*Hello once again, little foals. Please forgive our lateness, Jacob and I had a business engagement in Trottingham that ran much later than we expected.*
~Why didn’t you send me a message? I would have been happy to fill in for you.~
<Well, we knew you were visiting your mother and her health hasn’t been the best. We didn’t want to trouble you.>
*Besides, it was our own fault. We should have made sure to bring all the paperwork with us.*
~What did happen over in Trottingham?~
<Oh, it doesn’t matter; let’s just move on with the story. Wilhelm?>
*Thank you, Jacob. Now then, colts and fillies, unlike the two stories you have heard before tonight, this tale is about adventure! None of that Love nonsense here!*
~What do you mean nonsense?~
<If I may remind you, Wilhelm, you’ve collected your fair share of Love stories as well.>
*Yes, yes, I know, but come now; we have to appeal to more than just the fillies out there. The young colts want adventure! Not romance like you have provided.*
~Wilhelm, you’re being ridiculous.~
<In any event, Wilhelm? Your story?>
*Of course, of course. Anyway, prepare yourselves for a tale of a mischievous but wonderful little colt by the name of Harry Horseshoe.*
A poor Peasant sat one evening by his hearth and poked the fire, while his Wife sat opposite spinning. He said: “What a sad thing it is that we have no foals; our home is so quiet while other ponies’ houses are noisy and cheerful.”
“Yes,” answered the Wife, and she sighed; “even if it were an only one, and if it were no bigger than my horseshoe, I should be quite content; we would love it with all our hearts.”
Now, some time after this, she had a little colt who was strong and healthy, but was no bigger than a horseshoe. Then they said: “Well, our wish is fulfilled, and, as small as he is, we will love him dearly”; and because of his tiny stature they called him Harry Horseshoe. They let him want for nothing, yet still the foal grew no bigger, but remained the same size as when he was born. Still, he looked out on the world with intelligent eyes, and soon showed himself a clever and agile creature, who was lucky in all he attempted.
One day, when the Peasant was preparing to go into the forest to cut wood, he said to himself: “I wish I had somepony to bring the tools after me.”
“Oh Father!” said Harry Horseshoe, “I will soon bring them. You leave it to me; they shall be there at the appointed time.”
Then the Peasant laughed, and said: “How can that be? You are much too small even to hold the leash.”
“That doesn’t matter, if only Mother will harness the dog,” answered Harry. “I will sit in his ear and tell him where to go.”
“Very well,” said the Father; “we will try it for once.”
When the time came, the Mother harnessed the dog, set Harry in his ear, and then the little creature called out “Gee-up” and “Whoa” in turn, and directed it where to go. It went quite well, just as though it were being driven by its master; and they went the right way to the wood. Now it happened that while the cart of tools was turning a corner, and Harry was calling to the dog, two strange stallions appeared on the scene.
“My goodness,” said one, “what is this? There goes a cart, and a driver is calling to the dog, but there is nothing to be seen.”
“There is something queer about this,” said the other; “We will follow the cart and see where it stops.”
The cart went on deep into the forest, and arrived quite safely at the place where the wood was cut.
When Harry spied his Father, he said: “You see, Father, here I am with the cart; now lift me down.” The Father held the dog with his left hoof, and took his little son out of its ear with the right. Then Harry sat down quite happily on a straw.
When the two strangers noticed him, they did not know what to say for astonishment.
Then one drew the other aside, and said: “Listen, that little creature might make our fortune if we were to show him in the town for money. We will buy him.”
So they went up to the Peasant, and said: “Sell us the little stallion; he shall be well looked after with us.”
“No,” said the Peasant; “he is the delight of my eyes, and I will not sell him for all the gold in the world.”
But Harry Horseshoe, when he heard the bargain, crept up by the folds of his Father’s coat, placed himself on his shoulder, and whispered in his ear: “Father, let me go; I will soon come back again.”
Then his Father gave him to the two stallions for a fine piece of gold.
“Where will you sit?” they asked him.
“Oh, put me on the brim of your hat, then I can walk up and down and observe the neighborhood without falling down.”
They did as he wished, and when Harry had said good-bye to his Father, they went away with him.
They walked on till it was twilight, when the little stallion said: “You must lift me down.”
“Stay where you are,” answered the Stallion on whose head he sat.
“No,” said Harry; “I will come down. Lift me down immediately.”
The Stallion took off his hat and set the little creature in a field by the wayside. He jumped and crept about for a time, here and there among the sods, then slipped suddenly into a mouse-hole which he had discovered.
“Good evening, gentlecolts, just you go home without me,” he called out to them in mockery.
They ran about and poked with sticks into the mouse-hole, but all in vain. Harry crept further and further back, and, as it soon got quite dark, they were forced to go home, full of anger, and with empty purses.
When Harry noticed that they were gone, he crept out of his underground hiding-place again. “It is dangerous walking in this field in the dark,” he said; “one might easily break one’s leg or one’s neck.” Luckily, he came to an empty snail shell. “Thank goodness,” he said; “I can pass the night in safety here,” and he sat down.
Not long after, just when he was about to go to sleep, he heard two stallions pass by. One said: “How shall we set about stealing the rich unicorn lord’s gold and silver?”
“I can tell you,” interrupted Harry.
“What was that?” said one robber in a fright. “I heard somepony speak.”
They remained standing and listened.
Then Harry spoke again: “Take me with you and I will help you.”
“Where are you?” they asked.
“Just look on the ground and see where the voice comes from,” he answered.
At last the thieves found him, and lifted him up. “You little urchin, are you going to help us?”
“Yes,” he said; “I will creep between the iron bars in the lord’s room, and I will pass out to you what you want.”
“All right,” they said, “we will see what you can do.”
When they came to the Manor, Harry crept into the room, but called out immediately with all his strength to the others: “Do you want everything that is here?”
The thieves were frightened, and said: “Do speak softly, and don’t wake anypony.”
But Harry pretended not to understand, and called out again: “What do you want? Everything?”
The Cook, who slept above, heard him and sat up in bed and listened. But the thieves were so frightened that they retreated a little way. At last they summoned up courage again, and thought to themselves, “The little rogue wants to tease us.” So they came back and whispered to him: “Now, do be serious, and pass us out something.”
Then Harry called out again, as loud as he could, “I will give you everything if only you will hold out your hooves.”
The Maid, who was listening intently, heard him quite distinctly, jumped out of bed, and stumbled to the door. The thieves turned as fled, running as though Nightmare Moon was after them. But the Maid, seeing nothing, went to get a light. When she came back with it, Harry, without being seen, slipped out into the barn, and the Maid, after she had searched every corner and found nothing, went to bed again, thinking that she had been dreaming with her eyes and ears open.
Harry Horseshoe climbed about in the hay, and found a splendid place to sleep. There he determined to rest till day came, and then go home to his parents. But he had other experiences to go through first. This world is full of trouble and sorrow!
The Maid got up in the grey dawn to feed the barn animals. First she went into the barn where she piled up a hoof full of hay, the very bundle in which poor Harry was asleep. But he fell into a saucer of milk the Maid had put out for the cat and Harry knew nothing until he was almost in the mouth of the cat, who was lapping him up with the milk.
“Heavens!” he said, “however did I get into this river?” but he soon saw where he was, and the great thing was to avoid being cut between the cat’s fangs. At last, whether he liked it or not, he had to go down the cat’s throat.
“The windows have been forgotten in this house,” he said. “The sun does not shine into it, and no light has been provided.”
Altogether he was very ill-pleased with his quarters, and, worst of all, more and more milk came in at the door, and the space grew narrower and narrower. At last he called out, in his fear, as loud as he could, “Don’t give me any more milk. Don’t give me any more milk.”
The Maid was just petting the cat, and when she heard the same voice as in the night, without seeing anypony, she was frightened, and fell down in fright and spilt the cat’s milk. Then in greatest haste, she ran to her master, and said: “Oh, your Lordship, the cat has spoken!”
“You are mad,” he answered; but he went into the stable himself to see what was happening.
Scarcely had he set foot in the barn before Harry began again, “Don’t bring me any more milk.”
Then the Lord was terrified too, and thought the cat must be bewitched; so after he failed to remove the hex with his own magic, he ordered it to be killed. It was accordingly slaughtered, but the stomach, in which Harry was hidden, was thrown into the compost heap. Harry had the greatest trouble in working his way out. Just as he stuck out his head, a hungry Timber Wolf ran by and snapped up the whole stomach with one bite. But still Harry did not lose courage. “Perhaps the Wolf will listen to reason,” he said. So he called out, “Dear Wolf, I know where you would find a magnificent meal.”
“Where is it to be had?” asked the Wolf.
“Why, in such and such a house,” answered Harry. “You must squeeze through the grating of the store-room window, and there you will find cakes, oats, and treats, as many as you can possibly eat”; and he went on to describe his father’s house.
The Wolf did not wait to hear this twice, and at night forced himself in through the grating, and ate to his heart’s content. When he was satisfied, he wanted to go away again; but he had grown so fat that he could not get out the same way. Harry had reckoned on this, and began to make a great commotion inside the Wolf’s body, struggling and screaming with all his might.
“Be quiet,” said the Wolf; “you will wake up the ponies of the house.”
“All very fine,” answered Harry. “You have eaten your fill, and now I am going to make merry”; and he began to scream again with all his might.
At last his father and mother woke up, ran to the room, and looked through the crack of the door. When they saw a Timber Wolf, they went away, and the husband fetched his axe, and the wife a scythe.
“You stay behind,” said the stallion, as they came into the room. “If my blow does not kill him, you must attack him and rip up his body.”
When Harry Horseshoe heard his Father’s voice, he called out: “Dear Father, I am here, inside the Timber Wolf’s body.”
Full of joy, his Father cried, “Celestia be praised! Our dear foal is found again,” and he bade his wife throw aside the scythe that it might not injure Harry.
Then he gathered himself together, and struck the Wolf a blow on the head, so that it fell down lifeless. Then as the magic started to rebuild the twigs and sticks, they ripped up the body with hatchets, and took their little colt out.
“Ah,” said his Father, “what trouble we have been in about you.”
“Yes, Father, I have travelled about the world, and I am thankful to breathe fresh air again.”
“Wherever have you been?” they asked.
“Down a mouse-hole, in a Cat’s stomach, and in a Wolf’s maw,” he answered; “and now I shall stay with you.”
“And we will never sell you again, for all the riches in the world,” they said, kissing and fondling their dear foal.
Then they gave him food and drink, and had new clothes made for him, as his own had been spoilt in his travels.
*I hope you enjoyed that, my spunky colts, and may your own adventures be as fruitful and exciting.*
~Exciting? That was disgusting!~
<Yes, I forgot about that particular tale.>
*You two are such fillies sometimes. Shall I fetch your sparkly brushes? How about a ribbon for your manes?*
~Oh, you be quiet, Wilhelm.~
<Besides, I wouldn’t start playing that game with somepony that shared a room with you for most of our lives if I were you.>
*Touché, Jacob, touché.*