Peer could have sat there his whole life long and looked on， even if the sandwiches were all eaten—and they were all eaten.
Now here was something to tell about， when he gothome.It was impossible to get him to go to bed.He stood on one leg and laid the other on the table—that was what Samson's lover and all the other ladies had done. He madea treadmill out of Grandmother's chair and upset two chairsand a pillow over himself to show how the banquet hall had come down.He showed this—yes，and he even presented it with the music that belonged to it;there was no talking in the ballet. He sang high and low，[with words andwithout words，] and it was quite incoherent. It was like awhole opera. The most noticeable thing of all， meanwhile，was his beautiful， bell-clear voice， but no one spoke ofthat.
Peer previously had wanted to be a grocer's boy， tobe in charge of prunes and powdered sugar. Now he foundthere was something much more wonderful， and that was toget into the Samson story and dance in the ballet. A great many poor children had taken that road， said the grand-mother， and had become fine and honored people; yet no little girl of her family would ever be permitted to do so;but a boy—well， he stood more firmly. Peer had not seen a single one of the little girls fall down before the whole house fell， and then they all fell together， he said.
Ⅲ
Peer wanted to，and felt he must，be a ballet dancer.
"He gives me no rest!"said his mother.
At last， his grandmother promised to take him to theballet master， who was a fine gentleman and had his ownhouse， like the merchant. Would Peer ever be that rich?Nothing is impossible for our Lord.Peer had been born with a gold apple; luck had been laid in his hands—per-haps it was also in his legs.
Peer went to the ballet master and knew him at once;it was Samson himself.His eyes had not suffered atall at the hands of the Philistines. That was only acting inthe play， he was told. And Samson looked kindly and pleasantly at him， and told him to stand up straight， lookright at him， and show him his ankle.Peer showed his whole foot and leg， too.
"So be got a place in the ballet，"said Grandmother.
This was easily arranged with the ballet master;
but before that， his mother and grandmother had spo- ken with several understanding people—first with the merchant's wife， who thought it a good career for ahandsome， bonest boy like Peer， but without any fu- ture. Then they had spoken with Miss Frandsen; she knew all about the ballet， and at one time， in Grand-mother's younger days， she had been the most beauti-ful danseuse at the theater; she had danced goddesses and princesses， had been cheered and applauded wher-ever she had gone; but then she had grown older—weall do—and so no longer had she been given principal parts; she'd had to dance behind the younger ones;and when finally her dancing days had come to an end， she had become a wardrobe woman and dressed the others as goddesses and princesses.
"So it goes!"said Miss Frandsen."The theater road is a delightful one to travel， but it is full of thorns.Jealousy grows there!Jealousy!"
That was a word Peer did not understand at all;but he came to understand it in time.
"No force or power can keep him from the bal- let，"said his mother.
"A pious Christian child，that he is，"said Grandmother.
"And well brought up，"said Miss Frandsen.
"Well formed and moral! That I was in my heyday."
And so Peer went to the dancing school and got some summer clothes and thin-soled dancing shoes to make himself lighter.All the older girl dancers kissed him and said that he was a boy good enough to eat.
He had to stand up， stick his legs out， and hold on to a post so as not to fall， while he leaned to kick， firstwith his right leg， then with his left. It was not nearly sodifficult for him as it was for most of the others， The bal-let master patted him and said that he would soon be in the ballet; he was to play the child of a king who was carried on shields and wore a gold crown. This was prac-ticed at the dancing school and rehearsed at the theater itself.
The mother and grandmother had to see little Peer in all his glory， and when they saw this， they both cried， al-though it was such a happy occasion. Peer， in all his pomp and glory， did not see them at all; but he did see the mer-chant's family， who sat in the loge nearest the stage.LittleFelix was with them，[in his best clothes.]He wore but- toned gloves，just like a grown-up gentleman， and although he could see perfectly well，he looked through an opera glass the whole evening， just like a grown-up gentleman.