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安徒生童話故事第132篇：癩蛤蟆The Toad
引導語：癩蛤蟆 ，兩棲動物，體表有許多疙瘩，內有毒腺，也叫蟾蜍，那么我們通過下文的安徒生童話《癩蛤蟆》了解相關的信息。
水井很深，因此繩子也就很長。當人們要把裝滿了水的汲水桶拉到井邊上的時候，滑輪幾乎連轉動的余地都沒有了。井水不論是怎樣清澈，太陽總是沒有辦法照進去的。不過凡是太陽光可以射到的地方，就有綠色的植物從石縫之間生長出來。
這兒住著一個癩蛤蟆的家族。他們是外來的移民。事實上他們是跟老癩蛤蟆媽媽倒栽蔥跳進來的。她現在還活著。那些早就住在這兒和現在正在水里游著的青蛙，都承認與他們有親族關系，同時也把他們稱為“井客”。這些客人愿意在這兒住下來。他們把潮濕的石塊叫作干地;他們就在這上面舒服地生活下去。
青蛙媽媽曾經旅行過一次。當汲水桶被拉上來的時候，她就在里面。不過她覺得陽光太厲害，刺痛了她的眼睛。很幸運，她馬上就跳出了水桶，噗通一聲就跳進井水里去了。她腰痛了整整三天，不能動彈。關于上面的世界，她沒有多少意見可以發表，不過她知道，所有別的青蛙也全知道——水井并不就是整個世界。癩蛤蟆媽媽大概可以談出一點道理來;不過當別人問起她的時候，她從來不回答，因此別人也就不再問了。
“她是又笨又丑，又胖又討厭!”小青蛙們齊聲說�！八囊恍┖⒆觽円餐瑯映蟆！�
“也許是這樣，”癩蛤蟆媽媽說�！安贿^在他們之中有一個頭上鑲著一顆寶石——如果不是鑲在我的頭上的話!”
青蛙們都聽到了這句話，他們同時把眼睛睜得斗大。當然他們是不愿聽這樣的話的，因此就對她做了一個鬼臉，跳到井底去。不過那些小癩蛤蟆們特別伸伸后腿，表示驕傲。他們都以為自己有那顆寶石，因此把頭昂著，動也不敢動一下。不過后來大家問他們究竟為什么要感到驕傲，寶石究竟是一種什么東西。
“是一種漂亮和昂貴的東西，”癩蛤蟆媽媽說，“我簡直形容不出來!那是一種使你戴起來感到非常得意、使別人看起來非常嫉妒的東西。但是請你們不要問吧，我是不會回答的�！�
“是的，我不會有這顆寶石，”最小的那個癩蛤蟆說。他是一個丑得不能再丑的小玩藝兒。“我為什么要有這樣了不起的東西呢?如果它引起別人煩惱，那么我也不會感到得意的!不，我只希望將來有機會跑到井邊上去看看外面的世界。那一定是非常好玩的!”
“你最好待在原來的地方不要動!”老癩蛤蟆說�！斑@是你根生土長的地方，這兒你什么都熟悉。當心那個汲水桶啦!它可能把你壓碎。即使你安全地跑進里面去，你也可能跌出來的。我跌過一交，連四肢和肚子里的卵都沒有受到損傷，但不是每個癩蛤蟆都能像我這樣幸運呀�！�
“呱!”小癩蛤蟆說。這跟我們人類說一聲“哎呀”差不多。
他非常想跑到井邊去看看;他渴望瞧瞧上面的綠東西。第二天早晨，當盛滿了水的汲水桶正在被拉上來.在小癩蛤蟆坐著的石頭旁偶爾停一下的時候，這個小家伙就抖了一下，跳到這個滿滿的桶里，一直沉到水底，水被拉上來了，他也被倒出來了。
“呸，真倒霉!”看到他的那個人說�！斑@是我從來沒有看到過的一個最丑的東西!”
他用木拖鞋踢了它一腳。癩蛤蟆幾乎要成了殘廢，不過他總算是滾進一叢很高的蕁麻里去了。他把周圍的麻梗子看了又看，還朝上面望了一眼。太陽光射在葉子上;葉子全都是透明的。這對于他說來，簡直是像我們人走進了一個大森林里去一樣，太陽從青枝綠葉之間透進來。
“這兒比在井里漂亮得多了!叫我在這兒住一生也是樂意的!”小癩蛤蟆說。他在這兒呆了一點鐘，呆了兩點鐘!“我倒很想知道，外面是個什么樣子?我既然跑了這么遠的路，那么當然可以再跑遠一點!”于是他就盡快地朝外面爬。他爬到大路上來了。當他正在橫爬過去的時候，太陽在照著，灰塵在路上飛揚。
“人們在這兒可算是真正到干地上來了，”癩蛤蟆說�！拔規缀蹩梢哉f是一個幸運兒;這太使我舒服了!”
他現在來到了一條水溝旁邊。這兒長著毋忘我花和繡線菊;緊挨著還有一道山楂和接骨木形成的籬笆，上面懸掛著許多白色的旋花。人們可以在這兒看到許多不同的色彩。這兒還有一只蝴蝶在飛舞。癩蛤蟆以為它是一朵花，為了要好好地看看這個世界，才從枝子上飛走——這當然是再合理不過的事情。
“假如我能像它這樣自由自在地來往，”癩蛤蟆說�！斑�!哎呀，那該是多么痛快啊!”
他在溝里呆了八天八夜，什么食物也不缺少。到了第九天，他想：“再向前走吧!”但是他還能找到什么比這更美麗的東西呢?他可能找到一只小癩蛤蟆和幾只青蛙。昨天晚上，風里有一種聲音，好像是說附近住著一些“親族”似的。
“活著真愉快!從井里跳出來，躺在蕁麻里，在塵土飛揚的路上爬，在濕潤的溝里休息!但是再向前走!我們得找一些青蛙和一只小癩蛤蟆。沒有他們是活不下去的;光有大自然是不夠的!”
于是他又開始亂跑起來。
他來到田野里的一個長滿了燈心草的小池旁邊邊。接著他就走進去。
“這地方對你說來是太潮濕了，是不是?”青蛙們說�！安贿^我們非常歡迎你!——請問你是一個先生還是一個太太?不過這也沒有什么關系，我們歡迎你就得了!”
這天晚上，他被請去參加了一個音樂會——一個家庭音樂會：滿腔的熱忱和微弱的歌聲。我們都熟悉這一套。會上沒有什么點心吃，但是水可以隨便喝——假如你高興的話，你可以把一池的水都喝光。
“現在我還得向前走!”小癩蛤蟆說。他老是在追求更好的東西。
他看到又大又明亮的星星在眨著眼睛，他看到新月在射出光輝。他看到太陽升起來——越升越高�！�
“我還在井里，不過在一個較大的井里罷了。我必須爬得更高一點。我有一種不安和渴望的心情!”
當這個可憐的小東西看到又大又圓的月亮的時候，他想，“不知道這是不是上面放下來的一個汲水桶?我不知道能不能跳進去，爬得更高一點?難道太陽不是一個大汲水桶嗎?它是多么大，多么亮啊!它可以把我們統統都裝進去!我一定要抓住機會!啊，我的腦袋里是多么亮啊!我不相信寶石能夠發出比這還亮的光來!但是我并沒有寶石，我也不一定要為這而感到傷心。不，更高地爬進快樂和光明中去吧!我有把握，可是我也害怕——這是一件很難辦的事情。但是我非辦不可!前進吧!向大路上前進吧!”
于是他就前進了——像一個爬行動物能夠前進的那個樣兒前進。他來到一條兩旁有人居住的大路上。這兒有花園，也有菜園。他在一個菜園旁邊休息一下。
“該是有多少不同的動物啊!我從來沒有看到過這些東西!這個世界是多么大，多么幸福啊!不過你也得走過去親自看看，不能老呆在一個地方呀!”因此他就跳進菜園里去。
“這兒是多么綠啊!多么美麗啊!”
“這些東西我早就知道!”白菜葉上的毛蟲說�！拔业倪@片葉子在這兒要算最大!它蓋住了半個世界，不過沒有這半個世界我也可以活下去�！�
“咕!咕!”有一個聲音說。接著就有一些母雞進來了。她們在萊園里蹣跚地走著。
走在最前面的那只母雞是遠視眼。她一眼就瞧見了那片皺菜葉上的毛蟲。她啄了一口，弄得它滾到地上來，卷做一團。母雞先用一只眼睛瞧了它一下，接著又用另一只眼睛瞧了它一下，因為她猜不透，它這樣卷一下究竟要達到一個什么目的。
“它這樣做決不是出于什么好意!”母雞想。于是它抬起頭來又啄了一下。癩蛤蟆嚇了一大跳，無意之中爬到雞面前去了。
“它居然還有援軍!”母雞說�！扒七@個爬行的東西!”母雞轉身就走�！拔也辉诤踹@一小口綠色的食物;這只會弄得我的喉嚨發癢!”
別的雞也同意她的看法，因此大家就走開了。
“我卷動一下就逃脫了!”毛蟲說。“可見鎮定自若是必要的。不過最困難的事情還在后面——怎樣回到白菜葉上去。那在什么地方呢?”
小癩蛤蟆走過來，表示同情。他很高興，他能用它丑陋的外貌把母雞嚇跑了。
“你這是什么意思?”毛蟲問�！笆聦嵣鲜俏易约禾娱_她的，你的樣子的確難看!讓我回到我原來的地方去吧!我現在已經可以聞到白菜的氣味了!我現在已經走到我的菜葉上了!什么地方也沒有自己的家好。我得爬上去!”
“是的，爬上去!”小癩蛤蟆說，“爬上去!它的想法跟我一樣。不過它今天的心情不大好，這大概是因為它嚇了一跳的緣故。我們大家都要向上爬!”
因此他就盡量地抬頭朝上面看。
鸛鳥正坐在農家屋頂上的窩里。他嘰哩咕嘻地講些什么東西，鸛鳥媽媽也在嘰哩咕嘻地講些什么東西。
“他們住得多高啊!”癩蛤蟆想。“我希望也能爬得那么高!”
農舍里住著兩個年輕的學生。一個是詩人，另一個是博物學家。一個歌頌和歡樂地描述上帝所創造的一切以及他自己心中的感受;他用簡單、明了、豐富、和諧的詩句把這一切都唱出來。另一個找來一些東西，而且在必要的時候，還要把它們分析一下。他把我們上帝創造出來的東西當作數學，一會兒減，一會兒乘。他要知道事物的里里外外，找出其中的道理。他懂得全部的奧妙，他歡樂地、聰明地談論著它。他們兩人都是善良、快樂的人。
“那兒坐著一個完整的癩蛤蟆標本，”博物學家說�！拔乙阉旁诰凭锉４嫫饋��！�
“你已經有了兩個呀!”詩人說�！澳阕屗察o地坐著，享受生活吧!”
“不過他是丑得那么可愛!”博物學家說。
“是的，如果你能在他頭上找得出一顆寶石來!”詩人說，“那么我都要幫助你把它剖開�！�
“寶石!”博物學家說�！澳愕故且粋�博物學專家呢!”
“民間不是流傳著一個美麗的故事，說最丑的動物癩蛤蟆頭上藏著一顆最貴重的寶石么?人不也是一樣么?伊索和蘇格拉底不都是有一顆寶石么?”——癩蛤蟆沒有再聽下去，他們的話它連一半都聽不懂。這兩位朋友繼續談下去，癩蛤蟆逃開了，也就沒有被泡到酒精里。
“他們也在談論著寶石!”癩蛤蟆說。“我身上沒有這東西——真是幸事!不然的話，我可要倒霉了�！�
農舍的屋頂上又有嘰哩咕嚕的聲音。原來是鸛鳥爸爸在對他家里的人訓話。他們都側著腦袋望著菜園里的這兩個年輕人。
“人是一種最自命不凡的動物!”鸛鳥說。“你們聽他們講話的這副神氣!他們連一個像樣的‘嘎嘎’聲都發不出來，而卻以為自己講話的本領和語言非常了不起。他們的語言倒是世界上少有的：我們每次走完一天路程，語言就變了。這個人聽不懂那個人的話。但我們的語言在全世界都通行——在丹麥跟在埃及一樣容易懂。而且人還不會飛呢!他們發明一種東西來幫助他們旅行——把這叫做‘鐵路’。不過他們常常在鐵路上跌斷脖子。我一想起這事情就不禁連嘴都要哆嗦起來。世界沒有人也可以存在下去。我們沒有他們也可以活下去!我們只要有青蛙和蚯蚓就得了!”
“這是一篇了不起的演說!”小癩蛤蟆想。“他么個多么偉大的人.他坐得多么高——我從來沒有看見過有人坐得這樣高!他游得才好呢!”當鸛鳥展開翅膀，在空中飛過去的時候，癩蛤蟆就大叫了一聲。
鸛鳥媽媽在窩里談話。她談著關于埃及、尼羅河的水和外國的美妙的泥巴。小癩蛤蟆覺得這是非常新奇和有趣的故事。
“我也得到埃及去，”他說，“只要鸛鳥或者他的一個孩子愿意帶我去的話。將來這小家伙結婚的時候，我將送給他一點什么東西。是的，我一定會到埃及去的，因為我是一個非常幸運的人!我心中的這種渴望和希求，比頭上有一顆寶石要好得多�！�
他正是有這樣一顆寶石，叫做：永恒的渴望和希求;向上——不斷地向上。這顆寶石在他的身體里發出光來——發出快樂和渴望的光。
正在這時候，鸛鳥飛來了。它看到草里的這只癩蛤蟆。它撲下來，使勁地啄住這只癩蛤蟆。嘴銜得很緊，風呼嘯而過。這是一種很不愉快的感受，但癩蛤蟆卻在向上飛，而且他知道是在向埃及飛。因此他的眼睛在發著光，好像里面有火星迸出來似的：“呱!哎呀!”
他的軀體死了;癩蛤蟆被掐死了。但是他的眼睛里迸出的火花變成了什么呢?
太陽光把他吸收去了。太陽帶走了癩蛤蟆頭上的那顆寶石。但帶到什么地方去了呢?
你不必去問那位博物學家。你最好去問那位詩人。他可以把這故事當做一個童話告訴你。這童話里面還有那條毛蟲，也有鸛鳥這一家人。想想看吧，毛蟲變了形，變成了一只美麗的蝴蝶!鸛鳥家庭飛過高山和大海，到遼遠的非洲去。但是它們仍然能夠找到最短的捷徑，飛回到丹麥來——飛到同樣的地方，同樣的屋頂上來。是的，這幾乎是太像一個童話了，但這是真的!你不妨問問博物學家吧。他不得不承認這個事實。但是你自己也知道，因為你曾經看到過全部的經過。
不過怎樣才可以看到癩蛤蟆頭上的寶石呢?
你到太陽里去找吧。你可以瞧瞧它，假如你能夠的話!太陽光是很強的。我們的眼睛還沒有能力正視上帝創造的一切光輝，但是有一天我們會有這種能力的。那時這個童話將會非常精彩，因為我們自己也將會成為這個童話的一部分。
《癩蛤蟆》英文版：
The Toad
THE well was deep, and therefore the rope had to be a long one; it was heavy work turning the handle when any one had to raise a bucketful of water over the edge of the well. Though the water was clear, the sun never looked down far enough into the well to mirror itself in the waters; but as far as its beams could reach, green things grew forth between the stones in the sides of the well.
Down below dwelt a family of the Toad race. They had, in fact, come head-over-heels down the well, in the person of the old Mother-Toad, who was still alive. The green Frogs, who had been established there a long time, and swam about in the water, called them “well-guests.” But the new-comers seemed determined to stay where they were, for they found it very agreeable living “in a dry place,” as they called the wet stones.
The Mother-Frog had once been a traveller. She happened to be in the water-bucket when it was drawn up, but the light became too strong for her, and she got a pain in her eyes. Fortunately she scrambled out of the bucket; but she fell into the water with a terrible flop, and had to lie sick for three days with pains in her back. She certainly had not much to tell of the things up above, but she knew this, and all the Frogs knew it, that the well was not all the world. The Mother-Toad might have told this and that, if she had chosen, but she never answered when they asked her anything, and so they left off asking.
“She’s thick, and fat and ugly,” said the young green Frogs; “and her children will be just as ugly as she is.”
“That may be,” retorted the mother-Toad, “but one of them has a jewel in his head, or else I have the jewel.”
The young frogs listened and stared; and as these words did not please them, they made grimaces and dived down under the water. But the little Toads kicked up their hind legs from mere pride, for each of them thought that he must have the jewel; and then they sat and held their heads quite still. But at length they asked what it was that made them so proud, and what kind of a thing a jewel might be.
“Oh, it is such a splendid and precious thing, that I cannot describe it,” said the Mother-Toad. “It’s something which one carries about for one’s own pleasure, and that makes other people angry. But don’t ask me any questions, for I shan’t answer you.”
“Well, I haven’t got the jewel,” said the smallest of the Toads; she was as ugly as a toad can be. “Why should I have such a precious thing? And if it makes others angry, it can’t give me any pleasure. No, I only wish I could get to the edge of the well, and look out; it must be beautiful up there.”
“You’d better stay where you are,” said the old Mother-Toad, “for you know everything here, and you can tell what you have. Take care of the bucket, for it will crush you to death; and even if you get into it safely, you may fall out. And it’s not every one who falls so cleverly as I did, and gets away with whole legs and whole bones.”
“Quack!” said the little Toad; and that’s just as if one of us were to say, “Aha!”
She had an immense desire to get to the edge of the well, and to look over; she felt such a longing for the green, up there; and the next morning, when it chanced that the bucket was being drawn up, filled with water, and stopped for a moment just in front of the stone on which the Toad sat, the little creature’s heart moved within it, and our Toad jumped into the filled bucket, which presently was drawn to the top, and emptied out.
“Ugh, you beast!” said the farm laborer who emptied the bucket, when he saw the toad. “You’re the ugliest thing I’ve seen for one while.” And he made a kick with his wooden shoe at the toad, which just escaped being crushed by managing to scramble into the nettles which grew high by the well’s brink. Here she saw stem by stem, but she looked up also; the sun shone through the leaves, which were quite transparent; and she felt as a person would feel who steps suddenly into a great forest, where the sun looks in between the branches and leaves.
“It’s much nicer here than down in the well! I should like to stay here my whole life long!” said the little Toad. So she lay there for an hour, yes, for two hours. “I wonder what is to be found up here? As I have come so far, I must try to go still farther.” And so she crawled on as fast as she could crawl, and got out upon the highway, where the sun shone upon her, and the dust powdered her all over as she marched across the way.
“I’ve got to a dry place. now, and no mistake,” said the Toad. “It’s almost too much of a good thing here; it tickles one so.”
She came to the ditch; and forget-me-nots were growing there, and meadow-sweet; and a very little way off was a hedge of whitethorn, and elder bushes grew there, too, and bindweed with white flowers. Gay colors were to be seen here, and a butterfly, too, was flitting by. The Toad thought it was a flower which had broken loose that it might look about better in the world, which was quite a natural thing to do.
“If one could only make such a journey as that!” said the Toad. “Croak! how capital that would be.”
Eight days and eight nights she stayed by the well, and experienced no want of provisions. On the ninth day she thought, “Forward! onward!” But what could she find more charming and beautiful? Perhaps a little toad or a few green frogs. During the last night there had been a sound borne on the breeze, as if there were cousins in the neighborhood.
“It’s a glorious thing to live! glorious to get out of the well, and to lie among the stinging-nettles, and to crawl along the dusty road. But onward, onward! that we may find frogs or a little toad. We can’t do without that; nature alone is not enough for one.” And so she went forward on her journey.
She came out into the open field, to a great pond, round about which grew reeds; and she walked into it.
“It will be too damp for you here,” said the Frogs; “but you are very welcome! Are you a he or a she? But it doesn’t matter; you are equally welcome.”
And she was invited to the concert in the evening—the family concert; great enthusiasm and thin voices; we know the sort of thing. No refreshments were given, only there was plenty to drink, for the whole pond was free.
“Now I shall resume my journey,” said the little Toad; for she always felt a longing for something better.
She saw the stars shining, so large and so bright, and she saw the moon gleaming; and then she saw the sun rise, and mount higher and higher.
“Perhaps after all, I am still in a well, only in a larger well. I must get higher yet; I feel a great restlessness and longing.” And when the moon became round and full, the poor creature thought, “I wonder if that is the bucket which will be let down, and into which I must step to get higher up? Or is the sun the great bucket? How great it is! how bright it is! It can take up all. I must look out, that I may not miss the opportunity. Oh, how it seems to shine in my head! I don’t think the jewel can shine brighter. But I haven’t the jewel; not that I cry about that—no, I must go higher up, into splendor and joy! I feel so confident, and yet I am afraid. It’s a difficult step to take, and yet it must be taken. Onward, therefore, straight onward!”
She took a few steps, such as a crawling animal may take, and soon found herself on a road beside which people dwelt; but there were flower gardens as well as kitchen gardens. And she sat down to rest by a kitchen garden.
“What a number of different creatures there are that I never knew! and how beautiful and great the world is! But one must look round in it, and not stay in one spot.” And then she hopped into the kitchen garden. “How green it is here! how beautiful it is here!”
“I know that,” said the Caterpillar, on the leaf, “my leaf is the largest here. It hides half the world from me, but I don’t care for the world.”
“Cluck, cluck!” And some fowls came. They tripped about in the cabbage garden. The Fowl who marched at the head of them had a long sight, and she spied the Caterpillar on the green leaf, and pecked at it, so that the Caterpillar fell on the ground, where it twisted and writhed.
The Fowl looked at it first with one eye and then with the other, for she did not know what the end of this writhing would be.
“It doesn’t do that with a good will,” thought the Fowl, and lifted up her head to peck at the Caterpillar.
The Toad was so horrified at this, that she came crawling straight up towards the Fowl.
“Aha, it has allies,” quoth the Fowl. “Just look at the crawling thing!” And then the Fowl turned away. “I don’t care for the little green morsel; it would only tickle my throat.” The other fowls took the same view of it, and they all turned away together.
“I writhed myself free,” said the Caterpillar. “What a good thing it is when one has presence of mind! But the hardest thing remains to be done, and that is to get on my leaf again. Where is it?”
And the little Toad came up and expressed her sympathy. She was glad that in her ugliness she had frightened the fowls.
“What do you mean by that?” cried the Caterpillar. “I wriggled myself free from the Fowl. You are very disagreeable to look at. Cannot I be left in peace on my own property? Now I smell cabbage; now I am near my leaf. Nothing is so beautiful as property. But I must go higher up.”
“Yes, higher up,” said the little Toad; “higher-up! She feels just as I do; but she’s not in a good humor to-day. That’s because of the fright. We all want to go higher up.” And she looked up as high as ever she could.
The stork sat in his nest on the roof of the farm-house. He clapped with his beak, and the Mother-stork clapped with hers.
“How high up they live!” thought the Toad. “If one could only get as high as that!”
In the farm-house lived two young students; the one was a poet and the other a scientific searcher into the secrets of nature. The one sang and wrote joyously of everything that God had created, and how it was mirrored in his heart. He sang it out clearly, sweetly, richly, in well-sounding verses; while the other investigated created matter itself, and even cut it open where need was. He looked upon God’s creation as a great sum in arithmetic—subtracted, multiplied, and tried to know it within and without, and to talk with understanding concerning it; and that was a very sensible thing; and he spoke joyously and cleverly of it. They were good, joyful men, those two,
“There sits a good specimen of a toad,” said the naturalist. “I must have that fellow in a bottle of spirits.”
“You have two of them already,” replied the poet. “Let the thing sit there and enjoy its life.”
“But it’s so wonderfully ugly,” persisted the first.
“Yes, if we could find the jewel in its head,” said the poet, “I too should be for cutting it open.”
“A jewel!” cried the naturalist. “You seem to know a great deal about natural history.”
“But is there not something beautiful in the popular belief that just as the toad is the ugliest of animals, it should often carry the most precious jewel in its head? Is it not just the same thing with men? What a jewel that was that Aesop had, and still more, Socrates!”
The Toad did not hear any more, nor did she understand half of what she had heard. The two friends walked on, and thus she escaped the fate of being bottled up in spirits.
“Those two also were speaking of the jewel,” said the Toad to herself. “What a good thing that I have not got it! I might have been in a very disagreeable position.”
Now there was a clapping on the roof of the farm-house. Father-Stork was making a speech to his family, and his family was glancing down at the two young men in the kitchen garden.
“Man is the most conceited creature!” said the Stork. “Listen how their jaws are wagging; and for all that they can’t clap properly. They boast of their gifts of eloquence and their language! Yes, a fine language truly! Why, it changes in every day’s journey we make. One of them doesn’t understand another. Now, we can speak our language over the whole earth—up in the North and in Egypt. And then men are not able to fly, moreover. They rush along by means of an invention they call ’railway;’ but they often break their necks over it. It makes my beak turn cold when I think of it. The world could get on without men. We could do without them very well, so long as we only keep frogs and earth-worms.”
“That was a powerful speech,” thought the little Toad. “What a great man that is yonder! and how high he sits! Higher than ever I saw any one sit yet; and how he can swim!” she cried, as the Stork soared away through the air with outspread pinions.
And the Mother-Stork began talking in the nest, and told about Egypt and the waters of the Nile, and the incomparable mud that was to be found in that strange land; and all this sounded new and very charming to the little Toad.
“I must go to Egypt!” said she. “If the Stork or one of his young ones would only take me! I would oblige him in return. Yes, I shall get to Egypt, for I feel so happy! All the longing and all the pleasure that I feel is much better than having a jewel in one’s head.”
And it was just she who had the jewel. That jewel was the continual striving and desire to go upward—ever upward. It gleamed in her head, gleamed in joy, beamed brightly in her longing.
Then, suddenly, up came the Stork. He had seen the Toad in the grass, and stooped down and seized the little creature anything but gently. The Stork’s beak pinched her, and the wind whistled; it was not exactly agreeable, but she was going upward—upward towards Egypt— and she knew it; and that was why her eyes gleamed, and a spark seemed to fly out of them.
“Quunk!—ah!”
The body was dead—the Toad was killed! But the spark that had shot forth from her eyes; what became of that?
The sunbeam took it up; the sunbeam carried the jewel from the head of the toad. Whither?
Ask not the naturalist; rather ask the poet. He will tell it thee under the guise of a fairy tale; and the Caterpillar on the cabbage, and the Stork family belong to the story. Think! the Caterpillar is changed, and turns into a beautiful butterfly; the Stork family flies over mountains and seas, to the distant Africa, and yet finds the shortest way home to the same country—to the same roof. Nay, that is almost too improbable; and yet it is true. You may ask the naturalist, he will confess it is so; and you know it yourself, for you have seen it.
But the jewel in the head of the toad?
Seek it in the sun; see it there if you can.
The brightness is too dazzling there. We have not yet such eyes as can see into the glories which God has created, but we shall receive them by-and-by; and that will be the most beautiful story of all, and we shall all have our share in it.
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