the little prince visits themplighter
the fifth was very strange. it was the smallest of all. there was just enough room on it for a streetmp and amplighter. the little prince was not able to reach any exnation of the use of a streetmp and amplighter, somewhere in the heavens, on a which had no people, and not one house. but he said to himself, nevertheless:
"it may well be that this man is absurd. but he is not so absurd as the king, the conceited man, the businessman, and the tippler. for at least his work has some meaning. when he lights his streetmp, it is as if he brought one more star to life, or one flower. when he puts out his mp, he sends the flower, or the star, to sleep. that is a beautiful upation. and since it is beautiful, it is truly useful."
when he arrived on the he respectfully saluted themplighter.
"good morning. why have you just put out yourmp?"
"those are the orders," replied themplighter. "good morning."
"what are the orders?"
"the orders are that i put out mymp. good evening."
and he lighted hismp again.
"but why have you just lighted it again?"
"those are the orders," replied themplighter.
"i do not understand," said the little prince.
"there is nothing to understand," said themplighter. "orders are orders. good morning."
and he put out hismp.
then he mopped his forehead with a handkerchief decorated with red squares.
"i follow a terrible profession. in the old days it was reasonable. i put themp out in the morning, and in the evening i lighted it again. i had the rest of the day for rxation and the rest of the night for sleep."
"and the orders have been changed since that time?"
"the orders have not been changed," said themplighter. "that is the tragedy! from year to year the has turned more rapidly and the orders have not been changed!"
"then what?" asked the little prince.
"then-- the now makes aplete turn every minute, and i no longer have a single second for repose. once every minute i have to light mymp and put it out!"
"that is very funny! a daysts only one minute, here where you live!"
"it is not funny at all!" said themplighter. "while we have been talking together a month has gone by."
"a month?"
"yes, a month. thirty minutes. thirty days. good evening."
and he lighted hismp again.
as the little prince watched him, he felt that he loved thismplighter who was so faithful to his orders. he remembered the sunsets which he himself had gone to seek, in other days, merely by pulling up his chair; and he wanted to help his friend.
"you know," he said, "i can tell you a way you can rest whenever you want to…"
"i always want to rest," said themplighter.
for it is possible for a man to be faithful andzy at the same time.
the little prince went on with his exnation:
"your is so small that three strides will take you all the way around it. to be always in the sunshine, you need only walk along rather slowly. when you want to rest, you will walk-- and the day willst as long as you like."
"that doesn''t do me much good," said themplighter. "the one thing i love in life is to sleep."
"then you''re unlucky," said the little prince.
"i am unlucky," said themplighter. "good morning."
and he put out hismp.
"that man," said the little prince to himself, as he continued farther on his journey, "that man would be scorned by all the others: by the king, by the conceited man, by the tippler, by the businessman. nevertheless he is the only one of them all who does not seem to me ridiculous. perhaps that is because he is thinking of something else besides himself."
he breathed a sigh of regret, and said to himself, again:
"that man is the only one of them all whom i could have made my friend. but his is indeed too small. there is no room on it for two people…"
what the little prince did not dare confess was that he was sorry most of all to leave this, because it was blest every day with 1440 sunsets!
the fifth was very strange. it was the smallest of all. there was just enough room on it for a streetmp and amplighter. the little prince was not able to reach any exnation of the use of a streetmp and amplighter, somewhere in the heavens, on a which had no people, and not one house. but he said to himself, nevertheless:
"it may well be that this man is absurd. but he is not so absurd as the king, the conceited man, the businessman, and the tippler. for at least his work has some meaning. when he lights his streetmp, it is as if he brought one more star to life, or one flower. when he puts out his mp, he sends the flower, or the star, to sleep. that is a beautiful upation. and since it is beautiful, it is truly useful."
when he arrived on the he respectfully saluted themplighter.
"good morning. why have you just put out yourmp?"
"those are the orders," replied themplighter. "good morning."
"what are the orders?"
"the orders are that i put out mymp. good evening."
and he lighted hismp again.
"but why have you just lighted it again?"
"those are the orders," replied themplighter.
"i do not understand," said the little prince.
"there is nothing to understand," said themplighter. "orders are orders. good morning."
and he put out hismp.
then he mopped his forehead with a handkerchief decorated with red squares.
"i follow a terrible profession. in the old days it was reasonable. i put themp out in the morning, and in the evening i lighted it again. i had the rest of the day for rxation and the rest of the night for sleep."
"and the orders have been changed since that time?"
"the orders have not been changed," said themplighter. "that is the tragedy! from year to year the has turned more rapidly and the orders have not been changed!"
"then what?" asked the little prince.
"then-- the now makes aplete turn every minute, and i no longer have a single second for repose. once every minute i have to light mymp and put it out!"
"that is very funny! a daysts only one minute, here where you live!"
"it is not funny at all!" said themplighter. "while we have been talking together a month has gone by."
"a month?"
"yes, a month. thirty minutes. thirty days. good evening."
and he lighted hismp again.
as the little prince watched him, he felt that he loved thismplighter who was so faithful to his orders. he remembered the sunsets which he himself had gone to seek, in other days, merely by pulling up his chair; and he wanted to help his friend.
"you know," he said, "i can tell you a way you can rest whenever you want to…"
"i always want to rest," said themplighter.
for it is possible for a man to be faithful andzy at the same time.
the little prince went on with his exnation:
"your is so small that three strides will take you all the way around it. to be always in the sunshine, you need only walk along rather slowly. when you want to rest, you will walk-- and the day willst as long as you like."
"that doesn''t do me much good," said themplighter. "the one thing i love in life is to sleep."
"then you''re unlucky," said the little prince.
"i am unlucky," said themplighter. "good morning."
and he put out hismp.
"that man," said the little prince to himself, as he continued farther on his journey, "that man would be scorned by all the others: by the king, by the conceited man, by the tippler, by the businessman. nevertheless he is the only one of them all who does not seem to me ridiculous. perhaps that is because he is thinking of something else besides himself."
he breathed a sigh of regret, and said to himself, again:
"that man is the only one of them all whom i could have made my friend. but his is indeed too small. there is no room on it for two people…"
what the little prince did not dare confess was that he was sorry most of all to leave this, because it was blest every day with 1440 sunsets!