Andersen's fairy tales

The Emperor's horse was shod with gold - a golden shoe on each of its feet. And why was he getting golden shoes? He was a magnificent-looking animal, with slender legs, intelligent eyes, and a mane that hung down his neck like a soft veil of silk. He had carried his master through the smoke and flame of battle and heard the bullets sing and whistle around him; he had kicked and bitten those about him and done his share of the fighting whenever the enemy advanced; he had ...