The magnetic sparks cometo it,- but how? It is the same with people in the world; they arerubbed about on this spherical globe till the electric spark comesupon them, and then we have a Napoleon, or a Luther, or some one ofthe kind.
  "'The whole world is but a series of miracles,' said the lecturer,'but we are so accustomed to them that we call them everyday matters.'And he went on explaining things to me till my skull seemed liftedfrom my brain, and I declared that were I not such an old fellow, Iwould at once become a member of the Polytechnic Institution, that Imight learn to look at the bright side of everything, although I wasone of the happiest of men.
  "'One of the happiest!' said the lecturer, as if the ideapleased him; 'are you really happy?'
  "'Yes,' I replied; 'for I am welcomed in every town, when I arrivewith my company; but I certainly have one wish which sometimesweighs upon my cheerful temper like a mountain of lead. I shouldlike to become the manager of a real theatre, and the director of areal troupe of men and women.'
  "'I understand,' he said; 'you would like to have life breathedinto your puppets, so that they might be living actors, and youtheir director. And would you then be quite happy?'
  "I said I believed so. But he did not; and we talked it over inall manner of ways, yet could not agree on the subject. However, thewine was excellent, and we clanked our glasses together as we drank.There must have been magic in it, or I should most certainly becometipsy; but that did not happen, for my mind seemed quite clear; and,indeed, a kind of sunshine filled the room, and beamed from the eyesof the Polytechnic lecturer. It made me think of the old storieswhen the gods, in their immortal youth, wandered upon this earth,and paid visits to mankind. I said so to him, and he smiled; and Icould have sworn that he was one of these ancient deities in disguise,or, at all events, that he belonged to the race of the gods. Theresult seemed to prove I was right in my suspicions; for it wasarranged that my highest wish should be granted, that my puppetswere to be gifted with life, and that I was to be the manager of areal company. We drank to my success, and clanked our glasses. Then hepacked all my dolls into the box, and fastened it on my back, and Ifelt as if I were spinning round in a circle, and presently foundmyself lying on the floor. I remember that quite well. And then thewhole company sprang from the box. The spirit had come upon us all;the puppets had become distinguished actors- at least, so they saidthemselves- and I was their director.
  "When all was ready for the first representation, the wholecompany requested permission to speak to me before appearing inpublic. The dancing lady said the house could not be supportedunless she stood on one leg; for she was a great genius, and begged tobe treated as such. The lady who acted the part of the queenexpected to be treated as a queen off the stage, as well as on it,or else she said she should get out of practice. The man whose duty itwas to deliver a letter gave himself as many airs as he who took thepart of first lover in the piece; he declared that the inferiorparts were as important as the great ones, and deserving equalconsideration, as parts of an artistic whole. The hero of the piecewould only play in a part containing points likely to bring down theapplause of the house. The 'prima donna' would only act when thelights were red, for she declared that a blue light did not suit hercomplexion. It was like a company of flies in a bottle, and I was inthe bottle with them; for I was their director. My breath was takenaway, my head whirled, and I was as miserable as a man could be. Itwas quite a novel, strange set of beings among whom I now foundmyself. I only wished I had them all in my box again, and that I hadnever been their director. So I told them roundly that, after all,they were nothing but puppets; and then they killed me. After awhile I found myself lying on my bed in my room; but how I gotthere, or how I got away at all from the Polytechnic professor, he mayperhaps know, I don't. The moon shone upon the floor, the box layopen, and the dolls were all scattered about in great confusion; but Iwas not idle. I jumped off the bed, and into the box they all had togo, some on their heads, some on their feet. Then I shut down the lid,and seated myself upon the box. 'Now you'll have to stay,' said I,'and I shall be cautious how I wish you flesh and blood again.'
  "I felt quite light, my cheerfulness had returned, and I was thehappiest of mortals. The Polytechnic professor had fully cured me. Iwas as happy as a king, and went to sleep on the box. Next morning-correctly speaking, it was noon, for I slept remarkably late that day-I found myself still sitting there, in happy consciousness that myformer wish had been a foolish one. I inquired for the Polytechnicprofessor; but he had disappeared like the Greek and Roman gods;from that time I have been the happiest man in the world. I am a happydirector; for none of my company ever grumble, nor the publiceither, for I always make them merry. I can arrange my pieces justas I please. I choose out of every comedy what I like best, and no oneis offended. Plays that are neglected now-a-days by the great publicwere ran after thirty years ago, and listened to till the tears randown the cheeks of the audience. These are the pieces I bring forward.I place them before the little ones, who cry over them as papa andmamma used to cry thirty years ago. But I make them shorter, for theyoungsters don't like long speeches; and if they have anythingmournful, they like it to be over quickly."
  THE END.
  1872
  FAIRY TALES OF HANS CHRISTIAN ANDERSEN
  THE RACES
  by Hans Christian Andersen
  A PRIZE, or rather two prizes, a great one and a small one, hadbeen awarded for the greatest swiftness in running,- not in a singlerace, but for the whole year.
  "I obtained the first prize," said the hare. "Justice must stillbe carried out, even when one has relations and good friends among theprize committee; but that the snail should have received the secondprize, I consider almost an insult to myself"
  "No," said the fence-rail, who had been a witness at thedistribution of prizes; "there should be some consideration forindustry and perseverance. I have heard many respectable people sayso, and I can quite understand it. The snail certainly took half ayear to get over the threshold of the door; but he injured himself,and broke his collar-bone by the haste he made. He gave himself upentirely to the race, and ran with his house on his back, which wasall, of course, very praiseworthy; and therefore he obtained thesecond prize."
  "I think I ought to have had some consideration too," said theswallow. "I should imagine no one can be swifter in soaring and flightthan I am; and how far I have been!