Then the Gothic little spirits threw a great many double somersaults for joy; and put the tips of their tongues out slyly to each other, on one side; and I heard the Egyptians say, “they must be some new kind of frog—­they didn’t think there was much building in them.”  However, the stiff old workers took their rods, as I said, and measured out a square space of sand; but as soon as the German spirits saw that, they declared they wanted exactly that bit of ground to build on, themselves.  Then the Egyptian builders offered to go farther off and the German ones said, “Ja wohl.”  But as soon as the Egyptians had measured out another square, the little Germans said they must have some of that too.  Then Neith’s people laughed; and said, “they might take as much as they liked, but they would not move the plan of their pyramid again.”  Then the little Germans took three pieces, and began to build three spires directly; one large, and two little.  And when the Egyptians saw they had fairly begun, they laid their foundation all round, of large square stones:  and began to build, so steadily that they had like to have swallowed up the three little German spires.  So when the Gothic spirits saw that, they built their spires leaning, like the tower of Pisa, that they might stick out at the side of the pyramid.  And Neith’s people stared at them; and thought it very clever, but very wrong; and on they went, in their own way, and said nothing.  Then the little Gothic spirits were terribly provoked because they could not spoil the shape of the pyramid; and they sat down all along the ledges of it to make faces; but that did no good.  Then they ran to the corners, and put their elbows on their knees, and stuck themselves out as far as they could, and made more faces; but that did no good, neither.  Then they looked up to the sky, and opened their mouths wide, and gobbled, and said it was too hot for work, and wondered when it would rain; but that did no good, neither.  And all the while the Egyptian spirits were laying step above step patiently.  But when the Gothic ones looked, and saw how big they had got, they said, “Ach, Himmel!” and flew down in a great black cluster to the bottom; and swept out a level spot in the sand with their wings, in no time, and began building a tower straight up, as fast as they could.  And the Egyptians stood still again to stare at them; for the Gothic spirits had got quite into a passion, and were really working very wonderfully.  They cut the sandstone into strips as fine as reeds; and put one reed on the top of another, so that you could not see where they fitted:  and they twisted them in and out like basket work, and knotted them into likenesses of ugly faces, and of strange beasts biting each other; and up they went, and up still, and they made spiral staircases at the corners, for the loaded workers to come up by (for I saw they were but weak imps, and could not fly with stones on their backs), and then they made traceried