August 11, 2025 • 30 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Boy who Rode into the Sunset by C. J. Dennis.
Once upon a time, it was not so very long ago, either,
A little boy named Neville lived with his people in
a house which was almost in the country. That is
to say, it was just at the edge of the city,
(00:21):
and at the back of the house was a rather
large hill which was quite bald. Neville, who was fond
of playing by himself, would often wander to the top
of the bald hill, and if he stood right on
top of it and looked one way toward the east,
he could see right over the city with all its
(00:41):
tall buildings and domes and spires and smoking chimneys. But
looking the other way to the west, he could see
for miles over the beautiful country with its green fields
and orchards and white roads and little farm houses. One evening,
Neville was playing alone on the top of the hill
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when he noticed that one of the very finest sunsets
he had ever seen was just coming on the sky
in the west. Away over the broad country lands was
filled with little clouds of all sorts and shapes, and
they were just beginning to take on the most wonderful colors.
(01:24):
Nevill had often before amused himself with watching clouds and
the strange shapes into which they changed themselves, sometimes like
great mountain ranges, sometimes like sea waves, and very often
like elephants and lions and seals, and all manner of
interesting things of that sort. But never before had he
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been able to make out so many animal shapes in
the clouds. The sky was almost as good as a zoo.
There were kangaroos and elephants, and a hen with chickens,
and wallabies and rabbits, and a funny man with large ears,
and all sorts of other peculiar shapes. The sun was
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sinking behind a distant range of hills, where a golden
light shone out as if through a gateway. It was
so much like a great golden gateway that Nevill fell
to wondering what might be found on the other side
of it. Suddenly, right in the middle of all the
colored clouds, he saw one little cloud which was perfectly white,
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And as he watched it, he noticed that it seemed
to be shaped like a small horse, a very small horse,
it seemed, at that distance. But as Neville gazed, it
grew bigger and bigger, just as if it were coming
toward him very fast, and he was almost certain he
could see its legs moving. That startled him a little,
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and so he rubbed his eyes to make sure that
they were not playing him tricks. When he looked again,
he was more startled than ever, for the little white
cloud was no longer a cloud, but a little white
horse in real earnest. Besides, it had just left the
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sky and was galloping down the mountain range, which he
could see away in the west. In two minutes, it
had left the range and was coming across the fields
towards him, jumping the fences, dodging under the trees, and
racing across the plain, with its white mane and tail
tossing as it came. It seemed to be making straight
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for him. He was not really frightened, you must not
think that about him. But he was just beginning to
wonder if it were not nearly time to go home
to dinner, when he noticed that the white horse had
stopped just as the foot of the bald hill. It
was looking up at him, tossing its head and pawing
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the ground, the most beautiful white horse that he had
ever seen, even in a circus. Then it appeared to
get over its excitement and began to trot quietly up
the hill toward him. I do not think anyone would
have blamed Neville if he had decided then to go
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home to dinner at once. But he was rather a
brave boy, and he was certainly very curious. So he
just stood still and waited. And here is where the
most wonderful part of the story begins. The white horse
trotted up to Neville and spoke to him that would
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surprise most people, and Neville was certainly as much surprised
as anyone else would have been. What are your fright
and off, asked the white horse in a loud voice.
Now Neville was just a little frightened by this time,
but he was not going to show it, so he
just said, who's frightened? You're frightened, said the white horse,
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louder than ever. You're only a timid little boy. I
thought when I saw you in the distance that you
were one of the plucky ones. But I was mistaken.
You're just a little cowardly custard. You'd better be careful
who you're talking to, said Neville, suddenly losing his fear.
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Little boys do not always talk good grammar, Otherwise he
would have said whom not whom he hated to be
called a cowardly custard. You'd better be careful or I'll
give you a bang. Ah ha, cried the white horse.
Very brave all at once, aren't you all the same.
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You're afraid to come near and stroke me. But I
don't want to stroke you, said Neville. I thought not,
replied the white horse. I thought not the moment I
got close to you. You're one of the frightened ones,
and I've been wasting my time. Who's frightened? Said Neville. Again,
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you asked that before, replied the white horse. And I
told you, if you're not frightened, to come along and
stroke me. There's nothing to be afraid of. So Nevill
walked right up to the white horse and stroked his shoulder,
And at once he felt that he had been foolish
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to hold back, for of all the smooth, soft, silky
coats he had ever stroked, that of the white horse
was certainly the smoothest and the softest and the silkiest.
He felt that he could go on stroking it for hours.
There now, said the white horse, in a voice as
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soft and silky as his coat. There was nothing to
be afraid of, was there? And I think that perhaps
I was mistaken about you. I rather think you might
be one of those daring boys that one reads about
in stories. What about jumping on my back for a
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little ride? Nevill ceased to stroke the white horse and
drew back a little. I'm afraid they'll be expecting me
home for dinner, he said. I'm very pleased indeed to
have met you. Nevill was always a polite little boy,
the very thing, cried the white horse. Jump on my back,
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and I'll take you home. You liked stroking me, didn't you.
Well that's nothing to the ride you will enjoy, simply nothing.
Why all the boldest riders in the world would give
their ears just for one little ride on my back? Now?
Then one, two, three, and up you go. Then, before
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Nevill quite knew what he was doing, he made a
little run and leapt up a stride of the white horse.
I live just over there, said Nevill, pointing towards his home.
But before he could say knife or even scissors, supposing
he had wished to say either of these words, the
white horse laughed, a nasty, hollow laugh, sprang upwards from
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the ground, and was soaring through the air toward the
dying sunset, right away from home and dinner. Neville clung
on tightly, for he was so high above the earth
that to fall off would mean the end of him.
And far beneath him he saw the green fields and
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the white road, which now seemed like a mere thread.
That's not fair. Whoa back, whoa back? He shouted to
the white horse, But the white horse made no reply. Indeed,
he seemed suddenly not so much like a white horse
as like a white cloud shaped like a horse. And
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Neville saw that he no longer sat upon the horse's
silky coat, but upon something soft and downy, like a
white fleece, and it was slightly damp. Then he knew
that he was riding upon a cloud. And as it
was quite absurd to go on talking to a cloud,
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he ceased to cry out. He just sat tight and
wondered what would happen next. He was high over a
farm house, now, one that he used to see from
the bald hill. He knew it by the tall pine
trees that grew round and down in the farm yard.
He saw a man with a bucket going out to
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feed the calves. Nevill called loudly to him, but the
man did not even look up. Now he was far
beyond that farmhouse and above an orchard, where he saw
the fruit trees standing in straight rows, And a few
seconds later the mountain range was beneath him, and Neville
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knew that the cloud that looked like a horse was
making straight for the golden Gateway, which was now glowing
dully in a gray sky. He was riding into the sunset,
swiftly as the wind that drove it the cloud horse
drifted over the mountain range. There was a sudden glow
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of golden light all about him, and then a flash
of color so wonderful that Nevill could not bear to look.
He closed his eyes, and as he did so, he
felt that the cloud horse had come to a halt
at last. So Nevill sat upon the cloud, not daring
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to open his eyes, for quite a long time. When
at last he did look again, he almost fainted with
the wonder of it. He was inside the sunset, but
scarcely had he begun to enjoy the wonderful sight when
he was startled by the sound of a funny, shrill,
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little voice close by his side. Looking down, he saw
a strange little man, no taller than a walking stick,
and dressed from top to toe in golden yellow clothes.
My stars, said the wee yellow man. How did you
manage to get in here? Don't you know this is private?
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I'm very sorry, said Neville, but I couldn't help it.
The cloud horse brought me, you know, ah, said the
wee yellow Man. He tricked you, did he? He is
much too playful, that cloud horse, and I must say
he's put you in a pretty fix. Excuse me, said Neville,
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But do you mind telling me who you are? I
cried the little yellow man. Why I'm the last sunbeam?
Of course? I thought you knew that. My job, you know,
is to shut up the show when the sunset is over.
And it's pretty hard work, I can tell you, because
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I've got to keep on doing it all round the
earth every few minutes or so, and it gets very
tiresome at times. Would you believe it. I've never seen
at dawn or a bright midday in all my life.
Just sunsets all the time, Sunsets for breakfast, sunsets for dinner,
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sunsets for supper. And if I make the tidiest little slip.
The head seen shifter is down on me like a
ton of bricks. Goodness me, said Nevill. I didn't know
you had seen shifters here. Neville had been to see
pantomimes and therefore knew what a scene shifter was. Then
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how do you think we shift the scenes? Cried the
wee yellow man rather crossly. Then he suddenly became very
busy about nothing, as he whispered, look out here, the
head scene shifter coming. Now. Looking back, Nevill saw coming
towards them a man with very large ears. He was
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not a nice looking man, and he was extremely like
the cloud man that Nevill had sometimes seen in the
sky when he went to look at the sunset from
the bald hill. Now then, now, then, roared the man
with the large ears. Move yourself there, goldie. We shut
up the show here in a few minutes and open
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at once on the next range. See that you have
that curtain down on time. Certain litter, replied the little
yellow man very humbly. Then the man with the large
ears noticed Neville for the first time. He frowned darkly,
and his big ears seemed to flap with annoyance. Who
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is this on our cloud horse? He roared in his
great angry voice. Just a little boy, said the yellow man,
for Neville was far too frightened to speak, just a
little boy, that the cloud horse has been playing tricks on.
I think you'd like to be getting home just over
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by the bald hill if you don't mind, sir. Certainly not,
shouted the man with the large ears. The cloud horse
is not to go out there again tonight, nor the
silly little boy either. I'm not going to have the
sun set up set by any such silly nonsense. You
mind what I say and attend to your work, And
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without another glance at Neville, the man with the large
ears strode off to arrange for the sunset on the
next range, miles and miles away. Neville gazed at the
wee yellow man hopelessly, and the wee yellow man gazed
at Neville, and neither spoke a word until the man
with the large ears was well out of the way.
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Then the last sunbeam grew quite cheerful again. Well said
he You heard what the head seen, Schipter said. You
certainly can't go home by the way you came. The
only thing for you to do is to go round.
You'll just about have time to do it. If you hurry,
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go round, repeated Neville in a puzzled voice. Go round,
what round? Where? Round the world? Of course, replied the
little yellow man. Round the world, cried Neville. Why you
must be making fun of me? And I think that
is very unkind. Not a bit of it, laughed the
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little yellow Man. You need not make such a fuss
about it. Why I go round the world once every
day with the sunset. You have only to go a
bit faster so as to do it in a few minutes.
And with the cloud horse to help you, that's easily managed.
Don't you worry about the cloud horse. He has got
to do just whatever I tell him. Now, excuse me
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for one moment, and I'll give you full directions. With that,
the wee yellow man went behind the pink cloud and
came back with a beautiful blue flower in his hand. This,
he said, handing the flower to Neville, is a sky flower.
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It is made entirely out of a genuine piece of sky,
and it is a talisman that's a longer word for charm,
you know, which takes you free round the world. The
one thing you have to remember is that you mustn't
on any account lose that flower until you get home again. Now,
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just exactly what you have to do is to travel
west and place round the world until you catch up
with this evening again. It is quite simple, simple, cried Neville.
Why I don't understand it at all, dear me, said
the wee yellow man, rather impatiently. You are very dense.
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Now listen carefully. The world, you know, turns round from
west to east, and that makes it seem as if
the sun is going round the world from east to west.
Very well, So what you have to do is to
ride west upon the cloud horse much faster than the
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sun appears to travel, and catch him up again before
he gets well away from here. The cloud horse is
in good condition, and you should easily do it in
a few minutes. A few minutes, gasped Neffelle. Keep quiet
and listen, snapped the wee yellow man. A few miles
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west from here, you will come into broad daylight. That
will be afternoon. After that you will meet midday, and
passing that you will reach the place where it is
only dawn. That's about half way round the earth. Show
the skyflower to the porter of the dawn, and he
will let you through. Then you get to the half
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of the world where it is night, and you must
race round that till you reach the place where it
is only evening. That will be this evening, somewhere about here,
For you will have taken only a few minutes altogether.
And when you see your own home or the bald
hill again, grasp the skyflower tightly in your hand, jump
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off the cloud horse, and you will float gracefully down
to the earth. It won't hurt you. Then you can
go home, and I hope you will not be late
for dinner. But began Neville. I can't understand. My time
is valuable, said the wee yellow man, as he shook hands.
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Good bye, and a pleasant journey. With that, he smacked
the cloud horse smartly on the flank, and in a
moment it was racing into the west at a most
terrific pace. Of course, now that aeroplanes have been invented,
flying is not thought so wonderful as once it was.
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But loafing along through the air in a biplane or
a monoplane at eighty or one hundred miles an hour
is a very tame business when you compare it with
racing the day round the world on a cloud horse,
and Neville is very probably the only person who has
ever done that. Yet almost before he knew what had happened,
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he had left evening far behind and was riding in
broad daylight. The cloud horse had ridden high in the air,
and Neville saw the broad country with plains and hills
and forest lands stretched far beneath him. An instant later
and the land was no longer below him, but the
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wide sea, sparkling in brilliant sunlight. Before he had time
to notice very much, he had reached midday, high over
a strange foreign land, and was racing through the morning
toward the dawn. So quickly did he go that there
was little chance of seeing anything clearly, But he had
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glimpses of many strange sights. Many ships he saw upon
the sea, small ships and stately steamers crawling over the
ocean like strange water beetles. Once says the cloud horse
drifted low, Nevill saw a beautiful sailing ship, with all
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sails set, and strange looking men upon the deck. They
looked very like pirates, and perhaps they were, but Nevill
had no time to make sure, for the very next
minute he was over a wild land where he saw
a horde of black men with spears and clubs, hunting
an elephant through a clearing in a great jungle. As
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he looked, the elephant turned to charge the hunters. But
what happened then Nevill did not see, for in a
moment more he was above a great city, with crowds
of people in the streets, people dressed in strange, bright
colored clothes, and there were bells ringing and whistles blowing.
Then a great desert spread beneath him, with no living
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thing in sight, but a great tawny lion prowling over
the sand. Then came the sea again, and moor ships,
and the lights began to grow dim, For he was
nearly half way round the earth and was approaching the dawn.
Dimmer grew the light and dimmer, yet, just as though
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evening were coming. And before him, Nevill saw the dawn
like a silvery gateway in the sky. Straight toward it,
the cloud horse rushed and stopped so suddenly that never
almost fell off. What's all this, what's all? This? Cried
a small voice, and Nevill saw beside the silver gateway
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a little man dressed from top to toe in silver gray.
It was the porter of the dawn, sometimes called the
first sunbeam. Before Nevell could answer, the little gray man
had caught sight of the sky flower. Ah, you have
the talisman, said he pass in, and don't stop to gossip,
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because I'm very busy this morning. A pleasant journey, he added,
as he smacked the cloud horse on the shoulder, and
in an instant Nevill had passed through the dawn and
plunged into the night. It was a dark night with
no moon, for the sky was overcast with dense clouds.
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Above these, the cloud horse flew, and overhead Nevill saw
the rushing stars, and below only the blackness of head
feed clouds. But more often the cloud horse flew low,
and then there was little to be seen by the
lights of moving ships. Nevill knew that sometimes he was
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above the sea. Sometimes twinkling lights in towns or solitary farms,
or the sudden blaze of a great city told him
that the land was beneath him. Once through the blackness
he saw a great forest fire upon an island, and
the light of it lit up the sea and showed
the natives crowded upon the beach and in the shallows,
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and some making off in canoes. Then darkness swallowed the
cloud horse again, and the blazing island was left far behind.
After that, Nevill began to feel a little drowsy. Perhaps
he did sleep a little, for the next thing he
saw was a faint light in the sky before him,
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as though the dawn were coming. But he knew it
must be the evening, because he was coming back to
the place from which he had started and was catching
up with the sun. You see, he had only been
gone a few minutes. The cloud horse flew very low now,
and rapidly the darkness grew less. Then, long before he
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expected it, Nevill saw the roof of his own home
below him. He could see the garden in the twilight,
and his own dog sniffing about among the trees, as
though in search of him. Nevill began to think about
jumping now, and he was rather nervous. He might land
softly and he might not. He only had the wee
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yellow man's word for that. Then, to his horror, he
saw that they had passed his home and were over
the bald hill. There was no time to lose. The
cloud horse was taking him into the sunset again, and
if he did, what would The head scene shift to say, then, so,
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grasping the sky flower very tightly, Neville closed his eyes
and jumped. He half expected to fall quickly and be
dashed to pieces upon the earth. But instead he floated
in the air like a feather, swaying and drifting and
slowly sinking all the time towards the ground. It was
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a very pleasant sensation. Indeed, the bald hill was beneath him.
As he came slowly down, down, down, he could see
the cloud horse, now little more than a small white speck,
rushing on to catch the sunset. And still he sank down,
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ever so slowly, towards the top of the bald hill.
His little dog had caught sight of him now and
came rushing out the gate and up the bald hill,
barking loud. And he kept on sinking, nearer to the earth,
down down, nearer and nearer, And then quite suddenly he
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seemed to forget everything. The next thing Neville remembered was
feeling something wet and warm upon his cheek. He opened
his eyes and saw that the little dog was licking
his face. Sitting up, he looked about him. He was
in the grass on the top of the bald hill.
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Night was very near, and the first star was just
beginning to twinkle. Then quite suddenly Nevill remembered the cloud horse,
and the little yellow man, and the little silver man,
and the head scene shifter, and the wonderful journey and
all the rest of it. Well, what a remarkable dream,
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said Neville, stretching his arms, and as he did so,
the skyflower fell from his hand. So it was not
a dream after all, For if it was, how could
he explain that sky flower? He picked it up and
carried it very tenderly as he set off home to dinner,
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his little dog trotting at his heels. What a beautiful flower,
said Nevill's mother when he got home. Where ever, did
you get it? It is a piece of the genuine sky,
said Nevill proudly as he gave it to her. His
mother smiled at him as she said, that is a
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very nice thing to say, and it certainly does look
like a little piece of the sky. But of course
it couldn't possibly be a real piece. Then Nevill knew
that if he were to tell the story of his
wonderful ride, and tried to explain that he had been
right around the world since he went out to place.
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His parents would find it very very hard to believe,
so he said nothing but ate a very good dinner.
But Nevill's mother put the flower in a vase upon
the mantle, and to this day it is still there,
as fresh and bright as ever. It will not fade.
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Nevill's mother thinks that it is a very strange and
wonderful thing, and so it is since that day. When
Nevill goes to the top of the Bald Hill to
watch a sunset, he is almost sure that, just as
the golden light is fading, he can see a little
yellow man by the gateway, and it seems to him
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that the little yellow man waves a cheery greeting. But
whether this is so or not, Neville always waves back,
and he feels very happy to think that he has
a good friend inside the sunset. End of The Boy
Who Rode Into the Sunset by C. J. Dennis
The Boy who Rode into the Sunset by C. J. Dennis.
Once upon a time, it was not so very long ago, either,
A little boy named Neville lived with his people in
a house which was almost in the country. That is
to say, it was just at the edge of the city,
(00:21):
and at the back of the house was a rather
large hill which was quite bald. Neville, who was fond
of playing by himself, would often wander to the top
of the bald hill, and if he stood right on
top of it and looked one way toward the east,
he could see right over the city with all its
(00:41):
tall buildings and domes and spires and smoking chimneys. But
looking the other way to the west, he could see
for miles over the beautiful country with its green fields
and orchards and white roads and little farm houses. One evening,
Neville was playing alone on the top of the hill
(01:03):
when he noticed that one of the very finest sunsets
he had ever seen was just coming on the sky
in the west. Away over the broad country lands was
filled with little clouds of all sorts and shapes, and
they were just beginning to take on the most wonderful colors.
(01:24):
Nevill had often before amused himself with watching clouds and
the strange shapes into which they changed themselves, sometimes like
great mountain ranges, sometimes like sea waves, and very often
like elephants and lions and seals, and all manner of
interesting things of that sort. But never before had he
(01:49):
been able to make out so many animal shapes in
the clouds. The sky was almost as good as a zoo.
There were kangaroos and elephants, and a hen with chickens,
and wallabies and rabbits, and a funny man with large ears,
and all sorts of other peculiar shapes. The sun was
(02:11):
sinking behind a distant range of hills, where a golden
light shone out as if through a gateway. It was
so much like a great golden gateway that Nevill fell
to wondering what might be found on the other side
of it. Suddenly, right in the middle of all the
colored clouds, he saw one little cloud which was perfectly white,
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And as he watched it, he noticed that it seemed
to be shaped like a small horse, a very small horse,
it seemed, at that distance. But as Neville gazed, it
grew bigger and bigger, just as if it were coming
toward him very fast, and he was almost certain he
could see its legs moving. That startled him a little,
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and so he rubbed his eyes to make sure that
they were not playing him tricks. When he looked again,
he was more startled than ever, for the little white
cloud was no longer a cloud, but a little white
horse in real earnest. Besides, it had just left the
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sky and was galloping down the mountain range, which he
could see away in the west. In two minutes, it
had left the range and was coming across the fields
towards him, jumping the fences, dodging under the trees, and
racing across the plain, with its white mane and tail
tossing as it came. It seemed to be making straight
(03:43):
for him. He was not really frightened, you must not
think that about him. But he was just beginning to
wonder if it were not nearly time to go home
to dinner, when he noticed that the white horse had
stopped just as the foot of the bald hill. It
was looking up at him, tossing its head and pawing
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the ground, the most beautiful white horse that he had
ever seen, even in a circus. Then it appeared to
get over its excitement and began to trot quietly up
the hill toward him. I do not think anyone would
have blamed Neville if he had decided then to go
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home to dinner at once. But he was rather a
brave boy, and he was certainly very curious. So he
just stood still and waited. And here is where the
most wonderful part of the story begins. The white horse
trotted up to Neville and spoke to him that would
(04:50):
surprise most people, and Neville was certainly as much surprised
as anyone else would have been. What are your fright
and off, asked the white horse in a loud voice.
Now Neville was just a little frightened by this time,
but he was not going to show it, so he
just said, who's frightened? You're frightened, said the white horse,
(05:17):
louder than ever. You're only a timid little boy. I
thought when I saw you in the distance that you
were one of the plucky ones. But I was mistaken.
You're just a little cowardly custard. You'd better be careful
who you're talking to, said Neville, suddenly losing his fear.
(05:38):
Little boys do not always talk good grammar, Otherwise he
would have said whom not whom he hated to be
called a cowardly custard. You'd better be careful or I'll
give you a bang. Ah ha, cried the white horse.
Very brave all at once, aren't you all the same.
(06:00):
You're afraid to come near and stroke me. But I
don't want to stroke you, said Neville. I thought not,
replied the white horse. I thought not the moment I
got close to you. You're one of the frightened ones,
and I've been wasting my time. Who's frightened? Said Neville. Again,
(06:24):
you asked that before, replied the white horse. And I
told you, if you're not frightened, to come along and
stroke me. There's nothing to be afraid of. So Nevill
walked right up to the white horse and stroked his shoulder,
And at once he felt that he had been foolish
(06:46):
to hold back, for of all the smooth, soft, silky
coats he had ever stroked, that of the white horse
was certainly the smoothest and the softest and the silkiest.
He felt that he could go on stroking it for hours.
There now, said the white horse, in a voice as
(07:09):
soft and silky as his coat. There was nothing to
be afraid of, was there? And I think that perhaps
I was mistaken about you. I rather think you might
be one of those daring boys that one reads about
in stories. What about jumping on my back for a
(07:29):
little ride? Nevill ceased to stroke the white horse and
drew back a little. I'm afraid they'll be expecting me
home for dinner, he said. I'm very pleased indeed to
have met you. Nevill was always a polite little boy,
the very thing, cried the white horse. Jump on my back,
(07:53):
and I'll take you home. You liked stroking me, didn't you.
Well that's nothing to the ride you will enjoy, simply nothing.
Why all the boldest riders in the world would give
their ears just for one little ride on my back? Now?
Then one, two, three, and up you go. Then, before
(08:17):
Nevill quite knew what he was doing, he made a
little run and leapt up a stride of the white horse.
I live just over there, said Nevill, pointing towards his home.
But before he could say knife or even scissors, supposing
he had wished to say either of these words, the
white horse laughed, a nasty, hollow laugh, sprang upwards from
(08:40):
the ground, and was soaring through the air toward the
dying sunset, right away from home and dinner. Neville clung
on tightly, for he was so high above the earth
that to fall off would mean the end of him.
And far beneath him he saw the green fields and
(09:01):
the white road, which now seemed like a mere thread.
That's not fair. Whoa back, whoa back? He shouted to
the white horse, But the white horse made no reply. Indeed,
he seemed suddenly not so much like a white horse
as like a white cloud shaped like a horse. And
(09:23):
Neville saw that he no longer sat upon the horse's
silky coat, but upon something soft and downy, like a
white fleece, and it was slightly damp. Then he knew
that he was riding upon a cloud. And as it
was quite absurd to go on talking to a cloud,
(09:44):
he ceased to cry out. He just sat tight and
wondered what would happen next. He was high over a
farm house, now, one that he used to see from
the bald hill. He knew it by the tall pine
trees that grew round and down in the farm yard.
He saw a man with a bucket going out to
(10:04):
feed the calves. Nevill called loudly to him, but the
man did not even look up. Now he was far
beyond that farmhouse and above an orchard, where he saw
the fruit trees standing in straight rows, And a few
seconds later the mountain range was beneath him, and Neville
(10:24):
knew that the cloud that looked like a horse was
making straight for the golden Gateway, which was now glowing
dully in a gray sky. He was riding into the sunset,
swiftly as the wind that drove it the cloud horse
drifted over the mountain range. There was a sudden glow
(10:47):
of golden light all about him, and then a flash
of color so wonderful that Nevill could not bear to look.
He closed his eyes, and as he did so, he
felt that the cloud horse had come to a halt
at last. So Nevill sat upon the cloud, not daring
(11:07):
to open his eyes, for quite a long time. When
at last he did look again, he almost fainted with
the wonder of it. He was inside the sunset, but
scarcely had he begun to enjoy the wonderful sight when
he was startled by the sound of a funny, shrill,
(11:30):
little voice close by his side. Looking down, he saw
a strange little man, no taller than a walking stick,
and dressed from top to toe in golden yellow clothes.
My stars, said the wee yellow man. How did you
manage to get in here? Don't you know this is private?
(11:54):
I'm very sorry, said Neville, but I couldn't help it.
The cloud horse brought me, you know, ah, said the
wee yellow Man. He tricked you, did he? He is
much too playful, that cloud horse, and I must say
he's put you in a pretty fix. Excuse me, said Neville,
(12:17):
But do you mind telling me who you are? I
cried the little yellow man. Why I'm the last sunbeam?
Of course? I thought you knew that. My job, you know,
is to shut up the show when the sunset is over.
And it's pretty hard work, I can tell you, because
(12:38):
I've got to keep on doing it all round the
earth every few minutes or so, and it gets very
tiresome at times. Would you believe it. I've never seen
at dawn or a bright midday in all my life.
Just sunsets all the time, Sunsets for breakfast, sunsets for dinner,
(12:58):
sunsets for supper. And if I make the tidiest little slip.
The head seen shifter is down on me like a
ton of bricks. Goodness me, said Nevill. I didn't know
you had seen shifters here. Neville had been to see
pantomimes and therefore knew what a scene shifter was. Then
(13:21):
how do you think we shift the scenes? Cried the
wee yellow man rather crossly. Then he suddenly became very
busy about nothing, as he whispered, look out here, the
head scene shifter coming. Now. Looking back, Nevill saw coming
towards them a man with very large ears. He was
(13:44):
not a nice looking man, and he was extremely like
the cloud man that Nevill had sometimes seen in the
sky when he went to look at the sunset from
the bald hill. Now then, now, then, roared the man
with the large ears. Move yourself there, goldie. We shut
up the show here in a few minutes and open
(14:05):
at once on the next range. See that you have
that curtain down on time. Certain litter, replied the little
yellow man very humbly. Then the man with the large
ears noticed Neville for the first time. He frowned darkly,
and his big ears seemed to flap with annoyance. Who
(14:27):
is this on our cloud horse? He roared in his
great angry voice. Just a little boy, said the yellow man,
for Neville was far too frightened to speak, just a
little boy, that the cloud horse has been playing tricks on.
I think you'd like to be getting home just over
(14:48):
by the bald hill if you don't mind, sir. Certainly not,
shouted the man with the large ears. The cloud horse
is not to go out there again tonight, nor the
silly little boy either. I'm not going to have the
sun set up set by any such silly nonsense. You
mind what I say and attend to your work, And
(15:11):
without another glance at Neville, the man with the large
ears strode off to arrange for the sunset on the
next range, miles and miles away. Neville gazed at the
wee yellow man hopelessly, and the wee yellow man gazed
at Neville, and neither spoke a word until the man
with the large ears was well out of the way.
(15:35):
Then the last sunbeam grew quite cheerful again. Well said
he You heard what the head seen, Schipter said. You
certainly can't go home by the way you came. The
only thing for you to do is to go round.
You'll just about have time to do it. If you hurry,
(15:55):
go round, repeated Neville in a puzzled voice. Go round,
what round? Where? Round the world? Of course, replied the
little yellow man. Round the world, cried Neville. Why you
must be making fun of me? And I think that
is very unkind. Not a bit of it, laughed the
(16:20):
little yellow Man. You need not make such a fuss
about it. Why I go round the world once every
day with the sunset. You have only to go a
bit faster so as to do it in a few minutes.
And with the cloud horse to help you, that's easily managed.
Don't you worry about the cloud horse. He has got
to do just whatever I tell him. Now, excuse me
(16:43):
for one moment, and I'll give you full directions. With that,
the wee yellow man went behind the pink cloud and
came back with a beautiful blue flower in his hand. This,
he said, handing the flower to Neville, is a sky flower.
(17:03):
It is made entirely out of a genuine piece of sky,
and it is a talisman that's a longer word for charm,
you know, which takes you free round the world. The
one thing you have to remember is that you mustn't
on any account lose that flower until you get home again. Now,
(17:25):
just exactly what you have to do is to travel
west and place round the world until you catch up
with this evening again. It is quite simple, simple, cried Neville.
Why I don't understand it at all, dear me, said
the wee yellow man, rather impatiently. You are very dense.
(17:49):
Now listen carefully. The world, you know, turns round from
west to east, and that makes it seem as if
the sun is going round the world from east to west.
Very well, So what you have to do is to
ride west upon the cloud horse much faster than the
(18:11):
sun appears to travel, and catch him up again before
he gets well away from here. The cloud horse is
in good condition, and you should easily do it in
a few minutes. A few minutes, gasped Neffelle. Keep quiet
and listen, snapped the wee yellow man. A few miles
(18:32):
west from here, you will come into broad daylight. That
will be afternoon. After that you will meet midday, and
passing that you will reach the place where it is
only dawn. That's about half way round the earth. Show
the skyflower to the porter of the dawn, and he
will let you through. Then you get to the half
(18:55):
of the world where it is night, and you must
race round that till you reach the place where it
is only evening. That will be this evening, somewhere about here,
For you will have taken only a few minutes altogether.
And when you see your own home or the bald
hill again, grasp the skyflower tightly in your hand, jump
(19:19):
off the cloud horse, and you will float gracefully down
to the earth. It won't hurt you. Then you can
go home, and I hope you will not be late
for dinner. But began Neville. I can't understand. My time
is valuable, said the wee yellow man, as he shook hands.
(19:41):
Good bye, and a pleasant journey. With that, he smacked
the cloud horse smartly on the flank, and in a
moment it was racing into the west at a most
terrific pace. Of course, now that aeroplanes have been invented,
flying is not thought so wonderful as once it was.
(20:02):
But loafing along through the air in a biplane or
a monoplane at eighty or one hundred miles an hour
is a very tame business when you compare it with
racing the day round the world on a cloud horse,
and Neville is very probably the only person who has
ever done that. Yet almost before he knew what had happened,
(20:26):
he had left evening far behind and was riding in
broad daylight. The cloud horse had ridden high in the air,
and Neville saw the broad country with plains and hills
and forest lands stretched far beneath him. An instant later
and the land was no longer below him, but the
(20:49):
wide sea, sparkling in brilliant sunlight. Before he had time
to notice very much, he had reached midday, high over
a strange foreign land, and was racing through the morning
toward the dawn. So quickly did he go that there
was little chance of seeing anything clearly, But he had
(21:13):
glimpses of many strange sights. Many ships he saw upon
the sea, small ships and stately steamers crawling over the
ocean like strange water beetles. Once says the cloud horse
drifted low, Nevill saw a beautiful sailing ship, with all
(21:33):
sails set, and strange looking men upon the deck. They
looked very like pirates, and perhaps they were, but Nevill
had no time to make sure, for the very next
minute he was over a wild land where he saw
a horde of black men with spears and clubs, hunting
an elephant through a clearing in a great jungle. As
(21:56):
he looked, the elephant turned to charge the hunters. But
what happened then Nevill did not see, for in a
moment more he was above a great city, with crowds
of people in the streets, people dressed in strange, bright
colored clothes, and there were bells ringing and whistles blowing.
Then a great desert spread beneath him, with no living
(22:21):
thing in sight, but a great tawny lion prowling over
the sand. Then came the sea again, and moor ships,
and the lights began to grow dim, For he was
nearly half way round the earth and was approaching the dawn.
Dimmer grew the light and dimmer, yet, just as though
(22:44):
evening were coming. And before him, Nevill saw the dawn
like a silvery gateway in the sky. Straight toward it,
the cloud horse rushed and stopped so suddenly that never
almost fell off. What's all this, what's all? This? Cried
a small voice, and Nevill saw beside the silver gateway
(23:06):
a little man dressed from top to toe in silver gray.
It was the porter of the dawn, sometimes called the
first sunbeam. Before Nevell could answer, the little gray man
had caught sight of the sky flower. Ah, you have
the talisman, said he pass in, and don't stop to gossip,
(23:29):
because I'm very busy this morning. A pleasant journey, he added,
as he smacked the cloud horse on the shoulder, and
in an instant Nevill had passed through the dawn and
plunged into the night. It was a dark night with
no moon, for the sky was overcast with dense clouds.
(23:51):
Above these, the cloud horse flew, and overhead Nevill saw
the rushing stars, and below only the blackness of head
feed clouds. But more often the cloud horse flew low,
and then there was little to be seen by the
lights of moving ships. Nevill knew that sometimes he was
(24:12):
above the sea. Sometimes twinkling lights in towns or solitary farms,
or the sudden blaze of a great city told him
that the land was beneath him. Once through the blackness
he saw a great forest fire upon an island, and
the light of it lit up the sea and showed
the natives crowded upon the beach and in the shallows,
(24:35):
and some making off in canoes. Then darkness swallowed the
cloud horse again, and the blazing island was left far behind.
After that, Nevill began to feel a little drowsy. Perhaps
he did sleep a little, for the next thing he
saw was a faint light in the sky before him,
(24:57):
as though the dawn were coming. But he knew it
must be the evening, because he was coming back to
the place from which he had started and was catching
up with the sun. You see, he had only been
gone a few minutes. The cloud horse flew very low now,
and rapidly the darkness grew less. Then, long before he
(25:20):
expected it, Nevill saw the roof of his own home
below him. He could see the garden in the twilight,
and his own dog sniffing about among the trees, as
though in search of him. Nevill began to think about
jumping now, and he was rather nervous. He might land
softly and he might not. He only had the wee
(25:43):
yellow man's word for that. Then, to his horror, he
saw that they had passed his home and were over
the bald hill. There was no time to lose. The
cloud horse was taking him into the sunset again, and
if he did, what would The head scene shift to say, then, so,
(26:03):
grasping the sky flower very tightly, Neville closed his eyes
and jumped. He half expected to fall quickly and be
dashed to pieces upon the earth. But instead he floated
in the air like a feather, swaying and drifting and
slowly sinking all the time towards the ground. It was
(26:26):
a very pleasant sensation. Indeed, the bald hill was beneath him.
As he came slowly down, down, down, he could see
the cloud horse, now little more than a small white speck,
rushing on to catch the sunset. And still he sank down,
(26:47):
ever so slowly, towards the top of the bald hill.
His little dog had caught sight of him now and
came rushing out the gate and up the bald hill,
barking loud. And he kept on sinking, nearer to the earth,
down down, nearer and nearer, And then quite suddenly he
(27:10):
seemed to forget everything. The next thing Neville remembered was
feeling something wet and warm upon his cheek. He opened
his eyes and saw that the little dog was licking
his face. Sitting up, he looked about him. He was
in the grass on the top of the bald hill.
(27:31):
Night was very near, and the first star was just
beginning to twinkle. Then quite suddenly Nevill remembered the cloud horse,
and the little yellow man, and the little silver man,
and the head scene shifter, and the wonderful journey and
all the rest of it. Well, what a remarkable dream,
(27:54):
said Neville, stretching his arms, and as he did so,
the skyflower fell from his hand. So it was not
a dream after all, For if it was, how could
he explain that sky flower? He picked it up and
carried it very tenderly as he set off home to dinner,
(28:16):
his little dog trotting at his heels. What a beautiful flower,
said Nevill's mother when he got home. Where ever, did
you get it? It is a piece of the genuine sky,
said Nevill proudly as he gave it to her. His
mother smiled at him as she said, that is a
(28:38):
very nice thing to say, and it certainly does look
like a little piece of the sky. But of course
it couldn't possibly be a real piece. Then Nevill knew
that if he were to tell the story of his
wonderful ride, and tried to explain that he had been
right around the world since he went out to place.
(29:00):
His parents would find it very very hard to believe,
so he said nothing but ate a very good dinner.
But Nevill's mother put the flower in a vase upon
the mantle, and to this day it is still there,
as fresh and bright as ever. It will not fade.
(29:23):
Nevill's mother thinks that it is a very strange and
wonderful thing, and so it is since that day. When
Nevill goes to the top of the Bald Hill to
watch a sunset, he is almost sure that, just as
the golden light is fading, he can see a little
yellow man by the gateway, and it seems to him
(29:47):
that the little yellow man waves a cheery greeting. But
whether this is so or not, Neville always waves back,
and he feels very happy to think that he has
a good friend inside the sunset. End of The Boy
Who Rode Into the Sunset by C. J. Dennis
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