Explore "Children's Prattle" by Hans Christian Andersen on Textopian. Read with annotations and highlights.
At the merchant's house there was a large party of children -- rich people's children and great people's children. The merchant was a man of good standing in society, and a learned man. He had taken, in his youth, a college examination. He had been kept to his studies by his worthy father, who had not gone very deep into learning himself, but was honest and active. He had made money, and the merchant had increased the fortune left to him. He had intellect, and heart too; but less was said of these good qualities than of his money.
There visited at his house several distinguished persons, both people of birth, as it is called, and people of talents, as it is called -- people who came under both of these heads, and people who came under neither of these heads. The meeting now in question was a children's party, where there was childish talk; and children generally speak like parrots.