CHAPTER 19
Goblin Counsels
He must have slept a long time, for when he awoke he felt wonderfullyrestored--indeed almost well--and very hungry. There were voices inthe outer cave.
Once more, then, it was night; for the goblins slept during the day andwent about their affairs during the night.
In the universal and constant darkness of their dwelling they had noreason to prefer the one arrangement to the other; but from aversion tothe sun-people they chose to be busy when there was least chance oftheir being met either by the miners below, when they were burrowing,or by the people of the mountain above, when they were feeding theirsheep or catching their goats. And indeed it was only when the sun wasaway that the outside of the mountain was sufficiently like their owndismal regions to be endurable to their mole eyes, so thoroughly hadthey become unaccustomed to any light beyond that of their own firesand torches.
Curdie listened, and soon found that they were talking of himself.
'How long will it take?' asked Harelip.
'Not many days, I should think,' answered the king. 'They are poorfeeble creatures, those sun-people, and want to be always eating. Wecan go a week at a time without food, and be all the better for it; butI've been told they eat two or three times every day! Can you believeit? They must be quite hollow inside--not at all like us, nine-tenthsof whose bulk is solid flesh and bone. Yes--I judge a week ofstarvation will do for him.'
'If I may be allowed a word,' interposed the queen,--'and I think Iought to have some voice in the matter--'
'The wretch is entirely at your disposal, my spouse,' interrupted theking. 'He is your property. You caught him yourself. We should neverhave done it.'
The queen laughed. She seemed in far better humour than the nightbefore.
'I was about to say,' she resumed, 'that it does seem a pity to wasteso much fresh meat.'
'What are you thinking of, my love?' said the king. 'The very notionof starving him implies that we are not going to give him any meat,either salt or fresh.'
'I'm not such a stupid as that comes to,' returned Her Majesty. 'What Imean is that by the time he is starved there will hardly be a pickingupon his bones.'
The king gave a great laugh.
'Well, my spouse, you may have him when you like,' he said. 'I don'tfancy him for my part. I am pretty sure he is tough eating.'
'That would be to honour instead of punish his insolence,' returned thequeen. 'But why should our poor creatures be deprived of so muchnourishment? Our little dogs and cats and pigs and small bears wouldenjoy him very much.'
'You are the best of housekeepers, my lovely queen!' said her husband.'Let it be so by all means. Let us have our people in, and get him outand kill him at once. He deserves it. The mischief he might havebrought upon us, now that he had penetrated so far as our most retiredcitadel, is incalculable. Or rather let us tie him hand and foot, andhave the pleasure of seeing him torn to pieces by full torchlight inthe great hall.'
'Better and better!' cried the queen and the prince together, both ofthem clapping their hands. And the prince made an ugly noise with hishare-lip, just as if he had intended to be one at the feast.
'But,' added the queen, bethinking herself, 'he is so troublesome. Forpoor creatures as they are, there is something about those sun-peoplethat is very troublesome. I cannot imagine how it is that with suchsuperior strength and skill and understanding as ours, we permit themto exist at all. Why do we not destroy them entirely, and use theircattle and grazing lands at our pleasure? Of course we don't want tolive in their horrid country! It is far too glaring for our quieterand more refined tastes. But we might use it as a sort of outhouse,you know. Even our creatures' eyes might get used to it, and if theydid grow blind that would be of no consequence, provided they grew fatas well. But we might even keep their great cows and other creatures,and then we should have a few more luxuries, such as cream and cheese,which at present we only taste occasionally, when our brave men havesucceeded in carrying some off from their farms.'
'It is worth thinking of,' said the king; 'and I don't know why youshould be the first to suggest it, except that you have a positivegenius for conquest. But still, as you say, there is something verytroublesome about them; and it would be better, as I understand you tosuggest, that we should starve him for a day or two first, so that hemay be a little less frisky when we take him out.'
'Once there was a goblin Living in a hole; Busy he was cobblin' A shoe without a sole.
'By came a birdie: "Goblin, what do you do?" "Cobble at a sturdie Upper leather shoe."
'"What's the good o' that, Sir?" Said the little bird. "Why it's very Pat, Sir-- Plain without a word.
'"Where 'tis all a hole, Sir, Never can be holes: Why should their shoes have soles, Sir, When they've got no souls?"'
'What's that horrible noise?' cried the queen, shuddering frompot-metal head to granite shoes.
'I declare,' said the king with solemn indignation, 'it's thesun-creature in the hole!'
'Stop that disgusting noise!' cried the crown prince valiantly, gettingup and standing in front of the heap of stones, with his face towardsCurdie's prison. 'Do now, or I'll break your head.'
'Break away,' shouted Curdie, and began singing again:
'Once there was a goblin, Living in a hole--'
'I really cannot bear it,' said the queen. 'If I could only get at hishorrid toes with my slippers again!'
'I think we had better go to bed,' said the king.
'It's not time to go to bed,' said the queen.
'I would if I was you,' said Curdie.
'Impertinent wretch!' said the queen, with the utmost scorn in hervoice.
'An impossible if,' said His Majesty with dignity.
'Quite,' returned Curdie, and began singing again:
'Go to bed, Goblin, do. Help the queen Take off her shoe.
'If you do, It will disclose A horrid set Of sprouting toes.'
'What a lie!' roared the queen in a rage.
'By the way, that reminds me,' said the king, 'that for as long as wehave been married, I have never seen your feet, queen. I think youmight take off your shoes when you go to bed! They positively hurt mesometimes.'
'I will do as I like,' retorted the queen sulkily.
'You ought to do as your own hubby wishes you,' said the king.
'I will not,' said the queen.
'Then I insist upon it,' said the king.
Apparently His Majesty approached the queen for the purpose offollowing the advice given by Curdie, for the latter heard a scuffle,and then a great roar from the king.
'Will you be quiet, then?' said the queen wickedly.
'Yes, yes, queen. I only meant to coax you.'
'Hands off!' cried the queen triumphantly. 'I'm going to bed. You maycome when you like. But as long as I am queen I will sleep in myshoes. It is my royal privilege. Harelip, go to bed.'
'I'm going,' said Harelip sleepily.
'So am I,' said the king.
'Come along, then,' said the queen; 'and mind you are good, or I'll--'
'Oh, no, no, no!' screamed the king in the most supplicating of tones.
Curdie heard only a muttered reply in the distance; and then the cavewas quite still.
They had left the fire burning, and the light came through brighterthan before. Curdie thought it was time to try again if anything couldbe done. But he found he could not get even a finger through the chinkbetween the slab and the rock. He gave a great rush with his shoulderagainst the slab, but it yielded no more than if it had been part ofthe rock. All he could do was to sit down and think again.
By and by he came to the resolution to pretend to be dying, in the hopethey might take him out before his strength was too much exhausted tolet him have a chance. Then, for the creatures, if he could but findhis axe again, he would have no fear of them; and if it were not forthe queen's horrid shoes, he would have no fear
at all.
Meantime, until they should come again at night, there was nothing forhim to do but forge new rhymes, now his only weapons. He had nointention of using them at present, of course; but it was well to havea stock, for he might live to want them, and the manufacture of themwould help to while away the time.