantime, as I have no idea
of dancing immediately after my supper, I will, if you like, tell you
the story of the Useful Coal, which your request brings to my mind. It
is short, and will not take much time from the dancing-lesson."
Right willingly the family all seated themselves around the blazing
fire, and the raccoon began as follows:--
THE USEFUL COAL.
There was once a king whose name was Sligo. He was noted both for his
riches and his kind heart. One evening, as he sat by his fireside, a
coal fell out on the hearth. The King took up the tongs, intending to
put it back on the fire, but the coal said:--
"If you will spare my life, and do as I tell you, I will save your
treasure three times, and tell you the name of the thief who steals it."
These words gave the King great joy, for much treasure had been stolen
from him of late, and none of his officers could discover the culprit.
So he set the coal on the table, and said:--
"Pretty little black and red bird, tell me, what shall I do?"
"Put me in your waistcoat pocket," said the coal, "and take no more
thought for to-night."
Accordingly the King put the coal in his pocket, and then, as he sat
before the warm fire, he grew drowsy, and presently fell fast asleep.
When he had been asleep some time, the door opened, very softly, and the
High Cellarer peeped cautiously in. This was the one of the King's
officers who had been most eager in searching for the thief. He now
crept softly, softly, toward the King, and seeing that he was fast
asleep, put his hand into his waistcoat-pocket; for in that
waistcoat-pocket King Sligo kept the key of his treasure-chamber, and
the High Cellarer was the thief. He put his hand into the waistcoat
pocket. S-s-s-s-s! the coal burned it so frightfully that he gave a loud
shriek, and fell on his knees on the hearth.
"What is the matter?" cried the King, waking with a start.
"Alas! your Majesty," said the High Cellarer, thrusting his burnt
fingers into his bosom, that the King might not see them. "You were just
on the point of falling forward into the fire, and I cried out, partly
from fright and partly to waken you."
The King thanked the High Cellarer, and gave him a ruby ring as a
reward. But when he was in his chamber, and making ready for bed, the
coal said to him:--
"Once already have I saved your treasure, and to-night I shall save it
again. Only put me on the table beside your bed, and you may sleep with
a quiet heart."
So the King put the coal on the table, and himself into the bed, and was
soon sound asleep. At midnight the door of the chamber opened very
softly, and the High Cellarer peeped in again. He knew that at night
King Sligo kept the key under his pillow, and he was coming to get it.
He crept softly, softly, toward the bed, but as he drew near it, the
coal cried out:--
"One eye sleeps, but the other eye wakes! one eye sleeps, but the other
eye wakes! Who is this comes creeping, while honest men are sleeping?"
The High Cellarer looked about him in affright, and saw the coal
burning fiery red in the darkness, and looking for all the world like a
great flaming eye. In an agony of fear he fled from the chamber,
crying,--
"Black and red! black and red!
The King has a devil to guard his bed."
And he spent the rest of the night shivering in the farthest garret he
could find.
The next morning the coal said to the King:--
"Again this night have I saved your treasure, and mayhap your life as
well. Yet a third time I shall do it, and this time you shall learn the
name of the thief. But if I do this, you must promise me one thing, and
that is that you will place me in your royal crown and wear me as a
jewel. Will you do this?"
"That will I, right gladly!" replied King Sligo, "for a jewel indeed you
are."
"That is well!" said the coal. "It is true that I am dying; but no
matter. It is a fine thing to be a jewel in a king's crown, even if one
is dead. Now listen, and follow my directions closely. As soon as I am
quite black and dead,--which will be in about ten minutes from now,--you
must take me in your hand and rub me all over and around the handle of
the door of the treasure-chamber. A good part of me will be rubbed off,
but there will be enough left to put in your crown. When you have
thoroughly rubbed the door, lay the key of the treasure-chamber on your
table, as if you had left it there by mistake. You may then go hunting
or riding, but not for more than an hour; and when you return, you must
instantly call all your court together, as if on business of the
greatest importance. Invent some excuse for asking them to raise their
hands, and then arrest the man whose hands are black. Do you
understand?"
"I do!" replied King Sligo, fervently, "I do, and my warmest thanks,
good Coal, are due to you for this--"
But here he stopped, for already the coal was quite black, and in less
than ten minutes it was dead and cold. Then the King took it and rubbed
it carefully over the door of the treasure-chamber, and laying the key
of the door in plain sight on his dressing-table, he called his huntsmen
together, and mounting his horse, rode away to the forest. As soon as he
was gone, the High Cellarer, who had pleaded a headache when asked to
join the hunt, crept softly to the King's room, and to his surprise
found the key on the table. Full of joy, he sought the treasure-chamber
at once, and began filling his pockets with gold and jewels, which he
carried to his own apartment, returning greedily for more. In this way
he opened and closed the door many times. Suddenly, as he was stooping
over a silver barrel containing sapphires, he heard the sound of a
trumpet, blown once, twice, thrice. The wicked thief started, for it was
the signal for the entire court to appear instantly before the King, and
the penalty of disobedience was death. Hastily cramming a handful of
sapphires into his pocket, he stumbled to the door, which he closed and
locked, putting the key also in his pocket, as there was no time to
return it. He flew to the presence-chamber, where the lords of the
kingdom were hastily assembling.
The King was seated on his throne, still in his hunting-dress, though he
had put on his crown over his hat, which presented a peculiar
appearance. It was with a majestic air, however, that he rose and
said:--
"Nobles, and gentlemen of my court! I have called you together to pray
for the soul of my lamented grandmother, who died, as you may remember,
several years ago. In token of respect, I desire you all to raise your
hands to Heaven."
The astonished courtiers, one and all, lifted their hands high in air.
The King looked, and, behold! the hands of the High Cellarer were as
black as soot! The King caused him to be arrested and searched, and the
sapphires in his pocket, besides the key of the treasure-chamber, gave
amble proof of his guilt. His head was removed at once, and the King had
the useful coal, set in sapphires, placed in the very front of his
crown, where it was much admired and praised as a BLACK DIAMOND.
* * * * *
"And _now_, Cracker, my boy," continued the raccoon, rising from his
seat by the fire, "as you previously remarked, now for dancing-school!"
With these words he proceeded to sweep the hearth carefully and
gracefully with his tail, while Toto and Bruin moved the chairs and
tables back against the wall. The grandmother's armchair was moved into
the warm chimney-corner, where she would be comfortably out of the way
of the dancers; and Pigeon Pretty perched on the old lady's shoulder,
"that the two sober-minded members of the family might keep each other
in countenance," she said. Toto ran into his room, and returned with a
little old fiddle which had belonged to his grandfather, and stationed
himself at one end of the kitchen, while the bear, the raccoon, and the
squirrel formed in line at the other.
"Now, then," said Master Toto, tapping smartly on the fiddle. "Stand up
straight, all of you! That's the first thing, you know."
Up they all went,--little Cracker sitting up jauntily, his tail cocked
over his left ear, Coon pawing the air gracefully, but not quite sure of
himself; while Bruin raised his huge form erect, and stood like a shaggy
black giant, waiting further orders.
"Bow to partners!" cried Toto.
Coon and Cracker bowed to each other; and Bruin, having no partner,
gravely saluted Miss Mary, who stood on one leg and surveyed the
proceedings in silent but deep disdain.
"Jump, and change your feet!"
But this order, alas! was followed by dire confusion. Bruin dropped on
all-fours, and frantically endeavored to stand on his fore-paws, with
his hind-legs in the air, throwing up first one great shaggy leg and
then another, and finally losing his balance and falling flat, with a
thump that shook the whole house.
"Dear me!" cried the grandmother, starting from her chair. "Dear, dear
me! Who is hurt? What has happened? Are any bones broken?"
"Oh, no! Madam," cried the bear, rising with surprising agility for one
of his size; "it's nothing! nothing at all, I assure you. I--I was only
jumping and changing my feet. But I cannot do it!" he added, in an
aggrieved tone, to Toto. "It isn't possible, you know, for a fellow of
my build to--a--do that sort of thing. You shouldn't, really--"
"Oh, Bruin! Bruin!" cried Toto, wiping the tears from his eyes, as he
leaned against the dresser in a paroxysm of merriment. "I didn't _mean_
you to do that! Look here! this is the way. You jump--_so!_ and change
your feet--_so!_ as you come down. There, look at Coon; he has the idea,
perfectly!"
The astute Coon, in truth, seeing Bruin's error, had stood quietly in
his place till he saw Toto perform the mystic manoeuvre of "jump and
change feet," and had then begun to practise it with a quiet grace and
ease, as if he had done it all his life.
[Illustration: "Now, then, attention all! Forward and back!" And he
played a lively air on his fiddle.--PAGE 97.]
The squirrel, meanwhile, had obeyed the first part of the order by
jumping to the top of the clock, where he sat inspecting his little
black feet with an air of comical perplexity.
"Change them, eh?" he said. "What's the matter with them? They'll do
very well yet awhile."
"Don't be absurd, Cracker!" said Toto, rather severely. "Come down and
take your place at once! Now, then, attention all! Forward and back!"
and he played a lively air on his fiddle.
The bear brightened up at once. "Ah!" he said, "I am all right when we
come to forward and back. Tum-tiddy tum-tum, tum-tum-tum!" and he
pranced forward, put out one foot, and slid back again, with an air of
enjoyment that was pleasant to behold.
"That's right!" said the master, approvingly. "Stand a little
straighter, Bruin! Cracker, you don't point your toe enough. Hold your
head up, Coon, and don't be looking round at your tail every minute.
_Tum_-tiddy tum-tum, _tum_-tum-tum! _tiddy_-iddy tum-tum,
_tum_-tum-tum! Balance to partners! Here, Bruin! you can balance to me.
Turn partners, and back to places! There, now you may rest a moment
before you begin on the waltz step."
"Ah! that is _my_ delight," said the squirrel. "What a sensation we
shall make at the wedding! One of the woodmouse's daughters is very
pretty, with such a nice little nose, and such bright eyes! I shall ask
her to waltz with me."
"There won't be any one of my size there, I suppose," said the raccoon.
"You and I will have to be partners, Toto."
"And I must stay at home and waltz alone!" said Bruin, goodnaturedly.
"It is a misfortune, in some ways, to be so big."
"But great good fortune in others, Bruin, dear!" said Pigeon Pretty,
affectionately. "I, for one, would not have you smaller, for the world!"
"Nor would I!" said the grandmother, heartily. "Bruin, my friend and
protector, your size and strength are the greatest possible comfort to
me, coupled as they are with a kind heart and a willing--"
"Paw!" cried Toto. "Your sentiments are most correct, Granny, dear; but
Bruin _must_ not stand bowing in the middle of the room, even if he is
grateful. Go in the corner, Bruin, and practise your steps, while I take
a turn with Coon. And you, Cracker, can--"
But Master Cracker did not wait for instructions. He had been watching
the parrot for some minutes, with his head on one side and his eyes
twinkling with merriment; and now, springing suddenly upon her perch, he
caught the astonished bird round the body, leaped with her to the floor,
and began to whirl her round the room at a surprising rate, in tolerably
good time to the lively waltz that Toto was whistling. Miss Mary gasped
for breath, and fluttered her wings wildly, trying to escape from her
tormentor, and presently, finding her voice, she shrieked aloud:--
"Ke-ke-kee! ki-ko! ki-ko-KAA! Let me go, you little wretch! Let me go
this instant, or I'll peck your eyes out! I will--"
"Oh, no, you won't, my dear!" said Cracker. "You wouldn't have the heart
to do that; for then how could I look at you, the delight of my life?
Tiddy-_tum_! tiddy-_tum_! tiddy-_tum_ tum-tum! just see what a pretty
step it is! You will enjoy it immensely, as soon as you know it a little
better." And he whirled her round faster and faster, trying to keep pace
with Coon and Toto, who were circling in graceful curves.
Suddenly the grandmother uttered an exclamation. "Toto!" she cried, "did
you put that custard pie out in the snow to cool? Bruin doesn't like it
hot, you know."
Toto, his head still dizzy from waltzing, looked about him in
bewilderment.
"Did I?" he said. "I am sure I don't know! I don't remember what I did
with it. Oh, yes, I do, though!" he added hastily. "It is there, on that
chair. Bruin! Bruin, I say! mind what you are about. It is just behind
you."
Thus adjured, the good bear, who had been gravely revolving by himself
in the corner until he was quite blind, tried to stop short; at the same
instant the squirrel and the parrot, stumbling against his shaggy paw,
fell over it in a confused heap of feathers and fur. He stepped hastily
back to avoid treading on them, lost his balance, and sat down
heavily--on the custard pie!
At the crash of the platter, the squirrel released Miss Mary, who flew
screaming to her perch; the grandmother wrung her hands and lamented,
begging to be told what had happened, and who was hurt; and the
unfortunate Bruin, staggering to his feet, stared aghast at the ruin he
had wrought. It was a very complete ruin, certainly, for the platter was
in small fragments, while most of its contents were clinging to his own
shaggy black coat.
"Well, old fellow," said Toto, "you have done it now, haven't you? I
tried to stop you, but I was too late."
"Yes," replied the bear, solemnly, "I have done it now! And I have also
done _with_ it now. Dear Madam," he added, turning to the old lady,
"please forgive me! I have spoiled your pie, and broken your platter;
but I have also learned a lesson, which I ought to have learned
before,--that is, that waltzing is not my forte, and that, as the old
saying is, 'A bullfrog cannot dance in a grasshopper's nest.' This is my
last dancing lesson!"