He thought himself dead, but suddenly he heard a kind of humming
noise, clear and acute, and saw a little golden gnat, which had a kind of
sting as fine and brilliant as a diamond needle, flying round the spider in
a furious manner, and a voice (when I say voice, just imagine the voice of
a gnat!)-a voice said to him, 'Poor little fly! you have saved flies; the
spider shall not---'
"Unfortunately, Gringalet awoke with a start, and he saw not the end of the
dream; nevertheless, he was a little comforted, saying to himself, 'Perhaps
the golden gnat with the diamond sting would have killed the spider if I
had seen the end of the dream.'
"But Gringalet had need of all this to console himself, for, as the night
advanced, his fear returned so strongly that in the end he forgot his
dream, or rather, he only remembered the frightful part of it; the great
web where he had been entangled, and the spider with the padrone's face.
You can judge what shiverings of alarm he must have had. Bless me! judge
then, alone--all alone--with no one to take his part!
"In the morning, when he saw the light appear little by little through the
garret-window, his alarm redoubled; the moment was drawing near when he
would be left all alone with Cut-in-half. Then he threw himself on his
knees in the middle of the garret, and weeping hot tears, he begged his
companions to ask his pardon from Cut-in-half, or to assist him to escape
if there was any way.
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