THE NAUGHTY BOY
shone as bright as stars, and his hair, although dripping with water, curled in beautiful ringlets. He looked quite like a little cherub, but he was very pale, and trembled in every limb with cold. In his hand he held a pretty little cross-bow, but it seemed entirely spoilt by the rain, and the colours painted on the arrows all ran one into another.
The old poet sat down again beside the stove, and took the little boy in his lap; he wrung the water out of his streaming hair, warmed the child's hands within his own, and gave him mulled wine to drink. The boy soon became himself again, the rosy colour returned to his cheeks, he jumped down from the old man's lap, and danced around him on the floor.
'Thou art a merry fellow!' said the poet. 'Thou must tell me thy name.'
'They call me Cupid,' replied the boy. 'Don't you know me? There lies my bow; ah, you can't think how capitally I can shoot! See, the weather is fine again now; the moon is shining bright.'
'But thy bow is spoilt,' said the old man.
'That would be a sad disaster, indeed,' remarked the boy, as he took the bow in his hand and examined it closely. 'Oh, it is quite dry by this time, and it is not a bit damaged; the string, too, is quite strong enough, I think. However, I may as well try it!' He then drew his bow, placed an arrow before the string, took his aim, and shot direct into the old poet's heart. 'Now you may be sure that my cross-bow is not spoilt!' cried he, as, with a loud laugh, he ran away.
The naughty boy! This was, indeed, ungrateful of him, to shoot to the heart the good old man who had so kindly taken him in, warmed him, and dried his clothes, given him sweet wine, and nice roasted apples for supper!
The poor poet lay groaning on the ground, for the arrow
287
