[Illustration: THEKING OF ROOT VALLEYA FAIRY TALE] [Illustration] THE KING OF ROOT VALLEY AND HIS CURIOUS DAUGHTER. A Fairy Tale. BY R. REINICK. With Eight Illustrations, by T. Von Oer and R. Reinick. LONDON: CHAPMAN AND HALL, 193, PICCADILLY. 1856. PRINTED BY JOHN EDWARD TAYLOR, LITTLE QUEEN STREET, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS. Contents. CHAPTER THE FIRST. PAGE THE ROOT-VALLEY AND ITS INHABITANTS. --THE STORY-TELLING GUESTS. --THE KING OF ROOT-VALLEY AND HIS CURIOUS DAUGHTER. --THE AERIAL CHARIOT. --FESTIVITIES IN THE TOWN. --RETURN THROUGH THE AIR FROM THE ROOF OF THE TOWN-HOUSE. --WHIMS OF THE PRINCESS 1 CHAPTER THE SECOND. THE SPRING FESTIVAL IN ROOT-VALLEY. --THE NUT-FIELD. --THE MIGRATING BIRDS. --A STRANGE PEOPLE MAKE THEIR APPEARANCE. --NUTCRACKER AND HARLEQUIN. --THE PRINCESS FALLS INTO RAPTURES 7 CHAPTER THE THIRD. THE WONDERFUL BROOK. --THE OVERTURNED CARRIER'S WAGGON. --NUTCRACKER AND HARLEQUIN COME TO LIFE. --THE THREE WISHES. --THE BOX OF NUREMBERG TOYS. --THE WANDERING RATS. --HOW HARLEQUIN BRINGS TO LIFE A WHOLE NATION AND ARMY. --BATTLE WITH THE RATS. --HOMAGE. --PROCESSION TO THE ROOT-VALLEY 11 CHAPTER THE FOURTH. NUTCRACKER IS BETROTHED TO THE PRINCESS OF ROOT-VALLEY, AND TAKES POSSESSION OF THE NUTFIELD. --THE BIRDS DEPART. --WHAT ILL COMES OF IT. --WEDDING AND PARTING 19 CHAPTER THE FIFTH. THE PUPPET-KINGDOM IS SET IN ORDER. --HAUGHTINESS OF NUTCRACKER, HIS WIFE, AND SUBJECTS. --ANTIPATHY OF THE TWO PEOPLES. --THE ROOT-KING ABDICATES HIS CROWN. --NUTCRACKER A TYRANT. --PREPARATIONS FOR WAR IN ROOT-VALLEY. --THE WAR. --HARLEQUIN'S DEATH. --FLIGHT AND DESTRUCTION OF THE PUPPET-KINGDOM. --NUTCRACKER'S DEATH. --THE PRINCESS SAVED 22 CHAPTER THE SIXTH. THE BIRDCATCHER AND HIS FAMILY. --HOW THE CHILDREN RETURN HOME WITH RARE TREASURES. --NUTCRACKER'S DEAD BODY. --THE LITTLE MAIDEN IN THE STORK'S NEST, AND WHO SHE WAS. --AFFECTING RECONCILIATION ON THE NUTFIELD. --THREATENING DANGER TO THE ROOTMEN. --EMIGRATION OF THE ROOTMEN 28 [Illustration: First Chapter. ] The King of Root Valley AND His Curious Daughter. CHAPTER THE FIRST. THE ROOT-VALLEY AND ITS INHABITANTS. --THE STORY-TELLING GUESTS. --THE KING OF ROOT-VALLEY AND HIS CURIOUS DAUGHTER. --THE AERIAL CHARIOT. --FESTIVITIES IN THE TOWN. --RETURN THROUGH THE AIR FROM THE ROOF OF THE TOWN-HOUSE. --WHIMS OF THE PRINCESS. The road between Nuremberg and Leipsic ran in former times, in onepart, along the edge of a dark forest, which stretched into thecountry far over the mountains. In the middle of this forest therocks enclosed a deep green valley, bordered by almost impenetrablehedges, so that neither man nor beast could enter it. Here dwelt atthat time the merry little people of the Rootmen. They were prettylittle creatures, in form and look like human beings, --the tallestabout six inches high, and the smallest as long as your littlefinger. In summer they lived in mossy bowers and under the leavesof the tall fern; in winter they nestled among the roots of trees, in the holes of some gnarled old trunk, and crept into the cleftsin the rocks. Their dress was fine and elegant: the little men worecoats and hose of moss, and the little women dresses of prettyvariegated flowers, leaves, and gossamer, according as the weatherwas warm or cold. They never felt the time long, having alwaysplenty of employment; they had to keep their roads in order, gatherin their stores, and the like; their favourite pastimes wereclimbing and jumping, and arranging grand water-parties innutshells upon the brook which ran through their country. At othertimes they would play at Hunt-the-hare with the Grasshoppers andMay-beetles, and dance the most graceful dances to the song of theBirds: nor must it be forgotten that they understood the languageof all living creatures. Two festivals in the year gave the little Rootmen especial delight. On certain days in Spring and Autumn there arrived large troops ofmerry guests, who were hospitably welcomed and entertained, and whoin return used to tell the inquisitive little people what waspassing in the world without. These guests were no other than the thousands and thousands ofBirds of Passage, who in Spring came from the South, and in Autumnfrom the North. The Storks told their village stories, the Swallowstwittered their fairy-tales, and the Nightingales brought with themnew and beautiful songs. There came frequently too a troop ofmigrating Rats, who gave descriptions of their travels, whileMagpies and Ravens told legends and tales of marvel that made oneshudder. In this manner the little Rootmen received constantly newsof the whole wide world. Such stories of course filled them withcuriosity to make acquaintance with Men, but an innate feeling ofdread prevented the little beings from quitting their peacefulValley. Now one time there reigned over this people a dear good old King, who had one daughter, a very beautiful Princess; she was howevermore full of curiosity than all other maidens in the world, nayeven more so indeed than her own little countrywomen. Her longingto see Men and Women in the world without, of whom she had heard somany wonderful things, had grown very strong. The good old King didall in his power to dissuade her from this wish, representing Menas fierce and selfish giants: "No living creature, " said he, "issecure from their mastery; the biggest elephant is obliged to danceto their will, as well as the smallest flea. " But all was of noavail; his daughter had taken it into her head to visit the world, and go she would. The thought of this preyed upon her mind, and shegrew more and more melancholy and thin; until at length the Kingresolved to grant her wish, in the hope that the sight wouldfrighten her for ever, and drive away her curiosity. A beautiful new Birds'-nest was therefore immediately selected, cushioned with feathers and moss, and over this was fixed a shadowyroof of leaves, as a shelter from the sun. In this car theRoot-King seated himself with the Princess; nor was it forgotten toplace in it also a delicate repast of juicy berries, honey, andtender young buds. Two Cranes, who had practised their task for aweek previously, took up the nest with their bills, and flew withit through the air to the nearest large Town inhabited by Men. In a few hours the two birds were hovering with the nest over thehouses of the town. With a gentle flight they descended, anddeposited the royal aerial chariot carefully upon the tower of theTownhouse, whence there was a view over all the streets, withoutany fear of being seen. That was indeed a sight! Even the Kinghimself had never imagined that a city of Men could be so splendid. The Princess too shouted and jumped with joy, until she nearly fellout of the nest, had not one of the Cranes with his long billsuddenly caught her by her little leg. Now, as chance would have it, on this same day the Prince of thatcountry was celebrating his wedding with the daughter of a foreignKing, so that the whole city was in one blaze of splendour. What shows and sights were there to be seen! processions, fairs, reviews of a thousand regiments, theatres in the open air, rope-dancers, races, --in short, it is impossible to describe themall. But first and foremost the Prince and his young wife! howsplendid he looked in his scarlet uniform, with the star upon hisbreast, moustachios, and large blue eyes; and she, in a red velvetdress, covered with pearls and precious stones, which sparkled andsent their light high up to the very gallery of the Townhouse. Wherever you looked there was something new and strange, and so itwent on from early in the morning until the sun disappeared behindthe mountains. However much all these marvellous sights delighted the old King, his opinion of Mankind remained unaltered, and he was sorry thathis daughter should just have chosen this day to witness the mostbrilliant side of Men's doings. He was however too weak to denyhimself a view of the scene; nay, he would even have remained upthere still longer, but that, as night fell and darkness came on, some men suddenly appeared on the gallery, to illuminate thebuilding and let off the fireworks. The men approached the nest. How the Princess started with affright at the sight of suchgigantic forms! The King too lost his speech from terror; and hadnot the Cranes, of themselves, lifted up the stork's nest into theair and borne it quickly off, there would have been an end of theKing and his daughter, and of our story too. However fortunatelythey were just in time: and still from afar off the aerialtravellers saw the fireworks fly into the air, whizzing andfizzing, and crackling and sparkling, from the tower of theTownhouse, which was certainly all very splendid at a distance, but close by would have been certain death. So the King and hisdaughter returned safe and sound to their own Root-Valley. The little Princess of course now saw well that Men were too bigfor her to be able to share in their grand doings; still her oldfancies and longing returned, and even stronger than ever, althoughin a somewhat altered form. She was firmly convinced that theremust be upon earth yet another race of beings as small as her ownlittle countrymen, but as clever and wise as Men; and so sheresolved never in her life to marry, unless a Prince of her ownsize should take her for his wife; but then too he must haveexactly such an hussar's jacket, and exactly such a star on hisbreast, and just the same large blue eyes, as the Man-Prince in thecity; and he must also rule over a little People, who possessedexactly the same peculiarities as they. These whims and fancies of his daughter made the good old Kingquite sad. Right gladly would he have had a son-in-law, --but such aone! where in the wide world was he to be found? He indeed did allin his power to form and teach his People according to the rulesand laws of Men, but nothing came of it, --they were not a whit thecleverer. The little fellows were never tired of _hearing_ of Menand their doings, but to become like them--no indeed! They wouldremain for ever and aye what they were, --free, merry littleRootmen! The end of it was that the Princess got no husband, andthe King no son-in-law. [Illustration: Second Chapter. ] CHAPTER THE SECOND. THE SPRING FESTIVAL IN ROOT-VALLEY. --THE NUT-FIELD. --THE MIGRATING BIRDS. --A STRANGE PEOPLE MAKE THEIR APPEARANCE. --NUTCRACKER AND HARLEQUIN. --THE PRINCESS FALLS INTO RAPTURES. Several years had passed, and the Spring Festival was returning. All was green and blooming; the trees and hedges were already infull leaf, and rock, vale, hill and dale were clothed withtheir new dress. The Rootmen had already quitted their darkwinter-quarters, and betaken themselves to their summer abodes bythe cool brook, which now once more ran purling merrily along. Allawaited with eager expectation the appearance of the winged guests. At length the important day arrived. It was a fine May morning;through the young foliage of the nut-trees the sunshine played andsparkled on flowers and turf, on pebbles and rippling waters. Earlyin the morning the little Heralds, decked out in new coats of moss, were seen riding through the Valley upon grasshoppers, and cryingaloud with a clear voice, -- "Come forth, ye Rootmen, all come out! For the Spring is come, and the birds are about. " The summons was no sooner heard, than the whole of the littlePeople came pouring from all sides into the Nut-field, which wasset apart for such festivals, and was on this occasion decked outin the most beautiful manner. In the middle, upon a molehillprettily covered with small pebbles, stood the throne for the goodKing and his fair daughter; it was made of snail-shells andmussel-shells, and cushioned with feathers. A long alley oflilies-of-the-valley, six deep, led up to the throne; and whenthe royal procession galloped up on squirrels, all the littlelily-bells rang with a lovely melody; for at each lily wasstationed a spider, to pull the bells with a thread of its cobweb. A solemn silence followed. The Birds had not yet made theirappearance. They had probably alighted somewhere in theneighbourhood, to smooth and arrange their feathers, ruffled bytheir long flight; they must of course show themselves to theirkind hosts in decent attire! On a sudden was heard from afar asound, which drew nearer and nearer, the usual sign that the guestswere approaching; and soon there was a great rustling in the air. First came a flock of birds flying over the forest, then more andmore, until at last the whole field was quite overshadowed by thewinged guests, who alighted in large flocks upon the ground. A general shout of joy resounded on all sides. The newly-arrivedguests were speedily refreshed with food and drink, and then an oldStork, the most famous story-teller of his time, mounted upon alarge stone, which served him for a rostrum. He had just put onthat pleasant look with which he used to begin all his stories, hehad just cleared his throat and opened his long red bill, when on asudden he was interrupted by a loud murmur from the crowd, and astrange sound, as of many carriages and horses, was heard in thedistance. The Heralds of the Root-King instantly hastened toascertain the cause, and presently returned announcing that a newand strange People were coming through the forest in innumerabletroops, led by a Prince in a scarlet hussar's uniform, with largeblue eyes, and a star upon his breast: his name was PrinceNutcracker, and with his councillor Harlequin he sought a graciousaudience of the Root-King and his daughter. At this news the Princess turned red as scarlet, and the King paleas death, with affright. The Princess imagined that the Man-Princein the town had perceived her on the gallery of the Townhouse, andwas now coming to marry her; but the King feared that the giantrace of Men were come to destroy his subjects and conquer hiscountry. When however they heard that Prince Nutcracker and hisfollowers were not bigger than the Rootmen, the Princess's fear waschanged into such joy, that she fell on her father's neck, andkissed his hands again and again; then the King commanded theStork to cease his storytelling, and the Prince with his followersto be conducted immediately to his presence. How Prince Nutcracker and his councillor Harlequin happened to comehither the following Chapter will tell. [Illustration: Third Chapt^r. ] CHAPTER THE THIRD. THE WONDERFUL BROOK. --THE OVERTURNED CARRIER'S WAGGON. --NUTCRACKER AND HARLEQUIN COME TO LIFE. --THE THREE WISHES. --THE BOX OF NUREMBERG TOYS. --THE WANDERING RATS. --HOW HARLEQUIN BRINGS TO LIFE A WHOLE NATION AND ARMY. --BATTLE WITH THE STAR. --HOMAGE. --PROCESSION TO THE ROOT-VALLEY. The road from Nuremberg to Leipsic, at the time of our story, ranin one part close to a deep hollow, through which a clear brookwound its way. The stream flowed directly from Root-Valley, and hadthe marvellous property, that whatever fell into it instantlybecame alive, provided only that it had previously had the form ofsome living thing. It chanced one day that a carrier's waggon was passing this spot onits way to the Leipsic Fair, packed full of boxes, when on a suddena wheel came off, and the waggon rolled over into a hollow. Now inthe boxes were Nuremberg toys of all kinds, enough to fit out awhole fair. When the poor carrier saw his waggon overthrown intothe hollow, where he could not get at it, off he ran in despair, and nobody ever after heard what became of him. Certain it is thatby the upset of the waggon some of the boxes were broken, and, ofthe puppets which they contained, a Nutcracker and a Harlequinrolled into the brook. No sooner were they touched by the water, than instantly a marvellous animation darted through their limbs. Slowly they raised themselves, and stared at one another withamazement. There stood Nutcracker, upon his stiff legs, like apost, beautifully varnished over, with his bright blue eyes, hiswooden pigtail, and the star upon his breast; while Harlequin, inhis particoloured jacket, with his laughing face, clapped togetherhis hands and legs over his head for very joy, and hopped aboutlike a magpie. When these first signs of animation subsided into more tranquilreflection, Harlequin opened his lips, and said, "Great Prince!that you are a Prince, and I your merry councillor, is clearenough, for otherwise you would have no star on your breast, and Ino merry-andrew's jacket; but what shall we do first?" "That is a question for _you_ to answer, not for _me_, " repliedNutcracker, whom the consciousness of his high birth had alreadymade grave and haughty. Muttering in his beard, he kept on movinghis under jaw up and down, and continued, "Dear Harlequin! that Iam, as you rightly say, born to be a great man, is proved, not onlyby my star, but also by three wishes which have just come into myhead. The first wish is to have a dishfull of the finest nuts, forwhich I have a marvellous appetite; the second is to have afaithful people and a brilliant army, for unquestionably I am bornto govern; the third and last wish is to marry a rich and beautifulPrincess, who shall bring me as her dowry a pretty portion of land, where I may live with your assistance in all possible ease andcomfort, eat nuts, govern my people, and pass the time merrily. Your duty is now to advise me how these wishes may be fulfilled. " "Better do than advise, " cried Harlequin: "only trust, my Prince, to my merriment. Before the sun goes down, you shall be inpossession of all these trifles, or my name is not Harlequin, andmy legs will never more dance and clatter over my head. " So saying, in a twinkling he climbed up the nearest nut-tree, andshook it with all his might. The large nuts fell like a shower ofhail, and the hungry Prince began to crack and eat them with allspeed; and he did not feel quite revived until he had eaten hisfill. The second wish it was far more difficult to accomplish;nevertheless Harlequin found ways and means to counsel in this caselikewise. The contents of the waggon, which lay scattered about, contained people and soldiers enough; he had only to open theboxes, and bring to life all the thousands of puppets which wereshut up in them; but unluckily the lids of the boxes were fasteneddown so tight, that the united strength of the two little men wasunable to force them open. They toiled and moiled till they werequite exhausted, but all in vain. In this perplexity a word ofadvice was worth something. Nutcracker's big blue eyes started outof his head from the mere effort of considering and contriving, till they looked like those of a crayfish; Harlequin, on thecontrary, never lost heart or ceased his merriment for an instant. He twirled round and round like a top, looking for help on allsides; and before he himself thought of it, indeed an unexpectedaid came in a marvellous way. Afar off the brown fields which bordered the forest-glen appearedall at once to become alive. An immense host of migrating Rats, ontheir journey from the South to the North, were advancing this way, and by chance fell directly upon the scattered heap of boxes. "Out of the way, my Prince!" cried Harlequin, "if we would not letourselves be devoured like hazelnuts. " They both sprang on one side. The Rats, which, as every one knows, never turn out of their road, but always go straight forward, through field and wood, over hedge and ditch, gnawing their waythrough stick and stone, fell without ado upon the chests andboxes. The fresh young pine-wood boards were a welcome prize totheir sharp teeth, and so too the strong hempen ropes. Speedily offfell the box-lids, one here, one there, --crack went a rope on thisside, another on that! The most splendid toys presently layscattered about in confusion on the road, and some of the Rats fellto gratifying their nibbling propensity upon them. When Harlequinbeheld this, he cried aloud to the Rats, "A good appetite to you, ye board-eaters! have you enough?" And so saying he jumped into thebrook, and flung his legs and arms about him, till the watersplashed over all the other little Nutcrackers, Harlequins, and tinand wooden soldiers, who instantly became alive and jumped upontheir legs. "Follow me!" cried Harlequin: "one fool makes many, --one wise manmany wise!" And he was right. Fresh puppets kept continually risingup and coming to life; the regiments formed themselves, the littlehorses were soon harnessed to the cannons and drew them, the tinGenerals put themselves at the head of their troops, and the orderof battle was arranged against the Rats. It was indeed high time, for many of the puppets had already fallen under the sharp teeth oftheir assailants. At the sight of this, Nutcracker's spirit andheroic courage were aroused; his eyes rolled, his jaws chatteredwith very thirst of fight, his wooden pigtail accompanied all themotions of his mouth with rapid twitchings. Impatiently he drew hissword, and at the head of his Body-guard (who were alsoNutcrackers, but without the star, and therefore no princes) he ledhis army to battle. And now he gave the signal to fire! Instantly all the firearms andcannons of the innumerable regiments were discharged at the Rats, who, terrified by the strange noise, took to flight in all haste. Thus a brilliant victory was gained, and in place of the lateconfusion of overturned boxes, there was now to be seen quite anew world, glittering in all the colours of the rainbow. Townsand villages, fortresses and country-houses, kitchens anddrawing-rooms, lay scattered one upon another, whilst thousands oflittle men and animals were running about. The first thing now was, of course, that Prince Nutcracker should receive the homage of hissubjects as their ruler. But there still remained the third task to be accomplished, --tofind a Princess, and with her hand to obtain a piece of land uponwhich the new colony might settle. Here again Harlequin's ingenuitysoon suggested advice and aid. Some of the wounded and capturedRats were commanded to give a description of all the Princesseswhom they had met with in the course of their travels. When theycame to tell of the beauty of the Princess of Root-Valley, thewooden heart of Prince Nutcracker, as he listened to theirdescription, warmed so, that a sound shot through it as if a dealboard were cracking and splitting in a room suddenly heated. Thissound he regarded as an omen; this and no other Princess was to behis Queen. He therefore resolved instantly to go with all hisPeople to where the Princess lived, and sue for her hand. The procession was forthwith marshalled in due order; the Ratprisoners served as pioneers and guides; after these followed thecavalry, then the Prince with all his Court, and behind him thecannons and infantry. Now came rocking-horses, heavily laden withband-boxes, in which were towns, villages, theatres, fortresses, kitchens, and so forth, and all the furniture and cooking utensils;behind these followed the little baggage-waggons, and tin andwooden coaches crammed full of passengers; then people on foot, ofall sorts, in every fashion of dress from the time of Adam to thepresent day. After all these came long droves of animals, large andsmall, out of all the Noah's-arks and menageries which had been inthe waggon, --first the tame and then the wild animals, the latteraccompanied by tin Bedouins and Circassians, who had to watch lestthe little roaring beasts should devour each other or any otherharmless beings. And all the while Harlequins, Scaramouches, andPantaloons kept jumping and skipping about in the procession, andby their tricks and merriment kept all the people in good heart andhumour on the long and arduous march. Meanwhile a large fleet of magnetic ships, with tin swans, ducks, and fishes swimming around them, floated in state on the wonderfulbrook, along the bank of which the procession marched. Now let theReader picture to himself this interminable multitude advancing inthe beautiful green woods, all amidst lilies-of-the-valley, violetsand buttercups, lettuce-leaves, nettles, and ferns, marching overhill and dale, in a sparkling sunshine, and with a blue skyoverhead, --and withal the toil and efforts of the little wights, the creaking of wheels, the cracking of whips, the word of commandresounding through the ranks, the music and singing when the pathwas smooth and easy, and the cries and shrieks upon the badroads, --how pretty and animated and merry the whole scene must havebeen! No wonder indeed that, along the whole way which theprocession journeyed, the birds came out of the trees and hedges, the beetles crept out of the flowers, even the worms and snailscame out of their hiding-places, all full of curiosity to see thesight; and no wonder too that they were all impressed with greatadmiration for Prince Nutcracker, who ruled over such a splendidpeople, and even made long travels with them! After long and arduous toil, and incredible efforts, the Colonyarrived at the large Nutfield, of which we have before heard. [Illustration: Fourth Chapter. ] CHAPTER THE FOURTH. NUTCRACKER IS BETROTHED TO THE PRINCESS OF ROOT-VALLEY, AND TAKES POSSESSION OF THE NUTFIELD. --THE BIRDS DEPART. --WHAT ILL COMES OF IT. --WEDDING AND PARTING. Prince Nutcracker and his followers were received in the mostfriendly manner by the good King of Root-Valley. The Princess wasin a sea of rapture at the brilliant appearance of the bright, varnished, wooden Prince, who in a formal and well-turned speechdeclared his love for her, together with his other wishes, in apleasing and appropriate manner. The old King even was so moved byhis words, that without more ado he gave him his daughter to wife, and the whole Nutfield as her dowry. And now, when the old mantenderly embraced his future son-in-law, all the people aroundshouted with joy, and all the thousands of little birds joined inthe general jubilee, piping and singing, and clapping their wings, amidst shouts of "Long live Prince Nutcracker and his Bride!" Thenit was arranged that the whole procession of the Puppet-peopleshould take possession of their new land, the Nutfield, before theeyes of the assembled Rootmen, which immediately took place. As often happens in life, that dear old friends are forgotten andput aside for new ones, so it fell out in this instance. Themigrating Birds, who had formerly been treated with the greatestattention and respect, and who on this occasion testified theirsympathy and joy at the union of the two Peoples, had in the courseof this day to experience the mortification of seeing their oldfriends turn their backs upon them. The little Root-mannikins, ineager curiosity, pushed them back on all sides, and gave thempretty clearly to understand that they might take to flight, andremain away for ever. Indignant at such treatment, the Birds rose all together upon thewing, like one, hovered an instant over the heads of the twoPeoples with a loud noise, and then disappeared with rapid flightin the blue distance. Oh horror and alarm! What happened then? The sudden flight of thesethousands of Birds created such a rush of air, like a whirlwind, that scarcely a man of the newly-arrived guests could keep himselfon his feet. Whole ranks of tin soldiers fell one upon another; thecardpaper heroes, actors, and huntsmen were swept far away over thefields; and even Prince Nutcracker himself, who was at that instantjust going in a polite manner to kiss the hand of his belovedPrincess, was so shaken that he staggered and fell, rolled downthe molehill, and lay sprawling at the foot of it with open mouth. An ill omen this for the power of the new Government! The greatadmiration which the Rootmen had hitherto felt for their newfriends quickly turned into disdain at this catastrophe. The goodKing and the fair Princess alone did not allow themselves to becarried away by their astonishment; they instantly descended fromtheir throne, and helped the fallen Prince to regain his legs. ButNutcracker broke out into bitter reproaches; he called the Birds, who had upset him, silly high-flying fools, who set themselvesabove the whole world, and overturned all rule and order. His angerwas not to be softened, until his future father-in-law promisedthat, to prevent the recurrence of any similar disaster, he wouldallow nothing flying to enter his kingdom, not even flying leaves. One by one all the little people got up on their legs again, andthe rest of the day was passed in merriment and feasting. On themorrow the wedding of Prince Nutcracker and his fair Bride wascelebrated with the grandest solemnities; after which the twoPeoples took leave of one another in the most friendly manner; theRoot-mannikins returned to their own Valley, and the Puppet-folksremained on the Nutfield. [Illustration: Fifth Chapter. ] CHAPTER THE FIFTH. THE PUPPET-KINGDOM IS SET IN ORDER. --HAUGHTINESS OF NUTCRACKER, HIS WIFE, AND SUBJECTS. --ANTIPATHY OF THE TWO PEOPLES. --THE ROOT-KING ABDICATES HIS CROWN. --NUTCRACKER A TYRANT. --PREPARATIONS FOR WAR IN ROOT-VALLEY. --THE WAR. --HARLEQUIN'S DEATH. --FLIGHT AND DESTRUCTION OF THE PUPPET-KINGDOM. --NUTCRACKER'S DEATH. --THE PRINCESS SAVED. It took Prince Nutcracker a full week to put his State in order, toerect towns, fortresses, and villages on their proper spots, and toassign to his subjects their places and sphere of activity. Allthis was admirably executed with the aid of his indefatigablecouncillor Harlequin, who was the soul of the whole undertaking. Everything too seemed to favour the new State, for as yet there hadbeen no cloud in the sky, no gust of wind to overthrow a company ofsoldiers, no rain to wash off the beautiful colours of the castles, or to wet the princely decorations of the great theatre. Thus lived the young Princess for some days with her husband in joyand splendour. She had laid aside her old dresses of leaves, flowers, and gossamer, and was arrayed like the most elegantState Puppet, after the newest Paris fashions. She left off hernatural lively movements, and assumed the stiff and statelydeportment of her husband and the ladies of the Court, whoconsidered it unbecoming to turn their head ever so little onone side. She almost wholly forgot how to walk, while shewas constantly driving to balls, concerts, and parades, tocockchafer-hunts and fly-chases. Her chief delight was in finery:every day she put on a new dress, and before her windows were shopsof all the newest fashions, so that her first glance fell upon themwhen she got up in the morning. Her husband too, and his subjects, grew continually more and morehaughty. They looked down with contempt upon everything that wasnot a Puppet, or so finely painted and varnished as they. Everybird that flew past, or came near them, was pursued with thegreatest cruelty. Even the Rootmen, who came from time to time for their pleasure, were received with more and more coldness, insomuch that they soonceased coming at all. Nay the good King himself was compelled towitness how his son-in-law and his own daughter came in time totreat him with indifference. Naturally the former friendship of thetwo Peoples was soon turned into bitter hatred. Before a month hadelapsed Prince Nutcracker's arrogance became so great, that hedemanded of the Rootmen a monthly tribute of two thousand of thefinest hazelnuts: at the same time he assembled his troops andplanted his fortresses in a line on the frontier of theRoot-kingdom, resolving, in case of refusal, to invade with hisarmy the territory of his father-in-law. Such a violation of all right naturally filled the gentle spirit ofthe good old King with indignation. One whole day long he wepttears of bitterness into his mossy beard; he then publiclyrenounced his ungrateful daughter, and forbade her ever to comeinto his sight again. At length he retired from all affairs ofgovernment; he felt that he was too tender-hearted for such arduousbusiness. The tidings of this soon reached his daughter. Her eyes were now atonce opened, and she saw how unworthily she had given away herhand, how from vanity she had violated her duty to her father, andto all those who had once been dear to her. Alas, it was too late!She tried all means to dissuade her husband from his unjustdemands, but he was resolute; and when she continued unceasinglyher entreaties, his anger turned against her likewise; he shut herup in her room, and would not hear a word more from her. Instead ofjoy and peace, her constant companions now were sorrow andrepentance. Meanwhile in the Root-kingdom a young and vigorous King waselected, who shared the hostility of his people against theinsolent intruders, and forthwith declared war upon them. Heresolved by a decisive battle either to annihilate or drive themaway, and to this end he summoned his Allies from all sides to hisaid. Rabbits and moles, lizards and worms, were to invadeNutcracker's country by an underground attack, and overthrow townsand villages; locusts, bees, and cockchafers were to fall upon theenemy from the air; whilst on the ground the Rootmen themselvesshould assail the foe with sharp rush-lances and two-edged bladesof grass. The morning of the fatal battle dawned gloomily; the sky wascovered with black clouds. Clad in their green and brown moss coatsthe Rootmen marched toward the Nutfield, so that the enemy did notobserve them until they were close under his fortresses. Suddenlythere burst forth a cannonade and firing from all the loopholes;but the balls remained sticking in the moss of the assailants, whoanswered the terrific discharge with loud laughter. Quickly thearmy of the Rootmen pressed onward into the Nutfield: PrinceNutcracker threw himself upon them with his Body-guard, but wasdriven back; whereupon he fled into the palace, and made Harlequinhis Fieldmarshal. With wild leaps of despair Harlequin led the mainarmy to the field. But soon a general panic seized upon all. The subterranean Alliesof the enemy had already undermined the ground along which the armyof Puppets were marching, and with it the fortresses, towns, andvillages on the Nutfield; at the same time almost all the buildingsround about tumbled one upon another with a loud crash. Fieldmarshal Harlequin himself was seized by the leg by a fierceold Mole, who dragged him down into the earth, in spite of the mostheroic struggles: he was never seen again! This was the signal for a general and wild flight of Nutcracker'sbrilliant army, who fled to the royal palace with the cry of "Saveyourselves as you can!" The palace consisted of strongly-builtwooden saloons, and longest withstood the labours of theundermining animals. Here Nutcracker had already put the horses tohis State-carriage; then quickly jumping into it with his wife, heholloa'd to the coachman, "Off and away, far out of this Valley, asfast as you can, and as far as possible!" And all his peoplecrowded round the coach in wild confusion to find a refuge, for onevery side insects came flying and buzzing around in the air, andwith their wings overthrew everything that was not firmly fixed. Away went the fugitives, rolling over the field like a great ball. Although hard pressed by the enemy, and with the loss of manykilled, they succeeded in creeping through the great hedge whichsurrounded the Valley, and escaping into the forest. The reverses of the insolent Prince and his subjects now reachedtheir height: the very sky waged war against them, and poured downupon them torrents of rain. Nutcracker and his Princess saw withgrief, from the windows of their coach, the torrent increasing andoverflowing the road, --their subjects, houses, and furniture sweptpast in the whirlpool, one after another falling under the toils ofthe march, tumbling over precipices or getting entangled in roots, nettles, and heaps of fallen leaves, and perishing miserably. Nutcracker's whole People were speedily destroyed: he too had notgone many yards, when the water unglued the joints of his coach, and the princely pair were carried away by the flood. But thenatural strong and active spirit of the Princess was nowre-awakened by the danger. How had she once used to skip aboutexultingly, and swim upon the waves in such weather! With one handshe seized her husband's pigtail, and with the other a twig. Shetried with a spring to reach the root of a tree; but alas! the hairof the terrified Prince was not strong enough: the pigtail remainedin her hand, and she saw her husband carried away by the torrentand vanish from her sight. At first she called sorrowfully after him, but presently hernatural spirit became only the more daring. She threw off her sillyfashionable dress, soaked with the rain, which cramped her slenderlimbs; and quickly clothing herself in the first leaves she couldfind, climbed up like a squirrel into an old tree, and in a hole inits branches sought shelter from the storm and the approachingnight. [Illustration: Sixth Chapter. ] CHAPTER THE SIXTH. THE BIRDCATCHER AND HIS FAMILY. --HOW THE CHILDREN RETURN HOME WITH RARE TREASURES. --NUTCRACKER'S DEAD BODY. --THE LITTLE MAIDEN IN THE STORK'S NEST, AND WHO SHE WAS. --AFFECTING RECONCILIATION ON THE NUTFIELD. --THREATENING DANGER TO THE ROOTMEN. --EMIGRATION OF THE ROOTMEN. At the time when all these wonderful occurrences happened, therelived at the entrance of this forest an old Birdcatcher and hisfamily. During the two years since he had settled here, hisbusiness had prospered remarkably; and, especially in the Springand Autumn, so many birds had been taken in his nets, that he hadearned many a bright dollar, and had laid by many a spare penny. Now once on a Spring day a heavy rain had fallen, and, strange tosay, ever since that time not a bird was longer to be seen there:every morning the Birdcatcher found his nets torn, his limed twigsdestroyed, and even his screech-owl and other decoy-birds hadvanished from their cages and perches. And yet he knew well enoughthere lived no other man in the whole forest who could have doneall this. One day he had sent his children with the cart deep into theforest, to fetch brushwood. Evening came on, and they did notreturn. It already began to grow dark, and as they still had notcome back, his anxiety increased, and he determined to go in searchof them. He had just crossed the threshold, when suddenly he hearda shouting and singing at a distance in the wood. Joyous sounds! itwas his dear children, who were dragging and pushing along thelittle cart, piled up and closely packed. "You good-for-nothing little brats, where have you been all thistime?" he exclaimed, half angrily, though overjoyed. But theylaughed, and removing the green brushwood with which they hadcovered the loaded cart, they exclaimed, quite red in the face withdelight, "Only see, father, what we have here!" And, lo and behold, the cart was filled from top to bottom with broken, bent, andgnaw'd playthings! And now they went on to tell the whole story of their treasures;and amidst a Babel of voices, all speaking together, one louderthan another, the sum and substance of the story was this. Afterlosing their way, they had wandered about till they came to anarrow, smooth dale, which lost itself like a footpath in the wood. The ground was all wet and miry from the rain. Suddenly, to theiramazement, they found all these splendid things scattered about inradiant confusion; and, had not the sun already sunk behind thepine-trees, they would have followed the path still further. Itseemed to have no end, but disappeared deep in the thicket, and, asfar as they could see, it was all bestrewn with similar treasures. The story seemed strange to their father, and he resolved to followthe path they spoke of the next day, hoping in his own mind todiscover a track of the culprit who had decoyed away the birds andtorn his nets. The next morning, as soon as the dawn glimmered through the stillforest, the Birdcatcher's whole family were on their way with thewood-cart to the dale; and, truly enough, there they foundeverything as the children had described. "Look, look, father! there is another splendid little woodenfellow!" exclaimed the youngest child, raking out of the mire alittle Nutcracker, bedaubed with mud, his colours all washed off, and his pedestal lost. "Heyday! what a face the fellow has, and what a mouth, and whatgoggling eyes!" cried all the children in one voice. "Silly nonsense! stupid toy!" exclaimed the old man angrily, as hesnatched the Nutcracker from them, and flung it far away into thewood. But now a wonderful sight presented itself to his view. Out of a Crane's nest, high up on an old oak-tree, there rose alittle maiden of human form, quite enveloped in gossamer. Sheclimbed down from the tree like a squirrel, ran with all speed tothe spot where Nutcracker lay, dug him a grave with her hands, and, with the aid of the two Cranes, laid him in it, and raked the earthover the spot; after which she climbed again up the tree, and intothe nest. The Birdcatcher and his family stood open-mouthed, in silentastonishment; they feared to frighten away the little maiden, butthis strange sight made them hesitate what to do. "So, so, then, you are the little witch who robs me of my bread!"at last exclaimed the Birdcatcher, giving vent to his repressedanger. "Wait there awhile, my pretty little bird: tomorrow morningwe will come again with axe and nets; we will then cut down yourtree in a trice and catch you. For the present let us see wherethis path leads, and whether there are not more of you here. " Before he had finished speaking, he espied the little maidenpeeping anxiously from under her white veil out of the nest, andmaking a sign. And instantly the Cranes came flying to her, took upthe nest with their bills, raised it from the branches, and bore itswiftly through the air. Who other could the little maiden be than our Princess ofRoot-Valley? Fear of her father and her countrypeople had prevented herreturning to her native Valley. At the same time a feeling ofsorrow for the haughtiness with which she had treated the Birdswhom she had once loved, had grown so strong in her heart, that sheresolved to make amends for her former ill-conduct to thesegood-natured creatures. Since the fatal day when her husband andhis people had been all destroyed, she had made her abode in thistree, and taken under her tender care all the young birds whoseparents had died. Indeed she it really was who, in spite of herfear of Men, had every night destroyed the Birdcatcher's nets, andhad warned the birds against venturing near him. At this instant however she saw the danger which threatened hercountrymen, if these selfish people should discover theRoot-kingdom. All other considerations therefore must yield. Without delay she desired the Cranes to convey her straight to herown Valley, where she was resolved to alight, happen what might. In the Nutfield, which had so recently been the scene of her falsesplendour and her follies, the Rootmen happened on this very day tobe assembled. Notwithstanding her wrong conduct, they had not yetgiven up the Princess, and, at the entreaties of her father, theywere met to consider what steps could be taken to search for her. The Cranes alighted with the nest. In an instant the repentantdaughter fell on the neck of her overjoyed father, and all thePeople compassionated her, and forgave her from the bottom of theirhearts. In their delight at seeing her again, all were ready togive themselves up to unrestrained rejoicing, but the Princesschecked their merriment. She told her People the danger whichthreatened them of being discovered by Men. Anxiety and terrorseized the Rootmen at this news: it was no longer possible toremain in the forest. They at once resolved to leave Root-Valley, and to emigrate by subterranean passages to distant lands. The whole body put themselves forthwith in motion, when just atthat instant there appeared upon the rocky heights, behind thethick hedge, the Birdcatcher with his family. If these folks hadbeen astonished at the first instant, how much more so were theynow, when they saw all the little Rootmen disappear in the rocks! Angry and impatient at not being able to get at them, theBirdcatcher tried all he could to break through the hedge, but invain, --he only came off with scratched and bleeding hands. "Ill-luck!" he exclaimed; "had I but my axe and nets, to catchthose tiny little creatures, I might sell them in the town, or makea show of them, and become the richest man in the world!" Andthereupon he took his whistle, and began to whistle an alluringmelody, thinking by this means to entice the little People likebirds; but this attempt was likewise in vain. All the littleRootmen passed before his eyes into the rock, actually laughingand making faces at him; and when the very last little elf vanishedin the rock, the opening closed. Since that time no one has everagain seen the little Rootmen. The End. [Illustration: The End. ] [Illustration] TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been retained; however, somemid-paragraph illustrations have been moved to the beginning of thechapter. The caret in "Third Chapt^r" indicates a superscripted letter "r. "