"We are three poor travellers who want to come in
somewhere, where no fox can assail us, and no human being capture us,"
said he. "We wonder if this can be a good place for us." "I cannot
believe but what it is," answered the cow. "To be sure the walls are
poor, but the fox does not walk through them as yet; and no one lives
here except an old peasant woman, who isn't at all likely to make a
captive of anyone. But who are you?" she continued, as she twisted in
her stall to get a sight of the newcomers. "I am Nils Holgersson from
Vemminghoeg, who has been transformed into an elf," replied the first of
the incomers, "and I have with me a tame goose, whom I generally ride,
and a gray goose." "Such rare guests have never before been within my
four walls," said the cow, "and you shall be welcome, although I would
have preferred that it had been my mistress, come to give me my supper."
The boy led the geese into the cowshed, which was rather large, and
placed them in an empty manger, where they fell asleep instantly. For
himself, he made a little bed of straw and expected that he, too, should
go to sleep at once.
But this was impossible, for the poor cow, who hadn't had her supper,
wasn't still an instant. She shook her flanks, moved around in the
stall, and complained of how hungry she was. The boy couldn't get a wink
of sleep, but lay there and lived over all the things that had happened
to him during these last days.
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