United States or Bermuda ? Vote for the TOP Country of the Week !
As it was soon time for departure, Moni placed the little goat on his shoulders again, and said anxiously: "Come, you poor Maggerli, you are still trembling; you cannot walk home to-day, I must carry you " and so he carried the little creature, clinging close to him, all the way down. Paula was standing on the last rise in front of the Bath House, waiting for the goat-boy.
Even now if she could no longer hold to the bough, she would fall into the depths and be dashed to pieces. In the greatest anguish he called down: "Hold fast, Maggerli, hold fast to the bough! See, I am coming to get you!" But how could he reach there? The wall of rock was so steep here, Moni saw very well that it would be impossible to go down that way.
One sunny morning Moni had once more reached the Pulpit-rock, and was about to throw himself down, when he changed his mind. "No, go on! The last time you had to leave all the nice little plants because we had to go after Maggerli; now we will go up there again, so that you can finish nibbling them!"
"Where is Maggerli?" screamed Moni suddenly, as he noticed Blackie standing alone in a steep place, and not eating, but quietly looking around her. The little young kid was always near Moni, or running after its mother. "What have you done with your little kid, Blackie?" he called in alarm and sprang towards the goat.
"Moni," he said suddenly, "I will promise you something that will delight you, if you will not say anything to a human being about what I have found; you really don't need to take anything for it, then you will have nothing to do with it. If you will do as I say, I will make my father buy Maggerli, so she will not be killed. Will you?" A hard struggle arose in Moni.
Moni treated the last with great care, for it was a delicate little creature and he loved it more than all the others. It was so attached to him that it ran after him continually all day long. He now led it very tenderly along and placed it in its shed; then he said: "There, Maggerli, now sleep well; are you tired? It is really a long way up there, and you are still so little.
"Yes, and you," interrupted Jorgli, "what great pleasure do you have up here? Just now you have had to get up six times while we were eating, just on account of that silly kid, to prevent it from falling down below is that a pleasure?" "Yes, I like to do that! Isn't it so, Maggerli? Come! Come here!" Moni jumped up and ran after the kid, for it was making dangerous leaps for sheer joy.
Moni was indescribably happy. From time to time Maggerli came to Moni and rubbed her head around on his shoulder, as she always did out of sheer affection. Then she bleated quite fondly, went to Moni's other side and rubbed her head on the other shoulder. The other goats also, first one and then another, came to look at their keeper and each had her own way of paying the visit.
"Well, Moni," she said now very kindly, "you have given me a great pleasure, for if it had not been for you, I might never have seen my cross again. Now, I am going to give you a pleasure. Go take Maggerli there out of the shed, she belongs to you now!" Moni stared at the young lady in astonishment, as if it were impossible to understand her words.
But Moni couldn't explain to her yet; he ran to the shed, and there right next to Brownie, so that it wouldn't be afraid, he made Maggerli a fine, soft bed of fresh straw, and laid it down, saying: "There, Maggerli, now sleep well in your new home! You must always have this; every day I will make you a new bed!"
Word Of The Day